FBI File Shocker: Steve Jobs Was a Willful, Mercurial Ex-Hippie and Computer Genius

FBI File Shocker: Steve Jobs Was a Willful, Mercurial Ex-Hippie and Computer Genius

February 9, 2012 at 9:00 am PT

•  

What did the FBI have on Steve Jobs? Not much according to its investigation of the late Apple founder and CEO’s background.
The agency just released its file on Jobs, compiled during a background check conducted in the 1990s when Jobs was being considered for a spot on a White House council on exports. And with the exception of a noteworthy nugget or two, it’s about as mundane as they come.
If you’ve read Walter Isaacson’s biography of Jobs or, frankly any newspaper obituary of the man, then you’re already as well-informed on his life and peccadilloes as the FBI.
Put it this way: Among the highlights of agency’s 191-page dossier is the observation that Jobs was a former hippie. “During the late 1960s and early 1970s , Mr. Jobs may have experimented with illegal drugs, having come from that generation.”
A few others:

• Jobs had a tendency to “twist the truth and distort reality in order to achieve his goals.”
• Jobs underwent a “change in philosophy by participating in eastern and/or Indian mysticism and religion. This change apparently influenced his personal life for the better.”
• Jobs was “strongwilled, stubborn, hardworking and driven, which .. is why he is so successful.
• Jobs liked to get his way.
• Jobs did “an outstanding job in the computer industry.”

Really the FBI’s only discovery of note was that Jobs was inexplicably granted Top Secret security clearance by the Defnese Industrial Security Clearance Office between 1988 and 1990. Oddly, those credentials were issued by Pixar which may have done some government work around that time.
Beyond that? Not much. Had Isaacson written is biography of Jobs a few decades earlier, he would have saved the FBI a hell of a lot of work.
Below, the report in its entirety.

New York Times Explains Chinese Advantage for Apple

New York Times Explains Chinese Advantage for Apple

The New York Times has a clever feature article explaining why Apple (and other firms) manufacture in China for a host of reasons, of which low wages may be a relatively small part. The ability to hire a massive number of trained people nearly instantly is one factor, regardless of how well those people are treated by the contractors Apple employs. For instance, Americans typically won’t live in dormitories and work six 12-hour days in a row, which is commonplace in China and other developing nations.

5 Big Ideas For A New Economy

5 Big Ideas For A New Economy

In the aftermath of the recession, we have the opportunity to truly change the system. From replacing
 outsourcing with insourcing to untying well-being from GDP, here is what the economy of the future might look like. 

An exciting moment is upon us, where some of the assumptions that have long governed our economy are beginning to unravel. There is the possibility that we could come out of this recession with a new concept of what the economy is, who it serves, and how it works.
Reflecting on history, we know that moments for truly re-thinking the economy are scarce. The replacement of mercantilism with liberal economic theory was such a moment. The Keynesian revolution was another. But where will this current moment of crisis take us? Will we succeed in powering a new economy? What ideas and solutions will enable our transition to a new economic paradigm? And what exactly would a new economy look like?

Where will this current moment of crisis take us? Will we succeed in powering a new economy?

The truth is that it is actually up to us to decide what is to be on the menu of new economic thinking; what ideas take hold, what solutions gain staying power. In an effort to further stimulate this kind of discussion, we’ve synthesized the top five ideas that we believe are primed to catalyze new economic approaches. We’ll be exploring these ideas in more depth in the next few months on Co.Exist and look forward to sparking debate and discussion.

Shift from outsourcing to insourcing

A few weeks ago, the White House hosted a forum on “insourcing”--the idea of keeping jobs that would normally go overseas in America--with an aim to bring jobs back to the United States and stimulate local and regional economies. It was an interesting tweak, seeing insourcing and local production being emphasized over the logic of comparative advantage (that it’s better to pay someone overseas to do something which isn’t worth the time of an American worker), which has for so long justified outsourcing practices. Now, it seems, we’re beginning to wake up to the advantages of local production. But how do we stimulate local economies without undermining global trade? By investing locally, are we minimizing economic interdependence and creating artificial tradeoffs between local and foreign communities?

Access the wealth of the (hyper) local

Editor’s Note

These are some of our early hypotheses for a new economy. But we are also interested in hearing from readers about how they feel the economy might adapt in the coming years. What ideas do you feel will be central to a new economy? What old practices of economics would you like to see die out? Do you feel we are in store for a paradigm shift or merely a more incremental adjustment? And finally, what is your vision for the economy of the future? Join the discussion by commenting on this post or voice your views via twitter (@FastCoExist, @alexaclay, or @joncamfield and use hashtag #neweconomy). The authors will incorporate these thoughts as they continue to write about the new economy in the coming months.

The Internet has provided a new local, one that is based around markets and themes instead of geographies. Your Etsy purchase or Kickstarter investment may not be going to your own community, but it is likely going to an entrepreneur who is building a small business in another community. It decentralizes even the concept of community resilience, allowing entrepreneurs to tap into larger markets, reviving their own local economies.

Adopt flexible and alternative currency

Bitcoin has enabled an explosion of interest in alternative currency. But what can Bitcoin’s approach and scale teach us about the future of such currencies? While Bitcoin has been successful, local currency movements have never truly taken hold. BerkShares or the Bristol Pound, for example, remain important as symbolic illustrations of alternative currencies, but how practical are such approaches? Meanwhile, social currency movements like time banking (quite literally, people exchanging time rather than monetary goods or services) also show potential for transitioning society into communities of service.

Do-it-yourself (DIY) job creation

Frustrated with the inability of large corporations or governments to create jobs, many people are finding ways of applying a DIY spirit to job creation, by creatively exploring ways of bringing economic improvement to their lives. So, for example, rather than suffer unemployment, many young people are becoming entrepreneurs, investing in jobs for themselves and others. Or look at Starbucks’s partnership with the Opportunity Finance Network where they are leveraging customer donations into microfinance investments for job creation. With every $3,000 donated, one job is either created or maintained.

Focus on well-being, not growth

The recognition that countries have not grown happier as they have gotten richer has caused many to question the idea of “growth for the sake of growth.” In fact, our dogged pursuit of economic growth has undermined our ability to use natural resources sustainably, as well as the resilience and prosperity of communities across the globe. In the words of Paul Hawken, “We have an economy where we steal from the future, sell it in the present, and call it GDP

11 Health Habits That Will Help You Live to 101

11 Health Habits That Will Help You Live to 101

One of the biggest factors that determines how well you age is not your genes but how well you live. Not convinced? A study published in 2009 in the British Medical Journal of 20,000 British folks shows that you can cut your risk of having a stroke in half by doing the following four things: being active for 30 minutes a day, eating five daily servings of fruit and vegetables, and avoiding cigarettes and excess alcohol.

While those are some of the obvious steps you can take to age well, researchers have discovered that centenarians tend to share certain traits in how they eat, move about, and deal with stress—the sorts of things we can emulate to improve our own aging process. Of course, getting to age 100 is enormously more likely if your parents did. (Recent research suggests that centenarians are 20 times as likely as the average person to have at least one long-lived relative.) Still, Thomas Perls, who studies the century-plus set at Boston University School of Medicine, believes that assuming you've sidestepped genes for truly fatal diseases like Huntington's, "there's nothing stopping you from living independently well into your 90s." Heck, if your parents and grandparents were heavy smokers, they might have died prematurely without ever reaching their true potential lifespan, so go ahead and shoot for those triple digits. Follow these 12 habits and check out Perls' lifetime risk calculator to see how long you can expect to live.

1. Don't retire.

"Evidence shows that in societies where people stop working abruptly, the incidence of obesity and chronic disease skyrockets after retirement," says Luigi Ferrucci, director of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. The Chianti region of Italy, which has a high percentage of centenarians, has a different take on leisure time. "After people retire from their jobs, they spend most of the day working on their little farm, cultivating grapes or vegetables," he says. "They're never really inactive." Farming isn't for you? Volunteer as a docent at your local art museum or join the Experience Corps, a program offered in 19 cities that places senior volunteers in urban public elementary schools for about 15 hours a week.

2. Floss every day.

That may help keep your arteries healthy. A 2008 New York University study showed that daily flossing reduced the amount of gum-disease-causing bacteria in the mouth. This bacteria is thought to enter the bloodstream and trigger inflammation in the arteries, a major risk factor for heart disease. Other research has shown that those who have high amounts of bacteria in their mouth are more likely to have thickening in their arteries, another sign of heart disease. "I really do think people should floss twice a day to get the biggest life expectancy benefits," says Perls.

Cancer and Age: Why We May Face a Tradeoff Between Cancer Risk and Aging

3. Move around.

"Exercise is the only real fountain of youth that exists," says Jay Olshansky, a professor of medicine and aging researcher at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "It's like the oil and lube job for your car. You don't have to do it, but your car will definitely run better." Study after study has documented the benefits of exercise to improve your mood, mental acuity, balance, muscle mass, and bones. "And the benefits kick in immediately after your first workout," Olshansky adds. Don't worry if you're not a gym rat. Those who see the biggest payoffs are the ones who go from doing nothing to simply walking around the neighborhood or local mall for about 30 minutes a day. Building muscle with resistance training is also ideal, but yoga classes can give you similar strength-training effects if you're not into weight lifting.

4. Eat a fiber-rich cereal for breakfast.

Getting a serving of whole-grains, especially in the morning, appears to help older folks maintain stable blood sugar levels throughout the day, according to a recent study conducted by Ferrucci and his colleagues. "Those who do this have a lower incidence of diabetes, a known accelerator of aging," he says.

Could Getting More Fiber Help You Live Longer?

5. Get at least six hours of shut-eye.

Instead of skimping on sleep to add more hours to your day, get more to add years to your life. "Sleep is one of the most important functions that our body uses to regulate and heal cells," says Ferrucci. "We've calculated that the minimum amount of sleep that older people need to get those healing REM phases is about six hours." Those who reach the century mark make sleep a top priority.

10 Ways to Get Better Sleep (and Maybe Cure Your Insomnia)

6. Consume whole foods, not supplements.

Strong evidence suggests that people who have high blood levels of certain nutrients—selenium, beta-carotene, vitamins C and E—age much better and have a slower rate of cognitive decline. Unfortunately, there's no evidence that taking pills with these nutrients provides those antiaging benefits. "There are more than 200 different carotenoids and 200 different flavonoids in a single tomato," points out Ferrucci, "and these chemicals can all have complex interactions that foster health beyond the single nutrients we know about like lycopene or vitamin C." Avoid nutrient-lacking white foods (breads, flour, sugar) and go for all those colorful fruits and vegetables and dark whole-grain breads and cereals with their host of hidden nutrients.

Whole Foods Diet Cookbook: How to Eat for Health and Taste

7. Be less neurotic.

It may work for Woody Allen, who infuses his worries with a healthy dose of humor, but the rest of us neurotics may want to find a new way to deal with stress. "We have a new study coming out that shows that centenarians tend not to internalize things or dwell on their troubles," says Perls. "They are great at rolling with the punches." If this inborn trait is hard to overcome, find better ways to manage when you're stressed: Yoga, exercise, meditation, tai chi, or just deep breathing for a few moments are all good. Ruminating, eating chips in front of the TV, binge drinking? Bad, very bad.

8. Live like a Seventh Day Adventist.

Americans who define themselves as Seventh Day Adventists have an average life expectancy of 89, about a decade longer than the average American. One of the basic tenets of the religion is that it's important to cherish the body that's on loan from God, which means no smoking, alcohol abuse, or overindulging in sweets. Followers typically stick to a vegetarian diet based on fruits, vegetables, beans, and nuts, and get plenty of exercise. They're also very focused on family and community.

5 Common Myths About Aging

9. Be a creature of habit.

Centenarians tend to live by strict routines, says Olshansky, eating the same kind of diet and doing the same kinds of activities their whole lives. Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day is another good habit to keep your body in the steady equilibrium that can be easily disrupted as you get on in years. "Your physiology becomes frailer when you get older," explains Ferrucci, "and it's harder for your body to bounce back if you, say, miss a few hours of sleep one night or drink too much alcohol." This can weaken immune defenses, leaving you more susceptible to circulating flu viruses or bacterial infections.

10. Stay connected.

Having regular social contacts with friends and loved ones is key to avoiding depression, which can lead to premature death, something that's particularly prevalent in elderly widows and widowers. Some psychologists even think that one of the biggest benefits elderly folks get from exercise the strong social interactions that come from walking with a buddy or taking a group exercise class. Having a daily connection with a close friend or family member gives older folks the added benefit of having someone watch their back. "They'll tell you if they think your memory is going or if you seem more withdrawn," says Perls, "and they might push you to see a doctor before you recognize that you need to see one yourself."

11. Be conscientious.

The strongest personality predictor of a long life is conscientiousness—that is, being prudent, persistent, and well organized, according to The Longevity Project, coauthored by Howard Friedman and Leslie Martin. The book describes a study that followed 1,500 children for eight decades, collecting exhaustive details about their personal histories, health, activities, beliefs, attitudes, and families. The children who were prudent and dependable lived the longest, Friedman says, likely because conscientious types are more inclined to follow doctors' orders, take the right medicines at the right doses, and undergo routine checkups. They're also likelier to report happier marriages and more satisfying work lives than their less conscientious peers.

The Western Reserve – What , Why, and Who?

Northeastern Ohio’s cultural roots begin with the native American populations who first inhabited the area some 10,000 years ago. In 1662 the area became part of the colony of Connecticut whose royal charter granted it a swath of land extending across the continent to the Pacific Ocean. After the formation of the United States, Connecticut ceded most of its western lands to the national government but exempted approximately 3,400,000 acres lying north of latitude 41 degrees and extending 120 miles westward from the Pennsylvania border. This became its Western Reserve. In 1795 it sold most of this land to a group of investors who had formed the Connecticut Land Company and in the following year the company began the survey of the land to prepare it for sale. The survey party was led by Moses Cleaveland, the namesake of Cleveland, Ohio.

Initial settlement of the area was sporadic and slow, however by the 1820s, the region began to prosper. The first settlers and the towns they established reflected the culture of Connecticut and New England. However, as the region prospered it became a destination for migrants of all backgrounds and the region became increasingly diverse in terms of race, ethnicity and religion. With the growth of industry in cities such as Cleveland, Lorain, and Akron during the late nineteenth century demographic diversity increased markedly – so much so that by 1920 two-thirds of the population of Cleveland was of foreign birth or parentage. In the years since 1965 new immigration streams have added markedly to the cultures and communities within the region.

Today, economists and planners see northeastern Ohio as a contiguous region, one which almost matches the borders of the Connecticut Western Reserve. Its extraordinary mixture of cultures and histories, dating from native American to contemporary immigrants continues to be reflected in its landscape and cities, and most importantly in the collections preserved in the Western Reserve Historical Society’s collections and properties.

2-Wheeled Vehicles for Empowerment and Change

2-Wheeled Vehicles for Empowerment and Change

Empowerment and Change

In ideal cases, "the bicycle has removed a barrier in their life," paving the way for success.

To look at Portland from the point of view of the Community Cycling Center, there's nothing that a pair of tires and a bike frame can't fix.

That feisty notion is the hallmark of the center, which targets both adults and children with hands-on ridership programs, volunteer projects and a neighborhood bike shop. All bolster a core message: Bikes aren't just a means of transportation, but vehicles for empowerment and change.

Focused on removing barriers to cycling, among the center's many endeavors is a program that pairs bikes and gear with people who need something else: jobs. Through Create a Commuter, the Community Cycling Center teams with 13 local employment programs to make sure participating job seekers can to get to interviews and commute to and from the jobs they land.

Employment agencies targeting low-income Portlanders, Native Americans, the disabled, homeless youths, refugees, college students and also the recently incarcerated are included in the mix.

"We basically screen agencies on their success rate of getting people jobs," says Zan Gibbs, adult program manager.

A Cycling Center team then rolls up to partner locations in a delivery truck, toting bikes custom fit to each rider, plus locks, lights, helmets and other essentials, such as maps.

"We take them out on rides during the class," says Gibbs, providing participants with basic instruction on riding, safety, injury prevention and route-planning.

The program gets good results, from making riders of people who have never ridden a bike, to creating unlikely bike commuters out of job seekers and students facing long bus commutes or financial hardship (50 percent earn less than $200 a month).

One new commuter said owning a bike enabled him to see more of his son. A group of former convicts formed a riding team to travel from work at 2 a.m., at the end of their new shifts at a bakery. One participant became so enamored with cycling that he began leading rides for children at New Columbia, a low-income community.

That's just a snippet of outcomes from a productive year. Create a Commuter put 173 new or refurbished bikes into the hands of adults in 2010. Each also got a five-hour course in skills, along with gear essential for hitting the road. After 60 days, 43 percent of riders said they were using bikes to get to work, with 27 percent still riding to interviews. Riders also used their bikes to run errands, get to school, attend church, exercise or head to meetings. Sixty-two percent said they also rode their bikes just for fun.

In ideal cases, "the bicycle has removed a barrier in their life," says Gibbs, paving the way for people's success, whether they're looking for a new job or learning how to navigate a new country.

From inside its funky bike shop on Northeast Alberta Street in Portland, it's hard to tell the Community Cycling Center has such a profound impact on marginalized Portlanders. The shop got its start as a riding and repair school for local kids. It's now a bustling nonprofit, with more than 30 employees and 1,000 volunteers.

Cruise ship Costa Concordia runs aground off Italian coast

Carnival Cruise Death Toll Rises to Five as Rescuers Seek 17 Still Missing

 

By Marco Bertacche and Chiara Vasarri - Jan 15, 2012 6:41 PM

Cruise Ship Costa Concordia Runs Aground Off Giglio

Laura Lezza/Getty Images

The cruise ship Costa Concordia lies stricken off the shore of the island of Giglio, in Giglio Porto, Italy on Jan. 14, 2012.

The cruise ship Costa Concordia lies stricken off the shore of the island of Giglio, in Giglio Porto, Italy on Jan. 14, 2012.Photographer: Laura Lezza/Getty Images

Rescuers searched into the night for as many as 17 people missing more than two days after a Carnival Corp. (CCL) cruise ship ran aground and capsized off Italy’s Tuscan coast. At least five people died.
The Costa Concordia’s captain was arrested and accused of manslaughter, abandoning ship and causing the wreck late on Jan. 13. Costa Crociere, the Carnival unit that runs the ship, said“it seems” he sailed too close to the island of Giglio and didn’t follow emergency plans, making “very serious judgment mistakes,” according to an e-mailed statement yesterday.
About 60 people were injured after the ship carrying more than 4,000 passengers and crew hit submerged rocks near the island of in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Survivors spoke of the panic when the ship began listing, with some likening the events to those in the film “Titanic.” Two bodies were found onboard yesterday, said Stefano Giannelli, a fire department spokesman, adding to the three known to have perished.
Rescuers evacuated passengers and crew to the nearest mainland port, Santo Stefano, Italy’s Civil Protection Agency said on its website. Teams found two South Korean passengers in a ship cabin at 3 a.m. local time yesterday and saved a crew member on the third deck, Giannelli said.
About 60 firefighters are deployed in the search operation that will continue “all night long,” he said. Rescuers have searched one third of the ship, Giannelli said. Four tourists --two French, one Italian and one from Spain -- and a Peruvian crewmember are known to have perished, the Civil Protection unit in Grosseto said in an e-mail statement.

Prosecutor Probe

Captain Francesco Schettino is being detained for allegedly abandoning the ship “since we know he was in the harbor about midnight,” Francesco Verusio, the chief prosecutor in the city of Grosseto, said in an interview. The ship’s first officer is also being probed, he said. Dozens of people have been questioned so far, the prosecutor said.
Gianni Onorato, general manager of the Costa Crociere line, said the ship had embarked about 7 p.m. from Civitavecchia nearRome on a trip that was scheduled to include stops at ports in France and Spain. The vessel hit the rocks and Captain Schettino, after assessing the damage, decided to secure the ship and gave the evacuation order, Onorato told news channel SkyTG24 in an interview. A Costa Crociere spokesman confirmed the comments.
The number of missing may be as low as 15, including six crewmembers, according to the Tuscany Region Governor Enrico Rossi. Among them are an 84-year-old Italian and a 5-year-old child, la Repubblica said on its website. The number could be as high as 17, Ansa said, citing Grosseto Province President Leonardo Marras. The U.S. Embassy in Italy said two of the 120 U.S. passengers are still unaccounted for, according to a statement posted on Twitter yesterday.

‘Terrible Tragedy’

“This is a terrible tragedy and we are deeply saddened,”Carnival said a Jan. 14 statement. Carnival, based in Miami, is the world’s largest cruise line owner, with brands such as Cunard, Princess Cruises and Costa.
The ship probably was on a wrong route, the prosecutor said. The so-called black box was retrieved, Verusio said. Investigators have determined the ship was only about 150 meters (492 feet) from the coast when it hit the rocks, Ansa said.
Captain Schettino said he was the last one to leave the ship, according to an interview broadcast by TGCOM24 before his arrest. The rocks weren’t identified on the navigation maps, Schettino said. The ship was at least 300 meters from the island when it hit the rocks, he said.

Emergency Procedures

Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said the captain may have steered the boat closer to the coast to allow passengers a better view of the island’s lights.
Costa Crociere said “it seems” that the captain took the ship on a route that was too close to the island of Giglio and didn’t follow company emergency procedures, making “very serious judgment mistakes,” according to an e-mailed statement yesterday.
A scuba-diving unit arrived from Genoa yesterday to search for survivors who may be inside the ship, Lieutenant Colonel Italo Spalvieri of the Livorno Air-Naval Rescue unit said in a telephone interview.
Television images broadcast showed the Costa lying on its starboard side, a portion of the ship underwater and its orange smokestack close to the waterline. The ship was built in 2006 and has 1,500 cabins, according to Costa Crociere’s website. The vessel also had a docking accident at Palermo’s harbor in 2008 because of strong winds, newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore reported.

Glasses Crashing

The ship hit the rocks about 9:45 p.m. as dinner was being served, sending plates and glasses crashing, Italian media reported. Passengers said the situation on board was reminiscent of the film “Titanic,” as the vessel tilted, electrical power was lost and people rushed to find lifeboats. Several passengers interviewed by Italian television channels including SkyTG24 said they were initially told by crew that there only was an electrical problem and it wasn’t an emergency.
Cabin steward Deodato Ordona told the British Broadcasting Corp. there was a “roaring sound” before the ship began to shift. He said the vessel leaned to the left and then the right before the captain announced an order to abandon ship.
There were 3,200 passengers on the ship, including 1,000 Italians, 500 Germans, 160 French and 250 from North America, Costa Crociere said. Emergency procedures began immediately and were impeded by the ship’s listing, Costa Crociere said in a statement.

Rescuers Arrive

The first coast guard boats arrived within 10 minutes of the accident, Air-Naval Rescue Lieutenant Colonel Spalvieri said by phone. The vessel is carrying a large amount of fuel and Costa Crociere has been ordered to start procedures to remove it, according to Cosimo Nicastro, a spokesman for the Italian Coast Guard. The Giglio island is part of the biggest marine park in Europe. Giglio Mayor Sergio Ortelli said in an e-mailed statement that there’s no risk of an oil spill.
Fabio Costa, a shop worker on the boat, said it took the crew a long time to launch the lifeboats because the vessel had listed so much.
The vessel set sail on Jan. 13 and its itinerary was to include calls at the Mediterranean ports of Savona, Marseille, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Cagliari and Palermo, Costa Crociere said.
Italian newspapers said that when the vessel was christened in 2006 the champagne bottle didn’t break against the side of the ship, supposedly an omen of bad luck.
Carnival owns 100 ships and has 10 on order. Its brands also include Carnival, Holland America Line, Seabourn, AIDA Cruises, Ibero Cruises and P&O Cruises. The Costa cruise line has 15 ships and sails worldwide.
The Costa Concordia was insured by companies including Assicurazioni Generali SpA, RSA Insurance Group Plc and XL Group Plc, said three people with knowledge of the policies. The three are among several insurers facing total costs of about 405 million euros ($512 million), said one of the people, who declined to be identified because policy terms are confidential.
To contact the reporters on this story: Marco Bertacche in Milan at mbertacche@bloomberg.net; Chiara Vasarri in Milan at cvasarri@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jerrold Colten at jcolten@bloomberg.net