- “DESPERATELY WANTING TO BE HAPPY IS LINKED WITH LOWER PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH… The more you go looking for happiness, the less likely you are to find it,” according to newest research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology. By perceiving happiness as an “individual pursuit – chasing the best career, buying stuff, and expecting all of that to lead to happiness – Americans get set up for a lifetime of letdowns,” versus collectivist societies like in Russia, East Asia or Japan where happiness is seen rather as a “social endeavor – spending time with friends, caring for parents, etc. – and social connection is integral to well-being.” [TIME – Oct 12, 15]
- REMOTE-CONTROLLED DRONES HAVE NOW EVOLVED TO ‘SELFIE-DRONES” which simply be “tossed in the air, and they will follow you like Tinker Bell… with a ‘boomerang mode’ that allows it to fly back to you even after being dumped in a river.” Fast becoming the staple of travelers, mischievous kids and peeping-toms, it’s not only privacy that’s gone but “quality-of-life factors like peacefulness, beauty, and safety.” Last May, a singer (Enrique Iglesias) “sliced his fingers while trying to snap a photo with a drone during his concert in Mexico” and, in just two summer months, 275 American pilots “reported seeing drones at altitudes up to 10,000 feet.” As drones become more ubiquitous, expect some major catastrophes. [NEW YORK TIMES – Aug 31, 15] MEANWHILE, SELF-CONTROLLING DRONES ARE GEARING UP FOR MAJOR CONSTRUCTION. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology engineers have successfully programmed three quadcopter drones to scan a 24-foot distance between two sets of scaffolding and physically build a bridge – “on their own, without human intervention, using ropes that they looped, braided & knotted together, after independently selecting the best anchor points for maximum load bearing and stability.” [THE WEEK – Oct 9, 15]
- LAWSUITS ARE CURRENTLY PENDING AGAINST GOOGLE, YAHOO AND TWITTER for “allegedly intercepting messages and monetizing contents via advertising, without user consent.” The latest California federal court complaint alleges that Twitter “surreptitiously eavesdrops … and that the system actually opens, scans and potentially alters a Direct Message… replacing hyperlinks with its own referral link that will first direct the recipient to Twitter and then on to the eventual destination… which identifies Twitter as the source of internet traffic… thus allowing negotiation of better advertising rates” in violation of federal and state Privacy Acts. A similar lawsuit against Gmail settled last year. [MANATT ADVERTISING LAW – Oct 1, 15]
- A 20-YEAR ‘MOBILITY PLAN’ TO MAKE LOS ANGELES STREETS “SAFER AND MORE EGALITARIAN” is off to a rough start. The City Council decision to reduce car lanes in favor of wider pedestrian sidewalks, more bike-lanes for cyclists, and more bus-only lanes has already created havoc for commuters, shoppers, students and anyone else trying to negotiate their way through a city where ‘rush hour’ traffic is sometimes 24/7 status. “Egalitarian” is defined as “the principle that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities” regardless of how disproportionately few they may be, another modern day social concept decided arbitrarily by politicians. [LOS ANGELES MAGAZINE – Oct 15]
- 75% OF AMERICA’S FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES OPERATE MORE THAN 7,600 ‘TAX-HAVEN’ SUBSIDIARIES holding over $2.1 Trillion, in accumulated profits offshore to avoid an estimated $620 Billion in U.S. taxes. Apple, GE and Microsoft alone hold a quarter of the total. Public disgust with Congress unwillingness to tackle that issue, particularly in light of federal indebtedness and mid-functioning of markets, is justifiably mounting. [REUTERS – Oct 6, 15]
- THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: “Compromise…is simply when we change the question to fit the answer.” – Merrit Malloy
