Daniel Dennett’s essay collection “Brainstorms” explores deep philosophical questions about identity and consciousness in accessible, jargon-free language. One chapter, “Where Am I?,” has had a remarkable trajectory, inspiring a Hollywood film idea, a BBC documentary scene, and even a shadow puppet play. In the essay, Dennett recounts a fictional story of being asked to participate […]

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This project aims to recreate Kubernetes core functionality in NodeJS, with partial implementation of popular resources like Pods and Services. Some resources are fully implemented, while others may be in the works. Requirements include NodeJS v20, Docker Engine v25.0.3, and a MongoDB instance. The project recommends installing kubectl but it’s not mandatory. Follow instructions to […]

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In May 2024, the author discusses using Armbian-based single-board computers for hardware analysis and introduces the PiFex, a companion board for the Raspberry Pi, aimed at teaching hardware hacking. The PiFex offers interfaces like UART, SPI, I2C, JTAG, and SWD. Additionally, it features level shifters, a logic analyzer connector, and easy software setup through USB-Ethernet […]

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Espressif Systems recently released the ESP32-S3 SoC, with the promise of documentation and support. This new processor runs faster than its predecessors, but users have to put in more effort to utilize its hidden capabilities. The S3 has a minimal set of SIMD instructions, posing challenges for programmers to efficiently optimize their code. Some essential […]

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The author shares their journey of developing a browser-based tool to design customizable MDF furniture for their house, showcasing the power of CSS grid layout. They realized they needed a way to communicate their ideas clearly and efficiently to the designer overseeing the furniture manufacturing. By utilizing a unique text-based language input format, they were […]

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In this study, the relevance of $n$-gram language models in the age of large neural language models (LLMs) is explored. The authors argue that $n$-gram models are still valuable and can enhance neural LLMs. They present a groundbreaking approach by creating the largest $n$-gram LM ever, training it on 5 trillion tokens, and introducing an […]

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In a recent study funded by NASA’s Ames Space Biology grant, Dr. Kasthuri Venkateswaran of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory investigated the bacterial species Enterobacter bugandensis isolated from the International Space Station (ISS). Thirteen strains of the multi-drug resistant bacterium were analyzed and found to have mutated and adapted to the extreme environment of the ISS. […]

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The content discusses how to create a web page that can control an autopilot in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 using JavaScript. The author explains that the web page can interact with the game through SimConnect and web sockets, allowing for functions like toggling in-game settings and flying the plane from the web page. The process […]

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Bollards are physical barricades designed to prevent vehicles from crossing into certain areas. They can be movable or permanent, large or small. Local transportation departments often make questionable decisions when installing guardrails or bollards, which can lead to tragic accidents. Not having bollards in place can result in devastating consequences, such as the loss of […]

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The author shares their experience setting up smart plugs from athom.tech to monitor power consumption of various devices in their home. The plugs come pre-flashed with Tasmota firmware, making setup easy. They monitor power consumption of appliances like a water heater, home server, and workstation setup using Prometheus and Grafana. The author notices interesting patterns […]

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