A federal court ruled that police cannot indefinitely retain property seized during an arrest, emphasizing the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable seizures.
Judge Gregory Katsas of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia stated that continued possession of seized property must be reasonable, challenging previous circuit court decisions.
The case involved plaintiffs whose phones were seized during a Black Lives Matter protest and held for over a year without charges, potentially setting a national precedent and prompting Supreme Court review.
A federal court ruled that police cannot indefinitely seize property after an arrest, but did not specify a maximum duration for holding property.
Critics argue that the lack of a specific time limit makes the ruling ineffective and prone to potential police abuse, suggesting a hard cap like 14 or 30 days.
The ruling mandates property return once the initial justification dissipates but permits reasonable delays, raising concerns about vague laws and their impact on justice.
FlightAware has experienced a significant data breach, leaking extensive customer information such as names, email addresses, passwords, and credit card details.
Users are frustrated by the lack of communication from FlightAware, as the company has not provided updates on their website or social media.
The breach has raised concerns about FlightAware's data security practices and their response to the incident, with some users only receiving slow email notifications to reset their passwords.
JoelEinbinder developed a game where players predict the next word in Hacker News comments, competing against language models like llama2.
Users suggested improvements such as showing one question at a time with instant feedback and noted the quiz's length and its effectiveness in measuring "smartness."
The game underscores differences in human and AI language processing, sparking discussions on AI capabilities and human intelligence, with humans occasionally outperforming the models.
The author reflects on a 9-year career at Google, highlighting both achievements and challenges, including work on Bigtable, Persistent Disk, and GCE VMs.
Key takeaways include gaining engineering and leadership skills, financial stability, and a strong community, but also facing stress, cognitive load, and limited growth opportunities.
The author plans to take a sabbatical to explore new opportunities and challenges, aiming to find new objectives and personal growth.
A former Google engineer reflects on their 9-year tenure, highlighting the evolution from chaotic early practices to more standardized tools and processes.
The post contrasts the high stress and burnout in Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) roles with Software Engineering (SWE), noting the unique challenges and rewards of each.
Various ex-Googlers provide insights into Google's changing culture, management issues, and the influence of its advertising-driven business model.
Dasel is a versatile tool for querying and modifying data structures across multiple formats (JSON, YAML, TOML, XML, CSV) with a unified selector syntax and zero runtime dependencies.
It supports installation via various package managers and offers commands for selecting, converting, updating, and deleting data.
Dasel is noted for its speed, being up to 3x faster than jq and 15x faster than yq, and includes features like pre-commit hooks and compatibility with Linux, Mac, and Windows.
The discussion centers on the potential of using SQL-style syntax to query various non-relational data formats like JSON, TOML, YAML, XML, and CSV.
While SQL is theoretically capable of querying any data due to its Turing-completeness, practical efficiency and convenience differ across formats.
The conversation highlights the need for a standardized query language for structured data formats, considering the unique features of each storage format and the benefits of tools like jq and yq for command-line data manipulation.
This post is the first part of a series on building an SQLite-compatible database from scratch, with examples in Rust.
It covers creating a minimal test database, understanding the SQLite file format, and implementing a command to list all table names in a database.
The project involves defining key structures like Pager, Page, and Db, and setting up a basic REPL (Read-Eval-Print Loop) to support commands like .tables and .exit.
The post discusses building a custom SQLite implementation, focusing on listing tables, and is part of a series.
A notable idea is using Rust macros to define SQL queries, allowing direct bindings from SQL to the internal database API at compile time, bypassing the need for runtime parsing and query planning for static queries.
Comparisons are made to SQLx, which verifies SQL queries at compile time using macros, ensuring SQL validity and optimizing performance.
Didier Rémy's 1988 algorithm for type generalization in OCaml enhances type inference speed by avoiding inefficient environment scans, using levels to track type dependencies.
Rémy's method, akin to generational garbage collection, ensures type variables are only quantified when their defining region is inactive, preventing unsound generalization.
OCaml's type checker implements this algorithm, using levels to manage type variables and enforce scope discipline, significantly improving type inference efficiency.
The article on the OCaml type checker, updated in 2022, explores beyond Hindley-Milner type inference and Algorithm W, highlighting modern techniques like union-find for efficiency.
It is crucial for developers modifying the OCaml typechecker and includes discussions on Rust's type checking, OCaml's rising popularity, and comparisons with languages like Gleam and Go.
The article is highly esteemed in the OCaml community and is often referenced in documentation, reflecting its significance and influence.
The developer spent two years creating "Toxoid," an open-source game engine using Rust, WebAssembly (WASM), and WebGPU for a 2D pixel art online sandbox multiplayer game called Legend of Worlds.
Toxoid leverages Flecs for its entity component system (ECS), Sokol for rendering, and Emscripten for web compatibility, aiming for high performance, rapid iteration, and lifelong usability without vendor lock-in.
The engine is now publicly available, and future plans include a dedicated website, samples, examples, tests, and documentation to support the development community.
A developer spent 2 years creating a custom game engine using Rust, WASM (WebAssembly), and WebGPU, and is now developing a Minecraft-like game with it.
The project, although not aimed at commercial success, has garnered interest from potential employers and serves as a learning experience.
The Rust+WASM+WebGPU stack is highlighted as promising, covering many important computer science concepts.
Kevin Boone has rekindled his interest in CP/M programming after 40 years, creating new utilities like KCalc-CPM, cpmbox, and cpmlife using a Z80-based CP/M machine.
The article discusses using the 1982 Aztec C compiler for CP/M, highlighting its small size, archaic syntax, and the need for manual optimization due to limited resources.
Boone emphasizes the importance of testing on real hardware, as emulators can mask inefficiencies, and finds the process of writing efficient code for 80s hardware both challenging and rewarding.
A developer has created a simple CP/M emulator and a collection of CP/M binaries, including the Aztec C compiler, to facilitate compiling code for CP/M systems.
The post highlights the nostalgia and challenges of programming in C for CP/M, contrasting it with modern development practices and tools.
The discussion includes historical context about the Aztec C compiler, its origins, and the evolution of C programming standards from the 1980s to today.
A University of South Australia study links low magnesium levels to DNA damage, potentially leading to diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer's.
Researchers found that low magnesium correlates with high levels of homocysteine, a genotoxic amino acid, while high magnesium levels are positively linked with folate and vitamin B12.
The FDA recommends 420 mg of magnesium daily for adults, and the study emphasizes the importance of magnesium-rich foods like nuts, seeds, dark leafy greens, and dark chocolate.
Low magnesium levels are linked to DNA damage, highlighting the importance of adequate magnesium intake.
Different forms of magnesium supplements serve various health purposes: Magnesium L-Threonate for brain health, Magnesium Taurate for metabolic issues, Magnesium Glycinate for anxiety and insomnia, and Magnesium Citrate as a cost-effective option.
Food sources of magnesium include beans, nuts, seeds, and leafy greens, but modern farming practices may reduce their magnesium content.
In 2024, CSS will introduce align-content for vertical centering in the default layout, eliminating the need for flexbox or grid.
This update will be supported in Chrome 123, Firefox 125, and Safari 17.4, simplifying vertical alignment with a single property.
Historically, vertical centering required complex methods like table cells, absolute positioning, and flexbox, but the new method streamlines this process.
CSS will introduce a new feature for vertical centering in 2024, simplifying a task that has been achievable with flexbox and grid but not as straightforward in flow layout.
This addition aims to make vertical centering more accessible, especially for new CSS users who find current methods like align-content and flexbox unintuitive.
The community is reacting positively, noting that while vertical centering has been possible through various methods, this new feature will enhance convenience and ease of use.
Surveillance Watch (surveillancewatch.io) reveals hidden connections within the surveillance industry, focusing on vendors used by law enforcement and governments to monitor and trace targets.
Discussions highlight the role of major tech companies like Meta and Alphabet in providing metadata to authorities, often under court orders, and their compliance with government surveillance programs.
The website's features and usability are debated, with suggestions for improvements such as making the globe optional on mobile and adding interactive elements.
A GitHub repository humorously claims to release everyone's Social Security Numbers (SSNs) and the methods used to acquire them, sparking a mix of concern and jokes among users.
The discussion highlights the flaws of using SSNs as secure identifiers and the potential for identity fraud, emphasizing the need for better security practices.
Users also discuss the structure and reuse of SSNs, pointing out the limitations of the current system.
Alain Delon, a prominent French actor known for his roles in "Plein Soleil" and "Le Samouraï," has passed away at the age of 88, as announced by his children.
Delon was a significant figure in the resurgence of French cinema during the 1960s, collaborating with renowned directors like Jean-Pierre Melville and Luchino Visconti.
French President Emmanuel Macron and actress Brigitte Bardot paid tribute to Delon, emphasizing his impact on cinema and his love for animals.
French actor Alain Delon has passed away, prompting reflections on his significant impact on cinema, particularly in films like "Le Samouraï" and "Le Cercle Rouge."
Delon was known for his striking looks and acting talent, which made him a prominent figure in European cinema and a cultural icon in various regions, including the Soviet Union.
His death has sparked discussions about his legacy, including his influence on other works and his unique personal anecdotes, such as his extensive gun collection discovered in 2024.