TLDR 2026-10-06
iPhone Duo apps π±, Google Docs markdown π, ephemeral testing π¨βπ»
You can't AI-wash your way to trust (Sponsor)
AI copilots are fine for individuals. But when you're dealing with sensitive IP and complex legacy systems for an enterprise? Not so much.
There is an alternative - and it's trusted by 50% of the Fortune 50.
Redwood RangerAI was specifically trained for service orchestration and workload automation use cases. Enterprise workflows are part of its wiring, not a prompt. Use it to:
- Accelerate development and reduce risk by generating automation scripts and documentation
- Pass task-specific data that remains private, governed and auditable
- Get comprehensive, real-time visibility into workflows
- Produce predictive SLA monitoring and intel dashboards for optimization, compliance and automatic self-recovery
Meet RangerAI
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Science & Futuristic Technology
Controlling the brain with light earns a physiology Nobel (9 minute read)
Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their contributions to the field of optogenetics. Optogenetics involves using light to alter the behavior of nerve cells marked by the activity of individual genes. It allows researchers to activate or shut down neurons in an otherwise intact brain. The technique has revolutionized scientists' ability to understand what different populations of nerve cells are doing.
A New Crop of Solar Panels Is the US' Best Hope of Catching China (10 minute read)
Tandem solar is a new technology that adds second and third layers of material on solar panels to convert more of the Sun's radiance into electricity. Several companies plan to start selling panels commercially soon. The panels can generate 25% more energy than current available devices. Successful adoption of the technology will allow the world to meet the rapidly rising demand for electricity with less land and roof area.
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Programming, Design & Data Science
βAccelerating AIβ without AI talent is a waste of time and treasure (Sponsor)
AI creates workforce risks that tech alone can't resolve.
This Gartner article explains how to identify the talent risks that come along with AI ambition, and the steps you need to take to unblock adoption. For more use cases and case studies, explore the thousands of stories in
Gartner's AI hubEphemeral testing (2 minute read)
Ephemeral testing is when you test a base application layer by building on top of it. The original work is not assessed - the software built on top of it is. It is a form of integration testing, except the software on top is thrown away when the test is complete. Instead of building the core while trying to anticipate what might be needed at the other layers, you just simulate the other layers by building them.
Why Plain Text Is Still One of the Best Technologies We Have (7 minute read)
The simplicity of plain text is a large part of why it has lasted. Plain text is part of the basic plumbing of computing. There is an enormous collection of tools that know how to work with plain text, and plain text gives users more choice. Text ages surprisingly well, and it is easy to own. It is portable, inspectable, searchable, scriptable, easy to back up, and remarkably resistant to obsolescence.
Apple and a Hacker's Future (20 minute read)
CVE-2026-65400 is a high-severity macOS vulnerability that allows attackers to execute malicious code. Apple released a patch for the vulnerability last week for macOS Tahoe, Sequoia, and Sonoma. The vulnerability stems from a bug in the macOS screen sharing capability. In all observed cases, root had been accessed on the affected system and a Monero crypto miner had been placed.
The Future of Mathematics (13 minute read)
The field of mathematics is changing, but mathematics is still as important today as it ever was. Mathematics remains a core capacity for human reasoning and deliberation. Future historians will likely see this time as the start of a new era for mathematics. We are at a new frontier where communal norms, values, and expectations are beginning to break down, and the community needs to figure out what should replace them.
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