TLDR 2021-08-19

Facebook's most viewed posts šŸ“±, fusion breakthrough āš”, solar in space šŸ›°ļø

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Big Tech & Startups

We have our first look at images from Amazonā€™s new Wheel of Time series (4 minute read)

Amazon's long-awaited TV adaptation of Robert Jordan's bestselling Wheel of Time series will debut on Amazon Prime this November. The series features a large cast and it will focus on Moiraine, a member of an all-woman organization called the Aes Sedai. The series is expected to closely follow the overall narrative arc of the first book. Amazon has already renewed Wheel of Time for a second season. Promotional images for the series are available in the article.

Facebook releases a report on the most-viewed content in News Feed (3 minute read)

Facebook has released a report that shows what content was most widely viewed by Americans between April and June. It contains sections showing the top 20 domains, links, pages, and posts in terms of views. A companion guide that describes how the data was gathered and analyzed was also released. Facebook released the data in response to reports that posts from right-wing sources had the most interaction. The top posts only account for less than 0.1 percent of the content viewed by US users, and the data only accounts for public posts, not posts made in private groups. A link to the report is available in the article.
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Science & Futuristic Technology

Physicists Say We're Officially at the "Threshold of Nuclear Fusion Ignition" (2 minute read)

A recent experiment put scientists at the threshold of fusion ignition. The experiment involved using a powerful laser to heat and compress hydrogen fuel. To achieve the goal of fusion ignition, the energy from the fusion reaction must exceed the energy delivered by the laser. The scientists were able to produce roughly 70 percent of the energy required. The UK's planned nuclear fusion reactor is expected to be operational no earlier than 2040, so it will likely still be some time before the technology is ready.

Where the sun always shines: Putting solar in space (5 minute read)

Caltech received over $100 million in August to foster the development of space-based power. A space-based solar panel would get 30 percent more photons than on the ground, and they're available 24/7. While the generating system will sometimes be at less optimal angles, the net power generated would still be significantly more than on Earth. This article discusses Caltech's design for its space-based power system, detailing the challenges in designing the system and how they were overcome. Caltech plans to do a space-based demo of the system by early 2023.
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Programming, Design & Data Science

NvChad (GitHub Repo)

NvChad makes neovim cli as functional as an IDE. It features themes, tabs, autosave, file previews, distraction-free modes, and much more. There are many plug-ins available for NvChad. Screenshots are available.

Sherloq (GitHub Repo)

Sherloq is a digital image forensic toolset. It features various algorithms that aid in determining if an image is forged or not. Screenshots showing results from different types of analyses are available.
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Miscellaneous

Appleā€™s Double Agent (11 minute read)

Apple has largely kept its response to leaks under wraps. Its anti-leak team, officially called Global Security, employs former US intelligence and FBI agents. The team is tasked with cracking down on leaks and leakers, but very little is known about how it operates. One of the ways the team gains intelligence is by cultivating relationships with people in the jailbreaking community. This article tells the story of a member of the jailbreaking community who willingly reached out to Apple with information on leaks. The informant never received compensation for the leaks, so they decided to tell their story instead.

Cuttlefish remember the what, when, and where of mealsā€”even into old age (6 minute read)

Cuttlefish seem to exhibit a form of episodic memory that doesn't decrease with age. They can remember what they ate, where, and when, and use this information to make decisions in the future. The ability may help cuttlefish avoid past mating partners. Cuttlefish are not completely free from age-related memory decline, with some studies finding signs of age-related deterioration of long-term memory.
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