Some intrepid biologists at the University of Southern California (USC) have discovered bacteria that survives on nothing but electricity — rather than food, they eat and excrete pure electrons. These bacteria yet again prove the almost miraculous tenacity of life — but, from a technology standpoint, they might also prove to be useful in enabling the creation of self-powered nanoscale devices that clean up pollution. Some of these bacteria also have the curious ability to form into ‘biocables,’ microbial nanowires that are centimeters long and conduct electricity as well as copper wires — a capability that might one day be tapped to build long, self-assembling subsurface networks for human use.

I founded 4chan eleven and a half years ago at the age of 15, and after more than a decade of service, I've decided it's time for me to move on. 4chan has faced numerous challenges (...) [B]ut the biggest hurdle it's had to overcome is myself. As 4chan's sole administrator, decision maker, and keeper of most of its institutional knowledge, I've come to represent an uncomfortably large single point of failure.

I've spent the past two years working behind the scenes to address these challenges, (...) [T]he site isn't in danger of going under financially any time soon, (...) and while I've still been calling the shots, I've delegated many of my responsibilities to a handful of trusted volunteers, most of whom have served the site for years.

That foundation will now be put to the ultimate test, as today I'm retiring as 4chan's administrator. (...) I look forward to one day returning to 4chan as its Admin Emeritus or just another Anonymous, (...) I'm humbled to have had the privilege of both founding and presiding over what is easily one of the greatest communities to ever grace the Web.

"These mercenary hacker groups range from small groups with little funding to specialty shops run by ex-government spooks, to highly financed criminal groups who use similar if not identical tactics to nation state actors. That they are rarely discovered is due in part to their skill level and in part to being misidentified as a state actor instead of a non-state actor if they are discovered."