alexandra's pile of notes

This previous weekend was particularly nuts, with an older gentleman snatched from the streets of Paris' 14th arrondissement on May 1 by men in ski masks. The 14th is a pleasant place—I highly recommend a visit to the catacombs in Place Denfert-Rochereau—and not usually the site of snatch-and-grab operations. The abducted man was apparently the father of someone who had made a packet in crypto. The kidnappers demanded a multimillion-euro ransom from the man's son.

According to Le Monde, the abducted father was taken to a house in a Parisian suburb, where one of the father's fingers was cut off in the course of ransom negotiations. Police feared "other mutilations" if they were unable to find the man, but they did locate and raid the house this weekend, arresting five people in their 20s. (According to the BBC, French police used "phone signals" to locate the house.)

Sounds crazy, but this was the second such incident this year.

A significant advance by Google Quantum AI in quantum error correction, using a surface code approach, may have competition in a competing method that its advocates suggest offers greater efficiency and scalability. Researchers in the field are divided, however, over which approach will define the future of practical quantum computing, New Scientist is reporting.

According to Google, Willow solved a computational problem in under five minutes — a task that would have taken the world’s fastest supercomputers approximately 10 septillion years. This staggering feat, announced in a blog post and accompanied by a study in the journal Nature, demonstrates the extraordinary potential of quantum computing to tackle problems once thought unsolvable within a human timeframe.

In this blog post, I will attempt to describe the system within which I exist as a moderately successful computer scientist and woman. I will highlight the fallacies that lead to women (1) leaving tech, (2) generally being anxious in our society, and (3) experiencing horrific harassment and misogyny.

This is a living list (updated sporadically) based off of my experiences speaking and attending, as well as recommendations from some friendly folks on Mastodon.

You have long ago abandoned the JavaScript trademark, and it is causing widespread, unwarranted confusion and disruption.

JavaScript is the world’s most popular programming language, powering websites everywhere. Yet, few of the millions who program in it realize that JavaScript is a trademark you, Oracle, control. The disconnect is glaring: JavaScript has become a general-purpose term used by countless individuals and companies, independent of any Oracle product.

Before going to a protest, demonstrators or observers should note that their cellphones may subject them to surveillance tactics by law enforcement. If your cellphone is on and unsecured, your location can be tracked and your unencrypted communications, such as SMS, may be intercepted. Additionally, police may retrieve your messages and the content of your phone if they take custody of your phone, or later by warrant or subpoena.

The Responsible Tech Guide (2024) is our flagship resource here at All Tech Is Human. It is designed to provide information, inspiration, and illumination of pathways for more individuals to be involved in the Responsible Tech ecosystem.