pg_plan_alternatives: Tracing PostgreSQL Query Plan Alternatives Using eBPF (jnidzwetzki.github.io)

The article introduces pg_plan_alternatives, a tool that uses eBPF to trace PostgreSQL’s cost-based query planner and record not just the final chosen plan but also the alternative plan paths and their estimated costs. It explains how PostgreSQL generates multiple alternatives during planning, how pg_plan_alternatives instruments the optimizer to capture them, and how it visualizes the results as a graph. The post also discusses implementation details like reading needed path fields from PostgreSQL binaries via DWARF offsets and shows example commands and potential uses for tuning planner parameters.

Weather.com/Retro (weather.com)

The Weather Channel’s RetroCast for Pretty Prairie shows mostly cloudy conditions around the low 60s, with gusty southeast winds and high humidity. Tonight is expected to bring showers that turn into steady rain overnight, followed by partly cloudy and windy conditions tomorrow and clearer weather by Friday.

Perplexity Says MCP Sucks (suthakamal.substack.com) AI

The author argues that Perplexity’s critique of MCP’s token overhead is directionally right but misses the bigger issue: MCP doesn’t provide trust-aware controls for where sensitive data goes after authorization, so different kinds of regulated data are treated identically. They propose adding sensitivity metadata to tool responses, a shared trust-tier registry for inference providers, and runtime enforcement (including redaction/blocking or attestation) to prevent unsafe routing. The piece also notes similar trust gaps in WebMCP and frames MCP’s performance debate as secondary to missing data-governance primitives.

Show HN: 65k AI voters predict UK local elections with 75% accuracy (kronaxis.co.uk) AI

Kronaxis reports a forecast for the 7 May 2026 UK local elections using 65,000 synthetic “voters” built from Census 2021 demographics plus a personality and political-history model. After testing the approach against 10 recent English by-elections and applying a calibration correction for consistent bias, the company claims about 75% winner accuracy on that limited validation set. For the first 20 councils in its release, it predicts Reform UK wins 18 of 20, with Labour narrowly holding Manchester and Greens winning Bristol, while predicting Conservatives take no council seats. The post emphasizes that calibration used the same by-elections as evaluation and will need to be validated by the actual election results.

BurgerDisk News (colino.net)

The developer behind the BurgerDisk (an open-source, daisy-chainable Apple II Smartport hard drive) says the Kickstarter is over and is now offering devices through a small web shop for people who missed the campaign. To help distribution in the USA, they’re working with Joe’s Computer Museum, including new easier-to-assemble open-source variants (a Mini BurgerDisk and a DominoDisk). They also discuss efforts to secure scarce Apple II D-Sub 19 connectors to stabilize pricing, and note that 10% of each sale will go to a local transgender rights association.

Hershey says it will shift back to classic recipe for all Reese's products (apnews.com)

Hershey says it will return to the classic recipe for all Reese’s products after receiving criticism over changes to the candy’s taste or formula.

xkcd: Creation (xkcd.com)

xkcd “Creation” accompanies a site update introducing new reading modes for the comic. The page provides navigation and a permanent link to the artwork, along with the usual xkcd licensing and viewing notes.

The Anti-Intellectualism of Silicon Valley Elites (elizabethspiers.com)

Elizabeth Spiers argues that contemporary Silicon Valley leaders display a distinctive form of anti-intellectualism, grounded in the belief that tech elites have “mastered everything” and therefore have little use for learning, reflection, or higher education. She links this attitude to attacks on the humanities, skepticism toward education, and the preference for AI-driven shortcuts that may weaken users’ ability to think. Using examples from high-profile tech figures and the broader cultural myths of self-made success, she contends that these stances also help protect class power while extracting value from intellectual work produced elsewhere.

Quantum computing bombshells that are not April Fools (scottaaronson.blog)

The post discusses two major quantum-computing advances announced around the same time: a Caltech result on quantum fault-tolerance with lower overhead, and a Google result implementing Shor’s algorithm to target 256-bit elliptic-curve cryptography using a lower-overhead circuit. Aaronson notes Google’s choice to “publish” via a zero-knowledge proof, which verifies the circuit’s existence without revealing full details, and argues the combined effect reduces the estimated qubit requirements for relevant attacks—potentially making quantum risks to currently used cryptography arrive sooner. The takeaway is renewed urgency to transition to quantum-resistant cryptography.

Magnitude 7.4 earthquake strikes in Indonesia, sparking tsunami alert (theguardian.com)

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck Indonesia’s Northern Molucca Sea region at a depth of 35km, with its epicentre about 127km west-northwest of Ternate. The US tsunami warning system said tsunami waves were possible within 1,000km of the epicentre, potentially reaching 0.3m to 1m above tide level in parts of Indonesia, while Japan, Guam, and other areas were warned of only slight sea level changes or no expected damage. Initial reports indicated strong shaking but no significant damage in Manado, North Sulawesi, and Japan’s meteorological agency said no tsunami damage was expected.

The Longest-Running Vaporware Project in the History of Computing (themagnet.substack.com)

The article revisits Ted Nelson’s decades-long Project Xanadu, a universal hypertext system he began in 1960 and which has been described as “vaporware” for years. It highlights features Xanadu aimed to include—two-way links, transclusion with live embedded excerpts, micropayments, and link/version management—that remain largely missing from the current Web. It also reflects on Gary Wolf’s 1995 Wired profile as both classic tech journalism and a portrait of Nelson’s persistent frustration and ambition.

Tracing goroutines in realtime with eBPF (sazak.io)

The article introduces xgotop, a Go runtime tracing tool built on eBPF to observe goroutine state transitions and related memory events in near realtime. It explains the goroutine lifecycle in Go (including key runtime states) and shows how tracing runtime functions like casgstatus, newobject, makeslice, and map creation can reveal goroutine IDs, parent relationships, state changes, and allocation sizes. The author also uses bpftrace to validate proof-of-concept hooks before outlining the approach for a full eBPF implementation.

The Windows equivalents of the most used Linux commands (techkettle.blogspot.com)

The article lists common Linux command-line tools and their Windows Command Prompt equivalents, focusing on everyday admin and troubleshooting tasks such as checking ports, filtering command output, viewing files and directories, managing processes, and tracing network routes. It also includes an example workflow for capturing and viewing tcpdump traffic in Wireshark using the built-in SSH client on Windows. The piece is framed as a quick reference for moving between Linux and Windows command lines.

Default GraphQL response is now HTTP 500 (graphql.org)

GraphQL is changing its default HTTP behavior from returning 200 OK to returning HTTP 500 for all responses, effective with the October 2026 spec release. The post argues this makes monitoring and alerting work reliably when GraphQL returns partial data alongside errors. It keeps the existing `errors` structure and introduces an optional `everything_is_fine` boolean for clients that want a simple indicator of whether returned data is usable.

Cindy Cohn of the EFF Interviewed by Jon Stewart on the Daily Show [video] (youtube.com)

The linked video features an interview with Cindy Cohn of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) conducted by Jon Stewart on The Daily Show, but the provided article text contains only YouTube boilerplate and no substantive details about the discussion.

Google Cloud: Investing in the Future of PostgreSQL (opensource.googleblog.com)

Google Cloud says it has continued upstream PostgreSQL contributions focused on logical replication and upgrade reliability. The post highlights work such as automatic conflict detection to support active-active setups, extending logical replication to sequences and missing objects for lower-downtime major upgrades, and pg_upgrade optimizations and bug fixes. It also lists additional fixes in tools/extensions and outlines proposals like a conflict log table and parallelizing pg_dump exports.

"Vibecession" reflects an increasingly difficult economy and society (greyenlightenment.com)

The article argues that while objective indicators of living standards have improved, many people experience a “vibecession” because modern life feels harder due to heightened competitiveness and more stringent credentialing and hiring barriers. It discusses how job screening and publishing gatekeeping can make qualified applicants feel excluded, even amid technological and medical progress. The author also notes that some costs like tuition are overstated when net prices are considered, but affordability and career mobility still feel out of reach for many.

Montana referendum to outlaw corporate campaign contributions [video] (youtube.com)

The video report discusses a Montana referendum proposal that would prohibit corporate campaign contributions, focusing on the measure’s purpose and the debate over its potential impact on political spending.

SolveSpace (open source 2D/3D CAD) working on Windows 2000 (2025) (github.com)

The GitHub issue reports that SolveSpace 3.0 fails to start on Windows 10 for some users, showing a Windows error message despite having the vc_redist.x86.exe installed. The discussion notes compatibility concerns related to older graphics card/drivers using OpenGL 1 support.

Comparing C/C++ unity build with regular build on a large codebase (2024) (hereket.com)

A developer benchmarks “unity builds” for a large C/C++ project by adapting the Inkscape build into a custom script and then merging source files into unified translation units. The study reports that a unity-style approach reduced single-core compilation time to about 3 minutes versus roughly 34–35 minutes for a clean regular CMake/Make build, with the final merged compilation units taking only 10 object-like outputs. While parallel builds with tools like ccache remain faster for day-to-day development, the results suggest substantial per-translation-unit speedups from compiling fewer, larger units.

Dutch armed forces recruiting 1,200 drone specialists (nltimes.nl)

The Dutch Armed Forces have begun recruiting and training 1,200 drone specialists, with the first recruits starting work on Wednesday. The move is meant to improve drone-enabled combat and protection against enemy drone threats, following the impact of drones in Ukraine. Specialists will be integrated into existing battalions rather than form a separate unit, with broad drone training also planned for other soldiers.

Ukrainian drone holds position for 6 weeks (defenceleaders.com) AI

A Ukrainian remotely operated, machine-gun armed UGV (TW 12.7) reportedly stayed on station at a contested crossroads for over six weeks, moving forward daily and withdrawing to cover at night. The system answered multiple calls for fire, helping suppress Russian activity and support infantry tasks, highlighting growing maturity and reliability of Ukraine’s domestically produced strike ground robots. The article also stresses the need for operator training, protected recovery methods to avoid risking personnel, and manufacturer testing to improve sensors and turrets under realistic conditions.

Managed Nationalism (en.wikipedia.org)

“Managed nationalism” is a term used by some academics to describe an alleged Russian government strategy under Vladimir Putin of selectively cooperating with far-right nationalist and neo-Nazi groups to bolster state influence at home and abroad. The article traces how such collaboration intensified after events like Ukraine’s Orange Revolution and later Euromaidan, and how crackdowns sometimes followed major violence. It links the approach to Russia’s broader efforts to cultivate and support far-right politics in other countries while using groups to counter opposition movements.

Rick Dangerous (simonphipps.com)

Simon Phipps reflects on the origins of Rick Dangerous, explaining how the Indiana Jones-style platformer was pitched for Core Design and designed around enemy pursuit, trap use, and level-linked cartoon story sequences. He also shares development trivia for multiple home computer and console versions, notes how the game’s enduring fan remakes and web emulations keep it alive, and discusses uncertainties over who holds the rights today.

The AI Marketing BS Index (bastian.rieck.me)

The piece proposes an “AI Marketing BS Index,” a tongue-in-cheek scoring rubric to grade marketing language that misuses scientific terminology or makes unverifiable, unfalsifiable claims. Drawing a parallel to John Baez’s “Crackpot Index,” it assigns points for things like unsupported “innovation” claims, pseudo-profound hedging, emergence talk without justification, Ivy League name-dropping, and claims that can’t be verified. The author’s goal is to help readers avoid empty promotional emails and spot exaggerated jargon.