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Things you can do with diodes
Paying homage to the component we usually don't think about.
Top posts
Every blog post that took off on Hacker News, ranked by the votes of its best submission. 422 posts.
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Old Soviet Venus descent craft nearing Earth reentry
That soon-to-reenter Cosmos 482 is getting increased attention by satellite trackers – and new imagery provides some interesting details.
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The Alpha Myth: How captive wolves led us astray
A wolf paces in captivity, teaching us all the wrong lessons about power
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Invisible Electrostatic Wall at 3M plant (1996)
SESSION 7: SPECIAL SESSION, 17th Annual EOS/ESD Symposium THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1995, 8:00 am SESSION 7: SPECIAL SESSION: ELECTROSTATIC CONSIDERATIONS IN INDUSTRY MODERATOR: D. Swenson, 3M 7.7 CASE STUDY - LARGE PLASTIC WEB ELECTROSTATIC PROBLEMS, RESULTS, AND CURE, D. Swenson, 3M Company Tremendous static charge…
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A new class of materials that can passively harvest water from air
Researchers from Penn Engineering have discovered nanostructured materials that can passively harvest water from the air without energy input, enabling water-harvesting systems for arid regions.
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ACM Transitions to Full Open Access
Open Access Publication & ACM
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Endometriosis is an interesting disease
5k words, 23 minutes reading time
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MIT asks arXiv to withdraw preprint of paper on AI and scientific discovery
Following the posting of the preprint paper “Artificial Intelligence, Scientific Discovery, and Product Innovation” on arXiv in November 2024, concerns were raised about the integrity of the research. MIT conducted an internal, confidential review and concluded that the paper should be withdrawn from public discourse.
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GLP-1 drugs: An economic disruptor? (2024)
While Silicon Valley obsesses over AI, a weight-loss drug is quietly becoming the biggest economic disruptor since the internet. Here's why your job, investments, and future depend on understanding it
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Researchers design wearable tech that can sense glucose levels more accurately
Imagine shrinking satellite technology that predicts the weather into a device that transmits vital information about the health of the person wearing it.
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Grapevine canes can be converted into plastic-like material that will decompose
A new study from South Dakota State University reveals how grapevine canes can be converted into plastic-like material that is stronger than traditional plastic and will decompose in the environment in a relatively short amount of time.
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Why the weak nuclear force is short range
The “range” of a force is a measure of the distance across which it can easily be effective. Some forces, including electric and magnetic forces and gravity, are long-range, able to cau…
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LLMs aren't world models
I believe that language models aren’t world models. It’s a weak claim — I’m not saying they’re useless, or that we’re done milking them. It’s also a fuzzy-sounding claim — with its trillion weights, who can prove that there’s something an LLM isn't a model of? But I hope to make my claim clear and persuasive enough…
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All clocks are 30 seconds late
OK, this is going to sound crazy: I believe all clocks are 30 seconds late. Let's get a few things out of the way: this is neither about time zones, nor l...
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AI in my plasma physics research didn’t go the way I expected
I used AI in my plasma physics research and it didn’t go the way I expected.
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This map is not upside down
While conventional and commonplace today, maps have not always had north at the top. And they don't need to.
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LIGO detects most massive black hole merger to date
Gravitational waves from massive black holes challenge current astrophysical models
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Meta-analysis of 2.2M people: Loneliness increases mortality risk by 32%
Loneliness increases death risk by 32% but we know how to fix it. Real solutions that cut loneliness in half, from mindfulness to community…
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Autonomous drone defeats human champions in racing first
A team of scientists and students from TU Delft has taken first place at the A2RL Drone Championship in Abu Dhabi - an international race that pushes the limits of physical artificial intelligence, challenging teams to fly fully autonomous drones using only a single camera. The TU Delft drone competed against 13…
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Long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution linked to increased risk of dementia
An analysis of studies incorporating data from almost 30 million people has highlighted the role that air pollution – including that coming from car exhaust emissions – plays in increased risk of dementia.
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Gene therapy restored hearing in deaf patients
Gene therapy can improve hearing in children and adults with congenital deafness or severe hearing impairment, a new study involving researchers at Karolinska Institutet reports. Hearing improved in all ten patients, and the treatment was well-tolerated. The study was conducted in collaboration with hospitals and…
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Planetfall
Gentle readers, I have just wrapped up a fun side project that will be of great interest to a very small number of you. The result of one of the most technically demanding efforts of my career, I a…
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Autism's confusing cousins
A differential diagnosis for the weird and the awkward
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Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025 was awarded jointly to Mary E. Brunkow, Frederick J. Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi "for their discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance"
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New treatment eliminates bladder cancer in 82% of patients
LOS ANGELES — A new drug-releasing system, TAR-200, eliminated tumors in 82% of patients in a phase 2 clinical trial for individuals with high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer whose cancer had previously resisted treatment. In the majority of cases, the cancer disappeared after only three months of treatment…
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Over 40% of deceased drivers in vehicle crashes test positive for THC: Study
Average blood levels far exceed those considered to cause impairment.
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Get the location of the ISS using DNS
I love DNS esoterica. Weird little things that you can shove in the global directory to be distributed around the world instantly(ish). Domain names, like www.example.com usually resolve to servers. As much as we think of "the cloud" as being some intangible morass of ethereal Turing-machines floating in probability…