Inc:

During my time in Australia, the relaxed lifestyle of the Aussies, Kiwis, and Europeans we met contrasted sharply with the “live to work” mentality so ingrained in American culture. To them, it isn’t about your place in life or how you make a living; it’s simply about living well.

Contrary to what many people think, this philosophy doesn’t have to clash with being ambitious. It just means making a fun, fulfilling life your first priority.

Living in Vancouver, I’ve met and known a lot of Australians and am always amazed at their wanderlust. There’s a lot of good advice in this column, particularly for those in college. Travel while you can.

The Wall Street Journal:

Apple said it plans additional steps to keep hackers out of user accounts, but denied that a lax attitude toward security had allowed intruders to post nude photos of celebrities on the Internet.

To make such leaks less likely, Mr. Cook said Apple will alert users via email and push notifications when someone tries to change an account password, restore iCloud data to a new device, or when a device logs into an account for the first time.

This is just one of many steps Apple will take to protect themselves and users.

BBC:

Laser “tattoos” could remove the need for sticky labels during the sale of fruit, developers say.

The technology removes pigment from the fruit’s surface to show information such as the item’s sell-by date and price.

The process does not affect the taste or the lifespan of the fruit.

I’d never thought about how much those paper labels cost. This is a fascinating idea.

Daily Dot:

Basically, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” was too good to mock. And as it turns out, there’s a reason for that. The film’s directors are fans of Honest Trailers, and they purposefully engineered the film so it would be harder to parody.

In a recent interview with Collider, Winter Soldier directors Joe and Anthony Russo were asked how they felt about achieving a positive Honest Trailers review.

I’m a huge fan of Honest Trailers and love the fact they had a positive influence on a summer blockbuster.

BoingBoing:

Twitter opened its analytics platform to every user on August 27, allowing all of us — not just verified users and those with advertising accounts — to track how many people viewed and acted upon our tweets. But the “Followers” section, revealing demographics, provoked the most discussion. Alongside breakdowns in followers’ interests and location is a gender bar that splits followers into male and female.

How can Twitter offer this information when it doesn’t ask for you to indicate a gender when you sign up for an account?

My Twitter account is 86% male and 14% female. But how does Twitter deal with the (not insignificant) percentage of folks who don’t fall under traditional genera roles?

This is remarkable to watch. Unlike traditional “pub pool”, Snooker play is very specific – you have to sink a red ball and then a coloured one and then a red and so on. In a perfect game, you sink a red then the black, then a red then the black until all the reds are gone. Then you sink the colored balls in order. A perfect game in Snooker is an example of amazing ball control and skill.

This is Colossal:

Over the last three months photographer Thomas Herbrich snapped some 100,000 individual photographs of smoke, looking for unexpected anamalies and fortuitous coincidences where familiar shapes emerged.

It’s fascinating to see how the brain tries to create order out of chaos, just like looking up at the clouds, suddenly familiar patterns seem to stand out: faces, hands, or scrolls of paper.

He’s created some absolutely beautiful images.

Re/code:

Apple just issued a statement on the disclosure of celebrity photos said to have come from its iCloud storage service.

“We wanted to provide an update to our investigation into the theft of photos of certain celebrities. When we learned of the theft, we were outraged and immediately mobilized Apple’s engineers to discover the source.”

Apple very specifically pointed out in their statement to media outlets that “None of the cases we have investigated has resulted from any breach in any of Apple’s systems including iCloud or Find my iPhone.”

Gigaom:

An eye doctor says he’s recently seen a few 35-year-old patients whose lenses, which are typically clear all the way up until around age 40, are so cloudy they resemble 75-year-olds’. A sleep doctor says kids as young as toddlers are suffering from chronic insomnia, which in turn affects their behavior and performance at school and daycare. A scientist finds that women who work night shifts are twice as likely to develop breast cancer than those who sleep at night.

What do all these anecdotes have in common? Nighttime exposure to the blue light emanating from our screens.

Considering I’ve spent the last 20 years staring at a computer screen for 10 hours a day, I read this article with great interest and a lot of worry.

AV Club:

Star Trek is more than pop culture; it’s 20th century mythology with its own complicated mythos. “Beam me up” and “live long and prosper” may have invaded the cultural lexicon, but Star Trek is particularly intimidating for the uninitiated. Where to start and what to skip are up for debate even among the most hardcore Trekkies and Trekkers (the fandom can’t even decide on a name for itself).

I’m sure there’s little in this guide for the Star Trek fans reading this but if you know of someone who has just arrived on our planet, this is a helpful primer.

Vox:

Today is the anniversary of noteworthy event. Exactly 100 years ago — on September 1, 1914 — the passenger pigeon was driven to extinction.

You may not have heard of this species. But there were once incomprehensibly huge numbers of these birds. When Europeans first arrived to North America, there were somewhere between three and five billion of them in existence. (In comparison, there are now around 10.8 million common pigeons on the continent today.) At the time, they were probably the most numerous bird species on the planet.

Kind of scary to think that, if we can kill off a population of this size in a short period of time, what other damage can we do to the other species on our planet?

Re/code:

Apple said it was “actively investigating” the violation of several of its iCloud accounts, in which revealing photos and videos of prominent Hollywood actresses were taken and posted all over the Web.

“We take user privacy very seriously and are actively investigating this report,” said Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris.

To quote Penn Jillette, the magician: “Anyone has the right to take all the pictures they want, naked or otherwise and unless they want me to see them, I have no right to see them.”

BBC:

An American academic is creating a searchable database of 12 million historic copyright-free images.

Kalev Leetaru has already uploaded 2.6 million pictures to Flickr, which are searchable thanks to tags that have been automatically added.

The photos and drawings are sourced from more than 600 million library book pages scanned in by the Internet Archive organisation.

Do not go to the linked Flickr page unless you have a lot of time on your hands. I just lost an hour of my life to it.

The Guardian:

Apple has tightened its privacy rules relating to health apps ahead of next month’s product launch, which is expected to see the unveiling of an updated iPhone and could include new wearable technology.

The technology firm has told developers that their apps, which would use Apple’s “HealthKit” platform on the forthcoming products, must not sell any personal data they gather to advertisers. The move could stave off concerns users might have around privacy as Apple seeks to move into the health data business.

This is one of the ways and reasons why Apple has a leg up on other developers. While I wouldn’t trust them implicitly, I certainly trust them to take care of my data more than any other technology company.

Wired:

When you drop $3 million on a special-edition Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, you want everything to be perfect. That’s why, before it leaves the factory, Bugatti wraps the car more carefully than royal nurses swaddle the future King George.

Is it just me or does that engine sound awful?

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Polygon:

After 10 minutes of working with Hale, Ernst and Pobst noticeably relax. It’s working. The new character, voiced by the veteran Hale, sounds better than they’d hoped. Stitched together after the fact with the voices recorded by the other actors, it will somehow feel perfectly in place. Even though Hale had never heard those voices, and hadn’t read the script until today.

Ernst and Pobst celebrate with pastries and warm smiles, while Hale continues to rocket through the script, laying down lines, adding life to the game that’s still being made hundreds of miles away, in a completely different state.

This is game development.

I don’t know if voice work can make or break a game but I definitely notice it and it can affect my enjoyment of the play.

Slate:

The whale that Joe George and Velma Ronquille heard was an anomaly: His sound patterns were recognizable as those of a blue whale, but his frequency was unheard-of. It was absolutely unprecedented. So they paid attention. They kept tracking him for years, every migration season, as he made his way south from Alaska to Mexico. His path wasn’t unusual, only his song—and the fact that they never detected any other whales around him. He always seemed to be alone.

So this whale was calling out high, and he was calling out to no one—or at least, no one seemed to be answering.

What a sad and remarkable story.

The Computer Graphics Society:

In the summer of 2004, IKEA decided to change the way they produced their product images. They made the first tentative moves toward CG rendered, rather than photographic, images.

Wow. I figured the catalog images were “photoshopped” but I had no idea so many of them were straight up CGI.

Re/code:

August Smart Lock, an electronic lock that provides keyless entry into the home, started shipping in limited quantities this week to consumers who placed orders on the company’s website.

The device…lets people unlock their doors using a smartphone app (instead of a key).

The electronic lock replaces the interior portion of an existing deadbolt lock and opens whenever you, a house guest or the cleaner approaches with the right virtual key stored in the smartphone app.

The second to last sentence in the piece might be even more important/interesting and I think it is the future of any Apple wearable.

Comics Alliance:

Ever since Bloom County became a sensation in the early ’80s, Berkeley Breathed has had an incredibly varied career. He followed Bloom County‘s initial success with two more popular comic strips, Outland and Opus; he won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning; he wrote and illustrated best-selling children’s books; he adapted his own stories into a pair of animated TV specials, and he provided art for various environmental and animal-welfare charities.

…and last month, he made a rare convention appearance, playing to a packed room at San Diego Comic-Con. ComicsAlliance spoke with Breathed about his career in cartooning, his work in other media, and his upcoming projects.

Along with Gary Larson of The Far Side, I devoured everything Breathed did and loved all of it. I miss Opus.

The Sweet Setup:

For Mac and iOS users, what are the options? We want to use free WiFi when it is available, but how do we stay secure? There are so many VPN services to help ensure your browsing is secure, but I’m going to focus on 3 for the purposes of this article.

I’ve used Cloak in the past but, for the most part, avoid doing any “serious work” on public WiFi.

The Verge:

Uber is arming teams of independent contractors with burner phones and credit cards as part of its sophisticated effort to undermine Lyft and other competitors.

Interviews with current and former contractors, along with internal documents obtained by The Verge, outline the company’s evolving methods. Using contractors it calls “brand ambassadors,” Uber requests rides from Lyft and other competitors, recruits their drivers, and takes multiple precautions to avoid detection. The effort, which Uber appears to be rolling out nationally, has already resulted in thousands of canceled Lyft rides and made it more difficult for its rival to gain a foothold in new markets.

Uber calls the program “SLOG,” and it’s a previously unreported aspect of the company’s ruthless efforts to undermine its competitors.

If true, and there’s no reason to believe it’s not given previous Uber tactics, this is, at the very least embarrassing to Uber. It’s definitely sleazy.

Wired:

Using clever algorithm processing, Hyperlapse makes it easy to use your phone to create tracking shots and fast, time-lapse videos that look as if they’re shot by Scorsese or Michael Mann. What was once only possible with a Steadicam or a $15,000 tracking rig is now possible on your iPhone, for free. And that’s all thanks to some clever engineering and an elegantly pared-down interaction design.

I don’t know if Hyperlapse will encourage me to shoot more video but anything that can help the queasy-inducing shake of most handheld iPhone video is a good thing.

Re/code:

The tablet is doomed. It was a fad. Who needs one, anyway?

At least that’s the conventional wisdom forming around the iPad and other tablets in the wake of some recent negative sales news. Apple’s iPad sales have been down in the last couple of quarters. Samsung says demand for its tablets has grown “sluggish.” Microsoft’s Surface tablet line has failed to take off.

Many commentators…argue that the tablet boom is over, and that their makers are out of ideas. Others say the tablet was supposed to replace the PC, but has failed to do so.

Maybe so. The recent sales troubles for big-name tablets are undeniable. But I think the conclusions that are being drawn from them are wrong.

I think the tablet is a terrific device.

I agree with Mossberg. I use my iPad dozens of times a day, even with a Macbook Pro within reach. And, when it comes to traveling, whether on public transit or a plane, I’m more likely to pull out the iPad than the MBP or even my iPhone.

Seattle Met:

Since the pumpkin spice latte’s inception 11 years ago, customers have ordered more than 200 million, each topped with whipped cream and a parting shake of spices. It arrives while the summer sun still beats down hot over most of the country, but a combination of masterful marketing and a fan base with the kind of obsession usually reserved for pop stars has transformed this drink into a national harbinger of fall.

Like the Mcdonald’s McRib, this is another one of those things that mystify me about the foods we eat and crave. Granted, I’ve never had a Pumpkin Spice Latte. I prefer my coffee to simply be coffee flavoured. But the excitement of so many for this drink’s arrival is fascinating. Is it marketing generated though?

Beloit College:

Students heading into their first year of college this year were generally born in 1996.

Among those who have never been alive in their lifetime are Tupac Shakur, JonBenet Ramsey, Carl Sagan, and Tiny Tim.

Do not read this story unless you want to feel old.

Marco Arment:

My criteria for this review is what someone seeking good headphones today probably wants:

Semi-portable, over-ear headphones — not pocketable, but should fit comfortably in a small bag; suitable for listening at your desk and bringing on an airplane, or maybe wearing outside

Closed-back design with at least moderate isolation

A straight, short cable with a 3-button clicker

The hard price cap is $400, but ideally, these should be under $300.

I’ve been thinking about new studio headphones so Marco’s review was of interest for the variety he tested if nothing else.

Quartz:

No one is talking about selling kittens and puppies at the meat counter, but for the group of bunny-loving pet owners protesting near the Whole Foods in Union Square, they might as well be. Fifty or so women and men of all ages carry signs, pass out flyers and pamphlets, and try to spread their message to passing Manhattanites. “Boycott Whole Foods,” they say, “because they’re killing rabbits.”

This may seem like a trivial fight involving a disproportionate amount of vitriol, but at its core it’s a debate that sheds light on the sometimes arbitrary categories we construct to make sense of the world.

I always find it fascinating what foods, meat in particular, we will and won’t eat and how dependent on our cultural constructs those decisions are. Personally, I love rabbit meat and when I was a kid in Nova Scotia, it was a staple of our diet. My Mom’s Rabbit Stew was spectacular.

Calgary Herald:

For Calgary’s husband-and-wife thespians Chris Ippolito and Karen MacKenzie, the Emmy-winning Christmas commercial for Apple is a gift that keeps on giving.

First, there was the fact that Ippolito and MacKenzie booked the high-profile, Edmonton-shot gig to begin with. It also gave 23 of their family members, including two-year-old daughter Clara-Anne, a chance to create some new yuletide memories after both clans were cast alongside them. It became an international sensation on TV and online, garnering millions of viewers. Then came the news last Sunday that the emotional ad, titled Misunderstood, had won a Creative Arts Emmy Award in Los Angeles.

I knew Apple had shot the ad in Canada but hadn’t realized it was such a “family affair”.

Apple:

Apple has determined that a very small percentage of iPhone 5 devices may suddenly experience shorter battery life or need to be charged more frequently. The affected iPhone 5 devices were sold between September 2012 and January 2013 and fall within a limited serial number range.

If your iPhone 5 is experiencing these symptoms and meets the eligibility requirements noted below, Apple will replace your iPhone 5 battery, free of charge.

I checked mine. It “passed”. How about your iPhone 5?