"We turn tragedies into comedies all the time." Writers pitch Hollywood studios unexpected new subject for TV shows and blockbusters: 'We did not have a hard time getting interest' first appeared on The Cool Down. | Continue reading
We've all heard the common refrain that electric heaters should not be plugged into extension leads. I'm fairly sure, too, that most of us will have ignored that advice at least once. We "temporarily" plugged our living room heater into one. We didn't do so blindly and first chec … | Continue reading
For those not subscribed to the FIT File (it’s free!) via your regular podcast app or on YouTube, here’s a quick post with the highlights from the most recent episode. In this episode, we talk about Garmin Connect's controversial update, … Read More Here → | Continue reading
Rachel Cooke at The Guardian: Olivia Laing’s new book, The Garden Against Time, is as fragrantly replete as a long border at its peak. The word that comes to mind is spumy: a blossomy, brimful excess that’s almost too much at times. Here are hundreds of plants, exquisitely descri … | Continue reading
Olivia Laing & Ottessa Moshfegh – The Art of Loneliness Posted on Saturday, May 4, 2024 3:35PMSaturday, May 4, 2024 by Morgan Meis | Continue reading
Rachel Donadio at the NYT: In April 2022, soon after Russia invaded Ukraine, two men arrived at the library of the University of Tartu, Estonia’s second-largest city. They told the librarians they were Ukrainians fleeing war and asked to consult 19th-century first editions of wor … | Continue reading
Run, don’t walk — this won’t last!!! READ MORE... | Continue reading
A few months ago, I was interviewed by Jeremy Jung of the Software Engineering Radio podcast about my book The Creative Programmer. The episode, #614, was published yesterday, so be sure to give it a listen! Here’s how Jeremy summarized our hour-long conversation: Wouter Groeneve … | Continue reading
In honor of Star Wars Day, Insight Editions has announced its upcoming schedule of “Star Wars” -themed books to be released in 2024. These can all be pre-ordered from your favorite book retailer, and if you order by May 6th at 11:59pm PT, you’ll get 40% off most of these and othe … | Continue reading
Nintendo’s Pokémon series has had a powerful grip on pop culture for decades, and it’s doubtful to change anytime soon. The bulk of that power comes from the video and trading card games, along with the eternally ongoing anime and the movies and shows that’ve spun out of that. So … | Continue reading
Went for a walk around Port de Sóller on the work-away trip two of weeks ago. Have some thoughts? Send me an email. | Continue reading
Janet Evanovich’s number fifteen is the first book in the series with a name that makes at least some sense. Stephanie will be food-colored because of a cooking competition. The tiny issue with the competition is that nobody can cook and some heads are rolling. There will be expl … | Continue reading
"We are in a situation where we really need to be taking any possible action we can." Conservationists embark on underwater 'Noah's Ark' project to preserve coral reefs: 'Making a kind of backup' first appeared on The Cool Down. | Continue reading
I like learning new things. It stimulates my creativity, helps me gain diverse perspectives, and helps me be humble. When you’re a notorious… | Continue reading
At the start of the year, it was reported that Francis Ford Coppola’s long-awaited sci-fi flick Megalopolis might finally see the light of day. That day appears to be pretty soon, because Coppola’s production banner American Zoetrope released first-ever footage of the film that g … | Continue reading
“Star Wars” creator George Lucas has been chosen to receive this year’s Honorary Palme d’Or at the upcoming 77th Cannes Film Festival, for his contributions to film. The Details Lucas actually got one of his big breaks at the festival when his first 1971 film, “THX-1138,” was cho … | Continue reading
To celebrate the launch of the newest Star Wars Original Series, The Acolyte, as well as the designers and makers who have worked to create distant worlds, creatures and—yes—the droids we all love, Autodesk and Disney invite you to join their ranks by entering a Droid design comp … | Continue reading
Many people feel a need for long-range batteries when they buy electric vehicles, and that actually goes for new buyers as well as repeat buyers. I have to admit that I have a hard time understanding it unless you’re an encyclopedia salesman (not sure if those still exist) or go … | Continue reading
"Momentick is excited to reveal its technology to the world." Company raises millions in funding to scan entire planet with satellites: 'A one-stop-shop emissions intelligence platform' first appeared on The Cool Down. | Continue reading
I am one of the people who tried to block so-called “AI” programs from training on my published works. I implemented every code or rule I know to block corporations use my material for training their programs. I’m not against AI, but I don’t want my material be published or used … | Continue reading
It’s now been five years since Disney bought 20th Century Fox, and we’re finally seeing that really pay off on the movie side. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is hitting theaters next week, Alien: Romulus and Deadpool & Wolverine are later this summer. What Fox movies are due n … | Continue reading
A new detector system based on the game “Tetris” could enable inexpensive, accurate radiation detectors for monitoring nuclear sites. | Continue reading
The sauce is everything. READ MORE... | Continue reading
A couple of months ago, I went back to England. I had to take a trip abroad to get back to the office. It felt bizarre to meet colleagues in person after more than three years of working remotely. But, it was great to meet people with whom you interact over the internet. While I … | Continue reading
The auto market saw plugin EVs take 91.0% share in Norway in April, roughly flat from 91.1% year on year. BEVs alone took 89.4% share, up from 83.3% YoY. Overall auto volume was 11,241 units, up 25% YoY, a recovery over recent months. April’s best selling BEV was the Volvo EX30. … | Continue reading
Yes, my friends, the malevolent yet artistic beings of 9 o'clock Nasty are back again with more mischievous acts. | Continue reading
It’s Star Wars Day, so Disney+ has treated fans to another trailer for it’s upcoming series, “The Acolyte,” which fleshes out the storyline a bit more, along with new poster key art. The Series The series is about an investigation into a shocking crime spree which pits a respecte … | Continue reading
I believe these things: 1. If you use generative tools to produce or modify your images, you have abandoned photointegrity. 2. That’s not always wrong. Sometimes you need an image of a space battle or a Triceratops family or whatever. 3. What is always wrong is using this stuff w … | Continue reading
Nutrition is critical for any coast-to-coast helicopter flight. I loaded up on dim sum at Din Tai Fung in a Costa Mesa mall, then paid only $13 for a few strawberries at Hannam Chain in our inflation-free economy. The folks who run the supermarket are Korean and had neglected to … | Continue reading
Your running speed partly comes down to factors you can't control, like genetics, and partly relies on your training. | Continue reading
"By making our small-batch, premium coffee available in compostable K-Cups, we are marrying innovation with sustainability." Company releases first-ever fully compostable product that can be used with popular coffee machines: 'This is a proud milestone' first appeared on The Cool … | Continue reading
It’s great on almost everything. READ MORE... | Continue reading
Social media was bad. Adding AI into the mix could easily get a lot worse. | Continue reading
SATURDAY, MAY 4, 2024 It depends on which channel you watch: Do we the people get the national discourse we deserve? We wouldn't recommend such a sour outlook. That said, the question popped into our heads this morning when we reviewed the online Washington Post. Oof! As of 8:30 … | Continue reading
Satya Nadella, in a memo to Microsoft employees since posted on the company’s blog: Today, I want to talk about something critical to our company’s future: prioritizing security above all else. Microsoft runs on trust, and our success depends on earning and maintaining it. We hav … | Continue reading
It’s May 4th, which doesn’t just make it Star Wars Day. We’re also one month out from The Acolyte, our first-ever show set in the High Republic era, and which also had a special preview playing with Phantom Menace screenings this weekend. Along with that clip, the show’s got a br … | Continue reading
Click here to go see the bonus panel! Hovertext: I mean have you ever TRIED taking up arms against a sea? You just end up looking stupid. Today's News: yo | Continue reading
How can we truly know if AI is sentient? We do not yet fully understand the nature of human consciousness, so we cannot discount the possibility that today's AI is indeed sentient — and that we are mistreating it to potentially grave consequences. | Continue reading
They’re not just for Cinco de Mayo. READ MORE... | Continue reading
"Our research is supposed to contribute to narrowing the equity gap." New study uncovers major equity gap in clean energy generation: 'We were astonished to see there is still such a large difference' first appeared on The Cool Down. | Continue reading
French researchers say they have discovered that genetic mutations aren’t necessary for cancer to develop, challenging a long-held assumption about the disease. The cause of cancer: Cancer cells start out as normal, healthy cells, but then something goes wrong — instead of doing … | Continue reading
Science News, Physics, Science, Philosophy, Philosophy of Science | Continue reading
Just in time for Mother’s Day. READ MORE... | Continue reading
It “melts like a dream and tastes amazing.” READ MORE... | Continue reading
Summer’s almost here, and that means it’s time for the return of everyone’s favorite superhero show The Boys. With season four set to kick off in a little over a month, Prime Video released a new trailer that’s got everything you expect from the show now: Supes being chaotic frea … | Continue reading
Cooking dinner just got so much easier! READ MORE... | Continue reading
Figma’s journey to TypeScript: Compiling away our custom programming language I love a good migration story. Figma had their own custom language that compiled to JavaScript, called Skew. As WebAssembly support in browsers emerged and improved the need for Skew’s performance optim … | Continue reading