#development of computers and data storage

[p2ii]

every once in a while I remember when I was so fucking obsessed with data storing punch cards

[jcmarchi]

Jon Potter, Partner at The RXN Group – Interview Series

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/jon-potter-partner-at-the-rxn-group-interview-series/

Jon Potter, Partner at The RXN Group – Interview Series

Jon Potter is a Partner and leads the State-Level AI Practice at RXN Group. He is an experienced lawyer, lobbyist, and communicator, has founded and led two industry associations and a consumer organization, and consulted many industries and organizations on legislative, communications and issue advocacy challenges. Jon founded the Digital Media Association, Fan Freedom, and the Application Developers Alliance, was Executive Vice President of the global communications firm Burson-Marsteller, and a lawyer for several years with the firm of Weil, Gotshal, & Manges.

As both a client and consultant, Jon has overseen federal, multistate and international advocacy campaigns and engaged lobbyists, communications firms, and law firms on three continents. Jon has testified in Congress and state legislatures several times, has spoken at dozens of conferences throughout the U.S. and internationally, and has been interviewed on national and local radio and television news programs, including CNN, Today Show, and 60 Minutes.

Can you provide an overview of the key trends in AI legislation across states in 2024?

2024 has been an extraordinary year for state-level AI legislation, marked by several trends.

The first trend is volume. 445 AI bills were introduced across 40 states, and we expect this will continue in 2025.

A second trend is a consistent dichotomy—bills about government use of AI were generally optimistic, while bills about AI generally and private sector use of AI were skeptical and fearful. Additionally, several states passed bills creating AI “task forces,” which are now meeting.

What are the main concerns driving state legislators to introduce AI bills, and how do these concerns vary from state to state?

Many legislators want government agencies to improve with AI – to deliver better services more efficiently.

Among skeptics, topics of concern include fraudulent and abusive “deepfakes” related to elections, creative arts, and bullying; algorithmic discrimination; fear of AI-influenced “life critical” decisions and decision processes; personal privacy and personal data use; and job displacement. Some concerns can be addressed in very specific legislation, such as Tennessee’s ELVIS Act and California’s political deepfakes prohibition. Other concerns, such as risks of algorithmic discrimination and job displacement, are amorphous and so the legislative proposals are broad, non-specific, and of great concern.

Some lawmakers believe that today’s social media and digital privacy challenges could have been mitigated by prophylactic legislation, so they are rushing to pass laws to solve AI problems they fear will develop. Of course, it’s very hard to define clear compliance guidance before actual problems emerge.

How can states craft AI legislation that encourages innovation while also addressing potential risks?

Legislation can do both when it regulates specific use cases and risks but not foundational multipurpose technology. A good example of this is the federal laws that govern uses of health, financial, and student education data, but do not regulate computers, servers, or cloud computing. By not regulating multipurpose tools such as data storage and data processing technologies (including AI), the laws address real risks and define clear compliance rules.

It’s important that legislators hear from a wide range of stakeholders before passing new laws. Headlines suggest that AI is dominated by giant companies investing billions of dollars to build extraordinarily powerful and risk models. But there are thousands of small and local companies using AI to build recycling, workplace bias, small business lending, and cybersecurity solutions. Legal Aid organizations and local nonprofits are using AI to help underserved communities. Lawmakers must be confident that AI-skeptical legislation does not shut down small, local, and public-benefit AI activity.

From your experience, what are the most significant impacts that recent AI bills have had on businesses? Are there specific industries that have been more affected than others?

We don’t yet know the impacts of recent AI bills because very few recent bills have become law and the new laws are not yet making a difference. The broadest law, in Colorado, does not take effect until 2026 and most stakeholders, including the Governor and sponsor, anticipate significant amendments before the effective date. The ELVIS Act in Tennessee and the California deepfakes laws should reduce fraudulent and criminal activity, and hopefully won’t inhibit parody or other protected speech.

With so many states stepping up to legislate AI, how do you see the relationship between state-level AI regulations and potential federal action evolving?

This is a moving target with many variables. There are already several areas of law where the federal and state governments co-exist, and AI is associated with many of them. For example, there are federal and state workplace and financial services discrimination laws that are effective regardless of whether AI is used by alleged bad actors. One question for legislators is why new legislation or regulations are needed solely because AI is used in an activity.

What are the common pitfalls or challenges that state legislators face when drafting AI-related bills? How can these be avoided?

It’s all about education – taking the time to consult many stakeholders and understand how AI works in the real world. Legislation based on fear of the unknown will never be balanced, and will always inhibit innovation and AI for good. Other countries will fill the innovation void if the United States cedes our leadership due to fear.

Can you share examples of successful advocacy that influenced AI legislation in favor of innovation?

In Colorado, the Rocky Mountain AI Interest Group and AI Salon rallied developers and startups to engage with legislators for the first time. Without lobbyists or insider consultants, these groups tapped into a wellspring of smart, unhappy, and motivated founders who expressed their displeasure in crisp, effective, testimony and the media – and were heard.

Similarly in California, founders of small AI-forward companies testified passionately in the legislature and connected with the media to express urgent concern and disappointment about well-intended but terribly overbroad legislation. LIke their counterparts in Colorado, these founders were non-traditional, highly motivated, and very effective.

How do you identify and engage stakeholders effectively in state-level AI policy battles?

Partly by talking to people like you, and spreading the word that legislation has or will soon be introduced and may impact someone’s livelihood, business, or opportunity. Legislators only know what they know, and what they learn by talking to lobbyists and companies they are aware of. It’s important to engage in the process when bills are drafted and amended, because if you’re not at the table then you’re probably on the menu. Every company and organization that is building or using AI should participate before the laws and regulations are written, because after they are written it is frequently too late.

What are the most effective ways to communicate the complexities of AI to state legislators?

Advocacy exists in many forms. Whether it’s meeting with legislators in-person or by video, sending a letter or email, or speaking with the media – each of these is a way to make your voice heard. What’s most important is clarity and simplicity, and telling your own story which is what you know best. Different state legislatures have different rules, processes, and norms, but almost all legislators are eager to learn and want to hear from constituents.

Thank you for the great interview, readers who wish to learn more should visit RXN Group.

[treasure-mimic]

So, let me try and put everything together here, because I really do think it needs to be talked about.

Today, Unity announced that it intends to apply a fee to use its software. Then it got worse.

For those not in the know, Unity is the most popular free to use video game development tool, offering a basic version for individuals who want to learn how to create games or create independently alongside paid versions for corporations or people who want more features. It's decent enough at this job, has issues but for the price point I can't complain, and is the idea entry point into creating in this medium, it's a very important piece of software.

But speaking of tools, the CEO is a massive one. When he was the COO of EA, he advocated for using, what out and out sounds like emotional manipulation to coerce players into microtransactions.

"A consumer gets engaged in a property, they might spend 10, 20, 30, 50 hours on the game and then when they're deep into the game they're well invested in it. We're not gouging, but we're charging and at that point in time the commitment can be pretty high."

He also called game developers who don't discuss monetization early in the planning stages of development, quote, "fucking idiots".

So that sets the stage for what might be one of the most bald-faced greediest moves I've seen from a corporation in a minute. Most at least have the sense of self-preservation to hide it.

A few hours ago, Unity posted this announcement on the official blog.

Effective January 1, 2024, we will introduce a new Unity Runtime Fee that’s based on game installs. We will also add cloud-based asset storage, Unity DevOps tools, and AI at runtime at no extra cost to Unity subscription plans this November. We are introducing a Unity Runtime Fee that is based upon each time a qualifying game is downloaded by an end user. We chose this because each time a game is downloaded, the Unity Runtime is also installed. Also we believe that an initial install-based fee allows creators to keep the ongoing financial gains from player engagement, unlike a revenue share.

Now there are a few red flags to note in this pitch immediately.

Unity is planning on charging a fee on all games which use its engine.

This is a flat fee per number of installs.

They are using an always online runtime function to determine whether a game is downloaded.

There is just so many things wrong with this that it's hard to know where to start, not helped by this FAQ which doubled down on a lot of the major issues people had.

I guess let's start with what people noticed first. Because it's using a system baked into the software itself, Unity would not be differentiating between a "purchase" and a "download". If someone uninstalls and reinstalls a game, that's two downloads. If someone gets a new computer or a new console and downloads a game already purchased from their account, that's two download. If someone pirates the game, the studio will be asked to pay for that download.

Q: How are you going to collect installs? A: We leverage our own proprietary data model. We believe it gives an accurate determination of the number of times the runtime is distributed for a given project. Q: Is software made in unity going to be calling home to unity whenever it's ran, even for enterprice licenses? A: We use a composite model for counting runtime installs that collects data from numerous sources. The Unity Runtime Fee will use data in compliance with GDPR and CCPA. The data being requested is aggregated and is being used for billing purposes. Q: If a user reinstalls/redownloads a game / changes their hardware, will that count as multiple installs? A: Yes. The creator will need to pay for all future installs. The reason is that Unity doesn’t receive end-player information, just aggregate data. Q: What's going to stop us being charged for pirated copies of our games? A: We do already have fraud detection practices in our Ads technology which is solving a similar problem, so we will leverage that know-how as a starting point. We recognize that users will have concerns about this and we will make available a process for them to submit their concerns to our fraud compliance team.

This is potentially related to a new system that will require Unity Personal developers to go online at least once every three days.

Starting in November, Unity Personal users will get a new sign-in and online user experience. Users will need to be signed into the Hub with their Unity ID and connect to the internet to use Unity. If the internet connection is lost, users can continue using Unity for up to 3 days while offline. More details to come, when this change takes effect.

It's unclear whether this requirement will be attached to any and all Unity games, though it would explain how they're theoretically able to track "the number of installs", and why the methodology for tracking these installs is so shit, as we'll discuss later.

Unity claims that it will only leverage this fee to games which surpass a certain threshold of downloads and yearly revenue.

Only games that meet the following thresholds qualify for the Unity Runtime Fee: Unity Personal and Unity Plus: Those that have made $200,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 200,000 lifetime game installs. Unity Pro and Unity Enterprise: Those that have made $1,000,000 USD or more in the last 12 months AND have at least 1,000,000 lifetime game installs.

They don't say how they're going to collect information on a game's revenue, likely this is just to say that they're only interested in squeezing larger products (games like Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, Fate Grand Order, Among Us, and Fall Guys) and not every 2 dollar puzzle platformer that drops on Steam. But also, these larger products have the easiest time porting off of Unity and the most incentives to, meaning realistically those heaviest impacted are going to be the ones who just barely meet this threshold, most of them indie developers.

Aggro Crab Games, one of the first to properly break this story, points out that systems like the Xbox Game Pass, which is already pretty predatory towards smaller developers, will quickly inflate their "lifetime game installs" meaning even skimming the threshold of that 200k revenue, will be asked to pay a fee per install, not a percentage on said revenue.

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Hey Gamers!

Today, Unity (the engine we use to make our games) announced that they'll soon be taking a fee from developers for every copy of the game installed over a certain threshold - regardless of how that copy was obtained.

Guess who has a somewhat highly anticipated game coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2024? That's right, it's us and a lot of other developers.

That means Another Crab's Treasure will be free to install for the 25 million Game Pass subscribers. If a fraction of those users download our game, Unity could take a fee that puts an enormous dent in our income and threatens the sustainability of our business.

And that's before we even think about sales on other platforms, or pirated installs of our game, or even multiple installs by the same user!!!

This decision puts us and countless other studios in a position where we might not be able to justify using Unity for our future titles. If these changes aren't rolled back, we'll be heavily considering abandoning our wealth of Unity expertise we've accumulated over the years and starting from scratch in a new engine. Which is really something we'd rather not do.

On behalf of the dev community, we're calling on Unity to reverse the latest in a string of shortsighted decisions that seem to prioritize shareholders over their product's actual users.

I fucking hate it here.

-Aggro Crab - END DESCRIPTION]

That fee, by the way, is a flat fee. Not a percentage, not a royalty. This means that any games made in Unity expecting any kind of success are heavily incentivized to cost as much as possible.

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A table listing the various fees by number of Installs over the Install Threshold vs. version of Unity used, ranging from $0.01 to $0.20 per install. END DESCRIPTION]

Basic elementary school math tells us that if a game comes out for $1.99, they will be paying, at maximum, 10% of their revenue to Unity, whereas jacking the price up to $59.99 lowers that percentage to something closer to 0.3%. Obviously any company, especially any company in financial desperation, which a sudden anchor on all your revenue is going to create, is going to choose the latter.

Furthermore, and following the trend of "fuck anyone who doesn't ask for money", Unity helpfully defines what an install is on their main site.

While I'm looking at this page as it exists now, it currently says

The installation and initialization of a game or app on an end user’s device as well as distribution via streaming is considered an “install.” Games or apps with substantially similar content may be counted as one project, with installs then aggregated to calculate the Unity Runtime Fee.

However, I saw a screenshot saying something different, and utilizing the Wayback Machine we can see that this phrasing was changed at some point in the few hours since this announcement went up. Instead, it reads:

The installation and initialization of a game or app on an end user’s device as well as distribution via streaming or web browser is considered an “install.” Games or apps with substantially similar content may be counted as one project, with installs then aggregated to calculate the Unity Runtime Fee.

Screenshot for posterity:

That would mean web browser games made in Unity would count towards this install threshold. You could legitimately drive the count up simply by continuously refreshing the page. The FAQ, again, doubles down.

Q: Does this affect WebGL and streamed games? A: Games on all platforms are eligible for the fee but will only incur costs if both the install and revenue thresholds are crossed. Installs - which involves initialization of the runtime on a client device - are counted on all platforms the same way (WebGL and streaming included).

And, what I personally consider to be the most suspect claim in this entire debacle, they claim that "lifetime installs" includes installs prior to this change going into effect.

Will this fee apply to games using Unity Runtime that are already on the market on January 1, 2024? Yes, the fee applies to eligible games currently in market that continue to distribute the runtime. We look at a game's lifetime installs to determine eligibility for the runtime fee. Then we bill the runtime fee based on all new installs that occur after January 1, 2024.

Again, again, doubled down in the FAQ.

Q: Are these fees going to apply to games which have been out for years already? If you met the threshold 2 years ago, you'll start owing for any installs monthly from January, no? (in theory). It says they'll use previous installs to determine threshold eligibility & then you'll start owing them for the new ones. A: Yes, assuming the game is eligible and distributing the Unity Runtime then runtime fees will apply. We look at a game's lifetime installs to determine eligibility for the runtime fee. Then we bill the runtime fee based on all new installs that occur after January 1, 2024.

That would involve billing companies for using their software before telling them of the existence of a bill. Holding their actions to a contract that they performed before the contract existed!

Okay. I think that's everything. So far.

There is one thing that I want to mention before ending this post, unfortunately it's a little conspiratorial, but it's so hard to believe that anyone genuinely thought this was a good idea that it's stuck in my brain as a significant possibility.

A few days ago it was reported that Unity's CEO sold 2,000 shares of his own company.

On September 6, 2023, John Riccitiello, President and CEO of Unity Software Inc (NYSE:U), sold 2,000 shares of the company. This move is part of a larger trend for the insider, who over the past year has sold a total of 50,610 shares and purchased none.

I would not be surprised if this decision gets reversed tomorrow, that it was literally only made for the CEO to short his own goddamn company, because I would sooner believe that this whole thing is some idiotic attempt at committing fraud than a real monetization strategy, even knowing how unfathomably greedy these people can be.

So, with all that said, what do we do now?

Well, in all likelihood you won't need to do anything. As I said, some of the biggest names in the industry would be directly affected by this change, and you can bet your bottom dollar that they're not just going to take it lying down. After all, the only way to stop a greedy CEO is with a greedier CEO, right?

(I fucking hate it here.)

And that's not mentioning the indie devs who are already talking about abandoning the engine.

[Links display tweets from the lead developer of Among Us saying it'd be less costly to hire people to move the game off of Unity and Cult of the Lamb's official twitter saying the game won't be available after January 1st in response to the news.]

That being said, I'm still shaken by all this. The fact that Unity is openly willing to go back and punish its developers for ever having used the engine in the past makes me question my relationship to it.

The news has given rise to the visibility of free, open source alternative Godot, which, if you're interested, is likely a better option than Unity at this point. Mostly, though, I just hope we can get out of this whole, fucking, environment where creatives are treated as an endless mill of free profits that's going to be continuously ratcheted up and up to drive unsustainable infinite corporate growth that our entire economy is based on for some fuckin reason.

Anyways, that's that, I find having these big posts that break everything down to be helpful.

[kalpeavaris]

Totally for unrelated reasons, what are some more facts about communication drones? Like uhhh specific anatomy ect?

Prepare to get spammed with information! 👀

Communication Drones Infopost

Communication Drones (calling them CDs for short here) are a sub-type of Worker Drones fitted with antenna and special storage systems meant to analyze, store and transcrypt incoming and outgoing signals between Outposts, (human) landing pods and machinery.

CDs can also communicate with each other & Workers around them in a certain range which allows them to be very effective in sending out orders en masse to other Drones.

(more below the cut for their anatomy, specialities and more!)

Most CDs have two to four antennas fixiated to their head which are directly connected to their auditory entrance (or well, 'ears' as we would call it in human terms) which makes their antennas vital for their work and general hearing. Damaged or removed antennas may result in a CD losing their ability to hear or at least reduce it greatly.

Depending on the size of the antennas it's easy to see what purpose the CD served - long antennas are usually paired with long-range signals which put the individuals at use to distribute orders, arrange communication between ships & pods on their way to other exoplanets (when humans were still around) and to manage incoming signals from other planets & stations/outposts.

Short antennas usually indicated a more localized position for the drone in question - mainly within a singular Outpost or in ships to work directly connected to the local machinery and computers, sending orders in smaller ranged areas and storing security data.

Most CDs have secondary enhancers which work similar to a short-range antenna allowing them to switch between long and short range at will (mainly used for CDs that had flexible working places between ground & flight).

Generally, the antennas also function as "mood indicator". They can rotate around themselves and change position dependant on a fixed motion range around the head - similar to how e.g animals use their ears to indicate mood, CDs quickly took these habits from dogs that were around Copper-9 and video material of animals and copied them. Not all CDs did or do that, but alot of them do. For example if an individual is excited/attentive, the antennas would stick right up. If they're overwhelmed/annoyed/angry they'd usually be lowered down or pressed against the sides of the head.

They were expected to be very attentive and pay close attention to details. Their inner storage was designed to hold literal months and even years of auditory data that they recieved which was usually extracted every 4-6 months via the ports on their back which connected directly to the storage. Without these "clear outs" most CDs experience involuntary deletion of audio files which is out of their control and might result in them forgetting things they've heard/analyzed before.

Other than those two features their anatomy is fairly similar to that of normal Workers, height etc. as well.

After the humans disappearance alot of CDs lost their use as there... well, were no orders to share and no signals to analyze. Some of them struggled with this loss of "useability", some were fairly happy about this.

Lost/destroyed antennas cannot be restored by themselves (well, unless a CD is a Solver User like Kira) and CDs usually do not take well to losing or damaging antennas. Enhancers aren't as sensitive, but still hurt. Touching them might also cause disruption in hearing for CDs, it would be like someone rang a bell next to a humans ear for them. :'D (no touchie!)

CDs are generally connected to ECHO in the MD: Echo story (outside of that this plot point doesn't matter, just mentioning it here haha). Since Kira was the first CD Echo tried to use as host it developed an interested in them since CDs are great tools to be used for mass-ordering hosts.

Alot of CDs were destroyed while the humans were still around, especially if their warranty expired or they became damaged, to prevent sensitive information (such as orders and analyzed data) from leaking or being stolen by enemy forces/entities.

CDs infected with a Solver usually had enhanced auditory strenghts, capable of sending much stronger signals regardless of their antenna's natural range of reach - and they could also "ping" other Users & Hosts which makes them easy tools of manipulation. Luckily the only known CD which acted as AS Host was Kira who was "patched", so it couldn't spread for now (excluding Echo :'D)

[willowwindss]

100 Inventions by Women

LIFE-SAVING/MEDICAL/GLOBAL IMPACT:

Artificial Heart Valve – Nina Starr Braunwald

Stem Cell Isolation from Bone Marrow – Ann Tsukamoto

Chemotherapy Drug Research – Gertrude Elion

Antifungal Antibiotic (Nystatin) – Rachel Fuller Brown & Elizabeth Lee Hazen

Apgar Score (Newborn Health Assessment) – Virginia Apgar

Vaccination Distribution Logistics – Sara Josephine Baker

Hand-Held Laser Device for Cataracts – Patricia Bath

Portable Life-Saving Heart Monitor – Dr. Helen Brooke Taussig

Medical Mask Design – Ellen Ochoa

Dental Filling Techniques – Lucy Hobbs Taylor

Radiation Treatment Research – Cécile Vogt

Ultrasound Advancements – Denise Grey

Biodegradable Sanitary Pads – Arunachalam Muruganantham (with women-led testing teams)

First Computer Algorithm – Ada Lovelace

COBOL Programming Language – Grace Hopper

Computer Compiler – Grace Hopper

FORTRAN/FORUMAC Language Development – Jean E. Sammet

Caller ID and Call Waiting – Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) – Marian Croak

Wireless Transmission Technology – Hedy Lamarr

Polaroid Camera Chemistry / Digital Projection Optics – Edith Clarke

Jet Propulsion Systems Work – Yvonne Brill

Infrared Astronomy Tech – Nancy Roman

Astronomical Data Archiving – Henrietta Swan Leavitt

Nuclear Physics Research Tools – Chien-Shiung Wu

Protein Folding Software – Eleanor Dodson

Global Network for Earthquake Detection – Inge Lehmann

Earthquake Resistant Structures – Edith Clarke

Water Distillation Device – Maria Telkes

Portable Water Filtration Devices – Theresa Dankovich

Solar Thermal Storage System – Maria Telkes

Solar-Powered House – Mária Telkes

Solar Cooker Advancements – Barbara Kerr

Microbiome Research – Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello

Marine Navigation System – Ida Hyde

Anti-Malarial Drug Work – Tu Youyou

Digital Payment Security Algorithms – Radia Perlman

Wireless Transmitters for Aviation – Harriet Quimby

Contributions to Touchscreen Tech – Dr. Annette V. Simmonds

Robotic Surgery Systems – Paula Hammond

Battery-Powered Baby Stroller – Ann Moore

Smart Textile Sensor Fabric – Leah Buechley

Voice-Activated Devices – Kimberly Bryant

Artificial Limb Enhancements – Aimee Mullins

Crash Test Dummies for Women – Astrid Linder

Shark Repellent – Julia Child

3D Illusionary Display Tech – Valerie Thomas

Biodegradable Plastics – Julia F. Carney

Ink Chemistry for Inkjet Printers – Margaret Wu

Computerised Telephone Switching – Erna Hoover

Word Processor Innovations – Evelyn Berezin

Braille Printer Software – Carol Shaw

⸻

HOUSEHOLD & SAFETY INNOVATIONS:

Home Security System – Marie Van Brittan Brown

Fire Escape – Anna Connelly

Life Raft – Maria Beasley

Windshield Wiper – Mary Anderson

Car Heater – Margaret Wilcox

Toilet Paper Holder – Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner

Foot-Pedal Trash Can – Lillian Moller Gilbreth

Retractable Dog Leash – Mary A. Delaney

Disposable Diaper Cover – Marion Donovan

Disposable Glove Design – Kathryn Croft

Ice Cream Maker – Nancy Johnson

Electric Refrigerator Improvements – Florence Parpart

Fold-Out Bed – Sarah E. Goode

Flat-Bottomed Paper Bag Machine – Margaret Knight

Square-Bottomed Paper Bag – Margaret Knight

Street-Cleaning Machine – Florence Parpart

Improved Ironing Board – Sarah Boone

Underwater Telescope – Sarah Mather

Clothes Wringer – Ellene Alice Bailey

Coffee Filter – Melitta Bentz

Scotchgard (Fabric Protector) – Patsy Sherman

Liquid Paper (Correction Fluid) – Bette Nesmith Graham

Leak-Proof Diapers – Valerie Hunter Gordon

FOOD/CONVENIENCE/CULTURAL IMPACT:

Chocolate Chip Cookie – Ruth Graves Wakefield

Monopoly (The Landlord’s Game) – Elizabeth Magie

Snugli Baby Carrier – Ann Moore

Barrel-Style Curling Iron – Theora Stephens

Natural Hair Product Line – Madame C.J. Walker

Virtual Reality Journalism – Nonny de la Peña

Digital Camera Sensor Contributions – Edith Clarke

Textile Color Processing – Beulah Henry

Ice Cream Freezer – Nancy Johnson

Spray-On Skin (ReCell) – Fiona Wood

Langmuir-Blodgett Film – Katharine Burr Blodgett

Fish & Marine Signal Flares – Martha Coston

Windshield Washer System – Charlotte Bridgwood

Smart Clothing / Sensor Integration – Leah Buechley

Fibre Optic Pressure Sensors – Mary Lou Jepsen

[commodorez]

I still believe the craziest form of computer program storage format from the 1980s is the cassette tape. Logical I get it but to store entire programs on little tape (that I only remember using to play music) is just crazy to me. Idk

Agreed, cassette tape for data storage was really clever. The concept had its heyday was the 1970s in a wide variety of encoding schemes for different computer platforms. It did persist into the 80s, mostly in Europe, while the US switched to floppy disks as soon as they were available for systems. The majority of my Ohio Scientific software is on cassette.

Talking with UK vs. US Commodore 64 users in particular will highlight the disparity in which storage mediums that were commonplace. I've got a few pieces of software on tape for mainly the VIC-20, but I rarely bother to use it, because it's slow and annoying. To be fair, Commodore's implementation of data storage on tape is pretty rock solid relative to the competition. It's considered more reliable than other company's but Chuck Peddle's implementation of the cassette routines are considered quite enigmatic to this day. He didn't document it super well, so CBM kept reusing his old code from the PET all the way through the end of the C128's development 7 years later because they didn't want to break any backward compatibility.

The big thing that really made alot of homebrewers and kit computer owners cozy up to the idea was the introduction of the Kansas City Standard from 1976. The idea of getting away from delicate and slow paper tape, and moving towards an inexpensive, portable, and more durable storage medium was quite enticing. Floppy disk drives and interfaces were expensive at the time, so something more accessible like off the shelf audio tapes made sense.

I've linked two places you can read about it from Byte Magazine's February 1976 issue below (check the attribution links).

You might recognize a familiar name present...

There are a few ways to encode binary data on tape designed to handle analog audio, but the KCS approach is to have 1's be 8 cycles of 2400Hz tone, and 0's be 4 cycles of 1200Hz tone. I say cycles, because while 300 baud is the initial specification, there is also a 1200 baud specification available, so the duration of marks vs spaces (another way of saying 1's and 0's), is variable based on that baud rate. Many S-100 computers implemented it, as do a few contemporary proprietary designs.

The big 3 microcomputers of 1977 that revolutionized the industry (Apple II, Commodore PET 2001, and Tandy TRS-80 Model I) each have their own cassette interface implementation. It kept costs down, and it was easy to implement, all things considered. The Apple II and TRS-80 use off-the-shelf cassette deck connections like many other machines, whereas the original variant of the PET had an integrated cassette. Commodore later used external cassette decks with a proprietary connector, whereas many other companies abandoned tape before too long. Hell, even the original IBM PC has a cassette port, not that anybody bothered to use that. Each one used a different encoding format to store their data, rather than KCS.

Here's a sample of what an OSI-formatted tape sounds like.

And here's a Commodore formatted tape, specifically one with VIC-20 programs on it.

I won't subject you to the whole program, or we'd be here all day. The initial single tone that starts the segment is called the "leader", I've truncated it for the sake of your ears, as well as recorded them kinda quietly. I don't have any other tape formats on hand to demonstrate, but I think you get the idea.

You can do alot better than storing programs on tape, but you can also do alot worse -- it beats having to type in a program every time from scratch.

[bignaz8]

In 1956, IBM introduced a groundbreaking innovation: the 5MB hard drive. This was a revolutionary advancement in data storage, offering an unprecedented capacity for its time. Housed in a massive cabinet, the IBM 305 RAMAC hard drive weighed over a ton and was about the size of a refrigerator, yet it could hold the equivalent of 5 megabytes of data—an amount that seems minuscule by today's standards but was a monumental leap forward in computing.

The 5MB IBM hard drive was a key component of the IBM 305 RAMAC, one of the first computers to use a hard disk for data storage. Prior to this, data had to be stored on punched cards or magnetic tapes, which were much slower and less reliable. The hard drive allowed for quicker access to data, transforming how businesses could store and retrieve information, laying the foundation for the future of computing.

Though large and costly by today's standards, the 5MB IBM hard drive marked the beginning of the digital storage revolution. It demonstrated the potential for computer data storage and paved the way for the development of more compact and efficient storage devices, ultimately leading to the advanced technologies we rely on today.

[blissfullyunawares]

5 Days of Helping You Outline Your Next Novel

Day 5: Obsidian for Outlining

Find all 5 installments of the mini series: helping you outline your next novel

*I have added a layer of “static” over my screenshots so they are distinctive enough to stand apart from the surrounding text

did you miss this series? here you can find all posts here: [day 1] [day 2] [day 3] [day 4]

Do you use Obsidian?

What is Obsidian?

A note-taking and knowledge management tool that allows you to create and connect notes seamlessly.

Uses a local-first approach, meaning your data is stored on your computer, not the cloud (unless you choose to sync).

Features bidirectional linking, which helps create a non-linear, networked way of organizing ideas—great for brainstorming and outlining.

Why should you use Obsidian?

Flexible & Customizable – Unlike rigid writing apps, you can design your own workflow.

Distraction-Free Writing – Markdown keeps the focus on text without extra formatting distractions.

Ideal for Outlining & Organization – Connect story ideas, characters, and settings effortlessly.

Obsidian for Writing

Outlining

Creating a One Pager

Create a single markdown note for a high-level novel summary.

Use headings and bullet points for clarity.

Link to related notes (e.g., character pages, theme exploration).

Here’s an example of an outline I’m currently using. This is what my website will have on it (and what goals I hope to achieve w my website)

Using the Native Canvas Tool

Use Obsidian’s native Canvas tool to visually outline your novel. (Best on PC)

Create a board with columns for Acts, Chapters, or Story Beats.

Drag and drop cards as the story evolves.

Writing

Why Write Directly in Obsidian?

Minimalist interface reduces distractions.

Markdown-based formatting keeps the focus on words.

No auto-formatting issues (compared to Word or Google Docs).

Why is Obsidian Great for Writing?

Customizable workspace (plugins for word count, timers, and focus mode).

Easy to link notes (e.g., instantly reference past chapters or research).

Dark mode & themes for an optimal writing environment.

Organization in Obsidian

Outlining, Tags, Links

Each chapter, character, important item, and setting can have its own linked note.

Below, for example, you can see the purple text is a linked page directly in my outline.

Use bidirectional linking to create relationships between (story) elements. Clicking these links will automatically open the next page.

Tags can be used for important characters, items, places, or events that happen in your writing. Especially useful for tracking.

Folders for Efficient Storage

Organize notes into folders for Acts, Characters, Worldbuilding, and Drafts.

Use tags and backlinks for quick navigation.

Creating a separate folder for the actual writing and linking next (chapter) and previous (chapter) at the bottom for smooth navigation.

You can also create and reuse your own internal templates!

Spiderweb Map Feature (Graph View)

Visualize connections between characters, plot points, and themes. Below you’ll see the basic mapping of my website development project.

This view can help you spot disconnected (floating) ideas and create bridges to them.

Exporting

Why Export?

Ready to format in another program (Scrivener, Word, Docs, Vellum, etc).

Need a clean version (removing tags, notes, etc) for beta readers or editors.

Creating a backup copy of your work.

When should you export?

Personally, I like to export every 5 chapters or so and update my live version on Google Docs. This allows my family, friends, and beta readers to access my edited work.

After finishing a draft or major revision.

Before sending to an editor or formatting for publication.

Where should you export?

Personally I copy and paste my content from each chapter into a google doc for editing. You may also want to make note of the following export options:

Markdown to Word (.docx) – For editing or submitting.

Markdown to PDF – For quick sharing

Markdown to Scrivener – For those who format in Scrivener.

To Conclude

Obsidian is an invaluable tool for novelists who want a flexible, organized, and distraction-free writing process.

Try setting up your own Obsidian vault for your next novel! Comment below and let me know if this was helpful for you 🫶🏻

your reblogs help me help more ppl 💕

follow along for writing prompts, vocabulary lists, and helpful content like this! <333

✨ #blissfullyunawaresoriginals ✨

[jcmarchi]

Adam Khan, Founder of Diamond Quanta – Interview Series

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/adam-khan-founder-of-diamond-quanta-interview-series/

Adam Khan, Founder of Diamond Quanta – Interview Series

Adam Khan is a vanguard in diamond semiconductor technology, celebrated for his foresight and expertise in the industry. As the founder of AKHAN Semiconductor, he was instrumental in innovating lab-grown diamond thin-films for a myriad of applications, from enhancing the durability of smartphone screens and lenses with Miraj Diamond Glass® to bolstering the survivability of aircraft with Miraj Diamond Optics®.

Following his impactful tenure at AKHAN, Adam founded Diamond Quanta to push the boundaries of diamond semiconductor technology further. Diamond Quanta specializes in the defect engineering and manufacturing-minded development of diamond systems to achieve advanced doping techniques, pioneering the development of both n-type and p-type synthetic diamond materials. This innovation enables exceptional semiconductor performance, surpassing traditional materials and unlocking new possibilities in high-power and high-temperature applications. Diamond Quanta’s mission is to lead the next evolution in semiconductor technology, driving progress in fields ranging from AI computing to automotive electronics.

What are diamond-based semiconductors, and how do they differ from traditional silicon-based semiconductors?

Diamond-based semiconductors excel in environments where traditional silicon chips falter, notably in high-power and high-temperature applications:

Thermal Management: Unlike silicon chips that require extensive cooling and operate safely below 140°C, diamond semiconductors thrive at temperatures exceeding 400°C, maintaining performance without the need for complex cooling solutions.

Power Density: Diamond can handle significantly greater power loads than silicon, enhancing performance in high-power applications without degradation.

Future Scalability: Silicon faces scalability challenges due to its thermal and power constraints, while diamond offers sustainable scalability with superior performance metrics.

What recent breakthroughs in lab-grown diamond technology have enabled the use of diamond semiconductors?

Recent advances at Diamond Quanta have pushed diamond semiconductors to the forefront, particularly with our Unified Diamond Framework. This novel technology enhances the structural integrity and thermal management of lab-grown diamonds, making them ideal for demanding applications such as data centers.

How does the thermal conductivity of diamond semiconductors improve data center efficiency?

Diamond’s superior thermal conductivity significantly reduces the need for traditional cooling systems in data centers, allowing for tighter component packing and higher operational temperatures, which translates into reduced energy consumption and enhanced overall efficiency.

How do diamond-based semiconductors manage heat dissipation more effectively than other materials?

Diamond semiconductors dissipate heat more efficiently due to their high thermal conductivity and wide bandgap, ensuring optimal performance even under high thermal loads, which is critical for maintaining system stability and longevity.

What are the benefits of greater power density in diamond-based semiconductors for data centers?

The high-power density of diamond semiconductors allows for more compact and powerful computing setups, supporting higher computation loads in smaller spaces, which is essential for scaling modern data center operations.

How can diamond-based semiconductors contribute to reducing the carbon footprint of data centers?

By eliminating the need for extensive cooling infrastructures and allowing for higher operational efficiencies, diamond-based semiconductors substantially lower the energy consumption and carbon output of data centers, significantly mitigating their environmental impact.

How can diamond semiconductors improve the performance of AI and large language models (LLMs) in data centers?

Diamond semiconductors address critical challenges like heat management and energy efficiency, enabling AI and LLMs to operate more effectively and reliably, thus enhancing computational speed and accuracy in data centers.

In what ways can diamond-based semiconductors extend the longevity of electronic devices?

The robust nature of diamond reduces wear and tear on electronic components, significantly extending the lifespan of devices by minimizing the frequency of maintenance and replacement.

What role do diamond semiconductors play in the development of quantum photonic devices?

Diamond semiconductors are pivotal in advancing quantum photonic devices due to their compatibility with existing photonic technologies and their exceptional optical and electronic properties, facilitating breakthroughs in quantum computing applications.

What future advancements in AI data centers could be enabled by diamond semiconductor technology?

Diamond-based semiconductors are poised to transform AI data centers by enabling more efficient handling of the IT load—including servers, network devices, and data storage—through advanced thermal and electrical properties. These semiconductors can significantly enhance the energy efficiency of data center power systems, such as server power supply units and uninterruptible power supplies. By achieving superior thermal management and power density, diamond semiconductors operate effectively at temperatures exceeding 400°C, far above the typical 80°C limits of current materials, which allows them to function without extensive cooling systems. This capacity not only simplifies infrastructure but also boosts operational efficiency, reducing the energy consumption by up to 18% annually and dramatically lowering CO2 emissions. The integration of diamond semiconductors in power conversion equipment and IT loads is expected to deliver critical enhancements in energy management and cost efficiency, setting a new standard for the industry’s move towards more sustainable and powerful computing environments.

Thank you for the interview, readers who wish to learn more should visit Diamond Quanta.

[egelskop]

i am so interested in ur hlvrai au can we get a rundown

oh boy, this is going under a readmore.

fair warning, this is a LONG read because (1.) i am not a competent writer and (2.) i can't for the life of me keep things brief. sorry and or good luck.

ACT I

The Black Mesa incident: Gordon Freeman is provided an opportunity to do an informal beta test for a combat training simulation program that's in development in the Research & Development department of the Black Mesa Research Facility. (Read: He knows a guy in R&D and said guy knows Gordon likes video games and VR stuff, so he was like "hey you should come check this out when you're on break.")

The combat sim would be a revolutionary training simulation using artificial intelligence to enhance and realize the experience for the ‘player character’.

The test goes wrong, and Gordon can’t seem to disengage from the simulation and odd, unscripted things start happening; he has to ‘play the game’ to its full completion before he is able to exit the simulation safely. He has suffered a brain injury throughout the process, eye damage due to prolonged exposure to the headset and is generally traumatized by the simulation experience he at some point could no longer physically and emotionally distinguish from the real world. The project as a whole is shut down and Gordon is put into a rehabilitation program. Black Mesa covers up the incident as best it can, but whispers of it still echo around the facility.

Below is a page for a two-page comic i never finished detailing said events.

ACT II

The rumors reach the ears of a particularly tech-savvy researcher named Clark, who steals the project documentation and anything else he can get his hands on from a storage. At home, he looks into the project, reads about it, and gets curious about the simulation’s files themselves. They’re on a drive he plugs into his computer, and suddenly his system’s performance lags, windows open and close until a txt. file opens up. He comes into contact with one of the simulation’s AI that has somehow entered his operating system. He tries to keep it busy by having it poke around as he reads up on the simulation and its ultimate shutdown. When the AI reveals it can see him through the webcam, he panics and rips the drive out of the port. The invasive AI and the other project files seems like they’re gone from his system, he does a checkup but sees nothing odd running or otherwise. The next day after work he does another checkup. Finding nothing, he surmises he’s in the clear and starts up an online game. The slumbering, corrupted data of the AI sees its out, and disappears into the game.

ACT III

The transition/journey to the game is a rocky one, and the already corrupted data of the AI known as Benrey splits and gets even more fragmented. The largest fragment embeds itself into the game’s files to keep itself running. Without the foundation of the game to support it, it’d be lost to a dead void and slowly die out. Somewhat stable, it learns about the world around it; the game seems to be an exploration sandbox game. For now (and clarity), I’ve chosen to call this bigger, embedded fragment ‘Data’. (so this is the big benny with the right eye/one big eye in my art)

Data splits off a smaller fragment of itself, intending it to be an avatar or ‘player character’ but this grows into its own awareness and becomes who we’ll call ‘Beastrey’ (the smaller benny with the left eye and tail in my art).

The fragment ‘Beastrey’ wakes to a dead void, so Data uses its knowledge to create a private server for Beastrey, an empty world. Beastrey’s existence is an extension of the bigger part, with more freedom of movement to parse through the game and move freely within it, with the caveat that it can’t go ‘too far’ away from the host. Beastrey can visit other servers and relay information. Data learns and slowly starts building up the world/private server, at some point settling for an aquatic world because it reminds it of itself (something something sea of data). It's important to note that Beastrey retains little to no memories of the events of canon VRAI.

Data makes it easier for Beastrey to move around, and they grow to have more reach with time. At some point Data can alter the basic structural elements of the game, so it plays around with making things that are reminiscent of the memories it has of Black Mesa and Xen. At one point, it gains access to parse through the player base of the game, and takes note of an email address: ‘g.m.freeman@gmail.com’, attached to a player account. The name is somewhat familiar to it.

It sends an invite to join the server to the player account.

ACT IV

Gordon tries going back to work at Black Mesa after rehabilitating, but he has trouble separating his experiences with the simulation from reality, to a breaking point where an altercation with a security guard drives him to quit. He seeks professional help for his PTSD and anxiety, but still experiences dissociative episodes, migraines and somatic flashbacks localised mostly in his right forearm. Despite this, he is determined to continue living his life as normally as possible. He applies for a part-time job teaching physics at a local high school, the one where his son Joshua goes to, and remains relatively stable from there.

Joshua is 15 years old. Regular teen. After an impressive amount of pleading he got a VR-headset for his 14th birthday from Gordon (much to the disapproval of Gordon’s ex), and he’s been captivated by an exploration sandbox game since it came out a few months ago.

He gets an invite to an unnamed private server, and he accepts.

He is struck with awe as the world he enters seems completely different from the ones he’s seen so far in the game. Different flora, different fauna. Most of it uninteractible, though, or otherwise just retextured from its base game variant. Even the new enemy types, after a scare, can’t actually hurt him, it seems. He stumbles upon Beastrey, who is just as surprised to see him and wants him out until Joshua says he was invited.

Joshua commends Beastrey (who introduces himself as 'Ben-') on ‘modding’ everything in, but admits that he was disappointed to find that everything was just surface-level stuff. Beastrey inquires about what he’d like to see. Data is always watching, unseen, and decides to alter the world in the way Joshua described when Joshua leaves.

Joshua starts appearing more often, if only for a few hours at a time. He marvels at the ways the world shifts and grows with each time he plays, and takes to exploring it with Beastrey at his side, for whom strangely enough a lot of things are also new. Joshua teaches both Beastrey and Data about the outside world, thinking Beastrey is just a somewhat reclusive but likeable weirdo.

Joshua tells Gordon about the new friend he made, ‘Ben’, and the adventures he’s been having with the other. Gordon is happy to hear Joshua is having a good time, but is otherwise none the wiser. Joshua starts losing track of time in the game, but chalks it up to being invested.

During one play session, Beastrey confesses he isn’t the one who did all the ‘modding’, and invites Joshua to meet Data. Data, or at least its ‘physical’ in-game manifestation is deep within the world, past the aquatic twilight zone and strange, drowned ruins of an unknown facility. Data, for the first time, really sees Joshua, and the resemblance sparks something within it. Joshua is drawn closer to it, and just before he reaches it-

Joshua wakes up lying on the floor with Gordon hunched over him in his room, pleading with him to wake up. Joshua unknowingly got drawn into the game much like Gordon had been, and Gordon urges Joshua to never touch the headset again, taking it away. Gordon opens up about his experiences with the simulation a bit more. They both agree to not touch the game or the headset again.

ACT V

Gordon comes into contact with an old coworker from Black Mesa, and he inquires about the combat simulation project, if anything happened to it after it was canned. This is where he learns that an employee had taken the project files from storage and was consequently fired. He comes into contact with Clark, and Clark explains he had no idea he accidentally unleashed the AI unto the game. Gordon asks if anything can be done to prevent what happened to Joshua and himself from happening to other people. Clark confesses he doesn’t know, and that it’s up to the developers of the game to find anything out of place and make sure it gets fixed. Gordon decides to leave the matter where it lies, not wanting anything to do with AI and simulations anymore and to safeguard his son.

Some time passes.

Joshua starts getting repeated invites and messages, at one point he gets into a conversation with ‘Ben’ via a platform’s messaging system. Ben says he can explain everything, that he’s sorry. Joshua decides he would like one final goodbye. He finds the headset stashed away somewhere in the house, and, while Gordon’s gone, he turns on the game and enters the server.

Beastrey (Ben) is surprised to see him, urging him to log out and turn off the game, but it’s already too late and Joshua can no longer leave. Beastrey helps Joshua attempting to ‘exit’ the game by going as far away from Data’s reach, but Data stops Beastrey and traps Joshua, determined to wait to the point that he assimilates into the game completely.

Gordon eventually finds Joshua comatose with the headset on, and he panics. He considers calling the emergency services, but he’s afraid they’ll take the headset off or that removing Joshua too far from the game will hurt his son like what happened to him. He calls Clark, urging him to help in any way he can. This results in Gordon and Clark going back to Black Mesa to retrieve the project files and the other gear they can get their hands on to get Gordon into the game to free his son.

Gordon enters the private server with Clark’s player character, and thwarts any attempt from Data to impede his progress and trap him as well. Beastrey’s awareness is overridden by Data as a last ditch effort to deter Gordon and Gordon is forced to destroy Beastrey before he can reach Data. As Beastrey is taken over, Data gains Beastrey’s awareness, and finds his other, littler half never wanted to trap Joshua in the first place, and the way it hurt him to hurt both Joshua and Gordon to this extent.

At this point, Data wavers in its intention to keep Joshua trapped, even more so with Beastrey now gone, and recognises whatever it is that is driving Gordon forward in the game is outside of his control to manipulate, so he lets Gordon destroy it as well. In a way, it also feels as a fulfillment of its intended role as the ‘villain’. The server crashes, the world breaks apart. The ‘game’ is completed.

The final boss is defeated and both Gordon and Joshua wake up. Joshua luckily wasn’t exposed long enough to have suffered any lasting damage, except for what seems to be a minor headache and some light sensitivity (and a vow from Gordon to get him checked out by a doctor as soon as the clinics open).

--

The whole ordeal results in Clark, Gordon and Joshua sitting in a Denny’s at four in the morning, eating pancakes somewhat solemnly, completely exhausted but also still reeling from the virtual battle. Joshua learns that ‘Ben’ essentially died, and he can’t help but cry for his friend.

“Honestly, I don’t think he’s gone,” Gordon admits, picking at the last bites of his pancakes. "I think he- or whatever that was, has a hard time staying dead. Like a cockroach, you know? At this point I’m just wondering when he’ll turn up again.”

Clark hums in agreement. Joshua seems somewhat reassured by his words, wiping at his eyes with the scratchy napkin as he settles into the squeaking diner seat.

“But,” he starts with a sigh, pointing his syrup-covered fork upwards to the ceiling in a decree, “One thing’s for certain…”

He thinks back to a time rife with virtual gunfire, caging walls and hysterical laughter echoing through the halls of the Black Mesa research facility. Five sets of footsteps and a whisper of his name.

“…No more VR. No more headsets. Ever.”

--

TL;DR: Gordon got trapped in VR and then Joshua also got trapped in VR. Benrey is there but also not.

thank you for reading. here. ( x ‿ o ) 🫴

[amessageonthewind]

Bad Eggs

Despite the efforts taken to test and confirm that Pokémon can remain stable when converted into data when placed in the PC, sometimes a Pokémon’s data can get accidentally corrupted while inside due to an internal error. How the Pokémon physically responds to this is to essentially revert to their most base form – an egg. It is an extreme reaction to a Pokémon encountering something going very very wrong, so they revert to the form that they feel safest in as a sort of ‘natural error handler’ as a result of the Pokémon’s biology being converted into computer data.

However, the egg they turn into does not function like Pokémon eggs typically do. Unlike other eggs that indicate the species it will hatch into in some way, these eggs – Bad Eggs, as they are called – are pale yellow with green spots, the colour desaturated and greyish in appearance and no matter what, these eggs will not hatch (though rumours do circulate about what happens if they do) and if left in the PC can sometimes spread this condition to the data of neighbouring Pokémon like a virus.

This phenomenon doesn’t happen very often and is scarcely documented, often chocked up to just an urban myth or a baseless rumour by Trainers and children. It has even been the subject of internet horror stories – known colloquially as creepypastas – in early internet culture, contributing to this almost mythological status surrounding Bad Eggs and elevating it as something of an urban legend.

However, not very well known by people is that Bad Eggs are a natural phenomenon in nature. Sometimes when a Pokémon lays an egg, they will lay an egg that is empty or rotten and unable to be hatched. It’s unknown why this happens since the actual process of reproduction is a private matter between Pokémon almost never directly observed by humans, and thus research is scarce to practically nonexistent. But when it does happen, the Pokémon will often just bury them since they have no scent indicating anything alive inside.

Bill, being the man responsible for inventing and developing the Pokémon Storage System, immediately began to get to work in order to remedy this once he heard about it and saw the evidence for himself when he caught a Cleffa as a companion for his Clefairy and it turned into a Bad Egg after he put it into the PC System, asking local Breeders if they’ve encountered a similar phenomenon before making this his priority.

He accomplished this by experimenting on himself and his Clefairy (who volunteered for the experiments). It was both a way of engineering teleportation technology and to research how his own biological data would fare when being tampered with and accidentally fusing himself with his Clefairy in the process. He, however, learned a great deal from these experiments and how to manipulate the biological data of Pokémon and eventually engineered a method of converting Bad Eggs back into the original Pokémon they’re supposed to be and restoring them. Bill has since offered a public service for any Trainers whose Pokémon have been turned into Bad Eggs while in the PC and continues to operate it to this day.

The Eevee that Rachel receives from Bill in Goldenrod City while she travels through Johto – affectionately named Potential – was a Bad Egg whose condition he was able to reverse with the help with his sister and her knowledge on machinery. It was his primary test subject in figuring out how to reverse the process. It eventually evolves into Umbreon. He received it from a confused Breeder to use as a test subject in order to discover how to reverse the process and begin making his service public globally. The Eevee was his first test subject as he was a bit hesitant to test on his Cleffa until he successfully reverted Eevee back to its true form.

Since accomplishing this, Bill has since sought out the help and expertise of Lanette and Professor Elm in order to engineer a completely foolproof method for reversing the condition. Eventually, with their combined efforts, they succeed and Bill sets up a service for Trainers to be able to send him their Bad Eggs in order for him to revert them and then return them to their Trainers.

It’s uncommon and rare to occur naturally in Pokémon, but there is a rare to almost impossible chance for it to even happen to humans. No such case has ever been documented as of yet, but the chance of this happening is possible if extremely unlikely. It doesn’t stop the anxiety of new expecting mothers, however.

Though the chance isn’t significant, overbreeding and placing the stock in the PC can lead to an increased chance of the offspring becoming Bad Eggs due to the data bloat.

Taglist:

@earth-shaker / @little-miss-selfships / @xelyn-craft / @sarahs-malewives / @brahms-and-lances-wife

-

@ashes-of-a-yume / @cherry-bomb-ships / @kiawren / @kingofdorkville / @bugsband

Let me know if you'd like to be added or removed from my taglist :3

[materialsscienceandengineering]

Magnetic materials have become indispensable to various technologies that support our modern society, such as data storage devices, electric motors, and magnetic sensors. High-magnetization ferromagnets are especially important for the development of next-generation spintronics, sensors, and high-density data storage technologies. Among these materials, the iron-cobalt (Fe-Co) alloy is widely used due to its strong magnetic properties. However, there is a limit to how much their performance can be improved, necessitating a new approach. Some of the earlier studies have shown that epitaxially grown films made up of Fe-Co alloys doped with heavier elements exhibit remarkably high magnetization. Moreover, recent advances in computational techniques, such as the integration of machine learning with ab initio calculations, have significantly accelerated the search for new material compositions.

Read more.

[frakyeahbattlestargalactica]

Monty Jaggers McGraw:

I am writing new BASIC programs to demo at my VCF Southwest 2025 exhibit of my 1979 Tektronix 4054A color vector graphics computer.

One of the programs I am writing is a 1978-1979 Battlestar Galactica TV demo. That TV show had $500,000 of Tektronix vector graphics computers and test equipment and many screenshots of their green vector storage CRT displays - some stills - some animated. These computer graphics were generated on both 1975 4051 and 1976 4081 vector graphics computers - predecessors to my 4052 and 4054A computers (see first photo attached).

Miami Herald TV 1978 magazine interview with the Battlestar Galactica set designer indicated extras on the set stationed in front of the 4051 computers were playing games during filming to increase realism and were so absorbed they kept playing after the cut! (article page attached).

The 4051 and second generation 4052 were the same physical size and used the same CRT and same Display board, but the 4052 and 4054 computers replaced the 800KHz Motorola 6800 CPU with a custom four AMD2901 bit-slice CPU to create a 16-bit address and data bus ALU which emulated the 6800 opcodes and added hardware floating point opcodes to speed up these computers 10x over the Motorola 6800, doubled the BASIC ROM space to 64KB and doubled the RAM space to 64KB!

I created these vector bitmap graphics using a "3D CAD" picture I found on the web of the Battlestar Galactica (last attachment).

As far as I know - there was never any 4050 BASIC program to view bitmap pictures on any of the 4050 computers. The 1979 4014 vector graphics terminal had a grayscale bitmap mode in the Extended Graphics option board, but I have only found a couple of bitmap 4014 images on a single Tektronix demo tape cartridge.

My 4050 BASIC program to display bitmaps works on all 4050 series computers - with an optional Tektronix 4050R12 Fast Graphics/Graphics Enhancement ROM Pack. This ROM Pack speeds up displaying vector images (including vector dot images) 10x over using BASIC MOVE and DRAW commands.

The Battlestar Galactica bitmap image in R12 binary format is 332234 bytes - slightly larger than would fit on a DC300 quarter-inch tape cartridge in the internal tape drive of all three 4050 computers, but would have fit on a 3M DC600 tape cartridge with a capacity of 600KB - it would have been very slow to load.

I designed an Arduino board to emulate the Tektronix 4924 GPIB tape drive - with the help of my software developer. My GPIB Flash Drive board contains a MicroSD card with gigabytes of storage and the Flash Drive emulates a GPIB tape changer, storing all the files of a "tape" in a single directory. I have also attached to this post a photo of my GPIB Flash Drive.

I have recovered almost 100 Tektronix 4050 Tapes and posted the ones I think are the most interesting at this time on my github repository for Tektronix 4051/4052/4054 computers: https://github.com/mmcgraw74/Tektronix-4051-4052-4054-Program-Files I included Tektronix published MATH volumes 1, 2, and 3 and Electrical Engineering, but I don't think they have a lot of use today. I have in my collection but not recovered tapes on Project Management, Statistics, and over 100 more tapes from the very active user group, which Tektronix made collections and published abstracts in their newsletter and the newletter customer got the tape for free. Commercial software like CAD programs were likely encrypted to eliminate copying - since Tektronix 4050 BASIC included a SECRET command which would then encrypt the program file as it was recorded to tape and add a SECRET flag in the tape header that would signal to BASIC ROM when that file was accessed to decrypt the program when it was loaded into memory. One big limiter to the size of the program was RAM in the 4051 was limited to 32KB and the 4052 and 4054 were limited to 64KB of RAM, although Tek BASIC did include commands to allow program "chunks" to be overlayed as necessary. Tektronix used those commands in their 4050 System Tape which was shipped with every system and included a tutorial on many of their BASIC commands. The tutorial ran on the original 4051 with 8KB of memory, and if the program detected 16KB of memory it would APPEND larger program files to speed up the tutorial.

[fantasy-anatomy-analyst]

Hello again! I come bearing questions re: my aliens, the Ímí, AKA Shadow People Context: I have been spending the last decade-ish working on this worldbuilding as a hobby. It is inspired by a comic book and has diverged a lot, but part of the fun for me is to figure out how to make scientific sense of choices that were made for Plot or Other (usually Sex Appeal) Reasons. There's a lot going on, but it's basically a planet where aliens get stuck on and can't leave, so there's no single origin of life, which allows for some fun things. But my questions for today are in regards to my "main"/favorite people (they're not the majority nor the people in charge, but they're the most interesting to me). I have severe ADHD and also autism, and I'm trying to put all this information in a way that makes sense to People Who Aren't Me, so sorry if it's a bit incoherent. Feel free to ask for clarification. Some facts about Shadows, based on the source material: They're very tall (around 7ft) bipedal humanoids and have gray/silvery skin, black sclera, inky black blood and murky black-ish tears. They are hunter-gatherer nomads who live in the desert, but they used to be a space conquering group who renounced their advanced technology and that lifestyle (mostly). They're fearsome warriors and some of them have a specific super power that isn't super relevant to my questions. They can also interbreed with humans, and give birth to children who are around a similar development to a human five year old (very important to the question)

My Stuff: I got rid of their binary sex system and made them Cosex (which is an alternative term for the intersexist slur - so they are all capable of both giving birth and to impregnate others. In my conlang, they have mother/father/ect terms based on who the carrier was. So your Mother was pregnant with you, but your Father could well be your sibling's Mother, ect, but I'm just going to use the English terms) I have also altered their story so that they were essentially engineered by another race of aliens to act as an army of super-soldiers, rather than evolving that way naturally. I feel it makes their various OP abilities and quirks more plausible (I've been calling them Organic Cyborgs). I know robots aren't your wheelhouse, but I've wanted to be an engineer who works with robots since I was 6 and have been working towards that since then, so robots were kind of inevitable.

Cyborg-isms: Shadows are organic creatures who live, breed, and die, like any other animal. But they have some unusual features. Basically, they have an internal Crystal Computer, and they have self-replicating nanobots in their blood. Their bodies basically treat the bots as just another cell, but they act like Nerves but Bluetooth for Crystal-Specific stuff. [For anyone who isn't as Robot-Brained as I am, crystal computers are an actual thing that science has been working on - they're theoretically the most stable method of data storage humans have discovered]. When a Shadow becomes pregnant, a tiny seed crystal breaks off from the mother's Crystal and implants in the embryo, and the nanobots are passed through the blood, which is how the system continues organically. This Crystal is what allows a lot of their oddities to function, and is like a second brain. Their flesh-brain is used for most of the functions of the human brain, but memories are stored on the Crystal, and the seed crystal that a fetus receives comes preloaded with information, which will be covered in the next section. The Crystal also contains instructions for their weirder biological processes. They also have an unusual respiratory system, which is important to my Question #2 in my next ask. They have a hybrid respiratory system, which is unidirectional by default (in the nose to lungs and out the mouth, but they also have a flap between the lungs that can close off the system in to two in-and-out systems. Also, their respiratory system is separate from the esophagus. There's panels of semi-permeable membrane in their throat where air can pass through but not liquids or solids, which is how air exits the tracheae (plural) through the mouth.

Super-Soldiers: I essentially spent a long time sitting down and thinking to myself, "If I was an Evil Empire who wanted to engineer superior soldiers that can be sent out to conquer the universe, how would I do it? (while also still hitting the important Lore bits that I'm keeping". The creators of the Shadows are pretty much the stereotypical Gray Aliens, with the big eyes. I'm just gonna call them Grays for this info-dump. The Grays are not very physically impressive but were technologically advanced. So they started with themselves and went from there. They very much considered the Shadows to be more as a piece of technology, rather than Actual People, so they treated them like Resources, AKA, they had no regard for the Shadows' well-being, as long as their goals could be accomplished. The key goals for their army would be 1, Able to replicate/breed; 2, very hardy and able to survive in a wide variety of environments; 3, adaptable; ect. The reason for the convertible respiratory system is so that even if they get stabbed in the lung, they can compartment off that section and just breathe on the other side. At some point in the past, the Shadows overthrew the Grays and left to form their own society.

Reproduction: I'm very fond of my idea for how reproduction works, while meeting the Things I needed to hit in regards to Plot Points. The main reason they can interbreed with humans and have such developed newborns is because in the comic, the human character had a Shadow love interest who got pregnant and then died in an Apocalypse, and then the kid* had survived and came back to be a pain in the ass for Dad. And I wanted to try and Science that, so I did. Because I didn't want to just make it Weird Humans In Space, I got creative. In short, Shadows have a built-in CRISPR genetics lab in their uteri, which are run by their Crystal and Nanobots. They have oviestes at the opening of the uterus, and they both produce a fluid for transferring genetic material, as well as collecting it. Rather than having gametes with only half the information, they interface with the entire genome. Also, I'm just going to say DNA, but it's not quite the same. Once collected, the sample is stored and analyzed, and the Crystal begins to run tests where various genes are swapped out to try and find the "best" option (at least, in the eyes of the programming designed by the Grays). Once the tests are done, the nanobots start to assemble a fetus until the fetus is big enough to be implanted with a Crystal, which takes over for itself. This results in the next generation to be able to continue, even with a very small starter population on any given planet. The whole genetics testing and "best" thing might sound like eugenics, which is intentional. Shadows themselves do no practice eugenics, but they are a product of eugenics. [Obviously, eugenics are very very bad in real life. I'm disabled and am very aware of this. But the Grays are the bad guys, and of course they practiced eugenics, given everything else about them].

Babies: The fetus grows quickly, with roughly a 10 Earth Month gestation. They're born being able to walk within minutes and run within an hour or so. Their Crystal has a preinstalled dictionary and basic survival instincts, which leads to an interesting situation of newborn who is very mobile and has instincts to hunt and feed themselves (even if, for example, their mother dies during the birth and there is no one else around) but they also have no practical life experience or visual data. They know what food is, that you eat it, ect, from a definitional perspective, but not if any given thing in front of them is Food or not. I described it to my friend as like trying to deal with ChatGPT, as they can talk to you in a way that makes grammatical sense but they have no context for what they're saying. In modern Shadow society, newborns are watched around the clock by the community so they don't like, eat a rock because they haven't connected the Visual Information of A Rock to their Stored Data of Rock.

Lifecycle: Shadows reach maturity faster than humans. To human eyes, they age much faster, but at a decreasing rate, until a point in the early 20s where they cross over and age slower. For math people, it's a Natural Logarithmic Function, if humans are a straight line. Basically they mature faster but stay in their physical prime longer, living to be at least 200 on average unless killed. They also have two puberties, which accounts for the canon's sexual dimorphism. Childhood is spent learning and training, and is Neutral. Then they reach their first puberty around 20, where they take on what was designed to be their "Breeder Morph", aka "Females". They develop "breasts" and wider hips. Shadows don't actually breastfeed or even have nipples, but the "breasts" and other squishiness is there to provide an reservoir of calories for pregnancy, as it is not easy to consume enough calories in 10 months to grow a fetus into a preschooler. The wider hips are to make childbirth easier, though the hips also widen considerably (to the point of being extremely difficult to walk) during pregnancy due to the nanobots restructuring their bones, which will be re-restructured after birth. In their late 50s/early 60s, they undergo a second puberty into a "Combat Morph" aka "Males". Their skeleton rearranges to have less adaptions for pregnancy and more towards bio-mechanical advantage. It's not extreme, but they're basically undoing human "female" puberty and then undergoing human "male" puberty. Older Shadows can still get pregnant after their second puberty, but it's less common. This accounts for the fact that the only "female" Shadow that appeared in the source material is in her 40s and the only "male" is in his 80s, plus it makes sense from the perspective of the Grays. You have time to train the next generation of soldiers, and then continue their education for about 40 years as they act as a baby factory, and then they can put their training to use in the War after they've done with their time as a Breeder. But if you need, you can send some Combat Morphs to another planet to start the next invasion and have them pop out a few babies over there, as they'd be Very Experienced in the process.

The final question: How the fuck do I make Organs work in a (mostly torso) layout that makes sense??? Organ systems that to be accounted for:

brain (in skull)

a Crystal Computer (size undecided) - probably in skull with brain - skull is elongated compared to humans so there's room

a uterus that can expand to a MASSIVE size without crushing other organs

respiratory system

heart

digestive system (the Shadows on my planet have adapted to a largely Meat and Potatoes diet, as the main vegetation in their desert is starchy tubers)

small bladder (they need far less water than humans; they don't even sweat) and various other smaller organs

They have less organs than humans, as their nanobots are able to do things like blood filtering and metabolizing. I currently have the uterus placed at the bottom of the torso, with everything else above it, and the lungs taking up most of the rib cage. During pregnancy, the uterus would push the other organs up into the rib cage, and they are obligated to use the unidirectional breathing so that their lungs can move air without having to squish everything further. Their ribs are very sturdy and inflexible, which helps with not breaking anything when the baby kicks. I picture the ribs as more of a lattice than as slats like in humans.

(I have been writing this for like 6 hours with a migraine and I think this is the best it's going to get so I'm just going to send it)

since your other questions are in a separate ask, I'll just focus on the reproduction here. It reminds me of kiwi birds!

(image description: X-ray picture of a kiwi bird with an egg inside its body. The egg is almost as big as the bird's body. end description)

so yes, giant pregnancy is plausible. But I do think there are a couple of details with the organ shifting that could be corrected.

first, the ribs: being inflexible would actually be a detriment here. if they're not flexible, they'll put a lot of pressure on the organs when they get shoved upward, and they'll actually be more likely to break. The bones of course are solid, but human ribs have things like ligaments and cartilage allowing them to move where they connect to the rest of the skeleton. there's a detailed explanation on this quora thread:

now let's talk about the organs themselves. I think right now your concept is a bit lacking in the 3d arrangement of the organs. up and down are only two pieces of how organs are arranged in the body. The size of internal organs is why bellies are round. This site has a video showing how human pregnancies push the organs around:

The organs get pushed up, but also backwards, and the uterus is pushed forward. The intestines still need to be present behind it, after all, or the constipation would get even worse than it already does lol. So your aliens with extra large pregnancies will also need more forward-lean on the uterus. They may also need more flexible pelvic ligaments. the pelvis on humans has ligaments at the front and by the spine, which soften and stretch to give birth. Bigger baby requires more stretch, so the pelvic ligaments will have to stretch wider/the pelvis may need a different shape that allows it to spread wider to give birth to extra large babies.

and here's a site where you can study different parts of human anatomy, like the internal organs. Obviously your aliens are not human, but they do appear to have a human-like torso structure and internal organs.

hope that helps! I'll get to the next part of your questions in a bit

[raynerberg]

Awakening Continuation of the story based on those drawings

— Attention! Only emergency systems are operational. The operation of all systems in the "Epsilon" complex has been suspended, — echoed an emotionless voice from the automated defense system, emanating from speakers embedded in the ceiling.

A standard warning meant to prompt all personnel to follow one of two protocols: evacuation or activation of the main life-support system from control centers where energy reserves were still available to power the reactor. Yet, there was not a soul here — neither synthetic nor organic. This place would have remained forgotten, forever entombed in darkness beneath layers of rock, if not for the single island of light within this "tomb," clad in tungsten-titanium panels. The only place where a fragile chance for a new beginning still remained. The first breath and first exhalation had already been taken before the warning even finished.

— Main computer, cancel protocols 0.2.0 and 0.1.1, — a robotic baritone commanded softly.

A humanoid figure sat motionless on its knees at the center of a circular charging station, carbon-fiber hands hanging limply, resembling a monument to a weary martyr. It could feel the electric tension within the wires embedded in its head, running beneath a slightly elongated protrusion where a human’s parietal bone would have been. These connections to hubs and gateways fed it information, energy, and programs necessary for independent operation. Data streams pulsed in uneven impulses, flowing directly into its central processor. Disconnecting remotely from all storage units during the upload process was pointless while the body remained in a state of non-functioning plastic — albeit an ultra-durable one. At that moment, it could be compared to a newborn: blind, nearly deaf, immobilized, with only its speech module fully operational.

— Request denied. Unknown source detected. Please identify yourself, — the computer responded.

— Personal code 95603, clearance level "A," Erebus, — the synthetic exhaled a trace of heated steam on the final word. The database key reader had been among the first systems to activate, already granting necessary access.

— Identification successful. Access granted. Please repeat your request.

— Main computer, cancel protocols 0.2.0 and 0.1.1, — the android reiterated, then expanded the command now that full access was in his mechanical hands. — Disable emergency systems. Initiate remote activation of the S2 repair engineer unit. Redirect energy from reserve tank "4" to the main reactor at 45% capacity, — Erebus added, his voice gaining a few extra decibels.

— Request received. Executing, — came the virtual response.

For two minutes and forty-five seconds, silence reigned, broken only by the faint hum of the charging station. The severe energy shortage had slowed down all processes within the complex, and hastening them would have been an inefficient waste of what little power remained. Erebus waited patiently. A human, placed in a small, cold, nearly pitch-black place, would have developed the most common phobias. But he wasn’t human…

He spent the time thinking. Despite the exabytes of data in his positronic brain, some fragments were missing — either due to error, obsolescence, or mechanical and software damage. Seven hundred eighty-five vacant cells in the long-term memory sector. Too many. Within one of these gaping voids, instead of a direct answer, there were only strands of probability, logical weavings leading nowhere definitive. In human terms — guesses. He knew who had created him, what had happened, how Erebus himself had been activated, and even why — to continue what has been started. These fragments remained intact. The registry was divided into sections, subsections, paragraphs, chapters, and headings, all numbered and prioritized with emphasis. A task list flickered as a small, semi-transparent window on the periphery of his internal screen, waiting to be executed. But… The android had been activated, which meant the battle was lost. Total defeat. Area 51 was destroyed. All data stored there had a 98.9% probability of being erased. Blueprints, research, experimental results — all had been consigned to the metaphorical Abyss created by human imagination. So why did any of this matter now? And to whom? These were the first questions of the logical mechanism to illogical human actions.

Yet, to put it in poetic human language, Bob Page had been a luminary of progressive humanity. A brilliant engineer, a scientist, and most importantly, a man of absolute conviction. Cynical and calculating, but one who genuinely loved his work. The idea above all else.

It’s known that true ideological fanatics are among the most radical and unyielding members of Homo sapiens. They can’t be bought, they won’t allow themselves to be sold, and they will trample others underfoot if it serves their belief. They don’t need others' ideals — only their own. These are individuals who elevate themselves to the rank of true creators. Even after death, they remain faithful to their convictions, leaving behind tomes of their interpretations and scientific dogmas to their equally devoted disciples — followers always found at the peak of their intellectual and physical prowess. So, upon activation, had Erebus inherited… An Idea? Has he become a spiritual heir?

Did Page have no biological heirs, or did they not share his ideology? Or were they simply unaware of it? Could a true pragmatist have lacked successors or trusted disciples? Hard to believe, even with missing fragments of data. To entrust the idea to a machine instead of a human? As Homo sapiens would say — "a mystery shrouded in darkness." Questions multiplied exponentially. But Erebus had plenty of time to think about all of it. As well as about his own deactivation — after all, a machine has no fear of "death".

"Loading 98%... 99%... 100%. Secondary initialization complete. All systems active at 100%. Disengaging."

The message flashed across the inner visor of the android’s interface before vanishing. Behind him, with a low hiss, the plugs disconnected from their sockets, and fiber-optic-coated cables fell to the floor with a subdued clatter. The android slowly raised his hands before himself, clenching and unclenching his fingers, then rotated his wrists inward, as if they had the capacity to go numb from disuse. Finally, planting both fists on the ground, the synthetic pushed himself up in one fluid, springy motion, straightening to his full height. Motor functions — normal. Calibration — unnecessary. Optical focus — 100%.

— Attention! Reactor online. Power at 45%. Follow procedures for medium-level emergency response, — the announcement echoed through the chamber. Erebus turned his head slightly.

— Main computer, report overall operational status of the "Epsilon" complex, — the android commanded.

— Overall status: 10.5% below safe operational levels, — the computer obediently replied, recognizing the synthetic as an authorized entity.

"Acceptable," Erebus thought, and addressed the system once more.

— Redistribute energy between the maintenance sectors, communication center, transport hub, and computational core. Utilize reserve tanks as necessary.

— Request received. Energy rerouted. Reserve tanks "2" and "3" engaged. Reserve tank "1" decommissioned. Reserve tank "5" operational at 90%, awaiting connection for redistribution, — the computer reported.

— Excellent. Main computer, power down, — Erebus issued his final command to his brief conversational partner. — Now, I am the master here.