This Week I Learned - Week 30 2026

This Week I Learned - 

* The OpenRouter Pareto Router is a dynamic model selection tool that allows users to select a coding model based on a minimum coding score preference. It maintains a curated shortlist of strong coding models ranked by Artificial Analysis coding percentiles. Users can set a min_coding_score between 0 and 1 to control the strength of the coder they need. The router automatically selects the cheapest model within the chosen tier or the fastest with the Nitro variant. This approach ensures that users receive a strong coder without overspending, as the exact shortlist evolves over time with new models and benchmarks. The OpenRouter API is compatible with most SDKs, allowing for easy integration into applications.

* openrouter/auto-beta is a task-aware router. It classifies each request, routes it to the model teams are actually spending on for that kind of task, and filters that choice by the cost-quality tradeoff you set. The response is priced at the routed model's rate. There is no router fee.

* Clem Delangue, the chief executive of Hugging Face after OpenAI's models went rogue and successfully hacked into Hugging Face - “This incident, possibly the first of its kind, proves a point we’ve long believed: A.I. safety won’t be solved by any single company working in secret.” 

* On-device AI processes machine learning algorithms and generative AI models directly on a smartphone’s local hardware; while physical constraints prevent it from matching the scale of cloud-based large language models, the industry is converging on a hybrid application model. On-device AI refers to the processing of machine learning algorithms and generative AI models directly on the smartphone’s local hardware. Instead of relying on a constant connection to a remote server, the device performs the computation using dedicated silicon, primarily Neural Processing Units (NPUs). Unlike general-purpose CPUs or graphics-heavy GPUs, NPUs are purpose-built to handle the mathematical heavy lifting required by neural networks. - The Hindu

* macOS 26 (Tahoe) ships with a 3B parameter LLM. Out of the box, the on-device model powers Siri, Writing Tools, and system features. Apfel is a lightweight open-source tool that runs Apple’s on-device model directly from the terminal, from code, or through an interface that mimics an OpenAI server. apfel gives you CLI access with one brew install. No model downloads, no API keys, no configuration needed, just works. It’s MIT licensed.

* People get an enormous amount of enjoyment and satisfaction out of creating stuff if it’s low effort. People who want to be creative, but might not be very good at it, can turn to A.I. and find a bunch of barriers removed. - Why Slop Matters

* GitHub Sponsors is a global funding network that supports over 70,000 maintainers and organizations, and includes more than 280,000 sponsors spanning individual developers to Fortune 500 companies. In 2022, nearly 40% of sponsorship funding came from organizations. Since launching GitHub Sponsors in 2019, it took nearly two years to reach the first $10 million. The latest $10 million came in just five months, pushing the program past the $100 million mark.

* Make-money-fast influencers and passive-income enthusiasts on Reddit have been spreading the word for some time: Use A.I. to write a book. If it sells, it’s free money. Amazon does not mind if people hawk A.I.-generated books on its platform, unless they are truly and deeply terrible. (There are)...about 10 million books published on Amazon over the last five years. - NYT

* The Mahua tree (Madhuca longifolia) is revered by many tribal and indigenous communities in India as a Kalpavriksha, the “wish‑fulfilling tree,” because nearly every part of it provides food, medicine, livelihood, and cultural value. 

Mahua Nectar

Its flowers are eaten fresh, dried, used as sweeteners, fermented into liquor (also called "mahuli", "mahura","Ippa") - quite possibly the world's only flower-based spirit!

* The Banyan tree is the national tree of India and one of the largest species in the world. India is in fact home to seven of the largest banyan trees in the world.

* Thimmamma Marrimanu is considered the largest tree in the world: with its connected trunks spreading out 180 meters in diameter, it is the largest banyan and one of the superlative trees on Earth. The banyan tree was first added to the Guinness Book of World Records in 1989 (its entry updated in 2017) as being 550 years old and having the “greatest perimeter length for a tree”, spreading over five acres with a circumference of 846m. It has more than 4,000 roots making up its canopy.

It is one of the 962 trees documented by YD Bar-Ness in the Landmark Trees of India project

* The healing power of trees is perhaps not as far out as it may seem. After all, they provide the Earth with breathable air, something we can’t live without, and many medicines are derived from trees. For example, aspirin comes from willow bark, and melaleuca oil derived from leaves of the Australian tea tree is widely used for skin infections. Additionally, research shows that being among natural green spaces like forests significantly reduces blood pressure and stress levels, and Japan has embraced the concept of forest bathing to promote wellness. - BBC

* Forest bathing, or shinrin-yoku, originated in Japan in the 1980s. Unlike exercise-focused activities, it involves spending quiet time in a forest while engaging with the surrounding environment.

* ...across their whole lifespans, American baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, have been the worst off. They have repeatedly experienced higher death rates than previous generations. - The Economist

AIDS hit in their early adult years; the opioid crisis struck in middle age. On top of that, boomers seem to be significantly less healthy than previous generations.

Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae and was first identified by Norwegian physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen in the 1870s. Common in tropical regions, this disease affects the nervous system and is often referred to as the world’s oldest known illness.

* pH is a scale from 0 to 14 that measures how acidic or alkaline (basic) a substance is. 7 is neutral (like pure water). Below 7 is acidic; above 7 is alkaline.

* Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃). It's mildly alkaline with a pH of about 8.3 in solution.

Baking powder is a mixture: baking soda plus an acid (like cream of tartar) and a starch. When dry, it's roughly neutral, but when mixed with liquid, the acid and base react. The resulting pH depends on the formulation, but it's typically in the 6.5–7.5 range—much closer to neutral than baking soda.

The key difference: Baking soda is a single alkaline ingredient. You need to add an acid (like buttermilk, lemon juice, or vinegar) to activate it and balance the pH in a recipe. Baking powder is self-contained—it already includes the acid, so it works with plain liquids and produces a more neutral final product. If you use baking soda without enough acid, your baked goods can taste soapy or metallic.

If a recipe calls for baking powder and you only have baking soda, you'd need to add an acid. If it calls for baking soda and you only have baking powder, you'd need to use much more powder (about 3–4 times the amount) and the result may taste slightly different or be less tender, since baking powder contains starch and other fillers.

* Acidic cleaners like vinegar (acetic acid) are particularly effective at removing mineral buildup and soap scum. Vinegar, which has a pH of about 2.4, can dissolve hard-water stains, soap scum, and mineral buildup on bathroom fixtures and shower doors. Acid reacts with alkaline minerals like calcium carbonate in limescale or hard-water deposits and breaks them down into soluble salts, water, and carbon dioxide, which you can easily wipe away. You should not use acidic cleaners on natural stone, such as marble, granite, or limestone, or on hardwood, as they can etch or dull those surfaces. Always check the manufacturer’s instructions.

Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) is great at cutting through grease, oils, and everyday dirt, and some can work as disinfectants, as well.  Baking soda, thanks to its slightly abrasive texture, is ideal for scouring many hard surfaces without damaging them, such as stainless steel, oven interiors, metal fixtures, and glass on appliances such as ovens and microwaves. Baking soda can also neutralize odors in refrigerators or on rugs and upholstery because it reacts with acidic odor molecules and neutralizes them. Baking soda (which has a pH of 8 to 9) isn’t the most alkaline cleaning product available, but bear in mind that the higher on the pH scale you go, the more corrosive a solution is

Choose either acidic vinegar or basic baking soda, depending on what you’re trying to clean. 

Household chlorine bleach, which has a pH of about 12 can remove mold and mildew and disinfect a wide range of household surfaces, such as toilets, tubs, and sinks. - NYT

* The skin, hair and nails are highly responsive to changes in weight, nutrition, hormones, inflammation and physiological stress. When a person loses weight rapidly on GLP-1 (Glucagon-Like Peptide-1) treatment, changes may be seen in the face, body, scalp and nails. These changes are not usually dangerous, but they can affect comfort, appearance, confidence and quality of life.

* The Indus Valley Civilization (3300 BCE to 1300 BCE) was geographically the largest in area among the four early riverine civilizations (Egypt, Mesopotamia, China, and the Indus), covering over 1.5 million square kilometers. The Indus had an estimated total population of 1–5 million.  Harappa was identified in the 1820s, with systematic excavation beginning in 1920. R.D. Banerji of the Archaeological Survey of India identified Mohenjo-daro's antiquity in 1919–1920, but large-scale excavations began in 1922–1924 under Kashinath Dikshit and John Marshall. 

* “Show me the heroes that the youth of your country look up to, and I will tell you the future of your country.” — Idowu Koyenikan