Author Archives: Carol Edwards

T-Mobile customers may want to brace for some bad news.

The mobile service provider is investigating a reported data breach that may have exposed the private info of more than 100 million people. The would-be perpetrator is apparently trying to sell off a portion of the data, Vice noted in a Sunday report.

The site spoke with the anonymous author of a forum post offering up roughly one-third of the T-Mobile USA customer data in exchange for 6 bitcoins (worth a bit less than $280,000 as of Aug. 15). While it could all be BS, Vice was able to look at samples of the data and confirm that the seller has “accurate information on T-Mobile customers.”

The stolen data, which was reportedly obtained from multiple T-Mobile servers, is filled with identifying information, including names, addresses, and phone numbers; social security numbers; IMEI numbers, which are unique to each mobile device; and driver’s license info. It’s not clear if this data is available for every person exposed in the breach, but the seller did confirm to Vice that their access to T-Mobile’s servers has been cut off.

T-Mobile hasn’t yet responded to Mashable’s request for comment, but the company did tell Vice that it’s “aware of claims made in an underground forum” and is now “actively investigating their validity.”

On the one hand, it’s entirely possible that the seller is misrepresenting the scope of the breach and/or the contents of the information they claim to be selling. T-Mobile likely isn’t going to say anything until there’s a clearer sense of the risks its customers are actually facing. Vice reviewed some of the data and confirmed its authenticity, but who’s to say the seller isn’t pulling a fast one with, say, previously leaked data?

That said, waiting on a giant company to be transparent in situations like this isn’t always the best idea. T-Mobile’s first priority is to its bottom line and the people who own shares in the company. If you are (or even just were) a T-Mobile customer, it might be a good idea to watch for suspicious activity on your accounts until there’s more clarity.

Horsin’ Around. Sunrise Bay. The Manny. None of those things exist in our universe, but they’re entertainment staples in the world of BoJack Horseman, Schitt’s Creek, and This Is Us respectively.

The technical term for a fake show within a show is a “nested story,” and there are a lot of them that we who inhabit this reality will never get to watch. Web designer and artist Lynn Fisher, whose website is a veritable toy box for pop culture aficionados, has given us a glimpse of what a streaming service might look like in the fictional world of TV shows by creating Nestflix, a scrollable Netflix dupe that only lists nested shows and films.

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Fisher’s attention to detail in Nestflix is seriously impressive. Each entry has a thumbnail with thematically appropriate lettering, a short summary, a list of in-universe actors or directors who “worked” on it, and of course the name of the original project in which the show is nested.

In an email to Mashable, Fisher said she’s always been a fan of nested stories and has been “mentally collecting” them since she found out Angels with Filthy Souls from Home Alone wasn’t a real movie years ago. She was also motivated to make Nestflix when Schitt’s Creek released a fake trailer for Moira Rose’s The Crows Have Eyes 3, because “that level of dedicated meta definitely sparked something in me that this could be a real project.”

Nestflix isn’t a comprehensive site yet, and Fisher has received hundreds of submissions from fans who want to add their favorite nested shows to the site. At the time of publishing she’s only fully added one suggestion to the site (Lieutenant Diablo from Lucifer, the most common request according to Fisher), but plans to add more from the 700+ submissions she’s received.

Fisher also has a solid rubric for what does and doesn’t count as a nested show. “I’m not currently adding films or shows that aren’t seen on screen,” she wrote. “Lots of classics are only mentioned in dialogue or shown as a poster in the background. A lot of the Seinfeld ones are like this unfortunately, as iconic as they are.”

There’s also the question of shows-within-shows-within-shows (“may include them eventually in a ‘fake fake’ category or something”) and whether or not fake trailers from Saturday Night Live count (“They technically are films/shows within a show, but they aren’t nested within a greater narrative”).

Some of Fisher’s other projects include a complete menu of all the food mentioned in The Good Place, a tool that lets you dress up David Rose in any of his iconic outfits from Schitt’s Creek, and an interactive list of airports and how they got their three-letter codes (no really, it’s fascinating). When asked what tips an idea over from something she thinks might be cool to something she puts her time into creating, Fisher wrote that presentation and size are both important factors:

“I think it’s the matching of presentation and having enough content to realize it. Nested films and shows could just be a wiki technically, but wouldn’t be nearly as fun. It’s the combination of the recognizable streaming interface plus 400+ titles to choose from. Once I fit those things together, it felt like it could be real and special.”

Of course as Nestflix proves, something doesn’t necessarily have to be real to be special. But the fact that Nestflix exists at all is a testament to Fisher’s creative mastery.

“My medium is the web,” she wrote, “so an idea I have has to make a compelling website first and foremost. Once I figure out how the information can be presented in that way, it usually goes smoothly from there!”

When most people use their AirPods, they’re using them for their audio input — they listen to a podcast, a phone call, some music. A new study from Apple’s Machine Learning Institute took a different tack and found what was useful in an AirPod wearer’s audio output, or at least one aspect of it.

The study suggests that AirPods are capable of keeping track of a user’s respiratory rate by monitoring the sound of their breaths in the AirPods’ microphones, a prospect that has huge implications in the realm of wearable health products. Typically, tracking diseases and conditions that affect respiratory health require in-person consultations, but AirPods offer an option to track individuals’ breathing remotely.

According to the study, “data was collected from 21 individuals using microphone-enabled, near-field headphones before, during, and after strenuous exercise. Respiratory rate was manually annotated by counting audibly perceived inhalations and exhalations.” They also used a memory network to overlay different audio conditions over their subjects’ breathing to simulate noise to test if the respiratory rates were detectable in a variety of indoor and outdoor situation and concluded that “audio can be a viable signal for passively estimating RR [respiratory rate]” in louder situations.

This isn’t the first time Apple products have been studied for their potential use in keeping an eye on respiratory health. Apple Watches updated to watchOS 7 can also keep track of a user’s breathing as an optional part of the sleep metrics section of the health app. In that case, the number of breaths someone takes is measured by the watch’s built-in accelerometer and has nothing to do with audio input.

Another study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering concluded that smartwatch data on respiratory rate was valuable in catching coronavirus infections, and that “63% of the COVID-19 cases [in the study] could have been detected before symptom onset” given breathing data from a subject’s wearable.

Apple is constantly finding new ways to use its technology to monitor users’ health, and at one point reportedly considered operating its own brand of primary care clinics. Apple disputes that particular rumor, but with this new study it’s possible that AirPods have a future as a clinical tool in legitimate health settings instead of just being a convenient way to listen to some tunes.

The planets of our solar system, stretching from Mercury out to Neptune, are all incredible.

In a dense cloud of gas and dust billions of years ago, these eight planets emerged along with the sun. They are eight unique expressions of our chaotic universe born upon an arm of the spiraling Milky Way galaxy.

The planets’ sizes and orbits distinguish them from asteroids, comets, and meteoroids, as well as icy objects beyond Neptune in the Kuiper Belt, like the dwarf planet Pluto. Each one is iconic in its own way, but as is the way of the universe, only one can be the best.

Judged by their superlative characteristics, their moons, and their general vibe, here is a definitive ranking of the planets. If you’re at all upset about Pluto not being on this list, I suggest you grow up and move on.

8. Uranus

Uranus is kind of like the Luigi to Neptune’s Mario. While they’re both ice giants, Uranus is the second farthest from the sun and a bit smaller by diameter. With winds whipping around at more than 500 miles per hour and temperatures dipping below minus 350 degrees Fahrenheit, Uranus is a pretty hostile planet, but not quite as intense as Neptune.

That said, Uranus has one unique feature: Its rotation. Uranus’s equator is tilted 97.8 degrees, meaning compared to all the other planets, it rotates completely on its side. Summers and winters at each pole last 21 years a piece, which sounds downright awful.

7. Mercury

With no moons and barely any atmosphere, Mercury is unencumbered and it shows. Mercury is a tiny whip of a planet that circles the sun every 88 Earth days, traveling at a speed of 29 miles per second. It’s the fastest orbiting planet in our solar system and also the smallest. Its rocky, pock-marked surface makes it look more like a moon than its fellow planets, and it’s the only planet that is actually smaller than two moons: Jupiter’s Ganymede and Saturn’s Titan. A little embarrassing, honestly.

One particularly intriguing aspect of this little speeder is its eccentric orbit, which sees the planet’s distance from the sun range from 29 million miles to 43 million miles.

6. Mars

When it comes to the search for life, the dusty red planet Mars is one of the solar system’s most intriguing. With atmospheric conditions most similar to Earth’s and images of the surface reminiscent of our most arid environments, it’s relatively easy to imagine what it’s like to stand on the surface. But as far as we know, Mars doesn’t harbor life. Maybe it did at some point in the past, but that’s never been verified.

Mars does have two exciting features: The largest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons, with a peak three time taller than Mt. Everest, and a doomed moon. In 50 million years or so, Mars’ moon Phobos will crash into the surface and wreak some havoc, possibly even producing rings of debris around the planet. Cool.

5. Neptune

Neptune is the most distant planet from the sun with a mind-bogglingly slow orbit, taking roughly 165 years to make it all the way around. It’s so far out, its actually sometimes farther away from the sun than the notoriously far-out Pluto. It’s also the windiest planet, with gales hitting 1,200 miles per hour.

While we understand why most planets look the way they do, Neptune’s intoxicating blue hue is actually a bit of a mystery. Who doesn’t love a little mystery? The moon Triton certainly seems to love it — it’s the only known large moon in the solar system that orbits in the opposite direction that the planet spins, suggesting that it was once a foreign object that got trapped in Neptune’s gravitational influence.

4. Venus

Venus is downright hellish. With peak temperatures reaching up to a sweltering 900 degrees Fahrenheit, it’s the hottest planet. For reference, the melting point of lead is 622 degrees Fahrenheit. Its thick, yellowish atmosphere of carbon dioxide and sulfuric acid traps in heat from the sun, and the clouds literally rain down acid.

With thousands of volcanoes across its surface, Venus is a veritable inferno. It’s not yet confirmed, but it’s possible that some volcanoes are currently active. Yes, it may not be anything close to habitable, but the vibe on Venus is undeniably awesome.

3. Jupiter

Jupiter takes its role as a gas giant very seriously. This behemoth is the biggest planet in the solar system — you could shove 11 Earths end on end through the middle of Jupiter and still have room leftover. Constantly beset by gigantic storms throughout its short, 10-hour days, Jupiter exudes a kind of chaotic beauty. It screams gas giant.

The icing on the Jupiter cake is its moons. It has 53 confirmed moons, and could have dozens more. Ganymede is the biggest moon in the solar system, Europa likely has a body of liquid water beneath its icy surface, and Io’s volcanoes are the most active in the solar system, even beating out Venus. Between its size, appearance, and diverse moons, it’s a real knockout. If only it had some rings…

2. Saturn

Definitely in the running for most iconic planet in our solar system, Saturn’s vivid, icy rings really stand out. Sure, other planets, like Uranus, have rings, but theirs aren’t as visible, complex, or cool as Saturn’s. Its seven distinct rings are likely made up of comets, asteroids, or moons that were torn up by Saturn’s gravity and are now whizzing around the planet in pieces. It’s so cool-looking that it alone has basically become a symbol for space as a whole.

A gas giant like Jupiter, it’s the second biggest planet in the system and, also like Jupiter, it has a lot of moons. There are more than 53 confirmed moons and nearly 30 more that are awaiting confirmation. Two of its larger ones, Titan and Enceladus, are of particular scientific interest. Titan, larger than Mercury, is the only moon we know of with a substantial atmosphere, and it also appears to have liquid rivers and lakes on its solid surface. Enceladus contains an ocean beneath its frozen crust that gets sprayed out into space through geysers.

1. Earth

I’m sure Earth beating out the competition will make some people groan, but it’s a no-brainer. Earth is the best planet.

Earth developed around the same time and the place as all the other planets, but it’s the only one we know of that managed to produce such a robust expression of life. Plants, animals, fungi, and microorganisms all coexist on this water-logged planet, creating an incredibly complex and sensational global ecosystem. Sure, Earth has been home to some bad things like war criminals and the prison-industrial complex, but it also produced beings with taste buds and apples for them to enjoy.

As far as vibes go in the solar system, it doesn’t get any better than Earth. An abundance of resources has led to the invention of couches, trains, coffee, and the internet. At a macro level, it’s astonishing. At a micro level, it’s mind-blowing.

It may not be the biggest planet or have the most moons, but it’s the best place to live by a long shot and has the most diverse and interesting surface in these galactic parts.

Professional wrestling may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s impossible to deny that it’s conceptually fascinating. Grown men and women strap on spandex and participate in scripted, acrobatic fights to resolve character arcs that everyone knows are fake but become real through willful suspension of disbelief.

The concept of kayfabe, the commandment that requires those in the business to pretend that wrestling is real, is a uniquely human invention that should theoretically ensure that in-ring drama stays in the ring, but the human heart has never been great at distinguishing the performance of an emotion from the emotion itself. Heels, a new drama on Starz, is the story of what happens when some wrestlers don’t even try to see the difference.

Heels is a Shakespearean tale of brother vs. brother that takes place both in and outside the ring of the Duffy Wrestling League, an independent promotion in a no-horse town in south Georgia. Jack Spade (Stephen Amell, Green Arrow) is the patriarch of the Spade family, a title that comes with ownership of the DWL as well as its performance venue the Dome. He is a wrestler and a heel, the industry term for a “bad guy” in the league.

His younger brother Ace (Alexander Ludwig, Vikings) is a face, a “good guy” who supplants his former role as the town’s beloved high school quarterback with the adoration of his hero-loving fans. Their in-ring rivalry is a huge draw for the DWL, but the brothers’ fights often bleed out into the real world, where they scrap over creative control, the direction of the DWL, and the legacy of their abusive father.

Both Amell and Ludwig are brilliantly cast, with the irony of a former DC superhero playing a guy who plays a bad guy adding a fun layer to Amell’s performance. Ludwig’s Ace is a big hot idiot whose focus on the social treats he earns just by being and looking like himself is a thin cover for his easily wounded, emotional interior. The rest of the cast is also great at portraying characters that first appear as a series of small-town southern stereotypes but quickly subvert expectations to become complex, watchable humans.

These characters include Kelli Berglund (Cherry) as Crystal, Ace’s clever in-ring valet (an assistant-cheerleader combo) whose trailer park address all but ensures she’ll be underestimated all her life, Chris Baur (True Blood) as Wild Bill Hancock, a famous wrestler with Duffy roots who is best described as a poetically gifted dirtbag of chaos in a cowboy hat, and Trey Tucker (What Lies Below) as Bobby Pin, a himbo so potent he doesn’t know what the Vietnam War is and is still an irresistible romantic lead.

“Friday Night Lights, but make it wrestling” is a huge logline to live up to and Heels emerges triumphant from the comparison.

Heels borrows heavily from the deeply emotional sports show playbook established by one of the greatest dramas of the 21st century, Friday Night Lights. It borrows well in the case of its serious tone that still finds the humor in life’s small moments, its respect for its characters beliefs and lifestyles, and its emphasis on the DWL as a found family for those who need it most. It borrows less well in some crunchy, obvious dialogue that could be unfavorably compared to the inspirational speeches of Coach Eric Taylor and, to use a more recent example, Ted Lasso. Monologues aside, “Friday Night Lights, but make it wrestling” is a huge logline to live up to and Heels emerges triumphant from the comparison.

The difficulty in making a show about wrestling as opposed to other sports lies in that wrestling is the only “sport” that relies on decades of carefully held trade secrets. Heels succeeds in making the in-ring action look absolutely incredible, held up by obvious training for the actors themselves, casting athletes (former Steelers quarterback James Harrison plays a wrestler called Apocalypse), hiring the occasional real life wrestler like CM Punk in a guest role, and excellently shot stunt work to hide the seams.

Even if someone watching Heels has never seen a wrestling match before, the action scenes are beautifully coordinated to showcase the best of in-ring storytelling and athleticism. They got suplexes, superplexes, guillotine drops, coast-to-coast knockouts, and if none of those make any sense, just know they look sick as hell on screen.

Heels is an ambitious show that aims to show the limitations of kayfabe in a world ruled by cruel reality. What the Spade brothers build together, wrestling move by wrestling move, is less a story for the crowd and more an attempt to rewrite their own lives and their roles in them. For a show that hinges on the action being fake, Heels is heartbreakingly real and deserves a chance to grow into its full glory.

Heels premieres on Starz Aug. 15.

Whether you’re the next TikTok wunderkind, or a very niche hobbyist, there are several ways to get paid on TikTok. If getting paid for the videos you make anyway sounds like an exciting possibility, read on. Just be ready to put in some work. (TL;DR: Start getting some followers).

Creator Fund

In August 2020, TikTok launched the Creator Fund; a $200 million initiative that it estimates will grow to $1 billion over the next three years. According to TikTok, the fund’s purpose is to “support ambitious creators who are seeking opportunities to foster a livelihood through their innovative content.” In other words, TikTok will give you money for the videos you create.

Top influencers have reported receiving between two and four cents per 1,000 views. So creators with lots of views can make serious money. For example, TikTok’s favorite plastic surgeon Anthony Youn (@tonyounmd) got 1.5 million views for a video denouncing DIY toe surgery (don’t watch if you have a weak stomach). Based on our calculations, he might have made between $45,000 and $60,000.

To participate in the Creator Fund, you need to already have some traction. You must have at least 10,000 followers and at least 100,000 video views in the last 30 days to be eligible to apply. And you also need to be 18 years or older and be based in the U.S., UK, Germany, Italy, France, and Spain, where the fund is currently available.

TikTok is vague as to how the funds are actually calculated, citing a “number of factors,” including page views and engagement. It’s worth noting that some creators say they’re making a fraction of what they expected to earn according to reports from VICE and Wired.

If you’re undeterred after reading those reports and you meet all of the requirements, you can apply within the app. Open ‘Settings and Privacy’ in the top righthand corner of the app, then tap ‘Creator tools,’ then ‘TikTok Creator Fund.’ If you qualify to apply, the application basically consists of entering your contact information, and agreeing to the terms of the TikTok Creator Fund Agreement.

Once accepted into the program, that’s where you can access your dashboard and withdraw funds via PayPal or Zelle. Funds show up in the dashboard three days after views from your video are counted, and you can withdraw your money 30 days after the end of the month in which your video was posted.

Creator Marketplace

TikTok’s Creator Marketplace is a platform that introduces brands to creators for paid campaigns or sponsorship opportunities. Brands can search for creators within the marketplace by country, age, topic, etc. and reach out directly for paid collaborations.

The Creator Marketplace is still in its trial stages and TikTok hasn’t shared specific information on who is eligible. For now, the website says that eligible creators, “may be invited to join or apply.” If it sounds like the Creator Marketplace is pretty exclusive, that’s because right now, it is. TikTok says that it will be “expanding the invitations over time.”

If you do join the marketplace, the next step is to set up your creator profile. To access your profile, go to ‘Settings and Privacy,’ then ‘Creator tools,’ then ​​’TikTok Creator Marketplace.’

There, you can edit profile information and set rates for sponsored videos.

If a brand wants to collaborate with you, you’ll receive a notification in your inbox with the campaign and contract. If you choose to accept the invitation, you can discuss the details of the campaign through the marketplace tool — concept, video-making methods, the look and feel the brand needs, wardrobe, location, etc., basically everything else that has to be hashed out before you can make what is essentially a commercial. TikTok doesn’t currently support transactions of this kind, so payment must be arranged outside of the app.

LIVE Gifting

While maybe not as lucrative as a brand collaboration, hosting a livestream can bring in money too, but the path toward getting actual money in this way is a long and winding one. When you host a TikTok LIVE stream, users buy virtual coins, which can be used to buy virtual gifts. Gifts are converted into diamonds, which are distributed as funds to creators, minus TikTok’s 50 percent cut.

The precise value of a diamond is not something TikTok has officially made public. Thankfully though, users have figured it out for themselves. There are some very helpful breakdowns here and here, but what you need to know is that one diamond equals about 5 cents. So for every 100 diamonds, creators earn roughly $5, which becomes $2.50 after TikTok takes its cut.

Like the Creator Fund and Creator Marketplace, there are some restrictions on who can participate in LIVE Gifting. To host a live stream you must have more than 1,000 followers and be 16 or older. To then receive gifts in conjunction with your livestream, you must be at least 18 years old.

When you go live, users can send you gifts in real time. And at the end of your stream, a summary will show you the coin value of the gifts you received. To see how many diamonds you’ve earned and withdraw funds, tap ‘Balance’ under ‘Settings and Privacy’ and then tap ‘LIVE Gifts.’

Other ways to get paid on TikTok

By this point, you’ve figured out that to you need a significant number of followers just to start making money on TikTok. But, there are other ways to get paid that don’t involve working directly with TikTok’s monetization tools. You’ll still need to show brands that you have some kind of clout, but this way, you don’t need a minimum number of followers to start hustling.

Influencer marketing: Gaining a loyal following, no matter how small, means that people trust and listen to you. And brands want to work with creators who have that kind of influence. If you don’t belong to TikTok’s Creator Marketplace, you can connect with brands directly for sponsored posts, product reviews, account takeovers, product mentions, or playing a song over your video, which has become a popular way for record companies and artists to promote new music. Just make sure you’re being transparent about your relationships with brands and disclosing when there’s financial incentive.

Selling your own merch: You’ll need a lot of followers to make real money doing this, but since TikTok’s announced that creators can soon sell products within the app via Teespring, ecommerce is expected to play a big role on the app. While the Teespring integration isn’t yet available to all users, it’s already pretty easy to sell merchandise by adding a link in your profile to whatever third party selling app you use, such as Shopify or Magento.

Now that you’ve got the nitty gritty (emphasis on gritty) you’re ready to show the TikTok universe what you’ve got. So go ahead, and show us your best white girl dance.

The hyper-contagious Delta variant has officially launched the newest phase of pandemic life. This reality, with infections soaring and vaccinated people unexpectedly masking up again, was expertly illustrated on Twitter this week. A viral meme invited people to temporarily turn their shock into laughter by pairing two contrasting images: the future you’d imagined once America reopened and what actually happened when Delta began burning through the country.

Underpinning all of this, for many, is fury. They’re angry at the lost hope, the suddenly heightened risk, and the determined resistance displayed by millions of Americans who’ve refused the vaccine. The unvaccinated may feel frustrated by the Delta surge for different reasons. They may have been working through hesitancy related to a history of medical racism or trying to line up childcare in case they experienced severe side effects. Now they’ve run out of time.

As I wrote earlier this week, anger is a signal that something is wrong. It surfaces when we feel less safe, our boundaries have been violated, someone we love is in danger, or our values are at stake. Anger presents a difficult challenge for most. We must honor the message it’s sending without letting the emotion blindly drive our decisions and behavior. While the answer to Delta-related rage lies in pressuring — even compelling — the unvaccinated to take meaningful responsibility for our collective safety and well-being, anger that festers on its own becomes a painful distraction.

For guidance on how to tackle this stubborn, unpleasant emotion, I called Dan Harris, co-founder of the Ten Percent Happier meditation app and host of its eponymous podcast. (Full disclosure: I’m a paying subscriber of the app.) Harris has spent the past 18 months interviewing experts in human behavior, mindfulness, and meditation, helping podcast listeners process a litany of complex emotions connected to the pandemic. He’s also personally struggled with anger. Like most of us, he knows the satisfying rush of lashing out, and the regret and embarrassment that typically follows.

“I am very prone to anger,” says Harris. “When I act on it, it might feel good for a nanosecond, but if I’m really aware of what’s happening it feels toxic in my veins.”

Harris insists that he’s far from enlightenment. Instead, his approach to anger management is about making fewer mistakes and finding more happiness from moment to moment.

Harris offered a few strategies for learning how to recognize and release anger:

Develop self-awareness

Irritation has the uncanny tendency to sneak up on us. A leisurely drive can end in profanity when we’re cut off in traffic. A conversation with a loved one can turn hostile at the mere mention of politics. A slight that’s reminiscent of previously experienced discrimination can leave us seething.

Dealing with anger means learning to recognize its classic signs, including a surge of adrenaline and increased blood pressure and heart rate. Harris says the emotion shows up for him as irritated thoughts, a “buzzing” in his chest, “restless energy,” and the impulse to say something “sharp.” His meditation practice is what helps Harris observe anger come and go without being “owned” by it.

Harris also finds that basic mindfulness meditation, which involves sitting with and calmly observing thoughts for a period of time, provides helpful counter-programming to more contentious or stressful thought patterns.

Listen to what anger is telling you

Harris recommends examining what’s beneath anger. It may be fear, betrayal, injustice, or exhaustion. These experiences demand our attention and compassion. They can’t be wished away or ignored, and shouldn’t be. One tactic Harris uses is to listen to what’s prompting the anger in a specific, nonjudgmental, and friendly way.

“There’s a ferocity that comes from that, when applied correctly, that might really help you address the situation in the most effective way possible, with motivations to be of use rather than seeking vengeance or a pound of flesh,” says Harris.

This approach can yield actionable information and lead to important choices, like setting new boundaries with a friend who won’t mask or get vaccinated; advocating for safer return-to-work policies; or taking a break from heated conversations on social media. Such decisions won’t make rage magically dissolve, but they can restore a sense of agency, which is critical for coping with the unpredictability of the latest COVID-19 surge.

Practice self-compassion and loving-kindness

Though Harris is committed to meditation, he’s famously skeptical of what he describes as its “gooey” concepts, including self-compassion and loving-kindness. Yet he’s convinced by research showing that both techniques increase happiness, and he uses them to help “reprogram” his inner dialogue.

“The notion that love cancels fear has shown up in many religious traditions over time, and philosophical traditions.”

Self-compassion is the practice of treating yourself the way you would a friend. While there’s space to hold yourself accountable after a mistake born of anger, self-compassion recognizes that shaming and blaming won’t change what’s happened or lead to a better outcome in the future. The Ten Percent Happier website offers 10 self-compassion practices for COVID-19, co-authored by experts on the subject, Dr. Chris Germer, Ph.D., and Dr. Kristin Neff, Ph.D.

Loving-kindness is the practice of empathy, often expressed through specific phrases, toward yourself or others. Directing loving-kindness toward someone, particularly if they’ve triggered our anger, doesn’t dismiss or condone their actions. Rather, it’s a reminder of our shared humanity and meant to help lift from our shoulders fury’s heavy burden.

“The notion that love cancels fear has shown up in many religious traditions over time, and philosophical traditions,” says Harris. “And it appears from the studies that have been done around this kind of practice that it is a great way to counteract the fear and anger in your mind, and replace it with something friendlier, or the ennobling desire to be of assistance to other people who are in worse situations [than] you.”

Take care of yourself

Harris says he’s less able to manage anger when something is physically or emotionally out of balance. That’s why he sticks to a list of basic self-care strategies: mindfulness and meditation, restful sleep, exercise, moderately healthy eating, therapy, and spending time in nature. Conversations with dozens of human psychology experts over the last year have convinced him that the most important variable affecting our happiness is our relationships with others. For Harris, this insight means taking seriously the quality of his connections and being intentional in his relationships.

“What’s become clear in the course of this is…we are not wired to handle uncertainty,” says Harris. “And yet uncertainty is the non-negotiable law of the universe.”

Harris says that by taking care of his basic needs, he can relax as much as possible into a situation in which he has minimal control. That sense of ease can provide a valuable buffer against debilitating anger.

“[M]y real advice is I want you to be as happy moment to moment as possible,” says Harris. “I feel like you probably won’t be if you’re marinating in nonstop anger, if you’re on an IV drip of rage.”

TL;DR: Keep your AirTag protected with this Apple AirTag Keychain Holder, on sale for 50% off. As of Aug. 15, grab one for only $14.95.

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It’s 2021, which means you no longer have to be held accountable for where your stuff is at all times. Thanks to the invention of the Apple AirTag, you don’t have to wonder where your missing suitcase went, where your car keys are hiding, or where the dog leash disappeared to. 

But while AirTags are super convenient for keeping track of missing luggage at the airport or your car keys, they serve no purpose if you lose or break the actual tag. These little trackers will have a longer life span if you turn them into keychains and make them wearable. With this Apple AirTag Keychain Holder, you can safely hold on to your AirTags wherever you are and also protect them from scratches or dents in the process.

This silicone keychain holder will keep the elements away from your AirTag, including dust and even water. Turning your AirTags into keychains will easily make them useful to attach to car keys, backpacks, and so much more. This keyring easily attaches to bags, wallets, and even belt loops, and will give your AirTag a unique look, since it comes in a variety of colorways. When you want to swap out the AirTag or clean it or the keychain itself, you can easily pop it out to wipe it down. Since the keychain is ultra-lightweight, it will add almost no weight to your AirTag, so you won’t even notice something is around it; you’ll just have the complete convenience of having it on a key chain and peace of mind that it’s safe and secure.

These Apple AirTag Keychains (which come in your choice of black, pink, or blue) regularly retail for $29. You can slash 50% off for a limited time, though, and grab one for just $14.95.

If you ever find yourself with the need to combine several PDFs into one single file, you may be immediately frustrated: It’s not immediately obvious how to achieve what you’re trying to do.

Luckily, Adobe, the creator of the PDF, offers a super-simple and free online tool that will help you combine your files in a matter of minutes. Read on for an easy-to-follow walkthrough that will show you exactly what you need to do to successfully combine two or more PDFs.

Using Adobe Acrobat’s online tool to combine PDFs

Adobe’s free online tool to combine PDFs offers a clean and simple interface that’s easy to understand.

The first time you use the tool, you don’t need to sign in, and you can just select to download your merged file when you’ve completed the process.

If you want to use the tool again, you will need to sign in with your Google, Facebook, or Apple account, or by creating an account with your email address and a password.

When you do sign in, you get the additional option to share your file by either generating a link or emailing it to others.

Combining PDFs files online

To get started, you need to get your PDF files into the main “Combine Files/Merge PDFs” box you will see at the top of the page.

You can do this by dragging and dropping your PDF files into the box, or you can click the “Select Files” button to choose files you have saved on your computer.

Once you’ve uploaded your PDF files, it’s just a matter of clicking the “Merge/Combine” option toward the top right of your screen.

If you’re signed in, you’ll need to give the new file a name before the “Combine” button is clickable.

What you can do with your combined PDF file

After you’ve completed the combine process, you can download or share your new file.

From the completed merge screen, you’ll also see a menu on the right-hand side of the page.

This menu gives you further options to edit your file, including the ability to reorganize the pages, split the PDF, edit it, convert it into an alternative file format such as a JPEG or Word file, and to add a comment. Simply click on each option to make it happen.

It’s been a long couple of years, but our streaming subscriptions flourish more than ever. It’s entirely likely that you or someone you know has recently uttered the phrase “I’ve watched everything in my queue,” or “I’ve seen everything on Netflix.”

No, sweetie, you haven’t.

Whether you’ve burned through your queue or your recommendations, Netflix still contains untold treasures should you wish to unlock them (since there’s still no A-Z search function, just assume you’ve glimpsed a mere tip of the iceberg). We’ve got lists of thrillers, rom-coms, the best original movies, and more.

While we wouldn’t consider ourselves your close personal friends, the Mashable Entertainment team has banded together to share what we believe are the best Netflix original series, to watch or rewatch as you see fit.

Here are the 15 best Netflix originals series to date (in no particular order).

1. When They See Us

Based on the 1989 Central Park jogger case, Ava DuVernay’s limited series tragedy When They See Us delivers a scathing indictment of the United States’ legal system that will hang with you long after you’ve finished its four-episode arc. Asante Blackk, Caleel Harris, Ethan Herisse, Jharrel Jerome, and Marquis Rodriguez stun as young men trapped in an institution designed to work against them. If there is any series on this list you “must” watch, it’s this. –Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

2. Russian Doll

Russian Doll gets as close to a perfect Netflix binge watch as possible.

It’s short, with eight 30-minute episodes forming its first season. It’s bold, covering themes of mortality, trauma, and human connection against the backdrop of New York’s East Village. And it’s flat-out hilarious to boot. Natasha Lyonne co-created and starred as Nadia, a woman who becomes trapped in a time loop after dying on her 36th birthday. Nadia’s Groundhog Day–esque adventure becomes increasingly complex as the series progresses and she races against the loop to discover why she can’t stop dying — and what her loop has to do with Alan, an alleged stranger who’s experiencing the exact same cycle. -Alexis Nedd, Senior Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

3. The Get Down

The Get Down is one of Netflix’s most unique series offerings, remixing the real life roots of hip hop legends like DJ Cool Herc and Grandmaster Flash with the fictional, almost fairy-tale story of talented Bronx teens desperate to achieve their dreams. Like many of co-creator Baz Lurhmann’s projects, The Get Down is partially a musical, with original songs by Sia, Janelle Monáe, and Christina Aguilera blended in with ’70s hits like “Bad Girls,” “Ball of Confusion,” and in the series’ most triumphant moment, the iconic theme from Star Wars. Its flashy visuals don’t distract from the show’s huge heart, making the show as joyous and hard-hitting as the rap albums its style emulates. –A.N.

Where to watch: Netflix

4. American Vandal

“Who did the dicks?” may not sound like a compelling premise for a true-crime drama, and technically, it isn’t: American Vandal is a comedy about a completely fictional case of a high school parking lot defaced with spray-painted penises. But the parody nails the genre so well, and with such a resolutely straight face, that it’s almost possible to forget none of it is real, and very possible to get as deeply invested as if it were. 

As Peter (Tyler Alvarez) and Sam (Griffin Gluck) look for the culprit behind the penis drawings in the first season (or, in Season 2, the laxative-laced lemonade), what started as a puerile spoof about the eternal hilarity of dick jokes eventually reveals itself to be a surprisingly empathetic exploration of adolescence…that still finds plenty of time to snicker about poop or penises, because come on. That shit’s hilarious. –Angie Han, Deputy Entertainment Editor

Where to watch: Netflix

5. Sense8

Created by the Wachowski sisters and J. Michael Straczynski, Sense8 is, well, exactly as trippy as you’d expect a sci-fi drama created by those three to be. The series follows eight strangers who discover in quick succession that they’re linked by a single mind and soul, and that that makes them a target for certain mysterious forces. Thrills ensue, in the form of cool superpowers, deadly chases, sinister conspiracies, and intricately choreographed fight scenes, all shot and edited together with dazzling precision.

But what makes Sense8 feel truly special is its emphasis on emotional connection. It’s a show that feels almost radical in its earnestness — in its plea for empathy, in its faith in humanity, in its celebration for love. It wears its tender, beating heart on its sleeve, and invites you to touch it, and then asks you if, perhaps, you wouldn’t like to open up your own heart to it, too. -A.H.

Where to watch: Netflix

6. Dear White People

Dear White People knows that its title provokes, but the masterful comedy from Justin Simien is more insightful than incendiary. The only challenge it poses at the interpellated audience (and at nonblack viewers in general) is to see these characters as striving, learning, aching three-dimensional people like anyone else. Welcome them into your home as they welcome us to the irresistible insularity of Winchester University, where every late night, hook up, and student caucus meeting is a dramatic event unto itself.

Here, at the predominantly Black dorm of Armstrong-Parker, where Sam (Logan Browning), Coco (Antoinette Robertson), Joelle (Ashley Blaine Featherson), Troy (Brandon Bell), Reggie (Marque Richardson), and Lionel (DeRon Horton) navigate their tremulous college years through race, relationships, and legacy. Simien and his writers don’t sleep on satire or social commentary, but Dear White People never feels informational. It is a crash course in modern racial dynamics wrapped in some of the sharpest comedy you can find. You’ll quickly be drawn into the Winchester bubble and unable to shake it off when you leave. -Proma Khosla, Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

7. Tuca and Bertie

BoJack Horseman producer Lisa Hanawalt’s animated comedy Tuca & Bertie portrays the realities of millennial adulthood and the unbreakable bonds that form women’s friendships. Also almost everyone is birds. Tuca (Tiffany Haddish) is a fun-loving toucan whose reaction to responsibility is abject terror, while her best friend Bertie (Ali Wong) is a neurotic, ambitious songbird. Their lives in Bird Town are relatable in some ways, like how Bertie experiences sexism at work, but Tuca & Bertie’s imaginative world also allows for creative liberties, like the existence of sentient pubic lice that party on people’s crotches. Tuca & Bertie also does more with the medium of animation than almost any other animated series streaming on Netflix, using paper cutouts and sequences with puppets to highlight important parts of its story. –A.N.

Where to watch: Netflix

8. Astronomy Club

There is no acceptable reason for how or why the ingenious Astronomy Club has gone this long flying low on Netflix radar, but you can do your part to rectify that immediately. UCB alums Shawtane Bowen, Jonathan Braylock, Ray Cordova, Caroline Martin, Jerah Milligan, Monique Moses, Keisha Zollar, and James III (“We’re Black, and we’re all stars, and like most stars, nobody knows our names.”) deliver sketch after brilliant sketch, and that’s when they’re not leaning in to reality-show drama about heightened versions of themselves. –P.K.

Where to watch: Netflix

9. GLOW

It’s the Gooorgeous Ladies of Wrestling! Created by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch, GLOW is one of those shows that makes you smile just thinking of it. A masterful blend of rage-fueled ‘80s feminism and timeless comedic beats, this half-hour dramedy delivers everything you could want in great TV each and every episode throughout its three seasons. Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin lead an unparalleled ensemble in a journey we’ll never be ready to see end. Here’s lookin’ at you, Season 4. -A.F.

Where to watch: Netflix

10. Unorthodox

Unorthodox is a gripping miniseries about a young Esty Shapiro (Shira Haas), a young, recently married woman who escapes her ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jewish community in Brooklyn to find her mother in Berlin and start a new life. It is one of the most engrossing series I’ve ever seen, engulfing viewers in a community that many may be cursorily aware of but have no in-depth knowledge about. As Esty arrives in Berlin, confused yet free, trying to find her place and a place to stay, the family she left behind is frantic. Her husband is distraught and begins searching for Esty while she gets her first tastes of independence outside her insular Satmar community. As the story unfolds, more details of Esty’s past are revealed and the possibility of a future at a musical conservatory hangs precariously in front of her. Esty’s search for something more in life and her family’s search for her intertwine into an intense crescendo of family, community, and independence.

Part of what makes Unorthodox extraordinary is its roots in reality. It’s inspired by a memoir by Deborah Feldman, a woman who fled the Satmar community. Many of the actors grew up speaking Yiddish. It pulls on knowledge from people who have been in or around these communities to help with sets, speech, attire, and moments as authentic as possible. Parts of the show feel like stepping into a period piece, but it’s the reality of modern ultra-Orthodox Hasidic Jewish communities. – Kellen Beck, Entertainment Reporter

Where to watch: Netflix

11. Never Have I Ever

Months after Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher’s comedy about 15-year-old Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) and her sublimely teenage woes, I’m still not sure what its naysayers expected. The show was never going to compromise on or depart from its creators’ signature sense of humor as it was first minted on The Mindy Project. It was never going to be the story of every Indian American teenager or every immigrant family, nor was it going to resolve Devi’s many flaws and misjudgments over the course of a single 10-episode season.

But Never Have I Ever does so much else. It puts Devi in full peril of her sexuality, grief, and a wee smidge of sociopathy. It has the best ensemble cast of any Kaling production (no disrespect to the rotating secondary characters of The Mindy Project, but perhaps a healthy dose of shade) and scenes that will leave you laughing, crying, or crawling out of your skin as you remember the blissful highs and nightmarish lows of adolescence. –P.K.

Where to watch: Netflix

12. Santa Clarita Diet

Come for the irresistibly gory premise, stay for the surprisingly sweet center. Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant play a suburban California couple whose lives are upended when Sheila (Barrymore) turns into a zombie. The transformation gives her a new zest for life, but she’s also racking up a high body count, attracting the suspicion of neighbors and authorities, and finding herself changing in ever more disturbing ways.

Through it all, though, Joel remains resolutely on Sheila’s side, committed to making it work no matter how weird or dangerous the journey gets — or tense and terrified it makes him (Olyphant’s nervous chuckles alone are worth the price of admission). Dig past the blood and entrails and chewed-off fingers, and you’ll find in Santa Clarita Diet a tender portrait of the challenges and joys of long-term romance. –A.H.

Where to watch: Netflix

13. The Crown

Pile under some blankets and get ready to be soothed by watching one seriously fucked up but deeply captivating family.

The Emmy-winning series made a star out of Claire Foy, who portrayed a young Queen Elizabeth in Seasons 1 and 2. While Season 3 — now starring Olivia Colman — didn’t always reach the same highs, it remained a stirring portrait of a woman and a marriage that are both world famous and yet still shrouded in mystery. The series is at its best when it explores the quiet moments that must have followed the big public headlines about news events you know. Foy and Colman both so easily make a meal out of just a head turn, a raised eyebrow, or a single tear. Luxe production values ensure that Buckingham Palace is awe-inspiring, but the biggest applause must be held for the meaty monologues about God, family, and country. -Erin Strecker, Entertainment Editor

Where to watch: Netflix

14. Sex Education

It’s rare that depictions of high school sexual exploits do anything but make you cringe. And yet, in the world Sex Education, these scenes are the bedrock of a blissfully understanding, caring, and ever-evolving world that presents the best of the best in acceptance. Ncuti Gatwa, Emma Mackey, and Asa Butterfield lead as three friends sorting their way through Moordale Secondary School, its student body, and the trials of the heart that lie within. -A.F.

Where to watch: Netflix

15. Stranger Things

Stranger Things is a great sci-fi series. With roots in horror and coming-of-age arcs, there is so much about these three seasons that is so satisfying. Each season builds itself on an expanding flow of tension and release, of mystery and explosive action, interwoven with growing personal relationships and government conspiracies that make each step forward in the story that much more engaging.

The series begins in Hawkins, Indiana in the 1980s, and something strange is going on. A sort of interdimensional rift has been opened beneath the rural town and a young girl, Eleven, who is tapped into that that Upside Down dimension, escapes her capture and teams up with a group of kids to put a stop to the terror that has entered the world. As the seasons go on, the threats morph but that element of horror and unabashed ‘80s stays strong, giving Stranger Things a really strong and (mostly) consistent sense of style and narrative. –K.B.

Where to watch: Netflix

This list was updated in August 2021 to reflect the latest on Netflix.