77 Things Developers Can Avoid in 2026 — and 4 That Are Unavoidable
TL;DR A year-end essay by Tyler Dane lists 77 activities developers can stop doing in 2026 to free up time…
Scientists Find Beer Bottle at Challenger Deep, Earth’s Deepest Ocean Point
TL;DR During a dive to the Challenger Deep, oceanographer Dr. Dawn Wright reported finding a beer bottle resting in sediment…
C++ says “We have try…finally at home” — cleanup via destructors and scope guards
TL;DR Many modern languages provide a finally clause for guaranteed cleanup; C++ accomplishes the same goal using destructors and RAII-style…
How Much Melatonin Should You Take? Guidance, Risks, and Alternatives
TL;DR Melatonin dosing varies by individual; the author and sleep expert David Kuhlmann recommend consulting a clinician before starting. Kuhlmann…
Growing Up in 404: Life Inside China’s Secret Nuclear City in the Gobi
TL;DR A first-person memoir recounts childhood in a closed, state-built industrial city in the Gobi Desert known by the code…
Daily Bottled-Water Drinkers Swallow About 90,000 Extra Microplastic Particles
TL;DR New reporting finds that people who drink bottled water every day ingest tens of thousands more microplastic particles annually…
C++ says “We have try…finally at home” — destructors handle cleanup
TL;DR Many modern languages offer a finally clause to run cleanup when control leaves a block; C++ provides the same…
Global Trade Is Shifting: The Dollar’s Era of Dominance May Be Ending
TL;DR A Wired piece by Keyu Jin argues that 2026 will mark the start of measurable erosion in the US…
C++ provides try-finally behavior via destructors, not a finally clause
TL;DR C++ lacks a dedicated finally clause; instead, developers rely on destructors to run cleanup when control leaves a scope.…