A slice of Lebanon has come stateside, and it seems as though it's here for the long run.

Semsom, a Lebanese fast-casual chain with about a dozen locations in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, is planning to open two more locations in New York City, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Lebanese entrepreneur Christine Sfeir — who in 1998 opened Lebanon's first Dunkin Donuts franchise at age 22 and has grown it to a 30-store operation — started Semsom in 2008.

By 2011, the first franchise opened in Saudi Arabia, and Semsom quickly became the fastest-growing company in Lebanon. 

With an ambitious expansion goal by 2020, Semsom is poised to make waves in the fast-casual marketplace.

I decided to see for myself if Semsom has what it takes to tackle America's toughest restaurant market: New York City.

SEE ALSO: I tried egg breakfast sandwiches from Burger King, McDonald's, and Wendy's — here's who does it best

Semsom's first US location — two more are due this spring — is a colorful spot on the corner of Astor Place and Broadway. It opened in May 2015, and has been busy ever since.

Source: Wall Street Journal

I walked in around prime lunchtime, and it was pretty packed — but the line seemed to be moving quickly.

The space is small, but well organized with plenty of seating. The decor is bright and clean, with lots of purple and blue touches.

It's good to be Stephen Curry.

On Tuesday, Curry was named MVP of the 2015-16 NBA season, becoming the first player in history to win the award unanimously.

But the back-to-back MVP hasn't just claimed the title of best basketball player in the world, he's become a force off the court, too.

From becoming the face of Under Armour and numerous other endorsements to his friendship with Cam Newton and his increasing profile as a celebrity, Curry has it made.

Here's a look at his marvelous life:

Nobody in the NBA is enjoying the same level of success as Curry. He's won back-to-back MVPs and the 2014-15 championship, led the league in scoring this year, and helped lead the Warriors to an NBA record 73 wins in the regular season.

Curry is, surprisingly, underpaid. He signed a four-year, $44 million contract extension in 2012 and now makes $12 million per year. He could potentially triple that when he becomes a free agent in 2017.

Curry's deal with Under Armour is also a bit of a steal for the company. It lured him from Nike with a deal reportedly worth about $4.5 million per year. In 2015, it extended his deal to 2024, and he now has an ownership stake in the business.

Source: Money Nation

Good managers are difficult to find in the corporate woodwork. Finding someone who possesses all of the qualities of a good manager is even more difficult.

You’ve seen them — the supervisors who have an infectious love for the organization and the ability to make decisions with empathy and knowledge.

It often seems as though organizations have trouble finding these managers because there are few and far between, but we don’t have that problem at my marketing agency, Red Branch Media.

It’s not because we have a huge hiring budget or because we invest in pricey training programs (neither of which are bad things). It’s because we know which qualities will make great managers and which qualities can spell disaster in a leadership position. Here are the ones we look for in our key players. 

1. They love the company culture

Good managers are great leaders and high achievers, but the best managers? They like unique qualities about the company that might turn others off. They become invested in not only the company but the culture therein.

Chris Edmonds, CEO of The Purposeful Culture Group, said: “Most managers invest far greater time and energy on their team or company’s products and services than they do in their work culture — yet culture drives everything that happens in their organization, good or bad.”

Our best managers take this to heart. They are constantly talking about what they can do to make the company better and how it compares (favorably) to other jobs. Even when they don’t love their duties, they love the culture.

2. They’re positively contagious

A positive attitude can go a long way. Managers who have a good attitude during the workday don’t complain about projects that need to get done.

They look for solutions to finish them before the deadline. According to Gallup, 51% of managers have mentally checked out from their job and their company. 

We have one manager who is so excited about her job and inspiring greatness in her coworkers, we have to tell her to stop working. Her drive to be better affects everyone around her.

3. They can sustain focus

The key to overall success? Prioritization and the ability to focus for an extended period of time. Specifically, they can manage multiple projects at once to make sure everything gets done on time and completed to client (or company) specifications. 

Bhavin Parikh, CEO and founder of Magoosh Inc., said: “Lack of focus is the reason many small companies fail. The best managers solve that problem through ruthless prioritization. They identify the three most impactful projects from a list of ten and focus their team on those three. They help keep their employees’ proverbial plates just the right amount of full.”

We have a “Brancher” who has built his entire job around delegating tasks to the team and ensuring that everything is completed on time. He does this by meeting with his team when he needs to and then putting his head down to get the work done.

Graduating from college and entering the job market is an exciting time – you’ll be given opportunities that you hadn’t had previously, like moving to a new city and figuring out how many times you can eat cereal for dinner in one month.

So what do the 1.85 million students projected to earn a bachelor’s degree in 2016 have waiting for them when they walk across that stage and into post-grad life?

We crunched the numbers to see what the median monthly rent for a 1-bedroom apartment across America is compared to the median entry-level salary in those cities (pulled from indeed.com) and (survey says!) there’s going to be a lot of cereal-for-dinner nights for many of our 2016 graduates.

SEE ALSO: How much money it takes to live comfortably in the 50 biggest US cities

Atlanta

On the lower end of the rent-to-salary spectrum, newbies in A-town can expect to spend about 36% of their $49,000/year entry-level salary on rent. Home to seven Fortune 100 companies (including The Coca-Cola Company, Home Depot, United Parcel Service, and AT&T Mobility),

Atlanta has seen job postings decline by only 3% over the last year, compared to a national decline of 32%. The city’s most dominant job market lies with the trade, transportation and utilities sector, which employs 530,000 people.

Check out listings in Atlanta.

Austin

There’s nothing weird about paying rent in Austin. The city has one of the best median rent costs in comparison to its entry-level salaries. Like its Georgia cousin, Austin residents entering the job market can expect to pay around 36% of their pre-tax salary on rent.

Ranked by WalletHub as the third best city to find a job in 2016, college grads can expect to find many job opportunities in the management, business and finance sectors, as well as in Austin’s growing tech market.

Check out listings in Austin.

Boston

With a $49,000/year entry-level salary, fresh-out-of-college Boston job seekers will be looking at 1-bedroom apartments costing around $2,300/month – 56% of their salary.

Over the last year, Boston job postings have declined 20%, not ideal but still better than the 32% decline of job postings nationally. The city’s economy is significantly powered by its colleges and universities, which contribute $4.8 billion annually, and attract 350,000 students per year.

Check out listings in Boston.

Tesla stunned the world in March when it introduced its Model 3 electric car, the company's first affordable vehicle that will go into production later next year.

The Model 3 is a beautiful car. Tesla's designers and engineers clearly put a lot of thought into how the car looks and operates. It's the best looking affordable electric car we've seen yet — hopefully the first of many.

Motor Trend recently got a chance to see the new Model 3 up close and shared its experiences on YouTube. Seeing this car in a new light, and understanding some of the thought that went into its design choices, makes me appreciate this car even more.

Here are 15 of my favorite features in Tesla's Model 3.

The first feature should make anyone excited: Tesla's Model 3 starts $35,000, and that's before federal tax exemptions.

It can go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just six seconds.

The Model 3 has a starting range of 215 miles.

Cities aren't static.

They're shaped by the people that live there. 

Whether or not you call it vandalism, places like New York, São Paulo, and Berlin are transformed by the artists that turn bare walls into art.

New York has its share of major murals ...

... like this Eduardo Kobra sighted from the High Line public walkway.

The city has also has plenty of culture-jamming defacing of advertisements.

It's that time of year again — when our fridges fill up with enough graduation announcements, baby-shower invitations and save-the-date magnets to book every other weekend through Thanksgiving.

And that's not even counting your everyday commitments: dinners out with friends after work, birthday parties and the occasional weekend getaways.

While it's tempting to RSVP "yes" to everything — particularly that bachelor party in Cabo — the truth is, your budget probably isn't big enough to accommodate thousands of dollars worth of social blowouts.

Well, not if you want to avoid credit card debt, stay on track with your student loan payments and hit your emergency savings goal anyway.

Shouldn't there be a way to balance both priorities: having fun while being financially responsible?

"It's totally normal for there to be competition among your values," says financial therapist Amanda Clayman. "A little tension between them isn't necessarily a bad thing; it can mean we're being efficient in how we direct our resources toward the things that are important to us."

The good news is there is a way to enjoy the best of both worlds: by turning your social network into a support system that helps you achieve your goals. Telling your friends about your priorities — to save more or pay off debt, for example — fosters increased accountability and gives you something to celebrate, and people to celebrate with, once you reach the finish line.

"To enlist allies…ask your friend if they have a goal they could use your support on," Clayman suggests. "Even if it's not financial, if you're ‘goal buddies,' you add a positive dimension to your friendship, and you can be specific about how you both want to be supported, too."

Of course, just because your buddies are behind you doesn't mean you'll suddenly be able to afford every (full-priced) event you're invited to. So try these 15 ways to enjoy a social life — without sacrificing your savings.

SEE ALSO: 13 strategies to save a fortune, from real people who retired before 40

1. Dig for deals

Check out coupon sites like Groupon and Goldstar for double-digit discounts on everything from restaurants and group fitness classes to concerts and sports games.

2. Look for specials

Whether it's two-for-one drinks and an appetizer during happy hour, a late-night menu or ladies night, chances are there's a special somewhere. Apps like Happy Hours, DrinkOwl and Loople can help you find them.

3. Negotiate a group rate

If your friends are planning a big affair — say, a dinner cruise, bowling party or a night at the theater — volunteer to help them plan it. This gives you a chance to shop around — by researching multi-pack discounts or calling up the business or ticketing offices — and negotiate cheaper group rates on behalf of everyone's wallets, including yours.

4. Find the freebies

Beyond park picnics and library dates, check your city's event calendar to learn what other activities you can enjoy for free, like outdoor concerts, movie screenings and yoga classes at lululemon stores. And make sure to look for "free days" at your local zoo (Wednesdays at the Bronx Zoo, for example) and museums.

5. Play host 

The more responsibility you take on for coordinating the social calendar, the more you can propose budget-friendly events like potluck dinners, book clubs and game nights.

6. Bunk up and crash

Whether it's a destination wedding or a Memorial Day weekend beach trip, don't obsess over checking into your own hotel room. Instead, shack up with a friend who's willing to split the bill. Considering hotels cost an average of $124 per night, your pal will probably be happy to share the expense. 

7. Volunteer

There's nothing quite like serving a common cause to get your endorphins flowing. Spend time with loved ones while doing good for others to experience an ultra high that doesn't cost a thing.

8. DIY

 It could be a night of DIY tacos and margarita-making or mani-pedis — either way, you're getting social without racking up much of a bill. Just remember to designate who's responsible for bringing which supplies.

9. Use your network

Get cool insider perks through your job, like free swag, movie or sports tickets or discount clothing? Be generous in sharing them, and you'll be more likely to benefit from the generosity of your friends' insider connections in return. 

The US is one of the worst countries for parental leave — and it's especially bad for new dads.

Simon Isaacs, cofounder of Fatherly, an online parenting resource for men, says very few US employers provide paid paternity leave today.

"This means a lot of new dads are not able to take time to bond with their babies and be at home with their families," he told Business Insider.

The good news is that the conversation around paternity leave is louder than ever, he said. "We are seeing companies realize the importance of offering longer paid leave options to their workforce."

For a second time, Fatherly decided to find the companies leading the race and spotlight those organizations for its annual list of the Best Places To Work For New Dads. 

To compile the list, Fatherly looked at things like paternity leave policies, flexible hours, and telecommuting options. (Read more on the methodology here.) 

"These employers are showing that offering new dads more paid time off can be a real competitive advantage — particularly as it relates to recruiting and retaining top talent," Isaacs said.

He added that paternity leave — which is not "time off"— is important for a number of reasons. "There is an increasing body of evidence behind the importance of father-child bonding beginning in the first few weeks," Isaacssaid. "With more couples than ever sharing responsibilities at home, paternity leave is also important to support your wife or spouse."

Netflix — which began offering "unlimited" maternity and paternity leave to its employees last year — leads Fatherly's list for 2016. In August, the media giant announced that new moms and dads could take unlimited time off to be with their newborns during the child's first year after birth.

Below are the top 20 companies on Fatherly's list of the best companies for new dads. To see the complete list of all 50 employers, click here.

SEE ALSO: 'I was exhausted' and 'freaking out in my head' — inside one dad's paternity leave and transition back to work

20. Yahoo

Headquarters: Sunnyvale, California

Number of employees: 9,000

Paid paternity leave: 8 weeks

Industry: Media

2015 Rank: 13

Read more about Yahoo here.

19. Bain & Company

Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts 

Number of employees: 7,000

Paid paternity leave: 8 weeks

Industry: Management Consulting

2015 Rank: New entry

Read more about Bain & Company here.

18. PayPal

Headquarters: San Jose, California

Number of employees: 13,000

Paid paternity leave: 8 weeks

Industry: Finance

2015 Rank: New entry

Read more about PayPal here.

When brothers Kelly and Chris Edwards bought their first house in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 2002, they didn't know much about real estate investing.

The twins, who were in their late 20s at the time, had both been working in commercial banking and noticed a trend among the tax returns they analyzed: The people with the highest net worth owned real estate.

Looking at one portfolio in particular, Chris remembers seeing that the client owned a handful of single family properties. "There was a house for sale two doors down from the one he owned," Chris remembers. "We were like, 'We might not be the smartest guys in the world, but we can figure it out.'"

After getting the client's opinion on the sale, the brothers bought the house for $88,000 and started renovating it, doing much of the work themselves. In the next two years, they bought another four or five properties, getting to know contractors and developing a system along the way.

Today, The Edwards Companies owns nearly $8 million in assets, and works with private investors through its investing arm, Edwards Capital Partners.

"I remember one night, at probably 1 a.m., our buddy came by the house after leaving the bars," Chris says of their early days. "Kelly and I were painting. He was in banking, and we were the guys people were scratching their heads about and thinking we looked like the dumbest guys in the room. Now, we look like the smartest guys in the room. It's amazing what 10 years of good hard work will do."

Here, over a decade later, they've shared nine of their best tips for people who want to get into real estate investing.

SEE ALSO: A 24-year-old college dropout explains how he went from $10,000 in savings to $4 million in real estate

Recognize that your investments are a business, and plan for it.

"If you're going to get into real estate, whether you like or not, it's going to be a business," Kelly explains. "If you buy even one property, it will take up part of your life, so you have to take it seriously and plan for the future."

In 2001, before buying their first place, the brothers decided that despite the fact that they didn't know much about the industry, they'd make a plan of action for the next few years, Kelly says. "We sat down with a spreadsheet and planned out the number of properties we wanted to buy in the timeframe. It was funny: Five or six years later, Chris found a printout of the spreadsheet in a real estate book in his office he'd been reading, and we were almost on the exact number of the properties we had planned to buy."

Find someone who knows more than you do.

When the brothers first started investing, they went to a local meeting in Raleigh to meet, and hopefully speak to, a local residential real estate investor who now owns over 2,000 units in the area. They invited him to dinner, and he accepted.

"Ultimately we went to work for him for two years and saw everything there is to know for what our area of real estate, from fires to new construction to tear downs," Chris says. "One of our favorite books is 'Rich Dad Poor Dad,' and he's that guy to us: the rich dad, if you will. If there's a problem, we still call him. That definitely has been the most important thing contributing to our success."

Invest for cash flow.

Before anything else, the Edwardses make sure the numbers work out.

"No matter what you read on the internet, our mentor told us one thing: Buy where the numbers work," Kelly explains. "You buy property for cash flow, not speculating 'This will appreciate 6% over the next 10 years.'"

When the market tanked in 2008, the brothers' friends from banking would come by, asking if they were OK. "We told them as long as our cash flow is working, we could care less what the market is doing," Kelly says. "Over the long, long term we'll see that appreciation. If you're flipping homes, that's great, but to be a property manager you have to buy where the numbers work."

Over a period of six months, photographer Bence Bakonyi ventured from his home in Hungary and traveled throughout China by himself, documenting the cities and landscapes he saw along the way.

While China's population exceeds 1 billion, you would never guess that just by looking at Bakonyi's photos. Since the ever-present launguage barrier made him aim his camera at the environment instead of the people, the resulting images are hauntingly stark and empty.

"I didn't speak Chinese, so I wanted to show China without people," he told Business Insider. 

China has a fast-growing population, so making the country look completely empty might seem like an impossible task. Yet Bakonyi managed to do just that, even without the use of Photoshop or image manipulation. 

SEE ALSO: 13 before-and-after photos that show how drastically China's cities have grown over the last century

Bakonyi started his journey in Shanghai, then embarked on a 300-mile train ride west to Mount Huangshan. He continued west throughout his trip.

"I tried to find my home in a world completely unknown to me," Bakonyi wrote on his web site. "And because home is where one can find himself, the photographs can also be seen as self-portraits projected onto China."

His photos are a type of self portrait, or a symbol of the isolation he felt while he was there.

Saving is a critical component of growing your wealth.

That being said, you can't neglect earning, which is what the wealthiest, most successful people choose to focus on.

"The masses are so focused on clipping coupons and living frugally they miss major opportunities," self-made millionaire Steve Siebold writes. "The wealthy also know saving is important. But they know earning money is even more important."

Here, we've rounded up 11 strategies to increase your earnings, from the self-made millionaires who have already done it.

SEE ALSO: 9 things to do in your 20s to become a millionaire by 30

Develop multiple streams of income

In author Thomas C. Corley's five-year study of self-made millionaires he found that many of them develop multiple streams of income: 65% had three streams, 45% had four streams, and 29% had five or more streams.

These additional streams include real-estate rentals, stock market investments, and part-ownership in a side business.

"Three streams of income seems to be the magic number for the self-made millionaires in my Rich Habits study, but the more income streams you can create in life, the more secure will your financial house be,"he writes.

Put your money to work

"The only reason to save money is to invest it,"writes Grant Cardone, who went from broke and in debt at 21 to self-made millionaire by 30. "Put your saved money into secured, sacred (untouchable) accounts. Never use these accounts for anything, not even an emergency."

While always subject to a degree of risk, investing is one of the most effective ways to earn more money. As Ramit Sethi writes in his bestseller, "I Will Teach You to Be Rich,""on average, millionaires invest 20% of their household income each year. Their wealth isn't measured by the amount they make each year, but by how they've saved and invested over time."

Don't worry if you can't afford to finance a great idea

The wealthiest people focus on coming up with innovative ideas first— then, they aren't afraid to fund their future from other people's pockets, Siebold writes in his book, "How Rich People Think." "The wealthy know money is always available because rich people are always looking for great investments and superior performers to make those investments profitable."

You don't have to have money to make money, he stresses: "The truth is you have to have great ideas that solve problems to make money. ... Creative ideas are the scarce resource, but most people are so focused on where the money is coming from, that they ignore their ideas, yet the ideas are the only thing that will actually attract the money in the first place!"

You hired a great team of people, but now they're dropping like flies.

One by one they are giving their two weeks' notice, and you don't know how to stop it.

The days of lifetime employment at a single company are long gone, but there are still a few things you can do to improve retention.

San Francisco-based HR firm Achievers came up with 10 of the most common ways managers alienate their employees — and how you can avoid them.

Below, we've featured Achievers' presentation "How to Lose an Employee in 10 Days," with their permission.

SEE ALSO: Google HR boss explains the only 2 ways to keep your best people from quitting

Each year has a distinct sound of the summer that, whether you like it or not, overwhelms everything else.

It's still early, but Drake's "One Dance," off of his new album, "Views," is currently battling it out on the Billboard Hot 100, while other new contenders, from Zayn Malik to Justin Timberlake, are vying to take the 2016 song of the summer slot and get blasted in football stadiums and supermarkets across the land in the coming months.

We compiled the biggest song of each summer since 1985, based on Billboard's data for chart performance during those months.

One interesting takeaway: Mariah Carey and Katy Perry are the only two artists to take over summer more than once, at least as lead artists — Jay Z is featured on two of the hits. And there are plenty of oddities, including last year's reggae/house smash "Cheerleader."

Listen back to all the songs of summer below:

1985: Tears for Fears - "Shout"

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1986: Madonna - "Papa Don't Preach"

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1987: Heart - "Alone"

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McDonald's is testing a new recipe for its chicken McNuggets.

The recipe strips the nuggets of artificial preservatives and contains more recognizable ingredients like lemon juice solids and rice starch.

The chain is changing the nuggets so "parents can feel good" about feeding them to their kids, McDonald's spokeswoman Becca Hary said.

"More than ever, customers care about where their food comes from and how it is prepared," she said.

The recipe may be changing, but the preparation and cooking process for the nuggets will stay the same.

McDonald's Canada made a video depicting this process from inside a Cargill factory that makes and freezes the nuggets before sending them to McDonald's restaurants for consumption.

Here's how the nuggets are made, according to the video.

Here's a photo of so-called "pink goop" that often gets associated with McNuggets. "We don't know what it is or where it came from, but it has nothing to do with our Chicken McNuggets," says Nicoletta Stefou, the supply chain manager at McDonald's Canada.

The process of making McNuggets starts in the "deboning department" with whole chickens.

"First, we separate all of the chicken cuts and set aside the chicken breast meat for the Chicken McNuggets," says Jen Rabideau, a product development scientist for Cargill Limited.

5 p.m. rolls around, but it’s not quitting time. You’ll be lucky if you get out by 6 p.m., 6:30 p.m. at the earliest.

When 8 p.m. rolls around, you slam your head against the keyboard because you’re still not done.

Sound familiar?

It’s no shocker that Americans are overworked. 53% claim to be overworked and approaching the burnt-out phase (if they’re not already there).

But what if you could do more work in less time, leaving more time for family, hobbies, and sleep?

It may sound too good to be true, but science disagrees.

Here are five study-backed methods to be more productive at work that are very realistic and doable.

SEE ALSO: A 26-year-old time-management strategy can help you become more productive and less stressed at work

1. Stop multitasking.

Roughly two-thirds of Americans have smartphones. While this has made communication far easier, it’s also resulted in a generation for which multitasking is a virtue. Many people believe that multitasking is the most efficient way to do things.

Science disagrees.

A recent study at Stanford found that not only is multitasking less productive than doing any given task individually, people who claim to be good at multitasking are actually the worst at it. (The study also showed that multitasking contributes to a lower IQ.)

What’s the solution? Intentionality. Rather than trying to do three things at once, focus on each one, give it the time it deserves, and you’ll find that you can get a whole lot more done.

Related: Multitasking Can Damage Your Brain and Career, Studies Say

2. Take a breather: meditate daily.

Just as multitasking lowers productivity and IQ, doing the exact opposite can actually increases productivity and IQ.

Meditation has been proven to enhance focus and improve memory. A study at the University of Kentucky found that meditating may actually restore synapses, which helps with not only memory, reasoning, and productivity, but the aging process itself.

Related: Russell Simmons: 3 Simple Ways Meditation Will Make You a Better Entrepreneur

3. Don’t allow work to take over your life

Did you know that the most productive people are those who don’t always focus on work?

Sounds counter-intuitive, right? Yet people who don’t compromise their work-life balance and their hobbies are actually more productive and successful than those who do.

This isn’t that surprising. Plenty of studies have shown that working too much leads to diminishing returns. Just like robots, even the biggest workaholics need to be recharged once in a while. That means setting aside some time for non-work-related pursuits.

For many, the way headphones sound is more important than the way they look. 

But others want their headphone designs to be as loud and/or obnoxious as the music they're listening to.

Check out this variety of gorgeous, bizarre, and sometimes utterly ugly headphone designs.

Let's start with the Sennheiser Surrounder. Technically, they're not headphones, but at least they're "body-mounted." The Surrounders were designed to offer surround sound for gaming.

Sources: stereolife.pl, reddit/veni_vidi_vale

Despite the fact that they cost $8,995, Dolce & Gabanna's "Napa Leather Rhinestone Headphones With Crown" were sold out the day after Rihanna posted a tweet with her wearing them.

Here's Rihanna's tweet:

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listening to ANTI 🎈 pic.twitter.com/AgqlhU0GEz

 You can check back on the Dolce & Gabbana website to see if they're back on sale.

Sennheiser's Orpheus headphones are attached to a base made with the same marble used by Michelangelo. Those glass vials sticking out are vacuum tubes, and some of the components contain silver, gold, chrome, and platinum. That'll be $55,000, please.

We had a listen of Sennheiser's Orpheus headphones at CES 2016:

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Every new car registered for highway use in America comes with headlights.

Some get LED headlights, some get high-intensity-discharge headlights, some get halogen headlights, and some get a mix of the three.

Each of these five cars can be equipped with stand-out headlight designs. Here's what makes each of them awesome.

The BMW i8's optional Laserlights are twice as strong as the headlights that come standard.

And in addition to that, the BMW Laserlights are also 30% more efficient than normal LED lights. 

Just know that these special headlights are a $6,300 option on top of the i8's $140,700 starting price.

The Audi R8 is another sports car that can come with super-bright laser headlights.

Similar to those on the BMW i8, the laser high-beams on the R8 boost the light's brightness range to nearly double those of the LED headlights.

These headlights were first used on Audi R18 E-Tron Quattro race cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France before they were brought to Audi road cars.

Unfortunately, like how it is with a bunch of other cool stuff, R8s sold in America can't be optioned with laser headlights.

I guess that's just how it goes. 

The Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe has Swarovski crystals in its headlights.

You can find 47 Swarovski crystals in each of the S-Class Coupe's two headlights. They're used for the daytime-running lights and for the turn signals.

Are they necessary? No. But when you're spending at least $121,550 on a car, you should expect the most crazy and outrageous things possible.

In this sense, Mercedes-Benz does not let down.

My girlfriend got me "Disney Infinity 3.0" for Christmas — specifically, the "Star Wars: Twilight of the Republic" starter pack for my Microsoft Xbox One console.

I fell in love with the game instantly. But today, Disney cancelled "Disney Infinity," even as it gets out of the video game publishing business entirely.

I am beyond heartbroken.

The way "Disney Infinity" works is both simple and amazing. Indeed, Disney once believed that"Disney Infinity" would be a billion-dollar business before too long.

You buy a plastic action figure for $14 and place it on the USB-connected "Infinity Base" that comes with the game's starter sets. Then you get to use that character in the game. Place Darth Vader on the base, and Darth Vader shall appear. 

It turned me into a total monster: I couldn't get enough of it, and I wanted to buy every new Infinity I could get my hands on. My collection rapidly expanded past a few "Star Wars" characters, and into Marvel Super Heroes and "Zootopia." It got messy.

But now it's gone. And I'm inconsolable. Here's why I loved Disney Infinity so darn much, and why I'm sad to see it go.

SEE ALSO: The only official 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' video game has one glaring omission

This is my modest collection of Disney Infinity figures — "modest," because there's somewhere around a hundred, total, from across the Disney, Pixar, Marvel Super Heroes, and "Star Wars" universes. I've mostly been collecting "Star Wars."

Each one costs about $14. But since I'm a smart shopper, I got most of mine for much cheaper. I've still absolutely spent too much, though.

This is the Disney Infinity base, where the magic happens. Plug it into your game console...

Marvel Studios has been accused of “white-washing” an iconic “Doctor Strange” character. Emma Stone was poorly received for being cast as an Asian American in “Aloha,” and Scarlett Johansson was recently criticized for her role in a remake of Japanese anime film “Ghost in the Shell.”

“Star Trek” actor George Takei has been especially vocal about white-washing in big-budget films. “Hollywood has been casting white actors in Asian roles for decades now, and we can’t keep pretending there isn’t something deeper at work here,” he recently wrote on Facebook.

Now William Yu, a 25-year-old digital strategist, has started #StarringJohnCho, a project imagining what big movies and blockbusters would look like if Asian-American actor John Cho had a starring role.

Keep reading to learn more about the project and see some of the posters in the series.

William Yu, a Korean-American digital strategist in NYC, is the man behind the website #StarringJohnCho.

The series of posters envision Cho as the leading man in a series of big blockbusters ranging from "Spectre" to "The Martian."

Yu made the site on Thursday and told Tech Insider he was inspired to start the project after seeing the lack of Asian-American actors in leading roles.

This post from LinkedIn Influencer Liz Ryan appeared originally on LinkedIn.

We have hit a strange period in the working world. We are waking up to the obvious fact that people go to work, and not machines.

We don't need to adopt machine scripts or to stop being human just because we are at work. Work is a human place, and we can celebrate that fact, rather than pretend that people operate the same way machines do.

One of the biggest differences between people and machines is that people deserve to be treated like people wherever they are.

We all know how to talk to people, how to be casual and friendly, how to tell jokes and how to be human. The problem is that lots of other people, including lots of people in management positions, are stuck in an outdated mindset. They think that at work, we have to be stiff and formal.

These fearful folks don't have the confidence to allow themselves to be human at work. They stick with the old-school business script, including the lame, tired script for a traditional job interview.

Some interviewers still read their questions from a typed list on a clipboard, a brutal experience for a job applicant with a pulse and a personality. This type of interviewer barely glances at you as s/he scribbles notes on your answers on a clipboard. That's no way to interview people! I have hired thousands of brilliant job-seekers and I've never used an interview script.

If I'm not qualified to sit down with someone and have a warm, human conversation with them, why would anyone allow me to interview job applicants and represent the company?

Interviewing job applicants is a mix of vetting and wooing. Anybody who can only vet without wooing should not be allowed near an interview room.

We don't send salespeople out into the field to talk to customers before they've learned how to have a conversation. We don't put customer service people on the phone if they can't make their way through a simple telephone give-and-take.

The only reason we treat job-seekers less carefully than we treat customers and prospective customers is that many employers still cling to the outdated notion that job applicants are a dime a dozen, and somehow less than human.

Even as employers wail about imaginary talent shortages, they still mistreat job-seekers in the hiring pipeline. They abuse job-seekers although doing so is bad HR, bad leadership, bad PR for the company and simply bad business.

The standard job interview playbook is fifty years old. It is useless and insulting to job-seekers, but it is still in wide use.

If you've been on a job interview lately you know that you have to be ready to answer stupid and demeaning interview questions. Here are sample answers to these ridiculous interview questions.

Pick the answer that feels right for you based on your mojo level on the day of your interview. If your mojo level isn't all that high, you can respond with our low-mojo answer. If you feel pretty good about yourself, try the medium-mojo-level answer and if you're feeling great, use our high-mojo reply!

SEE ALSO: 24 tricky job-interview questions the best companies in America are asking

DON'T MISS: The most common questions hiring managers ask during job interviews

Why should we hire you over the other applicants?

Why is this a stupid question? It's a stupid question because you will not meet the other applicants for the job, and have no way to compare yourself to them. Apart from that, you are just on your first interview.

You don't know a lot about what the job entails. Why should you be expected to sell yourself before you have any particular reason to want the job?

You've never worked for this company before. This is the kind of question that springs from the mindset "Prove your worth for this job!" That mindset comes from fear — fear of not being in control of the hiring equation.

Low-mojo answer: From what I've heard about the job so far, you're looking for someone to do (X) and (Y), which sounds a lot like what I did in my job at Acme Explosives.

Medium-mojo answer: If I've been understanding you, it seems as though the biggest short-term challenge for the person you hire into this job will be handling [X]. I have a pretty good feel for what you're up against, I think, and what you're trying to achieve. In fact, can I ask you a question about that?

High-mojo answer: That's a great question! I think that's what we are here to figure out today and of course, you've got the advantage over me since you'll meet or have met the other candidates for this job. Shall I tell you what I've heard you say so far that you're looking for? You can tell me if I'm in the ballpark.

What's your greatest weakness?

This is a stupid interview question because nowhere it is written or decreed that human beings have weaknesses.

Who says we have weaknesses? I don't think you have any weaknesses. There are plenty of things that any person doesn't do well, but so what?

That is not a weakness. I don't play golf well and I don't want to play golf, so how is my lack of golf-playing skills a weakness?

Low-mojo answer: I want to get better at business writing. I've written correspondence and reports but I'd like to learn to write a newsletter and marketing pieces.

Medium-mojo answer: I'm having a lot of fun learning html, but if you ask me what I don't do well, I'll say creative writing. I try to avoid creative writing whenever possible and get back to html coding as fast as I can!

High-mojo answer: I used to obsess about my weaknesses until it finally hit me that there will always be literally millions of things I don't do well. I need to focus on getting better at things I love to do and do well now, like creating executive dashboards! What about you?

What would your last manager say about you?

This is a stupid question because with this question the interviewer elevates any past boss of yours to the status of an adviser — someone whose opinion they value.

Your last boss is a complete stranger to your interviewer, but for some reason their opinion really counts!

That's an insult to you, if you think about it. Is there an International Society of Bosses now, such that your ex-boss's opinion carries lots of weight? What if your last boss were a creep who got fired from the job two weeks after the creep fired you? This is a very rude and presumptuous question.

Low-mojo answer: He would say I'm a hard worker and a great teammate.

Medium-mojo answer: My old boss would probably say that I was a good collaborator and that we challenged one another in a good way.

High-mojo answer: She'd say that we kept one another on our toes. What do the employees in your department say about you?

MORE FROM LIZ RYAN:

   • "That's It, I Quit!"— What's Your Exit Plan?
   • How To Answer the Question "Why Aren't You Working Now?"
   • If You're Stuck In A Toxic Workplace, Read This!