Computers & the Internet News and Discussions

[firestar464]

Cloud computing captures chemistry code, offering potential to address urgent energy needs

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-10-clo ... ntial.html

[Tadasuke]

The AI HAT+ features the same best-in-class Hailo AI accelerator technology as our AI Kit, but now with a choice of two performance options: the 13 TOPS (tera-operations per second) model, priced at $70 and featuring the same Hailo-8L accelerator as the AI Kit, and the more powerful 26 TOPS model at $110, equipped with the Hailo-8 accelerator.

https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/raspberry-pi-ai-hat/

[firestar464]

DNA stores data in bits after epigenetic upgrade

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-03443-w

[firestar464]

Bloomberg- TSMC’s Arizona Chip Production Yields Surpass Taiwan’s in Win for US Push

https://archive.ph/MckxG

[weatheriscool]

Finger-worn, camera-toting mouse ring turns desktops into touchpads
By Ben Coxworth
October 28, 2024

Tired of running out of mousing room on your meagre li'l mousepad? If so, you might like the Padrone Primera mouse. It's worn like a ring, and is claimed to turn the entire top of your desk into a giant touchpad.

Made by Swiss startup Padrone, the Primera is currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign.

According to the designers, it's been in development for the past 10 years. And although we have seen various other attempts at finger-worn computer mice, none of them have worked quite like this one.

The device is worn on the index finger of the user's dominant hand. Among other electronics, it incorporates a six-axis motion sensor, a forward-facing camera, a microprocessor, a Bluetooth LE module, and a rechargeable battery.

https://newatlas.com/wearables/padrone- ... ouse-ring/

[Yuli Ban]

[weatheriscool]

Overclocker Breaks World Record With Asus and G.Skill Hardware, Liquid Nitrogen
An Intel Core Ultra 9 285K CPU and an Asus ROG Maximus Z890 Apex board launch G.Skill Trident Z5 memory to a new high frequency.
By Josh Gulick October 30, 2024

Asus and G.Skill announced a world-record memory overclocking score, hitting DDR5-12112. The new record goes to well-known South Korean overclocking specialist SafeDisk, who has worked with Asus and G.Skill hardware to set and break numerous overclocking records in the past.

The DDR5-12112 speed is impressive, considering that retail G.Skill Trident Z5 memory tops out at DDR5-8400. The score puts Taiwanese Kovan Yang in second place and American BenchMarc in third place.

SafeDisk used an Asus ROG Maximus Z890 Apex motherboard and an Intel Core Ultra 9 285K processor to get the job done. There have been questions from reviewers about the chip’s performance in certain games and tests, though it won praise for its power consumption and performance in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

https://www.extremetech.com/computing/o ... d-nitrogen

[firestar464]

How a classical computer beat a quantum computer at its own game

https://phys.org/news/2024-10-classical ... -game.html

[weatheriscool]

SK Hynix Starts Mass Production of Milestone NAND Flash Storage
321-layer modules are set to arrive in 1H 2025.
By Josh Gulick November 25, 2024

SK Hynix announced that production of its milestone flash memory is underway. The memory maker said that it had passed 300 layers earlier this year. For proof, it unveiled a 321-layer, 1Tb TLC 4D module. Now, production has begun in earnest, giving SK Hynix the spotlight as it competes with other big names in the flash memory industry, including Micron and Samsung. With mass production started, SK Hynix is planning to deliver products to customers in the first half of 2025.

NAND flash memory makers have been racing toward ever-higher layers, driven by the data storage demands of the exploding AI market. Stacking layers of NAND memory increases storage capacity while still allowing for small modules—critical for servers and other applications where space is at a premium. This puts memory makers in a race to develop the technology that will allow them to stack more layers while avoiding the typical pitfalls of escalating design complexity, like increasing production costs.

https://www.extremetech.com/computing/s ... sh-storage

[weatheriscool]

Standalone Flexbar looks to succeed where Apple's Touch Bar failed
By Paul Ridden
December 04, 2024

What felt like a taste of the future for laptop design in 2016 was abandoned by Apple last year as a failed concept. But engineers from Hong Kong think the idea holds much promise, so they've created something similar that works with Mac and Windows.

Back in 2016, Apple replaced the function row of keys to the top of a MacBook Pro's keyboard with a slim touchscreen display, offering contextual shortcuts and actions. But – whether due to limited customization possibilities or lack of developer support – it never really lived up to its promise despite gaining a dedicated following from a number of power users.
And when the 14-inch M3 Macbook Pro launched to replace the 13-inch model last year, the Touch Bar was finally put to bed. But the ENIAC team is hoping that the concept can live on in the form of a standalone version for Mac and Windows devices called the Flexbar.

https://newatlas.com/laptops/flexbar-touch-bar-eniac/

[caltrek]

AI Fact Checks Can Increase Belief in False Headlines
December 4 , 2024

Introduction:

(Eurekalert) Although many tech companies and start-ups have touted the potential of automated fact-checking services powered by artificial intelligence to stem the rising tide of online misinformation, a new study led by researchers at Indiana University has found that AI-fact checking can, in some cases, actually increase belief in false headlines whose veracity the AI was unsure about, as well as decrease belief in true headlines mislabeled as false.

The work also found that participants given the option to view headlines fact checked by large language model-powered AI were significantly more likely to share both true and false news – but only more likely to believe false headlines, not true headlines.

The study, “Fact-checking information from large language models can decrease headline discernment,” was published Dec 4 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The first author is Matthew DeVerna, a Ph.D. student at the Indiana University Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering in Bloomington. The senior author is Filippo Menczer, IU Luddy Distinguished Professor and director of IU’s Observatory on Social Media.

“There is a lot of excitement about leveraging AI to scale up applications like fact-checking, as human fact-checkers cannot keep up with the volume of false or misleading claims spreading on social media, including content generated by AI,” DeVerna said. “However, our study highlights that when people interact with AI, unintended consequences can arise, highlighting how important it is to carefully consider how these tools are deployed.”
In the study, IU scientists specifically investigated the impact of fact-checking information generated by a popular large language model on belief in, and sharing intent of, political news headlines in a pre-registered randomized control experiment.

Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1067146

caltrek’s comment: I think this study shows that involving humans in the fact checking loop is still necessary for a good outcome. Perhaps this will change as the quality of AI improves.

[weatheriscool]

Google CEO Pichai Hints at 'Profound' Changes to Search in 2025
You can bet it has something to do with AI.
By Ryan Whitwam December 6, 2024
https://www.extremetech.com/internet/go ... ch-in-2025

Google is the world's largest search engine, a position that has landed it in hot water with regulators. While the firm's antitrust woes wind their way through the courts, CEO Sundar Pichai is forging ahead with big plans for search. During a recent appearance, Pichai promised Google search will "change profoundly" in the coming year. Given Google's recent infatuation, this almost certainly has something to do with AI.

Pichai made his comments at the New York Times' DealBook Summit on Wednesday. "I think you’ll be surprised, even early in ‘25, the kind of newer things Search can do compared to where it is today," said Pichai.

While Pichai didn't bring up any specific AI-based enhancements to search, he did ruminate on Microsoft's recent AI baiting. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently noted that Google should have been the "default winner" in AI, which is probably true. Google engineers developed the transformer models that underlie all of today's generative AI systems back in 2017. Google did very little with the technology until Microsoft and OpenAI teamed up.

[weatheriscool]

Google Adds QR Code Functionality to Quick Share
Google's Quick Share now supports QR code-based file transfers without contact verification or device pairing.
By Devesh Beri December 6, 2024

Google just improved Quick Share on Android by adding QR code support for easier file transfers.

Quick Share's new QR code feature makes file sharing comparatively easier (as if it wasn't easy already). Just pick a file, hit the QR code option, and let the other person scan it for an easy and secure transfer, as reported by Android Authority. This method removes the need to add contacts, verify devices, or adjust sharing settings, simplifying and securing the transfer process/

It allows for a quick and easy way to bypass privacy settings, meaning users don't have to expand Quick Settings to find "everyone" nearby. Instead, they can simply scan the QR code on the device they want to send to, and the two are automatically linked.

The feature is being rolled out widely to Android users, but it may not be immediately available on all devices and could require a server-side update from Google or a Play Services update. It's unclear how far back the support runs.

https://www.extremetech.com/mobile/goog ... uick-share

[Tadasuke]

10 years ago air-cooled desktop PC or workstation DDR4 RAM was overclockable to 2 GHz (4 GT/s) with the best sticks and the best motherboard. Today it's DDR5 5 GHz (10 GT/s).

10 years ago you could get 25" 1440p 60Hz monitor for the price of 32" 2160p 144Hz or 165Hz today.

10 years ago ultrawide monitors were regarded as unusual. Today they are something quite normal.

[weatheriscool]

Prototype network achieves seamless all-light mobile communication across air, land and sea
https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-pro ... ation.html
by Optica

Researchers have demonstrated a prototype mobile all-light communication network, paving the way for seamless connectivity across air, land and underwater environments—even when communication nodes are on a moving vehicle. This advance could enable uninterrupted data exchange in dynamic and challenging settings for navigation, emergency response, research and commercial operations.

"Our all-light wireless network combines different light sources to ensure uninterrupted connectivity while also dynamically aligning optical paths between moving nodes," said research team leader Yongwin Wang from Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications in China. "This enables two-way real-time data transmission, ensuring reliable communication and data exchange within and across networks, regardless of the environment."

[weatheriscool]

Seagate Wields the Mighty HAMR, Preps 32TB Drive for Production
The 32TB hard drive has a major customer.
By Josh Gulick December 18, 2024

Seagate hit another milestone in its long-running journey of developing heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) hard drives when it signed an unnamed cloud service provider. The storage device company mentioned what appears to be a big win in an SEC filing. The HAMR drive has been many years in the making and we’ve kept an eye on its progress. Now, as 2024 comes to a close, it looks like the vaunted HAMR 32TB hard drive is ready for mass production, having received the confidence of a large customer.

Seagate offers a 30TB drive that uses conventional magnetic recording (CMR), but the new 32TB drive uses shingled magnetic recording (SMR), which does not match the performance of conventional magnetic recording. At the moment, it isn’t quite clear (as Ars Technica notes) whether the 32TB drives are Exos M drives or Mozaic 3+ drives. The difference is important for potential customers, especially the general public, because only the Exos M drives are compatible with current systems. We’ll update when Seagate weighs in.

https://www.extremetech.com/computing/s ... production

[weatheriscool]

Cuneiform-like data storage tech boasts four times the density of binary
By Ben Coxworth
December 31, 2024
https://newatlas.com/good-thinking/indent-data-storage/

Cuneiform, the world's oldest form of writing, involved making indentations in clay tablets. Scientists have now developed a data storage system that's like cuneiform on steroids – and it's capable of storing more data than a typical hard disc drive.

The experimental new technology was created by Abigail Mann and colleagues at Australia's Flinders University.

Instead of a clay tablet, the system utilizes an inexpensive polymer film composed of sulfur and a chemical compound known as dicyclopentadiene. Data is stored on that film in the form of a series of nanoscale indentations. These tiny indents are made (and read) using a fine-tip probe mounted on an atomic force microscope … not by a reed stylus.

In previous attempts at such "indent-based" data storage systems, the indents served as binary code. The presence of an indent represented a 1, while the absence of an indent represented a 0.

Not only were the polymer substrates that were used in these earlier systems difficult to produce, they also weren't very stable or finely workable. That's where the Flinders polymer comes in.

[weatheriscool]

Net Neutrality Gutted by Federal Appeals Court
The Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit says the FCC lacks authority to regulate ISPs as utilities.
By Ryan Whitwam January 3, 2025

For the past 20 years, net neutrality has been a cause célèbre among digital activists. The principle that ISPs should not grant priority access to favored sites and services has attracted wide support among internet users, but net neutrality supporters have been handed a crushing defeat. A US appeals court has cited recent Supreme Court rulings to block the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from enforcing net neutrality rules.

The FCC first implemented net neutrality during the Obama administration, requiring ISPs to treat all traffic coming across their networks equally. The regulations aimed to ensure that sprawling internet firms could not create paid prioritization plans for websites or charge consumers more for accessing certain types of data. The industry balked, claiming such rules would make traffic management and innovation more difficult.

https://www.extremetech.com/internet/ne ... eals-court

[Tadasuke]

SteamOS officially expands beyond Steam Deck - Legion Go S and more systems on the way

Lenovo Legion Go has five versions with 1920x1200 or 2560x1600, 8 inches or 8.8 inches screens, AMD Ryzen Z2 APUs (Rembrandt, Hawk Point or Strix Point microarchitecture, depending on the version) with 12 or 16 compute units iGPU, 4 cores 8 threads or 8 cores 16 threads CPU, 16 or 32 GB of LPDDR5 RAM, 49.2, 55.5 or 74 watt-hours internal batteries and 0.5, 1 or 2 TB of solid-state storage. MSRPs will be between $499 and $999, depending on the particular version. The highest version is most probably very performant to do lots of stuff, including high-end emulation and virtual machines.

https://videocardz.com/newz/steamos-off ... on-the-way

And later this month Nintendo is going to officially show Switch 2, with worldwide release in April. Hopefully, it's comparable to the lowest tier Lenovo Legion Go.

[weatheriscool]

Google Improves Quick Share With QR Code Functionality
The new feature eliminates the need to adjust visibility settings or add contacts.
By Devesh Beri January 10, 2025
https://www.extremetech.com/mobile/goog ... ctionality

Google has begun rolling out a new feature for Quick Share (AirDrop equivalent on Apple devices) on Android devices. The update brings QR code-based sharing, further simplifying the already simple process of transferring files between Androids.

Users can now generate a Quick Share QR code to initiate file transfers. The new feature eliminates the need to adjust visibility settings or add contacts, which was one of the main hassles with this feature. Thankfully, this will be addressed. And the second best part is, a single QR code can be scanned by multiple devices.

When using Quick Share, users will now see a "Use QR code" option in the sharing menu. Selecting this option will create a QR code that can be scanned by other Android devices. Once scanned, the receiving device is directed to a quickshare.google link, and the transfer starts, as reported by Android Central.

The QR code sharing feature is available with version 24.49.33 of Google Play services. It is currently rolling out to Android users worldwide.