The weather forecasts you see on TV or the severe storm alerts you get from your apps are powered by a federal science agency thats in line for some of the most drastic cuts proposed by the Trump administration so far. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) employs about 12,000 staffers around the world, more than half of which are scientists and engineers. NOAA operates 18 satellites and 15 ships and has a budget of $6.8 billion. Their job is to study the skies, the seas, the fish, tracking how theyre changing and predicting what will happen to them. NOAAs work is essential for aviation, fishing, climate research, and offshore oil and gas exploration, particularly when it comes to modeling weather. You and your family and friends depend upon NOAA people even if you are unaware of what they do, Jane Lubchenco, who led NOAA under President Obama, wrote to Vox in an email. Staffers from Elon Musks Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have been targeting probationary employees for job cuts across the federal government. There are around 216,000 workers with this status, close to 10 percent of the total federal workforce. Thousands of workers have already been fired across the federal government already across divisions like the National Park Service and the Department of Energy. About 75,000 staffers accepted deferred resignation offers. RelatedBut the potential cuts at NOAA go beyond that. CBS News reported that NOAA employees were told to prepare for staffing to halve and for budgets to shrink by 30 percent. One source inside the agency who asked to remain anonymous as they were not authorized to speak to the press told Vox that some weather offices at NOAA would be eliminated entirely. Theres going to be some interruptions and declines in the quality of service because well have offices that are understaffed. Thats a big risk for the weather service, said Timothy Gallaudet, who served as acting administrator for NOAA during President Donald Trumps first term. Our weather satellites, theyre vital for public safety, and any interruption to their maintenance and operation could be a problem too.Though it performs valuable jobs, NOAA is at the intersection of the broader push to shrink the government, an ideological fight over climate change, and possibly a personal grievance with the president himself. The cuts could have far-reaching consequences for the US economy and the safety of Americans as extreme weather lands on increasingly populated areas. NOAA does great things that are affecting every American, every day, in a positive way, Gallaudet said. With the drastic cuts some in the Trump administration want at the agency, everything would slow down and potentially stop.Why the main climate and weather agency is in line for deep cutsWhile NASA looks out to the stars, NOAA keeps an eye on here on Earth. But unlike NASA, NOAA is not a stand-alone agency. Its under the umbrella of the Department of Commerce, currently led by Howard Lutnick, former CEO of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, who was confirmed on February 18. The Commerce Departments mission is to facilitate trade and economic growth in the US, so it may seem odd that it runs a science agency, particularly one that accounts for 60 percent of its budget. However, historically NOAAs research was performed with commerce in mind, particularly the fishing industry and maritime trade. Even today, NOAAs work mapping the sea floor and ocean currents in real time around ports ensures safe travels for shipping, which contributes $5.4 trillion to the US economy each year. The agencys management of fisheries supports the nearly $10 billion fishing sector. NOAAs forecasting work through the National Weather Service is essential for farmers, event planners, and for generating life-saving alerts ahead of extreme weather events. NOAA also conducts basic science research around climate change. One of NOAAs hurricane hunter aircraft displays several stickers commemorating the hurricanes it has flown into. Rhona Wise/AFP via Getty ImagesThese functions have drawn the ire of some within the Trump administration. Project 2025, the conservative policy agenda produced by the Heritage Foundation, specifically calls for climate change to be systematically removed from government policymaking. In Project 2025 training videos obtained by ProPublica, an official from Trumps first term says a future conservative president will have to eradicate climate change references from absolutely everywhere.It makes sense then that NOAA would be a ripe target. Project 2025 calls for NOAA to be dismantled and many of its functions eliminated, sent to other agencies, privatized, or placed under the control of states and territories. It describes NOAAs six main offices acting as one of the main drivers of the climate change alarm industry and, as such, is harmful to future US prosperity. As for the National Weather Service, it should fully commercialize its forecasting operations. Across the government, many of the specific objectives laid out in Project 2025 are already getting checked off the list. However, during his confirmation hearing, Lutnick said he disagreed with the Project 2025 proposal to dismantle NOAA. Trump also had a direct run-in with NOAA during his first term. In 2019, Hurricane Dorian reached Category 5 strength and was heading toward the Gulf Coast. Trump posted on Twitter that Alabama was one of the states most likely to be hit, but the National Weather Services Birmingham office responded that there would be no hurricane impacts on the state.Then, during an Oval Office briefing on September 4, 2019, Trump presented a National Weather Service map of Hurricane Dorians path with what looked like a loop drawn on in marker to encompass southern Alabama. The episode, dubbed Sharpiegate, led to some in-fighting within NOAA as career staff pushed back against political appointees who wanted the agency to confirm Trumps statements. NOAAs acting chief scientist at the time, Craig McLean, was forced out of his post. McLean told Vox the affair was part of a broader political effort to make science bend to Trumps agenda. When the Trump people first arrived [during the first term], they were pressing me to change the direction of the climate program, McLean said. The frustration was that the Trump people couldnt get that done. The climate program survived and continued to assert scientific truths that are evident. But now Im expecting them to just come in with a blunderbuss and a sledgehammer and start whacking programs. So thats what concerns me. Climate is a big target.NOAA does have room for improvementFormer NOAA officials said there are some long-running friction points at the agency that deserve scrutiny and could benefit from some strategic reorganization, cuts, and privatization. The big issue is simply that NOAA is under the wrong department. The political appointees in the Department of Commerce did not have a good appreciation for what NOAA does, Gallaudet said. That was the biggest pain point, to be honest with you. They really just didnt understand us well. Whenever we had direct access to the White House, thats when we got our initiatives forward.Its unlikely that NOAA will get moved out of the Commerce Department anytime soon, but having top political officials who grasp NOAAs mission and its value to the American public could smooth over the bureaucratic wrangling.NOAA could also benefit from teaming up with the private sector. Private weather forecasting is now a $10 billion industry in the United States, but fully commercializing the National Weather Service is something that some of these companies oppose. AccuWeather, a company providing weather forecasting services, specifically came out against the Project 2025 proposal and said it could not replace everything NOAA does. The authors of Project 2025 used us as an example of forecasts and warnings provided by private sector companies without the knowledge or permission of AccuWeather, wrote AccuWeather CEO Steven R. Smith in a statement last year. A meteorologist monitors weather activity on a computer screen at the NOAA Center for Weather and Climate Prediction headquarters in College Park, Maryland, on December 5, 2024. Michael A. McCoy/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBut by working with companies like AccuWeather, NOAA can expand the reach of its forecasts and get important alerts into the hands of more people likely to be affected by severe weather and tailored to businesses that have the most at stake. Gallaudet noted that NOAA is constantly amassing gobs of weather metrics that inform local meteorologists, app developers, and farmers, but this collection is getting unwieldy. Private companies can help the agency automate the data collection and optimize its analysis software. Machine learning tools developed by tech companies could also help NOAA improve its forecasts. Another problem is that NOAAs wide-ranging research portfolio unwittingly overlaps with science projects at other agencies, like NASA, the Department of Energy, and the US Geological Survey (USGS), creating unnecessary redundancies. I went on a dive trip off North Carolina to some shipwrecks when I was at NOAA unofficially, it was my recreational event and I met a USGS biologist diving with me. It turns out he worked on sturgeon, Gallaudet said. We had two [sturgeon] labs at NOAA. Our sturgeon scientists had never spoken with USGS sturgeon scientists. Theres not many sturgeon in the country! Youd think our scientists would collaborate and be more efficient, but no.On the other hand, there are research areas where NOAA could still invest more, particularly in social science. While meteorologists are extending their lead time on weather predictions, how people parse and act on this information is emerging as a limitation. An early tornado warning doesnt help much if recipients dont immediately seek shelter, or if they try to squeeze in a last-minute grocery run. Getting people to heed warnings and take precautions is a critical challenge.The people at the Department of Commerce, both Democrat and Republican administrations, told us NOAA doesnt do social science, which showed their gross ignorance and I would say callous rejection of the importance of the mission, McLean said. During my tenure we worked very hard to open the gate and start spending in the social sciences to understand how people are responding to these forecasts and the tools that we use to make the forecast.And staying ahead of the practical impacts of climate change needs to be a high priority for the agency. For instance, as average temperatures rise, fish stocks are migrating toward the poles, forcing the fishers to adapt. Todays Maine lobster will be Canadian lobster tomorrow, McLean said. As weather reaches greater extremes and more people and property are in harms way, disasters are becoming extraordinarily more expensive. Its prudent to invest in the tools to monitor and predict these events, and dismantling them will leave the country vulnerable to more costly catastrophes in the future.See More:

Is the rights era of good feelings and unity coming to an end?For the past year, the many factions of the GOP have been united around the cause of restoring Donald Trump to the White House. But now that theyve done that, tensions are spilling out into the open on several different issues.The most intense criticism has come on Ukraine. In the past week, administration officials have made major concessions to Russian demands, while publicly berating Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelenskyy, cutting him out of negotiations, trying to strong-arm him into handing over mineral rights to the US, and even absurdly claiming Ukraine started the war.Many of the rights more traditional internationalists or hawks on the right are utterly appalled by this, viewing it as Trump throwing Ukraine to the wolves. Criticism has poured in from leading figures at National Review, the Free Press, and the Murdoch-owned entities Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post criticism that has spurred Vice President JD Vance to respond in long-form X posts defending the administrations approach.Others on the right have felt uneasy about Trumps handling of the Justice Department. The attempt to dismiss the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams was condemned by some longtime stalwarts of the conservative legal movement, who view it as blatantly political. Activist Ed Whelan even said Trumps Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove should resign over it.Finally, theres a broader concern among some more moderate factions of the right that the movements worst elements have been unleashed and should be resisted. The Free Press was founded in 2021 as a protest to what ex-New York Times editor Bari Weiss saw as groupthink and overreach in the mainstream media and among progressives most broadly. But in a recent speech, Weiss signaled a potential shift in focus, worrying that the far right may well devour what remains of the center-right.Its important not to overstate the importance of these tensions. The right overall remains deeply invested in Trump, congressional Republicans are doing little to check him, and the president remains very popular among GOP voters. Many of these outlets, such as National Review, have criticized Trump in the past to little apparent impact. Dont expect Trumps GOP support to collapse anytime soon or probably ever.Still, this does amount to a vibe shift of sorts, as parts of the rights intelligentsia who spent years mainly fired up about the terrible things Democrats and the woke were doing are shifting more of their attention to things they dont like about Trumps governance. And hes only been back in office one month.Trump and Vance are doing MAGA foreign policy and making traditional Republican hawks unhappyOn Wednesday, after Trump posted a Truth Social tirade trashing Zelenskyy as a modestly successful comedian and A Dictator without Elections, Vance reposted it on X, and added: I just wanted to make sure no one missed it.The message was clear it was about which faction within the GOP was calling the shots on foreign policy now. That is: The MAGA America Firsters (who loathe American involvement in Ukraines war) were running the show, and the GOPs traditional internationalist hawks (who view that war as righteous and Russia as a dangerous aggressor) were out.This wasnt inevitable. Last year, the internationalists thought they still had a good shot at influence in the Trump administration, with the hawkish Marco Rubio, Trumps secretary of state pick, and some believing Mike Pompeo to be the frontrunner for defense secretary.But a crucial shift happened near the end of last year Tucker Carlson, Donald Trump Jr., and Vance intervened to shift Trumps thinking on future appointments, arguing that he should avoid empowering disloyal neocons again. This appears to have been decisive Pompeo got no appointment (and in fact Trump revoked his security detail in apparent punishment), while America First supporters scored key gigs.The hawks had little to complain about at first, but Trumps hard shift against Ukraine in the past week has horrified them. Historian Niall Ferguson wondered on X why a Republican president had stopped clearly condemning the invasion of a sovereign state by a dictator.Vance then responded with a lengthy post calling Fergusons statement moralistic garbage, adding that was unfortunately the rhetorical currency of the globalists because they have nothing else to say. Like cheering Trumps humiliation of Zelenskyy, this is factional behavior, designed to insult critics and dismiss their concerns, while thrilling the hardcore MAGA faithful.But the reality is that the internationalist hawks remain a significant part of Republicans coalition, with strong support in Congress (especially the Senate) and in parts of conservative media. So by spurning them so blatantly by not even pretending to take their concerns seriously Trump and Vance are dividing the right.Other sources of tension on the right relate to ethics and the rule of lawTensions on the right are simmering about other topics as well.Most on the right had converged around the belief that Trump was within his rights to make major changes at the Department of Justice, deeming the investigations and prosecutions of Trump politically biased and improper.But at least some still have ethical standards against blatant corruption, as shown in the saga of Trumps appointees acting to dismiss the case against Mayor Adams. Notably, two of the DOJ officials who resigned over this Danielle Sassoon and Hagan Scotten had clerked for conservative Supreme Court justices. When their resignation letters were published, Whelan cheered them on, harshly criticizing acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove and suggesting it is Bove who should resign next. Fox News analyst Andy McCarthy also criticized Bove and called his claims ridiculous. Then, on Friday, the judge handling Adamss case announced that hed asked former US solicitor general Paul Clement to present arguments against the Trump DOJs position. Clement is a pillar of the conservative legal establishment, so his agreement to do this is in itself a message to the Trump administration.There are broader fears as well. Weiss warned in her recent speech that if a political movement does not police its ranks and defend its sacred values, it cannot long endure. Those values, she continued, included the rule of law and a rejection of mob violence but, she worried that online these days, power is celebrated instead of principle, and it is quickly becoming the only principle.Weiss continued: If that continues without being challenged, we may wind up spending the next few years watching the same story we just lived through on the other side, as the far right (not the one defined by cable news, which includes most of us here today) devours what remains of the center-right.The MAGA faithful did not respond well. It seems like this entire crewmost of whom joined the right like 5 minutes agohave launched a full-scale containment/gatekeeping op, right-wing activist Nate Hochman posted on X. Really bizarre.None of this in the near term is too much of a problem for Trump. He and his appointees can run the executive branch as they see fit, the GOP Congress will likely do little to check him, and he retains solid approval from the MAGA base.But the bigger picture takeaway is that his honeymoon already appears to be over and the vibes, which famously shifted in Trumps favor in 2024, appear to be shifting again. See More:

Ten years ago, I wrote an article for this site called How the Hell Is This JPG of Han Solo Worth $225? The article was about a new app from the card company Topps called Star Wars Card Trader in which fans could open packs and trade digital cards from a galaxy far, far away. At the time, it was novel and weird. This was before NFTs were a thing. Before most people had even heard of crypto. The idea that someone would spend $225 to own an image of Han Solo they could simply look at anywhere was still quite foreign and people were fascinated. I know that for a fact because, in the years since that article, literally dozens of people have told me they read it and got hooked on Star Wars Card Trader. When I hear that, I usually apologize because I know just how deep that obsession can go. I not only remain hooked on the app in 2025, but Im in as deep as ever. You see, Star Wars Card Trader is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year, and in addition to bringing back all manner of old-school cards, that aforementioned JPG of Han Solo sold for $120 just this week. Clearly, this thing is still going strong, except maybe not quite as strong. So whats been happening? Like many apps you have on your phone, Star Wars Card Trader can be used in two ways. You can use the free currency to buy packs and collect cards casually, or you can spend money to gain access to packs with better and rarer cards. When I started back in 2015, I was a free guy. I wasnt going to spend real money for a digital card I didnt actually own. And that mindset is why, around 2018, I stopped playing. All of the coolest cards were only available if you spent money and it just didnt interest me. I was out. The full Vintage Han Solo card, worth $225 then and $120 now. Image: Topps/Lucasfilm Fast-forward two years. An email from Topps rekindled my interest and, like many people during the pandemic, I fell back into collecting hard. I quickly decided to focus my collection on my favorite things in Star Wars: Han Solo in Hoth gear and Han Solo in Carboniteand looking at what was released in the years I was away, I realized I missed a lot. In that time, Topps had introduced cards called Gilded which had a gold, silver, or bronze border and were only available in card counts of one, two, or three. Other variants had similarly low counts, meaning there were Han Solo (and every single other character) cards only one or two people in the world could own. This, as a collector, was incredibly enticing. Like with any kind of collecting though, that kind of level of rarity means one thing: money. And thats when my whole perspective changed. Once I started spending money and acquiring newer, rarer cards, it was like finding a wormhole into a new world. I quickly found there were high-end players on the app who spent A LOT on the game. And not just $225 on a single card. Im talking thousands of dollars on individual cards and maybe tens of thousands on in-app currency. That was literally the only way they could have amassed some of the rare, impressive collections they had and I wanted some of that for myself.But how to get it? Well, money of course. But also, the help of something that had slowly developed over the years: a passionate fan base. When I returned to the app, I found a growing, bustling community of collectors I could interact with off the app, about the app. Facebook and Discord became must-visit places in order to talk with other users about new cards, evaluate trades, and gain encouragement when it came to achieving a big goal. Without the help of the Star Wars Card Trader online community, I wouldnt have fallen back in so deep. A sampling of my Hoth Han cards. The top two rows are 1cc until the silver, then theyre all 2cc. Image: Topps/Lucasfilm Best of all, it all worked. In the past five years since returning to the app, I can safely say I have probably the best Han Solo, and definitely the best Hoth Han and Carbonite Han, digital card collection in the entire world. Did it cost me thousands of dollars over the years to acquire it? Yes. Did it also require me to be diplomatic, persuasive, and sometimes even investigative to find users and cards that seemed otherwise unattainable? Also yes. That drive to collect cards of my favorite characters is largely why I have remained so invested while so many others have slipped off.And make no mistake, there has been a slip-off. As things stand, the app is not what it was at the beginning nor is it even what it was during the pandemic. The team behind the app, who were once available and engaged with the fan base, has disappeared. Some sets are incredible and beautiful, while others are lazy and ugly. Big-money spenders have inflated values out of range for most and tricked casual users into believing their cards are worth more than they actually are. The whole thing has become a crapshoot, and many of the apps biggest fans who I met online have long since cashed out. And yet, that iconic Han Solo card has only dipped slightly: $225 in 2015, $120 today. One of the new Vintage cards and my personal favorite. Image: Topps/Lucasfilm Part of that is probably because Topps has, for the anniversary, gone back to basics. Its reintroduced the original sets that fans loved at the very beginning. That includes Vintage, the series the Han Solo was a part of. Now though, its in multiple variants (see above) and some are even rarer. And, because of those multiple variants, Vintage cards have been selling out in minutes on a Saturday morning when they go live on the app. Its created a nice blend of nostalgia for what the app once was, mixed with the more pointed and rare collectibles that have become most peoples focus.Ten years later, not only has the idea of collecting a digital card become a bit more normalized, but doing it in Star Wars is still as fun as ever. At least for me. There have been peaks, valleys, and plenty of embarrassing moments Id rather not discuss where Ive spent more money than I care to admit, but I really love my Star Wars card collection. And, unlike most collections, this one comes with me wherever I go. Its on my phone and I can mess with it anytime I want to. Star Wars Card Trader is still available in all the app stores. Download it and check it out but be warned. It can be addictive. And if youre hoarding 2025 cards, send me Millennium Falcon. Im DarthGerm. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, whats next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

By Thomas Maxwell Published February 21, 2025 | Comments (6) | The federal government is getting rid of all the EV charges installed on government property. Mario Tama/Getty As part of its continued efforts to own the libs, or get rid of anything President Trump does not like or understand, the General Services Administration is gearing up to remove electric chargers from all federal properties nationwide. The agency says the hundreds of chargers and estimated 8,000 plugs available for federal workers to charge their cars are not mission critical. The agency, which manages buildings owned by the federal government as well as vehicles, will also offload any EVs purchased under the Biden administration. The move, while malicious, is not surprising considering the GOPs general disdain for electric vehicles and the green energy movement, or wiping just about anything enacted by the prior administration. President Trump has railed against EV mandates and is fighting to override Californias heightened emissions standards and requirement that all cars sold in the state be electric by 2035. President Bidens signature Inflation Reduction Act included significant funding to help supercharge the clean energy transition, including money for public chargers across the country and, importantly here, $975 million for the GSA to upgrade federal buildings across the country with emerging and sustainable technologies. But that is all out the window now, despite the fact that President Trumps right-hand man, Elon Musk, runs a $1 trillion electric car company. Runs might be a stretch, however, as Musk seems to be focused on his government job these days, power tripping and ignoring his family pleas on his own social media app, X. And he does not seem to care much about selling cars anymore, either. Tesla is now an AI robotics company or will be, maybe. As GSA has worked to align with the current administration, we have received direction that all GSA owned charging stations are not mission critical, reads an email from the GSA viewed by The Verge. The official guidance directs federal workers to begin shutting off chargers, though the GSA needs to cancel network contracts first. Once that is complete, chargers will be taken out of service and turned off at the breaker, seemingly noted in the email to emphasize just how much they want the chargers gone. Musk, being in charge of President Trumps DOGE cost-cutting effort, seems likely behind the effort. That would seem counterintuitiveMusk made his name building an electric car company that he once said would help move the world to a green future. Anything that supported that mission, including the success of competing car companies, was welcome, according to him.But we are long departed from those days. Musk today is in favor of getting rid of EV subsidies and tax credits, even as China eats Americas lunch in electrification and is spreading its cars around the world. Some have speculated that because Tesla is already profitable on a per-car-basis, his company would fare better than competitors who still can use any support they can get to scale. In a similar vein, perhaps Musk is fine with getting rid of chargers because it would help keep Teslas Supercharger network front-and-center. Coincidentally, the Trump administration early this month paused $3 billion in funding earmarked for public chargers. If we are being charitable, there is one case to be made for getting rid of chargers on government property, which is that reporting has suggested they are not very good. Reports have circulated around the web claiming many of the chargers located at federal buildings are of the slower Level 2 variant, and utilize CHAdeMO or similar defunct charging plugs. Getting rid of them might make some sense if they were not being used, or were frequently broken.Another reason to get rid of them would be the fact that Musk and President Trump are trying to fire federal workers in droves, so they will not have as many people around soon anyway. Still, it would be nice to actually see real functional charging equipment on federal property, but it does not seem likely they will be coming back soon.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Lucas Ropek Published February 21, 2025 By Matthew Gault Published February 21, 2025 Adam Kovac and George Dvorsky Published February 21, 2025 By Lucas Ropek Published February 20, 2025 By Matt Novak Published February 20, 2025 By Adam Kovac Published February 20, 2025

Neuhoff District / S9 ArchitectureSave this picture! Seth Parker / Christopher PayneNashville, United StatesArchitects: S9 ArchitectureAreaArea of this architecture projectArea:1300000 ftYearCompletion year of this architecture project Year: 2025 PhotographsPhotographs:Seth Parker / Christopher Payne More SpecsLess SpecsSave this picture!Text description provided by the architects. Abandoned for half a century, the sprawling Neuhoff meat-packing complex is poised to become an exciting new addition to Nashville's resurgence.Save this picture!Save this picture!S9 Architecture re-envisioned the riverfront property with a comprehensive design that retains and repurposes much of the existing buildings while strategically incorporating new construction throughout the site.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!S9's master plan features a connective network of pedestrian pathways, courtyards, public roof terraces, and cantilevered catwalks that create a series of experiences for visitors. The 1.3-million-square-foot project houses a mix of offices, cultural spaces, residential units, and retail/dining establishments.Save this picture!Project gallerySee allShow lessProject locationAddress:Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.About this officeMaterialsMaterials and TagsPublished on February 21, 2025Cite: "Neuhoff District / S9 Architecture" 21 Feb 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1026598/neuhoff-district-s9-architecture&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

... : : : 31 1962 " ." 1963 "" 300 " ". "" 12 . "" : " "" : . . : " ". " " :Saint Antoine Boulevard Mascara "" " "la place darmes. " " "" "" - . - ." ". - - ." . . . ". - "" . " " " "Kinetic theory of gases ." ". . . "" " "Pif Gadget " "Archimedes Swing " "Arbalest .... " "La faune et la flore Frederic Rossif " "Commandant Cousteau." "" "" ". " " " "(LTGO) " " . "" - . : " "." ". : . "" ." ". 1982 "" . " " . " "(DEA). " "Universit Paris Sud " "lcole Polytechnique 1988 " "Laser & Photonics " "(CEA) . " " . " "Neutron wave-matter optics 1991. " "Institut doptique ; . - . (Nanoscience and Nanotechnology) . 75 . : . : . : . : .: .: .: . ReseachGate:: Pb-Sn 2024 Co(PO)@Mn(PO)@Ni(PO) (Vitex doniana) - 2024 CuO/TiO (Ar) - 2024 Co(PO)@Mn(PO) - 2024 CuO@MnO@NiO (Sarcophrynium brachystachys) - 2024 2023 2024 (NANOAFNET) iThemba - 2024: - 2023 - 2023 - 2022 - 2022 2021 1eV Ei 1GeV 2020 2020 ZnO 2020 : - 2023 - 2023 - 2020 (NiO) - 2020 NiO 2020 2020 THz VO 2019 ICTP IAEA 2019 : 4 : 11 2011 " " colon carcinoma ""anthocyanin . . 30 2009 " "nanoparticles . " "precursor " "cryogenic liquid " "sub-micron droplets " "vacuum . 22 2006 . . (Proof of Concept): 11 . : . : . : . : (OLED). : . : . : . : . : . : ( ) . : . : : (NANOAFNET) (NANOAFNET) - 2005 . . (ALC) (ALC) . 1999 2003 (AMCOST). (U2ACN2) (U2ACN2) 2012 (UNISA) " "iThemba LABS. 2013 . (SANi) (SANi) 2003 . . (DSI) . (U2ACN2) 2022: (U2ACN2) 2022 : : 3 29 . 4 . 5 6 . : 93 8 NatureScientific Reports. . : (ICTP) LOral UNESCO . 2 Clarivate Stanford Metrics. : 5.14 . . NanoHorizons . ACCENTS NanoAfrica 2022 . Africa MRS 2022 (Green Air Conditioning): . . (Bio-Inspired Selective Solar Absorbers): " "CSP Technology " "Photovoltaics. (Solar-Based Water Disinfection): . . : (Nanofluids: Novel Oils): . : 2013 2028: - .2013 2028: (UNISA) .2012: (NIMS) .2007 2008: .2005 2013: (iThemba LABS) .1997 2004: (Univ. of Witwatersrand) .1995: (Lab. Surface & Interfaces) (Univ. of le Mans) .1994: de Couche Minces & Multicouche/Optique X(Lab. .1993: .1992: (Frank Lab.) .1991: -(Hahn-Meitner Institute) . : . (AfPS) - (NEPAD-AU) . Action)(COST 702 FP7 . ((ICS-UNIDO . (LAMNETWORK) . . (GNN) . (ICTP) (EBASI) . (IUPAP-C13) . (NANOAFNET) . (ICTP) . (ALC) . (SANI) . . (ALC) . :Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, Nature Scientific Reports, Nano-Horizons, Scientific African, Advances in Nano Research (ANR), Annals of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Science Technology & Development, Science of Advanced Materials (SAM), Journal of Nanoelectronics and Optoelectronics, Scientific American, International Journal of Synthesis & Applications of Nanomaterials, Journal of Nanotechnology& Advanced Material, J. Materials Chemistry, Int. J. of Nanotechnology (IJNT), African Physical Review (APR). 2019: .2018: .2015: (AAAS) .2015: .2014: .2014: .2013: .2012: (IFS) .2011: ((EBASI .2018: (ATINER) . : 2024: .2024: .2022: .2019: .:2019 .:2018 .:2018 .:2017 .:2015 .:2015 .:2014 .:2013 iThemba LABS .2012: NANOAFNET .2007: .:2007 iThemba LABS .:2005 .:2000 .:1999 .:1998 .:1997 .:1992 .1990: .1989: . 2022 (ICTP) . : " ". 25 2019 . . 30 2019 . : " . . ". 2018 " "Wong Cheung Lo Hui Yuet Hall " " Lau Ming Wai " "City University of Hong Kong .

: : : 4 1962 " ." 1962 ( ) . 3 3 . " " " " (SNTR). . "" . " " 1968 " " 1981." ..." : 1981 1985. . . 1988." ... ... ." 3 . 1992 . 1994 Royal Institute of Technology. " " " " - - . . 40 . " "Anders Karlsson Qucomm . " "Nicolas Gisin " "Nicolas Cerf " "John Rarity 2000 : . 2001 " " " " . 1981 1985: (DES) . 1985 1988: . 1992 1994: . 1994 2011: . Ludwig Maximilian University MaxPlanck Institute 3 " " Physical Review Letters." 14 ... ." 2005 " " rdsforskare) ) (VR). - - 2011 ." ." (VR) (KAW) " "Stiftelsen Olle Engkvist Byggmstare " "Carl Tryggers Foundation (CAPES). (ABB)""Hitachi ""Ericsson. ""Linnaeus (2008-2018) . . WACQT)) ""AlbaNova. (VR) (ERC) 2013 2017. " " " " . 2018 . " " (WALP)." ." . . ""Bits ( ) ""Qubits " ". " " . . . . . . . . . . . : " " (WACQT) . " "Chalmers University of Technology " " . " " .NQCIS: " " Albanova (NQCIS) "" 130 . " " 34.3 . ReseachGate :: -- - 2024 - 2024 - 2022 - 2022 2021 2020 2020 - 2020: - 2007 - 2005 - 2002 - 2002 : SIC-POVM- 2019 : CHSH - 2014 - 2009 - 2009 - 2008W - 2003 " " (1550 ) - 1999 : 1988 1992: . 1985 1988: . : 2011 2011: . 2011: . 2011: . 2007: "" ( ) . 2005 2011: . 2005 2011: . 2004 2005: . 2001 2001: . 2001 2004: . 1998 2001: . : : . . . . : 2023: 2022: .2020 2022: .2015 2020: . 2014: .2007 2011: (KOF) .2005 2023: . . : . :Nature Photonics, Nature Communication, Physical ReviewLetters, Physical Review A, New Journal of Physics, Physical Letters A., European Journal Physics,Journal Optics Society of America B, Journal of Modern Optics." : ." : 40 (1550 ). (QKD) . . . : " ". " "" ". Digital Trends . : . (QRAC): . . : . - . : . . : . . : (NQCIS) Ericsson Vinnova . : 2014 The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences . . 2015 Stockholm City Hall . - 1739 - 1901 450 175 . ." ." : " " 23 2024 . . (CSLA) 2015 . . . . 2024 . . - " " 2015 . . 2018 . . "" . 2016 ." ."

(Credit: DC Studio/Shutterstock)NewsletterSign up for our email newsletter for the latest science newsFreelance software engineering is a lucrative and dynamic field where skilled developers tackle diverse challenges, from bug fixes to full-stack feature development. In recent years, these workers have been among the first to incorporate AI systems into their workflow to help write code. That raises an interesting question: could an AI system do the same job by itself? In other words, have software engineers effectively developed themselves out of their own jobs?Now we get an answer of sorts thanks to the work of Samuel Miserendino, Michele Wang, and colleagues at OpenAI Research, who have developed a benchmarking tool that determines whether state-of-the-art large language models (LLMs) can complete a set of real software development tasks that have been solved by humans. These human developers earned themselves $1 million in the process, raising the obvious question of whether AI systems could earn their crust alone. The answer will be of limited comfort to human developers. Real-world freelance work in our benchmark remains challenging for frontier language models, say Miserendino, Wang and co. Nevertheless, they calculate that the best models could successfully earn a significant fraction of the $1 million. Code RedSoftware engineering involves far more than just writing code. Engineers must interpret client requirements, navigate complex codebases and make high-level architectural decisions about the correct approach. Real-world freelance jobs require full-stack development, debugging and managerial skills.Assessing the performance of large language models at these tasks is tricky because most benchmarks involve standard coding problems, which represent just a small part of the freelancers challenge.Miserendino, Wang and co set out to change this by creating a database of real software engineering tasks previously solved by human freelancers. They call their benchmark SWE-Lancer and hope it will become a standard against which to test the real-world coding performance of advanced large language models.The team sourced the freelance tasks from Expensify, a public company that owns an expense management system used by 12 million customers. This software requires constant maintenance and development, for which the company relies on freelance workers. Expensify makes these coding tasks public and posts them to the freelancer website Upwork. The OpenAI team chose 1488 of these tasks. About half of them were aimed at individual programmers and involved tasks like developing coding patches to resolve real-world issues. The other half of the tasks were for managers and involved selecting the best solution from competing proposals submitted by human freelancers.All the tasks had been completed by human freelancers who were paid amounts varying from $250 to $32,000. The total value of all the tasks was $1 million. To put the current state-of-the-art AI models through their paces, the team set each task to Anthropics Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and OpenAIs GPT-4o and o1 models. The AI systems were given the text describing the issue as it appeared on the Upwork platform along with a snapshot of the code before the fix was made, along with the objective in fixing the issue. For the management tasks, the models were given various proposed solutions to a problem, a snapshot of the code to be fixed and the goal in picking the most suitable solution. The results are illuminating. Sonnet 3.5 performs best, followed by o1 and then GPT-4o, say Miserendino, Wang and co. But they were far from perfect. All models earn well below the full $1 million USD of possible payout on the full SWE-Lancer dataset, say the researchers.Nevertheless, there is a healthy return for some problems. On the full SWE-Lancer dataset, Claude 3.5 Sonnet earns over $400,000 out of $1,000,000 possible.That seems like a reasonable income for a freelance developer using AI to [del automate] assist in their work. But there are clearly limitations. The AI systems performed better on manager tasks than individual coding tasks, which often produced superficial fixes rather than addressing root problems. This suggests AI is better at evaluating solutions than implementing them. Overall, the AI systems were able to tackle less than 50 percent of the available tasks, which leads the team to a somber conclusion. The real-world freelance work in our benchmark remains challenging for frontier language models, say the researchers. Money MakingThe team say that LLMs inability to outperform human freelancers stems from several fundamental issues. For example, AI models lack a deep understanding of code instead, they are merely pattern generators. Human engineers also iteratively refine their solutions, running tests and debugging unexpected behaviors, an approach that LLMs struggle to copy. But while LLMs arent ready to replace human engineers, the SWE-Lancer benchmark reveals exciting potential. It suggests that AI assistants are likely to help automate routine coding tasks, so that human developers can focus on higher-level problem-solving.One thing the researchers do not focus on in detail is the time taken to complete the tasks by humans versus machines. It may be that AI systems are not currently much better at some tasks but that they are significantly faster. That will inevitably feature in business planning.But they show that some tasks are ripe for automation and probably already being done in this way by enterprising freelancers and businesses. This proportion is likely to increase as the models become more capable. And judging by the improvements AI models have achieved on other benchmarks for advanced mathematics problems and the like, this improvement is likely to accelerate quickly. Clearly, the time for disruptive change is now.Ref: SWE-Lancer: Can Frontier LLMs Earn $1 Million from Real-World Freelance Software Engineering? : arxiv.org/abs/2502.12115artificial intelligence1 free article leftWant More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/monthSubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In1 free articleSubscribeWant more?Keep reading for as low as $1.99!SubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In

A resilient pair of internet-famous American bald eagles is at it again. Jackie and Shadow are currently incubating three eggs on their large nest overlooking Big Bear Lake in the San Bernardino mountains east of Los Angeles, California.According to the nonprofit Friends of Big Bear Valley, Jackie puffed up her feathers, bore down, and released the third egg in this years clutch on January 29. She waited to deliver all of her eggs before incubating, so the team expects that hatching could begin in 38 to 40 days due to this delayed incubation.The eggs could begin to break out from their eggsor piparound March 1. Bird enthusiasts from around the world can join in on pip watch via the eagle nest cameras maintained by the Friends of Big Bear Valley on YouTube. Jackie and Shadow fans can also read daily recaps for more explanations of this process.Im very excited and a little bit surprised, Executive Director of Friends of Big Bear Valley Sandy Steers told the Los Angeles Times. Last year, it happened for the first time, and its so rare to have her lay three eggs again.Long-time viewers are aware of the emotional roller coaster that watching the eagles attempts to raise a family can be. The duo first got together in 2018 and successfully raised chicks in 2019 and 2022. However, their eggs failed to hatch in 2023 and 2024.It could be that the temperatures we had during the incubation period, and when they were laid, were not that good. It could be the amount of oxygen. Were at a very high altitude, higher than most eagles nests, so we have low oxygen levels to begin with, Steers told Popular Science after last years eggs did not hatch. We also had those big storms. It could also be something biological that just was off when the eggs were created, or during the development process. We just dont know.Officially designated as Americas national bird in December 2024, bald eagles have been brought back from near extinction. According to the American Eagle Foundation, there were only 417 known nesting pairs in the lower 48 states in 1963. That number has skyrocketed to at least 316,700 known individual bald eagles, including 71,400 nesting pairs. Conservation measures enforced during the 1970s including banning the pesticide DDT have helped the species rebound. However, even with these strides, they face danger from bird flu, habitat destruction, lead poisoning, and collisions with human-made infrastructure.Only 50 percent of eagle eggs successfully hatch, so whether or not this years clutch will hatch remains tenuous.This is a developing story, please check back for updates.The post The famous bald eagle nest live cam is back with three new eggs appeared first on Popular Science.

Power strips arent meant to last forever. Even a little bit of damage can cause them to fail catastrophically, and they can take your precious electronics out with them. Right now, you can get an Anker Flat Plug power strip with USB charging for just $20, so this is a great time to replace those aging strips youve been using since the days of CRT TVs.Anker Flat Plug Power Strip(300J) with 6 AC, 2 USB-A/2 USB-C $20 (was $30)AnkerSee ItThis super-thin power strip offers six full-on AC outlets as well as a pair of USB-A and USB-C charging ports. The plug is flat, so it easily fits behind a couch or a desk without bending, and the five-foot cord makes it easy to hide. Plus, the outlets are spaced out, so you can plug those chunky boxes into it without overcrowding. The strip comes with an 18-month warranty with a lifetime $200,000 connected equipment guarantee. So, if something goes badly, youre covered.Grab a couple of these and replace all the strips in your house.More Anker dealsAnker Prime Charger, 100W USB C Charger $59 (was $85)Anker 332 USB-C Hub (5-in-1) with 4K HDMI Display $18 (was $35)Anker USB C Docking Station, 8-in-1 USB-C Hub, Dual 4K HDMI USB C to USB Adapter $39 (was $49)Anker SOLIX C300 Portable Power Station, Outdoor 288Wh LiFePO4 Battery $249 (was $369)Anker Portable Charger, 10,000mAh 30W Power Bank $15 (was $28)Anker SOLIX F2000 Solar Generator, 2048Wh Portable Power Station with LiFePO4 Batteries and 400W Solar Panel $1,699 (was $2,599)The post This 10-in-1 Anker flat plug power strip fits anywhere and its just $20 today appeared first on Popular Science.