Save Your USB-C Plugs From Oblivion
USB-C as the “One Cable To Rule Them All” has certainly been a success. While USB-A is still around for now, most of us have breathed a hefty sigh of relief with the passing of micro-USB and the several display and power standards it replaces. It’s not without its minor issues though. One of them is that it’s as susceptible as any other cable to a bit of strain. For that, we think [NordcaForm]’s 3D-printed USB-C cable strain relief is definitely a cut above the rest.
Waxing lyrical about a simple 3D printed model might seem overkill for Hackaday, and it’s true, it’s not something we do often, but as Hackaday writers travel around with plenty of USB-C connected peripherals, we like the design of this one. It’s flexible enough to be useful without resorting to exotic filaments, and since it’s available in a few different forms with curved or straight edges, we think it can find a place in many a cable setup. Certainly more of an everyday carry than a previously featured 3D print. If you want to learn more about USB C, we have a whole series of posts for you to binge read.
Bose SoundTouch Smart WiFi Speakers are about to go Dumb
Bose SoundTouch speakers were introduced in 2013, offering the ability to connect to online streaming services and play back audio on multiple speakers simultaneously using the accompanying mobile app. Now these features are about to be removed, including the mobile app, as Bose is set to discontinue support on February 18, 2026. From that point onwards, you can only use them via Bluetooth or physical connectors that may be present, like an audio jack or HDMI port. This includes fancy home theater system hardware like the above SoundTouch 520.
That is the official line, at least. We have seen the SoundTouch on Hackaday previously, when it was discovered how to gain root shell access to the Linux OS that powers the original SoundTouch system with Telnet access on port 17,000 to pass the listening service the remote_services on command before connecting with Telnet as usual, with root and no password. A quick glance at the comments to that post suggests that this is still a valid approach for at least certain SoundTouch devices.
The fallout from this announcement appears to be twofold: most of all that ‘smart’ features like WiFi-based streaming can be dropped at any time. But it also makes us realize that hardware hackers like us will never run out of new and suddenly obsolete hardware that need our rescue.
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Guido Piovene “inviato speciale” alla Marcia Perugia-Assisi del 1961
@Giornalismo e disordine informativo
articolo21.org/2025/10/guido-p…
Oggi 12 ottobre, a 80 anni dalla costituzione dell’Onu, a 10 anni dalla diffusione della Laudato sì di Papa Francesco, a 800 anni dalla composizione del Cantico delle
Sarò alla marcia perchè la Palestina trovi finalmente Pace
@Giornalismo e disordine informativo
articolo21.org/2025/10/saro-al…
Anche stavolta parteciperò alla Marcia della Pace Perugia-Assisi. L’ho fatto tante volte, fin dai tempi della FGCI. Poi, negli anni, con i figli piccoli, figli di noi che stavamo diventando
Oggi tutti in marcia per la pace!
@Giornalismo e disordine informativo
articolo21.org/2025/10/oggi-tu…
“Ci sarà una partecipazione molto ampia da ogni parte d’Italia. Ringraziamo tutti coloro che hanno reso possibile questo evento, istituzioni incluse”. Così Flavio Lotti, presidente della Fondazione PerugiAssisi per la Cultura della Pace, ha aperto l’incontro con la stampa
Stampubblica e noi – Cronaca di una tragedia politica
@Giornalismo e disordine informativo
articolo21.org/2025/10/stampub…
Era il 2016 quando Giovanni Valentini, tra i fondatori e per quarant’anni tra le firme più note e stimate di Repubblica, mandò in libreria un saggio dal titolo profetico: “La Repubblica tradita” (Paper First editore).
A Deep Dive into The Coolness That Was CRT Projectors
CRT monitors: there’s nothing quite like ’em. But did you know that video projectors used to use CRTs? A trio of monochrome CRTs, in fact: one for each color; red, green, and blue. By their powers combined, these monsters were capable of fantastic resolution and image quality. Despite being nowhere near as bright as modern projectors, after being properly set up, [Technology Connections] says it’s still one of the best projected images he has seen outside of a movie theatre.
Still, these projectors had drawbacks. They were limited in brightness, of course. But they were also complex, labor-intensive beasts to set up and calibrate. On the other hand, at least they were heavy.
[Technology Connections] gives us a good look at the Sony VPH-D50HT Mark II CRT Projector in its tri-lobed, liquid-cooled glory. This model is a relic by today’s standards, but natively supports 1080i via component video input and even preserves image quality and resolution by reshaping the image in each CRT to perform things like keystone correction, thus compensating for projection angle right at the source. Being an analog device, there is no hint of screen door effect or any other digital artifact. The picture is just there, limited only by the specks of phosphor on the face of each tube.
Converging and calibrating three separate projectors really was a nontrivial undertaking. There are some similarities to the big screen rear-projection TVs of the 90s and early 2000s (which were then displaced by plasma and flat-panel LCD displays). Unlike enclosed rear-projection TVs, the screen for projectors was not fixed, which meant all that calibration needed to be done on-site. A walkthrough of what that process was like — done with the help of many test patterns and a remote control that is as monstrous as it is confusing — starts at 15:35 in the video below.
Like rear-projection TVs, these projectors were displaced by newer technologies that were lighter, brighter, and easier to use. Still, just like other CRT displays, there was nothing quite like them. And if you find esoteric projector technologies intriguing, we have a feeling you will love the Eidophor.
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L’Aeronautica Militare USA Sperimenta Droni da Combattimento con Intelligenza Artificiale
I piloti militari americani stanno padroneggiando una nuova disciplina : pilotare droni da combattimento controllati dall’intelligenza artificiale. Durante i voli di addestramento, i piloti dell’Aeronautica Militare statunitense si stanno esercitando a interagire con droni autonomi XQ-58 Valkyrie, in grado di prendere decisioni in una frazione di secondo e di cambiare istantaneamente traiettoria in risposta alle minacce. Lavorare a fianco di un partner del genere richiede che un pilota umano si adatti a una velocità di reazione precedentemente ritenuta impossibile.
La tecnologia che controlla il Valkyrie ha completato l’addestramento di base: gli algoritmi possono ora decollare, manovrare e coordinarsi autonomamente con i velivoli con equipaggio. Gli sviluppatori stanno attualmente addestrando il sistema in tecniche di combattimento difensive, come la schivata degli attacchi e l’intercettazione dei bersagli. All’interno dell’Aeronautica Militare, il progetto è stato ufficiosamente soprannominato “Top Gun AI”, un omaggio alla leggendaria scuola per piloti d’élite, ora dotata di compagni digitali.
L’XQ-58 Valkyrie è una piattaforma di volo da combattimento collaborativo (CCA). Si tratta di un drone stealth a reazione sviluppato da Kratos per il programma Low-Cost Attritable Strike Demonstrator. L’idea è quella di creare un velivolo relativamente economico ma altamente efficace, che possa essere schierato in massa accanto ai caccia. Il Valkyrie può volare a velocità fino a Mach 0,86 (circa 1.060 km/h), salire a un’altitudine di 13,7 km e percorrere 5.500 chilometri senza rifornimento. Il suo carico utile raggiunge i 2.700 chilogrammi, sufficienti per trasportare missili o equipaggiamento da ricognizione.
Questi velivoli sono attualmente in fase di test in formazione con i caccia F-35, F-22, F-15EX e F/A-18, e sono utilizzati anche dal Corpo dei Marines. Le linee di produzione di Kratos consentono il rapido assemblaggio di nuove unità, aprendo la strada alla creazione di interi squadroni di gregari senza pilota. I primi voli del programma di collaborazione uomo-macchina si stanno svolgendo presso la base aerea di Eaglin in Florida. Stanno testando come un pilota possa gestire una missione con partner autonomi e con quale affidabilità l’IA risponda a situazioni impreviste.
Il comandante dell’aeronautica militare statunitense, il generale Adrian Spain, ha confermato che i droni basati sull’intelligenza artificiale saranno utilizzati in uno spazio di battaglia unificato insieme ai caccia con equipaggio. Nell’estate del 2025, uno squadrone del 96° Test Wing ha condotto una serie di esercitazioni di addestramento , in cui i piloti hanno controllato i droni XQ-58A in combattimenti aerei simulati. I dati ottenuti contribuiranno ad adattare le tecnologie semi-autonome e a implementarle in unità reali.
Un altro programma, VENOM (Viper Experimentation and Next-generation Operations Model), è in corso contemporaneamente per aggiornare i caccia F-16 per il volo autonomo. I primi sei velivoli saranno dotati di nuove apparecchiature di bordo, software e un sistema di sensori che consentiranno il volo senza pilota. Tre di essi sono già in fase di aggiornamento, dopodiché inizieranno i test a terra e in volo. Per ora, la modalità autonoma viene attivata manualmente: un pilota collaudatore in cabina di pilotaggio potrà attivare e disattivare gli algoritmi in tempo reale, monitorandone il comportamento.
Durante i test, gli ingegneri valutano il modo in cui gli esseri umani gestiscono manovre brusche durante i voli congiunti e i limiti delle forze G sicure. Entro un anno e mezzo dall’arrivo del primo velivolo aggiornato, l’Aeronautica Militare prevede di avere un F-16 autonomo completamente operativo, pronto per test approfonditi.
I rappresentanti del comando sottolineano che eliminare completamente gli esseri umani dal processo decisionale non è ancora possibile: l’intelligenza artificiale non deve operare senza supervisione. Tuttavia, la possibilità di utilizzare jet da combattimento senza pilota per scortare gli equipaggi o intercettare gli avversari è vista come un vantaggio strategico. Queste macchine non si stancano, non sono soggette a panico e possono svolgere missioni in cui il rischio per gli esseri umani è troppo elevato.
L'articolo L’Aeronautica Militare USA Sperimenta Droni da Combattimento con Intelligenza Artificiale proviene da il blog della sicurezza informatica.
Entering the Wild World of Power Over Ethernet
As Ethernet became the world-wide standard for wired networking, there was one nagging problem. You already have to plug in the network cable. But then you have to also plug in a power cable. That power cable needs to be long enough. And have the right plug on it for your country. And provide the right current and voltage. That’s how Power over Ethernet (PoE) was born, first in a veritable Wild West of proprietary standards and passive injectors, then in a standardized process. Recently [T. K. Hareendran] wrote a primer on PoE, with more of a DIY intro focus, including some favorite PoE PD (powered device) chips to use in your own design.
You can still totally use passive PoE if that’s your jam, and you have full control over the network and any connected devices. This would allow you to, for example, power your SBCs for a couple of bucks, although for adding PoE to your Mac Mini you may want to look at some more refined options, if only as a safety precaution.
Much depends on the needs of each device, as PoE is meant mostly for low-power devices such as VoIP phones and the like. The more common IEEE 802.af and .at standards (Type 1 and 2) cap out at 30 Watts, with about 25 Watts available to the device after losses, while 802.3bt (Type 3 and 4) takes this up to 90 Watts, or just over 70 Watts after losses. Before making a decision, it would be good to read a detailed guide from someone with experience, like the one by [Alan] that we covered a while ago.
Vivere in proroga
@Politica interna, europea e internazionale
L'articolo Vivere in proroga proviene da Fondazione Luigi Einaudi.
Un buco nero ha attraversato una galassia, lasciandosi dietro una cicatrice
Il telescopio James Webb ha rilevato una scia di gas e stelle lunga 200.000 anni luce, forse causata da un buco nero che ha attraversato una galassia a gran velocità.Focus.it
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Un East Shield a difesa dell’Europa. Reportage dal Fianco Orientale
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
Krynki è un piccolo villaggio della Polonia nord-orientale, a circa tre ore di auto da Varsavia. La strada per arrivarci attraversa la pianura polacca senza incontrare ostacoli naturali, fatta eccezione per la nebbia, a tratti fittissima, che da ottobre a marzo riduce la visibilità ad appena pochi metri e
Plus, when did claret get so good and why did Shackleton's ship Endurance sink? Historical updates aplenty.
Plus, when did claret get so good and why did Shackletonx27;s ship Endurance sink? Historical updates aplenty.#TheAbstract
Mole-Rats Could Hold the Key to Living Longer
Welcome back to the Abstract! These are the studies this week that lived long, played hard, crashed out, and topped it off with a glass of claret.First off, it’s Naked Mole-Rat Week! Or at least it should be, given that there are multiple new studies about these rodents, which are neither moles nor rats, but are certifiably naked. Then: dogs on benders; ships on ice; and an aged wine with notes of oak, blackberry, and aggressive trade policy.
The age of Man is over; the time of the Mole-Rat has come
What a whirlwind week it’s been for the naked mole-rat beat, with studies that shed light into the complex social behavior of these burrowing rodents as well as their extreme longevity. Let’s make like a naked mole-rat and dig in!
Naked mole-rats didn’t get the memo about being a normal mammal and instead opted for a “eusocial” society similar to insects that is ruled by a colony queen with an entourage of breeder males, which are supported by a caste system of non-breeding workers. It’s super weird, but it seems to be working out for them because they can live to nearly 40 years old—ten times longer than most animals their size—and they are highly resistant to cancer and a host of other deathbringers.
Scientists took a closer look at the palace intrigue of these rodents by setting up several colonies in laboratory conditions and tracking their movements with microchips. The results revealed that queens are bossy bullies that get so tired from shoving their subjects around that they have to take frequent royal naps.
Different chambers in the experiment. Image: Yamakawa, Masanori et al.
Non-breeding workers, meanwhile, fell into six main “clusters” including cleaners, transport specialists, caretakers, diggers, and a group that just kind of idly loafs around (my spirit mole-rat cluster).“Breeding females patrol burrows and display agonistic dominance toward nonbreeders paralleling queen aggression in primitively eusocial insects,” said Masanori Yamakawa of Kumamoto University. Meanwhile, non-breeding “cluster 1 individuals (high mobility and garbage occupancy) may serve as transport specialists, whereas those in cluster 4 (low mobility and frequent occupancy of nonfunctional chambers) may engage primarily in digging tasks. Cluster 5 individuals, who frequently occupied toilet chambers, may contribute to cleaning-related roles.”
In addition to this window into mole-rat social behavior, a new genetic analysis identified the critical role of an enzyme called cGAS, a common component in animal immune systems, in extending the lives of these subterranean super-agers.
Whereas cGAS may hinder DNA repair in most animals, including humans and mice, the naked mole-rat has evolved a version of the enzyme with four modified amino acids that enhances DNA repair . Naturally, the researchers also engineered some fruit flies with this naked mole rat enzyme—you gotta mess with fruit flies or it’s not science—and lo and behold, the juiced flies lived to about 70 days, roughly ten days longer than the control group.
“Our work provides a molecular basis for how DNA repair is activated to contribute to the exceptional longevity during evolution in naked mole-rats,” said researchers led by Yu Chen of Tongji University in Shanghai. “These findings support the notion that efficient DNA repair decelerates the aging process and raise the possibility that targeting cGAS to enhance DNA repair could provide an intervention strategy for promoting longevity.”
All those past adventurers were looking for the Fountain of Youth in the wrong places; it wasn’t in some beautiful tropical grove, but rather a stanky underground rodent pit.
In non-naked-mole-rat news…
Sit. Stay. Stage an intervention.
Dogs can literally get addicted to the game, according to a study that probed “‘excessive toy motivation” in domestic dogs as “a potential parallel to behavioral addictions in humans.” What this means in practice is that researchers enlisted 105 dogs to play with a lot of really fun toys and about a third of them got totally hooked.
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Thirty-three of the playful pooches “exhibited behaviors consistent with addictive-like tendencies including an excessive fixation on toys, reduced responsiveness to alternative stimuli, and persistent efforts to access toys,” said researchers led by Alja Mazzini of the University of Bern. “Dogs [are] the only non-human species so far that appears to develop addictive-like behaviours spontaneously without artificial induction.”A bull terrier during tug-of-war play. Image: Alja Mazzini
While this an interesting scientific conclusion, the study is perhaps most notable for producing delightful footage of dogs in the midst of full-on toy benders. Like all of us who struggle with bad habits and fixations, these dogs will just have to take it one play at a time.The enduring Endurance mystery
Tuhkuri, Jukka. Why did Endurance sink? Polar Record.Endurance, the ship crushed by ice in 1915 during Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition, was actually not all that endurant, according to Jukka Tukuri of Aalto University who concludes in a new study that “Shackleton was well aware of the risks related to the strength of Endurance, but chose to use it anyway.”
“This ship is not as strong as the Nimrod constructionally” wrote Shackleton of Endurance in a letter to his wife in 1914, comparing it to his previous Antarctic ride. “There is nothing to be scared of as I think she will go through ice all right only I would exchange her for the old Nimrod any day now except for comfort.”
You have to love the phrase “there is nothing to be scared of” in a letter from a guy on his way to the South Pole in a rickety ship that is definitely going to sink the following year. I’m sure Mrs. Shackleton was totally comforted by this! Tukuri provides many other fascinating diary entries to support his conclusion that “Endurance was not among the strongest ships of its time.”
The wreck of Endurance. Image: © Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust / National Geographic
That said, Endurance spent more than a century two miles under the Antarctic seas before the wreck was amazingly rediscovered and photographed in 2022. It’s still looking pretty good, even if Shackleton’s decision to set sail in it does not hold up as well.A toast to the 17th century
To fight off that polar chill, let’s warm up for the (North American) long weekend with a really, really aged glass of wine. A new study upends the traditional narrative about the emergence of Bordeaux claret as a desired wine in the 1600s, suggesting it was not strictly developed in response to tariffs (Sike! I used wine to lure you into a disguised tariff story).
“The advent of a stronger, darker style of Bordeaux red wine, known as claret, in the English market has drawn substantial scholarly interest because it played a pivotal role in the balance of trade and international political economy during the eighteenth century,” said author Charlie Leary, a wine historian.
“Economic historians have posited that Bordeaux vignerons developed high-quality, high-priced claret in response to England’s fixed, volume-based tariffs on French wine,” he continued. “This article…shows that the new claret style pre-existed England’s tariff regime.”
With that, cheers to lost years and jeers to economic fears.
Thanks for reading! See you next week.
Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toy play - Scientific Reports
Scientific Reports - Addictive-like behavioural traits in pet dogs with extreme motivation for toy playNature
L’Unione dei Comitati contro l’inceneritore partecipa al “IX. International Applied Social Sciences Congress - C-iasoS 2025”
L’Unione dei Comitati contro l’inceneritore partecipa al “IX. International Applied Social Sciences Congress - C-iasoS 2025”, che si terrà presso l’Università di Roma “La Sapienza” dal 13 al 15 Ottobre 2025, illustrando un lavoro dal titolo “The Rome Waste Management Plan - Incinerator: A Wrong Choice”.
E’ una occasione importante per presentare, in un contesto internazionale qualificato, le considerazioni che facciamo da tempo nel denunciare la assurdità di questo Progetto – antistorico, antieconomico e pericoloso – e per confrontarci con esperti che certamente non affrontano il tema sulla base di pregiudizi ideologici o di interessi economici di lobby industriali; è un primo contributo ad un auspicabile dibattito sul piano di Roma e sul nuovo inceneritore, in assenza di un confronto mai accettato dal Sindaco di Roma.
La presentazione, fatta da Giuseppe Girardi, si terrà lunedì 13, nella sessione pomeridiana che inizia alle ore 14, presso la “Sala Lauree” della facoltà di Scienze Politiche, alla città universitaria, Piazzale Aldo Moro, 1.
Hack the Promise 2025 Conference Review
The HackThePromise Festival took place again from October 3–5, 2025 in the city of Basel, Switzerland. The theme this year was “Hacking Systems, Hacking Futures.” As usual, numerous Pirates were in attendance, including PPI´s alternate board member Schoresh Dawoodi who spoke at the event and took pictures for us.
The festival interprets “hacking” as not only about computers. It means breaking open systems, rethinking rules, and finding new ways to live and work together. HackThePromise mixes talks, art, films, workshops, technology, and social discussions.
Over three days, participants questioned ask how technology can serve freedom and community instead of control.
HackThePromise continues to grow as a meeting point for creative blending of technology and society. It is not only about tools but also about values. We look forward to participating in the future.
pp-international.net/2025/10/h…
il coordinamento impossibile
ottobre è letteralmente impazzito. non riesco a tener dietro al cumulo di incontri avvenuti, imminenti, in programma.
solo ieri, quattro o cinque - ma sicuramente di più - reading, mostre e presentazioni contemporanee tra Roma e fuori.
sono stato assente ovunque, preso da faccende extraletterarie.
ma anche avessi potuto dedicarmi a una cosa, quale avrei scelto?
anni fa si parlava di una specie di coordinamento cittadino per gli eventi, ovviamente mai realizzato.
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Il Dpp racconta la difesa che verrà. La spesa militare italiana letta da Mazziotti di Celso
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
Il ministero della Difesa ha reso pubblico il Documento Programmatico Pluriennale 2025-2027. Il documento viene pubblicato dopo la legge di bilancio, pertanto non aggiunge fondi ulteriori a quelli già stanziati per la difesa. Tuttavia, esso fornisce dettagli
PODCAST. Testimonianza da Gaza: in migliaia ritornano verso le case distrutte
@Notizie dall'Italia e dal mondo
"Dobbiamo cominciare a ricostruire. Ma dobbiamo ricostruire noi stessi prima, la nostra anima". Sami Abu Omar, cooperante di Gaza, ci racconta le prime ore del cessate il fuoco e la situazione nella Striscia di Gaza.
L'articolo PODCAST. Testimonianza da
There are famously two hard problems in computer science: cache invalidation, naming things, and off by one errors.
PS: Friendica status editor does not seem to have a language selector; hopefully this post-scriptum will give the oversmart algoritm some hints about it but I'm disappointed, given UX is not in the "hard problems" set 😁
