This records the weekly technology content worth sharing, released every Friday.
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Cover image
The Peace Visa Theme Museum in Yiyang, Hunan, commemorates Dr. Ho Feng Shan's rescue of Jews during World War II. The layered steel plates on the exterior symbolize visa documents, while the narrow and angular entrance gives a sense of oppression. As one enters, the space gradually transitions towards release and light.via)
Brain rot state
I recently learned a new word "brain rot".
It's just the literal meaning. Some people look normal, but their brains have already mutated, with some parts rotting.
According toIntroduction article,The symptoms of "brain rot" are a decline in cognitive ability and difficulty maintaining focus for long periods.Conduct in-depth reasoning and reflection.
When encountering difficult problems that require repeated thinking, you become frustrated, not just mentally but also physically, feeling restless all over and unwilling to think more, just hoping to quickly resolve them.
Do you have this symptom? If you do, you are at risk of "brain rot." I feel like my brain is a bit like that. When encountering complex software concepts and algorithms, I used to study them carefully until I understood, but now I'm more likely to just glance at them and skip over them. If I don't understand, I don't understand. Knowing the name is enough.
The main reason for "brain rot" is the exaggerated "clickbait" articles and short videos on online platforms.Their goal is to attract traffic, pique the interest of readers/viewers in the shortest time possible, and leave them feeling satisfied. After you've been watching this content for a long time,The brain is stimulated densely, and the duration of maintaining an excited state of thinking is getting shorter., lost the ability to think deeply for long periods.
This is why, after getting used to short videos, a person becomes dependent on content compression. For an article with thousands of words, they also demand that large models generate summaries; for a 90-minute movie, they would rather watch a few minutes of a movie explanation.
Once the mind becomes "rotten," it becomes difficult to concentrate on thinking for long periods, making it hard to learn and process high-difficulty problems. Currently, there seems to be no good solution, as modern people's time is becoming increasingly fragmented, and content fragmentation is the trend.
The solution might be to reverse this, breaking down learning and thinking into a series of short questions. For example, future learning would no longer be a thick textbook but dozens of series of short videos, each explaining a knowledge point in two or three minutes. Only with this duration can students maintain focus.
Does Weight have copyright?
Domestic large models are generally open-source, but this has recently changed.
Some large models are released in a closed-source manner; some only open-source small-parameter versions, not large-parameter versions; some do not allow commercial use unless permission is obtained. I won't name names.
A reader of Hacker News has raised an issue regarding the modification of open-source large model licenses.Questioning:Open-source large models may not have the right to set licenses.
His meaning is that the current open-source large models mainly open-source the weight files, as well as the supporting running code. The so-called "weight files" are a huge matrix that represents the probability of each token appearing in the generated results.
Weight is the core of large models, and it comes from the calculation of massive amounts of text data. That is to say,Weight is just a calculation result, he thought, calculation results are not copyrighted.
For example, if you write a program that implements a more efficient algorithm for the square root of 2, then that program is copyrighted, but the calculation result of the square root of 2 (1.414) is not copyrighted. Because the calculation result is merely a product of a mechanical process and does not involve human creativity.
According to this statement, weights have no copyright, so there is naturally no need to set or modify licenses.
I'm not a copyright expert, so I can't be sure if this statement is correct, but it sounds reasonable. Everyone can ask the large model "Does the calculation result have copyright?" and see how the large model responds.
Tech News
A research team at the University of Washington has developed the world's first wireless earphones equipped with a miniature camera.
In the image above, the small protrusion at the bottom of the headphones is the miniature camera.
Its main use is to interact with AI. You can directly ask: "What is the meaning of the cover title of the English magazine in my hand," and the headphones will send the camera image via Bluetooth to the phone, where the large model on the phone will provide the answer.
Due to bandwidth limitations, it can only capture low-resolution black and white images. In the long run, if the display module is not required, this camera headset is more suitable for wearing than the AI glasses, because many people do not like wearing glasses for long periods of time.
Recently, someone uploaded Eddie Dalton's songs to the Apple Music Store iTunes.
This singer does not actually exist; the image, voice, and video are all AI-generated, but the uploader did not disclose this.
As a result, these AI songs became very popular. In the top 100 singles chart on iTunes, he surprisingly occupied 11 spots, with two songs entering the top 10.
His album also ranked third on iTunes.
In the past, some people said that after AI and robots take over daily tasks, humans could engage in artistic creation, such as singing, dancing, painting, writing, and filming videos... Now it seems, AI will also compete with humans for artistic jobs.
Economy class seats on long-haul flights are very uncomfortable, and United Airlines has come up with an improvement idea.
If it's a family of three, you can remove the seat cushions so the whole family can lie down on the ground to sleep.
Airlines provide pillows and blankets, and even mattresses.
If you are a solo traveler, you need to purchase three adjacent seats at the same time. Fortunately, it's still cheaper than first class.
I think China's high-speed rail could consider this approach: certain long-distance routes without sleeping berths could allow for the removal of a few rows of seats, letting passengers rest on the ground.
Article
1、The Truth About Claude Code's Source Code（English）
Recently, Claude Code's source code was leaked. After careful study, it was found that all the code was AI-generated and of low quality. A single function was as long as 3,167 lines, containing 486 conditional branches and 12 levels of nesting. The entry file main.tsx was 785 KB in size.
The author concluded that after the popularity of AI programming, code leaks, supply chain attacks, and messy production code would become the new norm.
2、Chrome Browser Native Support for Skills（English）
Chrome officially announced support for using skills (skill) within the Gemini plugin, which is a preset prompt used to complete tasks with one click. This should be the future direction of browsers.
3、Android strips the location information from photos（English）
This article points out an easily overlooked point: when uploading photos to a webpage, Android automatically strips the location information from the photos. Sharing photos via Bluetooth or QuickShare also doesn't work, unless you develop a photo app yourself or transfer photos via USB.
4、My $20/month tech stack（English）
The author's website generates $10,000 in revenue each month, with operating costs of just $20. The author introduces the tech stack he uses.
5、Do you really need a database?（English）
This article proposes that if the amount of data is not large, small websites can completely do without a database, directly storing the data in files. Whether it's reading files directly, querying from memory, or using binary search, the speed is not slow.
6、DIY Soft Drinks（English）
The author records the process of making homemade cola at home, originally containing so many chemicals.
1、Things You Don't Know About Indexes（English）
An article introducing the basic usage of indexes (index) through examples.
Tools
The new version of the famous video editing software "DaVinci" has added image editing, making it usable as a photo editing software.
2、Phyphox
A well-known classic mobile app (supports iPhone and Android), providing application interfaces for various mobile sensors, developed by RWTH Aachen University.
A Chrome extension for customizing the homepage of new tabs.
A tool for synchronizing the clipboard, which can automatically sync the clipboard of one computer to another, but requires installing its server and client (supports Windows, Linux, Android).
Desktop Static Blog Writing Client, no server setup required, build your own static blog website with zero configuration.（@Hao4Wang Submission）
6、Recordly
Open-source screen recording and editing tool, suitable for creating presentations, product demonstrations, tutorials, explanatory videos, etc. Can record the entire screen or a single window and directly enter the editor.（@Hao4Wang Submission）
is a website for adding watermarks to images and videos, supporting custom templates. (@FurryR submitted)
8, Input 0
is a free and open-source macOS voice input tool that runs locally, supports large model speech-to-text recognition, and performs text refinement. (@Justin3go submitted)
9, OpenToggl
is an open-source time tracking tool, a commercial software alternative to Toggl.@CorrectRoadH Submission)
AI Related
AI desktop application for video voiceover, supports voice translation and cloning, no API key or cloud service required, fully locally generated. ( @Hao4Wang Submission)
2, EVA
A minimalist AI programming intelligence, requires only a single Python script, positioned as a low-end version of Claude Code, its implementation can be referenced. ( @usepr Submission)
a command-line tool that exports Claude code's memory (memory), then inputs Claude client or other AI Agents. (@debugtheworldbot Submission)
generates local Token consumption statistics reports, supporting multiple Agents (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Gemini, Kiro, OpenCode, OpenClaw, and Every Code). (@mm7894215) Submission)
Resources
A personal website collecting cigarettes from various domestic brands.
2、 2026 World Press Photo Awards Winning Works
This page lists the 70 winning works of the World Press Photo Award this year, documenting many news events of last year.
The image above shows wild giant pandas in Wanglang Nature Reserve in Mianyang, Sichuan, captured by an infrared sensing camera.
3、 guide.world
This website collects excellent travel essays and prose from around the world, though there are still not many articles.
image
1, laser reflector on the Moon
In 1971, after the Apollo 14 spacecraft landed on the Moon, astronauts placed a white device about the size of a suitcase on the lunar surface.
It was a laser reflector, somewhat like a mirror, that could reflect incoming laser beams back.
It was used to measure the precise distance between the Earth and the Moon.
Laser beams were sent from the Earth to the Moon, reflected back by this mirror, and received by the Earth.
By measuring the time difference, the precise distance could be determined.
The current measurement accuracy has reached the millimeter level.Scientists have discovered that the Moon is moving away from the Earth at a rate of 3.8 centimeters per year.__JHSNS_SEG_1e4b8b52_181__Abstract__JHSNS_SEG_1e4b8b52_182__1, __JHSNS_SEG_1e4b8b52_183__The poor current state of contract software development
Some programmers are contract workers based on project contracts, not formal employees.
These programmers choose contract work instead of stable full-time jobs because they want flexibility and short-term financial benefits. Flexibility refers to being able to arrange work hours yourself and being able to sign multiple contracts simultaneously.
Unfortunately, the reality is that companies hire a large number of contract workers who do not have benefits, are easier to fire, and earn lower salaries than full-time employees.
I know this because I have been a contract worker several times.
Besides lower pay and benefits than full-time employees, you don’t even get paid time off. If you get sick or need to take a day off, you don’t get paid for that day at all.
Contract workers also have another problem: the work assigned to them is often significantly different from what they were told.
I interviewed for a Java backend position, but in reality, I had hardly written or maintained any Java code. Instead, I was asked to write React code, fix problematic Jest tests inherited from another team, and deal with an extremely slow Webpack configuration.
Two months later, I was fired for "performance reasons" without any basis. I knew it was just an excuse, as I encountered too many issues I couldn't control.
My other contract experience was similar. I was on call in the team, had to work on Saturdays without pay, and my submitted timesheets were flatly rejected. The boss called me asking why I was working overtime.
Later, I found out my employer was unwilling to pay overtime, and soon after, my contract was terminated. They told me over the phone that I wasn't competent for the job.
In short, current software contract workers face various drawbacks without any benefits. If someone can transition from a contract worker to a full-time employee, that's great, but in every company I've worked for, contract workers are second-class citizens.
remarks
1,
Harvard University for the 2024-2025 academic year, the proportion of assignments graded A is approximately 60%, which is far higher than about 25% in the 2005-2006 academic year, showing how severe grade inflation has become.
2,
The Claude Mythos model can discover and exploit system vulnerabilities, and external evaluations have confirmed this. However, evaluators have also found a harsh fact: the more Token costs you spend, the more vulnerabilities it discovers, and the safer the system becomes.
This means that if you want the system to be secure, you must spend more Tokens than attackers. Therefore, the security industry has become like a mining proof-of-work, where the more you invest, the more you win.
--Simon Willison，renowned developer
3、
a year ago, I often received pull requests with poor code quality, even those completely incomprehensible, which made me wonder if the submitter had used AI, hence the糟糕 code.
This year is different; when I receive low-quality pull requests with spelling and grammatical errors, I反而 suspect the contributor forgot to use AI to write the code, because AI significantly raises the lower bound of code quality.
-- "AI Programming Practices for ClickHouse"
4、
In contemporary warfare, governments use memes and animated dolls for propaganda, which might seem absurd, but this is the embodiment of the platform era.
Wrapping war in entertaining visual language makes propaganda easier to spread. Social media is an open arena where the most engaging content receives the widest reach.
--When Viral Spread Becomes Information
5,
A large model means that Markdown is now an executable file format. You download a Markdown file, and your large model gains a new third-party dependency, any modification of which could be an injection attack.
--Cooldown time for third-party dependencies
Review of Past Years
The future is the loss of a sense of eternity(#346)
Who is the author of the xz backdoor, Jia Tan?（#296）
An Unlost Network Identity（#246）
The Future of Handheld Devices（#196）
（End）