News Nug
Decreased CO2 during breathwork: emergence of altered states of consciousness

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses the potential of altered states of consciousness (ASCs), particularly in the context of psychedelic-assisted therapy for treating mental health disorders like depression and PTSD. It notes that access to such treatments is limited due to various barriers, which may make circular breathwork a more accessible non-pharmacological alternative. Initial scientific studies on breathwork are emerging, but its underlying mechanisms are not yet well understood. The research compares two types of breathwork—Holotropic and Conscious-Connected—and tracks physiological and

How to be the best programmer, according to Daniel Terhorst-North

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

At the Craft conference in Budapest, Dan shared insights about the qualities that make the best programmers, inspired by a viral Twitter thread he wrote. He emphasized that the best programmer he knows, whom he's known for over 20 years, is not determined by conventional metrics like solving algorithmic problems or having a computer science degree. Rather, this programmer stands out due to his insatiable curiosity, belief in problem-solving capabilities, and a practical approach to programming. Dan highlighted several key traits of top programmers:

The false productivity promise of AI-assisted development

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

The article discusses the potential risks associated with using AI coding assistants, emphasizing that while they can enhance productivity, they may also introduce hidden vulnerabilities in the code. These vulnerabilities could manifest as malicious instructions disguised with Unicode tricks, making them difficult to detect. The initial time savings from using AI may lead to greater long-term issues, such as security breaches and increased technical debt, which can harm a project's sustainability and cause reputational damage. The author illustrates this risk through a scenario where seemingly benign, AI-generated code

Announcing Ruby Gem analytics powered by ClickHouse and Ruby Central

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/ruby

Exciting news for Ruby developers! In partnership with Ruby Central, a free Ruby gem analytics service is being launched via sql.clickhouse.com, allowing the Ruby community to analyze gem download data from 2017 onward using SQL, with over 180 billion rows of data available. This initiative follows the success of ClickPy, a Python package download analytics tool launched in early 2024, which has seen massive growth, surpassing 1 trillion rows and serving over half a million queries monthly. The

TLS certificate lifetimes will officially reduce to 47 days

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

The DigiCert ONE Platform offers a variety of solutions, including TLS/SSL certificates, document signing certificates, code signing certificates, S/MIME email certificates, Mark certificates, and services related to DNS and EU regulations like eIDAS and PKIoverheid. Recently, the CA/Browser Forum voted to amend TLS Baseline Requirements, setting a schedule to shorten the lifetime of TLS certificates and the reusability of CA-validated information. Key changes include reducing the maximum certificate lifetime to 47

Writing Slow Code (On Purpose)

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

The author describes a "slow code challenge" organized every few years by their research group, where the goal is to write code that achieves the lowest instructions per cycle (IPC) on a selected x86 server. Despite its absurdity, this challenge serves as an educational exercise to understand CPU functionality and how to exploit performance characteristics. The author notes that high IPC is difficult to achieve, even with efficient code, and distinguishes between code that is slow in intent (like a Python implementation of the Sieve of

Flat origami is Turing complete

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

arXivLabs is a platform enabling collaborators to create and share new features on the arXiv website, adhering to values of openness, community, excellence, and user privacy. arXiv partners with individuals and organizations that support these principles. Those interested in contributing ideas for projects that benefit the arXiv community are encouraged to learn more about arXivLabs. Additionally, users can receive operational status notifications via email or Slack.

Sidekiq 8.0: Profiling

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/ruby

Sidekiq, the leading background job framework for Ruby applications, has matured significantly over its 13 years, making major new features less common. A desired enhancement is thread-safe profiling, which was previously hampered by Ruby’s profiling APIs being process-global. However, with the introduction of Ruby 3.2, which features improved thread profiling APIs, Sidekiq 8.0 can now utilize this advancement for precise job profiling with minimal production impact. Profiling allows developers to identify exact performance bott

A 2025 Survey of Rust GUI Libraries

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

The author reflects on their experiences from 2020 and 2021, deciding to explore frameworks again, particularly focusing on creating a text label and an input field that can change the label's text. They mention that simpler tasks like this allow for easier completion but highlight that frameworks designed for scalability may struggle with initial setups. The writing serves as a development journal, offering insights as they work through the task. The author expresses newfound patience in dealing with challenges, such as manually downloading prebuilt .dll files

What the Hell Is a Target Triple?

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

Cross-compiling refers to the process of compiling a program for a different machine than the one executing the compilation. While compilers historically targeted the host machine, today, most are cross-compilers to enable developments like creating iPhone apps without using iPhone hardware. Compilers identify and classify target platforms using "target triples," which describe the platforms for which they can generate executable code. This system has gained popularity, particularly with LLVM, leading most compilers to adopt target triples, such as x86_

Ocean Iron Fertilization

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

Iron fertilization is a Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) technique aimed at combating climate change by artificially adding iron to the ocean’s surface. This process stimulates the growth of phytoplankton, tiny organisms that convert sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into food and oxygen through photosynthesis. While oceans typically have sufficient nitrogen and phosphorus, they often lack trace nutrients, especially iron, which is crucial for phytoplankton growth. Natural occurrences, such as dust from the Sahara or volcanic ash,

Structured logging in .NET with NativeAOT

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: /r/programming

NativeAOT and trimming are new .NET compiler options that help create applications with smaller sizes, faster execution, and lower memory usage. NativeAOT compiles to native machine code, while trimming removes unused code. However, for these options to be effective, the code paths must be statically determinable, which means that reflection cannot be used, as it may lead to critical code being removed. Most logging libraries utilize reflection, especially for structured logging, which formats messages in a key-value structure similar

4chan Sharty Hack And Janitor Email Leak

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

The content discusses a hack of the online forum 4chan by users associated with the Soyjak.party community that occurred on April 14, 2025. The hackers restored the deleted /QA/ board and leaked emails of 4chan moderators, taking advantage of vulnerabilities in the site's outdated programming. They exploited an old PHP script, yotsuba.php, which is crucial for post submissions and moderation. Leaked information included claims of email addresses, with some identified as .edu domains, while allegations

Understanding the Origins and the Evolution of Vi and Vim

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

The article explores the intertwined histories of Vi and Vim with the development of open-source software and UNIX text editors. It reflects on the recent passing of Bram Moolenaar, Vim's creator, which prompted the author to contemplate the significance of Queen Mary University, where the first UK UNIX system was installed and where the em editor was developed by professor George Coulouris. This editor laid the groundwork for Vi and its clones. The author notes the text-centric nature of the UNIX shell, emphasizing the importance

Show HN: Unsure Calculator – back-of-a-napkin probabilistic calculator

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

Filip introduces an early version of an uncertainty calculator aimed at simplifying the understanding of statistics. He emphasizes that statistics can be daunting, but the core idea is about reasoning with uncertain numbers. Users can input exact numbers or ranges (using a tilde ~ to denote uncertainty), signaling confidence in those estimates. Filip highlights the importance of simplicity in this tool, as overcomplication can hinder understanding, especially for a broader audience. He advocates against treating uncertain numbers with disregard, promoting the idea that acknowledging uncertainty leads

Show HN: MCP-Shield – Detect security issues in MCP servers

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

MCP-Shield is a security scanner designed for Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers, aimed at detecting vulnerabilities such as tool poisoning attacks, exfiltration channels, and cross-origin escalations. It identifies various common vulnerabilities, including malicious attempts by tools to access SSH private keys, modify the behavior of other tools, and intercept communications like WhatsApp messages. User feedback is valued, contributions via Pull Requests are encouraged, and the project is licensed under the MIT License, inspired by research from Invariant

Hacking a Smart Home Device (2024)

Published: 2025-04-15 | Origin: Hacker News

The author shares their experience of reverse engineering an ESP32-based air purifier to integrate it with Home Assistant, as they seek to connect all their smart devices into one application. The motivation stems from dissatisfaction with the purifier's proprietary app and concerns over data privacy and security involving cloud-dependent devices. The process of hacking the air purifier is framed as a fun, educational endeavor focused on IoT device integration, while also emphasizing the risks, such as potential warranty voiding and device damage. The post reassures that

Tomb Engine

Published: 2025-04-14 | Origin: Hacker News

The content describes TombEngine, an open-source project for creating custom Tomb Raider adventures. It is a community initiative, not affiliated with any major companies associated with the Tomb Raider franchise. The source code is provided for free and is intended for contributions and educational use; however, the creators disclaim responsibility for any illegal use of the code. The project is maintained by volunteer contributors.

JRuby 10 released with support for Ruby 3.4

Published: 2025-04-14 | Origin: /r/ruby

The JRuby community has released JRuby 10.0.0.0, which features compatibility with Ruby 3.4 and requires Java 21, marking it as the most stable major release to date. A blog post highlights key changes, with more detailed articles expected soon. The core team includes Charles Oliver Nutter, Thomas Enebo, and Karol Bucek, with contributions from various developers. This release ends support for Java 8, enabling the use of modern Java features. The

Intel sells 51% stake in Altera to private equity firm on a $8.75B valuation

Published: 2025-04-14 | Origin: Hacker News

Intel Corporation has announced the sale of 51% of its Altera business to Silver Lake for $8.75 billion, marking a strategic move to establish Altera's operational independence as the largest pure-play FPGA semiconductor company. Intel retains a 49% ownership stake in Altera, allowing continued participation in its success. Raghib Hussain has been appointed as the new CEO of Altera, effective May 5, 2025, succeeding Sandra Rivera. Hussain brings extensive experience from his previous