TL;DR summary of stories on the internet
The article explores whether AI technology truly helps students learn, using a high school experiment as a cautionary tale. The University of Pennsylvania researchers found that although students with access to ChatGPT solved more practice problems correctly, they performed worse on a test compared to those without AI assistance. Even a more tutor-like version of […]
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The author discusses the idea of storing non-pointer values in unsafe.Pointer variables, exploring whether it could cause issues with Go’s garbage collector. Despite warnings, tests show that it does not crash immediately, but storing certain memory addresses can lead to a panic. The author advises against using unsafe.Pointer unless necessary, cautioning against keeping values around […]
Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 prototype recently completed its second test flight, marking progress towards supersonic flight. The flight from California’s Mojave Air and Space Port lasted 15 minutes, reaching an altitude of 10,400 feet and a speed of 277 mph. Unique features of the flight included testing landing gear retraction and extension for the first time, […]
Many scientific breakthroughs can be made right in your kitchen. In May 2024, two students and I conducted a study on the phenomenon of objects levitating in carbonated fluids, known as dancing raisins. Bubbles help objects like raisins move up and down in these fluids in a rhythmic motion. The bubbles cling to the objects, […]
Near-Earth Objects (NEO), including potentially hazardous asteroids, are constantly monitored by astronomers to assess any threat of impact with Earth. Recently, a small asteroid, approximately 1 meter wide, was discovered just hours before entering Earth’s atmosphere over the Philippines. The asteroid is expected to burn up, creating a bright fireball visible to observers. This marks […]
In 1986, composer Wendy Carlos introduced unique musical scales – alpha, beta, and gamma – that prioritize major and minor thirds and the perfect fifth over the octave. These scales were inspired by equal temperament and have been further developed by David Benson to create a variety of Carlos-type scales. This experimental piece challenges traditional […]
Because the Apple II lacks interrupts, game developers had to synchronize their main loops with the vertical blank of the screen to achieve smooth animation. Sound presented a unique challenge on the Apple II, as there were no interrupts to assist with audio playback. The introduction of sound add-on cards like the Mockingboard addressed this […]
The author explains their frustration with the complexity and unreliability of various cloud computing platforms, including PaaS. Despite the promise of abstracting away server infrastructure, PaaS options end up being expensive, unreliable, and still require significant manual configuration. The author argues that moving to self-managed VPS cuts out dangerous complexity and reduces friction, ultimately leading […]
Mathematics has played a crucial role in advancing physics for centuries. Albert Einstein praised its “triumph” in describing the fabric of spacetime in his theory of gravity. While math initially served to quantify and survey the physical world, it has evolved into a tool for profound breakthroughs in physics. Surprisingly, in recent times, insights from […]
DAGitty is a web tool for creating, editing, and analyzing causal diagrams to reduce bias in empirical studies in various fields. It is focused on aiding causal models in epidemiology and other disciplines. Developed by Johannes Textor at Radboud University, DAGitty allows users to download the source code, contribute to development, and get help through […]