Tooling

A computer science graduate is taking on a 7-day challenge to learn Ruby on Rails and build a web app with Google Maps integration. via Upon my shoulder

Real-time video face substitution technology and its potential for manipulation is discussed, highlighting the work of Jeremy Bailenson at Stanford. via LessWrong

3rd Ward has lowered its membership fees to $29 per month, which now includes over $500 in complimentary passes and credits for classes and facility access. via Brokelyn

Chess@home is a distributed computing project that aims to build the largest Chess AI ever, similar to how SETI@home uses distributed computing. via sylvainzimmer

A new Android phone is being developed in China with impressive specs and a low price of $310. The phone boasts a dual core 1.5Ghz chip, 1GB of RAM, a 4-inch LCD screen, and a large battery. via OSNews

FEMA uses the Waffle House Index as an informal metric to assess the severity of a natural disaster based on if the restaurant is fully operational, on a limited menu, or closed. via kottke.org

Moving a boat proves to be no problem for Max Tobiasen, who shares the story on his blog, along with other thoughts on technology and startups.

via Maximise

This computer code appears to be Javascript, setting the variable "window.park" to a long string of characters. via Streetsy.com

FlowingData links to a visualization that maps the ownership structure of the top 13 beer companies. The visualization reveals that many seemingly distinct beer brands are actually owned by a few large companies. via FlowingData

WIRED is covering a range of tech and culture stories, from AI drones and the metaverse to Amazon Prime Day deals and interviews. via The source of this content is WIRED.

Hipster Ipsum offers placeholder text with a "hipster" twist, including buzzwords like "organic" and "Williamsburg." via @dansays

An app review humorously highlights the difficulty of providing accurate and timely warnings, even for something as serious as a tornado. via xkcd.com