Magnitude and Direction — Issue #195
Translucent PCBs, schizophrenic ZIP files, and CPB for space
Welcome to the latest installment of my bi-weekly newsletter, covering some of my favorite new developments in the fields of biotech, data science, engineering, and more. If this is your first issue, it's great to have you! For everyone else, thanks for coming back!If you like this email, forward it to a friend (I can't encourage this enough) and if you're seeing it for the first time, subscribe here to get it regularly. As always, if you come across something cool you'd like to share, send me a note.
Notes
Somehow, we’re in August now, meaning we’re on the verge of completing 2/3 of a year that, to me at least, has felt simultaneously blindingly fast and also unbelievably long. Through it all, though, I’m glad to say Magnitude and Direction has continued to go out (mostly) on schedule 😜
This edition’s font comes to us from Google, specifically their latest efforts to make a font for programming that is both functional and legible; it’s called Google Sans Code.
Jobs
Quality Engineering Opportunity
NYC-based startup Dirac, who are building the tools modern manufacturers need to move faster and build better, is seeking a Quality & Reliability Engineer to level up how they test, release, and operate software at Dirac. The role work closely with their engineering team to drive end-to-end quality—improving test coverage, automation, observability, and incident response across the platform. Candidates should have experience with modern QA and testing practices, strong communication skills, and high agency and ownership, among other attributes.
Learn more about the role and how to apply here.
Frontend/Fullstack Engineering Opportunity
Also from Dirac, a Frontend and/or Fullstack Engineer is being sought to support the team’s critical systems and work directly with manufacturers to ensure Dirac’s tools are solving real-world problems. Candidates should have 7+ years of experience in web development, with a strong focus on frontend engineering, and a strong understanding of UI/UX principles..
Learn more about the role and how to apply here.
Mechatronics Opportunity
The Maimon Lab at Rockefeller University is seeking a creative scientific engineer for a full-time position in the Laboratory of Integrative Brain Function. The role will be responsible for designing, building, and supporting custom experimental devices that integrate hardware, electronics, and firmware to support the research goals of a neuroscience lab. A love of independently completing projects in an academic setting, for the purposes of advancing basic research, is a must. Comfort working independently and interest in assimilating new information for the sake of accomplishing complete project cycles is essential.
Learn more about the role and how to apply here.
Engineering/R&D Opportunity
Reality Labs at Meta is seeking Research Engineers to develop and enhance on-device AI/ML models for their Wearables group. This role is pivotal for advancing capabilities in interpreting and processing biomedical signals for gesture recognition, contributing to innovative solutions in human-computer interaction. Candidates should have at least a bachelors degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, other relevant technical fields, or equivalent practical experience. Experience with embedded systems, microcontrollers, IoT, and edge AI are all pluses.
Learn more about the role and how to apply here.
Hardware, Prototyping, and Fabrication
🔋🔍 Did you know that PCBs come in translucent now?!
🪫🔋 In the world of robotic automation, the "last mile problem", so to speak, has always been the flipping of a switch, removal of a part, replacement of a battery, or some other physical process the automated system itself couldn't do. With this latest self-charging robot, though, that issue may soon be a thing of the past.
🤖 Speaking of new frontiers for robots, you may not even need to put them together in the future - they'll just build themselves by eating other robots.
Software and Programming
📁📂 A schizophrenic ZIP file can leave you questioning your reality (and vulnerable to some pretty clever hacks).
📻📡 In a quintessential example of the Hardware and Software sections of this newsletter slowly blending together, AI might be pretty good at designing RF circuits...
Science, Engineering, and Biomedicine
💓 Traditionally, if you wanted to transplant a heart, you had to keep it beating the whole time the transfer process was going on. Thanks to a new innovation, that may no longer be necessary.
🌕 If you thought the customs form was annoying to fill out after your last trip abroad, you can perhaps find some solace in knowing that Neil Armstrong had to fill one out for the moon rocks he brought back as part of the Apollo 11 mission. (I wonder what the tariffs would be on those these days...)
🐜👅 You've possible heard of the evolutionary trend for animals to turn into crabs overtime, but did you know the anteater was another highly favored body plan?
Mapping, History, and Data Science
🧑✈️📈 This pilot/engineer has put together some beautiful and informative visualizations of their career over the past several years.
🌕 If the moon was only one pixel big, how long would it take you to traverse the solar system on your computer screen?
Events and Opportunities
Saturday, 8/2 (+ 8/9 & 8/16) NYC Summer Streets 2025. August means Summer Streets is back and this year it’s bigger than ever, with events occurring across all five boroughs and, for the first time, the opportunity to go from top to bottom of Manhattan, all on streets made free of cars and open to all kind of biking and pedestrian opportunities. In addition to being able to traverse these otherwise off-limits paths, there’s also tons of activities, exhibits and relaxation stations set up along the entire route.
Tuesday, 8/5 Civic Tech'ish Happy Hour: Summer Edition. Connect with like-minded individuals who are passionate about improving government services for everyone. Whether you're a civic tech practitioner working within or adjacent to the public sector or curious about how to leverage technology'ish skills for the public interest, this event is for you.
Tuesday, 8/5 West Harlem Innovation Triangle Launch Reception. The WEST HARLEM ARTS ALLIANCE is proud to present this year's space activation launch of The Innovation Triangle: where art, culture, and commerce come together in an open invitation for all to participate in West Harlem’s cultural renaissance. Come and be part of WHAA’s latest space activation in Manhattanville, as a beacon for creativity and civic pride—an open invitation for all to participate in this exciting milestone.
Thursday, 8/14 NY Hardware Meetup. The Hardware Meetup community is excited to announce their August NY Hardware Meetup will be at New York hardware mainstay, Adafruit, in Industry City. This month's event will be about the growing NYC space tech industry.
Thursday, 8/28 ASRC CAT x HB x Activate NY August Innovators Social. For the August edition of West Harlem's long-running innovators socials, Harlem Biospace and the ASRC are co-hosting with Activate NY. The two-year Activate Fellowship provides early-stage science entrepreneurs with funding, technical resources, and unparalleled support from a network of scientists, engineers, investors, commercial partners, and fellow entrepreneurs. Join for an exciting networking event to learn more about this fellowship and hear from one of the newest cohort's founders! Stay tuned for the public announcement about the 2025 cohort!
Friday & Saturday, 10/3-10/4 2nd Annual NY BCI Symposium. Following up on a stellar inaugural conference last fall, BCI’s leading minds and most exciting emerging startups will once again descend on the New York Academy of Medicine for two days of panels, presentations, and networking, all with the mission of advancing and expanding the brain-computer interface space. With NYC increasingly becoming the center stage for this technology revolution, this is a can’t-miss event for anyone working in neurotech, AI/ML, medtech, and beyond. Early-bird registration is now available!
Other events coming up you think I should know about? Let me know here!
Map of the Month
🏭 Where are America's manufacturing megaprojects happening?
Odds & Ends
🎶 BeatRush can turn any song of your choosing into a personalized “Flappy Bird”-style game.