Research & Rescue

What is Happiness?

I actually discovered the documentary, Happy, about a week ago when I fell into a rabbit hole looking at articles on coaching and liked the trailer for the movie enough that I became a fan on Facebook. The idea behind this movie is not really a new one and I have discussed it on this blog before (Money Isn't Everything).

I think that, despite the movement to downsize our lives, it's easy to get caught up in the message that more [stuff] is better. I certainly succumb to it more often than I'd like and I try to rationalize it (So, what if I have more books than I could possibly read - when I retire or take a vacation*, I'll just hole up with my books and read). What having too much stuff does is clutter one's environment and one's brain and the best money spent is on time with friends and traveling. I was about to add film to that but I've also found that the best pictures are the ones not taken. They reside in one's memories :-)

This is a nice piece from CNN that I hope moves you to support the production of Happy. If not, may you be moved to support the production of happiness - in your life, and in those of others.

 

 

* My friends will tell you it's not in my vocabulary, so I looked it up: Main Entry: 1 va·ca·tion Pronunciation: \vā-ˈkā-shən, və-\ Function: noun Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English vacacioun, from Anglo-French vacacion, from Latin vacation-, vacatio freedom, exemption, from vacare Date: 14th century 1 : a respite or a time of respite from something : intermission 2 a : a scheduled period during which activity (as of a court or school) is suspended b : a period of exemption from work granted to an employee 3 : a period spent away from home or business in travel or recreation 4 : an act or an instance of vacating (Source: merriam-webster.com)

Lost Remote: News and media on the iPad

Typo? Freudian slip?

Lost Remote | News and media on the iPad: A mixed bad so far

This is a good blog entry, though. I don't have an iPad (yet) but I see the same phenomena they discuss, using the iPhone. Being the new junkie that I am, early on, I downloaded a number of news and magazine apps - some local news, Rachel Maddow, HuffPost, and a few others. Quite frankly, I prefer MobileRSS for reading any of it. It lets me tweet or e-mail or save to Instapaper and I'm happy. Perhaps I'll feel differently when using the iPad but I rather doubt it.

The advantage of the iPad is a big enough screen to be able to read these things comfortably. Safari will do just fine for reading the blogs and new sites I normally surf, and if they address the Flash issue, all the better (although lack of Flash hasn't yet been devastating for me on the iPhone). I see no reason to get all a dither about what the iPad is not, for new media. Can you still read what you want? Can you disseminate it effectively? Is it it portable and easy on the eye? Have we maintained the content? If so, to me, it's a good thing.

The Cheezburger Empire

Hat tip to Dave Maass for the link. Who'd have guessed that something as silly as lolcats could reap that kind of fortune? Well, based on how many hits I took on the single Mary McCormack post (Thanks, Mary. Please say something else outrageous soon) and cat and dog videos as compared to posts about world hunger and poverty, I would have predicted it. But people need to feel good too. So I can haz more gud posts about cheezburgers sumtimez. kthxbai.

Mr. Huh, a 32-year-old entrepreneur, first became aware of I Can Has Cheezburger, which pairs photos of cats with quirky captions, after it linked to his own pet blog. His site immediately crumbled under the resulting wave of visitors.

Read the rest at www.nytimes.com

Blackwater Kitsch

Seriously? Blackwater is opening retail outlets?

via blogs.alternet.org

The U-Socket Charges USB Devices Without an Adapter

This is a fantastic idea - USB chargers that are part of wall outlets and they only run $20. There are two issues, though. First, they won't be available until October and, second, how do they stop power surges? Couldn't you fry your device if it's just plugged into the wall like that?

via lifehacker.com

Think Geek shirt to celebrate Towel Day

"People of Earth, your attention, please. This is Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz of the Galactic Hyperspace Planning Council. As you will no doubt be aware, the plans for development of the outlying regions of the Galaxy require the building of a hyperspatial express route through your star system. And regrettably, your planet is one of those scheduled for demolition. The process will take slightly less than two of your Earth minutes. Thank you." [Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]

May 25th is Towel Day (the anniversary of two weeks after the passing of Douglas Adams in 2001) and Think Geek has a great shirt to celebrate in style (Well, OK - in geek style).

Then again, perhaps you actually need a towel. They've got one of those too:

via www.thinkgeek.com

Chinese workers sickened by n-hexane use on Apple iPhone screens

Next month, amid the usual hoopla, Apple is expected to officially unveil its latest gadget: the much-awaited iPhone 4G. But halfway round the globe from the company's California headquarters, a young worker who has spent months in an eastern Chinese hospital wants consumers to look beyond the shiny exterior of such gadgets.

"People should know what we do to create these products and what cost we pay," said Bai Bing as she perched on a bed in her ward.

She is one of scores of young workers in the city of Suzhou who were poisoned by the chemical n-hexane, which they say was used to clean Apple components including iPhone touch screens.

Read the rest at www.guardian.co.uk

PCWorld says Don't Be Misled by Android Sales Stats

Android has finally done it! For the first time ever, the volume of Android devices sold beat the volume of Apple iPhones sold for a given quarter. However, the statistics are misleading and point to a somewhat hollow victory.

Read the rest at www.pcworld.com

Kindle coming software updates

So, the next Kindle update should be out soon. Some of these updates are really nice. I especially like the collections feature, as I start to amass more and more books and samples. When I first saw the feature for Facebook and Twitter, it seemed like a good idea but, given my recent rants about privacy and linking my personal life in ways that make me uncomfortable, it occurs to me that this is just one more way for Amazon to collect highlighted passages. On the other hand, I love my Kindle and Amazon always comes through with fantastic recommendations for me, precisely because they do track my purchases. If they use those data in aggregate only, I guess it's OK.

The 2.5 software update for Kindle and Kindle DX is coming soon. We are rolling out the new software update to a limited group of Kindle users and plan a broad release in late May 2010. Check back here for updates on the release schedule.

Here's a list of the coming enhancements:

• Collections: Organize your books and documents into one or more collections.
• PDF Pan and Zoom: Zoom into PDFs and pan around to easily view small print and detailed tables or graphics.
• Password Protection: Password protect your Kindle when you're not using it.
• More Fonts & Improved Clarity: Enjoy two new larger font sizes and sharper fonts for an even more comfortable reading experience.
• Facebook & Twitter Posts: Share book passages with friends on Facebook and Twitter directly from your Kindle.
• Popular Highlights: See what the Kindle community thinks are the most interesting passages in the books you're reading.

More update details at www.amazon.com

White Castle's burger-scented candle dazzles, disgusts

I think the author really meant to submit this to eeeeewww.com:

In honor of National Cheeseburger Month, White Castle has released a $10 burger-scented candle. Much like sweat beads fly forth from Cathy’s head, beads of vomit are flying out of my head at the mere thought of a White Castle-scented candle. I wrote a whole little list of pop culture burgers, but it just detracted from the fact that you can buy a burger-scented candle, the proceeds of which go to autism research.

Read the rest of the original at popwatch.ew.com