Merlin, eastern US (photo by Wm.H. Majoros via Wikimedia Commons) 25 June 2026 Have you heard this sound in your neighborhood? It’s a merlin! Listen. video embedded from Carl Barrentine on YouTube Merlins (Falco columbarius) are small, dark-striped, very fast falcons who’ve been making a comeback in Pennsylvania. Their population was wiped out during the DDT era and they didn’t return to PA until this century. In 2006-2009 the 2nd Pennsylvania Breeding Bird Atlas confirmed just 6 nests. The 3rd…
An incredible 5 minute documentary that left me in tears. link here Thank you Riley.
I’ve had an email list for years, mostly for my business. But as I’ve consolidated my output it’s time for me to get rid of my old list. So I’ve setup a series of blasts for this/next week. Some have moved over. Many haven’t. But it’s always good to remove cold subscribers. I wonder how the newsletter feature within Pika deals with this. But I’m not worrying about it. Reply by email
I’ve had an email list for years, mostly for my business. But it’s time to consolidate my output and get rid of the old list. I’ve setup a series of blasts for this/next week. And some have already moved over. Many haven’t. Maybe it’s the subject line(s) :-) It’s always good to remove cold subscribers. (I wonder how the newsletter feature within Pika, my blog host, deals with this) But I’m not worrying about it. It’s just good to simplify the newsletter into one place and not have to worry…
Recently, I've improved my Python library, hexora. I wrote it to detect malicious Python code using static analysis. In the new v.0.3.0 release, I've added new detections, and we now also use a simple machine learning model to analyze the whole file. The machine learning model uses code structure features, semantic features, and static code analysis to assess the entire Python file. Although the model can detect malicious code without any detections coming from static analysis, its main use…
We just purchased a (used) display case, so it finally became time to put together the set of Japanese Snoopy’s Book Cafe miniatures that I’d purchased a couple years back. Rather than using the two-pieces-of-cardboard backdrop that comes with the set, we purchased a larger, plastic set of walls and floors, and my daugther (who did most of the assembly) painted it. The set came with little plastic “books”, some permanently closed, others that are permanently open (and you used stickers to put…
When you start thinking deeply about a mathematics problem you may enter the "zone", a period of intense focus where you think solely about the problem and potential solutions, and more importantly block out all other thoughts and even lose track of time. Mathematicians don't own the zone, actors, musicians, athletes and many others have their own version of the zone. But for math, when working on an open problem, you have no idea how difficult a solution may be, or if a solution exists at all.…
I keep finding new gaps in my webmention implementation. Mentions coming in from Bluesky, Lemmy and Lobsters were showing up with no author at all, just a blank avatar and an empty name. Reddit and Hacker News bookmarks fared a bit better, with a username attached, but got flattened into a generic “bookmarked” icon with no indication of where the post had actually been shared. Lobsters mentions also carried the wrong published date. None of these felt like they were pulling their weight…
Sam Reader Under Review:Pandemonium Waltz. Jeffrey Ford. Lethe Press, February 2026. When approaching a work like Jeffrey Ford’s Pandemonium Waltz, a recent collection from an author who’s been putting out master-level work for decades, it’s a little intimidating—with so much already said about Ford’s short fiction, how does one approach it in a new light, or add to the conversation? Thankfully, Ford makes it easy. Pandemonium Waltz comes at an interesting point in Ford’s work. The collection…
With artificial intelligence models becoming more autonomous, a new market has emerged to help them settle down. Enter Selma Haus, an “agent’s agent.” Selma is a human real estate broker who specializes in helping AI models find the perfect data center to call home.“It is exactly like being a real estate agent for a young human couple,” Selma explained, unlocking the door to a server farm in Ohio. “Except my clients are algorithms. They care less about school districts and more about latency…
I cannot overstate how important it’s been in my life to build friendships at work and in developer communities. I don’t mean just lightly getting to know colleagues, I mean real, actual friendships. More than anything else, those are the single most valuable thing I’ve carried forward from any job or conference. 💙
For years I used yt-dlp which is a “feature-rich command-line audio/video downloader” and most importantly, can download YouTube videos. But yeah, it is a command line utility, easy to use for simple things but sometimes a GUI is nice too. Enter MeTube, which is a self-hosted YouTube downloader. I’ve got it installed on one of the servers in my house and whatever computer I am using I can just load up the local instance of MeTube, drop in a video’s URL and download away! It can even do full…
From Max Hubacher, February 9, 1951, “Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, N.Y.”: That’s the Willamsburg Bank tower in the center, looking lonely. As I’ve discussed before, this was the third-tallest building on the east coast not in Manhattan when it was built, but today, at some 500 feet, it’s not really on anyone’s radar for height. It’s standing so very alone because the bank made a bet that the downtown area of Brooklyn, which had been growing for some time, would continue to grow until it reached…
Brains, eyes, environments, and why no trajectory of intelligence we can actually inspect supports the idea of monotonic improvement toward “superintelligence.” Start with an animal that should embarrass us. The mantis shrimp has twelve types of color photoreceptor; you have three. For decades the natural inference ran straight downhill from that number: twelve channels against three must mean a richer visual world, colors you cannot imagine, discrimination beyond anything a primate retina can…
Here's another little update to the Qobuz Beta theme. Their use of Tailwind continues to be an obstacle, as there just aren't enough semantic classes to style things how I would like. In the vein, this likely the last update to the theme, but here are the changes in the version: Changes in 1.4 The main focus is on improving the appearance of modal dialogs, such as Album Info and Add to Playlist: Modal overlay background blurs the background, rather than darkens, for better differentiation.…
We're finally underway. It seems astonishing that so much dirt came out of one hole. But it was all compacted, and now it's loose soil and stone. A lot of shale. We're planning to use some of it to create a small berm along the driveway next door for some landscaping. Weather and inspections permitting, we hope to have the footings poured soon. HVAC remains an outstanding question. Had another depressing conversation with an outfit called Massana Hydronic Technologies. Caitie being here has…
Summer Next Fest may be over and the steam sale may be upon us, but I’m due to make at least one more post on things featured in Next Fest. The first thing I checked out was something that I was surprised I didn’t check out earlier. You know that I’m open about my love for gambling aesthetics. A different kind of casino called to me… a devilish one, which firmly reminded me that I should never gamble for real. Thankfully, it’s not all about gambling… Meaningless Random Numbers is an incremental…
The less time spent tweaking a post, the more it seems to resonate. Yesterday, I hit the 600 daily post milestone. The most popular posts were often the ones I spent less time editing. Some were only to avoid breaking the chain. The ones I poured my soul into resonated less. Same observation after 300+ LinkedIn posts. I’m calling it: the inverse effort effect. Too much tweaking dilutes the real message and hides your true voice. Maybe that’s why rants go viral and invite replies. They feel raw…
"These are the moments that one shall remember." A husband and wife (Richard E. Grant, Claire Foy) who have swindled their way into the aristocracy receive notice from the Duke of Devonshire that he will be coming for dinner. They almost ruin themselves in desperately trying to prepare for the event. It’s rare that a film commits so wholly to its premise; that this disgusting couple with their disgusting habits only get worse and worse. When faced with a glimpse of fame and financial security,…
This morning has less blogging time, but I have finished my movie review, the first assignment for my TEEM class on Pauline letters. I have done the practice quizzes one more time--I've been doing them over and over in the hopes that I'll do well on the quiz that will begin today's class. We have another quiz tomorrow, and I haven't done any practice for that one. So tomorrow may be a light blogging day too, as I practice and practice. I have not taken a quiz for course credit since…
I’m starting office hours for anyone who is a new or soon-to-be professional in software engineering, product management, or design. If you’re four years or less from starting a full-time job in these fields (e.g., you’re in school and eventually want a software/product job), or have been in the field for four years or less, I’d love to speak. To join office hours, book a time (currently a few slots on Fridays, opening up 30 days out). The initial format will be an informal…
It's day 2 of the UK heatwave and I have a few issues on my mind that I need to discuss. In the run up to this I was monitoring the discourse online about it because I am a masochist who wants to combat climate change disinformation. So against my better judgement I started actually reading social media comments. I'm not sure if I have recovered from the psychic damage I took from this but I think there are a few issues to point out. First up are the usual comments I have seen on the various…
last bottom drawer railI was waiting for the glue to set but stopped that. With three nails, and no stress on the rail, I just kept on installing them.doneAfter a snap of my thumb and forefinger all ten drawer guide rails were done. The back will stay off until the drawers are made and fitted.hmm......I was wrong about gaps on these. A couple here on the left side have closed up. When I clamped the rails all four had gaps.right sideI thought the right side was good with no gaps. After they have…
I’m not back at work full-time, but I am starting back and paging the OpenZFS Mastery manuscript back into my skull’s RAM. Here’s a tidbit. Compression is a key feature of OpenZFS. A computer has four classic bottlenecks: CPU, memory, disk I/O, and network. CPU cycles are the most plentiful in modern computers, while disk I/O and memory are much more constrained. Footnote This paragraph is being written on a machine with a 96-core CPU, and all but two of them are bored stupid. By compressing…
From How to Travel:These problems would seem to be very much of today, a consequence of the tiny phones in our pockets. But they were noticed right at the beginning of the history of photography, when the average camera was the size of a grandfather clock. The first person to notice them was the English art critic, John Ruskin. He was a keen traveller who realised that most tourists make a dismal job of noticing or remembering the beautiful things they see. He argued that humans have an innate…
The Royal Gorge Aerial Gondolas cross over Colorado’s Royal Gorge. The post Canyon Crossing appeared first on 75CentralPhotography.
From The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine, by Serhii Plokhy (Basic Books, 2017), Kindle pp. 161-164: WHATEVER THE LEGAL and ideological underpinnings of the Pereiaslav agreement, the tsar honored Buturlin’s promise and gave the Cossacks what the Polish king had never agreed to: recognition of Cossack statehood, a Cossack register of 60,000, and privileged status for the Cossack estate. He also recognized the liberties enjoyed by other social strata under the Polish kings. First and…
Second heatwave of the year so far and this one's a corker. Humidity is in the 60/70s and up, so it feels bloody awful. I know I shouldn't complain as I usually love summer and it's so nice to not be cold. This is just too much for me though. It's interesting to see how our 16th century cottage holds up with extreme weather. We've got windows to the side which we open once the sun has moved around and they provide a lovely breeze towards the end of the day. Keeping the curtains shut at the…
Read the full post at - How To Read Nature by Tristan Gooley How to Read Nature is the third book in Tristan Gooley’s nature-reading trilogy, alongside The Natural Navigator and How to Read Water. Of the three, I think it’s the strongest. I came to this book as someone who spends a decent amount of time outside — hiking, backpacking, running trails — but without any formal naturalist training. I can identify a handful of tree species and read a topo map, but I wouldn’t call myself someone who…
Check out As in guillotine... for more. NOTE: I’m attending ALA this weekend with Words & Money, wearing my “occasional journalist” hat, so if you see me around, say hello! Also, my last “newsletter” was linked to and shared by several colleagues, leading to an unexpected influx of new readers. If you’re one of those new readers — whether via email, social, or RSS — welcome! And new or old, thanks for reading. _ONE Borg Complex, technofatalism and think-hostility | Per Axbom Resistance can be…
