Hacker NewsMonday, December 8

Visitors describe witnessing Kilauea's eruption firsthand, noting unexpected aspects like intense heat from long distances, loud rumbling sounds, and fast-flowing lava. Many emphasize the mesmerizing, otherworldly nature of the experience, comparing it to being on a different planet.

Schleswig-Holstein's state administration is achieving significant success with its migration from Microsoft to open-source software, expecting to save over 15 million euros annually in license costs. Nearly 80% of workplaces have switched to LibreOffice, though some technical dependencies remain and opposition critics point to ongoing implementation challenges affecting employee productivity.

This content shows academic papers with review ratings and citation verification checks, revealing widespread academic misconduct including fabricated authors, incorrect citations, non-existent papers, and mismatched publication details across multiple research submissions.

In 2002, a developer collected desktop screenshots from various Unix/Linux developers and programmers, then reached out to the same people 13 years later in 2015 to see how their setups had changed. Most participants remained committed command-line users preferring terminals and text-based tools, though some adopted modern GUI applications while maintaining their minimalist workflows and preference for tools like vim, shell scripting, and multiple virtual desktops.

The author argues that Perl's decline wasn't caused by any single factor but by its conservative culture rooted in UNIX sysadmin traditions. This "BOFH" culture created tribal gatekeeping, resistance to change, and preference for complexity as a badge of honor. The community's insularity, combined with the Perl 6 schism that divided development efforts, prevented adaptation to modern web development needs while other languages filled the gap.

Google researchers introduced Titans and MIRAS, new AI architectures that combine the speed of recurrent neural networks with transformer accuracy for long sequence processing. Titans uses a "surprise metric" to selectively store unexpected information in deep neural memory, while MIRAS provides a framework for building efficient sequence models that transcend traditional limitations.

A college student successfully created homemade integrated circuits in his garage, progressing from a 6-transistor amplifier (Z1) to a 1,200-transistor array chip (Z2) using polysilicon gate technology. The new chips operate at much lower voltages and demonstrate excellent electrical properties, proving high-quality transistors can be made with impure chemicals and homemade equipment outside traditional cleanrooms.

The author discusses how many people self-diagnose with autism when experiencing social difficulties, awkwardness, or anxiety, but these symptoms could indicate various other conditions like social anxiety disorder, schizoid personality, obsessive-compulsive traits, or trauma responses.