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The linked article is about the origin of the "lake tank" image that has become a popular meme. The question explores the history of this image, which depicts a military tank partially submerged in a lake or river. The article suggests that the image may have originated from a real-world incident or training exercise, though the exact source is unclear. The discussion examines various theories and potential explanations for how this image gained traction and became widely recognized as a meme in internet culture.

The linked article is about AlphaQubit, a new quantum error correction system developed by Google's DeepMind team. The system uses deep reinforcement learning to optimize the performance of quantum circuits, which are essential for building reliable quantum computers. The article explains how AlphaQubit can help overcome the challenges of quantum error correction, which is a crucial step towards realizing the full potential of quantum computing. It also highlights the potential impact of this technology on the development of practical quantum computers.

The linked article is about Niantic's development of a large-scale geospatial machine learning model. The model aims to accurately represent the physical world, including roads, buildings, and other landmarks, in a 3D spatial context. This groundbreaking technology has the potential to enable more immersive augmented reality experiences and enhance location-based applications. The article highlights the challenges Niantic faced in creating this model and the potential benefits it can bring to the industry, laying the foundation for the next generation of location-based services and experiences.

The linked article is about analytical anti-aliasing, a technique used in computer graphics to improve the quality of rendered images. It discusses the limitations of traditional anti-aliasing methods and introduces analytical anti-aliasing, which calculates the exact coverage of each pixel by the underlying geometry, resulting in a more accurate and higher-quality image. The article explains the mathematical principles behind analytical anti-aliasing and how it can be implemented in real-time rendering engines, providing a more efficient and effective solution to the problem of aliasing artifacts.

The linked article is about using SQL to represent and query graph-like data structures. It discusses the concept of a "common table expression" (CTE) in SQL, which allows for the creation of recursive queries that can traverse and analyze graph-like data. The article provides examples of how to use CTEs to model and query various graph-like data structures, such as hierarchical data and social networks, within a relational database management system.

The linked article is about a collaboration between Microsoft and the Vatican to develop an AI-powered virtual assistant named LUIS. The virtual assistant is designed to help visitors navigate the Vatican's vast collection of art, artifacts, and historical information. The article discusses how LUIS is being trained to understand natural language and provide personalized recommendations to users based on their interests and preferences. The article also highlights the potential for this technology to enhance the visitor experience and make the Vatican's cultural heritage more accessible to a global audience.

The linked article is about the quality of American roads and the challenges the country faces in maintaining its infrastructure. It highlights the deteriorating condition of roads across the United States, with many roads and bridges in need of repair or replacement. The article discusses the factors contributing to this problem, including funding shortfalls, the aging of the road network, and the impact of extreme weather events. It also explores potential solutions, such as increased investment in infrastructure and the adoption of new technologies and materials to improve road durability and longevity.

The linked article is about MIT's new tuition policy for undergraduate students. Starting in the 2024-2025 academic year, MIT will provide full tuition coverage for students from families with incomes below $150,000 annually. This move aims to make MIT more accessible to students from lower and middle-income backgrounds, aligning with the institute's commitment to diversity and inclusion. The policy is expected to benefit around half of MIT's undergraduate population and further enhance the university's efforts to ensure a world-class education is within reach for talented students regardless of their financial circumstances.

The linked article is about the rope optimization techniques used in the Zed text editor. It explains how Zed's rope data structure, a type of self-balancing binary tree, is designed to efficiently handle large text documents by minimizing memory usage and providing fast text editing operations. The article delves into the specific techniques used, such as lazy node updates and in-place updates, and how they contribute to Zed's performance and scalability, particularly when working with large files.

Hey HN, we're Alexi and Jonas the co-founders of Autotab (https://autotab.com). Autotab is a chrome-based browser you can teach to do complex tasks, with a simple API for running them from your app or backend.

Here is a walkthrough of how it works: https://youtu.be/63co74JHy1k, and you can try it for free at https://autotab.com by downloading the app.

Why a dedicated editor?

The number one blocker we've found in building more flexible, agentic automations is performance quality BY FAR (https://www.langchain.com/stateofaiagents#barriers-and-chall...). For all the talk of cost, latency, and safety, the fact is most people are still just struggling to get agents to work. The keys to solving reliability are better models, yes, but also intent specification. Even humans don't zero-shot these tasks from a prompt. They need to be shown how to perform them, and then refined with question-asking + feedback over time. It is also quite difficult to formulate complete requirements on the spot from memory.

The editor makes it easy to build the specification up as you step through your workflow, while generating successful task trajectories for the model. This is the only way we've been able to get the reliability we need for production use cases.

But why build a browser?

Autotab started as a Chrome extension (with a Show HN post! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37943931). As we iterated with users, we realized that we needed to focus on creating the control surface for intent specification, and that being stuck in a chrome sidepanel wasn't going to work. We also knew that we needed a level of control for the model that we couldn't get without owning the browser. In Autotab, the browser becomes a canvas on which the user and the model are taking turns showing and explaining the task.

Key features:

1. Self-healing automations that don't break when sites change

2. Dedicated authoring tool that builds memory for the model while defining steps for the automation

3. Control flows and deep configurability to keep automations on track, even when navigating complex reasoning tasks

4. Works with any website (no site-specific APIs needed)

5. Runs securely in the cloud or locally

6. Simple REST API + client libraries for Python, Node

We'd love to get any early feedback from the HN community, ideas for where you'd like the product to go, or experiences in this space. We will be in the comments for the next few hours to respond!

The linked article is about the current state of artificial intelligence (AI) and the potential for another "AI winter" - a period of reduced funding and research interest in the field. The article discusses the history of AI hype cycles, the current challenges facing the field, and the need for more realistic expectations and long-term investment in fundamental research to ensure the continued progress and societal benefits of AI technology.

From the post:

Blossom is an open-source robot platform for human-robot interaction (HRI) research that I developed during my PhD. I’ve used Blossom for research in design, machine learning, and telepresence; others have made Blossoms for their own research purposes. I have continued working on “rebuilding” the entire platform: I redesigned the inner frame as a model kit, complete with Gunpla-inspired runners and instructions, and refactored the codebase as r0b0, a Python library for communicating between hardware peripherals and software applications. In preparation to present Blossom at Maker Faire Coney Island, I refined the telepresence interface and enabled conversational interaction with a language model. The new repository is available on GitHub and includes documentation for construction.

The linked article is about Prusa's decision to discontinue their Core One 3D printer, marking the end of their open-source hardware dream. The article discusses how Prusa, a company known for its commitment to open-source principles, has shifted its focus to more proprietary products, disappointing the community that has supported the brand since its inception. The article also explores the implications of this decision for the future of open-source hardware and the potential impact on the broader 3D printing industry.

Show HN: Cardo - Open Source Desktop Podcast Client

Hi, I'm an amateur developer from Spain. I have released this desktop podcast client that works on Windows, Mac and Linux.

It's a modest project, but it might be useful for you, it has syncing capabilities with Antennapod, Kasts, Repod or other clients. You can manage your subscriptions, queue episodes and even download them to listen to later.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

The linked article is about the launch of the Bsky social network, which is a new decentralized social media platform built on the ActivityPub protocol. The post discusses the potential of Bsky to provide an alternative to traditional social media platforms and emphasizes the importance of user control and privacy in the platform's design.

The linked article is about the release of internal Google employee messages in an antitrust lawsuit against the company. The messages reveal discussions among employees about allegedly anticompetitive practices, such as efforts to clamp down on competitors and manipulate search results. The article explores the implications of these revelations for Google's legal battles and public perception, as the tech giant faces increasing scrutiny over its dominance in the digital advertising and search markets.

The linked article is about a YouTube video that explores the concept of AI ethics and the potential risks and concerns associated with the development and deployment of artificial intelligence. The video discusses the importance of ensuring that AI systems are designed and used in a responsible and ethical manner, and highlights the need for robust governance frameworks to address issues such as bias, privacy, and transparency.

This project is inspired by some of the asserts in Unreal engine.

Due to reliance on core_intrinsics it is necessary to develop using nightly Rust, but there are stubs in place so a production build will not require nightly.

I recently released version 0.2 which includes no_std support and adds optional log message arguments to the ensure macro.

The linked article is about a new open-source Python library called "fireducks" that aims to provide a faster and more efficient alternative to the popular Pandas library for data manipulation and analysis. The article highlights the key features of fireducks, including its ability to handle large datasets, perform operations up to 100 times faster than Pandas, and provide a familiar syntax for Pandas users. The article also discusses the potential benefits of using fireducks, such as improved performance and reduced computational resources, making it a potentially valuable tool for data-intensive applications.

The linked article is about the BM25 algorithm, which is a popular full-text search algorithm used in search engines. The article explains the basics of the BM25 algorithm, including how it calculates the relevance score of a document to a given query, and how it takes into account factors such as term frequency, document length, and document frequency. The article also discusses the strengths and limitations of the BM25 algorithm, and provides insights into how it can be used in real-world search applications.

The linked article is about the design constraints and considerations that the ENSO architecture team faced while developing their novel hardware-software co-designed architecture. It discusses the need for energy efficiency, reduced hardware complexity, and flexibility in hardware-software integration to enable scalable and high-performance computing. The article highlights the trade-offs and design choices made to balance these constraints, such as the use of a custom instruction set architecture and a hybrid memory system.

The linked article is about the pros and cons of buying ex-library books. It discusses how ex-library books can be a cost-effective option, providing access to rare and out-of-print titles, but they may also have library stamps, markings, and stickers that can detract from their condition. The article also covers the importance of thoroughly inspecting ex-library books before purchase and provides tips on finding high-quality ex-library copies.

The linked article is about the Pipe Viewer (pv) utility in Unix-like operating systems. Pipe Viewer is a command-line tool that displays the progress of data through a pipeline, providing information such as the transfer rate, the percentage of data processed, and the elapsed time. The article explains how Pipe Viewer can be used to monitor the progress of various operations, such as file transfers, database backups, and network traffic, making it a valuable tool for system administrators and developers.

The linked article is about a simple command-line tool called "recur" that allows users to execute a command repeatedly at a specified interval. The tool is written in Bash and can be used on Unix-like systems, including Linux and macOS. The article provides instructions on how to install and use "recur", and also includes examples of how to use the tool to monitor system resources, run backups, and more.

The linked article is about the political afterlife of John Milton's epic poem "Paradise Lost" and its interpretation by scholar Orlando Reade. The article discusses how Reade's book "The Political Afterlife of Paradise Lost" examines the poem's influence on political thought, particularly in the context of the English Civil War and the struggles over religious freedom and tyranny. The article highlights Reade's analysis of how "Paradise Lost" has been read and reinterpreted by different political factions over the centuries, shaping debates on topics such as the nature of sovereignty and the limits of state power.