Category: Tech / Science

2026 – Hot Year

Other accounts are more reliable. July 2026, for instance, tied with July 2024 for the hottest July since modern record-keeping began in 1850. Thanks to this year’s unusually powerful El Niño and climate change—which is widely believed to be strengthening that El Niño—2026 is very likely to be the hottest year on record, surpassing the previous record, set in 2024. If that turns out be the case, 2026 will have been the latest in a long string of record-setting hot years; as the World Meteorological Organization reported back in January, the last 11 years have been the hottest 11 years on record.

Goodbye to the Least Apocalyptic Summer of the Rest of Your Life
Kate Aronoff
The New Republic

Naur on Code as a Shared Mental Model, Google AI explains

In his seminal 1985 essay, Programming as Theory Building, computer scientist Peter Naur fundamentally redefines software development as a deeply human activity. He argues that the primary product of programming is not the tangible source code, documentation, or specifications, but rather a shared mental model—a “theory”—constructed within the minds of the engineering team. Drawing on philosopher Gilbert Ryle’s concept of mind, Naur stresses that successful software relies on an active, intuitive “knowing how” rather than a rigid list of rules. Code and design specs are inherently lossy media; they merely capture what a program does, completely failing to communicate the “why” behind historical constraints, structural exclusions, and architectural trade-offs.

Consequently, Naur views a software system as “alive” only as long as its original engineering team actively possesses and maintains this underlying theory. When the group of programmers who understand this philosophy completely disperses or leaves the project, the program is effectively considered “dead”. Subsequent developers can execute the software and even mechanically modify it, but they are forced to treat it like a mysterious black box. Lacking the original theory, their subsequent modifications manifest as disjointed patchwork fixes that introduce unexpected side effects and ultimately accelerate overall architectural rot. In Naur’s view, reconstructing this lost theory purely from source code text is so difficult that scrapping the codebase and rewriting it entirely from scratch is frequently the cheaper, cleaner option.

This perspective has gained profound significance in the modern era of generative AI and Large Language Model (LLM) coding assistants. While AI tools can effortlessly churn out complex, syntactically perfect code, they inherently lack any structural intent or broad cross-module architectural awareness. When engineers reflexively accept these AI-generated blocks without integrating them into an evolving mental model, projects quickly fill up with theoretically orphaned codebases. Naur’s work reminds the modern software industry that writing text is no longer the primary bottleneck of software engineering. Instead, the true value and survival of software reside entirely in the human developer’s ability to maintain, communicate, and expand the underlying theoretical framework.

Footnotes
  1. Reddit: Programming as Theory Building, Naur (1985) Discussion
  2. Ratfactor: Dave’s Paper Notes on Naur’s Theory Building
  3. Ingenieria de Software I: Programming as Theory Building (Full PDF text)
  4. Embedded Artistry: Field Atlas Breakdown of Naur’s Theory
  5. Hacker News: Discussion on Naur’s Essay in the Era of Autonomous Agents
  6. LinkedIn: Wesley Reisz on the Modern Relevance of Naur’s 1985 Essay
  7. Polvara: Reevaluating Naur’s Essay in the Generative AI Era
  8. Cekrem: Senior Developers as Guardians of Software Quality

 

Epistemic Asymmetry and Traveling to Unfamiliar Cities – ChatGPT on

What you’re describing isn’t just novelty—it’s epistemic asymmetry. Everyone around you knows what’s going on, and you don’t. You’re the only person in the café who doesn’t know why that group is celebrating, why there’s a line outside the theater, or why that particular neighborhood seems to come alive at dusk. The city is full of meanings that are visible but inaccessible. That asymmetry creates a kind of gentle tension, and I think our minds naturally find it compelling.

It also reminds me of a distinction made by John Dewey in Art as Experience. Dewey argues that we don’t merely perceive objects; we perceive situations—ongoing patterns of activity. In a new city, you perceive countless situations whose beginnings and endings you don’t know. You catch life in medias res. It’s a little like walking into the second act of a play: you understand enough to know something meaningful is happening, but not enough to explain it. That incompleteness invites attention rather than closing it down.

Annoying Samsung Lock Screen App – Glance, How to Get Rid of

https://www.reddit.com/r/samsunggalaxy/comments/1sj2ncp/anyone_else_got_this_new_glance_thing_in_their/

NOTE – This worked for me:
Polkadot_cardi
Search for an app called “all apps” it looks like a folder with your apps in it, but it’s not. Delete that app and the lock screen will go away. This is an app that takes over your lock screen. It’s not a setting. It’s an overlay buried deep in your actual OS. Get it off your phone.

This is what Google, et al say to do and didn’t work for me:
Pixiefrogw
You can shut it off under the Wallpaper settings.

Everyone Is Lying to You for Money – Official Trailer

In Everyone Is Lying to You for Money, actor and author Ben McKenzie turns investigator, pulling back the curtain on the cryptocurrency industry and the culture of hype, misinformation, and speculation that fueled its explosive rise. What began as a promise of financial freedom has evolved into a volatile ecosystem rife with fraud and reckless gambling, carrying with it devastating consequences for everyday people.

This Day on Slashdot – May 20, 2026

This Day on Slashdot

2015 Los Angeles Raises Minimum Wage To $15 an Hour 1094
2012 Who’s Pirating Game of Thrones, and Why? 1004
2005 Critical Shortage of IT Workers in Coming Years 1339
2004 Can Star Wars Episode III Be Saved? 905
2003 Chimps Belong in Human Genus? 928

RE: IT Worker Shortage
“The Herald Sun reports that IBM and university officals are worried about the increasing demand for IT professionals and the decreasing supply of computer science students. From the article: ‘The slope shows an unbelievable decline in computer science majors,’ Astrachan said. ‘There are smart people no longer even signing up to take our introductory courses. We need to fix it, or there’s not going to be a U.S. work force in computer sciences.'”

Ask Google AI – When is the AI Bubble Going to Pop?

Predictions indicate the AI bubble could burst or face a major correction between 2026 and 2027, as high infrastructure costs clash with low, slow-growing returns. While some analysts suggest a correction is already underway, others, including Benchmark’s Bill Gurley, anticipate a reset due to unsustainable investment.

Key Factors and Predictions:
Timeline: Many expect a significant market adjustment within 2–3 years (by 2027), with some predicting a crash as early as 2026.

Root Causes: The bubble is fueled by immense capital expenditures on data centers—expected to exceed $1 trillion by 2028—and potentially low demand or slow adoption.

Profitability Concerns: Many AI companies currently burn cash, and it remains to be seen if they can survive without subsidized token costs.

Market Sentiment: According to a Polymarket poll, a significant number of traders are betting on a correction by the end of 2026.

If the expected high returns from AI fail to materialize by early 2027, a severe correction could follow, similar to past technology bubbles. However, a potential “soft landing” could occur if AI adoption slowly matures over decades.

This Day on Slashdot – March 23

2011 Apple Removes Gay Cure App From App Store 917
2010 US Lawmakers Eyeing National ID Card 826
2008 Network Solutions Suspends Site of Anti-Islam Film 874
2005 When Would You Accept DRM? 1288
2004 The Unhappy World of IT Professionals 981

Re: The Unhappy World of IT Professionals

npistentis writes
“According to an article on ZDNet.com, only 1 in 7 IT professionals rate themselves as “very happy” with their chosen profession- which stands in stark contrast to one in three hairdressers, plumbers and chefs, and one in four florists. But then again, very few plumbers have to deal with users who consistently download BonziBuddy, blindly click on suspicious email attachments and use their cd trays as cupholders.”
Of course, it should be noted that by and large IT professionals earn more money then most other jobs – which I suppose is once again a warning of money != happiness.

Agentic vs Mimetic

The future will belong to people with a very specific combination of personality traits and psychosexual neuroses. An AI might be able to code faster than you, but there is one advantage that humans still have. It’s called agency, or being highly agentic. The highly agentic are people who just do things. They don’t timidly wait for permission or consensus; they drive like bulldozers through whatever’s in their way. When they see something that could be changed in the world, they don’t write a lengthy critique—they change it. AIs are not capable of accessing whatever unpleasant childhood experience it is that gives you this hunger. Agency is now the most valuable commodity in Silicon Valley. In tech interviews, it’s common for candidates to be asked whether they’re “mimetic” or “agentic.” You do not want to say mimetic. Once, San Francisco drew in runaway children, artists, and freaks; today it’s an enormous magnet for highly agentic young men. I set out to meet them.

Child’s Play
Tech’s new generation and the end of thinking
by Sam Kriss
Harper’s Magazine

Note – Interesting article on San Francisco’s tech culture

Somehow people manage to live here. But of all the strange and maddening messages posted around this city, there was one particular type of billboard that the people of San Francisco couldn’t bear. People shuddered at the sight of it, or groaned, or covered their eyes. The advertiser was the most utterly despised startup in the entire tech landscape. Weirdly, its ads were the only ones I saw that appeared to be written in anything like English:

hi my name is roy
i got kicked out of school for cheating.
buy my cheating tool
cluely.com

Venting Not Shown to Quell Anger

Venting when angry seems sensible. Conventional wisdom suggests that expressing anger can help us quell it, like releasing steam from a pressure cooker.

But this common metaphor is misleading, according to a 2024 meta-analytic review. Researchers at Ohio State University analyzed 154 studies on anger and found little evidence that venting helps. In some cases, it could increase anger.

“I think it’s really important to bust the myth that if you’re angry you should blow off steam – get it off your chest,” said senior author and communication scientist Brad Bushman when the results were published.

“Venting anger might sound like a good idea, but there’s not a shred of scientific evidence to support catharsis theory.”

https://www.sciencealert.com/venting-doesnt-reduce-anger-but-something-else-does-review-finds

Random Website Generator / Discovery Tool / StumbleUpon alternatives

What is the equivalent of Netscape’s random site button now?
Google AI:
The spiritual successor to the Netscape “What’s Cool” or random site button—most famously embodied in the 2000s by StumbleUpon—is found today in a variety of “random website generators” and serendipity-driven discovery tools.

Here are the best equivalents to the random site button in 2026;
Top Random Website Tools (Closest to “Netscape” Feel)
  • Cloudhiker (cloudhiker.net): Curates interesting, weird, and awesome websites, providing a high-quality, hand-picked alternative to purely random generators.
  • Random Web Button (randomweb.click): Inspired by “The Useless Web,” this site provides a simple button to land on weird, delightful, or absurd websites.
  • Random Website Machine (whatsmyip.org/random-website-machine): A classic, simple tool that sends you to a random website from a database of millions.
  • The Useless Web (theuselessweb.com): While not purely “random” in the sense of finding any site, it brings you to the best, weirdest corners of the internet in a similar spirit of discovery.

Does Amazon Search Suck Now or What? – Google AI on

does amazon search suck now or what?
Google:

Yes, many users and reports suggest Amazon’s search quality has declined, becoming cluttered with irrelevant ads and sponsored products, making it harder to find specific items, with some blaming strategic choices to prioritize ad revenue. The shift prioritizes paid placements over organic, relevant results, leading to user frustration, while some find using advanced search filters or external search engines helps.
Common complaints about Amazon Search:
Ad Overload: The top results are often sponsored listings, even for exact product searches, pushing genuinely relevant organic results further down the page.
Irrelevant Results: Search terms can bring up a mix of unrelated items (e.g., Halloween decor when searching for Christmas lights), creating “noise”.
Algorithm Changes: The search engine sometimes alters search terms or hides well-selling products, frustrating sellers and buyers alike.
Decline in Quality Control: A focus on infrastructure and third-party sellers has led to a “disorienting mess” with less discernible quality.

Three – Alternative / Niche / Lesser Known / Specialized – Search Engines

https://marginalia-search.com/
Explore the Web
Prioritizes non-commercial content
Tools for both search and discovery
Find lost old websites

https://www.mojeek.com/
Looking for different results?
Value your right to privacy?
Trying to escape big tech?

https://wiby.me/
Why Wiby?
In the early days of the web, pages were made primarily by hobbyists, academics, and computer savvy people about subjects they were personally interested in. Later on, the web became saturated with commercial pages that overcrowded everything else. All the personalized websites are hidden among a pile of commercial pages. Google isn’t great at finding them, its focus is on finding answers to technical questions, and it works well; but finding things you didn’t know you wanted to know, which was the real joy of web surfing, no longer happens. In addition, many pages today are created using bloated scripts that add slick cosmetic features in order to mask the lack of content available on them. Those pages contribute to the blandness of today’s web.

Fix it Later and Ad-Hoc Procedures, Amazon Returns

[Jeff counseled the same “fix it later” strategy in the early days when we didn’t have good returns tracking. For a window of time in the early days of Amazon, if you shipped us a box of books for returns, we couldn’t easily tell if you’d purchase them at Amazon and so we’d credit you for them, no questions asked. One woman took advantage of this loophole and shipped us boxes and boxes of books. Given our limited software resources, Jeff said to just ignore the lady and build a way to solve for that later. It was really painful, though, so eventually customer service representatives all shared, amongst themselves, the woman’s name so they could look out for it in return requests even before such systems were built. Like a mugshot pinned to every monitor saying “Beware this customer.” A tip of the hat to you, maam, wherever you are, for your enterprising spirit in exploiting that loophole!]

https://www.eugenewei.com/blog/2018/5/21/invisible-asymptotes