Author of Math ∩ Programming: https://jeremykun.com
Author of A Programmer's Introduction to Mathematics: https://pimbook.org
Working on https://pmfpbook.org
Working on Fully Homomorphic Encryption at Google (see https://heir.dev)
> the number 12 features heavily in the Bible: Jacob’s 12 sons, the 12 tribes of Israel, the 12 apostles and the crown of 12 stars in the Book of Revelation are just a few examples.
And about "aspect ratios" (the article doesn't mention aspect ratios):
> 12 is a number particularly well-suited to establishing proportions, as it has many divisors
> the apse, at 75m (7.5 × 10), followed by the vault of the transept at 60 metres (7.5 × 8). The nave vault is 45m high (7.5 × 6), the side aisle 30m (7.5 × 4), and the choir 15m (7.5 × 2).
neither 10 nor 8 are divisors of 12, and 10 has a factor of 5. TBH it seems like 15m is the base length here, not 7.5, then you get multiples 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, but I'm guessing these sequential integers are not considered "beautiful" numbers by the author so they picked 7.5 to pigeonhole some divisors of 12 in there.
There are at least some technological solutions here, such as anonymous credentials. [1] Modern versions of this technique allow one to associate metadata (like a proof of age exceeding a threshold) in such a way that the verifier can't even correlate repeated requests across users.
Governments that are serious about age verification and individual privacy (which, doubtful they truly are) should agree on a protocol and set up certificate issuers that are associated with a digital ID. Then age verification will not be an invasive procedure or risk data leaks or insider threats.
For our situation, building a foundation of trust in our community is more important than attracting as many contributors as possible. If a one-time face-to-face introduction is infeasible, then there are many other projects to contribute to. (And this is considering that our community is all math PhDs, cryptographers, and compiler engineers; we are no strangers to neurodiversity.)
One reason: automating the construction of a "trustworthy" profile lowers the bar for attackers who want to plant xz-style backdoors. Not to mention polluting the various signals people use to evaluate candidates for jobs.
Indeed, a request for a short video call filters out most of the people who are looking to pad their resume with LLM-automated contributions, while adding an extra layer of welcome to genuine newbies who want to join the community.
In my main project we added a new requirement that all new contributors meet a maintainer in a non-textual format before their first PR is merged. Seems to work well for a small project.
> Yes, Steam Machine is optimized for gaming, but it's still your PC. Install your own apps, or even another operating system. Who are we to tell you how to use your computer?
Looks like there is quite a bit of overlap with regards to the optimizing parts between these two courses. I guess it's switching from the dragon book to academic papers that makes it advanced.
I'm a bit confused about what makes this course "advanced." Most of the topics (dead code elimination, data flow, dominator analysis, SSA form) seem like they belong in a first course on compilers.
Their whole argument is that AI's added efficiency means they don't need to set aside valuable human time anymore. Why can't they just point Claude at Claude Code and ask it to reduce memory usage by 90%?
Working on Fully Homomorphic Encryption at Google (see https://heir.dev)
Come say hi at [email protected]