Rob Patro
@robp.bsky.social
4K followers 540 following 1.9K posts
Associate Professor of CS @ University of Maryland. Proud Rust advocate! I ♥ science & compiled, statically-typed programming languages! Views are my own. Tech stack: https://github.com/rob-p/tech-stack.
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robp.bsky.social
It's not that often I find someone with a take on AI in programming as similar to mine as is Jon's youtu.be/nOSxuaDgl3s?.... The thing is, I consider myself an AI optimist if we recognize what these tools are good for and how to use them well, but this necessitates avoiding the nonsense hype & fear.
Rust 2025: Most Loved, Least Adopted (Until Now)
YouTube video by JetBrains
youtu.be
robp.bsky.social
Neither did I; what a fascinating origin story for Old Bay!!
katz.theracket.news
Did not know this about Old Bay
The origins of the company can be traced back to Wertheim, Germany, where Brunn started a wholesale spice and seasoning business selling to food industries, seeing an opportunity as spices were in especially short supply amidst hyperinflation in the aftermath of World War I. 9] Due to rising antisemitism as the Nazi Party rose to power, the company moved to Frankfurt, Germany; 1°1 however, on the night of November 9, 1938, a massive pogrom against Jews, known as Kristallnacht, led to Brunn being arrested by Nazi soldiers and sent to Buchenwald concentration camp. "
According to Brunn's son, Gustav's wife paid a large sum of money to a lawyer for him to be released; as they had already applied for and received American visas, they were able to escape with their two children to New York City and later Baltimore, Maryland, where Brunn had family.!'! There, having brought with him only a small spice grinder, 8! Brunn founded the Baltimore Spice Company and produced the
"Delicious Brand Shrimp and Crab Seasoning", which was later renamed Old Bay. 12[13]
robp.bsky.social
Just grabbed it on audible. Blink was one of my first favorite bands; interested to hear Mark's story!
robp.bsky.social
Man; the Ravens REALLY suck right now. Like, they aren't even mediocre. They are horrible.
robp.bsky.social
For the weekend crowd. I'm hiring a postdoc! If you're interested in algorithms, data structures and high-dimensional inference, and if you want to invent new methods for genomics and implement them in high-performance, robust and easy-to-use software, do I have a lab for you; ours!
robp.bsky.social
Hi bioinformatics, genomics and CS friends! Please help me spread the word. I'm hiring a postdoc! Come work on cutting edge method development in algorithmic genomics with me and my group at @umdscience.bsky.social! 🖥️🧬
robp.bsky.social
And it's posted! If you're interested and eligible, please consider applying through the UMD portal: umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j....

If you're a PI working in algorithmic genomics (& you can recommend my lab to your top graduating students ;P), please let them know!
robp.bsky.social
Ahhhhh! I missed that original post though 🤣🤣
robp.bsky.social
So is that what a golden airplane gift to Trump gets you?
newrepublic.com
BREAKING: Pete Hegseth has made a shocking announcement from the Pentagon. The United States will establish a Qatari Emiri military installation in Idaho.

Idaho's Mountain Home Air Base already hosts Singaporean forces but a training facility will be built specifically for Qataris. trib.al/jnvm9zT
robp.bsky.social
Lol; this reminds me of @stevensalzberg.bsky.social's story about finding hamster genes in the human genome assembly's unplaced contigs ;P.
Reposted by Rob Patro
jeremymsimon.bsky.social
Incredible opportunity to go train with the Patro lab @umdscience.bsky.social and develop new genomic methods!
robp.bsky.social
Hi bioinformatics, genomics and CS friends! Please help me spread the word. I'm hiring a postdoc! Come work on cutting edge method development in algorithmic genomics with me and my group at @umdscience.bsky.social! 🖥️🧬
robp.bsky.social
And it's posted! If you're interested and eligible, please consider applying through the UMD portal: umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j....

If you're a PI working in algorithmic genomics (& you can recommend my lab to your top graduating students ;P), please let them know!
robp.bsky.social
Hi bioinformatics, genomics and CS friends! Please help me spread the word. I'm hiring a postdoc! Come work on cutting edge method development in algorithmic genomics with me and my group at @umdscience.bsky.social! 🖥️🧬
robp.bsky.social
And it's posted! If you're interested and eligible, please consider applying through the UMD portal: umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j....

If you're a PI working in algorithmic genomics (& you can recommend my lab to your top graduating students ;P), please let them know!
robp.bsky.social
of specific algorithms to new variants of a problem, or reasonable type state code to ensure appropriate traditions and conversions. It’s not all simply in the experience or skill of the prompter, current systems are great at some tasks, good at many, and mediocre at some.
robp.bsky.social
I don’t know what domain you work in, but my experience has been that the variability in AI quality between tasks in astronomical. I’ve seen it produce absolute wizardry in e.g. data visualization with just mild coaching, while simultaneously failing horribly to produce e.g. correct modifications …
Reposted by Rob Patro
After years of research and continuous refinement, we’re thrilled to share that our paper on the MetaGraph framework — enabling Petabase-scale search across sequencing data — has been published today in Nature (www.nature.com/articles/s41...)
Efficient and accurate search in petabase-scale sequence repositories - Nature
MetaGraph enables scalable indexing of large sets of DNA, RNA or protein sequences using annotated de Bruijn graphs.
www.nature.com
robp.bsky.social
I did say coding (my bad), but I was considering the case of software engineering, which involves certain problem solving and invention that I have seen AI fall completely flat on, even when gently guided toward a good solution in multiple different ways / through different prompts. 2/2
robp.bsky.social
Yea, I reject that characterization. The process of coding involves applying specific practices, often in subtly different ways, in different contexts. I have seen several different AIs mess that up horribly in different domains on multiple occasions. Also 1/2
Reposted by Rob Patro
robert.bio
Just published an interactive article about a magical algorithm known as the Burrows-Wheeler Transform, which powers sequence alignment tools like bowtie and bwa: sandbox.bio/concepts/bwt

It's also notoriously unintuitive so I'm hoping this article helps you build that intuition.
robp.bsky.social
This endorsement means a lot to me! This is because Mohsen (a) was my student, and so knows not just about the work we do in the lab but also about what it's like to work with me as an advisor/mentor and (b) has long since graduated and so is under no duress to provide such an endorsement 🤣!
mohsenzakeri.bsky.social
An awesome opportunity, strongly recommended to anyone looking for a postdoc in algorithms and genomics!
robp.bsky.social
And it's posted! If you're interested and eligible, please consider applying through the UMD portal: umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j....

If you're a PI working in algorithmic genomics (& you can recommend my lab to your top graduating students ;P), please let them know!
Reposted by Rob Patro
mohsenzakeri.bsky.social
An awesome opportunity, strongly recommended to anyone looking for a postdoc in algorithms and genomics!
robp.bsky.social
And it's posted! If you're interested and eligible, please consider applying through the UMD portal: umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j....

If you're a PI working in algorithmic genomics (& you can recommend my lab to your top graduating students ;P), please let them know!