Dubai has been one of the most exciting and volatile economic stories of the 21st century.

It's global, glitzy, and growing like crazy.

It also has a red-hot property market that has experts warning of a collapsing bubble. Related concerns have been tied to recent crashes in Dubai's stock market.

Still, the tiny economy has developed into a world city that is a business and cultural focal point in the Middle East, and it has the attention of the world.

Tourism and real estate drive the economy, and there seems to be a never-ending development of innovative and over-the-top projects.

One out of every 4 cranes on Earth is located in Dubai.

Dubai's real estate is growing so fast, that 24% of the the cranes on Earth are located in Dubai.

Source: Gulf News

Dubai's artificial Palm Islands imported enough sand to fill 2.5 Empire State Buildings.

The construction of Dubai's Palm Islands required 94 million cubic meters of sand.

The Empire State Building is 37 million cubic meters. 

Source: Palm Islands Impact

The Burj Al Arab uses enough gold inside to cover 46,265 Mona Lisa paintings.

The interior of the Burj Al Arab is decorated with approximately 1,790 square meters of 24-carat gold leaf. The surface area of the Mona Lisa is 0.3869 square meters.

Source: Burj Al Arab, Jemeirah

DoubleLine Funds' Jeff Gundlach just wrapped up a big webcast, titled "V," giving his outlook for what 2015 has in store for investors.

Gundlach, of course, addressed oil ("It won't stop going down"), the decline in Treasury yields seen at the start of this year, and what 2015 might hold for the Federal Reserve.

The bear case for stocks is wrapped up in three succinct slides, and noted that denominated in currencies other than the US dollar, gold actually had a decent year.

Thanks to DoubleLine Funds for letting us run Gundlach's latest presentation.

Dealing with the Russians is nothing like dealing with the Chinese, and dealing with the Germans is nothing like dealing with the French. Indeed, despite globalization, cultural habits and preferences aren't going anywhere, and understanding them is critical to international partnerships.

British linguist Richard Lewis and his consulting firm have extensively analyzed cultural interactions, as detailed in his book, "When Cultures Collide." (You'll find more good analysis in recent bestseller "The Culture Map" by Erin Meyer.)

We've published some of Lewis' insights here, and none are more popular than a set of his communication charts. Now we've got permission to post many more in the series, along with commentary from his book.

"A working knowledge of the basic traits of other cultures (as well as our own) will minimize unpleasant surprises (culture shock), give us insights in advance, and enable us to interact successfully with nationalities with whom we previously had difficulty," Lewis writes.

Although cultural generalizations are controversial, Lewis insists they can be made fairly: "Determining national characteristics is treading a minefield of inaccurate assessment and surprising exception. There is, however, such a thing as a national norm."

"Arabs are looking for sincerity in your dealings with them and expect to be shown the same respect they show you."

"Argentineans can be won over by a combination of intellectual argument and openly friendly stance."

"A sense of humor is essential for getting the best out of Australians."

Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Vincent Laforet has spent the past 15 year taking daring helicopter rides to capture some of the most incredible aerial images from around the world. 

But his latest photo mission — to photograph New York City at night from above — was "the scariest of his life," he tells Business Insider. In order to take the photographs, Laforet had to dangle from the door of helicopter hovering at a dizzying 7,500 feet above the ground (an uncommonly high altitude for a helicopter), secured only by a harness, and shoot straight down.

Laforet's photo series, titled “Gotham 7.5K,” reveals an incredible new vantage point of America’s busiest city.
 Laforet has always dreamed of capturing these photographs of New York, he says.

“I’ve been wanting to take these pictures since I was a teenager, peering out of a window of a jet liner,” Laforet says. “Every time I landed at LaGuardia or JFK, I would see incredible lights in the city and in the streets of New York and I’ve always wanted to try to find a way to make these photographs."

But it just wasn’t possible, until now. 

"I think it’s a pretty unique series of photographs, because technology is allowing us to make these images for the first time," Laforet says. "Just a few years ago, you would never see this level of color and detail. The fact that you can get a pretty clean image at that high of a sensitivity is pretty remarkable.” 

Laforet used cameras such as the Canon 1DX and the Mamiya Leaf Credo 50 MP to take some of the clearest photographs ever taken above New York.

To take the photographs, Laforet had to fly at a unique altitude as well. “We were actually flying above all of the airline traffic landing at JFK, LGA, and Newark airports,” Laforet wrote on Storehouse.

If they had gone just a few thousand more feet up, they would have needed oxygen masks.

'When you’re that high, you think to yourself, 'if anything were to happen, it would be a very long fall,' ” Laforet says. “It’s definitely one of the scariest flights I’ve ever done, especially when you’re hanging out of the helicopter and shooting straight down." 

Helicopters shake pretty significantly while in the air and, even with fancy cameras and special tools, getting such clear images is a remarkable feat. “Between the way I hold the camera, the gyroscope, and a little bit of luck, you’re hoping to get one out of every five images sharp,” Laforet says.

From above, the city has always reminded him of brain synapses. 

"I was recently on assignment for Men's Health Magazine and I proposed shooting the city from an unusually high altitude so that we could capture the lines that are formed by the streets of New York at night," Laforet wrote on Storehouse. "It was an article about psychology and I've always thought that from a high altitude the streets looked like brain synapses." 

See the rest of the incredible aerial photographs below: 

For more information about the photographs, check out Laforet's blog here.

SEE ALSO: Amazing Pictures From The Coldest Inhabited Town On Earth

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Though that first day at your new job may be stressful, it's important to channel your nervous energy and start things off on the right foot. 

SEE ALSO: 9 Things Successful People Do In The First Week Of A New Job

1. Prepare and ask questions.

Mark Strong, a life, career, and executive coach based in New York, says although the first day really is more about listening; you can and should ask questions when necessary. "Generally, you're trying to demonstrate your curiosity and desire to learn. Beware of asking too many questions on the first day, though. You have plenty of time to master the job."

Taylor says it's a good idea to prepare by writing down both practical and general questions about how you can be most successful in the role. "By now you have enough background on the company to integrate more in-depth questions at your orientation meetings," she says. "Have a list of questions handy for managers you think you might meet. Make sure you also have a contact in HR in case you have very basic inquiries before you start or on your first day."

2. Prepare an elevator pitch.

Get ready to give a 30-second explainer of who you are and where you were before, as many new colleagues will likely ask about your previous place of employment, says Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert and the author of "Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant; How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job." Be prepared to also describe what you'll be doing in this new position, since there may be people who have a vague understanding of your role or simply want to strike up a conversation.

3. Show up early.

Get there at least 15 minutes early, suggests Teri Hockett, chief executive of What's For Work?, a career site for women. "If you haven't done the commute before, practice it a couple of times during rush hour a week before so that you're at least somewhat prepared for the unknown."

Temperatures have dropped below freezing in North America, which means that it's time to think about heading south for a warm weather vacation.

We recently ranked the Best Caribbean Islands, but it can still be difficult to determine which island is best for you. 

From family-friendly locales to romantic island getaways, here are the best Caribbean islands for every type of traveler.  

Best For A Romantic Getaway: Martinique

Martinique combines the romantic sensibilities of the French with the natural beauty of the Caribbean.

The French island has secluded white sand beaches, luxury resorts, and enough privacy to make it an ideal honeymoon spot. 

Best For Families: The Bahamas

Just south of Florida, the Bahamas are one of the most accessible island countries from the US. They're also one of the most family-friendly countries, with tons of all-inclusive resorts.

The most famous resort is The Atlantis, which has its own water park, aquarium, movie theater, kids' club, game room, and dolphin cay.

Best For Singles: Puerto Rico

Old San Juan is one of the best places for nightlife in the Caribbean, which means that it's great for singles. Nightlife in the historic walled city starts late: The clubs start hopping with salsa, Latin, or rock music after people emerge from their late dinners. 

But many of the big hotels around San Juan, and the rest of Puerto Rico, have their own hot restaurants, clubs, and casinos.

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These past few weeks, temperatures in the US have plummeted.

Some states are even living in conditions where it's colder than Mars.

So as people bundle up in preparation for the miserable weather, we found ways for everyone to stay warm and dry despite the nastiness outside.

Here are 12 hacks to help you keep warm until spring.

Mittens > Gloves

It may be easier to text in gloves, but your digits will be much warmer in mittens. When they're made of the same material, mittens offer more warmth since fingers have skin-to-skin contact with each other and can share body heat.

Mittens also tend to have a smaller surface area than gloves, which reduces heat loss, so when in doubt, always choose mittens.

Avoid Wearing Cotton

Cotton clothes and socks are the absolute worst things you can wear during the winter, because cotton holds moisture and loses its insulating properties. If you sweat under your jacket, get wet from the snow, or if there's any moisture in the air, the cotton will quickly absorb it and keep it close to your skin, making you feel even colder.

Merino wool or polypropylene socks are a much better way to go since these fabrics wick moisture away from skin. Wool in particular is great because it suspends the moisture in the weave, and can absorb almost 1/3 of its own weight before making you feel cold or wet.

And for those who don't have wool socks (or don't want to go out in the cold to buy them), an easy hack is to put your socks on and then slip your feet into plastic bags. It looks weird, but it will keep your feet really dry and warm.

Use Kitty Litter On Stuck Tires

Salt and sand can help when your car gets stuck in the snow, but kitty litter will also work in a pinch to give you traction. Shovel as much snow and ice as possible out from the path of your tires, and then put a liberal amount of cat litter around and under the tire.

Then just rock your car back and forth, switching from drive to reverse carefully, until you get unstuck.

Bubble Wrap Your Windows

A lot of heat escapes through windows, unnecessarily increasing utility costs. For an easy way to insulate your window while still letting light in, use large bubble wrap and an Exacto knife.

You don't even need tape or glue — just mist water onto your window with a spray bottle, push the flat side of the wrap against the window and it will stay put and keep your room insulated for months.

Another pro-tip is to call around to furniture and/or department stores to see if they have any large bubble wrap that they're going to throw out or that you can buy on the cheap. They're usually swimming in the stuff.

Learn Your Ceiling Fan Settings

Ceiling fans are not just there to cool you off in the summer — most fans have a setting that allows them to spin clockwise on low to recirculate warmer air trapped near the ceiling towards the floor.

You'll be shocked at how much warmer the room will get.

Dry Your Shoes Quickly With Newspaper

Once the snow starts to melt, shoes quickly become wet and are hard to dry. Most people think to put them near a heat source, but this can have the unwanted effect of shrinking your shoes.

Instead, stuff wet shoes with newspaper. It will absorb the moisture quickly, though you might have to replace the newspaper a few times depending on how drenched your shoes are. You can also wrap the outside with the newspaper and secure with a few rubber bands.

Ice-Proof Your Car And Stairs With Household Ingredients

Coming outside to a frozen windshield or ice on your stairs is one of the worst ways to start the day. But there are homemade solutions that can help prevent this from happening.

For car windows and windshields, mist a 3:1 mixture of distilled vinegar and water onto the glass before a storm or icy weather hits. It will keep ice from forming on your windows, and you can also spray the mixture on already ice-covered windows to melt it quickly.

To keep your stoop or sidewalk from becoming icy, make a brine treatment 24-hours ahead of a winter storm with salt dissolved in hot water. Pour a thin layer onto steps and sidewalk to make snow easy to remove, and keep an ice layer from forming.

Prep Your Shovel With Cooking Spray

Shoveling snow is one of the worst winter tasks, so don't make it harder on yourself by not properly preparing. Rubbing vegetable oil, paraffin wax, or cooking spray onto your shovel ahead of time will keep the snow from sticking, and allow you to shovel faster and easier.

Stock Up On Cheap Razors

It's super easy to fix sweatshirt or sweater pilling with a cheap razor.

Just lightly run the razor against the fabric where pilling occurs, and the razor will shave off the small balls of fiber without harming the material so your warmest clothes will be ready to wear in public again.

Warm Blankets With A Hot Water Bottle

Before climbing into bed, fill a water bottle with hot water and stick it under your covers. It'll warm the sheets, and can be left safely in bed all night long for added warmth.

Take this hack to the next level by wrapping your pajamas around the bottle and sticking them under the covers before putting them on.

Winterize Your Bike

You could buy winter tires for your bike, but those are expensive. Instead, take zip ties and stagger them around your current wheels roughly a half an inch apart and snip off the excess with scissors.

They'll give you extra traction when biking around slippery roads and are easy to remove come spring.

Buy Some Hand Warmers

A friend of mine with poor circulation swears by these during the winter. The air-activated heat packs are safe, odorless, and can provide heat for 10 hours if you're jogging, tailgating, hiking, or just commuting to work.

You can also make your own by sewing together a fabric pouch filled with rice, and warming it up in the microwave before leaving the house.

NOW WATCH: Here Are The 3 Things Every Dog Needs This Winter

SEE ALSO: 31 Things Every New Yorker Should Do This Winter

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Elon Musk had a busy week.

He ended last week with the nearly successful landing of his 14-story-tall Falcon 9 rocket — "Close, but no cigar,"he tweeted— but he also had several announcements this week, many of which were made at the Detroit Auto Show.

1. "We're going to try and do for satellites what we've done for rockets."

Musk says he plans to build an engineering office for SpaceX in Seattle, which will employ "several hundred people, maybe a thousand people." A commercial satellite business will help SpaceX secure the necessary money and communications systems needed to eventually build a human colony on Mars.

2. Falling gas prices are hurting Tesla's efforts to build an affordable car in 2017.

“It just means we will have to work harder at improving the cost of electric vehicles,” Musk says. 

3. Musk nearly had a nervous breakdown in the early days of Tesla.

On the Sunday before Christmas 2008, the same year he assumed the CEO role and laid off dozens of employees after closing an office near Detroit, Musk says he nearly had a nervous breakdown because Tesla was in "extremely dire straits." He says, "No one would take us seriously."

New York City is home to some of the world's most celebrated restaurants, with the most celebrated dishes — and that can get a little overwhelming. That's why we have tasting menus.

The Infatuation helped us compile a list of the best tasting menus in NYC, spread throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Dig in and enjoy.

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Winter break is over, and students are heading back to school for their second semesters.

And for the most famous students, a new semester brings more than just schoolwork as they balance Olympic training, political careers, and TV show filming.

Here's what celebrities and famous offspring are up to this semester, both inside the classroom and out.

Melia Robinson, Melissa Stanger, and Sara Bower contributed to this article.

Alexander Ludwig is a member of one of USC's most sought-after fraternities.

Canadian actor Alexander Ludwig played the ruthless District 2 tribute Cato in the first "Hunger Games" movie — he's the one who fights Peeta and Katniss on top of the cornucopia in the final fight scene.

A senior, the Phi Kappa Psi brother and theater major belongs to one of USC's most exclusive fraternities, which has a reputation for throwing the year’s wildest parties.

Angus T. Jones left "Two and a Half Men" to pursue religion and his education at UC Boulder.

After starring on hit sitcom "Two and a Half Men" for 10 seasons — as the highest paid child actor at the time no less, making $350,000 an episode — Angus T. Jones left the show in order to fully dedicate himself to Christianity. 

Now a sophomore at the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also tours the country speaking at churches.

Chiara de Blasio still keeps up with her father's career in New York — even from school in California at Santa Clara University.

During her father Bill de Blasio's New York City mayoral campaign, Chiara starred in an advertisement and made a dramatic, surprise return from college to cast a vote for him.

The Santa Clara University senior and floral-headband-wearing hipster made headlines of her own with a powerfully candid video about her struggles with depression and history of drug and alcohol abuse.

One of the most common questions that gemologists are asked is how to tell the difference between a real diamond and a fake stone.

We spoke with Reyne Hirsch, a 20th century decorative arts expert and consultant for the global online marketplace Lofty, about how to tell when a diamond is real, and when and why to take it to an expert.

Test At Home 

“We see a lot of estate jewelry that comes up in our line of business,” Hirsch explained to Business Insider. “People who are selling their parents’ estate assume the money is in the house itself — but sometimes the things inside the home have a lot more value than they think.”

For jewelry you inherit or find at garage sales, it’s best to do a few simple DIY tests before bringing the pieces in for a gemologist to look at. 

1. Look at the diamond and setting through a loupe.

A loupe is a magnifying glass that you can buy at any jewelry store and will let you take a closer look at your gem and setting. 

“When you’re looking at a diamond, there are a few things you’ll notice,” Hirsch told us. “First, the majority of diamonds are made in nature so that means you’re going to see some imperfections in the carbon. A fake stone would be perfect — absolutely perfect.”

Hirsch cautions that certain lab-grown stones will also look perfect through the loupe, and so you should be cautious before discarding perfect gems. It can be a clue, however, to take a closer look or bring the stone to an expert. 

Second, observe the diamond’s edges. “When you’re taking a look at a diamond through a loupe, a real stone is going to have sharp edges, and a fake stone will have rounded edges,” Hirsch explained.

Lastly, look at the mounting and etchings, especially any marks that signify what metal was used. “If the metal is gold plated or silver, chances are it’s not a diamond because why would you put a nice stone mounted in such a cheap metal?” Hirsch said. “Most diamonds are mounted in gold or set in platinum.” 

“Also take a look at the mounting itself and how that diamond is set,” she added. “If the setting looks like it’s of poor quality, that probably means it’s not going to be a real diamond either.”

2. Rub sandpaper against the stone.

This  is an easy test since diamonds are one of the world’s hardest materials and won’t be scratched by the rough surface. “If it’s a diamond, it will remain perfect, if it’s a cubic zirconium, it will scratch it up,” Hirsch said.

3. Do the fog test.

Breathe hot air on your diamond the same way you would if you were fogging up a bathroom mirror. 

“A fake diamond will fog up for a short period of time whereas a real diamond will not because it won’t retain the heat,” Hirsch explained. 

4. Hold it in the light to see how it sparkles.

The way that diamonds reflect light is unique: Inside the stone, the diamond will sparkle gray and white (known as “brilliance”) while outside of the gem, it will reflect rainbow colors onto other surfaces (this dispersed light is known as “fire”). 

A fake diamond will have rainbow colors that you can see inside the diamond.

“People have a misconception that diamonds sparkle like a rainbow, but they don’t,” Hirsch said. “They do sparkle, but it’s more of a gray color. If you see something with rainbow colors [inside the stone], it could be a sign that it’s not a diamond.”

Still confused? This is a good explainer of brilliance versus fire.

5. Look at the stone’s refractivity.

Diamonds are so sparkly because of the way they refract and bend light. Glass, quartz, and cubic zirconium may mimic a diamond’s brilliance, but they have much lower refractive indexes.

This means that if your stone isn’t in a setting, you can place it over a newspaper and the light will scatter inside the real diamond and prevent a black reflection. A fake diamond will let the black shine through, and you may even be able to read a word depending on the size of the fake stone.

If your diamond is mounted, make sure you can’t see through it to the mount itself — that’s a very bad sign.

Test With A Gemologist

Once you’ve done all your home tests, it’s time to take your jewels that could be diamonds to a gemologist. 

“You don’t want to take a box full of jewelry because it will cost you money for them to look,” Hirsch explained. “I would be flat out frank and say you’re not interested in selling, but just ask if they’re worth you paying attention to or if it’s fine to let the kid’s play with them.”

But don’t just take your diamonds to any old jeweler. It’s important to do your research and find a qualified gemologist.

“At mall stores, they tend to have sales people — not gemologists,” Hirsch said. “They just know what sells in their stores and what appeals to the masses. Look beyond the average jewelry store and go to a local antique stores or ask your local antique jewelry store who is a reputable gemologist in town who knows about diamonds.”

Even if you know the jewelry you have contains diamonds, it can pay off to take them to a gemologist to know how much they’re actually worth. 

“Say you have five, 1-carat diamonds on the table — the cut, color, and clarity will be a huge factor in why one is worth $800 and one is worth $10,000,” she said.

What it could be instead of a diamond:

White topaz — Topaz is a mineral that is usually tinted yellow, red, brown, or pale gray, but can sometimes be white or appear colorless. Diamonds are much harder than topaz, however, which can wear down and scratch over time making it dull or cloudy.

White sapphire— We usually think of sapphires as being blue, but this gem can also be white. Just like topaz, sapphires are prone to more damage than diamonds and do not have the same fire and brilliance of a true diamond.

Cubic zirconium— Mass-produced since 1976, cubic zirconium scratches easily and does not have the same fire and shine as diamonds. 

Moissanite— Moissanite is harder than cubic zirconium and these stones are visually dazzling. The main difference is that moissanites have a different brilliance than a diamond where you can see rainbow colors within the stone, giving it a disco ball effect.

Lab grown— Lab-grown diamonds are technically “real” diamonds both chemically and physical, but they will not fetch for the same price as a mined diamond. Hirsch says they usually sell for about 20% to 30% less than a traditional diamond.  

So the next time you run across something you think is just cheap costume jewelry, it’s important to test it — just in case. 

SEE ALSO: How To Spot A Fake Luxury Watch

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London has become a global colossus for financial startups: the UK and Ireland accounted for more than half of Europe's Fintech deals in 2013, with the capital taking the lion's share of that. There are other pockets of Europe where financial startups also seem to thrive.

Many of these companies are working at the intersection of tech and finance. Some are aiming to market a product to everyone, some just to businesses, and some to the biggest banks and financial institutions.

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Tucked away inside a former carpet factory in trendy east London is a futuristic office space that London's most innovative companies all want to join. 

Second Home was co-founded by Rohan Silva, the senior policy advisor to David Cameron who left government in 2013 to get into tech.

We got a look inside.

Second Home is inside an office building near Spitalfields Market and Brick Lane

But it's not your average office building, as the main entrance shows

The former carpet factory has been transformed into something very different

Due to the relaxed immigration laws of the early 1980s, New York City's Chinatown underwent a rapid demographic shift.

Bud Glick was a photographer tasked by the the New York Chinatown History Project (now the Museum of Chinese in America) with documenting this transition from an older, primarily male community to one of young, newly immigrated families.

But looking at the photos now, 30 years later and newly digitized, it's clear that he captured much more than just a demographic shift in a small period in time.

With his photo series, Glick captured a revolution.

From 1981 to 1984 photographer Bud Glick worked on the New York Chinatown History Project.

The New York Chinatown History Project eventually came to be known as the Museum of Chinese in America. They currently have a number of Glick's photos in their archive.

Glick was tasked with revealing in his photos a changing Chinatown, one undergoing a rapid demographic shift.

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America has a food problem.

We're obsessed with crash diets, from three-day juice cleanses to weekend starvation regimens and 24-hour detox plans, but we can't stop eating processed, fatty foods. 

Portion sizes in the US have increased up to 700% in the past three decades, and most of us eat twice the amount of protein we need to power our muscles and less than half the fruits and vegetables on which we rely to fill us up and regulate our digestive systems.

As healthy as you think your diet may be, it is likely full of at least a few surprises that might be silently hampering your fitness goals.

It's Monday morning. Before you leave for the office, do you eat A) a bowl of cereal or B) toast and eggs?

You should have picked: B) Toast and eggs

Eggs are packed with protein to keep you full and vitamins to power your immune system and keep your hair and nails healthy. And hard-boiling them doesn't add any fat or calories.

The toast adds some healthy carbs for energy and fiber to keep your digestive system running smoothly.

You've been working for a few hours. Your mind is getting foggy and you're fighting off the urge to crawl under your desk with a pillow and blanket. Do you A) head to the kitchen for a coffee or B) put on some tennis shoes and go for a quick stroll around the block?

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