The port is testing a quantum computer algorithm to optimize containers and trucks at one of its docks. It can “assess all the possible solutions to a problem and find the best one almost straight away.” But not really the best one, as this quantum computer actually doesn’t do that. Also, the truckers don’t feel the difference in wait times at the dock where it’s being tested. All that said,…
Built on grounds once called “Little Hell,” Chicago’s Cabrini Green is “the most notorious project complex in Chicago history” due to its violent reputation and notorious location. ~ learn more
The 125-year-old Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, which reversed the flow of the Chicago River, is facing a rebranding. “Now is the time to re-envision, reimagine and redefine what the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal can be for the next 125 years,” says Summit’s mayor. Six new names, including Chicago-Lockport Canal, are under consideration. ~ learn more
“Welcome to the space elevator, the only elevator that goes to space.” Along the way, you’ll learn about everything from towering cumulonimbus clouds to the death-defying records of high-altitude birds and planes. ~ learn more
“Rap has officially dipped out of the top 40 songs on the Billboard charts for the first time in 35 years.” The combination of Billboard’s new rules and the genre’s declining market share has led to this surprising absence. Don’t worry, people still love rap, its just that the new rap music tends to suck (says this aging man). ~ learn more
Brown anoles are fighting a silent battle in Florida, but “may unwittingly be helping humans by absorbing the mosquito bites, and decreasing the transmission of serious pathogens to humans.” As invasive Peter’s rock agamas push them out, mosquitoes turn to birds, potentially increasing disease spread to humans. ~ learn more
“American Airlines, Delta, and United are running out of flight numbers, and nobody knows what to do about it.” ~ learn more
Not that well, it seems. Despite international efforts, “most claims of ‘success’...are unsupported by relevant empirical evidence.” Recent scandals, such as a major U.S. bank failing to monitor $18.3 trillion, cast doubt on the system’s effectiveness. ~ learn more
“Around 1900, Argentina was 2x richer than Japan, and over 4x richer than Taiwan, South Korea, and China. But all these countries are now richer than Argentina.” Factors like land concentration and poor economic policies have taken a toll, creating stark contrasts with the growth strategies of the Asian Tigers. ~ learn more
Does that mean they’ll win AGI? “How will we feed the 100s of GWs of extra energy demand that AI will create over the next decade? On this episode, Casey Handmer (Caltech PhD, former NASA JPL, founder & CEO of Terraform Industries) walks me through how we can pull it off, and why he thinks a major part of this energy singularity will be powered by solar. His views are…