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tonytins Tony Bark @pawb.social

Arf! I'm Tony Bark. Artist and writer by day. Programmer by night. Gamer all the way.

Posts 23
Comments 121
Famous AI "Artist" Says He's Losing Millions of Dollars From People Stealing His Work
  • Apparently, the competition was a year before that ruling.

  • Vance claims Trump 'salvaged' Obamacare. Trump tried, and failed, to kill it.
  • Yup. Right before his passing a few months later.

  • Furry Technologists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Famous AI "Artist" Says He's Losing Millions of Dollars From People Stealing His Work

    gizmodo.com Famous AI Artist Says He's Losing Millions of Dollars From People Stealing His Work

    The guy who used Midjourney to create an award-winning piece of AI art demands copyright protections.

    Famous AI Artist Says He's Losing Millions of Dollars From People Stealing His Work

    > The guy who used Midjourney to create an award-winning piece of AI art demands copyright protections.

    Excuse me while I go grab my popcorn.

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    Reddit is making sitewide protests basically impossible
  • Meta is a little hard because they acquired a lot of existing social networks in their prime and have kept things subtle. Think about how long it took EA to finally strip Maxis of everything but The Sims. The only way you would know something is owned by Meta is from the splash screen.

  • Reddit is making sitewide protests basically impossible
  • Basically, "you can do whatever you want as long as it benefits us." I hate for-profit social networks.

  • no seating nearby
  • And everyone else in the process.

  • Corporatism: The Alternative To Both Capitalism And Socialism
  • That's less of a "third way" and more of a rebranded version of the same.

  • Corporatism: The Alternative To Both Capitalism And Socialism
  • That's less of a "third way" and more of a rebranded version of the same.

  • Yet more examples of how copyright destroys culture rather than driving it
  • The notion that every person has to somehow protect their works for all of their life and beyond the grave is obviously dumb and purely favors corporations at the cost of pitting artists against themselves and fans.

  • In historic first, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vetoes most arts funding in Florida
  • Welcome to the state where no fun is allowed.

  • Apple reportedly has plans for a thinner iPhone, MacBook Pro and Apple Watch
  • This thin obsession really needs to stop.

  • Why does nobody maintain PPAs anymore?
  • While they aren't perfect, it's certainly better than waiting on the distro or dealing with potential package conflicts that PPAs also had a habit of causing.

  • 'Google Cast' is replacing the 'Chromecast built-in' brand
  • At least they're not killing the protocol.

  • Why does nobody maintain PPAs anymore?
  • They were a bandaid solution to a problem that Flatpaks and Snap fixed.

  • CEO of Google Says It Has No Solution for Its AI Providing Wildly Incorrect Information
  • The problem with all these chat AIs is that they're just a gloried autocorrect. It never knew what it was saying from the beginning. That's why it "hallucinates".

  • Mind-bending new programming language for GPUs just dropped... - Code Report
  • Yikes, those high CPU threads. Definitely needs some more polishing.

  • Twitter is officially X.com now
  • Still calling it Twitter.

  • Google One VPN will be discontinued, Pixel VPN remains with upgrade coming
  • I'm just waiting for everything they haven't killed to merge onto YouTube, at this point. Because that seems to be the direction things are headed.

  • Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    agnr.umd.edu New Study Reveals the Power of Railroads to Buffer Coal Plants from a Carbon Emissions Tax

    A new study by University of Maryland Economist Louis Preonas provides empirical evidence that railroads are likely to cut transportation prices to prop up coal-fired plants if U.S. climate policies further disadvantage coal in favor of less carbon-intensive energy sources.

    New Study Reveals the Power of Railroads to Buffer Coal Plants from a Carbon Emissions Tax

    > For his study, Preonas used the drop in natural gas prices over the past decade as a natural experiment for understanding how market pressures effect the price of coal-fired power generation. By analyzing data on coal deliveries, rail carrier use of the U.S. rail network and hourly energy generation from power plants, Preonas showed that as competition from natural gas forced coal fired plants to reduce electricity prices, railroad companies reduced their coal transportation fees. By absorbing some of the cost difference between coal and natural gas, the railroads propped up the coal market to avoid losing business.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    www.uni-jena.de Hemp helps to heal

    International research team clarifies mode of action of cannabinoids in inflammatio

    Hemp helps to heal

    > CBD in particular proved to be highly effective and the team investigated it in more detail with regard to its mode of action. The researchers were able to determine that CBD activates the 15-lipoxygenase-1 enzyme, which triggers the production of inflammation-resolving messenger substances that subsequently cause the inflammation to subside. “CBD thus induces a switch in the affected cells, so to speak, which steers the inflammatory process from the promoting to the inhibiting side,” explains Dr Jordan. The researchers were also able to confirm these results, which were obtained in cell cultures, in animal experiments on mice.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    news.cuanschutz.edu Discoveries on Memory Mechanisms Could Unlock New Therapies for Alzheimer’s and other Brain Diseases

    Scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus have made a `paradigm shifting’ discovery on the mechanisms required for learning and memory that could lead to new therapies for Alzheimer’s disease and potentially Down syndrome.

    Discoveries on Memory Mechanisms Could Unlock New Therapies for Alzheimer’s and other Brain Diseases

    > "The implications are that a certain class of CaMKII activity inhibitors actually could be used chronically to treat brain conditions including Alzheimer's disease," said Bayer, senior author of the study. "This is super novel, as it has previously been thought that any CaMKII activity inhibitor would block synaptic plasticity that underlies learning and memory so their chronic use would be counter-indicated."

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    www.tcd.ie Scientists unpick how lung cells induce immune response to influenza

    Researchers from Trinity have discovered some new and surprising ways that viral RNA and influenza virus are detected by human lung cells, which has potential implications for treating people affected by such viruses.

    > The team discovered that viral RNA and influenza viruses stimulate two different molecular pathways in which specific proteins set off chain reactions that result in two proteins called "gasdermin D" and "gasdermin E" being processed in such a way that they form membrane pores in the epithelial cells.

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    Furry Technologists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    All that stupid hype. xD

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    www.rmit.edu.au Coffee offers performance boost for concrete

    Engineers in Australia have found a way of making stronger concrete with roasted used-coffee grounds, to give the drink-additive a “double shot” at life.

    Coffee offers performance boost for concrete

    Turns out, all our infrastructure needed was a cup of Joe.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Measuring ChatGPT political bias

    link.springer.com More human than human: measuring ChatGPT political bias - Public Choice

    We investigate the political bias of a large language model (LLM), ChatGPT, which has become popular for retrieving factual information and generating content. Although ChatGPT assures that it is impartial, the literature suggests that LLMs exhibit bias involving race, gender, religion, and politica...

    More human than human: measuring ChatGPT political bias - Public Choice

    > Based on our empirical strategy and exploring a questionnaire typically employed in studies on politics and ideology (Political Compass), we document robust evidence that ChatGPT presents a significant and sizeable political bias towards the left side of the political spectrum. In particular, the algorithm is biased towards the Democrats in the US, Lula in Brazil, and the Labour Party in the UK. In conjunction, our main and robustness tests strongly indicate that the phenomenon is indeed a sort of bias rather than a mechanical result from the algorithm.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    New type of star gives clues to mysterious origin of magnetars

    > Having studied similar helium-rich stars before, Shenar thought magnetic fields could crack the case. Indeed, magnetic fields are known to influence the behaviour of stars and could explain why traditional models failed to describe HD 45166, which is located about 3000 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. "I remember having a Eureka moment while reading the literature: 'What if the star is magnetic?'," says Shenar, who is currently based at the Centre for Astrobiology in Madrid, Spain.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    news.mit.edu Physicists see electron whirlpools for the first time

    Physicists have observed electron whirlpools for first time. Theorists have long predicted electrons should exhibit this hallmark of fluid flow; the findings could inform the design of more efficient electronics.

    Physicists see electron whirlpools for the first time

    > The researchers observed that electrons flowing through patterned channels in gold flakes did so without reversing direction, even when some of the current passed through each side chamber before joining back up with the main current. In contrast, electrons flowing through tungsten ditelluride flowed through the channel and swirled into each side chamber, much as water would do when emptying into a bowl. The electrons created small whirlpools in each chamber before flowing back out into the main channel.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Storing Data in Music

    > Researchers have developed a technique for embedding data in music and transmitting it to a smartphone. Since the data is imperceptible to the human ear, it doesn't affect listening pleasure. This could have interesting applications in hotels, museums and department stores.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Chloride ions from seawater as possible lithium replacement

    www.wpi.edu Chloride-Insertion Enhances the Electrochemical Oxidation of Iron Hydroxide Double Layer Hydroxide into Oxyhydroxide in Alkaline Iron Batteries | Worcester Polytechnic Institute

    Sodium, Potassium and zinc have all been promising contenders for lithium’s place in rechargeable batteries of the future, but researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have added an unusual and more abundant competitor to the mix: chloride, the richest negatively charged ions in sea...

    > Teng and his WPI team made an aqueous battery, a small lab-scale prototype that operated in the water-based electrolyte, using electrodes made mostly from abundant elements such as iron oxides and hydroxides. While the team hasn't calculated the cost, the use of earth-abundant materials should tip the scale in their favor, Teng says. The U.S. produces over 15 million tons of scrap iron wastes that are not recycled each year, many of which exist in the form of rust. Therefore, the reported rechargeable alkaline iron battery chemistry helps repurpose the iron rust waste materials for modern energy storage.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social
    news.mit.edu Translating proteins into music, and back

    In a marriage of science and art, MIT researchers have developed a system for converting the proteins, the building blocks of life, into audible sound that resembles musical passages. Reversing the process, they can introduce variations into the music and convert it into new proteins never seen in n...

    Translating proteins into music, and back

    Pre-pandemic study > The whole concept, Buehler explains, is to get a better handle on understanding proteins and their vast array of variations. Proteins make up the structural material of skin, bone, and muscle, but are also enzymes, signaling chemicals, molecular switches, and a host of other functional materials that make up the machinery of all living things. But their structures, including the way they fold themselves into the shapes that often determine their functions, are exceedingly complicated. "They have their own language, and we don't know how it works," he says. "We don't know what makes a silk protein a silk protein or what patterns reflect the functions found in an enzyme. We don't know the code."

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Study: Video Game Players Show Enhanced Brain Activity

    > Jordan, who received a Ph.D. in physics and astronomy from Georgia State in 2021, had weak vision in one eye as a child. As part of a research study when he was about 5, he was asked to cover his good eye and play video games as a way to strengthen the vision in the weak one. Jordan credits video game training with helping him go from legally blind in one eye to building strong capacity for visual processing, allowing him to eventually play lacrosse and paintball. He is now a postdoctoral researcher at UCLA.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Discovery of nanomachines within living organisms

    >In the catalytic cycle of these enzymes, a molecule called a substrate binds to the enzyme. This leads to a process called oxidation. The enzyme's structure has a confined space that allows it to act like as a sensor and a soft robot. It interacts with the substrate using weak interactions, like soft impacts. These interactions transfer energy, causing parts of the enzyme and the molecules inside it to move. This movement generates ultimately a special substance called oxoiron species, which serves the enzyme to oxidize a variety of different substances.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Record 19.31% efficiency with organic solar cells

    > Prof. Li said, "The new finding will make [organic solar cells] research an exciting field, and this will likely create tremendous opportunities in applications like portable electronics and building-integrated PVs." The new door will open when low cost single-junction OSCs can achieve a PCE of over 20%, along with more stable performance and other unique advantages such as flexibility, transparency, stretchability, low weight and tuneable colour.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Scientists detect DDOS threats detected thanks to asymmetric behavior

    > To improve detection accuracy, the PNNL team sidestepped the concept of thresholds completely. Instead, the team focused on the evolution of entropy, a measure of disorder in a system. > > Usually on the internet, there's consistent disorder everywhere. But during a denial-of-service attack, two measures of entropy go in opposite directions. At the target address, many more clicks than usual are going to one place, a state of low entropy. But the sources of those clicks, whether people, zombies or bots, originate in many different places -- high entropy. The mismatch could signify an attack.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Accurate measurement of permittivity advances radio telescope receivers

    www.nao.ac.jp Accurate Measurement of Permittivity Advances Radio Telescope Receivers and Next Generation Telecommunication Networks

    Researchers invented a novel method to measure the permittivity of insulators 100 times more accurately than before. This technology is expected to contribute to the efficient development of sensitive radio receivers for radio telescopes as well as to the development of devices for the next generati...

    Accurate Measurement of Permittivity Advances Radio Telescope Receivers and Next Generation Telecommunication Networks

    >Permittivity is a value that indicates how electrons inside an insulator react when a voltage is applied to the insulator. It is an important parameter for understanding the behavior of radio waves as they travel through insulators. In the development of telecommunications equipment, it is necessary to accurately determine the permittivity of materials used for circuit boards and building columns and walls. For radio astronomy, researchers also need to know the permittivity of components used in radio receivers.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Using Phage Therapy to Treat Infections

    www.sciencedaily.com Phage therapy for mycobacterium infections: More than 50% success rate

    The number of reported cases using viruses to treat deadly Mycobacterium infections just went up by a factor of five. Researchers report 20 new case studies on the use of the experimental treatment, showing the therapy's success in more than half of the patients.

    Phage therapy for mycobacterium infections: More than 50% success rate

    >It's the largest ever set of published case studies for therapy using bacteria-killing viruses known as bacteriophages, providing unprecedented detail on their use to treat dire infections while laying the groundwork for a future clinical trial. > >Each patient treated in the study was infected with one or more strains of Mycobacterium, a group of bacteria that can cause deadly, treatment-resistant infections in those with compromised immune systems or with the lung disorder cystic fibrosis. In 2019, Hatfull led a team showing the first successful use of phages to treat one of these infections.

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    Furry Scientists @pawb.social Tony Bark @pawb.social

    Synthetic mRNA

    www.sciencedaily.com Creating mRNA with an all-chemical process may allow for customized mRNA vaccines

    A new synthesis method offers hope for creation of advance mRNA vaccines to fight viruses and even cancers.

    Creating mRNA with an all-chemical process may allow for customized mRNA vaccines

    >As published in ACS Chemical Biology, a research group led by Professor Hiroshi Abe and Associate Professor Naoko Abe of the Graduate School of Science at Nagoya University has developed the first completely chemical synthesis method for mRNA. > > In their study, the group synthesized a part of the mRNA called the cap. The cap is important because it promotes the translation of mRNA into proteins and protects mRNA from degradation. To prepare synthetic mRNA, such as that used in vaccines, the two currently used biological methods rely on enzymes to incorporate the cap structure into the mRNA. However, the researchers found that their technique could synthesize a variety of chemically modified mRNA strands with a cap structure.

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