Rush North: See the Northern Lights Before They Dim - http://clapway.com/2015/11/13/rush-north-see-northern-lights-dim-decade/

The northern lights are predicted to dim for the next decade, making it much harder to see them on a clear, starry night up North.

Don’t worry, they are not disappearing. They’re just muting their vivid glory for a decade, kind of like Adele taking a four year break from the music industry. Except for ten years instead of four. It’s okay, we’ll survive… I hope.

According to Peter Delamere, associate professor of space physics at the Geophysical Institute, the northern lights are beginning their downward leg of a natural 11-year solar cycle. Solar activity, including enormous solar eruptions, can happen anytime and produce intense aurora, but they are unpredictable and irregular.

Aurora borealis, the phenomenon otherwise known as the northern lights, will begin to dim after 2016. The effect is estimated to last until 2024 or even 2026. During that time, the lights will be less frequent and bright. Currently, the lights are a bit like a groundhog in February–not quite sure whether it should pop its head out or not. Conditions required to see the lights include a clear night sky and the lights’ willingness to show up.

Thankfully, the northern lights will still be putting on a spectacular show through Winter 2016, so start planning your trip now.

The best places to see the northern lights before they dim, and probably after:

Alaska

A great choice for North American dwellers. There are many options to get yourself to Alaska in the next year: cruise, fly, or drive. Fairbanks is the suggested destination to get the best show and not freeze.

Northern Canada

Another option that’s close to home. In the city of Churchill, Natural Habitat Adventures offers an aurora pod made of glass and a view of the lights waving over polar bears and lots of ice. While you’re in Northern Canada, check out dog-sledding and any kind of skiing you can dream up.

Scotland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVsONlc3OUY

One of my personal favorite countries in the world. In the summer, Scotland’s so far north, the sun doesn’t set till close to midnight. In the winter, the darkness is all encompassing. Head toward Inverness or the Coast of Caithness.

Norway

Beautiful in summer and winter, Norway offers great views of the northern lights. You can go so far North here that you can also experience the Polar Night–a 24 hour-long night.

Finland

The most infamous place too view the lights because of its fantastically luxurious accommodations–personal igloos. Sit under fur blankets and view the beautiful phenomenon from the comfort of a very warm bed.

Iceland

Head over to Iceland, not only to see the northern lights, but also to explore the seat of the North from the hit HBO show Game of Thrones. Now, if I can find Jon Snow out there, I’ll be set for life.

If you’re looking to catch the northern lights before they dim, or any time, make sure to check the aurora forecast before you go.

Rush North: See the Northern Lights Before They Dim

Teenage Hacker Cons the World, Goes Nearly Scot Free - http://clapway.com/2015/07/09/teenage-hacker-cons-the-world-goes-nearly-scot-free432/

So imagine you’re re-watching The Social Network, trying to jump on the bandwagon and like Zuckerberg’s snobby, reactionary computer-elitist-sellout-hacker-stand-in. Suddenly, you realize that the only reason you have for really detracting your fandom from the guy, i.e., that he became one of the biggest corporate entities, commodifying every facet of subjective and social experience for the profit of any high-bidding corporation, that maybe somewhere about thirty minutes into the movie, he should have just decided to stick with hacking. How far would he have gone?

Perhaps as far as seventeen-year-old Julius Kivimaki, who was recently found guilty of 50,700 “instances of aggravated computer break-ins.” Now we’re talking. Official court documents state that Kivimaki’s hacker attacks affected Harvard University, MIT, and many others. The attacks involved hijacking emails, jamming up traffic to websites, and the pilfering of credit card information.

JUSTICE TO BE SERVED for the teenage hacker

Most awesomely for himself, the teenage hacker Kivimaki is not in jail. Yes. Instead of prison or any comparable hard time done, this young one isn’t worth the effort, says the District Court of Espoo, who sentenced the boy–whose online moniker is Zeekill–to a two-year suspended prison sentence.

The District Court of Espoo also confiscated his PC, and court ordered him to give back €6,588 ($7,282) worth of property he’d taken throughout his crime run from the law. A Judge Wilhelm Norrmann mentioned in the proceedings that Kivimaki was actually only 15 and 16 years old when he committed the crimes, back in 2012 and 2013.

“[The verdict] took into account the young age of the defendant at the time, his capacity to understand the harmfulness of the crimes, and the fact that he had been imprisoned for about a month during the pre-trial investigation,” said a statement from the court. Ignorance, it seems, is legal bliss.

SOME DESIRE MORE PUNISHMENT

However there’s one consultant of Europol on cybercrime who was very concerned about the [lack of] sentence. “Whilst [really?] I’m sure the courts concerned all the circumstances surrounding the conviction and the sentence that was warranted, there is a question as to whether such sentences will act as a deterrent to other hackers…It is not necessarily the place of the courts to factor in deterrence in their sentences…[h]owever, if I were another hacking group, was not that bothered about just having something on my record, and saw someone attract a suspended sentence for over 50,000 hacks, some of which caused significant damage, I don’t think it would cause me much concern.” His name (the consultant’s) is Alan Woodward.

WHAT PRECISELY KIVIMAKI DID

He infiltrated more than 50,000 computer servers by exploiting their vulnerabilities in a specific software program each operating system used, called “ColdFusion.” Insodoing, Kivimaki was able to install “backdoors” into tens of thousands of computers, and this allowed him open-access to their information, in de rigueur of old-school hackers.

YES, BUT ANY REAL DAMAGE?

The prosecutors originally accused the teenage hacker of adding malware to roughly 1,400 servers. They went on to say that he used this proliferation to create a botnet, which he in turn to begin denial of service (DoS) attacks on other systems–a system action which bombards affected computers with internet traffic, swamping them until the term “lagging” doesn’t even begin to limn the state of the screen, one would notice on the receiving end of such an attack.

Kivimaki’s PC’s chat logs reveal that he used the botnet to attack the news site ZDNet and the chat tool Canternet. He was also aiding in the theft of seven gigabytes’ worth of data, which were sent to and from email addresses ending in @mit.edu, i.e. the Massachusetts Institute of Technologies’ system. He used stolen credit card info to make online purchases and shared the info with others, and he was also charged with laundering Bitcoin, which he purportedly used to fund a journey to Mexico…the list goes on. One supposes when it comes to being a digital outlaw, there really are no checkpoints to let you know the order of legally screwed you’re becoming with each passing month and every casual black market deal.

MANY MAYBE SUFFERED

People suffered the loss of abstract property, but what’s interesting is the age of this digital outlaw. We may be catching a glimpse of the future of cyberpunk. Imagine a hidden island of teenage hacker prodigies forming a little abstract nation of their own, holding the powers at be hostage, hacking mainstream media’s sites like NBC, CNN, MTV, producing their own culture…

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Teenage Hacker Cons the World, Goes Nearly Scot Free

Finland"s design is stunning in their Tempo Apple Watch. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/30/tempo-apple-watch-the-ultimate-bling-bling-gadget-comes-from-finland-236/

Legend, a Finnish luxury company has launched the sales of their prestigious, customized Tempo Apple Watch.

The Helsinki-based company focuses on the idea of bringing the most luxurious and exclusive consumer electronics to the worldwide market. With tech-gadgets flooding the market, this company has specialised in one thing only: luxury electronics matching consumers’ style.

“After all, who wouldn’t want to know about world’s most elegant smartwatch?,” Martti Mustonen, CEO of Legend, told Clapway.

Tempo Apple Watch: where tech and tradition meet

A combination of passion and craftsmanship turned the Tempo Apple Watch into a work of art. The company hired a team of highly skilled artisans, experts in the areas of hand engraving, stone-setting, plating and finishing.

The intricate hand engravings of the watch require over 30 hours of work, representing this form of art at its finest.

Features of the Tempo Apple Watch

The hand engraved designs feature on 24Kt gold. The Tempo Apple Watch also comes with a premium grade leather strap, gold deployment buckle and a luxury presentation box.

Currently, Legend’s customers include high profile clients such as Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Rolls Royce.

Legend had already made news thanks to its lineup of luxury iPhone 6 & Galaxy S6 edge. What makes this brand stand out is not merely the near perfection quality of its products, but also the fact that everything is completely handmade in Finland.

Luxury made in Finland

Finland! The country is famous for its saunas, ice skates, metal bands, and by its citizens as the homeland of Santa Claus, but perhaps very few know that the country generates some of the world’s best artisans.

Have you ever wondered where James Bond’s favourite seat and Jackie Kennedy’s Markimekko pattern come from? Finland is a true design nation. Some of the world’s most imitated and admired designers and architects come from Finland, and believe it or not the country has been setting trends for decades. According to Finland’s official travel site, private luxury tours are increasingly popular across the country.

Reinventing an old tradition, Legend is offering a luxury customisation option to its customers for a price of 3490 Euros (around 3900 US dollars), taxes and shipping included. If you love luxury, you’ll love the Tempo Apple Watch.

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Tempo Apple Watch: The Ultimate "Bling Bling" Gadget Comes From Finland