Cambridge was filled with technology companies long before London's new startup scene began to emerge.

The cluster of hardware and software companies in Cambridge has even been dubbed "Silicon Fen."

The city is a tech hotspot because of its proximity to the science and engineering talent coming out of Cambridge University, its closeness to London, and the relative cheapness of its rents. Apple just opened a new office there, for instance.

15. Ninja Theory: maker of a cult-classic video game

Ninja Theory is a video game development company that works with Sony to develop games for PlayStation consoles. As its name suggests, Ninja Theory specialises in action games, often with sword-fighting elements. It uses cinematic techniques and advanced animation to make its games similar to movies in their presentation.

2007 saw the release of Heavenly Sword, a fighting game that used the same kind of motion-capture suits used in Hollywood movies. It might not have been a huge hit, but Heavenly Sword is still a cult classic, and fans continue to demand a sequel. 

14. Sinclair Research: still making electric vehicles of all kinds

Sinclair Research is the company run by prolific inventor Sir Clive Sinclair. 

Sinclair's first hit product was the ZX Spectrum, released in 1982. The British-made computers were a commercial success, and the company released a wave of new tech products. But Sinclair's luck didn't hold, and it was forced to start cutting prices for its product line. Eventually Sinclair's technology products were sold to British businessman Alan Sugar in 1986.

One of Sir Clive Sinclair's most famous inventions is the Sinclair C5, a bizarre one-man electric vehicle. The public hated it, and hardly anyone bought it.

The number of staff at Sinclair dwindled from 140 in the 1980s to just Sinclair himself in 1990. The inventor wasn't deterred, however, and used his savings to fund the development of new ideas. Since then, Sinclair has released an electric bike, an electric wheelchair, an electric underwater scooter, and a folding bike.

13. Spotify: Stockholm's outpost in England

The music streaming service is one of Europe's best startup successes stories. But most people don't realise that the company has an office in Cambridge.

Spotify's Cambridge office is used as a customer support base, employing staff who work to help customers who have problems with its software. A look at Spotify's Cambridge jobs page shows that it's also hiring quality assurance managers to work out of the Cambridge office.

Morgan Stanley just came out with a fresh chartbook looking through Asia's debt situation again. It's safe to say that it's still looking grim.

While all eyes are on Europe, falling inflation (and the threat of full-blown deflation) are major hazards in Asia, too. When economies grow more slowly, if they can't slow their debt accumulation down by the same pace, those liabilities get bigger and bigger in comparison to GDP. Paired with rocketing corporate debt,  it looks very ugly. 

Morgan Stanley's analysts looked at 10 countries in Asia ex-Japan (AXJ) - Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Thailand, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan and Malaysia.

After a decade of stability, Asia started rapidly accumulating debt after the financial crisis.

The debt pileup has outstripped the world's advanced economies by a mile.

But the strange thing is that Asia isn't actually issuing as much debt as it did before. So what's the problem?

The historic snowstorm that was supposed to hit New York today may have spared the Big Apple, but other parts of the country weren't as lucky.

New England got the worst of it, with Massachusetts seeing more than two feet of snow in some places, according to The Boston Globe. Massachusetts state officials told The Globe that evacuations were carried out in some areas.

While Long Island in New York saw fairly heavy snowfall, New York City only got about eight inches. Forecasters were initially predicting a storm of historic proportions, and public transportation in the city shut down overnight.

It snowed all night in Massachusetts:

Few people dared to walk in the storm:

Cars were mainly out of reach:

Scituate, Massachusetts, had to face a freezing flood from the Atlantic Ocean:

The flood waters mixed with the snow:

Firefighters were called in several locations overnight, but the overall situation was quieter than expected:

There is a road somewhere under that snow:

Cape Cod is seeing blustery winds:

SEE ALSO: New York City Looks Like A Ghost Town As People Stay Out Of The Snowstorm

Join the conversation about this story »

Bradley Cooper recently bulked up to 225 pounds to play US Navy Seal Chris Kyle in "American Sniper." 

His daily regimen included two intense workouts and eating more than 5,000 calories per day.  

He's not the only actor to undergo extreme measures to gain and lose weight for a role. Plenty of stars have endured grueling diets and workouts to be in tip top shape for their roles as superheroes, ballerinas, boxers and more.  

Keertana Sastry and Jennifer Michalski contributed to this story.

Bradley Cooper gained 40 pounds for "American Sniper."

The Oscar-nominated actor told Men's Health he worked with a trainer twice a day to help him gain the weight in 10 weeks.

In the first workout, beginning at 5 a.m., they focused on structural exercises like deadlifts and squats to build a foundation solid enough to hold the extra mass. The second workout, late in the afternoon, was more focused on traditional muscle-building exercises. Cooper needed both types of training to convincingly portray Chris Kyle.

Jake Gyllenhaal looked gaunt after losing 30 pounds for his role in "Nightcrawler."

Gyllenhaal really went all out to get into the mind of his deranged, career-hungry freelancer journalist. 

The actor told Variety he didn't take on any special diet. Instead, he just stopped eating.

“I would try to eat as few calories as possible. I knew if I was hungry that I was in the right spot. Physically, it showed itself, but chemically and mentally, I think it was even a more fascinating journey. It became a struggle for me.”

Gyllenhaal added that he would often go on 15 mile runs from his home to the film's set.

In addition, his co-star Riz Ahmed claimed the star would chew flavored gum to trick his mind into believing he was eating a meal.

Chris Pratt lost 60 pounds in six months for "Guardians of the Galaxy."

Pratt said he ditched beer to take on the role of Peter Quill in Marvel's hit. He also divulged his workout routine with a personal trainer and nutritionist to Men's Fitness.

It consisted of running, swimming, boxing, kickboxing, a triathlon, and consuming 4,000 calories a day.

"I actually lost weight by eating more food, but eating the right food, eating healthy foods, and so when I was done with the movie my body hadn't been in starvation mode," Pratt told People magazine.

Your phone and your wallet are a lot more similar than you think.

We found 18 apps that will make you money. All of the apps can be downloaded for free, and each has a strong user base to ensure that you get the most bang for your buck. 

From taking surveys to kicking back and watching TV, here are the apps that will put a little cash in your pocket.

Earn cash back with Ebates.

Ebates lets shoppers earn cash back from over 1,700 stores. When you shop at an online retailer, go through Ebates to see that company's cash back percentage.

The app also allows you to use in-store coupons and gives price comparisons when you scan an item. Ebates has already given back $250 million to its users.

Available On: iOS, Android

Accumulate digital dollars with Swagbucks.

Users can participate in up to nine different activities, including watching videos, surfing the web, and inputting swag codes, to earn Swagbucks — virtual money that can be redeemed in the form of gift cards, coupons, and sweepstakes entries.

Available On: iOS, Android

Coupon clippers love Ibotta.

Before shopping, unlock the day's rebates on Ibotta by answering a trivia question or posting on social media. Then head to the store and pick up the items for the day's rebates.

After checking out, hit Ibotta's "redeem" button and take a picture of your receipt to confirm your purchases. Once you have $10 or more in your account, you can cash out with PayPal or Venmo. 

Available On: iOS, Android

When the current owners of this Paris mansion bought a dilapidated workshop built by Gustave Eiffel (yes, that Eiffel), they intended to turn it into a commercial space.

However, the correct permits were tough to obtain, so they instead converted the former factory into a gorgeous three-floor mansion, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The roof and many of the details are original, but are tastefully mixed throughout the home with added consciences. Wrought iron is on display throughout, and the light let in by the huge windows brightens up the entire home.

The current owners are selling the property for $11.5 million because it is now too big for them. They will use the proceeds to sail around the world.

France's Emile Garcin Properties has the listing.

This isn't your typical loft-style conversion. This spectacular space was converted from a factory built in the early 20th century roughly 3 years ago.

The gabled glass roof over the living room rests on the original steel structure. The blinds dressing the glass roof open and close automatically.

The living room sits between two terraces.

China overtook the US to become the world’s largest economy last year, boosted by the region’s fast-growing, blue-chip companies across a variety of sectors such as technology, finance and oil.

WPP and Millward Brown has today released its fifth annual BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Chinese Brands report. The ranking shows how much “brand” drives revenue for China’s biggest businesses. This year, for the first time, China’s tech brands surpassed banks in terms of brand value.

But how many do you recognize?

Click here to skip straight to the list of the top 10 most valuable Chinese brands >

Millward Brown’s ranking combines financial data from Bloomberg and Kantar Worldpanel and opinions garnered from a panel of more than 405,700 Chinese consumers in total since the ranking first launched in 2008.

The brands listed in the top 100 must meet four eligibility criteria:

1. The brand was originally created by a mainland Chinese enterprise
2. The brand is owned by a publicly traded enterprise.
3. The brand reported positive earnings for the period covered in the ranking.
4. Banks derived at least 20% of their earnings from retail banking.

SEE ALSO: Tencent's SY Lau Tells Us How The Chinese Internet Giant Plans To Get Even Bigger In 2015

10. Bank of China

Brand Value: $11.86 billion
Change year on year: -13%

The Bank of China was founded in 1912 at the same time as the formation of modern China. It served as the country's central bank until the People's Republic of China was established in 1949. It is headquarted in Beijing.

Over the past year the company has made credit and lending more available to small and medium-sized businesses, with the aim of driving economic growth. The bank also improved its retail offering by opening separate facilities for high income individuals, and it introduced special credit cards for business travelers and students studying abroad.

9. PetroChina

Brand Value: $12.02 billion
Change year on year: -11%

PetroChina is one China's three state-controlled oil companies. It was formed in 1999 is listed on the New York, Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges. 

As well as exploring for crude oil and natural gas, the company also refines and markets products like plastics, rubbers and fertilizers. It has a high level of brand awareness thanks to the large number of gas stations it supplies. 

8. Agricultural Bank of China

Brand Value: $15.42 billion
Change year on year: -20%

Originally state-owned, ABC is one of China's largest commercial banks. It had more than 23,550 domestic branches at the end of 2013 and has recently expanded into neighboring countries such as Russia. 

Last year the company launched a major brand  advertising campaign which featured in several airports and outdoor venues to promote its mission of helping develop China's agricultural potential and landscape.

Chipotle is becoming ubiquitous. 

Even though Chipotle will always be delicious, there are other restaurants that are can satiate your appetite for chips and guacamole.

It's always good to explore your burrito options, especially if you're hungry.

Moe's Southwest Grill is known for huge portions.

Craving an enormous burrito? Head to Moe's Southwest Grill. The fast casual chain, which is located across the US with approximately 550 locations, is known for having huge portions of everything, and their burritos are named accordingly (in a tongue-in-cheek fashion), like the Homewrecker burrito. It's perfect for when you have a serious craving. Their burritos also have fresh ingredients, and the food is made-to-order.

Qdoba is renowned for its burrito.

Qdoba won "Best Burrito" in a Zagat smackdown against Chipotle. Maybe it's the smothered burritos, which are doused in delicious sauces. The restaurant has over 600 locations throughout the United States.

Chevy's Fresh Mex can accommodate a big party.

Chevy's is a sit-down dining experience with lots of sharable menu items and a long margarita list. You can get a few drinks, eat some food, and keep your bill at a reasonable price. The chain has more than 100 locations in the US.

Hand modeling is big business. The models are featured in multi-million dollar ad campaigns, and their mitts are insured for large figures. They can see their hands on massive billboards and in TV commercials.

Alex Holder, part of the creative team of Oli+Alex, says he has always been intrigued by the people attached to these famous hands. "I’m an Advertising Creative, and after spending lots of time on sets with hand and feet models, I became fascinated with this strange industry.  How did they become hand models? Were they ‘spotted’? Do they become affected by the job?" he says.

So, along with his creative partner Oli Kellett, the two set out to meet, interview, and photograph some of the world's hand models. The models' stories surprised them.

"Nina is a hand supermodel and is Kate Moss’s hand double — she moisturizes her hands about 30 times a day," said Holder. "One of the models had to be taken off the books for a year as they had a wart."

Oli+Alex shared more of the hand models' interviews with us, along with their portraits. You can see more cool stuff on their site.

Guilia: "I stand in for little boys hands, so if you see someone playing with a Power Ranger model on TV, it’s probably me."

Adnan: "I’m the only double-jointed, Middle Eastern hand model on my agency's books."

Nina: "I never thought I’d become a hand supermodel and that [my hands] would be insured for a seven-figure sum."

Last year was full of Apple product announcements, with two new iPhones and the announcement of the Apple Watch.

But the company never slows down.

The Apple Watch is expected to come out this spring, probably in March. We've seen photos and demos, but we still don't know what it will be like to use on a day-to-day basis.

Apple has shown us the Watch's new operating system. Here's what it looks like on an iPhone.

Here's what a game on the Apple Watch might look like. The Apple Watch's battery will reportedly sustain 2.5-4 hours of active use.

MIT is considered to be one of the top colleges in the US -- in fact, we ranked it the second best college in the country this year. 

So naturally, the school has produced some of the most successful individuals the world has ever seen.

From world-renowned architects to powerful CEOs to scientists of all kinds, these are the most successful alumni of the school.

Former chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke earned his Ph.D. in economics at MIT in 1979. He wrote a dissertation entitled, "Long-term Commitments, Dynamic Optimization, and the Business Cycle."

Source: MIT Economics.

Before becoming the Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan earned his Masters of Science through the Sloan Fellows program at MIT's Sloan School of Management in 1972.

 Source: United Nations.

Not only was Khan Academy founder Salman Khan president of his senior class, he earned three degrees while at MIT: two bachelors degrees — one in math, one in electrical engineering/computer science — and a masters in electrical engineering in 1998.

Source: Technology Review, Crunch Base. 

More than 300 million people use Instagram to share photos of their travels, meals, and other parts of their daily lives.

Some photographers are using the platform to do some amazing things — and they're attracting huge followings in the meantime.

Niche, a startup that helps brands partner with popular social media creators, helped us compile a list of up-and-coming Instagram photographers.

From daredevil aerial shots to stunning food photography, these Instagram feeds should definitely be on your radar.

Dirk Bakker is a graphic designer and mobile photographer from Amsterdam. His love of patterns and architecture is evident in his photographs.

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 (@macenzo, 258k followers)

Theron Humphrey was named "Traveler of the Year" by National Geographic in 2014 after he completed a year-long journey to document people's lives in all 50 states. Humphrey's main muse, however, is his dog Maddie.

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 (@thiswildidea, 778k followers)

Erica Choi is the digital art director for Barneys New York and has consulted with a number of luxury and fashion brands.

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(@eggcanvas, 114K followers) 

Ever wonder how billionaires around the world live? 

Point2 Homes complied a list of the most expensive homes that are currently for sale in 25 different countries around the world. 

The list shows how high-end living varies from one country to the next — the most expensive home for sale right now in the US costs $195 million, while Japan’s priciest home is $9 million. 

Monaco tops the list with a 5-story penthouse that costs an estimated $400 million. 

ARGENTINA: A refurbished 100-year-old colonial house in Buenos Aires is selling for $34.5 million.

Click here to see the listing. 

AUSTRALIA: A modern waterfront home with a private iron gate entrance is on the market for $30 million.

Click here to see the listing. 

THE BAHAMAS: A beach waterfront home on Paradise Island comes with its own golf course for $22 million.

Click here to see the listing.

After graduating college, some of the brightest, most talented young people can fall into emotional crisis.

Up to that point, everything in their lives had been structured, giving them clear goals with immediate rewards. Determining their own path for the first time can feel overwhelming and strange.

If you're in your 20s, whether in your first job, grad school, or drifting aimlessly, you may be getting a dose of reality.

To help you make it through the "quarter-life crisis," in which your uncertain future looms large, TED has curated 11 of its most popular presentations on dealing with setbacks and finding your passion. We've included links and summaries to all of them below.

Meg Jay says "30 is not the new 20."

While it may be true that today's young people marry later and have children later than earlier generations, it in no way means that the 20s have become a throwaway decade of experimentation — a sort of extended adolescence, says Jay, a clinical psychologist and author.

Research has shown that regardless of marital status, your 20s signifcantly determine the future of your career and personal life. Twenty-somethings should be building their professional networks and determining what they want to achieve.

"Don't be defined by what you didn't know or didn't do. You're deciding your life right now," Jay says.

Watch here >>

Carol Dweck says you need to adopt a "growth mindset."

The first time you run into a major challenge or failure in your career, you may consider yourself inadequate, as if you were made to fail from the start.

This idea, that our intellectual development is limited, has been ingrained in us since we were young, and it's time to shed it, says Stanford psychologist and author Dweck.

In a study with grade school students, Dweck says, "We taught them that every time they push out of their comfort zone to learn something new and difficult, the neurons in their brain can form new, stronger connections, and over time they can get smarter."

Watch here >>

Young-ha Kim says you should never abandon your creativity.

"Why do people instantly resist the idea of associating themselves with art?" Kim, an award-winning South Korean writer, asks. Perhaps you think art is for the greatly gifted or for the thoroughly and professionally trained... [But] we are all born artists."

Kim says that anyone who abandons pursuits like writing, painting, or acting, or dismisses the notion in the first place out of some perceived pragmatism is doing themselves a great disservice. After all, he says, young children show us every day that it's more natural to create something than to work.

As we explain in our "21 Day Plan For Radical Self-Improvement," there is research that shows that creative self-expression is linked with reduced anxiety and improved well-being.

Watch here >>

Dozens of rare and vintage Ferraris — and the people who love them — gathered on the lawn at the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach on a drizzly Saturday for the 24th annual Cavallino Classic.

The event, one of the largest conventions of Ferrari owners and enthusiasts in the world, featured millions of dollars' worth of cars, many more than a half-century old, that had been painstakingly restored.

Teams of judges put the 150 cars through their paces, checking for authenticity, functionality, and appearance. 

Even the rain couldn't stop onlookers from crowding the field.

The Cavallino Classic is one of the biggest annual gatherings of Ferrari owners. This year, around 150 cars were present on the lawn of the Breakers hotel in Palm Beach, Florida.

The top of the field holds a dozen of the most prestigious cars at the event. Many have important racing histories, or are incredibly rare.

This 1953 Ferrari 375 Spider by Pinin Farina was raced in Argentina in the 1950s, and was one of only 15 such Ferraris made by the design firm.

Source: RM Auctions

Apple just had the most profitable quarter of any company in history.

China was a major part of the company's success — according to recent estimates by UBS, China is quickly becoming one of the company's largest markets for iPhones.

The company's ultimate goal is to have 40 stores operating in China by the end of 2016, and to start they're opening five locations in just five weeks.

Apple started its flurry of activity with the opening of its store in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, this weekend. Situated over two large levels of retail space, the new Apple store is one of the biggest in Asia.

Excited fans turned out in droves to attend the opening of the new store on Saturday. 

The store looks absolutely gorgeous. 

The new store in Hangzhou is situated over two levels of retail space.

It's one of the largest Apple stores in Asia.

Inside you'll find the long tables and minimalist design we've come to expect in an Apple store.

Apple just reported a record number of iPhone sales in its Q1 earnings.

But while iPhones might be selling like hot-cakes, there are still a bunch of reasons why Android phones are better. 

When you buy an iPhone, you're stuck with as much storage as you decided to buy at the get-go. Most Android phones, however, have a microSD card slot, so you can easily and cheaply buy more storage space.

If your battery starts sucking, you can often remove it and replace it with a new one. Can't do that with an iPhone.

You can use a bunch of different Android phones (including the HTC One, LG G3, and the Galaxy S5) as remote controls, because they have infrared blasters on the top. iPhones do not.

The Russian One is a new commuter tram that looks like something from a sci-fi film.

The futuristic tram features LED cabin lighting, felt-covered sofas, wooden handrails, and sliding glass doors that operate by touchscreen.

Luckily, photographer Ilya Varlamov was able to snap some pictures of the new Russian One prototype, right from the showroom floor.

Note: All photos shown are used with permission.

The Russia One is covered in stunning glass paneling.

This is the tram's designer, Alexei Maslov.

The interior of the tram is incredibly beautiful.

Apple reported fantastic earnings on Tuesday, crushing Wall Street estimates.

In short, Apple's success is nothing less than historic.

Here's just how historic ...

Apple's quarterly revenue just from the iPhone, $51.2 billion, was greater than Yahoo's entire market capitalization of $45.5 billion.

Apple's iPhone revenue in the fourth quarter was more than three times Google's third-quarter revenue, $16.5 billion.

And Apple's iPhone revenue was almost twice Microsoft's $26.5 billion in revenue last quarter.

Facebook has often been regarded as one of the best places to work in the tech industry. After all, the company's interns make $25,000 more than the average citizen. And famously, employees on Glassdoor voted Facebook the No. 1 company to work for overall.

Not bad, right?

Wrong, according to some Facebook employees, both past and present, in a number of open threads on Quora.

Engineers, software developers, and anonymous sources from Facebook's front lines divulge the details on the worst things about working for the social network.

To be clear, we're not saying these complaints represent the average experience. These are just the opinions of a small number of people. Every large company has its detractors, including Facebook.

Here's what they have to say.

"For six weeks out of the year, I'm on 24/7 on-call duty."

During on-call duty, engineers are responsible for keeping the service up and running, come what may."For those weeks I don't leave town on the weekend; make especially sure not to have 'one too many' at any social gatherings I attend; and most importantly, carry and immediately respond to a charged phone where I can be reached 24/7, including leaving the ringer on the nightstand as I sleep."—Keith Adams, Facebook engineer.

"The wall does not exist at Facebook."

"At most companies, you put up a wall between a work personality and a personal one, which ends up with a professional workspace,"says a Facebook engineer who chose to remain anonymous on Quora. Because the culture of Facebook implicitly encourages employees to "be themselves," the company lacks the "professionalism" found at other firms, the engineer says.

"Majority of the management staff has little idea or focus on creating a team."

Facebook's "make an impact" mantra makes the entire company's workforce focus only on personal wins, not on the success of the team as a whole, according to one anonymous former Facebook employee. "There is very little value placed on a manager that has the ability to motivate the masses. This emphasis is also placed on the manager to be an individual contributor as well. The fact that you have people reporting to you seems to be just be something there, rather than your main responsibility," this employee says.

"While I would love to say that my manager(s) were the only ones who struggled with leadership, it's simply not true. Majority of the leaders there do. They are so focused on themselves and what should be tertiary issues of politics and who likes who, little time is focused on the people."