Just to let everyone know, the whole world going patent crazy was mostly (if my history is correct) due to one man - Guglielmo Marconi - the "inventor/pioneer" of the radio.
It turns out, several scientists (including Nikola tesla, Heinrich Hertz, Oliver Lodge, etc) were the actual inventors of wireless telegraphy who publicly demonstrated a working model.
Marconi, being a business man, saw the potential, stole the ideas, packaged their work in a nice little box, and patented it. After whom, others such as Thomas Edison were patent-happy.
Due to this, the entire scientific world was up in arms and everyone started to patent every little detail they possible could.
As far as I understand it, if a scientific-breakthrough is already publicly known or demonstrated, then that can't be patented, so there's obviously a reason why Apple were granted this.