Android sluggishness resolved

A recent Google system update introduced a memory management (ZRAM / RAM allocation) bug on the Pixel 8 that causes severe frame drops, UI stutter, and sudden sluggishness—even when storage is empty and no malware is present.  

Google is rolling out a patch to fix this underlying ZRAM issue, but you can immediately restore smooth performance on your Pixel 8 using the steps below.

1. Apply the Immediate Fix (Background Process Limit)

Setting a temporary cap on background tasks bypasses the ZRAM memory-clogging bug:

1. Go to Settings -> About phone.

2. Scroll to the bottom and tap Build number 7 times until you see the message "You are now a developer."

3. Go back to Settings -> System -> Developer options.

4. Scroll down to the Apps section and tap Background process limit.

5. Change it from Standard limit to "At most 4 processes." 

(*Note: Developer options occasionally revert this setting after a reboot. If the lag returns after restarting, re-check this limit.)

2. Clear System UI & Pixel Launcher Cache

A corrupted launcher cache can cause the Pixel's swipe gestures and home screen animations to lock up:

1. Go to Settings -> Apps -> See all apps.

2. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner and select "Show system." (This battle increases the number of apps to scroll through.) 

3. Search for and select Pixel Launcher.

4. Tap Storage & cache -> Clear cache.  

5. Repeat these steps to search under system apps for System UI, Tap Storage & cache -> Clear cache. 

3. Toggle "Smooth Display"

The Tensor G3 chip manages variable refresh rates (60Hz to 120Hz). A display driver bug can get stuck rapidly switching frequencies, appearing as lag:

1. Go to Settings -> Display.

2. Toggle Smooth Display Off, wait 5 seconds, and turn it back On.  

3. If the lag vanishes, leave it on, or keep it off temporarily if the stuttering persists until the next update.

Very clever screwdriver

https://youtu.be/D36kpU-VaDA?feature=shared

I thought this was a clever invention. One end of the screwdriver shines a light on a screw and its camera determines the screw size, then flashes a signal beside the correct bit to use in the tray of bits, and sets the correct torque for the bit before it's inserted in the other end of the screwdriver handle. 🪛 

Very clever screwdriver

https://youtu.be/D36kpU-VaDA?feature=shared

I thought this was a clever invention. One end of the screwdriver shines a light on a screw and its camera determines the screw size, then flashes a signal beside the correct bit to use in the tray of bits, and sets the correct torque for the bit before it's inserted in the other end of the screwdriver handle. 🪛 

Wow - what a wave!

https://youtube.com/shorts/tyjwfPPyxuo?is=mQaNmS7xVAokDyiy

What makes streaming services so show to load

What Actually Causes the Load Time?

The delay you experience comes from technical constraints inherent to video streaming over the internet:

1. Manifest Retrieval & DRM Handshake: The TV app must request streaming manifests, authenticate user entitlement (subscription status), and establish digital rights management (DRM) decryption keys before playing protected content.

2. Buffer Building: Streaming platforms fetch several seconds of video into temporary memory (buffering) to ensure smooth playback even if network speeds fluctuate.

3. Adaptive Bitrate Selection: The app tests connection speed to select the optimal resolution stream (e.g., 1080p vs. 4K) before rendering the first frame.

4. Hardware & Hardware Decoding: Smart TV processors—especially on low-cost or built-in TV platforms—often have limited RAM and CPU resources, slowing down app execution and video decoding compared to dedicated streaming sticks or phones.

How to decrease 911 calls by 99%

https://youtu.be/ZoB91jIyG8Q?is=wcJ3FKZ0PDbs7ekI

People in crisis had nowhere to turn for simple services like helping someone get up off the floor, or getting a walker to prevent falls, that they were calling 911 almost 100 times a month. Instituting a social services division in their 911 system to follow up with callers dramatically decreased this overuse of 911

Zapping weeds

https://youtu.be/PpnCu8SUGCU?is=CFxBe1FW5WZXCnDt

Zapping weeds one at a time can cut weeding costs per acre in half. Unfortunately, some hand weeding is still needed (within that reduced cost.)

Further reduced farming costs come from more efficient use of water and avoiding herbicides. 

Healthier plants, healthier soil, healthier farmers. 

This company is selling hundreds of units a year, planning to scale up to thousands. 

% of population that are farmers

Early 1800s Agrarian Economy: Over 80% of workers were engaged in manual subsistence and small-scale commercial farming, requiring dense rural labor forces to feed the population.

1860–1900: The advent of steam-powered machinery, mechanical harvesters, and expanded rail distribution allowed fewer farmworkers to manage vastly larger crop yields.

1920–1960: Internal combustion tractors replaced draft animals, while synthetic fertilizers (Haber-Bosch process), hybrid seed stocks, and electrification augmented output per worker hour. Farm labor fell from 27% of the population in 1920 to under 7% by 1960.

Present: Commercial consolidation, GPS-guided precision agriculture, automated irrigation, and high-yield crop genetics reduced direct farm labor to approximately 1.3% of total workforce, even as total agricultural output is reaching historical highs.

Looking beyond USA, on a global scale, the percentage continues to decline and is now around 26%, as developing nations modernize their economies.

Finding a precise time and location from a random video clip. Clever, but it takes a huge amount of compute.

https://youtu.be/UytYrhYLOKI?is=FxbJBEhaOoc-kcwF

Very interesting deep dive of determining exact location from the airplane sounds. With massive amounts of public flight data and massive amounts of computing, you can cleverly narrow down how close the airplane was and how fast it was going, to narrow down from thought of possible times and places to a unique one. 

The AI-powered tool every independent creator needs in 2025

https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/how-ltx-studio-is-simplifying-the-video-editing-workflow-for-solo-creators

LTX studios uses AI to generate video content and voice-over, find relevant B-roll background video and stamping the entire solo content creator process. 

Tallest turbine ever

https://youtu.be/GDsDAUV7N8M?is=uHNvhTsVBp-_HzKW

They lifted the turbine and blades with the tallest possible mobile crane, then used @4:30 strand jacks inside the tower🗼 to hoist the inner section of the tower skyward. 

6:01 the blades bend towards the tower in high winds and would strike the tower. That's why turbines shut down in high winds. Even if they feather the blades so they don't spin as fast, the bending blade can't be remedied without a massive increase in construction - either to cantilever the nacelle and blade further from the tower or make the blades stiffer, the extra weight requires a stronger tower. Stress on the gearbox or centrifugal forces bending the blade can't be overcome with feathering the blades or braking to limit speed, but the bending of blades that then strike the tower is the limiting factor that shuts down turbines usually above 55 mph winds, depending on the design. 

Tallest turbine ever

https://youtu.be/GDsDAUV7N8M?is=uHNvhTsVBp-_HzKW

They lifted the turbine and blades with the tallest possible mobile crane, then used @4:30 strand jacks inside the tower🗼 to hoist the inner section of the tower skyward. 

Useful video about fire escapes in buildings and why it may be safer to stay in place than to evacuate.

https://youtu.be/RvnufWZIk_I?is=wLSQD2drKSVlwhhq

Steam the soil before planting to kill off weeds.

https://youtu.be/Jdx-eYnwp9A?is=1IMdfTRo9mIu3JZ9

0:35 "steam kills the weed seeds and fungi without harming the beneficial microbes" - that sure sounds like a delicate balance: 

Heating soil to about 140°F to 160°F (60°C to 70°C) for a targeted duration (typically 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the depth) is hot enough to kill most weed seeds and harmful pathogens, ref and such temperatures prevent total sterilization. While some surface-level microbes are temporarily reduced, beneficial soil organisms and bacteria frequently recover within 30 days. ref Steam treatment was first used in greenhouses in the 1880's. 

Notice the dramatic difference between the control side and the steam-treated side in the photo. (I'm thinking there some other differences between the two sides of the field, given that the control side is almost devoid of plants.)

AI can't teach you a new language.

https://youtu.be/A3fHWl6hiFE?is=Emm7kAMYV3czs4cn

Ludicrously bad fails. Surely AI language instruction is better than this with AI - were these developers trying to save money on compute and had poor models?