Kids with screens lead to adults without resilience, which lead to kids with screens.
A group of Singaporean researchers who studied a cohort of 168 children for more than a decade found that those exposed to screens in infancy (before two years of age) showed accelerated maturation of brain networks involved in visual processing and cognitive control. That faster specialization, the researchers suggest, was associated with slower decision-making in childhood, and in turn, higher anxiety symptoms in adolescence.
"During normal development, brain networks gradually become more specialised over time," according to the study's lead author Dr. Huang Pei. "However, in children with high screen exposure, the networks controlling vision and cognition specialised faster, before they had developed the efficient connections needed for complex thinking." […]
So, what is a new parent to do when confronted with a growing amount of screen time in adults, children, and infants, and multiple research results that suggest it's bad for the brain? Put down the smartphone and stow the iPad in favor of a good, old-fashioned book.
Children whose parents frequently read to them at age three showed a weakened link between screen time and altered brain development, meaning active engagement and enrichment brought by reading to children and asking them questions about the books shared with them helps foster better emotional management, language skills, and, in the case of the latest study, is likely to help their brains develop at a consistent, healthy rate across various cognitive areas.
Parents, read to your children. Physical books, not from a screen because it’s still a screen, and all it takes is one notification to distract from the experience. Physical books are a joy, and I’ll drown in them if I have to.
Erica Komisar in her book, Being There - Why Prioritizing Motherhood in the First Three Years Matters, shines more light on the subject, this time with mothers. Distracted stay-at-home mothers are no different than mothers who are out of the house and at work when it comes to caring for a child:
However, a stay-at-home mother who is bored by caring for her child; inattentive to her child’s needs; overwhelmed with caring for her child; distracted by her phone, tablet, or computer; or caught up in social or other family obligations—or the mother who is depressed and turns away from her child emotionally—is as absent to that child as a mother who spends long hours away from home.
The question for this generation and generations to come is, what is causing a mother to be bored with her child? What is causing her to be inattentive or overwhelmed? There is no doubt that a huge contributing factor is the constant dopamine that screens provide, making caring for a little one dull and boring. And the best way to keep them quiet? A screen.
The vicious cycle continues.
Another excerpt from her book:
It is rare for me to walk down the are not in fact street or go for a walk in the park and to see a mother or caregiver truly engaged emotionally present.with a baby. Instead, I see mothers and caregivers preoccupied with their cell phones. Technology has changed our lives forever, in some ways for the good and in some ways not. The desire to be stimulated every moment and to flee from the boring moments of being with our babies is only exacerbated by the seduction of our constantly lit-up cell phones. One might say (and I do) that we did better before the ubiquitous cell phone in terms of our focus on our children. As a culture we have become inured to the impact of these interruptions and distractions on our feelings, our psyches, and our sense of self. My husband and I recently went to a restaurant and had dinner near a couple who looked at their cell phones, not each other, for the entire dinner. Imagine what it is like for your child when you constantly pick up your phone, text, or check your emails to see if there is something or someone more important and more interesting than he is. It is your ability to find your child interesting that makes your child feel interesting and develops his self-esteem; of course, constantly checking your phone will make your child feel less interesting and less important to you.
A group of Singaporean researchers who studied a cohort of 168 children for more than a decade found that those exposed to screens in infancy (before two years of age) showed accelerated maturation of brain networks involved in visual processing and cognitive control. That faster specialization, the researchers suggest, was associated with slower decision-making in childhood, and in turn, higher anxiety symptoms in adolescence.
"During normal development, brain networks gradually become more specialised over time," according to the study's lead author Dr. Huang Pei. "However, in children with high screen exposure, the networks controlling vision and cognition specialised faster, before they had developed the efficient connections needed for complex thinking." […]
So, what is a new parent to do when confronted with a growing amount of screen time in adults, children, and infants, and multiple research results that suggest it's bad for the brain? Put down the smartphone and stow the iPad in favor of a good, old-fashioned book.
Children whose parents frequently read to them at age three showed a weakened link between screen time and altered brain development, meaning active engagement and enrichment brought by reading to children and asking them questions about the books shared with them helps foster better emotional management, language skills, and, in the case of the latest study, is likely to help their brains develop at a consistent, healthy rate across various cognitive areas.
Parents, read to your children. Physical books, not from a screen because it’s still a screen, and all it takes is one notification to distract from the experience. Physical books are a joy, and I’ll drown in them if I have to.
Erica Komisar in her book, Being There - Why Prioritizing Motherhood in the First Three Years Matters, shines more light on the subject, this time with mothers. Distracted stay-at-home mothers are no different than mothers who are out of the house and at work when it comes to caring for a child:
However, a stay-at-home mother who is bored by caring for her child; inattentive to her child’s needs; overwhelmed with caring for her child; distracted by her phone, tablet, or computer; or caught up in social or other family obligations—or the mother who is depressed and turns away from her child emotionally—is as absent to that child as a mother who spends long hours away from home.
The question for this generation and generations to come is, what is causing a mother to be bored with her child? What is causing her to be inattentive or overwhelmed? There is no doubt that a huge contributing factor is the constant dopamine that screens provide, making caring for a little one dull and boring. And the best way to keep them quiet? A screen.
The vicious cycle continues.
Another excerpt from her book:
It is rare for me to walk down the are not in fact street or go for a walk in the park and to see a mother or caregiver truly engaged emotionally present.with a baby. Instead, I see mothers and caregivers preoccupied with their cell phones. Technology has changed our lives forever, in some ways for the good and in some ways not. The desire to be stimulated every moment and to flee from the boring moments of being with our babies is only exacerbated by the seduction of our constantly lit-up cell phones. One might say (and I do) that we did better before the ubiquitous cell phone in terms of our focus on our children. As a culture we have become inured to the impact of these interruptions and distractions on our feelings, our psyches, and our sense of self. My husband and I recently went to a restaurant and had dinner near a couple who looked at their cell phones, not each other, for the entire dinner. Imagine what it is like for your child when you constantly pick up your phone, text, or check your emails to see if there is something or someone more important and more interesting than he is. It is your ability to find your child interesting that makes your child feel interesting and develops his self-esteem; of course, constantly checking your phone will make your child feel less interesting and less important to you.
Throttle House addresses the bane of in-car wireless chargers.
One of the top worst modern car features is undoubtedly not so modern.
The ancient universal Qi wireless charging standard.
Automakers need to either get rid of it completely, or give us Qi2 with the Magnetic Power Profile (MagSafe), preferably in some sort of modular form that allows you to dock your phone similar to the Xiaomi SU7.
One of the top worst modern car features is undoubtedly not so modern.
The ancient universal Qi wireless charging standard.
Automakers need to either get rid of it completely, or give us Qi2 with the Magnetic Power Profile (MagSafe), preferably in some sort of modular form that allows you to dock your phone similar to the Xiaomi SU7.
iPhone Pocket vanishes from apple.com as if it never existed.
Clicking the link from their newsroom release article leads to this screen. No more grayed out sold out page like the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand.
Clicking the link from their newsroom release article leads to this screen. No more grayed out sold out page like the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand.
Google has 2 different online merch stores.
I didn’t know this, but pretty neat if you’re into the Googleverse:
Both have exclusive goodies.
If you want Apple merch, you have to go to Apple Park Visitor Center, a worthy side quest if you’re touring San Francisco.
I didn’t know this, but pretty neat if you’re into the Googleverse:
Both have exclusive goodies.
If you want Apple merch, you have to go to Apple Park Visitor Center, a worthy side quest if you’re touring San Francisco.
The “magic” weight loss pill has arrived.
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved a pill version of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight loss drug.
The Wegovy pill, as it’s called, is first oral version of a GLP-1 drug that has been brought to market for weight loss. A second pill, from Eli Lilly, is also expected to be approved in the coming months.
Novo Nordisk expects the Wegovy pill to be available widely in January, a company spokesperson said. […]
“This is a meaningful step forward in the field,” said Dr. Christopher McGowan, a gastroenterologist who runs a weight loss clinic in Cary, North Carolina. “It won’t replace injectables, but it broadens our tool kit in an important way.”
Customers would ask about “a pill for weight loss” years ago - a magic pill for weight loss. Now the dream is halfway there. The pill exists, but nothing magical about the side effects:
As with GLP-1 injections, the most common reported side effects in the trial were gastrointestinal, including nausea and vomiting. In some cases, the side effects from the pill version may feel “more intense,” McGowan said, because the medication hits the stomach all at once and can trigger nausea.
“The challenges we see with injectable GLP-1s don’t magically disappear with a tablet,” he said.
As always, you can’t beat the traditional recommendation of two critical lifestyle changes: changing your diet for the better, and more exercise.
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved a pill version of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight loss drug.
The Wegovy pill, as it’s called, is first oral version of a GLP-1 drug that has been brought to market for weight loss. A second pill, from Eli Lilly, is also expected to be approved in the coming months.
Novo Nordisk expects the Wegovy pill to be available widely in January, a company spokesperson said. […]
“This is a meaningful step forward in the field,” said Dr. Christopher McGowan, a gastroenterologist who runs a weight loss clinic in Cary, North Carolina. “It won’t replace injectables, but it broadens our tool kit in an important way.”
Customers would ask about “a pill for weight loss” years ago - a magic pill for weight loss. Now the dream is halfway there. The pill exists, but nothing magical about the side effects:
As with GLP-1 injections, the most common reported side effects in the trial were gastrointestinal, including nausea and vomiting. In some cases, the side effects from the pill version may feel “more intense,” McGowan said, because the medication hits the stomach all at once and can trigger nausea.
“The challenges we see with injectable GLP-1s don’t magically disappear with a tablet,” he said.
As always, you can’t beat the traditional recommendation of two critical lifestyle changes: changing your diet for the better, and more exercise.
One of my favorite brothers also uses an iPhone Air.
He’s not politically correct, but who is these days? Anyway Gabriel Al Romaani talks female narcissism in this specific video, and when he addresses the female selfie craze, he busts out an iPhone Air, which was refreshing to see, Allahumma baarik.
Great minds think alike.
He’s not politically correct, but who is these days? Anyway Gabriel Al Romaani talks female narcissism in this specific video, and when he addresses the female selfie craze, he busts out an iPhone Air, which was refreshing to see, Allahumma baarik.
Great minds think alike.
The story behind the iPhone 4.
One of the greatest tech stories of our time. I didn’t appreciate it as much at the time because I was an Android fanboy, but this was the first device that convinced me to go iPhone. Also in podcast form.
One of the greatest tech stories of our time. I didn’t appreciate it as much at the time because I was an Android fanboy, but this was the first device that convinced me to go iPhone. Also in podcast form.
Google Store is down.
Wanted to share their cool merch they had on sale, but now the store is down?
Wanted to share their cool merch they had on sale, but now the store is down?
Life update.
My apologies to my consistent readers out there, as I have been inconsistent at certain times, one of them being right now. Life throws curveballs at you when you least expect it, and when we had our daughter back in January, it was a curveball we didn’t expect.
Our daughter was born with many health issues, including a cleft lip, a cleft in her epiglottis causing aspiration issues, visual impairment, and brain tissue anomalies along with a weakened pituitary gland, meaning she doesn’t produce enough growth hormone. You would think with all these conditions she would be like a vegetable, but thankfully with God’s grace she is still very active and a cute little button that brings joy into our lives. She’s doing much better.
We’ve been in and out of the hospital several times over the course of the past year, with countless doctor visits and home nurse visits. It takes a toll on a person to deal with these issues, and it also brings perspective into one’s life and a sense of higher purpose. Thankfully my daughter is doing well, and things are looking optimistic.
That being said, I will continue to talk about Apple, cars, and technology, but also throwing in other topics that I hope benefits others that have a serious focus on faith and family life.
I understand this might not be your cup of tea, but it’s something that really means a lot to me, and part of me fulfilling a higher purpose. If anything, you can be more assured that the advice I provide will be genuine since at the end of the day, I will have to answer to God and I have to make sure I was not deceiving anyone regardless of their faith.
Stay tuned for even more value continuing onwards, beyond just tech insights.
My apologies to my consistent readers out there, as I have been inconsistent at certain times, one of them being right now. Life throws curveballs at you when you least expect it, and when we had our daughter back in January, it was a curveball we didn’t expect.
Our daughter was born with many health issues, including a cleft lip, a cleft in her epiglottis causing aspiration issues, visual impairment, and brain tissue anomalies along with a weakened pituitary gland, meaning she doesn’t produce enough growth hormone. You would think with all these conditions she would be like a vegetable, but thankfully with God’s grace she is still very active and a cute little button that brings joy into our lives. She’s doing much better.
We’ve been in and out of the hospital several times over the course of the past year, with countless doctor visits and home nurse visits. It takes a toll on a person to deal with these issues, and it also brings perspective into one’s life and a sense of higher purpose. Thankfully my daughter is doing well, and things are looking optimistic.
That being said, I will continue to talk about Apple, cars, and technology, but also throwing in other topics that I hope benefits others that have a serious focus on faith and family life.
I understand this might not be your cup of tea, but it’s something that really means a lot to me, and part of me fulfilling a higher purpose. If anything, you can be more assured that the advice I provide will be genuine since at the end of the day, I will have to answer to God and I have to make sure I was not deceiving anyone regardless of their faith.
Stay tuned for even more value continuing onwards, beyond just tech insights.
Apple’s new foldable iPhone needs to nail two key features in order to make it a success.
Those two features are:
Foldable display durability.
Amazing, intuitive software experience.
I’m not worried about the hinge durability since Apple has been making hinges for years and have some of the best hardware in the market. The main concern is with the foldable display.
Apple did innovate hard with Ceramic Shield 2, being 3x better at scratch resistance, and is the only phone with non-existent scratches on a level 6 to barely scratching at a level 7 on mohs scale of hardness. Every other mainstream and flagship phone scratches at a level 6 with deeper grooves at a level 7. I can’t imagine Apple will release a fragile inner display with a crease requiring a plastic screen protector prone to fingernail scratches. This is the harsh reality is even after 7 hardware iterations of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold. Impressive and thin, but with an achilles heel.
Apple waits for technology to be set to a standard that meets their ethos before jumping in. It would be spitting in the face of Steve Jobs if they released a device with a plastic screen protector after he famously ordered a massive shift from plastic to glass in iPhone production the minute he noticed scratches on the display. Hopefully Apple’s continued investment in Corning will mitigate this issue and they have something up their sleeve that will wow us.
I’m also worried about the software experience, especially if we have the iPad to judge by. Having too many options for window layouts and multitasking would be cumbersome on a smaller screen, and hopefully Apple takes a play out of their playbook to make the software fun, simple, and intuitive. When iPhone X was released, it was a huge shift in usability with the removal of the Home Button, but it was once again fun, simple, and intuitive. Dynamic Island was also a new innovation at a smaller scale and followed the playbook, being a useful tool that I miss every time I go back to a notched iPhone.
Now what is my definition of success in this specific case? It’s not record sales numbers, but the ability to execute and make an experience that changes the game. I consider iPhone Air to be a success, because it shows you can make a durable and thin device that lasts all day at scale, something not possible a few years ago. A foldable phone doesn’t have to deliver on all technological fronts with the best cameras and the best battery life, but it needs to be durable like a regular phone, and it needs to have a software experience that makes sense and would make people jump at the opportunity.
Those two features are:
Foldable display durability.
Amazing, intuitive software experience.
I’m not worried about the hinge durability since Apple has been making hinges for years and have some of the best hardware in the market. The main concern is with the foldable display.
Apple did innovate hard with Ceramic Shield 2, being 3x better at scratch resistance, and is the only phone with non-existent scratches on a level 6 to barely scratching at a level 7 on mohs scale of hardness. Every other mainstream and flagship phone scratches at a level 6 with deeper grooves at a level 7. I can’t imagine Apple will release a fragile inner display with a crease requiring a plastic screen protector prone to fingernail scratches. This is the harsh reality is even after 7 hardware iterations of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold. Impressive and thin, but with an achilles heel.
Apple waits for technology to be set to a standard that meets their ethos before jumping in. It would be spitting in the face of Steve Jobs if they released a device with a plastic screen protector after he famously ordered a massive shift from plastic to glass in iPhone production the minute he noticed scratches on the display. Hopefully Apple’s continued investment in Corning will mitigate this issue and they have something up their sleeve that will wow us.
I’m also worried about the software experience, especially if we have the iPad to judge by. Having too many options for window layouts and multitasking would be cumbersome on a smaller screen, and hopefully Apple takes a play out of their playbook to make the software fun, simple, and intuitive. When iPhone X was released, it was a huge shift in usability with the removal of the Home Button, but it was once again fun, simple, and intuitive. Dynamic Island was also a new innovation at a smaller scale and followed the playbook, being a useful tool that I miss every time I go back to a notched iPhone.
Now what is my definition of success in this specific case? It’s not record sales numbers, but the ability to execute and make an experience that changes the game. I consider iPhone Air to be a success, because it shows you can make a durable and thin device that lasts all day at scale, something not possible a few years ago. A foldable phone doesn’t have to deliver on all technological fronts with the best cameras and the best battery life, but it needs to be durable like a regular phone, and it needs to have a software experience that makes sense and would make people jump at the opportunity.
US gives Taiwan more military funding which will certainly piss off China.
NPR:
The Trump administration has announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion that includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, a move that is sure to infuriate China.
The State Department announced the sales late Wednesday during a nationally televised address by President Donald Trump, who made scant mention of foreign policy issues and did not speak about China or Taiwan at all. U.S.-Chinese tensions have ebbed and flowed during Trump's second term, largely over trade and tariffs but also over China's increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing has said must reunify with the mainland.
The eight arms sales agreements announced Wednesday cover 82 high-mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS, and 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS — similar to what the U.S. had been providing Ukraine during the Biden administration to defend itself from Russia — worth more than $4 billion. They also include 60 self-propelled howitzer systems and related equipment worth more than $4 billion and drones valued at more than $1 billion.
Other sales in the package include military software valued at more than $1 billion, Javelin and TOW missiles worth more than $700 million, helicopter spare parts worth $96 million and refurbishment kits for Harpoon missiles worth $91 million.
TSMC, Apple’s bread and butter chip maker, and also the chip maker for many other companies, is in Taiwan if you weren’t already aware of that.
Now you know why Apple wants to partner with Intel.
NPR:
The Trump administration has announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion that includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, a move that is sure to infuriate China.
The State Department announced the sales late Wednesday during a nationally televised address by President Donald Trump, who made scant mention of foreign policy issues and did not speak about China or Taiwan at all. U.S.-Chinese tensions have ebbed and flowed during Trump's second term, largely over trade and tariffs but also over China's increasing aggressiveness toward Taiwan, which Beijing has said must reunify with the mainland.
The eight arms sales agreements announced Wednesday cover 82 high-mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS, and 420 Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS — similar to what the U.S. had been providing Ukraine during the Biden administration to defend itself from Russia — worth more than $4 billion. They also include 60 self-propelled howitzer systems and related equipment worth more than $4 billion and drones valued at more than $1 billion.
Other sales in the package include military software valued at more than $1 billion, Javelin and TOW missiles worth more than $700 million, helicopter spare parts worth $96 million and refurbishment kits for Harpoon missiles worth $91 million.
TSMC, Apple’s bread and butter chip maker, and also the chip maker for many other companies, is in Taiwan if you weren’t already aware of that.
Now you know why Apple wants to partner with Intel.
Speaking of Calibri, do you remember “fontgate” and the Panama Papers?
Dawn news, July 2017:
ISLAMABAD: In a move that seems to be plucked from the pages of a detective story, the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing allegations of money laundering against the Sharif family has concluded that certain documents were created ‘post-facto’ on the basis of the font used in them.
In its quest to establish the actual ownership of Nescoll Ltd and Neilsen Enterprises Ltd — the offshore entities that own the four London properties which are at the heart of the Panama Papers case — the JIT sought an expert opinion from Radley Forensic Document Laboratory, a UK-based agency.
In the Panama Papers, a number of documents naming Mariam Safdar — the married name of Maryam Nawaz Sharif — as the beneficial owner of the two offshore companies, also surfaced.
These were denied by Ms Sharif and on Nov 15, 2016, she tweeted trust documents that showed that she was merely a trustee and not the beneficial owner of the two companies that own the Avenfield House properties.
In January 2017, Bastian Obermayer — the Pulitzer prize-winning Süddeutsche Zeitung journalist who broke the Panama Papers story — released a spate of documents contradicting Ms Sharif’s claims.
These included a copy of her passport, alongside emails and documents bearing the particulars of Mariam Safdar.
In its report, the JIT noted that when she appeared before investigators on July 5, Ms Sharif brought along a copy of the “Nescoll/Neilsen declaration”, the document that she had earlier released on Twitter.
The JIT’s report, quoting forensic handwriting and document examiner Robert W. Radley, noted that he had "identified the type font used to produce both certified declarations as ‘Calibri’. However, [the font] was not commercially available before Jan 31, 2007 and as such, neither of the [documents] is correctly dated and [appear] to have been created at some later point in time."
On the basis of this analysis, the JIT concludes that not only Maryam Nawaz Sharif “was (and probably still is) the real and ultimate beneficial owner of the Avenfield properties”, it adds that the “claim of... being the ‘trustee’ was an attempt to mislead” the court.
There was a Wikipedia war, with loyal fans for and against the political party trying to change the font’s release date from 2007 to 2004 to prove her innocence:
The story, which appealed to many tech-savvy social media users, was hotly debated on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. After #Fontgate — as it was dubbed on social media — went viral, the Wikipedia page for the Calibri font was edited several times by anonymous users from within Pakistan, prompting the site to ‘lock’ the page.
Most of these edits changed the font’s date of release from 2007 to 2004.
Saqib Qayyum, a member of the Wikipedia help desk, told Dawn the page did not see a single edit on July 9 or 10, but was edited 36 times (including seven clean-up edits by Mr Qayyum) on July 11.
“I was trying to remove the unverified information being added by anonymous people from Pakistan and outside the country. I nominated the page to be locked down due to content dispute issue and to prevent any further editing,” he said, adding that the page would be open to editing in a week’s time.
Technically Calibri was available in 2004 to specific Microsoft employees and select developers, but still very unlikely that the documents in question are real. Thomas Phinney, former CEO of FontLab, chimed in on Quora:
Windows pre-release versions are generally used by programmers and IT professionals to test and develop software. They are not broadly used for general office tasks.
I gather many people are using this post in a debate about a document produced by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, using Calibri and dated to 4 February 2006 (How Microsoft’s Calibri font doomed Sharif family in Panama Case). Again: be aware that pre-release versions of Windows are not generally used for typical office documents; just because it is physically possible that Calibri could be in a random document dated to 2006 does not make it at all likely.
If you have a document:
• whose authenticity is already in question
• which was not created by somebody who is a likely Windows pre-release user (not a programmer or the like), nor a hard-core font geek like me
• and it is then noticed that it used Calibri back in February 2006
Then the odds are strong the document is a forgery.
The More You Know.
Dawn news, July 2017:
ISLAMABAD: In a move that seems to be plucked from the pages of a detective story, the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing allegations of money laundering against the Sharif family has concluded that certain documents were created ‘post-facto’ on the basis of the font used in them.
In its quest to establish the actual ownership of Nescoll Ltd and Neilsen Enterprises Ltd — the offshore entities that own the four London properties which are at the heart of the Panama Papers case — the JIT sought an expert opinion from Radley Forensic Document Laboratory, a UK-based agency.
In the Panama Papers, a number of documents naming Mariam Safdar — the married name of Maryam Nawaz Sharif — as the beneficial owner of the two offshore companies, also surfaced.
These were denied by Ms Sharif and on Nov 15, 2016, she tweeted trust documents that showed that she was merely a trustee and not the beneficial owner of the two companies that own the Avenfield House properties.
In January 2017, Bastian Obermayer — the Pulitzer prize-winning Süddeutsche Zeitung journalist who broke the Panama Papers story — released a spate of documents contradicting Ms Sharif’s claims.
These included a copy of her passport, alongside emails and documents bearing the particulars of Mariam Safdar.
In its report, the JIT noted that when she appeared before investigators on July 5, Ms Sharif brought along a copy of the “Nescoll/Neilsen declaration”, the document that she had earlier released on Twitter.
The JIT’s report, quoting forensic handwriting and document examiner Robert W. Radley, noted that he had "identified the type font used to produce both certified declarations as ‘Calibri’. However, [the font] was not commercially available before Jan 31, 2007 and as such, neither of the [documents] is correctly dated and [appear] to have been created at some later point in time."
On the basis of this analysis, the JIT concludes that not only Maryam Nawaz Sharif “was (and probably still is) the real and ultimate beneficial owner of the Avenfield properties”, it adds that the “claim of... being the ‘trustee’ was an attempt to mislead” the court.
There was a Wikipedia war, with loyal fans for and against the political party trying to change the font’s release date from 2007 to 2004 to prove her innocence:
The story, which appealed to many tech-savvy social media users, was hotly debated on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. After #Fontgate — as it was dubbed on social media — went viral, the Wikipedia page for the Calibri font was edited several times by anonymous users from within Pakistan, prompting the site to ‘lock’ the page.
Most of these edits changed the font’s date of release from 2007 to 2004.
Saqib Qayyum, a member of the Wikipedia help desk, told Dawn the page did not see a single edit on July 9 or 10, but was edited 36 times (including seven clean-up edits by Mr Qayyum) on July 11.
“I was trying to remove the unverified information being added by anonymous people from Pakistan and outside the country. I nominated the page to be locked down due to content dispute issue and to prevent any further editing,” he said, adding that the page would be open to editing in a week’s time.
Technically Calibri was available in 2004 to specific Microsoft employees and select developers, but still very unlikely that the documents in question are real. Thomas Phinney, former CEO of FontLab, chimed in on Quora:
Windows pre-release versions are generally used by programmers and IT professionals to test and develop software. They are not broadly used for general office tasks.
I gather many people are using this post in a debate about a document produced by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, using Calibri and dated to 4 February 2006 (How Microsoft’s Calibri font doomed Sharif family in Panama Case). Again: be aware that pre-release versions of Windows are not generally used for typical office documents; just because it is physically possible that Calibri could be in a random document dated to 2006 does not make it at all likely.
If you have a document:
• whose authenticity is already in question
• which was not created by somebody who is a likely Windows pre-release user (not a programmer or the like), nor a hard-core font geek like me
• and it is then noticed that it used Calibri back in February 2006
Then the odds are strong the document is a forgery.
The More You Know.
The most premium way to manage your cables like an animal.
The Verge (pseudo pay-walled) (News+ link)
Warning: I’m going to make an attempt to justify a $40 paperweight for cable management. I’m not sure how I ended up in this position, or who hurt me. All I can say is that I’m not proud of myself, so please, take pity. […]
I like that it’s designed to allow cables to slide effortlessly between the gaps without the USB-C or MagSafe connectors falling through. But I could do without the “Native Union” logo inscription, or the word “Paris,” which I assume is meant to help justify the luxury pricing. What is fashion?
Great gift for the techie who already has everything.
The Verge (pseudo pay-walled) (News+ link)
Warning: I’m going to make an attempt to justify a $40 paperweight for cable management. I’m not sure how I ended up in this position, or who hurt me. All I can say is that I’m not proud of myself, so please, take pity. […]
I like that it’s designed to allow cables to slide effortlessly between the gaps without the USB-C or MagSafe connectors falling through. But I could do without the “Native Union” logo inscription, or the word “Paris,” which I assume is meant to help justify the luxury pricing. What is fashion?
Great gift for the techie who already has everything.
Apple’s “Can’t Decide” video is officially its most popular video on YouTube.
It’s at 79 million views just like the previous number one video, but it’s ranked above the “Swiped Mac - Apple at Work” video, confirming a higher view count. Most impressively is the speed at which it reached 79 million.
The “Swiped Mac” video took 2 years to get to 79 million. Apple’s “Can’t Decide” video? 3 months. Of course this makes sense since one is just a comical ad while the iPhone buying guide is much more mainstream and informative. It would be a no-brainer for Apple to do this kind of video for each major iPhone release cycle.
I have a bittersweet feeling about this video’s popularity considering the thumbnail image really is a self-fulfilling prophecy in its own right:
iPhone 17 Pro is shown front and center, and is the most popular variant from both enthusiasts and conscious buyers.
iPhone 17 isn’t shown at all, but is always the sleeper hit that doesn’t need excessive marketing, and is the obvious de facto upgrade for most, “I’ll use my phone till the wheels fall off,” kind of buyer.
iPhone Air? You can barely see it which is part of the marketing ploy, but the, “you can barely see it” mantra also applies to sales and spottings in the wild. It figuratively and literally disappeared from mainstream consumption with only die hard fans taking the plunge.
Most people won’t see the thumbnail in full resolution, but as a low-res image making the disappearing iPhone Air illusion all the more realistic.
It’s at 79 million views just like the previous number one video, but it’s ranked above the “Swiped Mac - Apple at Work” video, confirming a higher view count. Most impressively is the speed at which it reached 79 million.
The “Swiped Mac” video took 2 years to get to 79 million. Apple’s “Can’t Decide” video? 3 months. Of course this makes sense since one is just a comical ad while the iPhone buying guide is much more mainstream and informative. It would be a no-brainer for Apple to do this kind of video for each major iPhone release cycle.
I have a bittersweet feeling about this video’s popularity considering the thumbnail image really is a self-fulfilling prophecy in its own right:
iPhone 17 Pro is shown front and center, and is the most popular variant from both enthusiasts and conscious buyers.
iPhone 17 isn’t shown at all, but is always the sleeper hit that doesn’t need excessive marketing, and is the obvious de facto upgrade for most, “I’ll use my phone till the wheels fall off,” kind of buyer.
iPhone Air? You can barely see it which is part of the marketing ploy, but the, “you can barely see it” mantra also applies to sales and spottings in the wild. It figuratively and literally disappeared from mainstream consumption with only die hard fans taking the plunge.
Most people won’t see the thumbnail in full resolution, but as a low-res image making the disappearing iPhone Air illusion all the more realistic.
Smart Stack on Apple Watch - how many widgets can you really have?
The tricky thing is determining what actually is a widget, because you would think each rectangular block is a widget..📓
Assuming you turned off widget suggestions. You can have up to 10 widgets on the Series 9, 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 3. I’m assuming you can also have 10 widgets on the Ultra 2 and Series 11, which I don’t have for testing but they all use the same processor. On my much older Series 5, you can have 6 widgets.
The tricky thing is determining what actually is a widget, because you would think each rectangular block is a widget, but if you use the rectangular block with 3 circle widgets, each circle counts towards your total widget count. So on my Ultra 3 for example, I can have 7 widgets, and an 8th widget that holds the 3 circle widgets (total of 10). You can have only 1 or 2 circle widgets if you like, and add more full-sized widgets totaling 10.
Bottom line - you can’t treat the 3 circle widgets that occupies the space of one widget as one widget. They count as 3 separate widgets.
That would be one widget, two widgets, and three widgets Sire.
Bonus calendar widget in Smart Stack is back.
Apple added it, took it away, and now brought it back again:
New quality of life update - you can click on the date in Smart Stack to enter your calendar. Now you can free up a widget if you had a dedicated “Your Schedule” widget set up.
You can also click on the time to go back to your watch face.
I’m currently running watchOS 26.2 Developer Beta.
Apple added it, took it away, and now brought it back again:
New quality of life update - you can click on the date in Smart Stack to enter your calendar. Now you can free up a widget if you had a dedicated “Your Schedule” widget set up.
You can also click on the time to go back to your watch face.
I’m currently running watchOS 26.2 Developer Beta.
More “intel” on Johny Srouji’s plans.
Looks like Apple dodged a bullet, as Johny Srouji has decided to stay at Apple and doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon per a leaked memo (9to5Mac reporting from Bloomberg):
“I know you’ve been reading all kind of rumors and speculations about my future at Apple, and I feel that you need to hear from me directly,” he said in a memo to his division. “I am proud of the amazing Technologies we all build across Displays, Cameras, Sensors, Silicon, Batteries, and a very wide set of technologies, across all of Apple Products. Together we enable the best products in the world. I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.”
It isn’t a surprise that Intel would be the other company pursuing Johny, with several attempts in the past.
9to5Mac, literally a year ago:
As reported by Bloomberg on Sunday, Intel is now looking for a new CEO as Pat Gelsinger retired from the company earlier this month. Interestingly, it seems that Johny Srouji is on Intel’s short list to take over as CEO. The report says that Intel already approached Srouji five years ago, when former CEO Brian Krzanich was leaving the company.
However, sources say that Srouji “didn’t seriously consider the job” at the time, as he was focused on developing the first Apple Silicon chips for the Mac and everything was fine at Apple.
Looks like Apple dodged a bullet, as Johny Srouji has decided to stay at Apple and doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon per a leaked memo (9to5Mac reporting from Bloomberg):
“I know you’ve been reading all kind of rumors and speculations about my future at Apple, and I feel that you need to hear from me directly,” he said in a memo to his division. “I am proud of the amazing Technologies we all build across Displays, Cameras, Sensors, Silicon, Batteries, and a very wide set of technologies, across all of Apple Products. Together we enable the best products in the world. I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.”
It isn’t a surprise that Intel would be the other company pursuing Johny, with several attempts in the past.
9to5Mac, literally a year ago:
As reported by Bloomberg on Sunday, Intel is now looking for a new CEO as Pat Gelsinger retired from the company earlier this month. Interestingly, it seems that Johny Srouji is on Intel’s short list to take over as CEO. The report says that Intel already approached Srouji five years ago, when former CEO Brian Krzanich was leaving the company.
However, sources say that Srouji “didn’t seriously consider the job” at the time, as he was focused on developing the first Apple Silicon chips for the Mac and everything was fine at Apple.
Porsche makes a 3.5-inch display that features Apple CarPlay.
Doug finally got his Arena Red Porsche 993 Turbo, and what’s even cooler than that is his biggest quirk and feature - a 3.5-inch Porsche-made, Apple CarPlay head unit with a touchscreen. It’s made to look period-correct for the vehicle, and a perfect solution to buying a classic car that needs a technology upgrade.
It’s not wireless CarPlay, but you can’t complain when it looks this good in a 29 year-old car.
Doug finally got his Arena Red Porsche 993 Turbo, and what’s even cooler than that is his biggest quirk and feature - a 3.5-inch Porsche-made, Apple CarPlay head unit with a touchscreen. It’s made to look period-correct for the vehicle, and a perfect solution to buying a classic car that needs a technology upgrade.
It’s not wireless CarPlay, but you can’t complain when it looks this good in a 29 year-old car.
The only constant, is change.
Apple has had a slew of changes recently, and it doesn’t surprise me all these shuffles happened in the off-season, right after they released all their new software and hardware for the year and progress can take a slower pace. Pump out the products, and then rework the org chart for the coming years, making sure the headlines don’t overshadow product marketing.
As Yoda would say:
“Pump out the products they did.”
“Reworking the org chart, they are.”
Abidur Chowdhury, Industrial Designer at Apple, who introduced the iPhone Air in the keynote event, left Apple in November for an AI startup.
Jeff Williams, Apple’s former Chief Operating Officer, has retired or is on the brink of retirement by year’s end, right after launching a groundbreaking hypertension notification feature and three new Apple Watches, only the second time since 2014.
Amar Subramanya, AI researcher at Microsoft and Google, will replace John Giannandrea - announced on Dec 1st.
Alan Dye, head of Apple UI design will start working at Meta on Dec. 31st, and will be replaced by Stephen Lemay.
Will turnover be this drastic every off-season? Who knows.
Apple has had a slew of changes recently, and it doesn’t surprise me all these shuffles happened in the off-season, right after they released all their new software and hardware for the year and progress can take a slower pace. Pump out the products, and then rework the org chart for the coming years, making sure the headlines don’t overshadow product marketing.
As Yoda would say:
“Pump out the products they did.”
“Reworking the org chart, they are.”
Abidur Chowdhury, Industrial Designer at Apple, who introduced the iPhone Air in the keynote event, left Apple in November for an AI startup.
Jeff Williams, Apple’s former Chief Operating Officer, has retired or is on the brink of retirement by year’s end, right after launching a groundbreaking hypertension notification feature and three new Apple Watches, only the second time since 2014.
Amar Subramanya, AI researcher at Microsoft and Google, will replace John Giannandrea - announced on Dec 1st.
Alan Dye, head of Apple UI design will start working at Meta on Dec. 31st, and will be replaced by Stephen Lemay.
Will turnover be this drastic every off-season? Who knows.
Apple needs to squash this 3-year old bug in watchOS 27.
Mark Gurman in his latest Power On Newsletter:
After the sweeping design overhaul of iOS 26 and the debut of Liquid Glass across its platforms, Apple is working on a Snow Leopard-style update. For iOS 27 and next year’s other major operating system updates — including macOS 27 — the company is focused on improving the software’s quality and underlying performance. […]
Aiming to improve the software, engineering teams are now combing through Apple’s operating systems, hunting for bloat to cut, bugs to eliminate, and any opportunity to meaningfully boost performance and overall quality.
watchOS 27 wasn’t mentioned by name and doesn’t have the brunt of software complaints, but don’t worry, I’m here to speak up for the silent majority.
watchOS 27 has a few bugs here and there, but nothing major. However, there is one feature that is still broken, and calling it a bug is being kind.
You can call it a minor infestation.
What am I talking about? I’m talking about, once again, the hidden toggle that is “Swipe to Switch Watch Face.” This mess started with watchOS 10 and its retooling of all the buttons and swipes.
I’ve tooted my horn about this several times in the past, but attention to detail is what makes Apple, Apple. When I’m swiping between watch faces, literally right now, with my Apple Watch Ultra 3, the best Apple Watch on the market, it still feels clunky and looks bad when compared to a Series 3 Apple Watch, a watch that has mastered the swipe between watch faces even though it crawls at a snails pace in every other function.
In fact, watchOS 26 has worse animations than my Series 10 on watchOS 11. At least the complications didn’t disappear and reappear like they do on watchOS 26.
Take a look for yourself:
Series 3 on watchOS 8 - notice the smooth transitioning of the seconds hand when swiping between analog faces, and how the time is always correct.
Series 10 on watchOS 11 - each swipe has to load the time and complications from scratch, but complications don’t disappear and reappear.
Ultra 3 on watchOS 26 - even worse than watchOS 11, with complications disappearing and reappearing.
Swiping to switch the watch face was a core feature from the beginning of Apple Watch, and even though swiping between watch faces is a transitionary software feature that doesn’t need to be reinvented, it does need to be fixed. Liquid Glass is proof that Apple does care about these small details - they literally reinvented every transition with Liquid Glass.
Apple Watch had a great run under their now-retired COO Jeff Williams, but I think he had too much on his plate, putting these optimizations on the back burner.
In addition to serving as Apple’s COO, Williams had also been overseeing the company’s customer service and support, the design team, software and hardware engineering for the Apple Watch, and Apple’s overall health initiatives.
Recently, Bloomberg reported that some of Williams’ responsibilities would be split, with the health and fitness teams reporting to Apple’s Senior Vice President of Services Eddy Cue, watchOS shifting to Senior Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi, and Apple Watch hardware engineering being handed to Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering John Ternus.
The tag-team combo of Federighi and Ternus leading software and hardware engineering for Apple Watch is a great sign, and I’m confident we’ll get a more optimized watchOS experience that runs as fluid as the Liquid Glass moniker it carries.
Mark Gurman in his latest Power On Newsletter:
After the sweeping design overhaul of iOS 26 and the debut of Liquid Glass across its platforms, Apple is working on a Snow Leopard-style update. For iOS 27 and next year’s other major operating system updates — including macOS 27 — the company is focused on improving the software’s quality and underlying performance. […]
Aiming to improve the software, engineering teams are now combing through Apple’s operating systems, hunting for bloat to cut, bugs to eliminate, and any opportunity to meaningfully boost performance and overall quality.
watchOS 27 wasn’t mentioned by name and doesn’t have the brunt of software complaints, but don’t worry, I’m here to speak up for the silent majority.
watchOS 27 has a few bugs here and there, but nothing major. However, there is one feature that is still broken, and calling it a bug is being kind.
You can call it a minor infestation.
What am I talking about? I’m talking about, once again, the hidden toggle that is “Swipe to Switch Watch Face.” This mess started with watchOS 10 and its retooling of all the buttons and swipes.
I’ve tooted my horn about this several times in the past, but attention to detail is what makes Apple, Apple. When I’m swiping between watch faces, literally right now, with my Apple Watch Ultra 3, the best Apple Watch on the market, it still feels clunky and looks bad when compared to a Series 3 Apple Watch, a watch that has mastered the swipe between watch faces even though it crawls at a snails pace in every other function.
In fact, watchOS 26 has worse animations than my Series 10 on watchOS 11. At least the complications didn’t disappear and reappear like they do on watchOS 26.
Take a look for yourself:
Series 3 on watchOS 8 - notice the smooth transitioning of the seconds hand when swiping between analog faces, and how the time is always correct.
Series 10 on watchOS 11 - each swipe has to load the time and complications from scratch, but complications don’t disappear and reappear.
Ultra 3 on watchOS 26 - even worse than watchOS 11, with complications disappearing and reappearing.
Swiping to switch the watch face was a core feature from the beginning of Apple Watch, and even though swiping between watch faces is a transitionary software feature that doesn’t need to be reinvented, it does need to be fixed. Liquid Glass is proof that Apple does care about these small details - they literally reinvented every transition with Liquid Glass.
Apple Watch had a great run under their now-retired COO Jeff Williams, but I think he had too much on his plate, putting these optimizations on the back burner.
In addition to serving as Apple’s COO, Williams had also been overseeing the company’s customer service and support, the design team, software and hardware engineering for the Apple Watch, and Apple’s overall health initiatives.
Recently, Bloomberg reported that some of Williams’ responsibilities would be split, with the health and fitness teams reporting to Apple’s Senior Vice President of Services Eddy Cue, watchOS shifting to Senior Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi, and Apple Watch hardware engineering being handed to Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering John Ternus.
The tag-team combo of Federighi and Ternus leading software and hardware engineering for Apple Watch is a great sign, and I’m confident we’ll get a more optimized watchOS experience that runs as fluid as the Liquid Glass moniker it carries.