Quantcast
Channel: Features
Viewing all 61683 articles
Browse latest View live

18 things Elon Musk has invested in

0
0

Elon Musk

Elon Musk is worth $13.1 billion as of September 2015, but allegedly doesn't believe in the word "business."

The tech entrepreneur, born in South Africa in 1971, reportedly told Wait But Why earlier this year that "there's no such thing as a business, just pursuit of a goal."

Whatever Musk labels his efforts, he sure has involved himself in a bunch of them — major online payment services, building and launching spacecraft, and trying to cover the world with solar panels, to name a few.

The breadth of his reach is astounding, and it's enough to make anyone feel exhausted.

To cut through that complexity, we've highlighted 18 entities that Musk has reportedly founded, cofounded, invested in, or supported in some way.

1. Musk's first company was Zip2 Corporation — the web's first Yellow Pages — in 1995.

Musk was 24 when he dropped out of graduate school for physics at Stanford University to launch his first company, Zip2 Corporation— a dot-com media company that supplied maps and business directories to online newspapers.

He linked digital online maps from Navteq to a business directory and created the internet's first online Yellow Pages.

Four years later, in 1999, Musk sold the company to computer-manufacturer Compaq for $307 million. At that time, it was the largest amount ever paid for an internet company.



2. He founded online payment company X.com in 1999, which eventually merged with PayPal.

The same year Musk sold Zip2, he used $10 million from the sale to found the online financial-services company X.com.

Musk wanted to focus on the new technology of making payments via email, so he merged his company with a competitor called Confinity— which started the online money transfer process PayPal.

In a heated clash of personalities and egos, however, the cofounders of Confinity fired Musk from the board, then renamed the company PayPal.

The online auction company eBay purchased PayPal in 2002 for $1.5 billion.



3. In 1998, Musk invested in IT company Everdream Corporation, which was eventually sold to Dell.

Cofounded in 1998 by Musk's cousin, Lyndon Rive, Everdream sold desktop management services to small businesses. It also managed and fixed antivirus software, performed data backups, and administered data encryption.

Musk, who was still involved with PayPal at the time, invested in Everdream on the fourth round, according to the Silicon Valley Business Journal.

Rive and his twin brother, Russ, sold the company, headquartered in Fremont, California, to Dell in 2007.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: Astronomers just discovered that our universe has lost half its energy


The 18 best 'Shark Tank' pitches of all time

0
0

emazing lights shark tank

Since "Shark Tank" debuted in 2009, we've seen hundreds of entrepreneurs pitch their businesses to a panel of celebrity investors.

While each Shark may have their own method for evaluating whether a company is worth an investment, they all agree on the fundamentals of a great pitch.

In the best pitches, entrepreneurs sell themselves as much as the product and are prepared to answer any question. The pitches are concise and exciting, and make investors afraid they'll miss out on a major money-making opportunity if they don't make a deal.

A great pitch is far from a guarantee of success, but it's one of the first hurdles to becoming the next hit company out of "Shark Tank." In anticipation of the seventh season's premiere on Sept. 25, we've rounded up the best pitches in the show's history.

SEE ALSO: 'Shark Tank' investor Barbara Corcoran reveals the productivity trick every entrepreneur should use

Beatbox Beverages, Season 6

Beatbox Beverages cofounders Brad Schultz, Aimy Steadman, and Justin Fenchel entered the tank looking for $250,000 for 10% of their neon-colored, boxed fruit wine company.

After working through the details of how the three built their business, Mark Cuban decided the drink had the potential for viral growth among younger drinkers beyond the company's native Texas and offered $600,000 for a third of the company. Fenchel was grateful for the offer but said they hadn't prepared to give up so much of their company. Cuban asked for a counter. Without skipping a beat, Fenchel asked for $1 million in exchange for a third of the company. They shook hands on the deal.

One of the most common reasons why entrepreneurs miss out on a deal on the show is when they become indecisive or anxious. The Beatbox Beverages team trusted each other and had prepared well enough that nothing caught them off guard, and they ended up with an investment that's uncharacteristically large for the show.



EmazingLights, Season 6

Extravagant pitches filled with performances and props can make for great television, but often are used to hide deficiencies in a company. In the case of EmazingLights, however, a giant cartoon headpiece and a light show was used to demonstrate the company's unusual product, gloves with LED lights in the fingertips that have become increasingly popular at raves.

Founder and CEO Brian Lim's pitch showed the importance of self-promotion when wooing investors. He was able to convince them that the $7 million in annual revenue he'd achieved for his four-year-old company was due to his focus, passion, and long-term vision to crush the competition.

"You are probably one of the, if not the best entrepreneur we've had here," Robert Herjavec told him.

Lim made a deal with Cuban and Daymond John, with Cuban giving $650,000 for 5% and John taking licensing rights and a 20% commission.



Bantam Bagels, Season 6

Husband-and-wife team Nick and Elyse Oleksak left high-paying Wall Street jobs to pursue the excitement of building their own business. They launched stuffed bagel company Bantam Bagels in 2013 and entered the tank looking to turn a New York City outlet into a national business.

Their pitch was noteworthy for having clearly outlined how the company's been successful thus far, what its deficiencies are, and how an investor's guidance and capital can overcome the weaknesses and turn it into a big success. They created the necessary "fear of missing out."

Lori Greiner, who built her career as the "Queen of QVC,"saw the perfect opening for another home shopping hit. She got 25% of the company in exchange for a $275,000 investment.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: 5 interview questions that are designed to trick you

These are the Chinese military advancements that could shift the balance of power in Asia

0
0

J-20

China wants to be Asia's unquestioned military power and is rapidly upgrading its arsenal.

Beijing is developing next-generation fighter jets, ballistic missiles, and advanced naval vessels — partly in order to keep pace with the US.

The two powers are in a low-key arms race in east Asia. The US is currently engaged in a "pivot to Asia," focusing military and diplomatic attention on an increasingly important part of the world.

Meanwhile, China is trying to expand its territorial reach into the South China Sea, an effort that's bringing Beijing into recurring conflict with US allies like Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

And China is constantly building its military with a possible invasion of Taiwan in mind.

China has already become the world's second-largest military spender, behind only the US. Since 1995, China has increased its defense budget by 500% in real terms. 

Although China's military has a long way to go before it is qualitatively or even quantitatively at parity with the US, the country's development of high-end weaponry has been notable, and counts as one of the major geo-strategic developments of this decade. 

Here are some of China's fanciest new weapons — and how they could shift the balance of power in Asia.

SEE ALSO: The most game-changing weapons of the 21st century

Chengdu J-20

The Chengdu J-20 is China's fifth-generation fighter, its response to the US F-35 and the Russian T-50. The J-20 is a stealth aircraft that is currently in its fourth round of prototypes. 

The J-20 bears striking resemblance to the F-35 and the F-22, likely due to data theft and Chinese imitation of the designs of both planes. China may have stolen the design specifications needed to give the J-20 stealth capabilities that are on par with the F-35. 

Although the plane is estimated to have a striking range of 1,000 nautical miles, the aircraft itself is still reliant upon Russian engines and is in a relatively early stage of its development.



Shenyang J-31

The Shenyang J-31 is the other Chinese fifth-generation aircraft currently in development.

Unlike the J-20, which is heavily based on stolen American plans, the J-31 boasts an indigenous design. The plane is about the same size as the F-35 but has a smaller weapons bay — giving the J-31 improved fuel efficiency and speed at the expense of some firepower. 

The J-31 is also designed to be deployable to China's planned fleet of aircraft carriers. It would join the F-35 as the only two carrier-based stealth fighters in the world. 

The J-31 is scheduled to make its public debut at China's largest commercial and defense airshow in Zhuhai in early November.



Shenyang J-15 Flying Shark

The Shenyang J-15 is a carrier-based fighter aircraft that debuted in 2009. In a 2014 report to Congress, the Pentagon noted that the Fying Shark was conducting full-stops and takeoffs from China's Liaoning aircraft carrier with full weapons payloads. 

When operating from a ground base, the J-15 should have a combat radius of about 1,200 kilometers. However, since the Liaoning does not provide a useful catapult launch, the aircraft will have a reduced range while operating at sea, the Pentagon reported. 

The Chinese-produced J-15 is based on designs of the Russian Sukhoi Su-33. The plane is a Russian-type design fitted with Chinese radar, engines, and weapons. 



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The 27 hottest Israeli startups of 2015

0
0

Israel hot startups 2015

The always-hot Israeli startup scene has been going even more bonkers lately.

2015 has been a record-breaker for VC funding. The valuations of young companies are skyrocketing and private-equity bankers have arrived in droves, as have Chinese investors.

It all adds up to a very healthy tech community, overflowing with innovation.

We recently visited Israel and met with many, many people in the tech industry and we asked all of them: which startups are you watching?

Of the dozens of startups we heard about and talked to, these are the ones that we found to be particularly outstanding for any number of reasons: their growth, their products, their mission and/or the pedigree of their founders.

SEE ALSO: It's incredibly easy to be an American traveling alone in Israel

OurCrowd: disrupting the venture capital world

OurCrowd is a startup that helps ordinary, upper middle class folks (doctors, lawyers, business owners) invest in startups with the same terms that top-tier VCs get.

These days, tech companies are growing into multi-billion-dollar companies while they are still private. By crowdsourcing its investment fund, OurCrowd is helping more investors tap into that early stage wealth creation.

It's the brainchild of Israeli powerhouse VC Jon Medved, known as one of the founders of the Israeli startup scene.

 



IronSource: app discovery and monetization

IronSource helps mobile developers advertise to find customers and add advertising to their apps.

It's one of Israel's unicorns, with a $1 billion+ valuation after it raised a $105 million round in February. It employs 550, generates "hundreds of millions" in revenue and has half a billion users a month, founder and CEO Tomer Bar Zeev told us.

Bar Zeev has a unique management philosophy, too. He likes to acquire companies and then he turns those founders into co-founders at IronSource. So IronSource has 8 founders, and counting.

Earlier this week, he just bought another company, Supersonic, adding 250 more employees, and a few more founders, to the bench.



SimilarWeb: measuring websites and apps

SimilarWeb is another near unicorn. Its mission is to overtake Alexa as the most popular service for analyzing web traffic.

It was founded by charismatic CEO Or Offer, a computer geek who built SimilarWeb to research the competition while running a jewelry business.

A few years ago, he left the jewelry business to focus on SimilarWeb and his company has gone crazy ever since. Last year it grew from 60 employees to 200 and is hiring in New York and Israel about 20 more people a month.

SimilarWeb is backed by gigantic African internet investment conglomerate Naspers.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: New aerial footage shows aftermath of explosion in China

People weighed in on the most common regrets in life, and some of their answers will make you cry

0
0

businesswoman upset

Hindsight is 20/20, as they say, and oftentimes it can lead to regret.

Some people have the philosophy that everything happens for a reason, and there is no point in having regrets.

But for so many of us, looking back on our lives can lead us to linger on one poignant moment or period when we wish we had done things differently, and that nagging question, "What if ...?," plays on repeat in our heads.

"This may sound a little melodramatic, but no matter how happy you are, at my age your regrets are countless,"writes Quora user Gary Teal in response to the question, "When people look back on their lives, what are common regrets they have?""You have made decades' worth of little miscalculations you can't completely erase from your memory, as well as a number of big mistakes that made life permanently harder."

Quora user Bradley Voytek points to a national survey about the regrets of a typical American, which found 13 common sources for regret. They are, in order: romance, family, education, career, finance, parenting, health, "other," friends, spirituality, community, leisure, and self.

Vaughn Bell at Mind Hacks notes that there are two ways people frame their regrets: The things they did that they wish they hadn't, and the things they wish they had done but didn't.

"The difference between the two is often a psychological one, because we can frame the same regret either way — as regret about an action: 'If only I had not dropped out of school;' or as a regret about an inaction: 'If only I had stayed in school.'

"Despite the fact that they are practically equivalent, regrets framed as laments about actions were more common and more intense than regrets about inactions, although inaction regrets tended to be longer lasting," Bell writes.

Here are some of the most common regrets as chronicled by Quora users (answers have been edited for clarity): 

SEE ALSO: The guy whose wife famously said women can't have it all tells his side of the story

Romance

"I regret that I never fell in love with someone who was in love with me, when that would have been easy for me to do.

"I regret being like an old song sung by Buffy Sainte-Marie: 'Must I go bound and you so free, Must I love one who doesn't love me, Must I be born with so little art, As to love the one who would break my heart?'"—David Kahana



Children

"For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to have kids. But in my younger years, I foolishly assumed that unlike certain accomplishments like a career, the marriage and kids thing would just happen.

"Well, they didn't. I dated plenty of people but never even thought about making family a priority. Then, in my late 30s, a bout with ovarian cancer left me permanently infertile.

"I think about the kids I never had every day, several times a day. I have a great relationship with my nieces and nephews, and volunteer at a children's hospital on a regular basis, but it's just not the same to be around other people's kids. I would love to adopt or be a foster mother, and hopefully be in a financial and domestic situation that would make this feasible one day.

"But again, not the same. And it pisses me off when people say, "You're lucky you don't have kids, they're so much work, blah blah blah." Yes, but a lot of things in life that are worthwhile are also so much work.

"I think the mothering instinct is so strong in some women that the knowledge that one will never get a chance to give birth and raise their own child goes beyond regret. One that a bar chart cannot capture. I can deal with most of my other regrets in life but am having a hard time dealing with this one."—Caroline Zelonka



Parents

"I regret not choosing to spend more time with my parents in my twenties. I lost my mother in 2000, and I feel the loss of the friendship we never had.

"She was very demanding, very strict, and from the perspective of a young man, very unreasonable. It turned out, as I live through middle age, that most of the ideals I have today ended up being the ones she put on me.

"Sometimes, after a setback, I feel the impulse to call her, and in the second or so that it takes for me to realize she isn't alive to speak to any longer, I realize how much I still need her.

"You cannot negotiate with death. It is final, often sudden, and personal. The last night I had with her, at a hospice in Chicago, I was exhausted and asked her if she minded if I went home. She immediately whispered that absolutely, I should rest, and to be careful driving home. I curled her fingers around the nurses call button, and kissed her on the forehead. I remember I felt some relief that I was leaving.

"I know it didn't make a difference, leaving at that time, or leaving a few hours later. She was going to die either way. But reflecting on that moment today I know then that I didn't understand how precious those minutes were, and how a door was being closed that would never open again."—Jim Wagner



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: 'Shark Tank' investor reveals the worst mistake people make when trying to get someone's attention

16 crazy things that happen at Silicon Valley's favorite grade school

0
0

altschool ti watermark 4397

Growing up, Max Ventilla never felt like school was for him.

"School was something I did because I was a kid and it was expected of me. That's a real shame," says Ventilla, the former head of personalization at Google. "It's an amazing thing to have this extended period where you work on yourself and have resources to help you grow."

AltSchool, Ventilla's latest venture, sets out to revolutionize that experience by making education more personal.

The Bay Area-based network of "micro-schools"— which raised $100 million from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg earlier this year — uses technology to cater the curriculum to each child's needs, and plant the seeds of agency.

I spent the day at AltSchool's Fort Mason location in San Francisco, California, to see its game-changing teaching style in action. Here are the 16 most impressive things I saw.

AltSchool bucks traditional grade levels. Students between the ages of 4 and 14 are divided into lower elementary, upper elementary, and middle school groups.



You won't find traditional classrooms here either. Students migrate from station to station throughout the day.



Kids sign into school on an attendance app for the iPad.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: An artist has completely re-envisioned the most mundane piece of furniture

The fantasy world of 'Skyrim' has never looked better

0
0

skyrim

It's been nearly four years since "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim" debuted, and it's still one of the world's most popular games, selling millions of copies across PCs and consoles.

A big reason for the game's continued success is the “mod” community, where programmers and enthusiasts develop creative modifications to the giant fantasy world of "Skyrim" for others to download and enjoy on their PCs.

Some "Skyrim" modifications can be ingenious and funny, like replacing all the dragons in the game with Thomas the Tank Engine. But "Skyrim" modifications can be absolutely gorgeous, too.

One PC modder based in Spain, who goes by the name of "UnrealSkyrim" on YouTube and Facebook, has mixed over 1,000 different modifications from hundreds of different creators. He's taken "Skyrim" to a whole new level. 

Take a look at how this one PC modder transformed "Skyrim" by building on others' modifications.

This is what 'Skyrim' looks like untouched. Keep in mind, this is from 2011.



And this is what 'Skyrim' looks like in 2015, thanks to Unreal.





See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: We're finally getting a better idea about the story driving LEGO's next video game and it looks awesome

Photos of 19 abandoned places give us an eerie look at a world without humans

0
0

pripyat ukraine

Have you ever wondered what the world would look like without humans? 

Abandoned cities like Pripyat, Ukraine, and forgotten amusement parks like Dreamland in Beijing, China, give us an idea of what that world might look like if we weren't around anymore.

Thanks to Instagram, it's easy to take a virtual tour of these abandoned places around the world. 

Plus, the photos of the decaying buildings and moss-covered roller-coasters are totally fascinating, if not a little bit eerie. 

Keep scrolling to see the photos.

Check out the sand-filled remains of Kolmanskop, Namibia, a once thriving town built around a diamond mine in the early 1900s.

Instagram Embed:
http://instagram.com/p/oqs-hUBQbf/embed/
Width: 658px

Source



Michigan Central Station has been closed since 1988. Here's a look inside the abandoned ticket lobby.

Instagram Embed:
http://instagram.com/p/62uUpJDjB5/embed/
Width: 658px

Source

 



These ruined buildings in Henry River Mill Village, North Carolina, might look familiar. The abandoned town served as the set for District 12 in "The Hunger Games."

Instagram Embed:
http://instagram.com/p/4sb0kxnfzX/embed/
Width: 658px

 



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: What it's like to eat at McDonald's in South Korea


The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (BKX, XLF, BAC, JPM, SPX, SPY, DIA)

0
0

hank paulson ben bernanke tim geithner chris cox john duggan

Seven years ago, the US economy went into recession, the US housing market crashed, and credit markets seized bringing the banking industry to its knees. It was a global financial crisis.

Businesses went down and workers lost jobs. And Americans were losing hope, which only made things work.

For many, the low critical moment was when Lehman Brothers went bankrupt on September 15, 2008. But the memory of critical events before and after that fateful day is slowly fading. Hearings, lawsuits, bailouts — it all gets muddled together.

Business Insider has outlined the major moments from 2007 to 2009. From the initial reports of subprime defaults to the collapse of Lehman Brothers to AIG's second bailout, here are the 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis.

Note: Former Business Insider reporter Steven Perlberg contributed to this feature.

FEB. 8, 2007: HSBC says its bad debt provisions exploded because of a slump in the U.S. housing market. Normal people begin to learn what subprime is.

Source: BBC



APRIL 2, 2007: New Century files for bankruptcy. It was the largest subprime lender in the United States.

Source: SEC Filing



JUNE 21, 2007: Merrill Lynch sells off assets in two Bear Stearns hedge funds as the funds hemorrhage billions of dollars on bad subprime bets.

Source: Reuters



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Here's what everyone wore at Sunday's Emmy Awards

0
0

Sofia Vergara

Sunday's Emmy Awards recognize and celebrate excellence in the television industry.

But before nominees like Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jon Hamm make their way into the show, they must first brave the red carpet at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. 

Sofia Vergara, Amy Schumer, Kerry Washington, and many more all came out for Sunday's big show.

Here's what celebrities wore at the 67th annual Emmy Awards...

SEE ALSO: Andy Samberg kicks the Emmys off with an amazing opening monologue

MORE: Jon Stewart gave a funny Emmys acceptance speech about how much he misses 'The Daily Show'

Emmys host Andy Samberg, with wife Joanna Newsom, were among the first on the red carpet.



But "Modern Family" star Sofia Vergara quickly stole the spotlight in her St. John gown with fiancé Joe Manganiello. "Modern Family" is nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series.



"American Horror Story" star Lady Gaga went with a more subdued Brandon Maxwell gown.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: Six Flags just unveiled their insane new 4D-coaster

There's no way around it: Brazil is a disaster (EWZ)

0
0

brazil

There's no way around it: Brazil is a disaster.

In a report to clients on Friday, economists at Deutsche Bank took a detailed look at South America's flagging economy and found that, any way you cut it up, things are not good.

In recent weeks, the government has seen its debt rating cut to junk, and in response it introduced a $17 billion austerity package that will freeze public hiring, cut about 1,000 jobs, and eliminate 10 ministries altogether.

As the AFP outlined in a report earlier this week, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has now been "painted into a corner" as she deals with a recession, inflation rising sharply, unemployment soaring, and corruption allegations to boot.

In short, things are nightmare.

And in its report Deutsche Bank said Rouseff may not be long for the presidency, writing:

The economic scenario remains very volatile, as the recession and the political crisis continue to feed each other. President Dilma Rousseff is becoming increasingly isolated, and with unemployment still rising and no recovery in sight, more bad news on the economic front (e.g., another downgrade) could further boost the opposition’s movement for her impeachment. While this is still not the most likely scenario, we believe the probability that the president will not be able to finish her mandate in 2018 has risen to approximately 40% – a significant risk.

This, of course, would bring further hardship to the country's economy and more volatility to financial markets, which have also seen significant pressure because of the slowdown in China — Brazil's main export partner — and the appreciation of the dollar, which has weighed on the value of the real.

And if you take a quick look at the following charts — showing consumer and business confidence, unemployment rising, inflation soaring, expectations that Brazil could default spiking, and retail sales dumping — there is little to get excited about in Brazil.

SEE ALSO: Brazil is officially junk

Rousseff's "new economic matrix" policies, which pursued a cut in interest rates and increase in fiscal spending crushed business confidence.



With these measures also dragging down consumer confidence.



Retail sales, as a result, have fallen significantly with confidence and real income falling.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: RED EVERYWHERE: It’s a global market meltdown

Meet Tatiana Maslany – The Emmy-nominated actress who plays a dozen different characters in one insane TV show

0
0

tatiana maslany

Most actresses receive Emmy awards nominations for playing a single role in the television show, but Tatiana Maslany is not your typical actress. 

The 29-year-old was nominated for outstanding lead actress in a drama series for her work in BBC's "Orphan Black" where she plays almost a dozen different characters or "clones," each with their own specific personality and history. 

During Sunday night's award show, Maslany's fans were particularly active online using the hashtag #CloneClub. After several years of being snubbed, fans were excited to see Maslany finally being recognized for her work.

Keep reading to learn more about Tatiana Maslany. 

Meet Tatiana Maslany, the actress best known for her work on the BBC series "Orphan Black."



The 29-year-old hails from Canada and has been acting since the age of nine.

Instagram Embed:
http://instagram.com/p/XH_HhLKEjt/embed/
Width: 658px

 Source



Even though "Orphan Black" premiered in 2013, this year marks the first Emmy nomination for Maslany.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: How designers around the world photoshopped this model when they were told to make her beautiful

The B-29 Superfortress debuted 73 years ago today — relive it's legacy in photos

0
0

b 29 bombing

On September 21, 1942, 73 years ago, the maiden flight of the Boeing B-29 "Superfortress" took place.

The plane was the successor of Boeing's ultra-tough B-17 "Flying Fortress," and the predecessor to the B-52 "Stratofortress," which is still in use today.

The plane would become the long range, heavy bombing workhorse of the Pacific theater of World War II, where it achieved fame and infamy for dropping Atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Relive the legacy of this iconic bomber in the slides below.

SEE ALSO: Here's a walk-through of a B-29 Superfortress

The B-29 was very advanced for its time, featuring a pressurized cabin, tricycle dual-wheeled landing gear, and remote controlled gun turrets.

Source



Only the front and back compartments were pressurized, meaning that the crew had to crawl over the bomb bay via a narrow 35-foot tunnel.

Source



At the time, it was the heaviest production plane in the world, weighing in at 105,000 pounds with an optional 20,000 pounds of bombs.

Source



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: New aerial footage shows aftermath of explosion in China

16 adrenaline junkie attractions to visit in your lifetime

0
0

CN Tower

Some tourist activities were made for thrillseekers.

You can free climb to staggering heights, get up close and personal with majestic sites, and get views that will take your breath away. 

We've put together a collection of 16 adrenaline-pumping tourist activities around the globe, from volcano boarding in Nicaragua to skydiving over Mount Everest.

Note: Some of these activities can be dangerous and should be approached with caution.

 

SEE ALSO: 23 pictures not to look at if you're terrified of heights

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's lifestyle page on Facebook!

Insanity is a thrill ride at the top of the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas, Nevada. A massive mechanical arm extends 64 feet over the edge of the 900-foot tower and spins you in the air.



Trift Bridge stretches over the Trift Glacier in the Swiss Alps. The bridge spans a 560-foot gap in the mountains.

Click here to learn more about Trift Bridge »



The Devil's Pool is a natural infinity pool in Victoria Falls, which borders Zambia and Zimbabwe. It gives the illusion that you're diving off the edge of a cliff.

Click here to learn more about Devil's Pool »



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: 50 Cent once sat in this home — which he can no longer afford — and told Oprah he would never go broke

The Apple Watch just got a massive update — here are the 10 most important new features

0
0

Apple Watch

The Apple Watch got its first major update on Monday with the launch of its new operating system called Watch OS 2.

We got our first preview of watchOS 2 earlier this year, but it's a good time to revisit the new features Apple Watch owners will get this week.

The biggest change coming to the Apple Watch is the ability to run apps directly on the device.

You currently have to load all third-party apps from a paired iPhone over Bluetooth, which isn't ideal when you don't have your iPhone around. It also creates longer loading times for opening and using apps, which should be alleviated considerably once Apple Watch apps are stored directly on the device.

Apps running natively will also allow them to do things like access the Watch's heart rate sensor, which will make it easier to use a workout app like Strava.

The Apple Watch will also be able to connect to your saved WiFi networks independently from a paired iPhone, which means your iPhone can be turned off in the house and your Watch can still be connected to the internet.



You can choose from a bunch of new faces, including a custom photo from your Camera Roll.

Apple has moving time lapse faces for cities like New York, London, and Hong Kong.

You can also pick a photo from your Watch's Camera Roll to be the face, or rotate through an album of your favorite photos automatically.



Apps can have custom complications running right on the Apple Watch's face.

Custom complications allow developers to put the most important parts of their apps directly on the Watch's face. For instance, your favorite sports app could show a game's score, or a flight tracking app could show your departure time.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: What happens when a superstar disrupts one of the top 'League of Legends' teams


The most photographed places in New York City

0
0

Empire State BuildingEvery so often, we like to check in with Sightsmap, which offers heatmaps of photos taken around the world via the Google Maps tool Panoramio.

It's like a visual love meter.

This time, we turned it on our home town of New York City, just in time for its always-glorious autumn.

Consider this your crowdsourced shot list — not always surprising, but unfailingly great.

SEE ALSO: 15 facts about New York City that will make you think twice about whether you can afford to live there

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's Lifestyle page on Facebook!

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

The Guggenheim's been entrenched in New York's cultural life long enough that it's easy to lose sight of how revelatory a piece of architecture it was — and still is. The winding earth-to-sky ramp with its gallery offshoots, the stack of "rings" stepping from light to dark to light again as you climb toward the top — they call to mind great European cathedrals like Siena's Duomo. Which creator Frank Lloyd Wright, who spoke of his intent to make "a temple of spirit" with the museum, just might have intended. And which your lens won't be able to resist.



Bethesda Terrace in Central Park

It's the heart of Central Park, which is itself, after all, the heart of New York City. Photo ops abound, whether on the sandstone steps that slope like broad, gentle arms; or in the intricately detailed underpass; or on the wide plain of the fountain, a combination observation deck and citywide gathering space.



Top of the Rock

Rising right in the center of Manhattan, Rockefeller Center is perfectly positioned for both northern- and southern-facing shots. Where else could you get perfect compositions of Central Park's pastoral expanse and the brawny towers of midtown, including the Empire State and Chrysler buildings? The only New York landmark you can't get great shots of from up here? Rockefeller Center itself.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

How Emmy-winner Peter Dinklage became the beloved 'Game of Thrones' bad boy

0
0

peter dinklage game of thrones emmys

Sunday, Peter Dinklage took home his second Emmy for supporting actor on HBO's "Game of Thrones." The 46-year-old actor has been nominated in the category each year since the series' start.

But long before Dinklage played the iconic role of Tyrion Lannister, the Jersey native worked an office job, performed in a punk-funk-rap band, and bootstrapped his acting career.

In honor of his Emmy, we're taking a look back at Dinklage's unstoppable rise to fame.

Peter Dinklage was born to a Morristown, New Jersey, couple in the summer of '69. He said his childhood was "uneventful." His father sold insurance, and his mother taught music at an elementary school.

Source: Esquire



His parents never treated him like he was special, Dinklage says, despite being the only dwarf in his family. The chance of being born with achondroplasia, a genetic disorder that causes abnormalities in bone formation, is 1 in 25,000.

Source: Esquire



The Dinklages didn't even have a TV set in the house, or so he thought. In his teens, Peter discovered his parents watching a black-and-white TV they had purchased and hid in the bedroom closet. "It was 'Three's Company' from then on out," he says.

Source: The New York Times



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

5 of the most popular tourist attractions in Europe

0
0

Eiffel TowerEurope has its fair share of famous attractions, but only one can be crowned "most popular."

At the 22nd annual World Travel Awards (a.k.a. the"Oscars of the travel industry") this weekend, one place came out on top: Dublin's Guinness Storehouse, which has served a pint of the Black Stuff to more than 13 million visitors since it opened in 2000.

Can you guess the other top nominees?

Click through to see if your favorites made it.

SEE ALSO: Take a tour of the Guinness brewery in Dublin, which was named the best tourist attraction in Europe

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's Lifestyle page on Facebook!

Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

Three million pints of Ireland's most beloved beer are brewed here every day.



The Roman Colosseum, Italy

In the Eternal City, travelers continue to flock to this eternal favorite destination.



La Sagrada Familia, Spain

Even the most jaded traveler will be awed by this masterpiece in Barcelona.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The 34 best hotels in Europe

0
0

4x3 best hotels in europeEurope is renowned for its historic sites, incredible food, and its luxurious hotels.

We recently published a list of the 30 best hotels in the world

We pulled out the top hotels in Europe and ranked them here.

To create this list, we aggregated five notable hotel rankings made by elite travel publications and websites:Travel + Leisure's World's Best Hotels, Conde Nast Traveler's Top 100 Hotels and Resorts, TripAdvisor's Top 25 Hotels in the World, Fodor's 100 Hotel Awards, and Jetsetter's Best of the Best Awards.

Read the full methodology here.

SEE ALSO: The 30 best hotels in the world

FOLLOW US: BI Travel is on Twitter!

34. Hotel Plaza Athenee, Paris, France

Located on one of Paris' most famous and expensive streets, the Hotel Plaza Athenee is one of the most famous hotels in Europe — and that's saying something. Opulent but fashionable, stark, cutting edge new interiors mingle with chandeliers and antiques. The hotel also has incredible views of the Eiffel Tower and is home to the super trendy Le Bar, as well as Alain Ducasse's signature restaurant.

Rooms start at $922 per night for two



33. Sheen Falls Lodge, Kerry, Ireland

Formerly a 17th-century fishing lodge then an 18th-century estate belonging to the Marquess of Landsowne, this 300-acre property stretches across forests and gardens, ideally located between Kenmare Bay and the the Sheen river and its waterfalls.Sheen Falls Lodge keeps guests busy with fishing, falconry, kayaking, horseback riding, tennis and clay pigeon shooting, as well as its indoor pool, spa, and gym.

Rooms start at $140 per night for two



32. Grand Hotel Tremezzo, Lake Como, Italy

The view here is priceless, and the Grand Hotel Tremezzo makes the most of it with lake-view salons and terraces aplenty. The elegant, palatial, and historic hotel — a Greta Garbo favorite — also has three pools, including a floating one on the lake, a three Michelin-starred chef, a gym and a huge spa. Rooms are lavishly old world, with lots of gilt and gold.

Rooms start at $544 per night for two



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

NOW WATCH: People were baffled by 50 sharks circling in shallow waters off the English coast

I spent the summer talking to 8,000 people about money, and here are the 11 best pieces of financial advice I can give you

0
0

IMG_0047.JPG

This summer, I drove 10,218 miles in 137 hours through 38 states in 30 days.

I called my trip the Road to Financial Wellness, a grassroots and social-media experiment to turn local money discussions into a national conversation on financial well being.

After my backpacking trip around the world in 2012, I realized I was able to live my dream lifestyle because I understood and improved my relationship with money.

I used the term "money mindfulness," which means being in the moment and fully aware of all the facts — financially and emotionally — to make better financial decisions. I've learned the importance of applying financial knowledge to help live your dream lifestyle.

I wanted to share this with the world — or at least, this summer, with the US.

My team of four participated in panel discussions; explored large cities and small towns; spoke with people at festivals and local coffee shops; and held events at churches, restaurants, barbecue joints, bars, colleges, and credit-union locations.

I had a mission, and that was to motivate and break the social taboo around money. I began that conversation by sharing these 11 money lessons with over 8,000 people.

SEE ALSO: I spent 5 years studying rich people, and here are the 9 best pieces of advice I can give you about money

1. Take advice from people who are living the life you want to live.

Consider their knowledge as valuable information to make better financial decisions. For example, you may need to ask yourself why you're taking investing advice from a peer who isn't a successful investor.



2. Have a lifestyle goal, not just a financial goal.

A lifestyle is how you live, and financial goals are specific to things that revolve around money.

A lifestyle goal is the "why" behind all the hard work and reasoning behind those financial goals.

By articulating the life you want to live, you'll learn to create financial goals and make better financial decisions that fulfill that lifestyle.



3. Be mindful of the financial conversations you're having and not having.

We learn our financial habits from our family, friends, and coworkers and through marketing messages. Although we may not talk about our financial situation openly, we are having these conversations with the clothes we wear, the homes we live in, the cars we drive, and the phones we upgrade.

It's important to be mindful of these conversations because they influence our credit decisions, banking relationships, and spending.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider
Viewing all 61683 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images