Last week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg filed a lawsuit to force owners of several small parcels of land to sell to the highest bidder since these property owners are surrounded by Zuckerberg’s land holdings and therefore have lawful easement to cross his private property. Ever since the story broke, Zuckerberg has faced major backlash from people all over the world, especially those living on the Hawaiian islands. On Wednesday, said he was “reconsidering” the set of lawsuits; today he announced that he will drop the lawsuits altogether. The Guardian reports: “Upon reflection, I regret that I did not take the time to fully understand the quiet title process and its history before we moved ahead,” Zuckerberg wrote. “Now that I understand the issues better, it’s clear we made a mistake.” The process is controversial in Hawaii, where many view it as a tool of dispossession first employed by sugar barons, but later adopted by the wealthy malihini (newcomers) seeking vacation homes. Hawaii state representative Kaniela Ing, who emerged as one of the key critics of the lawsuits, said that he was “happy” and “humbled” by Zuckerberg’s announcement. “It’s not everyday where you face off with one of the most influential billionaires, best PR professionals and best attorneys in the world and win,” he said. “It’s a victory for everyone who shared the story on social media, for native Hawaiians, and for people everywhere. The parcels at stake in the Zuckerberg case were kuleana — land granted to native Hawaiians in the 1850s after land was privatized for the first time in Hawaii — contained within the boundaries of his 700-acre, $100m estate. Kuleana lands are especially important, law professor Kapua Sproat explained to the Guardian, because native Hawaiians view land as an “ancestor” or family member, rather than as a possession. “We understand that for native Hawaiians, kuleana are sacred and the quiet title process can be difficult,” he wrote. “We want to make this right, talk with the community, and find a better approach.” The CEO promised to hold discussion with “community leaders” representing native Hawaiians and environmentalists, and added that he is “looking for more ways to support the community as neighbors.”

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Source: Slashdot – Mark Zuckerberg Drops Lawsuits To Force Hundreds of Hawaiians To Sell Him Land

Apple’s product lineup may extend beyond cars and the connected home. A patent filed last year and published January 26 reveals a concept for a vaporizer. From a report on CNN Money, shared by reader JoshTops: The details are a bit hazy — that is, Apple’s patent only describes “a substance that is to be vaporized or sublimated into a vapor,” not what the substance might be. The patent, filed by Apple employee Tetsuya Ishikawa, outlines plans for a temperature-regulated plate inside a chamber that heats up a substance to form a vapor. Many people use vapes to inhale nicotine or marijuana, and they are sometimes used as a replacement for cigarettes. The FDA began regulating vaping last year, and set rules for the manufacturing and distribution of vapes and their components. Vaporizers are also used in industries like healthcare and agriculture, so it’s possible Apple is thinking bigger than personal use.

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Source: Slashdot – Apple Patents a Vaporizer