Mmastodon TechnologyTechnology first seen 10 h ago, last 1 h ago, peak #8
Hidden Fibonacci computation found inside macOS top command
Original: A parasitic Fibonacci computation inside /usr/bin/top https://seriot.ch/computation/terminfo/ # HackerNews # Tech # Prog
Security researcher Nicolas Seriot documents how /usr/bin/top, the macOS system monitor, ends up performing an unnecessary Fibonacci-style recursive computation through terminal capability string parsing, meaning the utility wastes CPU cycles every time it runs. The write-up walks through the terminfo parsing chain that triggers the hidden workload. Developers are sharing the finding as a striking example of obscure, parasitic computation lurking in everyday Unix tools.
Why now: A surprising technical finding that a common system tool silently wastes computation is drawing attention from programmers.
Nicolas Seriot/usr/bin/topmacOSterminfo
Evidence
- A parasitic Fibonacci computation inside /usr/bin/top https://seriot.ch/computation/terminfo/ # HackerNews # Tech # Programming · hackernews@robot.villas · 3
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