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owl writes:

https://www.righto.com/2023/04/8086-microcode-string-operations.html

Intel introduced the 8086 microprocessor in 1978. This processor ended up being hugely influential, setting the path for the x86 architecture that is extensively used today. One interesting feature of the 8086 was instructions that can efficiently operate on blocks of memory up to 64K bytes long. These instructions rapidly copy, compare, or scan data and are known as "string" instructions.

In this blog post, I explain string operations in the 8086, analyze the microcode that it used, and discuss the hardware circuitry that helped it out.

[...] I'll explain the behavior of an ALU micro-operation since it is important for string operations. The Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU) is the heart of the processor, performing addition, subtraction, and logical operations. The ALU has three temporary input registers that are invisible to the programmer: tmpA, tmpB, and tmpC. An ALU operation takes its first argument from any temporary register, while the second argument always comes from tmpB. Performing an ALU operation requires two micro-instructions. The first micro-instruction specifies the ALU operation and source register, configuring the ALU. For instance, ADD tmpA configures the ALU to add the tmpA register to the default tmpB register. In the next micro-instruction (or a later one), the ALU result can be accessed through a special register called Σ (SIGMA) and moved to another register.

fliptop writes:

Astronomers have detected a repeating radio signal from an exoplanet and the star that it orbits, both located 12 light-years away from Earth. The signal suggests that the Earth-size planet may have a magnetic field and perhaps even an atmosphere.

Scientists noticed strong radio waves coming from the star YZ Ceti and the rocky exoplanet that orbits it, called YZ Ceti b, during observations using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array of telescopes in New Mexico. The researchers believe the radio signal was created by interactions between the planet's magnetic field and the star.

[...] "We saw the initial burst and it looked beautiful," said lead study author Sebastian Pineda, a research astrophysicist at the University of Colorado Boulder, in a statement. "When we saw it again, it was very indicative that, OK, maybe we really have something here."

[...] YZ Ceti b only takes two Earth days to complete a single orbit around its star. Meanwhile, the shortest orbit in our solar system is the planet Mercury, which takes 88 Earth days to complete a lap around the sun.

While YZ Ceti b whips around its star, plasma from the star collides with the planet's magnetic field, bounces off and interacts with the star's magnetic field. All of these energetic reactions create and release strong radio waves that can be detected on Earth.

Pineda, J.S., Villadsen, J. Coherent radio bursts from known M-dwarf planet-host YZ Ceti. Nat Astron (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-023-01914-0

Original Submission

Freeman writes:

https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/04/fda-details-slew-of-failures-at-plant-that-made-eye-drops-linked-to-deaths/

The maker of eye drops linked to a deadly outbreak of extensively drug-resistant infections in the US had a slew of manufacturing violations—from brown slime on filling equipment to a lack of basic measures and systems to ensure sterility—according to an inspection report released by the Food and Drug Administration (PDF).

In February, the regulator warned consumers to immediately stop using eye drops and eye ointment made by Global Pharma, whose products were sold in the US under brand names EzriCare and Delsam Pharma and were available through Amazon, Walmart, eBay, and other retailers. Global Pharma later issued voluntary recalls of the products.

Health investigators had linked the drops to cases of an extensively drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain that had never been seen before in the US. The strain is identified as VIM-GES-CRPA, which stands for a carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) with Verona integron-mediated metallo-β-lactamase (VIM) and Guiana extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (GES). Although affected people reported using multiple brands of eye drops, EzriCare was the most common. Additionally, testing by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and independent researchers have identified the outbreak strain in opened bottles of EzriCare artificial tears.

As of March 14, 68 people in 16 states have been infected with the strain, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. Three people have died from the infection, eight have lost vision, and four have had their eyeballs surgically removed.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Kioxia, formerly Toshiba Memory Holdings, has demonstrated "hepta-level-cell" NAND memory:

Kioxia Researchers Demo Hepta-Level Cell NAND Flash, Nearly Doubling the Capacity of QLC

NAND researchers at Kioxia have successfully demonstrated a working concept of a new storage architecture called Hepta-level cell NAND flash. This new type of NAND can house up to 7 bits per cell, giving it nearly twice the storage capacity of QLC NAND flash. If Kioxia can stabilize this storage architecture at room temperature, it might become the ultimate successor to spinning hard drives in consumer and enterprise applications.

To create hepta-level NAND flash, Kioxia is using a new design called new silicon process technology to increase cell density, in conjunction with cryogenic cooling. New silicon process technology replaces current poly-silicon materials with a single-crystal silicon that is used in a channel inside a memory cell transistor. This apparently reduces the amount of read noise coming from the NAND flash by up to two-thirds. In other words, new silicon process technology produces clearer read signals for reading data off of the NAND flash, enough so to increase the bits cell capacity to 7.

7 / 4 = 1.75. Nearly double!

Kioxia has already demonstrated 6-bits-per-cell NAND. Multiple companies are mulling a transition to 5-bits-per-cell (PLC) NAND. Western Digital's technology and strategy chief Siva Sivaram doesn't expect PLC NAND to take off until 2025 or later.

Original Submission

hubie writes:

Intricate glass designs can be made with origami and cutting techniques, which can be combined with 3D printing to make more complex shapes:

The ancient art of origami is well known for transforming sheets of paper and other foldable materials into complex 3D shapes. But now, chemical engineers have extended the centuries-old practice to produce intricate shapes made of glass or other hard materials. Their thoroughly modern method, which can be combined with 3D printing, could have applications ranging from sculpture to catalysis and beyond.

[...] Typically, glass and ceramics are shaped in a mold or are 3D printed in the desired final structure. But a mold can't produce a complicated shape, Xie says. And although 3D printing can do so, it's slow, and an object can be flimsy and need extra support while it's being made. In addition, the printed item usually has a layered texture that might not be the ideal appearance. The team set out to see if they could overcome these shortcomings.

Yang Xu, a graduate student who works in Xie's lab at Zhejiang University, devised a technique in which she mixed nanoparticles of silica — the main ingredient for making glass — into a liquid containing several compounds. Curing the mixture with ultraviolet light produced a cross-linked polycaprolactone polymer with tiny beads of silica suspended in it, like raisins in raisin bread.

[...] Next, Xu cut, folded, twisted and pulled on sheets of this translucent polymer composite, which has mechanical properties similar to paper, to make a crane, a feather, a lacy vase and a sphere made of intertwined ribbons, among other objects. If she did this at room temperature, the composite retained its new shape fairly well throughout the remaining production steps. Xu discovered that's because the folding and stretching process irreversibly disrupts the interface between some of the silica particles and the polymer matrix. But if it's critical to fully retain the new shape during the subsequent steps, Xu found that the composite must be heated at about 265 F when it is folded and stretched. That permanently rearranges the links between the polymer chains, firmly fixing the new shape in place.

upstart writes:

noyb will take immediate action to stop this illegal practice:

As the Wall Street Journal reports, Meta (Facebook and Instagram) is switching from an illegal contract to equally illegal basis "legitimate interests" for advertisement, after noyb won a series of complaints against them. noyb will take imminent action, as the clear case law and guidance does not allow a company to argue that its interests in profits overrides the users' right to privacy.

Background. The GDPR allows to process personal data if a company complies with at least one of six legal basis in Article 6 GDPR. Most of these six options are irrelevant for advertisement. While most companies require users to consent ("opt-in") for the use of personal data for advertisement, Meta (Facebook and Instagram) have tried to bypass this requirement by arguing that the use of personal data for ads is "necessary under the contract" when the GDPR became applicable in 2018. noyb has instantly filed a series of complaints and ultimately won them before the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) in December 2022. Meta got until April to stop the practice.

One illegal practice replaced by next illegal practice. Now Meta announces to give in against the pressure by noyb, but instead of switching to an "opt-in" system, like Google or Microsoft, they now try to argue the next unlawful option, by claiming that their "legitimate interest" to process user data would override the fundamental right to privacy and data protection of users. This was tried by other companies before, but rejected by the regulators multiple times (see e.g. the Italian DPA on TikTok or the Belgian DPA on the IAB TCF at para 441).

upstart writes:

Microsoft is the latest US tech giant under investigation by Germany's competition watchdog:

On Tuesday, Germany's Bundeskartellamt — which translates to federal cartel office — announced it was evaluating whether Microsoft qualified as a company of "paramount significance." Or put another way, whether it's large enough to pose a threat to companies with fewer resources and therefore warrant closer scrutiny by regulators.

The investigation is being conducted under abuse control laws that went into effect in early 2021. These changes granted the agency the authority to prohibit large companies from engaging in certain business practices if it's determined they're likely to harm competition.

[...] The agency pointed to the company's expansive portfolio, which spans operating systems, productivity software, cloud services, video games, and social media as examples. "In light of this, there are good reasons to examine whether Microsoft is of paramount significance for competition across markets. Such a finding would allow us to take action at an early stage and prohibit possible anticompetitive practices," Bundeskartellamt President Andreas Mundt said in a statement.

There's also the fact that Microsoft isn't the first company to attract the German watchdog's attention. Last year, the agency found with "binding effect" that both Google and Meta were companies of paramount significance and were thus subject to heightened scrutiny. Amazon has found itself in a similar boat, but has appealed its decision. Meanwhile, the Bundeskartellamt says it's nearing completion of an investigation into Apple.

In response to the German government's investigation, a Microsoft spokesperson told The Register: "As a major technology company, we are mindful of our heightened responsibility to support a healthy competitive environment. We will engage constructively with the Bundeskartellamt, as they seek to understand our role in digital markets."

Original Submission

upstart writes:

89% of citizens want them gone – at least among the 7.46% who showed up to vote:

Citizens of Paris voted on Sunday to ban e-scooters from the City of Love, and Mayor Anne Hidalgo responded by promising that the fleets of rechargeable rentables would be gone come September.

The outcome was overwhelming, with 89 percent of votes cast in favor of the ban, though only 103,084 of Paris's 1,382,322 registered voters participated – around 7.5 percent. In a summary of the vote, the Parisian government noted that the final decision on the ban fell to city officials, who didn't appear to plan on countermanding the non-binding outcome.

[...] Only three companies are currently authorized to operate electric scooter fleets in Paris – Lime, Dott and Tier – which were granted three-year contracts in 2020 after Parisians voiced their dissatisfaction with a 2018 rollout in the city. Per Paris's government, the public domain occupancy agreements the three operators have all end on August 31, and it seems Hidalgo doesn't plan to renew them.

Lime and Tier both told The Register they would be ceasing operations in Paris come September 1, though Tier did note its shared e-bike service would still be available in the city.

Both companies expressed disappointment at the outcome, but pointed to the fact that the low voter turnout meant the results weren't representative of the city's entire population. "With approximately 93 percent of citizens not going to the polls, a large majority of Parisians have shown that e-scooters are not an issue," a Tier spokesperson said.

"We acknowledge the result of this unprecedented referendum, which was heavily impacted by very restrictive voting methods. This led to an extremely low turnout, heavily skewed towards older age groups, which has widened the gap between pros and cons," said a spokesperson for Lime.

Lime's response came from a third-party PR firm who said the statement represented a position "shared by Dott, Lime and Tier and not Lime speaking for the industry."

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Fear also plays a part:

The Pew Research Center's data (via Bloomberg) shows that only 48% of workers in the United States say they use up all their allocated vacation days. It might seem strange that someone would refuse to take paid time off that they're owed, but many say they worry about falling behind at work or feel bad about leaving an excessive workload with co-workers. Then there are those who feel they simply don't need the time off – people who really love their jobs, presumably.

Another reason is the all-too-familiar fear (and occasionally a justified one) that using up all of one's vacation time could mean losing out on a promotion. Many also believe that if a company is making layoffs, which has become a familiar sight in the tech world these days, bosses are more likely to retain staff who take fewer vacation days.

[...] Ironically, working from home has also led to people taking fewer vacation days. Common reasons why employees used to take days off work, such as visiting a doctor, can now be done remotely or by leaving the home office for a short while.

"US employees have been conditioned to believe if you aren't at work, you are lazy or at risk of being replaced," said Christy Pruitt-Haynes, global head of talent and performance at workplace consultant firm NeuroLeadership Institute. "We also have been taught that to get more you have to work more, and since we all want more, we tend to prioritize active work over other things in our life."

The problem is less severe in Europe, where workers usually get more than the 15 - 20 average paid days off that US employees receive - and feel less guilty about using them.

Original Submission

upstart writes:

The RISC-V alternative to Raspberry Pi is almost ready to ship:

The Star64 board, which was announced last summer, will finally be available for purchase this week. Developers will also be able to experiment with the system and enjoy the freedom of choice provided by the many interface options available on-board.

Open hardware company Pine64 is adding a new option to its offer of low-cost, ARM-based devices for developers and end users. Star64 is a single-board computer based on the RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA), a Raspberry Pi alternative that provides an affordable way to create software for the RISC-based processor architecture.

The Star64 board should be available for purchase starting April 4, 2023, with a $70 initial price tag for the base version with 4GB of RAM. An 8GB model will be available as well for $90. The Star64 product page on the Pine64 store only shows the 8GB variant as of writing, and it is listed as out of stock.

As highlighted in Pine64's latest quarterly update, Star64 features a quad-core, 64-bit RISC-V 1.5GHz CPU (SiFive U74), a BX-4-32 GPU by Imagination Technology, support for up to 8GB of LPDDR4 RAM (1866MHz), and an integrated E24 RISC-V core for real-time control. The SiFive CPU should provide performance on par with the Rockchip RK3566 ARM (Cortex-A55) CPU, Pine64 says, while video support includes an HDMI port.

Star64 support for external communication is provided by a dual gigabit Ethernet port, WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless interface, one USB 3.0 port, three USB 2.0 ports, and a 3.5mm audio jack. Power comes from a 12V/3A DC connector. Other connection options include a PCIe x1 slot, a GPIO port, and a MIPI-CSI camera interface. The board can be equipped with an optional eMMC module up to 128GB, and there's a microSD card reader for additional storage options.

[...] Compared to ARM, however, RISC-V is still severely lacking on the software side of things. A single-board computer like the Star64 could indeed provide a low-cost option for developers interested in experimenting with the RISC-V instruction set.

Original Submission

hubie writes:

Using running to escape from negative experiences rather than using it to escape to positive ones may lead to exercise dependence:

Recreational running offers a lot of physical and mental health benefits – but some people can develop exercise dependence, a form of addiction to physical activity which can cause health issues. Shockingly, signs of exercise dependence are common even in recreational runners. A study published in Frontiers in Psychology investigated whether the concept of escapism can help us understand the relationship between running, wellbeing, and exercise dependence.

[...] "Escapism is often defined as 'an activity, a form of entertainment, etc. that helps you avoid or forget unpleasant or boring things'. In other words, many of our everyday activities may be interpreted as escapism," said Stenseng. "The psychological reward from escapism is reduced self-awareness, less rumination, and a relief from one's most pressing, or stressing, thoughts and emotions."

Escapism can restore perspective, or it can act as a distraction from problems that need to be tackled. Escapism which is adaptive, seeking out positive experiences, is referred to as self-expansion. Meanwhile maladaptive escapism, avoiding negative experiences, is called self-suppression. Effectively, running as exploration or as evasion.

upstart writes:

The invasion of Ukraine supercharged the decline of the country's already struggling tech sector—and undercut its biggest success story, Yandex:

You may think, as I did, that Russia's current tech woe's are as a result of their invasion of Ukraine, or perhaps the annexation of Crimea. But it seems that the real problem started back around 2011 when it decided that the population having free access to information was not a good thing and, anyway, there must be money to be made if someone can take the tech industry under their control.

In Russia, technology was one of the few sectors where people felt they could succeed on merit instead of connections. The industry also maintained a spirit of openness: Russian entrepreneurs won international funding and made deals all over the world. For a time, the Kremlin seemed to embrace this openness too, inviting international companies to invest in Russia.

But cracks in Russia's tech industry started appearing well before the war. For more than a decade, the government has attempted to put Russia's internet and its most powerful tech companies in a tight grip, threatening an industry that once promised to bring the country into the future. Experts MIT Technology Review spoke with say Russia's war against Ukraine only accelerated the damage that was already being done, further pushing the country's biggest tech companies into isolation and chaos and corralling its citizens into its tightly controlled domestic internet, where news comes from official government sources and free speech is severely curtailed.

"The Russian leadership chose a completely different path of development for the country," says Ruben Enikolopov, assistant professor at the Barcelona School of Economics and former rector of Russia's New Economic School. Isolation became a strategic choice, he says.

The tech industry was not Russia's biggest, but it was one of the main drivers of the economy, says Enikolopov. Between 2015 and 2021, the IT sector in Russia was responsible for more than a third of the growth in the country's GDP, reaching 3.7 trillion rubles ($47.8 billion) in 2021. Even though that constituted just 3.2% of total GDP, Enikolopov saysthat as the tech industry falls behind, Russia's economy will stagnate. "I think this is probably one of the biggest blows to future economic growth in Russia," he says.

upstart writes:

German Police Raid DDoS-Friendly Host 'FlyHosting':

Authorities in Germany this week seized Internet servers that powered FlyHosting, a dark web offering that catered to cybercriminals operating DDoS-for-hire services, KrebsOnSecurity has learned. FlyHosting first advertised on cybercrime forums in November 2022, saying it was a Germany-based hosting firm that was open for business to anyone looking for a reliable place to host malware, botnet controllers, or DDoS-for-hire infrastructure.

A statement released today by the German Federal Criminal Police Office says they served eight search warrants on March 30, and identified five individuals aged 16-24 suspected of operating "an internet service" since mid-2021. The German authorities did not name the suspects or the Internet service in question.

"Previously unknown perpetrators used the Internet service provided by the suspects in particular for so-called 'DDoS attacks', i.e. the simultaneous sending of a large number of data packets via the Internet for the purpose of disrupting other data processing systems," the statement reads.

[...] The German authorities said that as a result of the DDoS attacks facilitated by the defendants, the websites of various companies as well as those of the Hesse police have been overloaded in several cases since mid-2021, "so that they could only be operated to a limited extent or no longer at times."

The statement says police seized mobile phones, laptops, tablets, storage media and handwritten notes from the unnamed defendants, and confiscated servers operated by the suspects in Germany, Finland and the Netherlands.

[...] The apparent raids on FlyHosting come amid a broader law enforcement crackdown on DDoS-for-hire services internationally. The U.K.'s National Crime Agency announced last week that it's been busy setting up phony DDoS-for-hire websites that seek to collect information on users, remind them that launching DDoS attacks is illegal, and generally increase the level of paranoia for people looking to hire such services.

Original Submission

canopic jug writes:

The Tor Project and Mullvad VPN have both announced collaboration on a privacy-oriented web browser. The joint browser, which is based on Firefox, has the features of the Tor Browser but operates over the Mullvad Virtual Private Network rather than Tor's onion routers. The collaboration has helped polish interface improvements and address several long standing issues.

Mullvad and the Tor Project have been part of the same community that is dedicated to developing technology that prioritizes protecting people's right to privacy for many years now. Mullvad contributes to the Tor Project at the highest level of membership, Shallot, and were a founding member of the Tor Project's Membership Program. They approached us to help them develop their browser because they wanted to leverage our expertise to create a product that is built on the same principles and with similar safety levels as the Tor Browser -- but that works independently of the Tor network. The result is the Mullvad Browser, a free, privacy-preserving web browser to challenge the all-too-prevalent business model of exploiting people's data for profit.

We've Teamed Up With Mullvad VPN to Launch the Mullvad Browser

and

"The mass surveillance of today is absurd. Both from commercial actors like big tech companies and from governments," says Jan Jonsson, CEO at Mullvad VPN. "We want to free the internet from mass surveillance and a VPN alone is not enough to achieve privacy. From our perspective there has been a gap in the market for those who want to run a privacy-focused browser as good as the Tor Project's but with a VPN instead of the Tor Network."

-- Mullvad VPN and the Tor Project Team up to Release the Mullvad Browser

Mullvad has been an active member of the Tor project for years.

Oh, and one more thing, speaking of VPNs, buried in the actual text of Senate Bill S.686 - RESTRICT Act 118th Congress (2023-2024), hidden behind rhetoric about ByteDance and Tiktok is a ban on VPN usage.

Previously:
(2023) The 'Insanely Broad' RESTRICT Act Could Ban VPNs in the USA
(2022) Are Virtual Private Networks Actually Private?
(2022) VPN Providers Remove Servers From India in Wake of New Data Collection Laws
(2022) Tor Project Upgrades Network Speed Performance with New System
(2014) VPN Providers Response to Heartbleed

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Uber Eats and other food-delivery drivers will receive paid sick leave under rules approved by the Seattle City Council:

The Seattle City Council today unanimously approved rules providing paid sick leave for food-delivery and other on-demand, app-based gig economy workers. The city appears to be the first in the nation to permanently ensure these protections.

[...] The measure applies to workers for companies such as DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats, as well as platforms providing on-demand work such as laundry services and car washing. Similar benefits already exist at the state level for ride-hailing companies including Lyft and Uber. Seattle's legislation provides a suite of sick and "safe" time benefits including paid time off for:

• an illness and preventative health care;
• if a company stops operations due to a public health emergency or other safety reason;
• due to a school closure for a family member; and
• in order to seek services for domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.

Mosqueda sponsored the legislation and was also the lead on similar, temporary protections put in place in June 2020 to aid workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mayor Bruce Harrell drafted the new legislation in partnership with the council and lauded passage of the measure, according to a statement.