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17 Awesome Photos From The NFL's Conference Championship Games

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On Sunday, arguably the four best teams in the NFL battled for their conference championships and a shot to play in this year's Super Bowl.

The games produced some amazing photos, including snow confetti angels, a fierce handshake between quarterbacks, and one adorable fan.

Here are our favorites photos of the game from Getty Images, AP, and Reuters.

Colin Kaepernick overlooks the field prior to the game.



A Seattle Seahawks dog was seen outside the stadium prior to the game.



Russell Wilson gave the 49ers a great opportunity early on when he lost a fumble behind his back.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The Most Expensive Music Videos Of All Time

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When Beyoncé released her self-titled visual album last month — a stunning array of 14 new songs and 17 music videos— it was explained as "a non-linear journey through the thoughts and visions of Beyoncé."

It was, quite simply, an experience, and since the early 1980s when MTV launched, the music video has continued to be just that — a new platform for artists' products, a revolutionary form of marketing, and a chance for listeners to have the total music experience.

Throughout the ages we've seen musicians try anything and everything in their videos — ferocious animals, death-defying heights, and crazy outfits — all in the name of innovation.

While some artists, like David Bowie, who spent $12.99 on his 2013 video for "Love Is Lost," choose a savvier home video route, others, like Michael Jackson and Madonna, spend millions of dollars and weeks of production on their work.

Think you know what music videos broke the bank

14. Backstreet Boys, "Larger Than Life" (1999) — $2.1 million

'90s boy band Backstreet Boys were thinking big when they put together a music video for their 1999 hit.

They joined together with director Joseph Kahn to set the scene for "Larger than Life" in outer space.

More than $2 million later, we get loads of special effects and animation — Brian Littrell is pictured doing flips on a flying surfboard, a scene that in itself cost around $90K.

Star Wars-esque images, elaborate robotic-looking costumes (think Transformers), and cryogenic chambers follow as each band member is featured in his own scene.



13. Michael Jackson, "Bad" (1987) — $2.2 million

At a time when MTV and music videos were bringing songs to the next level and musicians onto a more public platform, Michael Jackson made a name for himself with his lengthy, detailed, and pricey videos.

For 1987's "Bad," Jackson recruited an all-star team: famed film director Martin Scorsese and novelist Richard Price. The 18-minute short-film took the team a total of six weeks to shoot.

Compared to "West Side Story," the video featured Jackson as a teenager who returns to his urban hometown from preppy boarding school. Cue the leather-adorned Jackson street dancing with an impeccably choreographed possé in a Brooklyn subway station.

Price later spoke to New York Magazine about his role, saying:

"Think about it: Richard Price, Scorsese, Michael Jackson, who the hell is going to say no? Of course I was going do it. And everybody did their job. Jackson is not a bad actor, and Scorsese, well, he's great."



12. Celine Dion, "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (1996) — $2.3 million

Fire, ghosts, gusts of wind, and motorcycles — the 1996 video for Dion's "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" has it all.

The Nigel Dick-directed video was shot over the course of four days in various locations throughout the Czech Republic.

The video team used grandiose scenes of expansive hallways, staircases, and bedrooms, plus exterior images of the Ploskovice Castle, while the post-production team used extensive special effects to portray reflective, haunting images of Dion's character and her deceased lover.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

18 Amazing Moments From The World's Toughest Road Race

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The two-week-long Dakar Rally is among the most intense off-roading events in the world.

Each year, nearly 600 drivers on motorcycles, quad bikes, cars, and trucks take on the challenge of this endurance ride through the South American wilderness. 

This year's perilous course began in Rosario, Argentina, taking racers more than 5,000 miles up through the desert of Bolivia and down the Chilean coast. 

The race is also notoriously dangerous. Heading into the final stages of the course, there were already three fatalities: Belgian motorcyclist Eric Palante and two spectators have died

This year's rally was filled with plenty of drama, highlighted in these jaw-dropping photos. 

They finished Jan. 18 in Valparaiso, Chile, with Spain's Nani Roma taking first place. 

This year's racers posed for a picture in downtown Rosario, Argentina, before starting the race.



Spectators stood in knee-deep water as they cheered on racers during the first stage.



Spain's Nani Roma pushed through dirt during the first stage, which ended in San Luis, Argentina.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Tour The $88 Million Meadowlands Grandstand That Was Built To Make Harness Horse Racing Cool Again

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After a year and a half and $88 million dollars, the new grandstand at the Meadowlands Racetrack — in the same complex as the home of Superbowl XLVIII — opened in November.

The new grandstand replaces the famous harness racetrack from the 1970s. It's one-third the size of the old one  a logical move since so much betting takes place off-site these days.

"It feels completely different than the old building," racetrack chairman Jeff Gural told Business Insider. "The old building was a depressing place. There were large parts that were closed and empty. Now it's crowded and fun. It has an up feeling."

Even with lingering mounds of snow on a recent Friday evening, plenty made the trek to East Rutherford for dinner and drinks, if not to bet on one of the 13 races.

There are still VIP betting rooms and an old-school owners' club done up in dark wood and leather. But for the young professional looking to get out on a Friday night, there's also a rooftop terrace with stunning views of Manhattan, a sports bar with double-height ceilings and cinema-sized televisions, and a two-tiered prix-fixe dining room that looks straight at the finish line.

Admission to the grandstand is free, and dinner and drinks can be had for $40 or less. The minimum bet on-site is just $2.

"When I tell people I own the Meadowlands, the most common thing I hear is, 'Oh, I used to go there all the time with my father or my girlfriend,'" Gural said. "Twenty or 30 years ago, the Meadowlands was the place to be on a Saturday night. I'd like it to be that place again."

Business Insider got a behind-the-scenes tour of the new Meadowlands facility before the start of a recent race. 

Here's the new grandstand from the track side. It's sleeker, with more windows than the bulky grandstand that debuted in 1976. NFL organizers currently occupy the old building to prepare for the Super Bowl. After that, it will revert to state ownership while the new grandstand operates privately.



Trotters, the owners' club, is one of the few places in the new grandstand with a classic "racetrack" look: stuffed leather chairs and horse paraphernalia are everywhere.



If a horse's owners are at the Meadowlands the night their horse wins a race, their next dinner at Trotters is on the house.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Look Inside The Must-See 'Star Wars' Exhibit That Explores Tech In A Galaxy Far, Far Away

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Few fictional universes have captured as many imaginations as George Lucas' "Star Wars."

Lightsabers, the Force, jumping to hyperspace — all of these things have captivated audiences of children and adults alike for nearly four decades.

When a friend told me that there was a museum exhibit in the heart of Silicon Valley featuring original props and models from the films, I immediately knew I had to go.

Hosted at the Tech Museum of Innovation in downtown San Jose, "Star Wars: The Exhibition" is one of the coolest ways a sci-fi nerd can spend an afternoon. Fans can stand inches away from characters and gizmos that they've only ever dreamed of seeing in person, all for the price of a trip to the movies.

Walking up to the museum, everything is covered in "Star Wars" artwork.



Including this modified Nissan 350Z, retrofitted with its own R2-D2.



The first thing you see when walking into the exhibit itself is the original model of the X-Wing. The video that accompanied it showed how its look and sounds were based on fighter planes from World War 2.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

An Architect Built This Stunning, 196-Square-Foot 'Tiny Home' In Idaho

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Boise, Idaho-area architect Macy Miller traded her 2,500-square-foot residence for a 196-square-foot home she built herself after dealing with a long and complex foreclosure settlement.

The home she constructed is an impressive example of the burgeoning "tiny house" trend.

Miller spent around $11,500 on the home, which she constructed on the back of a flatbed trailer.

She completely owns her home, which she shares with her partner and dog, and only pays to rent the land it sits on. The most expensive part was the $2,000 compost toilet that uses little to no water.  

Miller shared photos of her home with Business Insider.

Here's the view of Miller's 196-square-foot house from the front door.



And this is the view from her lofted bed at the opposite end of the house.



Underneath the kitchen counters, she has a two-in-one washer/dryer.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The 11 Best GIFs From The NFL's Conference Championship Games

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The NFL conference championship games were this weekend and we now know that the Denver Broncos will play the Seattle Seahawks in this year's Super Bowl.

As usual, the games were filled with plenty of interesting and entertaining moments.

This week's collection of GIFs includes Peyton Manning's butter fingers, Colin Kaepernick running circles around the Seahawks, and a horse that was drumming too much.

Here are our 11 favorites.

Maybe Peyton Manning should have worn two gloves.



The Patriots struggled with tackling at times.



This was either extremely lucky or just another magical moment for Tom Brady.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

17 Things You Never Knew About Richard Sherman

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Richard Sherman bolted onto the national stage with his wild postgame interview after winning the NFC championship game.

By now, America is well aware that Sherman is a Stanford-educated trash talker.

But he's also a film junkie, an incredibly hard worker, and a role model for every kid born into inner-city poverty.

He finished second in his high school class with 4.1 GPA.

Source: LA Times



He has a 'near-photographic memory,' according to SI. He memorized his 18-letter, randomly generated Wifi password.

Source: SI



He grew up in Compton, and was the first Dominguez High School grad in 20 years to get a scholarship from Stanford.

Source: LA Times



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

12 Things Successful People Do Before Breakfast

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“If it has to happen, then it has to happen first,” writes Laura Vanderkam, time management expert and author of “What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast.”

Those among us who have managed to find professional success and eek out a life actively embrace this philosophy. They must set aside their first hours of the day to invest in their top-priority activities before other people’s priorities come rushing in.

Science supports this strategy. Vanderkam cites Florida State University psychology professor Roy Baumeister’s famous finding that willpower is like a muscle that becomes fatigued from overuse. Diets, he says, come undone in the evening, just as poor self-control and lapses in decision-making often come later in the day. On the other hand, early mornings offer a fresh supply of willpower, and people tend to be more optimistic and ready to tackle challenging tasks.

So what do successful executives and entrepreneurs do when they are rested and fresh? From Vanderkam’s study of morning rituals, we outline the following 12 things that the most successful people do before breakfast.

They wake up early.

Successful people know that time is a precious commodity. And while theirs is easily eaten up by phone calls, meetings, and sudden crises once they’ve gotten to the office, the morning hours are under their control. That’s why many of them rise before the sun, squeezing out as much time as they can to do with as they please.

In a poll of 20 executives cited by Vanderkam, 90% said they wake up before 6 a.m. on weekdays. PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, for example, wakes at 4 a.m. and is in the office no later than 7 a.m. Meanwhile, Disney CEO Bob Iger gets up at 4:30 to read, and Square CEO Jack Dorsey is up at 5:30 to jog. 

The bottom line: Productive mornings start with early wake-up calls.



They exercise before it falls off the to-do list.

The top morning activity of the rich and powerful seems to be exercise, be it lifting weights at home or going to the gym. According to Vanderkam, Xerox CEO Ursula Burns schedules an hour-long personal training session starting at 6 a.m. twice a week; Christies CEO Steve Murphy uses the mornings to do yoga; and Starwood Hotels CEO Frits van Paasschen runs for an hour every morning starting at 5:30.

“These are incredibly busy people,” says Vanderkam. “If they make time to exercise, it must be important.”

Beyond the fact that exercising in the morning means they can’t later run out of time, Vanderkam says a pre-breakfast workout helps reduce stress later in the day, counteracts the effects of high-fat diet, and improves sleep.



They work on a top-priority business project.

The quiet hours of the morning can be the ideal time to focus on an important work project without being interrupted. What’s more, spending time on it at the beginning of the day ensures that it gets your attention before others (kids, employees, bosses) use it all up.

Vanderkam uses the example of business strategist Debbie Moysychyn, who dealt with so many ad hoc meetings and interruptions throughout the day that she felt she couldn’t get anything done. She started thinking of the early mornings as project time, and chose a top-priority project each day to focus on. Sure enough, not a single colleague dropped in on her at 6:30 a.m. She could finally concentrate.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The Pentagon Has Selected 2013's Most Intense Military Training Photos

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Military training is no joke.

It all starts with boot camp, which is designed to drill in the military mindset from the get-go.

By applying various degrees of physical and mental stress, the six to 12 weeks of "hell" weeds out the weak and makes sure you know what to expect in military service. 

Boot camp isn't even the end of the difficulties. It's only a warm-up. More than 40% of soldiers who enlist never make it through the first four years. 

Training programs are designed to destroy the civilian attitude and put together an obedient, loyal, and disciplined member of the armed forces. 

The Department of Defense recently released their top 2013 photos from military training. We've collected the best ones here.

Air Assault training is a 10-day training course that teaches you how to prepare helicopters for assault. Many consider it to be the most physically demanding 10 days in the army.



Air Assault school consists of three phases — combat assault, slingload operations (learning how to attach vehicles, weapons, and supplies to the helicopter) and rappelling. During rappelling, soldiers learn how to rappel from helicopters as well as buildings and cliffs.



Navy Search and Rescue swimmers train to be able to function at a high level for 30 minutes in heavy seas.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

GUYS: You Should Probably Avoid These Bizarre Looks From The Menswear Shows In Europe

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Male models have been strutting the runways for Men's Fashion Weeks in London, Milan, and Paris since early January.

The Fall/Winter 2014 shows ended yesterday, and were full of trends guys can look forward to next season, such as longer coats, chunky sweaters, and a moody color pallet of navy, grey, and black.

But not all of the looks were so dapper. The European runways are known for attracting adventurous designers like Givenchy, Rick Owens, and Bobby Abley, who did not shy away from pushing fashion's boundaries and incorporating outrageous accessories or designs this year.

Below are 11 wacky looks that guys can feel free to skip next season.

Let's start with the tamer Alexander McQueen London show. The tailored suits and screen-printed button downs were great, but we could have lived without the bizarre hair feathers on the models' heads.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Japanese designer Junya Watanabe was all about bringing punk back in style. The preppy-yet-punk show was refreshing, but his cropped pants with tartan patches won't work off the runway.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Rick Owens sent futuristic and monochromatic designs down his Paris runway. Some of the coats were amazing, but all the looks were overshadowed by the head pieces that were reminiscent of nuns' habits.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Givenchy's Paris show was full of fur. The one misstep of the veteran designer was the weird look in the center — is it a vest? A tucked-in scarf? It remains a mystery.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake was all about bursts of color in Paris. The colorful outfits looked like something out of a rave or kaleidoscope.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 And by colorful, we mean really, really colorful. The only time your socks, shoes, shirt, and suit should match like this is if it's Halloween.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014The wide pants from last year's spring runways made a resurgence at Alan Taylor MAN in London. This suit could've been cool, but the huge pants, long jacket, and neon gloves ruined the look.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 J.W. Anderson in London was just a mess with cropped, puffy suits that no normal guy could pull off. And yes, those shoes are high-heeled clogs.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Slutty urban cowboys will love everything Prada sent down the Milan runway. Everyone else should probably just steer clear of the costumey looks.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Designer Yohji Yamamoto sent a troupe of Victorian British vagabonds down his Paris runway. The top hats, cropped pants, and ill-fitting, wild suits were overkill.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 Thom Browne's show in Paris featured gorgeous suits with frayed seams that were a major hit. Less popular were the bizarre animal head pieces some of the models were forced to wear.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014 But by far the worst of the shows was Bobby Abley's runway in London. All the models wore these horrendous mouth guards, some with bizarre hats topped with mouse ears or devil horns. We hope this is more of a fashion statement than an actual idea for men's accessories.

European Men's Fashion Week Fall 2014

SEE ALSO: 11 Accessories Every Guy Needs To Survive This Winter In Style

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Storm Chaser Reveals His 16 Most Incredible Photos

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Storm chasing photographer Mike Hollingshead makes a living following the worst storms in America, from snarling tornadoes chewing up the Kansas farmland to supercell thunderstorms massing over the Dakotas.

A Nebraska-native, Hollingshead used to watch the Midwest's extreme weather from hills that overlooked his town. After seeing some "crazy storm photos" on the Internet, Hollingshead knew he had to track down the powerful storms. Armed with only a map and a video camera, Hollingshead drove his sedan out to Iowa, where he lucked into a tornado on his first day.

15 years later, Hollingshead is still chasing storms, often into danger. His style is to get right in the path of the storm. While he says it's less scary than you think — because most of the storm consists of heavy rain — it's still extremely stressful.

"Most storm chasers don't put themselves in the path [of the storm] ... but I like the view there the most," he says.

Hollingshead shared some of the most "beast" storms he's ever chased with us, but you can see more of his work at his blog, where he shares pictures and stories from the chases.

Hollingshead started chasing storms in 1999 as a hobby, before going full-time in 2004.



The storm chasing season begins in April, before dropping off quickly in July. He says the best months are May and June. This vivid double rainbow was captured in Kansas.



Hollingshead uses computer models to narrow down where storms, like this supercell in Nebraska, will be. Even with the models, its often impossible to know if a storm will be worth photographing before you get there.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Here's Why Apple Is Putting So Much Emphasis On Selling iPhones In China

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Smartphones Are 45% Ff Subscriptions In China

Apple's iPhone went on sale for the first time on the China Mobile network last Friday and thus far the reaction appears to be mixed. There have been over one million pre-orders of the iPhone on the network, but in-store sales seemed tepid on Friday, and there are concerns over a coming subsidy war.

At BI Intelligence, we recently surveyed some of the best data available on China's mobile computing market and collected it in an in-depth PowerPoint presentation. The full 50-slide version, as well as our ongoing China coverage, is available to subscribers.

Here are some of our key findings on the smartphone market in China, the country that will drive the next big growth story in smartphone shipments:

  • The mobile market in China is already nearly saturated, but most people are still not on smartphone subscriptions.
  • Uptake of smartphones are pushing people on to 3G networks.
  • China Mobile has a huge lead in overall subscriptions in the country.
  • But smartphones make up a much smaller share of China Mobile subscriptions than at China Unicom and China Telecom.
  • The 3G market is in a very tight race between these three carriers.
  • There are already more mobile Internet users in China than PC Internet users, and the race in China is to bring people on to smartphones. Mobile's lead will only widen.
  • It's already happening: The number of smartphone shipments in China doubled in the last year.

To access the full PowerPoint presentation on China's Mobile Ecosystem, you can sign up for a free two-week trial to BI Intelligence. 

BI Intelligence is a research and analysis service focused on mobile computing and the Internet. 

China 3G Subscribers

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The People Of Russia's 'Forgotten Genocide' Return Home To Sochi Ahead Of The Winter Olympics

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When the 2014 Winter Olympics kick off in Sochi, Russia next month, there will likely be an opening ceremony celebrating Russian history. One horrific event probably won’t make it into the program.

In the mid-1800s, Czar Alexander II ordered the expulsion of the native Circassian people from the Black Sea region of Russia. The expulsion forced millions of Circassians onto overcrowded, undersupplied ships across the Black Sea, where somewhere between 600,000 and 1.5 million Circassians died. It has been called the Circassian diaspora, but many Circassians have called it a genocide, and it's been referred to as the "forgotten genocide.

Since Sochi was announced as the 2014 Olympic host city in 2007, Circassians have protested the upcoming games on the grounds that the genocide has received no recognition from the Russian government and the Olympic stadiums are being built on their ancestors’ graves. One hill being used for skiing and snowboarding events is called “Red Hill” because Russian troops massacred a group of Circassians on it.

Recently, a delegation of Circassians traveled to their ancestral home to visit historic sites ahead of the games. 

The arrival of the delegation began with a welcome ceremony for the many Circassians traveling from all over the world. Because of the diaspora, many traveled from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Israel, Canada, Germany, and the U.S.S4Native to the North Caucaus region, Circassians were regarded, throughout their history, as fierce warriors. Here, two members of the Circassian delegation wear traditional clothes.S1Circassians were known to be fiercely independent people. Their native land, whose capital was Sochi, was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. When the Empire ceded the land to Russia in 1829, the Circassians refused to accept their new rulers. This memorial stone marks a settlement destroyed by Russia in the ensuing conflict.S2The delegation quickly moved to the village of Tkhagapsh, one of the few remaining settlements in the area consisting of primarily ethnic Circassians.S14Ais Tlyf says that his ancestors settled in Tkhagapsh in 1872 with other Circassian families, after the war with Russia ended and the Russian military left.S10Former Soviet army correspondent and writer Madin Chachukh is a Circassian living in Tkhagapsh. S7Chachukh worries that the Circassian people and the tale of their horrific destruction will be forgotten, even more so than it is today. "The biggest threat we face today, is the loss of our language and subsequently our culture," Chachukh told Reuters. "There are only very few of us left, too few."S11Circassians have a very distinct and separate culture from Russia. Here, children rehearse for a local folklore dance performance for the delegation.S5Circassians from the delegation watch a traditional dance performance in Bolshoy Kichmay, near Sochi.S6Anzaur Alyal, a Circassian villager, is not so sure that the Circassians will be forgotten in the Olympic ceremonies. "Some say, during the opening ceremony of the Olympics there will be Circassians in their traditional dresses walking in the first row ..." Alyal told Reuters. "This would of course be a very good thing. At the same time, I would like people to understand that Circassians are more than just folklore dance and costumes."S8The Circassian people have long been known for honey making. Here, Muzarbek Teshu attends to his beehives in Tkhagapsh.S13Ashirkhan Chachukh, 82, is one of the few Circassians not concerning herself with the coming Olympics. "The Olympic Games are far away, they don't concern me," Chachukh told Reuters. "The only thing I wish is that they pass peacefully. God forbid, only no war! Then, everything is good."S9In response to Sochi's selection as Olympic host, a group from the Circassian diaspora reportedly asked the International Olympic Committee: "What if one of the candidates to host the Olympic Games had been Auschwitz-Birkenau?" They had no response. S12

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These Line Graphs Perfectly Sum Up Our Lives From Start To Finish

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During the drive home from work, I recently found myself listening to NPR. On the program “All Things Considered,” the host talked about President Obama’s big speech on the National Security Agency, in which the president, in a nutshell, said he will reform the NSA but not stop its collection of metadata.

I pulled into my driveway, clicked off the radio and thought, “Ya know, I feel like I’ve been listening to NPR more now than I used to, which was basically zero.” I did just turn 30 (and already miss these 20 things about my 20s) and realize my consumption of NPR and talk radio, in general, is slowly but steadily increasing with age.

If I had to predict my relationship with talk radio over the long haul, here’s my best guess:Talk Radio Graph

Come to think of it, we can describe much of our lives in simple line graphs.

For example, our height:Height graph

And when we fall asleep:Bedtime graph

Which means this line graph is all over the place:Going out graph

At least family life remains consistent (after our teens):Parents graph

When it comes to drinking, the line graph gets a little more colorful:Alcohol graph

And when we examine our blood pressure over the years, it’s spike after spike:Blood pressure graph

Plus, our careers also take a toll:Work graph

That’s why, when life gets too crazy, we need to curl up with a sure thing:Grilled cheese graph

Disney always lightens the mood too:Cartoons graph

Even at our lowest, may we never do this (except once):Celine Dion graph

Still, plenty of life’s greatest truths have no timeline at all.Luck graph

What’s true happiness?Money graph

Let’s try again.Love graph

Still following this blog post? Remarkable!Attention span graph

SEE ALSO: 22 Photos That Show Why The Capitals Of Serbia And Croatia Are Europe's Hot New Destinations

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EL-ERIAN: These Are The People And Institutions That Shaped The Way I Think

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Mohamed El-Erian

Mohamed El-Erian is resigning from his positions as CEO and Co-CIO of PIMCO, the California-based fund giant with over $1.9 trillion in assets under management.

El-Erian, a Business Insider contributor, is without a doubt one of the sharpest and most influential people in global finance.

But who are his influences?

Back in 2012, Business Insider asked who and what shaped the way he thinks.

From very early on El-Erian learned the value of seeing things from multiple perspectives.  And he spent years questioning his own beliefs while at PIMCO where he experienced a culture of "healthy and constructive paranoia."

Thanks to Mohamed El-Erian for helping us with this feature.

El-Erian's father earned a PhD and stressed to his children the value of education

"It started with my father who, from a very young age, stressed to his children the value of education and multiple perspectives.

"Education had been his passport out of an Egyptian village and to university in Cairo, a PhD from Columbia University, and to a subsequent career as an academic, a diplomat and a judge at the International Court of Justice.

"He was committed to giving his children even greater opportunities. And he did."



His father spent his limited earnings on his children's education

"For example, he spent a large part of his limited academic/civil servant salary on our schooling and our books. He prompted us to frequently read different interpretations of the same set of “facts,” including a range of daily newspapers that covered the political spectrum. He encouraged us to aspire to a doctorate degree and not just a bachelor or masters. And he urged us to never accept conventional wisdom without questioning it first."



At Cambridge, he became familiar with four very different schools of economic thought

"My father’s influence was reinforced by the education I received at Cambridge University, where I did my first university degree, and my subsequent work environments (the IMF, Salomon and, especially, PIMCO).

"Economics at Cambridge in the late 1970s was not about seeing the world in a particular way. Instead, it was about gaining familiarity with four different schools of thought – from neo-classical to Marxist, and for Keynesian to neo-Ricardian."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

HOUSE OF THE DAY: A Railroad Tycoon Is Selling His 87-Acre Connecticut Horse Farm For $55 Million

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Hunter Harrison, Canada's top-earning CEO, just put his sprawling Ridgefield, Conn. horse farm on the market for $55 million, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Harrison came out of retirement last year to head Canadian Pacific Railway and is ready to move on from Double H Farm, listed with Sally Slater, a horse property expert at Douglas Elliman Real Estate.  

Double H has three houses, one dating back to the 18th century, and sits on 87 acres. There are indoor and outdoor riding rings, two barns, 12 paddocks and three luxury staff apartments.

Double H Farm sits on 87 acres in Ridgefield, Conn.



The main house was built in 2009. It sits at the top of the property.



It has a large, formal foyer.



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The World's Coolest Underwater Hotels

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Undersea hotels represent one of the newest frontiers in hospitality. 

From Zanzibar to Sweden, beautiful underwater properties with one-of-a-kind views have been popping up around the globe, featuring some of the most unique rooms that travelers can book.

Meanwhile, closer to home, many celebrated US aquariums offer sleepovers that aren’t just for kids anymore. Check out our picks for places that allow you to sleep under the sea (or at least pretend that's where you are).

1. The Manta Resort in Tanzania has Africa's first underwater hotel room.

1 zanzibar manta resortWhere: Pemba Island, Tanzania

Pemba, a verdant Indian Ocean island in the Zanzibar archipelago, has long been enticing divers with its pristine coral reefs and clear waters.

Now the chic Manta Resort has taken the aquatic worship one step further, last month opening Africa’s first underwater hotel room. Submerged 13 feet underwater, the room has eight large, lit windows through which guests can gawk at a Technicolor parade of fish and cephalopods. A ladder leads to a sundeck and lounge.

Insider tip: Guests can have meals sent out to them by boat, such as grilled snapper with rosemary bread, followed by chocolate mousse and spiced pineapple.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Tanzania Guide

2. Jules' Undersea Lodge is an underwater inn that was converted from a former marine lab in Florida.

2 key largo jules undersea lodgeWhere: Key Largo, FL

The granddaddy of underwater hotels, Jules’ Undersea Lodge, a former marine lab that opened as an inn in 1986, has an unusually high bar to entry.

All guests desirous of spending the night need to know how to scuba dive. There’s no other way to enter this two-bedroom retro hideout, 30 feet below the surface in a mangrove-laden lagoon. The customary underwater dinner is pizza from Papa John’s, but guests can upgrade to local lobster or filet mignon.

Insider tip: Don’t want to commit to a whole night among the angelfish and barracudas? Jules’ also offers a three-hour lunchtime “mini-adventure” for $150 per person, pizza included.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Key Largo Guide

3. The Hydropolis Underwater Hotel & Resort in Dubai will be as large as Hyde Park.

3 dubai hydropolisWhere: Dubai, UAE

Where would they build the most ambitious luxury hotel under the waves? Dubai, of course.

The Emirate that brought you a man-made island in the shape of a palm tree now hopes to unveil the Hydropolis Underwater Hotel, in a Hyde Park-sized complex 66 feet under the sea.

Guests staying at one of the 220 suites will be greeted at the "land post" on Jumeriah beach and taken by submerged subway to the main part of the hotel. The developers say that they hope to welcome 3,500 guests a day, once they overcome "financial constrictions."

Insider tip: This hotel also plans to offer a plastic surgery clinic, and recovering patients can stay out of sight under the sea.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Dubai Guide

4. The Utter Inn in Sweden is guaranteed to give you some peace and quiet.

4 sweden utter innWhere: Västerås, Sweden

The most rustic underwater hotel of the bunch, the tiny and adorable Utter Inn gently bobs in Sweden’s Lake Mälaren.

The visible part of the hotel is designed like a typical Swedish home, with an A-frame roof, red sides and white gables.

Down a 10-foot ladder there’s a cozy room with twin beds and panoramic windows to watch pike and perch swim by. With no electricity, the tranquility here is absolute.

Insider tip: Use the on-board inflatable canoe to visit an uninhabited nearby island. Many of Lake Mälaren’s islands were once Viking settlements.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Sweden Guide

5. Guests of the future Poseidon Undersea Resort will supposedly get a personal submarine to crusie around in during their stay.

5 fiji poseidon undersea resortWhere: Fiji

Some 150,000 people have allegedly signed up to be notified once Poseidon Undersea Resort opens for business.

The five-star underwater resort in Fiji was scheduled to launch in 2008, but a combination of the global recession and the difficulty of sub-aqua building have led to it still being incomplete five years later. Ambitious projections show an underwater library, golf course, and tennis court, while the website promises future guests the use of a personal submarine.

Insider tip: If you really want to jump the queue, contact Poseidon about booking a wedding in the undersea chapel. Just don’t set a date yet.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Fiji Guide

See the rest of these stunning underwater hotels at Fodor's >

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22 Photos That Show Why The Capitals Of Serbia And Croatia Are Europe's Hottest New Destinations

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Belgrade, the capital of Serbia was the biggest surprise on my Eastern European journey. There’s a feeling of creative energy in the city, thanks to a budding nightlife and fashion scene.

Watch this travel video to see Serbian concept stores, floating raft nightclubs, and a Frida Kahlo restaurant on the waterfront.

Next, I explored the indie culture of the Croatian capital, Zagreb. I visited a rock music club that brings in bands like Shonen Knife, and went on a witch’s tour where I made a cardboard “Mask of Shame.”

Click to see Serbia and Croatia’s fascinating subcultures >>

Check out a video of these attractions below.

For more from La Carmina’s Eurail trip, see her blog. Also watch her travel videos about Austria and Slovakia and Budapest on Business Insider.

Disclaimer: Transportation was provided by Eurail.com, and Belgrade accommodations by Selection Apartments.

The Kosovo War is long over, and Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, is becoming known as a hip destination.



Don’t let the graffiti and crumbling facades fool you. Belgrade is currently as safe as any Western European city like Berlin or Milan.



I stayed at Selection Apartments, run by the sweetest family. They even brought me “burek,” or filo pastries for breakfast.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

UK UNEMPLOYMENT RATE PLUNGES — And The Pound Is Surging

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uk unemployment rate

The UK unemployment rate just plunged. It fell from 7.4% to 7.1%. It was only expected to fall to 7.3%.

The pound is surging on the news, as traders wonder whether the BOE will be pressured to begin the tightening cycle. The Bank of England has said that a 7.0% unemployment rate is the level at which it would review its rates policy.

This is not dissimilar to the situation in the US, where a plunging unemployment rate is seen as putting more and more pressure on the Fed to act.

Here's a chart of the British Pound.

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See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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