TLDR 2020-10-05

Apple's foldable display 📱, extracting DNA from resin 🦟, the future of math 🧮

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Big Tech & Startups

Google's Daydream is over — the VR platform is dead (1 minute read)

Google Daydream was a VR platform that launched back in 2016. The project included the View headset, which was updated only once. Apps have gradually become unavailable on the platform over the years. Google has officially announced that it will no longer support Daydream. Daydream may not work on Android 11, though third-party apps could still work for a while. While some apps on the headset might still work, these apps will no longer be maintained.

Apple imagines a foldable iPhone with a ‘self-healing’ display (2 minute read)

Apple filed a patent in January for a foldable smartphone with a self-healing display that could repair dents or scratches on the screen. The self-healing properties would automatically activate, using heat, light, or electric current to repair a protective layer above the screen when the device is being charged or on a schedule. Other companies, such as Samsung and Motorola, have released foldable phones, but they suffer from issues with the durability of the screens' displays. LG had a device with a self-healing rear cover but it wasn't very effective. There are no indications that Apple will launch a foldable phone with self-healing material anytime soon.
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Science & Futuristic Technology

For The First Time, Scientists Successfully Extract DNA From Insects Embedded In Tree Resin (3 minute read)

When a small animal is trapped in tree resin, its soft tissues start to decay immediately and most of the DNA is lost before the animal is encapsulated and preserved. Any remaining DNA is usually destroyed over time as the resin's compounds react with it. A recent study found that fragile bits of DNA still exist in samples of beetles two to six years after the beetles were preserved in resin. It found that common methods of studying DNA weren't effective for use with DNA from resin samples, and some techniques actually destroyed the fragile DNA inside the resin. The scientists will use the techniques from the study to examine other resin-embedded insects to determine how long DNA can survive inside the environment.

Building the Mathematical Library of the Future (13 minute read)

Lean is a proof assistant that helps mathematicians prove theorems by checking the working and automating some of the steps in a proof. Mathematicians are translating mathematics into a form that Lean can understand in order to digitize mathematics, eventually allowing computers to solve open problems. The people working on the project hope that it will be able to understand some questions in senior-level exams in a few years.
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Programming, Design & Data Science

GHunt (GitHub Repo)

GHunt is an OSINT tool to extract information about a Google account. It can extract the owner's name, active Google services, phone models, phone firmwares, possible physical location, and more. GHunt requires valid cookies to use.

igel (GitHub Repo)

igel is a machine learning tool that allows anybody to train/fit, test, and use machine learning models without writing code. It features support for all state-of-the-art machine learning models, different data preprocessing methods, cross-validation, and more. igel is built on top of scikit-learn and it supports all of its machine learning functionality. Examples and demos are available in the repository.
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Miscellaneous

How a TikTok house destroyed itself (26 minute read)

Agencies have set up houses around LA for those who want to be TikTok famous to move in and live together. The arrangement is similar to the world of content mansions and the old Hollywood studio system where artists sign on multi-year deals to work for companies. Stars can charge high prices for posts, making it a better alternative for some than entry-level or part-time jobs for people in the demographic. It is still a young industry, with many predatory agencies ready to make money off naive talent. Young teens who have just found fame may find it hard to identify legitimate agencies. Creator houses are an attempt to recreate reality TV for a chance at stardom. This article follows the experience of several teens who ended up in one of these TikTok creator houses.

Daniel Ek (26 minute read)

Daniel Ek is the co-founder and CEO of Spotify. This interview with Ek covers topics such as his daily routine, values, decision-making process, views on working, and more. Ek discusses Spotify's business, its structure, and its strategies.
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