Snippets: 20 March 2013

Windows 7 SP 1 enforced, Syrian crisis for kids, how much money for happiness?

Snippets: 20 March 2013
Snippets: 20 March 2013

Microsoft is sick of users who cannot be bothered to update their PCs, so Windows 7 Service Pack 1 will be downloaded and installed automatically starting today. How would you explain the Syrian Crisis to a five year old? This video from a Reddit series attempts to do so. Explanation or indoctrination – you decide. Money cannot buy happiness but surely you need some money to be happy and someone has figured out the amount. Good investigative journalism is getting rarer. However, a deal between US energy companies and Israel in oil has been uncovered and it may be illegal because the oil does not belong to any one of them. Lastly, the Sulu-Sabah crisis has shone an unwanted spotlight on the challenges of moving towards an integrated ASEAN. How exactly can this be done?

 

#1: Windows 7 SP 1 Enforced

Support for Windows 7 will end in early April 2013. Don’t worry though, there will still be support for Windows 7 Service Pack 1. Even though the service pack has been out for quite a while, the huge bandwidth of mainstream users means that not everyone is updating their PCs. Microsoft has decided to enforce this update and your computer will be updated silently whether you like it or not. There’s nothing much to worry though. Service Pack 1 will bring your rather outdated vulnerable machine up to date without the controversy hanging around Windows 8.  [via ZDNet]

 

#2: Syrian Crisis Explained to Kids

Reddit has become somewhat of a huge force as the internet’s front page. Of course, that is in competition with Google and Facebook. Nonetheless, the web giant has now rolled out feature videos on YouTube in a series entitled ‘Explain Like I’m Five’. The first topic is on Syria. It’s a good watch. Whether or not you think its a fair explanation is another thing though. [via YouTube]

 

#3: How Much Money does Happiness Require?

Nearly everything you do in the first quarter of your life boils down to having a better future and churning out more gold coins which will… enable you to have an even better future. Not everything turns out nicely when we mash happiness and science but here is an analysis on how much money you’ll probably need to be happy. Screw that bright future, happiness is all it takes.  [via Lifehacker]

 

#4: Israel, Obama and other people’s oil

I try to read as widely as possible because opposing viewpoints are fun. You won’t read much about this from mainstream media considering the nature of the topic. Aljazeera has a good write up on how oil belonging to the Golan Heights is being siphoned off by US energy firms who have received permission to do so from Israel. The twist? Israel doesn’t legally own that oil pool. Uh-oh.  [via Aljazeera]

 

#5: Overcoming Obstacles towards ASEAN Integration

ASEAN is an intruiging regional body for many reasons. The region is so vastly diverse it is amazing that such an organization exists in the first place. We have all sorts of political structures and economic performances range very widely. How do you deal with such diversity? It also doesn’t help that some Filipinos staged an attack on ‘reclaiming’ Sabah. Keeping everyone together is one thing, the next step is to ensure the region becomes investor friendly so that more ASEAN goals can realized. [via The Brunei Times]