Author: Vidya Saras

You hardly need ChatGPT to generate a list of reasons why generative artificial intelligence is often less than awesome. The way algorithms are fed creative work often without permission, harbor nasty biases, and require huge amounts of energy and water for training are all serious issues.Putting all that aside for a moment, though, it is remarkable how powerful generative AI can be for prototyping potentially useful new tools.I got to witness this firsthand by visiting Sundai Club, a generative AI hackathon that takes place one Sunday each month near the MIT campus. A few months ago, the group kindly agreed…

The first and only vice presidential debate made two things clear: Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz is a nice guy. But sometimes nice guys have to bring out the knives-and Walz failed to do that.

Climate and weather prediction has experienced rapid advancements through machine learning and deep learning models. Researchers have started to rely on artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance predictions’ accuracy and computational efficiency. Traditional numerical weather prediction (NWP) models have been effective but require substantial computational resources, making them less accessible and harder to apply at larger scales. Meanwhile, deep learning models can capture complex patterns and relationships within the atmosphere using significantly fewer computational resources. This paradigm shift allows researchers to develop more scalable and versatile models, facilitating predictions critical for both short-term weather forecasting & long-term climate modeling. A fundamental…

Insecure IoT devices fuel bigger and bigger attacks As the number of vulnerable or poorly secured IoT devices connected to the internet keeps growing, so does the size of DDoS attacks. The more devices that can be enslaved as part of IoT botnets, the more packets per second and bandwidth can be generated. This can further be combined with reflection and amplification techniques that certain protocols allow. In 2016, one of the internet’s first IoT botnets, called Mirai, was responsible for an attack against French cloud computing company OVH that peaked at 620 Gbps, making it the biggest DDoS attack…

Kate Middleton and Prince William. Courtesy of The Prince and Princess of Wales/Instagram Princess Kate Middleton and husband Prince William have made their first official appearance together since she completed chemotherapy. William, 42, hosted an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, October 2, in which photographer Liz Hatton snapped photos of the honorees. After the event, Hatton met with William and Kate, 42. “A pleasure to meet with Liz at Windsor today,” the couple captioned a personal note via Instagram on Wednesday. “A talented young photographer whose creativity and strength has inspired us both. Thank you for sharing your…

The Ministry of Environment has warned that it will close 145 factories and slaughterhouses over the dumping of solid wastes into the Nairobi River. This comes as Environment Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale announced the hiring of 10,000 youth to clean the polluted Nairobi River. Mr Duale told the National Assembly’s Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations that firms found dumping effluent into the Nairobi River will have their licences revoked and closed. He said the greatest threat to the Nairobi River is the dumping of sewerage and other solid wastes by firms. Mr Duale said most sewer lines…

Now that it’s fall it’s officially PSL (pumpkin spice latte) season. And if you live where it’s still 80 degrees in October like I do, a pumpkin smoothie is a more refreshing way to get those fall flavors. Even if you don’t, I still recommend this protein-packed, creamy smoothie. It’s easy enough to make for breakfast and has a nice mix of healthy fats, protein, and a little carbs. Plus with the pumpkin in it, it even has some veggies. You could have it as a post-workout snack or whip some up for dessert. The kids won’t even know it…

Why Create a Personal Portfolio? Considering I am already the co-founder of Overpx studio, this is a question many might ask. The reasons are mainly two: 1. The need for a personal space: from 2008 to 2014 I had a blog, fedeweb.net, where I used to write articles about WordPress, JavaScript, Gimp (does it still exist?), and more. After closing it, I’ve missed having a space of my own to share ideas and projects. 2. A personal challenge: I wanted to challenge myself by handling by myself every step of the process, from concept to execution. I took care of…

On Wednesday (Oct. 2), a lucky handful of skywatchers watched as the sun transformed into a stunning “ring of fire” in the sky. This was the result of an annular solar eclipse that swept across the Pacific Ocean, including Hawaii, southern Chile, and southern Argentina. The “ring of fire” then reached the Atlantic Ocean, where it faded from view.With the annular eclipse kicking off and ending far from land, just an estimated 175,000 people, around 0.002% of the world’s population, live on the path of the eclipse that allows a full view of the “ring of fire.”Image 1 of 3The moon…

India National Cricket Team captain Rohit Sharma has lavished rich praise on the star right-arm pacer Mohammed Siraj. He said that the pacer is a superb athlete and gives it all on the field for his team. Mohammed Siraj is one of the best speedsters in India currently and he forms a deadly pace-trio with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. Siraj is a permanent member of the team across formats and has delivered some unbelievable performances for the side. Overall, the 30-year-old has represented India in 29 Tests, 44 ODIs and 16 T20Is, picking 78, 71 and 14 wickets respectively.…