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Here's everything Tesla plans to accomplish this year (TSLA)

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elon musk tesla

Tesla has a very busy year ahead of it. 

In a shareholder letter published earlier this week, the electric car company said it will unveil its first mass market car, the Model 3, on March 31. The company also noted it's on schedule to produce and deliver the Model 3 by 2017. 

But in order to meet that aggressive deadline, Tesla has a long to-do list this year. 

The company plans to invest some $1.5 billion in its factories, stores, and charging infrastructure to get ready for the production of its mass market car. 

Here are the four biggest things Tesla said it plans to accomplish this year. 

It will invest in finishing the Gigafactory.

In its shareholder letter, Tesla said it plans to invest in new equipment to support cell production at the Gigafactory, which is Tesla's giant battery manufacturing plant in Sparks, Nevada. 

The Gigafactory will be key to helping the company meet its goal of selling some 500,000 cars by 2020because it will help the company achieve "extreme economies of scale," which will help bring down the cost of its lithium batteries that are used to power its electric cars. 



Tesla will build out its facilities to begin production of the Model 3.

Tesla says it's going to use a chunk of that $1.5 billion investment to begin installing the machines needed to produce its upcoming Model 3. 

The new car will be produced at Tesla's production factory in Fremont, California — at least in the beginning. However, Musk recently said e is not opposed to begin producing Tesla cars for the Chinese market in China. 

The Fremont factory is currently capable of producing 100,000 vehicles annually, according to Tesla's website. The new equipment will help its factory become even more robust ahead of the Model 3 launch. 

 



Tesla plans to open 80 retail locations and service centers.

Tesla currently has more than 140 retail and service stations around the world. But the company wants to grow that number so that as the Model 3 comes off the production line, there are plenty of showrooms where they can show it off.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The creator behind 'Vinyl' and 'Boardwalk Empire' on crafting HBO's great dramas and working with Martin Scorsese

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Terence Winter Dimitrios Kambouris Getty

Terence Winter is best known for his work on “The Sopranos” and creating “Boardwalk Empire,” but the 55-year-old writer and TV showrunner wasn't just handed those gigs.

Like most in Hollywood, he had to start from the bottom, and he built off his early jobs to become one of the most sought-after writers in not only TV but also movies — his adaptation of Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” earned him an Oscar nomination.

Leading up to the Sunday premiere of his new series, "Vinyl," which he created with Scorsese, Mick Jagger, and Rich Cohen, Winter talked to Business Insider about his landmark career so far.

SEE ALSO: Justin Theroux talks about writing 'Zoolander 2' with Ben Stiller and why it's not like the original

“The Cosby Mysteries”

One of the first writing jobs Winter scored when he got to Hollywood in the mid-1990s was writing episodes for the blink-and-you-missed-it crime series “The Cosby Mysteries.” That’s right, Bill Cosby had a show in which he played a retired New York criminologist who would solve murders in his spare time.

“That time in my career I was just thrilled that people were offering me to do jobs,” Winter said.

According to Winter, Cosby couldn’t be any nicer to work with, but the legendary comedian's style wasn’t the right fit for the murder-mystery genre.

“One of the conventions of the murder mystery is that the hero at the end sort of runs down very specifically how he caught the murderer,” Winter said. “So we’d have these very specific speeches written where Bill would explain how he knew who the murderer was, but instead he would go off on these comedic riffs that often had nothing to do with how he caught the murderer. So we would get the footage back and go, 'Um, what?' We would have to loop dialogue somewhere else in the episode so the ending would make sense. It was kind of a challenge.”



“Xena: Warrior Princess”

Soon after “The Cosby Mysteries,” Winter grabbed another job, writing for a new show called “Xena: Warrior Princess.”

The show that would become a global hit wasn’t necessarily what Winter wanted to write about, but the experience of seeing a show come together from the ground up was immeasurable.

“I was there when they were in the very early stages of developing the show and trying to figure out who the characters were. It was fascinating to observe that,” Winter said. “The challenge for me was that is a very specific world, but that’s where work ethic comes in. You’re not connected to this material but you’re hired to do a job, now figure it out.”

His next job would finally get him into his dream material.



“The Sopranos”

The HBO masterpiece put Winter on the map as he came on as one of the writers for its second season in 2000. He would go on to be an executive producer on the show in years to come.

But that wouldn't have been possible if the show’s creator, David Chase, had just gone by Winter’s credits.

“He didn’t care what your credits were. He could have gone, ‘Oh, you were on "Xena"?’ But he didn’t care,” Winter said. “He was interested in me as a person, the stories I had, what made me tick. It’s something to this day I do when I hire people. I’m not interested in someone’s credits. Let me see who you are and tell me a story of your life.”



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

These are the Air Force’s 10 most expensive planes to operate

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b-2 stealth bomber

Below are the most expense aircraft for the US Air Force to fly sorted by cost per hour of flight.

 

SEE ALSO: Watch a precision airstrike annihilate an ISIS position in Syria

10. F-22 Raptor

The “best combat plane in the world” only cost $58,059 an hour to fly. Small price to pay for the best.



9. B-1B Lancer

The B-1 makes up sixty percent of the Air Force’s bomber fleet and runs $61,027 per flying hour.



8. CV-22 Osprey

The USAF’s special operations tiltrotor will run you $63,792 per hour.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

25 photos that show America's most versatile plane can do almost anything

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The endlessly flexible Lockheed C-130 Hercules is simply an astounding aircraft that can handle nearly any challenge thrown its way.

Designed against the backdrop of the Korean War, it has been over 60 years since the aircraft's first flight. Despite its age, the plane's airframe continues to be adapted and upgraded for novel uses across the full spectrum of the US military. 

From humanitarian rescue to paratrooper airdrops to gunship-type functions, the C-130 airframe is a marvel of ingenuity and versatility.

SEE ALSO: These are the 15 best photos of the F-35 from 2015

The YC-130 prototype flew for the first time on August 23, 1954. Since that first flight, the C-130 has grown to support a variety of missions around the world.



The aircraft can land on, and takeoff from, even the most uneven runways.



The US Air Force and Air National Guard have their own variant of the plane, the LC-130, that has been outfitted with skis to allow for Arctic and Antarctic support operations.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

7 photos of terrifying knife hands in action

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drill sergeant knife hand

All military service members dread the ominous  “knife-hand” when being addressed by a superior as it usually means they are being corrected or some sort of discipline is soon to follow. Below are the 8 images designed to awaken your greatest fears:

 

 

SEE ALSO: 25 photos that show America's most versatile plane can do almost anything

1. Recruits are quickly introduced to knife hands



2. A loud verbal correction often accompanies a knife hand to maximize effect



3. The knife hand extends across all branches of service



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Chemistry is bringing chefs ‘a new revolution of cooking’ — here’s what the food of tomorrow looks like

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Cotton Candy CakeMolecular gastronomy is a modernist style of cuisine that combines science and cooking. These chefs (who are also physicists) will freeze ingredients with liquid nitrogen or turn them into foam with pressurized gas, yielding crazy dishes, like cotton candy "cakes" and burgers with whipped meringue "buns." Their dishes are scientific works of art.

The 12-seat Minibar in Washington, DC pioneered molecular gastronomy in the US, and continues to receive glowingreviews and awards.

"It's a new revolution of cooking. Chefs are thinking differently, not following recipes, and questioning everything that was available," Minibar's Head of Research and Development Rubén García tells Tech Insider. "We're re-thinking cooking, and we're not worried about breaking boundaries." He works directly with head chef José Andres to design new dishes for the restaurant.

Take a look at how Minibar is shaping the future of modernist cuisine.

Minibar features two bars (each with only six seats) near the open kitchen, so that diners can watch their food being prepared by the chef.



Each seating is more of a tasting extravaganza than a traditional a la carte experience. Most of the time, Minibar doesn't even print a menu, since the dishes constantly change. Below there's: Quail with dark chocolate and rose water; charred monkfish and lemon yolks; fusilli injected with pesto; thai rabbit; potato gnocchi with ibérico broth; white chocolate asparagus; piña colada tablet; cherry bombs; chocolate eclairs; pumpkin seed tarts.

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Diners are served whatever Chefs García and Andres choose for the evening, like this slider — which isn't what it seems. The patty is made from minced raw beef, and the "bun" is made from piped egg whites and strategically-placed poppy seeds.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Here's what to do if your boss asks you out on a date

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mindy project goes to hulu

Romance is in the air this time of year — which can drive people to think with their heart instead of their head.

So if your boss, who has been admiring you for a while, finally decides to make a move, you'll want to be prepared.

"Although office romances do sometimes leads to a long term relationship and even marriage, as a general rule it's never a good idea to date the boss," says Michael Kerr, an international business speaker and author of "The Humor Advantage.""There are so many pitfalls to dating the boss, including jealousy and perceived favoritism from colleagues, potential ethical violations, and the unintended and negative consequences that might happen if the relationship heads south."

According to a Vault survey, 16% of those who have had a romance at work have dated a supervisor — but most of those relationships don't work out. Another study from CareerBuilder found that only a third of office romances end in marriage.

So, here's what to do if your manager asks you out:

SEE ALSO: 16 signs your boss secretly has a crush on you

Get clarity.

"First, clarify if it is strictly platonic or not," says Kerr. "It may simply be a one off gesture of friendship. For example, maybe someone has canceled at the last minute and the boss has an extra ticket to a concert or sporting event and thought it would something you'd enjoy."

Even in such a scenario, though, recognize that this could be easy fodder for the gossip mongers. You need to consider appearances and how comfortable you'd be if word spread around your office that you attended a personal function with your boss.  



Think about how you feel.

Consider your own feelings. Are you even remotely interested? Are you attracted to them? Can you see things working out?

You wouldn't want to put your reputation and career on the line unless you're really into your boss and feel certain it's a good idea to strike up an office romance.



Weigh the pros and cons.

If you're even remotely interested, you'll need to seriously consider all the potential downsides of going out with your boss, including how okay you are with how other colleagues might react and treat you, Kerr says.

"Will you be comfortable with the potential gossip that might arise? Do you feel both parties will be able to keep it strictly professional and not let it affect your work? How will both parties deal with it if it doesn't work out? You need to have a completely open and frank discussion with your boss in a neutral setting to make sure all of your concerns are heard and acknowledged," he explains.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Someone has created an entire website devoted to pictures of white guys wearing Oculus — and the results are hilarious

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mark zuckerberg oculus

There is something inherently giggle-worthy about a white guy wearing an Oculus Rift, the virtual reality headset which will launch on March 28. Perhaps the dorkiness, perhaps the unabashed glee, perhaps something you can't quite put your finger on.

I should know, having both been that guy and watched that guy.

A Tumblr used named @jbasher has created an entire site full of just these types of pictures. It's called, fittingly, "White Guys Wearin' Oculus Rift."

It's been around for a while, but is worth revisiting given the upcoming consumer launch. Here is a selection of some of the funniest photos @jbasher unearthed:

SEE ALSO: 40 skills that will land you a $120,000+ salary

http://whiteguyswearinoculusrifts.tumblr.com/post/80168525631


http://whiteguyswearinoculusrifts.tumblr.com/post/80269050518


http://whiteguyswearinoculusrifts.tumblr.com/post/80268693067


See the rest of the story at Business Insider

A former banker reveals 4 sneaky ways banks trick you into paying more

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Man at Bank of America ATM

When you work in banking for nearly 15 years, the way MagnifyMoney co-founder Nick Clements did, you come away with what can only be described as an insider's knowledge of the ins and outs of the business. Clements certainly did, including some of the sneaky ways that big banks trick us into spending our money.

Here are the four big ones that Clements suggests consumers be on the lookout for.

SEE ALSO: How to never pay an ATM fee again

1. Retroactive interest

Unless you've been living under a rock the past couple of months, you've probably become familiar with the "free 0% financing!" offers that tend to be pushed pretty aggressively by retailers and credit card companies during the holidays.

If you're not careful, though, those 0% offers could end up costing you a pretty penny in the form of deferred interest. What happens with this type of card is that interest for purchases made on it will be set at 0% for a certain number of months.

If you can pay your card off in full at the end of that time period, great — you've made the most of the offer. If you carry over a balance, however, interest will then be retroactively charged at the standard purchase rate, which tends to be much higher than average on these types of cards. Check out this piece for more about deferred interest and how to avoid it.



2. Re-ordering transactions

If you have overdraft protection on your account, this sneaky little trick could really sting you, and nearly half of banks still do this, says Clements. What happens is that banks will reorder your transactions throughout a day to maximize the number of times that you pay overdraft fees. Consider this example: You start the day with $50 in your account. You then make three withdrawals throughout the day, the first at 10 a.m. for $20, the second at 1 p.m. for $20 and the third at 7 p.m. for $40.

In this particular scenario, you should have only overdrawn on your account at the third transaction, right? The trick happens when your bank reorders your withdrawals so that the $40 happens first, then a $20 and then the final $20. In this case you would have actually overdrawn twice. This sneaky little move is surprisingly legal, and incredibly unfair. For more on how to eliminate overdraft fees, check out this piece.



3. More overdraft woes

Besides what's mentioned above, another issue can come up with overdraft protection when you try linking your credit card to your checking account. In doing so you may inadvertently get charged two fees right away when you overdraw — the first being an overdraft transfer fee from your checking account and the second being a cash advance fee on the credit card.

If that's not enough, the balance on the credit card is then treated as a cash advance, says Clements, which means there's no grace period and interest begins to accrue right away, and at a much higher rate.

4. Grace period problem

In most cases, the simple act of completing a balance transfer onto a new credit card will cause the consumer to lose their grace period on purchases. The only time this isn't usually the case is when a specific 0% offer for purchases has been made for the card. Use this tool to help compare different balance transfer options on different cards.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

17 perfect last-minute Valentine's Day gifts for stylish guys

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The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we may get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

seiko $315These last couple of days leading up to February 14 — particularly if you have someone special to shop for — can be stressful. To help guide your gifting and save you time (so you can get a leg up on planning your romantic itinerary instead), we put together 17 perfect presents for stylish guys. They run the gamut, from dive watches to leather wallets, from turntables to musky scents. There's bound to be something he'll love in the list to follow.



 

SEE ALSO: 20 perfect gifts for stylish guys

READ THIS: Guys, this styling product is the easiest way to get your hair to cooperate

DON'T MISS: These are the only 5 watches you need in your collection

A pair of headphones that looks as good as it sounds

You're not going to find much better-looking headphones for under $150. These are a steal as far as style is concerned. As for sound, theirs is backed by a 4.3-out-of-5-star rating on Amazon. That's not bad at all.

If you want to buy something premium, you won't go wrong with Master & Dynamic's revered cans.

LSTN Troubadours Zebra Wood On-Ear Headphones, $149.99.



A card (plus something extra inside it)

Put the tickets to Governor's Ball or his favorite comedian you got him inside a sweet card. Presentation is everything. 

Hammerpress 'I HEART U' Card, $5.



A weekend bag that doubles as a work bag

A good weekend bag will last someone years. Seattle-based Filson makes virtually indestructible ones that look rather handsome, and some of them can double as work bags, too.

Filson 48-Hour Duffel, $395.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

8 rookie investing mistakes to avoid

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frustrated business man

Invest for the long haul.

If you're like most investors, you'd probably rather spend your free time with family, friends, watching football, shopping or taking the kids to the park.

The financial markets are complex, and there is a lot of information that can be confusing to someone who's simply trying to save for retirement, sock money away for their kid's college education and build a nest egg.

Here are eight rookie investing traps to avoid while you map out your investment plan.

SEE ALSO: 12 things everyone should know before investing

1. Don't let emotions rule your portfolio.

A common mistake do-it-yourself investors make is switching investments to cash at the wrong time and letting fear or greed rule their decisions. "This is a marathon, and you invest over multiple market cycles, not letting market dips scare you into selling at the wrong time. Create a written plan with your goals and objectives as well as your portfolio allocation. Refer back to this document if you find yourself wanting to exit the markets," says Todd Douds, director of operations at Pittsburgh-based Fort Pitt Capital Group.

2. Don't chase performance.

Markets move in cycles, and investors who look back at last year's big winners and jump on board might be buying near or at a top. Don't follow a fad and buy into a hot stock without doing solid research on the fundamentals. "If an asset class or security has already had large gains, that was yesterday's good idea. Don't follow the crowd because you will just be chasing performance, which is a loser's game," Douds says.



3. Don't trade too much.

For many long-term investors, the best strategy may be to hone in on a proper asset allocation between stocks and bonds, pick funds and hunker down for the long term. Eager beavers who switch in and out of funds too often will find commissions eating away at their nest egg. "Trading has costs to it, and the more you trade, the most cost you incur in your portfolio. Buy assets at a reasonable price and hold onto them," Douds says.

4. Don't forget about the fees.

Exchange-traded funds have revolutionized the cost of investing in a variety of asset classes. Rookie investors may ignore expense ratios, but over time, high fees can eat into a portfolio's overall return. Many funds are available to investors today with a 0.20 percent expense ratio ($20 annually per $10,000 invested) or less. While costs are only one factor to consider when choosing a fund, they are an important consideration.



5. Don't try to time the market.

Individual investors and sometimes even professionals fall into the trap of trying to time the market, or in simple terms, selling high and buying low. "It has been shown time and again that trying to outsmart the collective wisdom of the millions of smart, well-informed people who trade in the market is very hard to do consistently, no matter who you are. Disciplined rebalancing keeps you away from that market-timing trap," says Derek C. Hamilton, certified financial planner at Elser Financial Planning in Indianapolis.

6. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.

Proper diversification is the foundation of successful long-term investing. Spreading investments across different asset classes and into those that move in the opposite direction of stocks helps reduce risk in a portfolio. "Many investors think of diversification as simply owning more stocks, but do not realize you must also consider asset allocation as well as how your investments move in relation to one another, which is known as correlation," says T. Michelle Jones, vice president at Bryn Mawr Trust in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The 25 highest-paid NBA players of all time

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Shaquille O'Neal

The NBA may still be behind the NFL and Major League Baseball in terms of generating money, but thanks to rising TV revenue and smaller rosters, an NBA career can be lucrative.

This is especially true for the athletes who played a large chunk of their careers between the late 1990s and the 2011 lockout.

While many of the all-time greats of the past 20 years are among the highest paid of all time, these years also led to some large contracts for some otherwise mediocre players.

Here is a look at the 25 players who have made at least $152 million:

25. Dwyane Wade ― $152,915,934

Seasons: 13

Highest single-season salary: $20 million

Championships: 3

All-Star Games: 12

NBA First-team All-NBA: 2



24. Allen Iverson ― $154,494,445

Seasons: 14

Highest single-season salary: $20.8 million

Championships: 0

All-Star Games: 11

NBA First-team All-NBA: 3



23. Vince Carter ― $154,823,574

Seasons: 18

Highest single-season salary: $18.3 million

Championships: 0

All-Star Games: 8

NBA First-team All-NBA: 0



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

We spent a night out on the town with Tablelist, the app that can get you into your city's hottest clubs

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tao downtown

Have you ever wondered how to get in to the hottest nightclubs?

Outside, you see long lines of lithe young partiers. Inside, you know hip revelers are guzzling magnum-sized bottles of Dom Perignon and dancing the night away.

But that pesky velvet rope can be a daunting barrier between you and the blasting music, beautiful people, and blurred-lines debauchery within.

Enter Tablelist, the app for getting in to nightclubs.

"People have a fear of going out," Julian Jung, CEO and founder of Tablelist, said to Business Insider. "Nightlife has this awful stigma attached to it."

Launched in 2013, Tablelist markets itself as a fail-proof way to book yourself into the most exclusive hotspots in cities across the US, giving you "peace of mind" that you'll have a place to party. Like an OpenTable for clubbing, it lets you choose your location, type of experience, and beverages of choice. You can even use the app to split the bill with friends. 

"It's the first platform that really brings this world into the 21st century," Jung said.

Curious if it actually works? Business Insider took Tablelist for a test run. See how we did.

SEE ALSO: You can live in the Western Hemisphere's tallest apartment building for just $60,000 a month

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

Jung started the company when he realized the nightlife industry was woefully behind in its technology. Reservations for hotels, cars, flights, restaurants — these could all be made at the tap of a finger. But clubbing? Not so easy.

Investors seem to agree that there's something to the idea: since launch, Jung has picked up about $5 million in funding from a list of investors that includes Atlas Ventures, Twitter's Wayne Chang, Hudson River's Jason Carrol, and nightlife gurus Simon Hammerstein and Michael Gruber.

 



Step one: sign up and select your location. Tablelist currently operates in New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, San Francisco, and Washington, DC, with more locations slated to pop up this year.

In December, they sold $1 million in nightclub tables across all markets. Each month, between five and ten thousand users log on and book tables with the app, according to Jung.

And people, Jung knew, were dropping a lot of cash every night on their boozy activities.

The biggest spenders were Miami and Las Vegas customers, who shell out upwards of $2,000 on average for a table, while in Boston, that number shrinks to $500 for a night out. 

 



Step two: choose your club. In New York, the app has worked deals with all of the big names in nightlife, meaning that pretty much any destination you have in mind is available for the right price; 38 venues are listed for the booking here.

The app picks up a 10-20% commission on a booking, similar to the margins that a nightclub promoter will make. But instead of doing everything on the fly like a promoter, Tablelist has a data and technology focus to help venues maximize their sales, while ensuring customers have a seamless experience.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Here's a simple way to vastly improve your photos

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Photography is hard. And all the advice out there can get confusing.

But here's one thing you can do today to step up your photo game: Pay attention to your background.

It's counter-intuitive. The most important part of an image is the subject, right? But I'll show you how a bit of attention to your background can make your subjects much more interesting and exciting.

Here's how I shot before I learned to care about backgrounds



I'd focus on shooting the most dramatic moment



Or a subject I found interesting



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I spent a month eating on $2 a day — here's what a typical day looked like

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It turns out eating on $2 a day is more than possible — if you buy in bulk and don't mind eating the same thing every day.

I know because I tried it for the month of January. I was inspired by a young Elon Musk, who gave it a whirl as a teenager to see if he had what it takes to be an entrepreneur.

While I don't recommend this nutrient-starved lifestyle (and neither does Musk), if you're curious as to how I did it, here's what a typical day looked like. I also included the cost and caloric breakdown, to give you an idea of just how far you can stretch $2:

SEE ALSO: I took the 'Elon Musk Challenge' and spent only $2 a day on food for a month — and it was easier than I expected

Every morning started with oatmeal and a banana (topped with a sugar in the raw package, which I scavenged from various places):

Breakfast cost: 1 banana ($0.19) + 1 serving of oats ($0.20) = $0.39 

Breakfast calories: 1 banana (100) + 1 serving of oats (170) = 270 



I typically ate a second banana mid-morning to hold me over until lunch, which was normally a tortilla loaded with peanut butter:

Snack cost: 1 banana = $0.19

Snack calories: 1 banana = 100

Lunch cost: 1 serving of tortilla ($0.25) + 2 servings of peanut butter ($0.36) = $0.61

Lunch calories: 1 serving of tortilla (120) + 2 servings of peanut butter (380) = 500



My mid-afternoon snack — sunflower seeds — held me over until dinner, which was anywhere from three to five servings of pasta topped with a heaping tablespoon of butter:

Snack cost: 1 serving of sunflower seeds = $0.14

Snack calories: 1 serving of sunflower seeds = 200

Dinner cost: 4 servings of pasta ($0.48) + 1 serving of butter ($0.10) = $0.58

Dinner calories: 4 servings of pasta (800) + 1 serving of butter (100) = 900



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

The reviews of Ben Stiller's 'Zoolander 2' are absolutely brutal

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With only a 22% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, "Zoolander 2" isn't coming out of the gates with a lot of love.

The original, released 15 years ago and starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson as dimwitted male models who team up to foil the assassination attempt on the Prime Minister of Malaysia, became a cult favorite once it hit the home-video market.

But according to many critics, the long-awaited sequel, out Friday, lacks the silly hilarity of the original.

Before you put down your hard-earned cash, read how the critics feel about it.

SEE ALSO: There's one huge character missing from the all new "Game of Thrones" photos and its driving fans insane

The movie just isn't funny.

The biggest gripe many of the critics have is that "Zoolander 2" tries and tries but falls so short of the original gags.

"'Zoolander 2' tries to blow the same silliness out to epic, world-spanning proportions, and it just winds up feeling overstretched,"The Verge writes.

And the Boston Globe argues "'Zoolander 2' is just another lazy grab bag of sketch ideas acted out by 'Saturday Night Live' cast members and alumni, each of whom comes up with a schtick and then beats it into the ground."

If those aren't enough, here's Vulture's take: "How bad is 'Zoolander 2'? It’s 'Batman and Robin' bad."



The Derek Zoolander act gets old in a hurry.

For the Chicago Sun-Times, the idiotic Zoolander character, whose fatherhood inabilities come into the plot, is just hard to watch.

"If you find Zoolander’s mannered style of speaking and his narcissism and his monumentally tiny brain hilarious, I can’t argue with you. I’m just not with ya."



The cameos do make it tolerable — almost.

It seems like every other scene in "Zoolander 2" has an appearance from a celebrity. But the one who tops them all is Kiefer Sutherland, who has a special connection with Hansel (Owen Wilson).

That was a bad omen for the San Jose Mercury News:

"When Kiefer Sutherland is the funniest person in your movie, you have a problem."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Take a look at 75 years of Jeep (FCAU)

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Willys WheelerThis year, for the 75th anniversary of the introduction of the war-winning Willys MB jeep, today's Jeep will be showering us with a good many ads involving a rather streamlined evolution from that fabled vehicle to their latest range of models.

But let's be clear here: the Jeep Wrangler is not a modern-day Willy's Jeep.

It's more of a car inspired by an interpretation of a descendant of a civilian version of a Willy's MB.

But that's close enough to allow for some heavy marketing from Jeep.

As you may very well have heard already, General Dwight Eisenhower once said that “The Jeep, the Dakota, and the Landing Craft were the three tools that won the war.” And to have your car brand associated with the free world's victory on such an historic scale is a wonderful thing.

So take a look back at the past 75 years of vehicles called "Jeep."

SEE ALSO: Here are all the Ford Mustangs you can buy today

The 2016 Jeep 75th anniversary lineup. Jeep is definitely a company with a certain personality.



The 75th anniversary editions will heavily tout a relationship with the Willys MB.



We must start, of course, with the Wrangler: Jeep's flagship model. This is the "Willys Wheeler" edition. Yes, it does come with doors, but owners who never once remove them can be accused of missing the point.



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Everything you may have missed from the first 'Harry Potter' prequel trailer

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fantastic beasts trailer

Warner Bros. released the first teaser trailer for next year's "Harry Potter" prequel movie a few months ago. Then we found out we're getting a new "Harry Potter" story this summer.

There's a lot to be excited about. And while you're waiting, maybe it's time to take a look back at the trailer for the prequel to see what you may have missed. Even though it didn’t reveal too much new information, it did give us a better glimpse into the wizarding world of the United States.

Set in New York City in 1926, “Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them” will follow magizoologist Newt Scamander (Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne) as he tries to recover the magical creatures who escaped from his briefcase.

The situation is complicated, however, since a group of non-magical people who call themselves the Second Salemers are hunting down wizards in an effort to put an end to magic.

Keep scrolling to see what we spotted in the new footage.

The trailer starts with a mysterious voice whispering, “Lumos Maxima.” It’s a spell to light the tip of your wand.



Next we see the witch Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) entering the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA).



MACUSA looks awesome. Also is it just us or do these wizards look much more diverse than the Ministry of Magic crew?



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7 secrets to getting money for college, from someone who scored over $500,000

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Kristina Ellis, author of "Confessions of a Scholarship Winner," received over $500,000 in scholarship money for higher education. 

"I'm living proof that scholarships aren't for the supersmart or ultratalented, and that your current situation doesn't have to determine your final destination," writes Ellis, who lost her father to cancer at age seven.

After his death, her mother, a Venezuelan immigrant living in Indiana, took on low-paying jobs to make ends meet. Still, the family dipped below the poverty line, and after her first day of high school, Ellis' mother told her she would have to be financially independent after high school.

"You are not meant to live in poverty your whole life, and I know that if you work hard, you can go to a great college and start fresh," her mother told her. "The choices you make right now will impact you for the rest of your life."

By the end of high school, Ellis was awarded over half a million dollars in grants and scholarships, including the US Presidential Scholarship, the Gates Millennium Scholarship, and the Coca-Cola Scholarship, which paid for her undergraduate degree at Vanderbilt University and master's degree at Belmont University.   

Here are seven of the tips Ellis outlines in her book, to secure money for undergraduate and graduate school.

SEE ALSO: The 11 smartest things to do with your money in your 20s

1. Start planning to pursue scholarships as soon as you know you're going to college. 

According to Ellis, it's never too early to start planning for college. Being aware of your responsibilities and requirements is already a step towards your scholarships. It is important to know which programs or organizations you need to join to receive certain scholarships. 

Ellis became a US Presidential Scholar, which awards scholarships to students who not only scored well on their SAT or ACT exams, but who also have talent in visual, creative, or performing arts. They also have to participate in the National Young Arts program

Start now: Research available scholarships and their requirements. Create a strategic plan to follow throughout your high school years that will keep you from missing out on the courses, leadership experiences, and volunteer opportunities that could help you stand out for major scholarships.



2. Get involved in extracurriculars and your community. 

Scholarships aren't always for those with high GPA or high test scores. Sometimes they're for someone who is involved in their community through volunteer work, employment, sports, or taking on leadership roles.

"I had always thought of a scholarship winner as someone who was supersmart and got perfect grades," Ellis, who ranked 32 in a class of 182, writes. "As a student with only decent grades and average test scores, I had assumed that scholarships weren't for me." However, she writes, she soon realized she "could appeal to scholarship committees outside of academics and still have a chance of standing out. So I set out to find activities I could excel in."

She became involved in Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Varsity Women's Club, peer tutoring, Business Professionals of America, and show choir. She logged over 1,000 hours of community service by graduation.

Start now: Find opportunities in your community where you can volunteer your time. Great places to start are a local library, senior center, or hospital. You can also look into local sports teams or sports at your school. Interested in music? Join a school band or a choir. 



3. Apply for financial aid even if you don't think you qualify. 

Many students don't usually apply for financial aid because they believe their family makes too much money to qualify for assistance, when in fact, families with more than $150,000 in annual income can quality for financial assistance, writes Ellis. 

Even if you don't always get "free" money, you may still qualify for low-interest loans.

Start now: FAFSA, the Free Application for Student Aid, is the go-to for financial aid information and needs. It is provided by the US Department of Education to help prospective students get aid and loan assistant based on their needs. To get the full benefits of the aid, you must update your FAFSA at the beginning of every school year and file it by March. 



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12 weekend bags that double as work bags

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998ba175edbce31f0cb0ae1171869af6Next week is a busy one for travel — three-day weekends have a way of encouraging wanderlust. If you're one of the many jetting off to the Caribbean for the occasion, or scheduling a ski weekend in Stowe, good for you. Even though it's not much time away from the rigors of work, you're making the most of it. 

As far as packing for short jaunts like these, you probably won't need too much; a slighter larger bag than your briefcase should do the job just fine. Think duffels.

There are plenty of options you can bring with you to work — in lieu whatever bag you normally use — so you can head straight to the train or airport afterward. When you're not traveling, you can also use them for stowing your gym gear in, along with your laptop, so you never end up carrying around two bags instead of one. Don't make your commute needlessly cumbersome; check out 12 easy fixes, in a range of prices, below.

 

SEE ALSO: 25 sneakers you can wear at the office

READ THIS: Guys, this styling product is the easiest way to get your hair to cooperate

DON'T MISS: 17 perfect Valentine's Day gifts for stylish guys

Bosca

Bosca Excursion Chestnut Duffel Bag, $450.



Herschel Supply Co.

Herschel Supply Co. Bowen Duffel Bag, $89.99.



Ernest Alexander

Ernest Alexander Smith Flight Bag, $395.

 



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