This Week I Learned - Week #37 2023
This Week I Learned -
* ZXing and QuaggaJS are two popular open-source alternatives to commercial barcode scanning libraries like STRICH. Both libraries are open-source and available under a permissive license.
* The JavaScript library available at mebjas/html5-qrcode on Github allows users to add a QR code scanner in their web applications. It works cross-platform and across different devices like PC, Mac or smartphones. Try the end to end implementation at Scanapp.
* ZXing Barcode Scanner sample by Florian Biebel on CodePen
* Jupyter AI 1.0 and 2.0 are out, connecting Jupyter notebooks and JupyterLab with powerful #GenerativeAI language models. Jupyter AI connects Jupyter with large language models (LLM) from providers such as AI21, Anthropic, AWS, Cohere, and OpenAI. LangChain to support all popular LLMs and providers
* Large Language Models (LLMs) have transformed the field of Natural Language Processing. The improvement from one generation of LLMs to the next seems at the moment to primarily stem from scale, with the most powerful models nearing trillions of parameters and trillion of tokens for training data (for example, PaLM has 540 billion parameters and was trained on 780 billion tokens. The capabilities of LLMs are not solely determined by their scale though, data quality also plays an important role.
* IBM Consulting has seen some clients experience up to 70% acceleration in time-to-value with foundation models, as compared to traditional AI approaches.
* Getting to enterprise AI at scale requires a composable, multi-model strategy and a human-centric, principled approach. Watsonx.ai is part of the IBM watsonx platform that brings together new generative AI capabilities, powered by foundation models and traditional machine learning into a powerful studio spanning the AI lifecycle. With watsonx.ai, you can train, validate, tune and deploy generative AI, foundation models and machine learning capabilities with ease and build AI applications.
* StarCoder and StarCoderBase are Large Language Models for Code (Code LLMs) trained on permissively licensed data from GitHub.
* Intel's deepfake detector is called "FakeCatcher". Central to the system is a technique called Photoplethysmography (PPG), which detects changes in blood flow. Faces created by deepfakes don't give out these signals. The system also analyses eye movement to check for authenticity. When humans look at a point, it's as if you're shooting rays from your eyes. But for deepfakes, it's like googly eyes, they are divergent. By looking at both these traits, Intel believes it can work out the difference between a real video and a fake within seconds. The company claims FakeCatcher is 96% accurate. The more pixelated a video, the harder it is to pick up blood flow. The system also does not analyse audio.
* Nutritionix claims to have the largest branded food database in existence with over 898K grocery foods with barcodes covering over 92% of grocery items in the U.S. and Canada.
* In 2016, five scrum values were added to the Scrum Guide -
- Commitment
- Courage
- Focus
- Openness
- Respect
* Some companies choose to follow a hybrid model of scrum and kanban, which has acquired the name of "Scrumban" or "Kanplan," which is Kanban with a backlog.
* Salesforce acquired Tableau in 2019
* EDA Summit is a virtual conference dedicated to the advancement of event-driven architecture in business.
* HINDFLIGHT is a mapping tool that provides information about aviation infrastructure across India. The data is sourced from DGCA's portal.
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* As of 2023, the combined subway network of the Tokyo and Toei metros comprises 286 stations and 13 lines covering a total system length of 304.0 kilometers. Japan's first underground railway opened under Tokyo Station in 1915. It was only for the railway post office, not for passengers.
* Groot is a fictional extraterrestrial, sentient tree-like character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Groot's abilities are all-natural and stem from the dendronic wood that makes up his entire body. The extraterrestrial bark he was born with makes him invulnerable to most projectiles and even fire. He can control all plant life via psychokinesis, absorbing it into his body and making himself stronger. An extraterrestrial, sentient tree-like creature, the original Groot first appeared as an invader that intended to capture humans for experimentation.
* Lifestyle creep is the real, and often unnoticed, phenomenon when one’s personal spending rises as one’s income does. If a person’s wages decrease, it’s much more difficult to downsize their lifestyle, and not everyone is ready to do so. Stay aware of your income, expenses, and investments, and you’ll be ready when you find yourself in trouble.
* After a journey lasting 1.5 million kilometres and 4 months, Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) solar mission, named Aditya-L1, will join four other spacecraft circling a point in space known as Lagrange point 1 (L1). Aditya-L1 is a unique observatory. It combines instruments that address three outstanding problems in solar physics, namely how stars such as the Sun sustain their super-hot outer layer; how variations in the Sun’s magnetic field affect Earth’s atmosphere; and how the Sun’s magnetic fields create violent solar storms. - Nature
* French supermarket Carrefour has put stickers on its shelves this week warning shoppers of "shrinkflation" - where packet contents are getting smaller while prices are not. Lipton Ice Tea, Lindt chocolate and Viennetta ice cream are among the products being named and shamed. Shoppers are being told if bottles are smaller or pack contents lighter. Carrefour said it wanted to put pressure on the firms making the products to keep prices down. - BBC
* In foods, Tertiary butylhydroquinone or TBHQ is used as a preservative for unsaturated vegetable oils and many edible animal fats. As a food additive, its E number is E319. It is added to a wide range of foods. Its primary advantage is extending storage life. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have set an upper limit of 0.02% (200mg/kg) of the oil or fat content in foods.
* India produces all the nine commonly known traditional millets viz. Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Finger Millet, Foxtail Millet, Proso Millet, Little Millet, Barnyard Millet, Browntop Millet and Kodo Millet.
* Rava upma is made from semolina (the cracked endosperm of wheat), salt, vegetables and a South Indian-style seasoning of mustard and black lentils.
* It was during periods of rice shortage, most prominently during World War Two, that the British pushed and popularised wheat, particularly semolina , encouraging South Indians to treat it like rice. Semolina was very affordable and quickly became a kitchen staple all over India. In the last century, the dish had ultimately been adapted to use rava (wheat semolina), hence the name rava upma.
* Ultra-processed foods are typically high-energy-dense products, high in sugar, unhealthy fats and salt, and low in dietary fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals.
Source: Scottish Government
* UPF is designed to be overeaten; for some people, it is addictive. Cosmetic additives, used to make the final product more palatable or more appealing, include flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners, and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents. - Guardian
* Corn starch is a traditional, non-UPF thickener (unlike “modified starches”).
* “Most Ultra-Processed Food (UPF) is not food. It’s an industrially produced edible substance.” - Fernanda Rauber, Brazilian scientist
* "Insane people are always sure that they are fine. It is only the sane people who are willing to admit that they are crazy." - Nora Ephron
* "Pain is weakness leaving your body" - Rob Roy, Navy Seal Art of War
* "You know who the best managers are? They are the great individual contributors who never ever want to be a manager but decide they have to be a manager because nobody else will do a better job than them." - Steve Jobs
* Mastery requires boredom and tedium. It requires sitting with the frustration of putting in work that doesn't immediately pay off. You have to be able to sit with boredom. - Robert Greene
* "There are two ways to be rich: One is by acquiring much, and the other is by desiring little." - Jackie French Keller
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