🎞️ Life#
Elden Ring DLC Golden Tree Shadow#
6.23#
Started exploring since last Friday night, but unfortunately, I wasn't feeling well over the weekend and couldn't play for long. The progress over the weekend only reached Mese Mor.
I should still be lacking in shadow fragments; almost all the bosses can take me down in just two hits, leaving very little room for error.
Level 200 isn't enough.
I've heard there are many overpowered weapons now, so I'm planning to try them out and see if the community has any fun suggestions, like the perfume bottle or blood monster arms.
So far, my feeling is that bosses generally have a strong desire to attack, with many combos, often requiring multiple rolls to escape.
💭 Fragments#
📰 Weekly Excerpts#
Putin's Visit to North Korea: Why Could Russia's Move Backfire?#
At first glance, Putin's visit seems very successful.
However, the "big brother" and "little brother" relationship between the Russian president and Kim Jong-un is likely to further weaken Russia's position on the international stage.
This undoubtedly indicates how far Russia has declined since its failed invasion of Ukraine.
Isolated from the most advanced economies, Russia now has to seek help from one of the world's poorest and most isolated countries.
Worse still, this agreement could have the opposite effect, leading to military support for Ukraine from one of the world's most advanced arms suppliers.
Source
During the Cold War, did the U.S. side also have this kind of confident arrogance when the Soviet Union courted China?
Also, the "one of the world's most advanced arms suppliers" here refers to South Korea... Haha
Academician Li Deren, a Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Expert, and Academician Xue Qikun, a Condensed Matter Physicist, Awarded the 2023 National Supreme Science and Technology Award#
The National Science and Technology Conference and the National Science and Technology Awards Conference were held in Beijing on the morning of the 24th. The 2023 National Supreme Science and Technology Award was officially announced, with Academician Li Deren and Academician Xue Qikun receiving this prestigious honor in China's scientific community.
Li Deren is a renowned photogrammetry and remote sensing expert who has been dedicated to enhancing China's geospatial observation capabilities. Born on December 31, 1939, he obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Stuttgart (then West Germany) in 1985 and was appointed as a professor at Peking University in April 2013.
He has conquered core technologies for high-precision global positioning and mapping using satellite remote sensing, solved a series of challenges in high-precision processing of remote sensing satellite images, and led a team to develop fully automated high-precision aerial and ground measurement systems, making outstanding contributions to the construction of China's high-precision, high-resolution geospatial observation system.
Xue Qikun is a prominent scientist in the field of condensed matter physics, having achieved several leading scientific breakthroughs. Born in December 1962, he obtained his Ph.D. in physics from the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in August 1994, was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in November 2005, and became the president and deputy secretary of the Party Committee at Southern University of Science and Technology in December 2020.
He led his team to experimentally observe the quantum anomalous Hall effect for the first time, creating significant academic impact internationally; discovered interface-enhanced high-temperature superconductivity in heterojunction systems, opening a new research direction in the field of international high-temperature superconductivity.
Source
🫡 It seems like it has been several years since this award was last given.
2023 National Science and Technology Awards Announced: A Total of 250 Projects Evaluated, Companies like Huawei, BYD, and iFlytek Awarded#
The 2023 National Science and Technology Awards Conference was held today in Beijing, where a total of 250 projects were evaluated.
Among them, the National Natural Science Award has 49 projects, with 1 first prize and 48 second prizes; the National Technological Invention Award has 62 projects, with 8 first prizes and 54 second prizes; the National Science and Technology Progress Award has 139 projects, with 3 special prizes, 16 first prizes, and 120 second prizes. Companies like Huawei, BYD, and iFlytek also received awards in various fields.
For details, see the source
Source
I just want to complain about Alibaba; they set up Damo Academy thinking it was academic-driven, but it turned out to be business-driven. I wonder how many big shots are still around.
OpenAI to Take Additional Measures to Stop API Usage in Unsupported Countries and Regions#
Currently, OpenAI's API is open to 161 countries and regions, excluding mainland China and Hong Kong. OpenAI publicly released an article on February 14 this year titled "Preventing Malicious Use of AI by State-Related Threat Actors," which mentioned blocking and restricting some users from (including China, North Korea, Iran, and Russia).
Source
Stricter restrictions
Alibaba Cloud and Several Domestic Large Model Companies Announce OpenAI API Service Alternatives#
Subsequently, several domestic large model companies announced that they would provide alternatives to OpenAI API services for developers, including Zhiyu, Alibaba Cloud, Baidu Intelligent Cloud, etc.
Source
Can they meet the demand?
Pang Donglai Releases Investigation Report on "Noodle Rolling" Incident: Complaints Awarded 100,000 Yuan, Customers 1,000 Yuan Each#
The official account of "Pang Donglai Commercial Group" released an investigation report on the "poor sanitary conditions of the noodle rolling processing site" at the New Xiang Pang Donglai restaurant.
For this incident, the handling result of Pang Donglai Commercial Group is:
For customers who discovered significant food safety hazards, a cash reward of 100,000 yuan will be given; all customers who purchased noodle rolling and spicy noodles at the New Xiang Pang Donglai restaurants between June 9, 2024, and June 19, 2024, will be refunded and compensated 1,000 yuan each. (A total of 8,833 cases; customers can bring valid payment receipts to the restaurant for refunds.)
The first supervisor (Zhou) and quality control staff (Li) at the New Xiang restaurant were found to be seriously negligent in their duties and were dismissed, while all management above the team leader level were relieved of their duties; the year-end benefits for the New Xiang store managers (Yuan, Wang, Zhuang**, Liu*) were canceled.
Due to the violation of the "Cooperation Contract" by the New Xiang Pang Donglai noodle rolling merchant, intentionally concealing and privately changing the processing site, operations will be suspended immediately according to the contract, and the contract will be terminated, with a deadline for withdrawal. The company reserves the right to pursue legal responsibility.
Source
Pang Donglai really wants to build a century-old enterprise.
Igloo Inc.#
Super cool 3D webpage
There's also a driving webpage slow roads
Baidu Big Data: Nearly 80% of College Entrance Exam Candidates Use AI for College Applications#
Recently, over 13 million candidates nationwide have entered the college application phase. According to data released by Baidu, on June 25 alone, over 10 million users used the Baidu AI application assistant to help with their applications. This means that nearly 80% of candidates used AI application services. (Source: 36 Kr)
This is also a good direction.
2024 U.S. Presidential Election First Debate: Biden Shows Signs of Aging, Trump Focuses on Immigration Issues#
The first debate between the two-party candidates for the 2024 U.S. presidential election took place on June 27 at 9 PM Eastern Time in a CNN studio in Atlanta, Georgia. Democratic candidate and current President Biden and Republican candidate and former President Trump attended the debate. The debate was hosted by CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.
The focus of the first debate was on the policy discussions of both parties, such as inflation, abortion legislation, and foreign policy. However, halfway through the debate, voters' attention had shifted to the performance of the two candidates.
During the 90-minute debate, Biden was often unclear, suddenly froze, and had a hoarse voice, while Trump seized every opportunity to mock him. The former president launched a fierce attack on Biden with exaggerated statements and what were criticized as "obvious errors," gaining an advantage on issues like immigration, employment, and tariffs. Biden, on the other hand, failed to leverage the Democratic Party's strengths, easily letting Trump off the hook on abortion legislation and Trump's felony convictions.
"The initial policy debate has turned into a debate about capability," commented South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.
Some Democrats felt despair over Biden's performance, while some Republicans began celebrating victory. Trump's campaign team stated in a press release: "Tonight, President Trump delivered the greatest debate and victory to the largest audience of voters in history, and Joe Biden has proven exactly why he should be fired."
Source
They are both too old.
📚 Articles#
The Last of Us Part II: How the Patrol Level Perfectly Controls Player Behavior and Expectations#
Core Content Summary#
- Level Background and Overview
- Game: The Last of Us Part II
- Level: Patrol Level, located in the Jackson chapter
- Design Concept: A simple restoration of the level block mesh through Unity to explore level design ideas.
- Level Design Details
- One Way
- Players need to jump over a log on horseback, as a performance requirement and narrative demand.
- The "STOP" sign confuses players.
- Bread Crumb Design Method
- Guide players through small points of interest (like bloodstains).
- Naughty Dog tends to guide subtly rather than directly show.
- Buddy Lead
- The buddy system serves as an element of Player Guiding and Leading.
- Naughty Dog achieves natural guidance through shunting and pinching techniques.
- Door & Framing
- Organically use doors and frames to control player behavior and paths.
- Golden Path
- Designers guide players to choose desired routes through contrasts of narrow and intimate spaces.
- Spatial Layout and Player Behavior
- Narrow Space: Reduced visibility, difficulty in recognizing dangers, limited defense and escape.
- Intimate Space: Relatively spacious, providing more room for activities.
- Character Position: Ellie's position influences players' inclination towards the left space.
- Conclusion
- Naughty Dog effectively controls player behavior and expectations through meticulous level design and spatial layout, providing a rich gaming experience.
There are many details, aiming to minimize negative feedback from player exploration.
This reminds me of the recent Elden Ring DLC, which has a lot of negative feedback from exploration, and there are even crafting stones and ropes in particularly hidden corners.
Information is Addictive Like Sugar#
The Industrial Revolution had a rarely mentioned consequence: humans could mass-produce sugar.
In ancient times, sugar mainly came from sugarcane and honey, making it difficult to produce in large quantities. Therefore, ancient dishes did not contain sugar, relying mainly on the natural sweetness of food. One can imagine that most ancient foods, especially daily staples, must have been unappetizing.
Once sugar was mass-produced, humans became crazy about it. We love sugar so much that most of today's foods must contain sugar, such as beverages, pastries, dairy products, and even chicken cutlet ingredients.
Sugar addiction has become a common ailment. Baidu Baike has an entry on "sugar addiction," explaining that the reason for addiction is that "sweetness brings pleasure."
Scientists believe that sugar increases dopamine secretion, exciting the brain and making it feel less full. In simple terms, sugar makes eating enjoyable, leading to a desire to eat more, even when already full.
Excessive sugar intake is the fundamental cause of weight gain. Sugar itself is just a sweetener, lacking nutrition and only providing calories, which ultimately convert to body fat, making you fatter. The World Health Organization has been calling for reducing sugar intake.
However, what I want to discuss today is not sugar, but a recent article I saw, which presents an interesting viewpoint: information is addictive like sugar.
The author lists the similarities between information and sugar.
(1) Low-cost mass production. After the information revolution, humans began to produce information in large quantities, just like sugar.
Information not only has low production costs but also has even lower dissemination costs, reaching consumers at nearly zero cost.
(2) Similar addiction mechanisms. A study by the University of California, Berkeley in 2019 found that information also stimulates the brain to produce dopamine, similar to the mechanism of sugar.
Thus, seeing an attractive piece of information is akin to eating a dessert, providing the same sense of satisfaction. You become addicted to information, wanting to see more, which manifests as an inability to put down your phone, scrolling endlessly.
(3) Flood of junk information. Just as junk food is prevalent, the consequence of humanity's addiction to information is the massive supply of junk information.
Producers have discovered that the most dopamine-stimulating information garners the most readership, allowing them to earn more money. Consequently, junk information is produced in large quantities and becomes ubiquitous.
Humanity has fallen into a situation where the easiest food to obtain is junk food, and the easiest information to access is junk information.
(4) "Obesity" of thought. Just as junk food makes the body gain weight, junk information can also make thoughts "fat."
Junk information lowers your thinking level, flooding your brain with meaningless content, distracting your attention, clogging your thoughts, and slowing down your thinking and judgment.
In summary, information addiction is as harmful as sugar addiction and requires active prevention and treatment. A healthy lifestyle involves not only reducing sugar intake but also minimizing exposure to junk information.
However, just like avoiding sugar is nearly impossible, there is no opportunity to avoid junk information in life. We can only practice self-restraint, repeatedly reminding ourselves to stay away from junk information to prevent information addiction.
Detailed Introduction to Code Example of Multi-User Real-Time Collaborative Algorithm CRDT.#
Core Content Summary#
Title: An Interactive Intro to CRDTs
Introduction:
- Background: During the author's study at Recurse Center, they conducted in-depth research on CRDTs (Conflict-free Replicated Data Types) and discovered that various applications can be built with simple concepts.
- Purpose: The aim is to introduce CRDTs to readers with no prior knowledge through a series of articles and teach how to use TypeScript to write CRDTs to build a collaborative pixel art editor.
Main Content:
-
Definition of CRDT:
- CRDT stands for "Conflict-free Replicated Data Type."
- It is a data structure that can be stored on different computers (peer nodes).
- Each peer node can update its state immediately without network requests.
-
Learning Path:
- Understanding CRDT: First, introduce the basic concepts of CRDT.
- Writing CRDT: Write a basic CRDT.
- Composing CRDT: Combine CRDTs into more complex data structures.
- Building Applications: Use CRDT knowledge to build a collaborative pixel art editor.
-
Application Example:
- Features of the collaborative pixel art editor:
- Click and drag the mouse to draw.
- Change colors.
- Real-time synchronization of changes (even resynchronizing after network disconnection).
- Delay slider to control the delay of change synchronization.
Future Work:
- In the next article, a collaborative pixel art editor will be built, with an in-depth exploration of CRDTs.
Too specialized; I'll save it for when I need it later.