• Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company, turned to the Brazilian rainforest in the 1920s to construct a rubber plantation that would serve as his personal supply of the material.
• The town, dubbed Fordlandia, was more than an industrial operation — it was Ford's attempt to establish a picturesque American society.
• Here's how Fordlandia was founded before falling apart.

Deep inside Brazil's Amazon rainforest sit the dilapidated remains of what looks like an industrial town. One of the first things you'll see upon entering is a water tower with a faded Ford logo.

That's because almost a century ago, the founder of Ford Motor Company, Henry Ford, turned that space of land into not only a business operation but a social experiment of sorts.

Here's how Fordlandia, Ford's utopian city and industrial town, was founded — and how it fell apart.

SEE ALSO: Inside one of the oldest and most expensive mansions in Charleston, which is selling for $16 million and was once owned by Abraham Lincoln's granddaughter

If you've never heard of Fordlandia before, no worries — Google has. The search engine recognizes it easily, tucked away in the Brazilian town of Aveiro.

Source: Google Maps

It's technically still there — you can find the remnants of it on the banks of the Tapajos River in northern Brazil.

Source: BBC

It may not look like it nowadays, but decades ago the colony was Ford's bright and shiny idea for a new kind of industrial operation. And at first, it seemed promising.

Source: NPR

• President Donald Trump's attorney general nominee said this week that it would be a crime for the president to coach a witness to lie to investigators.
• William Barr's statements have taken on a new significance in light of reporting that Trump directed his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress when testifying before the House Intelligence Committee in 2017.
• The special counsel Robert Mueller reportedly learned about Trump's instruction to Cohen through "multiple witnesses," documents, internal emails, and text messages from members of the Trump Organization, then from Cohen, who is now cooperating with prosecutors.
• Mueller has already shown a willingness to charge individuals who were found to have misled congressional or FBI investigators.
• Barr's confirmation that coaching a witness to lie constitutes a crime could foreshadow mounting legal peril for the president.

William Barr, President Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general, testified this week that if the president tried to convince witnesses not to testify in an investigation or to suborn perjury, it would constitute obstruction of justice.

Barr's comments, made during an exchange with Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Lindsey Graham, have taken on a new significance following a bombshell report from BuzzFeed News released Thursday, which alleges that Trump instructed his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress about the now-defunct Trump Tower Moscow deal.

"If there was some reason to believe that the president tried to coach somebody not to testify, or to testify falsely, that could be obstruction of justice?" Graham asked Barr during his confirmation hearing Tuesday.

"Yes, under that — under an obstruction statute, yes," Barr replied.

"So if there's some evidence that the president tried to conceal evidence, that would be obstruction of justice, potentially?" Graham pressed.

"Right," Barr said.

The former attorney general sent a memo to the Justice Department and the White House, as well as lawyers representing other defendants in the ongoing Russia investigation, in which he said the special counsel Robert Mueller's obstruction-of-justice investigation was "legally insupportable."

Given Barr's broad and controversial view of executive power, his assertion that it would constitute obstruction if the president directed someone to lie to investigators is particularly noteworthy, and may foreshadow significant legal peril for Trump in light of BuzzFeed News' report.

The Trump Tower Moscow deal is a focus for Mueller and congressional investigators examining Russia's interference in the 2016 US election, and whether the Trump campaign secretly worked with Moscow to tilt the race in Trump's favor.

Cohen has admitted to lying to Congress about multiple aspects of the Trump Tower Moscow deal, including how long the Trump Organization pursued the deal, the extent of his communication with Russian government officials, and the involvement of multiple Trump family members in pushing the deal through.

Mueller reportedly learned about Trump's instruction to Cohen through "multiple witnesses," documents, internal emails, and text messages from members of the Trump Organization, then from Cohen himself — who is now cooperating with prosecutors.

Citing two law enforcement officials, BuzzFeed News reported that during the 2016 campaign Cohen had "at least 10 face-to-face meetings" with Trump about the Moscow deal, which Trump thought could bring in more than $300 million in profits for his company.

Cohen told Mueller that after Trump won the 2016 election, he instructed him to lie about when talks about that Moscow deal ended "in order to obscure Trump's involvement," the report said.

SEE ALSO: A bombshell report says Trump ordered Michael Cohen to lie to Congress about the Trump Tower Moscow deal

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• Having a cluttered desk or inappropriate items in your workspace could be making a bad impression on your colleagues or employers. 
• Here are 12 things on your work desk that are making you look unprofessional. 

Some people would argue that a messy desk is a sign of genius — and actual geniuses like Albert Einstein and Steve Jobs would seem to be among them.

Others, like the people who actually work with and beside you, might find your mess less than endearing.

And beyond clutter, items that are varying degrees of inappropriate and downright disgusting are among the biggest workplace offenders, according to the human resources professionals we interviewed.

Here are a dozen desk “don’ts” that make you look less than professional. 

SEE ALSO: 6 things you should always keep at your desk

1. An avalanche of dishes and food containers

Bringing your lunch to work is commendable. But leaving a week’s worth of crusted-over food containers and half of a mug collection in your workspace is atrocious.

“Keeping a lot of items you use for eating scattered all over your desk shows a lack of time management and a lack of respect for your coworkers and the shared office space,” said Jodi Barbarino, a director of HR and recruitment in Miami.

2. A swarm of sticky notes

In a 2017 survey conducted by the staffing firm OfficeTeam, more than half of the senior managers interviewed for it said that “having a messy or disorganized workspace” was the “most distracting or annoying” thing about employees’ work areas. And one of the easiest ways to create visual insanity is to accumulate so many sticky notes that you can barely see the surface of your desk anymore.

A better strategy: invest in a portable notebook and pen you love, so you’ll use them all the time to keep all your important reminders in one place.

3. Suggestive pictures or calendars

You wouldn’t need to decorate your cubicle with explicit images in order to be inappropriate in the eyes of your managers and colleagues. Barbarino said to second guess anything remotely sexy or suggestive.

“Even if they’re cartoon images, they can be very offensive, and if sexual in nature it could be treated as sexual harassment,” she said. Yes, that even includes pictures of yourself scantily clad, say, at the beach.

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

• Proper food storage helps you save money, stay healthy, and save space in your home.
• Of all the storage container sets we've tried, OXO's Good Grips 5-Piece Airtight POP Container Set is the best.
• The containers have an ingenious one-button design that makes it easy to pop the containers open and reseal them when you're done, so your food stays fresh.

Preparing your own meals is a great way to ensure the foods you and your family eat are tasty, healthy, and affordable, but if you want to enjoy a wide variety of home cooked cuisine, you need to stock your fridge, freezer, and pantry with plenty of eats. Almost invariably, the well-stocked kitchen is also one where lots of food is thrown away. According to a 2012 study conducted by the National Resources Defense Council, Americans toss out about $165 billion worth of edible good each year, which amounts to more than $2,000 in annual food waste for the average household in the United States.

In terms of physical volume, the NRDC report estimated that we're throwing away some 35 million tons of food each year, waste that largely putrefies in landfills and adds greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere on top of the economic costs. But before we get any more heavy-handed here, let's look at the bright side. While food waste is a major problem writ large, there's a pretty easy solution available to each and every household: better food storage systems.

With the right food storage containers, you'll be able to preserve foods for longer in the fridge or freezer, save space on shelves, in drawers, and in the pantry, and better plan out your meal prep, too. In our guide, you'll find food storage containers designed especially for fresh fruits and veggies (AKA produce) alongside containers designed to hold anything from soup to pasta to cookies.

We've got disposable options that are nonetheless microwave and freezer safe and we've got glass containers that are safe for use in those appliances as well as in the dishwasher and oven. With a few of these fine food storage systems added into your kitchen's lineup, your household will waste less food, experience less clutter, and you might just find a reduction in your grocery bill, too.

Here are the best food storage containers you can buy:

• Best food storage container set overall: OXO Good Grips 5-Piece Airtight POP Container Set
• Best food storage container set under $40: Equinox International Royal Storage Container Set
• Best glass storage containers: Jalousie Borosilicate Glass Food Container Set
• Best budget food storage containers: Rubbermaid Brilliance Food Storage Containers
• Best food storage containers for produce: OXO Good Grips GreenSaver Produce Keeper Set

Updated on 01/18/2019 by Malarie Gokey: Added the OXO POP containers as our top pick based on testing. Updated prices and formatting.

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks.

SEE ALSO: The best food storage containers you can buy

The best food storage container set overall

Why you'll love it: The OXO Good Grips 5-Piece Airtight POP Container Set keeps foods safe from air and other contaminants with a strong seal, durable plastic, and easy-to-use design.

When it comes to food storage containers, an air-tight seal is key. Some containers use multiple latches to lock air in, but it can be a pain to pry four or more open to gain access to whatever is inside the container. OXO's POP Container Set solves that problem with a single button that you push down on to open and close the containers.

The seal is completely airtight and the BPA-free plastic containers are sturdy. They are also stackable to help you make the most of your cupboard space. The rounded corners of the containers make it easy to pour out cereal, sugar, or whatever else is inside, too.

You get one 2.1-quart container, one 1.5-quart container, two 0.9-quart containers, and one 0.3-quart container in the five-piece set. OXO chose these sizes to accommodate common foods like cereal, flour, sugar, pasta, rice, coffee, and nuts, and the sizes work perfectly in most kitchens.

The pasta container makes storing linguine, spaghetti, and other long pasta a breeze. Typically, other containers aren't tall enough to accommodate long pasta, which defeats the purpose. The sugar container is excellent, too. I've tried dozens of containers and methods of preserving sugar without it clumping and drying out, and OXO's POP container is the first one that's worked. I store brown sugar in one and white sugar in another.

My favorite part about the containers is just how easy they are to reseal after use. Pressing one button makes it super simple and intuitive, which is great for people with children and those who have arthritis and struggle to open all the latches on other storage containers.

Buyers rate these storage containers just as highly as I do — 75% of reviews on Amazon are 5 stars — but if you do run into any problems with them, the OXO Better Guarantee means you can get a repair or replacement. — Malarie Gokey

Pros: Easy to use, air-tight seal, many sizes, sturdy, stackable

Cons: Pricey

Buy OXO Good Grips 5-Piece Airtight POP Container Set on Amazon for $49.95

The best stackable food storage container set

Why you'll love it: All the containers in the Equinox International Royal Storage Container Set occupy the exact same footprint, so fitting them into a drawer or on a shelf is easy.

There are a lot of food storage containers out there made with sturdy, clear plastic and with lids that form a secure, air-tight seal once in place. You probably have several of them in a kitchen cabinet or on a shelf right now, in fact. And if you're like most people, they are probably all of different sizes, each use different tops that are lost half the time anyway, and are basically impossible to stack or line up in an orderly fashion. Does all that sound accurate?

Enter the five-piece Equinox International Royal Storage Container Set. In this set, you will find one container that's tall enough for dry spaghetti, one medium-sized container perfect for crackers or cookies, two smaller ones that would serve well for sugar or storing leftover soup, and one little container good for berries, snacks on the go, or what have you.

All that's good, but here's what makes this system great: All of the containers are the exact same dimensions in width and depth, and all use the exact same lid. That means stacking or lining up these containers is mere child's play, and it means that one lost lid still means four containers that are ready to roll.

Granted, even the tall, slender shape of the larger containers is a bit limiting for some foods (you probably wouldn't use these to store leftover chicken wings or lasagna, for example), but the convenience of the matched sizing makes them perfect for most purposes.

With nearly 700 reviews posted on Amazon at the time of this writing, the Equinox International Royal Storage Container Set has a shining 4.7-star average rating. One satisfied buyer calls the containers "so easy to use" and ideal for getting "everything organized" in her pantry, while another speaks for many when she hails them as "truly air-tight."

A reviewer from Epicurious said the "containers are liquid friendly" and also found them reliably air-tight. And in the interest of disclosure, we use these containers in my house and we love them. My firsthand experience is what I'm more than comfortable recommending them.

Pros: Interchangeable lids, easy to stack or align, reliably air-tight lids

Cons: Narrow shape not ideal for some foods

Buy the Equinox International Royal Storage Container Set on Amazon $36

The best multi-purpose food storage system

Why you'll love it: The durable containers in the Jalousie Borosilicate Glass Food Container Set are safe for use in the microwave, dishwasher, oven, and in the freezer, so food storage, prep, and cleanup will be easier than ever.

If you're the kind of person who liked to plan ahead when it comes to meals, then you're the kind of person who should consider the Jalousie Borosilicate Glass Food Container Set. In one of these durable, convenient containers, you could store food in the fridge or freezer, then cook it in the oven or microwave, then clean the container out in the dishwasher when done. This set actually comes with 10 containers, two each in sizes ranging from a 35-ounce capacity down to a 12-ounce capacity.

Whether used for foods to be prepped and served at home or for meals you bring along to the office, park, or to a friend's house, these containers seal reliably, preventing spills at home and on the go. The lids feature a vent that makes them easier to open when hot foods have created a vacuum during cooling, a good example of a clever solution to a problem that might not be all that serious but that's often mildly frustrating, so hey, why not address it?

Most buyers love their Jalousie Borosilicate Glass Food Container Set, with a buyer named Steven saying he was "extremely happy" with these durable, versatile containers. A lady named Belinda appreciated how they could be used in the "freezer, microwave, and fridge" and freezer, and found the "various sizes to be very useful."

I do have to mention that a few people have reported lids that don't attach easily or fit properly, so watch out for the potential dud in your own set. At least there are 10 containers per order.

Pros: Safe for use in multiple appliances, BPA-free construction, varied container sizes

Cons: Occasional lid sealing issues

Buy the Jalousie Borosilicate Glass Food Container Set on Amazon for $36

• The Sacklers are one of the richest families in US.
• They're well-known for their philanthropic endeavors, but they also own Purdue Pharma, a pharmaceutical company that launched the drug OxyContin.
• Their estimated $14 billion fortune comes primarily from sales of the controversial prescription painkiller, according to Forbes.
• Some say Purdue Pharma's misleading marketing of OxyContin's risks is partly to blame for the US opioid crisis.

The Sacklers are one of the wealthiest families in the US, but you've likely never heard of them.

They might not have the name recognition of some of America's wealthiest families, such as the Waltons or the Rockefellers, but those who haven't heard the Sackler name have almost certainly heard of the source of their wealth:  OxyContin, the controversial prescription painkiller.

The Sackler family founded Purdue Pharma, which launched the drug in 1996. The original founding brothers, Raymond Sackler and Mortimer Sackler, died in 2010 and 2017 respectively. Their family still completely owns the company and shares an estimated $14 billion fortune, according to Forbes. But as The New York Times noted, the exact number is not known, as Purdue Pharma is a private company.

The Sacklers are not a tight-knit family. The Guardian described them in 2018 as "a sprawling and now feuding transatlantic dynasty." While some Sacklers serve as board members of Purdue Pharma, others, notably those descended from eldest brother Arthur M. Sackler, who died before OxyContin was invented, have distanced themselves from the company and condemned the OxyContin-based wealth, according to The Guardian.

But a 2018 investigation by The Atlantic found a court document that showed a nearly $20 million payment to Arthur M. Sackler's estate in 1997 from the Purdue family of companies, suggesting his descendants did benefit in some way from OxyContin.

In an email to Business Insider, Janet Wootten, a spokesperson for Jillian Sackler, widow of the late Arthur M. Sackler, denied that Jillian, Arthur, or their heirs have financially profited from the sale of OxyContin.

In a 2017 New Yorker article about the Sacklers titled "The Family That Built an Empire of Pain," Patrick Radden Keefe noted the Sacklers are actually more well-known for their philanthropy.

At Yale University, there's a Raymond and Beverly Sackler Institute for Biological, Physical and Engineering Sciences and a Richard Sackler and Jonathan Sackler Professorship of Internal Medicine. A $3.5 million endowment to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City earned them the Sackler Wing. There's a Sackler Gallery at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.

Here's a look at the secretive and controversial family.

SEE ALSO: Meet the Ambanis, the richest family in Asia, who live in a $1 billion skyscraper and mingle with royals, politicians, and Bollywood stars

The Sackler family is one of the richest families in the US. In 2016, Forbes estimated their net worth at a "conservative" $14 billion, beating out famously wealthy families such as the Mellons and the Rockefellers. They own Purdue Pharma, a pharmaceutical company based in Connecticut.

Source: Forbes

The vast majority of the Sackler fortune comes from a well-known prescription painkiller that Purdue Pharma launched in 1996: OxyContin. By 2001, sales of the drug made up approximately 80% of Purdue Pharma's revenue.

Source: The New York Times

OxyContin is seen as partly to blame for the opioid crisis sweeping the US. More than 130 people in the US die each day after overdosing on opioids, including prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.

Source: The Guardian, National Institute of Drug Abuse

• This week brought some major developments on multiple fronts in the Russia investigation.
• BuzzFeed News came out with a huge story alleging that President Donald Trump instructed his lawyer to lie to Congress. The story prompted several Democratic lawmakers in the House to call for Trump's impeachment.
• Trump's attorney general nominee, William Barr, also faced the Senate Judiciary Committee for a high-stakes confirmation hearing. Barr made a significant effort to assuage Democrats' concerns about his independence from the White House, but some lawmakers are still wary.
• Trump's lead defense lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, shifted the goalposts on possible Trump-Russia collusion in a big way, saying he represents the president and not the campaign. He later tacked on a telling caveat: "If the collusion happened, it happened a long time ago."
• Meanwhile, a new court filing from the special counsel Robert Mueller indicates that prosecutors are keenly focused on a series of conversations between former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and a former Russian intelligence operative between August 2016 and March 2018.

It was another roller coaster of a week in Russia news. The president's lawyer changed his story (again), William Barr faced the Senate Judiciary Committee ahead of a final confirmation vote to become attorney general, and BuzzFeed News came out with a new report that could change the entire landscape of the Russia probe.

Here are all the biggest headlines in Russia news this week:

BuzzFeed's bombshell: Trump directed Michael Cohen to lie to Congress

BuzzFeed News dropped a huge story late Thursday which cited law enforcement officials as saying that President Donald Trump directed his former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress about the now-defunct Trump Tower Moscow project.

The special counsel Robert Mueller reportedly learned about Trump's instruction to Cohen through "multiple witnesses," documents, internal emails, and text messages from members of the Trump Organization, then from Cohen, who is now cooperating with prosecutors.

Some Democratic lawmakers are calling for Trump's impeachment in light of the report. Meanwhile, the chairmen of the House intelligence and judiciary committees — both of which are conducting their own Russia investigations — vowed to look into the report's claims.

Mueller has already shown a willingness to charge individuals who were found to have misled congressional or FBI investigators. And Trump's attorney general pick, William Barr, said this week that it would constitute a crime for the president to coach a witness to lie to investigators.

Barr faced the Senate Judiciary Committee for a high-stakes confirmation hearing

Barr was in for a line of tough questioning from Democrats on the panel about a controversial memo he sent to the Justice Department and White House arguing that Mueller's obstruction investigation was "legally insupportable."

He also raised concerns among Democrats when he said that Mueller's report itself may not see the light of day; instead, he said, the public and Congress would likely get an attorney general's review, or a report that summarizes the attorney general's view of Mueller's findings.

But Barr sought to soothe Democrats' concerns about his independence from the White House, saying that he and Mueller are "good friends" and that he does not believe Mueller would be involved in a "witch hunt" against anyone, as Trump and his allies often claim. He said later on that it would be a crime for the president to pardon someone in exchange for their silence. And he also said it would be a crime for the president to coach witnesses not to testify, or to testify falsely, to investigators.

Giuliani shifted the goalposts on Trump-Russia collusion ... again

In a widely-watched CNN interview Wednesday, Rudy Giuliani left the door open to the possibility that people on the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 race in Trump's favor.

Giuliani's narrative has seen a remarkable shift over the last year.

Initially, Trump's allies said there were no contacts between anyone on the campaign and individuals associated with the Russian government. Then, as details spilled out about the myriad meetings and conversations between Trump associates and Russia-linked entities, Trump's backers acknowledged that there were contacts, but no collusion.

In July, Giuliani told Fox News that there was no collusion between "the top four or five people" on the campaign and Russians. The next month, Giuliani said that even if there was collusion, it wouldn't matter because collusion isn't a crime.

On Wednesday, Giuliani constrained his denial further, saying there was no collusion between the president and any Russia-linked individuals specifically related to Russia's hack of the Democratic National Committee.

Then, he tacked on another telling caveat: "If the collusion happened, it happened a long time ago."

Mueller dropped an intriguing hint about where the Russia probe is headed in a new court filing

The special counsel is still laser-focused on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who has been accused of lying to investigators in breach of his plea deal with Mueller's office.

This week, Mueller confirmed in a new court filing that he is keenly focused on Manafort's communications with the former Russian intelligence operative Konstantin Kilimnik. In particular, prosecutors signaled an interest in a series of conversations Manafort and Kilimnik had between August 2, 2016 and March 2018 about an undisclosed topic.

Both Manafort and Kilimnik have previously acknowledged that they met in person on August 2, 2016. Manafort said he and Kilimnik discussed the Trump campaign and the recent hack of the DNC. Kilimnik said they did not discuss the campaign but talked about "current news" and "unpaid bills."

Shortly after the August meeting, a private jet linked to Oleg Deripaska, a Russian-Ukrainian oligarch Manafort was indebted to, arrived in the US and was there for less than 24 hours.

SEE ALSO: Attorney general nominee William Barr's comments about obstruction take on a whole new meaning after a bombshell report claiming Trump ordered his lawyer to lie to Congress

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• The government shutdown is in its 28th day and there is no end in sight.
• The US Department of Agriculture will still send out Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, benefits for January and February despite the shutdown.
• The USDA's Child Nutrition Programs will also be funded into February, but it is unclear what will happen if the shutdown continues after that.
• Other food programs such as Commodity Supplemental Food Program and WIC will not receive federal funding during the shutdown, but may continue using state and local funds.

With no sign of ending anytime soon, the government shutdown is starting to take its toll on federal services and workers. But for recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, also known as food stamps, there is some good news — for now.

According to a plan released by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), SNAP benefits will be available during the start of the shutdown as previously appropriated funding is carried over to meet the needs of the program.

In the initial USDA release about the shutdown, the department said SNAP benefits for January would be available but there was no commitment for February. In a later announcement, the USDA said that the department will send money for February's benefits to states that administer the program.

Benefits for the month of February are being sent out this week, well ahead of the typical timing. Usually the funds would go out on or after February 1, but in order to ensure that the money is available the USDA told state agencies that administer the program that benefits had to be sent out by January 20.

USDA officials could not commit to providing SNAP benefits in March and it appears unlikely that the funds will be there if the shutdown were to run that long.

Given the fact that President Donald Trump threatened to shut the government down for "months or even years" during a meeting with congressional leaders on Friday, the uncertainty of SNAP benefits beyond February could become a problem for the millions of people who rely on the program.

Funding for the USDA's Child Nutrition Programs including "School Lunch, School Breakfast, Child and Adult Care Feeding, Summer Food Service and Special Milk" will also continue into mid-February, according to the USDA's plan, but it is also unclear what will happen after that point.

Read more:Here's what happens to Social Security and disability benefits during a government shutdown»

But while SNAP and the Child Nutrition Program are safe for now, other food programs under the USDA's purview are not as lucky.

Other non-SNAP domestic food programs are no longer receiving federal funding, but may be sustained through state and local funding. The programs that are no longer receiving USDA funds include the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, a program focusing on low income seniors; The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); and the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations.

95% the staff at the office of Food and Nutrition Services— which oversees SNAP benefits and other food programs — is now on furlough and no longer receiving pay.

Read more:The effects of the shutdown are only going to get exponentially worse as the fight drags on»

In addition to the food programs, other essential USDA duties including the inspection of eggs, dairy, and other food products will continue. Those services deemed non-essential, such as research or the staffing of some national forests, are discontinued.

The shutdown is now in its 28th day and there is no clear end in sight. Trump administration officials and congressional leaders met on Wednesday, but the meeting was short with no progress made.

SEE ALSO: From airport lines to food inspections, here are all the ways the government shutdown is impacting the lives of average Americans

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• Chief, a private network for aspiring or current women executives that focuses on mentorship, launched in NYC on Tuesday.
• There's currently a 3,000-person wait list, and membership ranges from $5,400 to $7,800 for VP levels and C-suite executives, respectively, according to a Fast Company article.
• It's the latest development in a string of women's clubs over the past few years, like The Wing in the US and AllBright in the UK.

The glass ceiling cracked a little more with the creation of Chief, a private network for aspiring or current female executives that launched on Tuesday.

"Modeled much like YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization), the male-dominated global organization for CEOs, it focuses on mentorship — pairing women with powerful contemporaries across a broad range of industries," wrote Rina Raphael for Fast Company. "It’s a multipronged approach that comes with a New York City 'clubhouse,' a digital network app, and monthly lectures."

Founded by Carolyn Childers and Lindsay Kaplan, both previously VP-level executives, Chief is their attempt to provide services to help solve the gender equality gap at work.

Read more: I toured an exclusive NYC club where freelancers, fashion influencers and entrepreneurs pay up to $1,250 a month to network in a stylish Tribeca building — and I didn't feel nearly cool enough to be there

Chief currently has 200 members, some of whom hold prestigious jobs at top companies like Walmart, HBO, Spotify, PepsiCo, and Hearst, Raphael reported. And there's already a 3,000-person wait list, with membership ranging from $5,400 to $7,800 for VP levels and C-suite executives, respectively, although many members are sponsored by their companies.

It's the price to pay for access to power players, applicants' top request. Members are organized into groups of eight to 10 women from a variety of industries but at the same career and experience level. Chief operates out of a swanky Tribeca clubhouse that has accents like tan leather armchairs and a bar that serves scotch, but unlike similar companies, it is not a coworking space.

"These women who are at the top are generally alone on an island," Kaplan told Raphael. "And mentorship doesn’t mean you need to find somebody a decade older than you to talk about your career with."

Building up women in the workplace

While Chief intends to include men in future services, it's just the latest in a worldwide string of efforts to build up women in the workplace.

The Wing, a coworking space and social club for women nationwide, launched in October 2016. As of March 2018, it had over 1,500 members, who pay $2,350 to $2,700 a year for membership, Business Insider previously reported. But The Wing is more than a coworking space — it also offers speaking events, community volunteer opportunities, movie screenings, and happy hours.

Read more:The exclusive no-men-allowed club that raised $32 million from investors like WeWork just opened a brand new location — take a look inside

In London, AllBright launched a private members club for female founders in March 2018. They've also set up AllBright Academy to provide female founders with mentoring, and launched a festival for female founders called FoundHER, Business Insider's Sam Shead reported.

It seems that the founders behind these clubs are on to something — all successful leaders have a peer mentor, which helps them rise faster in their career than those who do it alone, Suzanne Bates, CEO of Bates Communications previously told Business Insider's Shana Lebowitz. 

"The best mentoring relationships grow out of some mutuality," Bates said. "When it's a two-way street, the relationship is more real and valuable."

SEE ALSO: A Manhattan gym that keeps lights and cameras for Instagrammers costs up to $900 a month but lets regular people work out there — as long as they use a different door

DON'T MISS: Wealthy New York moms are embracing a $600 'uniform' that signals a change in how people display their money

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Your Christmas tree could be a big fire hazard — take these steps to stay safe

• Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's attorney, has been at the forefront of the administration's response to several controversies facing the president.
• Before he was at the vocal center of the president's multiple scandals, Giuliani was the widely hailed mayor of America's largest city who lead the country through national tragedy.
• See his journey from high-powered politician to controversial commentator.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has had a high-profile ride from lawyer to New York politician to presidential candidate to President Donald Trump's attorney.

He's also been a larger-than-life public presence who's dabbled in drag, led the country through the tragedy of September 11, 2001, and had a series of rocky in-person and on-air appearances of late.

When Giuliani was booed at a Yankees game last year, it became clear he had taken on a new reputation that was far from being "America's Mayor" who showed courageous leadership after the 9/11 attacks.

SEE ALSO: Check out this stunning shot of Trump's MV-22 Osprey escort over New York City

DON'T MISS: Watch as a chunk of New York's Tappan Zee Bridge is demolished with explosives

Rudolph Giuliani was born on May 28, 1944 in Brooklyn, New York. Raised on Long Island, Giuliani went on to attend the Bronx's Manhattan College before graduating magna cum laude from New York University School of Law in 1968.

Source: NYC.gov

Giuliani is the grandson of Italian immigrants, born to a working-class family comprised of firemen and policemen, which he said gave him an appreciation for public servants. "I grew up with uniforms all around me and their stories of heroism," Giuliani has said.

Source: The Quotable Giuliani: The Mayor of America in his Own Words

Giuliani's first marriage lasted 14 years before it was annulled after he discovered he was second cousins with his wife, Regina Peruggi.

Source: New York Daily News

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

• Staying warm during the winter can be tricky without wearing a bunch of heavy layers, but Uniqlo's HEATTECH fabric is the best way to stay warm without the bulk.
• HEATTECH is made of a special blend of materials that wick moisture from your body and turn its kinetic energy into heat.
• I've been wearing HEATTECH clothing from Uniqlo for many years, and I've found it's warmth-for-weight ratio to be the best of any under-layer I've tried. 
• It's also pretty affordable — most basic items are priced at $14.90, heavier pieces are priced at $19.90, and apparel like jeans and dress pants priced at $49.90. 
• Uniqlo HEATTECH is available for men and women.

Effectively dressing for cold weather is very easy to get wrong. Putting on layer after layer after layer and your biggest, bulkiest coat is a sure way to make everyday activities like commuting or even just running out for lunch a massive headache. Even if you're warm (perhaps too warm), you end up feeling encumbered by those layers and walking like a penguin.

I absolutely hate the cold, and living in the Northeast, I know these problems all too well — but Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo has been the source of my most reliable fix for many years. Rather than attempting to block out the cold by piling on all my warm clothes at once, Uniqlo keeps me warm with its single thin layer of heat-retaining fabric called HEATTECH. 

Made from a special blend of rayon, polyester, and acrylic, HEATTECH wicks your body's moisture into the fibers and converts its kinetic energy into heat. Air pockets within the ultra-thin fibers trap the heat and retain it. The result is a lightweight layer of warmth without the bulk.

I first started shopping at Uniqlo around 2009, which was well before they had locations all over the country. Living in central New Jersey, the closest store to me was all the way in Manhattan, but the  affordable prices made it well worth the trip. It was then that I came across the HEATTECH clothing— and I've been buying it ever since.

The first HEATTECH pieces I bought were a long-sleeve crewneck and a pair of tights to wear underneath my clothes during the winter. Although it's been so long since I first tried them, I vividly remember being disappointed with how thin they were, assuming that they wouldn't be effective for staying warm. After wearing them, I was pleasantly proved wrong. The material's heat retention is noticeably better than normal waffle-knit thermal long johns. 

The Uniqlo HEATTECH line has come a long way since I first began wearing it. What started out as a few pieces of undergarments has evolved into a thorough selection of apparel that you could theoretically dress in from head to toe. The collection includes undershirts, underwear, long johns, leggings, tank tops, sweaters, hats, gloves, jeans, and even a collaboration with fashion designer Alexander Wang. Of the many options, some of my other favorites pieces are the tech-friendly gloves and the slim-fit jeans.

Most HEATTECH styles are offered in three different warmth levels including regular HEATTECH, extra warm, and ultra warm for those unbearably cold days. Another great attribute is that all the prices are very fair. Nothing will cost you much (if any) more than comparable cotton garments.

I'm not the only one on the team who swears by the technology for cold weather. Here's what Insider Picks VP Breton Fischetti, had to say about his experience wearing HEATTECH clothing:

I discovered Uniqlo HEATTECH clothing while I was walking around the Uniqlo store on a cold day. I decided to buy a piece to see if it would be any different from the thermal layers I was used to, and I was really surprised by how effective it was. I now have HEATTECH undershirts for the winter and a HEATTECH sweater. They hold in so much heat that I feel comfortable even on the coldest days. HEATTECH doesn’t stop wind, so if it’s blustery, you’ll still need a wind stopping layer, but for fighting the bone-chilling cold, HEATTECH is my go-to. It’s also great in the spring when you’re sick of wearing a jacket because it feels like having two layers on at once. 

If you've been struggling to find layers that are warm and bulk-free, Uniqlo's HEATTECH styles are a great solution.

Shop the men's Uniqlo HEATTECH Collection here.

Shop the women's Uniqlo HEATTECH Collection here.

Join the conversation about this story »

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

You've looked around your room and decided it's time for some upgrades. After getting some inspiration online and even seeing how your furniture or decor will look in your space, the new piece arrives at your door. The fun and games are over now. While the thought of a new couch or shelf is always exciting, the actual installation process is usually no walk in the park. 

It might require more tools than you expected or ones that you don't even own (but should), or contain convoluted instructions that just lead to frustration. 

We found furniture pieces and decor that take minimal effort to put together but still dazzle with maximum effect. No one would ever guess that it took you less than half an hour to install these home upgrades. 

The only place where you should be breaking a sweat is the gym — make life easier with these pieces of furniture and decor.

SEE ALSO: 15 collapsible kitchen tools that are perfect for small apartments

A floating shelf

Installing new shelves has never been easier. Just place, press, and hang this floating shelf into drywall without using any tools. The shelf can hold up to 15 pounds. 

High & Mighty Floating Shelf, $22.97, available at Home Depot

A curtain rod

Available in bronze, nickel, and brass, this rod takes the hassle out of a frustrating process. Simply align the brackets to the window, secure the rod with curtains attached, and style your curtains to cover the hidden brackets. 

Smart Rods Easy Install Drapery Window Rod, $26.61-$49.39 available at Target

A sofa

Each piece of this adaptable sofa comes in a separate box and you can assemble the whole thing, tool-free, in minutes. When it comes time to move, it's just as easy to disassemble. 

Burrow Sofa, $1,195, available at Burrow

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

• Full body pillows are excellent for side and stomach sleepers who want to balance comfort with good posture.
• Snuggle-Pedic has built a reputation for producing high-quality, US-made memory foam products, including mattresses and mattress toppers.
• I appreciated how tucking the Snuggle-Pedic body pillow between my knees kept them from knocking together, which helped with my lower back pain.
• Though it costs more than your average body pillow (currently $69.99 on Amazon), the Snuggle-Pedic Shredded Memory Foam Full Body Pillow comes with a 120-night risk-free trial and 20-year warranty.

Recently, I wrote an article detailing the top body pillows currently available. The article was based on expert and buyer experiences. While our guides definitely provide excellent value to readers who are comparison shopping, I wanted to go a little deeper and perform a firsthand review of some of the top options, especially since, as an athlete and side sleeper, I've tried countless body pillows over the past few decades.

This led me to Snuggle-Pedic, a subsidiary of Relief-Mart, which produces an array of health products. Snuggle-Pedic's body pillow is currently one of the most highly rated on Amazon with a 4.7-star average customer rating based on nearly 4,000 reviews. The company sent me the pillow for free to test it out. Below are my experiences and recommendations.

My first experiences with the Snuggle-Pedic Body Pillow

The Snuggle-Pedic full body pillow arrived in a box that was closer to standard pillow-size. But, with a few cuts – careful to avoid poking a hole in the fabric cover – the memory foam was free from the packaging and slowly began to expand.

Most memory foam items let off an odor when you first remove them from their vacuum packaging. The stench is harmless and typically dissipates in a few days if aired out correctly. This body pillow didn't have any odors. I asked Jennie Katz, who handles public relations for Snuggle-Pedic, what their secret was for avoiding the "off-gassing" smell. Katz said, "We use a very high-quality foam that uses a process that is far cleaner than the foam used by competitors."

Within 10 hours of the unboxing, the pillow had reached its full size. But, if you don't feel like waiting that long, you can toss the pillow in the dryer with high heat, and it should fluff up in under 20 minutes.

How the Snuggle-Pedic Body Pillow performed

I'm a side and stomach sleeper who has a history of lower back pain. If my body isn't aligned just right during the night, I pay for it the next day. I particularly liked tucking the Snuggle-Pedic body pillow between my arms and knees. This position provided comfort, support, and allowed for good circulation. I didn't wake up with the pins and needles feeling in any of my extremities during the testing period.

The pillow is filled with eco-friendly Biogreen- and CertiPUR-US-certified shredded memory foam. Shredded memory foam has a couple of benefits. First, it breathes better than a single memory foam pad, which tends to trap heat. Secondly, you can move the foam around within the pillow to get support where you need it most. I found the body pillow was incredibly breathable and malleable.

I would often fold the pillow in half to provide cushioning for my back while watching TV in bed. Or, if reading in bed on my stomach, I could easily readjust the filling to support my chest and arms. And, if the pillow gets uncomfortably clumped up, you can get back to a more uniform shape by putting it in the dryer on high heat for 10 to 20 minutes.

The cover of the Snuggle-Pedic body pillow also breathed well and felt incredibly soft. It is 43% viscose of bamboo, 56.4% polyester, and .6% lycra. All of the materials are machine washable. I washed the pillow once, and I did not have any trouble. However, it does take up most of the washer and dryer space.

Since a pillowcase is much easier to clean than a giant pillow, I recommend buying a body pillowcase with a zipper. I used a 20" by 54" non-zipper pillowcase, and the pillow would try to make an escape each night. A zipper will prevent this.

Some concerns about the body pillow

What struck me about the Snuggle-Pedic body pillow is its weight. At over seven pounds, it can be a bit much to casually move around during the night when I want to switch the side I'm sleeping on. However, I was surprised to find that some nights I did not change sides. I was so comfortable that there was no need to move.

Another issue was just the sheer size of the pillow. When first testing this, I was sharing a queen-sized bed with my wife. There was barely enough room for the three of us. Our situation improved once we switched to a king-sized mattress, but with this body pillow in the mix, it's like having another person in the bed.

Lastly, I want to touch on the customization process. The Snuggle-Pedic body pillow comes fairly firm, but the company will adjust the filling based on your needs. This is how Dr. Rick Swartzburg, D.C., vice president of product development for Relief-Mart, described the pillow customization process to me:

"If you need any type of customization, whether it is addition or removal of foam, as well as needing a change in the actual foam mix to produce a different type of feel, we would send you a small questionnaire to fill out and you would send it in with the body pillow shipping label we give you that will help us determine the corrections needed and there are no shipping costs whatsoever to get this done. We would open the pillow and change the foam, then re-sew it back up, and this does get done in a special area that is solely devoted to customizations."

To me, this sounds like a bit of a hassle, especially since there are brands out there that allow self-customization. Yet, self-customizing pillows feature zippers, which may scratch you as you sleep or could corrode in a washing machine.

Bottom line

Overall, if you sleep on your side or stomach, I would recommend using a body pillow to keep your spine properly aligned. And, you will have a hard time finding a better solution than the Snuggle-Pedic full body pillow. It's comfortable, breathable, malleable, and it comes with a 120-night trial so you can try it risk-free. Plus, with its 20-year-warranty, you get decades of comfortable sleep for just $70.

Buy the Snuggle-Pedic Ultra-Luxury Bamboo Combination Shredded Memory Foam Full Body Pillow on Amazon for $69.99

DON'T MISS: I've slept on several different 'beds-in-a-box' — and this luxury hybrid mattress is by far the most comfortable

SEE ALSO: The best body pillows you can buy

Join the conversation about this story »

• The government shutdown is now in its 28th day, far surpassing the record for the longest of the modern era.
• This is the 21st time the federal government has had a funding lapse since the modern budgeting process began.
• Most of those times, the shutdown has been short and not involved employees being sent home, but that has changed in recent years.

President Donald Trump and Democratic leaders have yet to come to an agreement to reopen the government, pushing the government shutdown into a historic 28th day.

No previous shutdown had lasted past a 21st day, with the 1995-1996 shutdown as the previous standard-bearer. But the current, drawn-out shutdown fight has eclipsed the record and shows no signs of ending.

The trouble started just before Christmas when Trump's sudden reversal on a bipartisan funding extension forced a sizeable portion — but not all — of the government into a partial shutdown.

Read more:Here's what the government shutdown means for federal agencies and employees»

This is 21st time since the modern budget process began with the Budget Act of 1974 that the federal government has entered a shutdown or had a funding lapse.

On average, the 20 previous shutdowns lasted eight days, though they have been longer in recent decades. The six shutdowns since 1990 have lasted nine days on average. And removing the short, nine-hour funding lapse caused by Sen. Rand Paul in February, recent shutdowns have averaged 11 days.

Most of these shutdowns weren't severe, with 11 of the 20 lasting five days or fewer, and seven lasting three days or fewer.

By making it past the 25th day on Tuesday, Trump also surpassed Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton for second-most days with a funding lapse during one presidency. Trump has 28 for the current shutdown, three for the January 2018 shutdown, and — despite the short nature — one for a February 2018 lapse, bringing the total to 32 days during which the government did not have funding. Reagan and Clinton were tied for second with 28.

Read more:The effects of the shutdown are only going to get exponentially worse as the fight drags on»

The current shutdown also bears some major differences from the past because federal employees aren't working. Around 380,000 federal employees are now on furlough, meaning they do not report to work or get paid. In 11 previous shutdowns, employees were not placed on furlough.

Sending employees home has become more frequent in recent shutdowns, with furloughs occurring during five of the last six funding lapses.

Another newer wrinkle is the fact that this is just the second shutdown during which employees were placed on furlough while one party controlled both chambers of Congress and the White House, which was the case when the shutdown began. The other instance was the three-day shutdown in January 2018.

Additionally, with the changeover to the 116th Congress, which has a Democrat-controlled House, this is the first shutdown in which control of a chamber of Congress changed parties during the funding lapse.

The current shutdown also means the president has set some historic firsts as well.

Trump is the only president to furlough employees while his party controlled both chambers of Congress, the only one to achieve that dubious feat multiple times, and is second in total shutdowns for a president whose party controls chambers of Congress. Jimmy Carter presided over five shutdowns while Democrats controlled both the House and Senate, none of which resulted in furloughs.

The latest shutdown also moved Trump into third place with three total funding lapses during his presidency, behind Carter's five and Ronald Reagan's eight.

2018 also became just the second year of the modern era to have three funding lapses, tying 1977's record.

Here's a breakdown of all the previous shutdowns:

SEE ALSO: From airport lines to food inspections, here are all the ways the government shutdown is impacting the lives of average Americans

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• Former President George W. Bush is calling for an end to the partial government shutdown, which is about to hit the one-month mark and is currently the longest shutdown in US history.
• In an appeal made on Instagram, the 43rd president asked "leaders on both sides to put politics aside, come together, and end this shutdown."
• The caption was posted with an image of him and former First Lady Laura Bush giving pizza to their Secret Service detail.
• "@LauraWBush and I are grateful to our Secret Service personnel and the thousands of Federal employees who are working hard for our country without a paycheck," the former president posted. "And we thank our fellow citizens who are supporting them."
• Secret Service agents are among the roughly 420,000 government employees deemed "essential" during the shutdown, and they are currently working without pay.

Former President George W. Bush is calling for an end to the partial government shutdown, which is about to hit the one-month mark and is currently the longest shutdown in US history.

In an appeal made on Instagram, the 43rd president called on "leaders on both sides to put politics aside, come together, and end this shutdown." The caption was posted with an image of him and former First Lady Laura Bush giving pizza to their Secret Service detail.

At the time of Bush's post, the government was in day 28 of a partial shutdown, which impacts around 800,000 federal workers. Secret Service agents are among the roughly 420,000 government employees deemed "essential" during the shutdown, and they are currently working without pay.

"@LauraWBush and I are grateful to our Secret Service personnel and the thousands of Federal employees who are working hard for our country without a paycheck," the former president posted. "And we thank our fellow citizens who are supporting them."

Churches, restaurants, credit unions, and corporations are stepping in to help feed and fund government employees, who have now missed a paycheck — and as of Friday night, leaders had not reached a deal.

President Donald Trump, who has said he will not sign a bill to fund the government that doesn't include $5.7 billion for his proposed wall at the US-Mexico border, is making an announcement about the shutdown on Saturday.

Funding for the wall is at the crux of the partial government shutdown, which has left government agencies without funds to function or pay their employees.

In the week prior to the Christmas recess, Trump initially signaled that he would sign a stopgap measure passed unanimously in the Senate that funded the government until February 8, even though it did not include border wall funds. He then turned an about face, saying he would not sign such a bill. There were not enough votes in the Senate to pass border wall funding, so on December 22, a partial government shutdown began.

On January 3, Democrats led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi took control of the House, and said that Trump would not get funds for his wall. The House has since passed legislation to reopen the government (without wall funds), but the measures have not been voted on in the Republican-led Senate. As the shutdown — which is the longest in modern history — approaches the month-long benchmark, it's unclear how this will end.

But Bush, who never saw a government shutdown during his two terms as president, is hoping that leaders will reach an agreement so federal employees can get back to work and receive their paychecks again.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: MSNBC host Chris Hayes thinks President Trump's stance on China is 'not at all crazy'

• My trust in Facebook has eroded to all-time lows, especially after the company's past year of scandals.
• Yet, I can't bring myself to quit Facebook, and I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon.

Facebook had a rough 2018.

My colleague Rob Price put together a list of Facebook scandals in 2018, and the list goes on and on. Seriously, go read it — especially if you have a Facebook account.

I've read through Rob's list several times now, and several items horrify me personally.

Between Facebook's role in stoking the Myanmar genocide, the WhatsApp founders abandoning ship (and one even urging others to do so), the company's secret deals with smartphone makers giving access to your data, and of course the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Mark Zuckerberg and co. gave users more reason than ever to quit the network. The #DeleteFacebook hashtag has resurfaced countless times now.

But I don't think I'm leaving Facebook. And odds are, you're also still on Facebook, and you're not intending to quit, either.

It's not like I haven't thought about it. I've seen so many stories and tweets from colleagues and friends about their lack of trust in the social network, and their choice to leave it — for good this time. I totally understand and support those people in their decisions.

I've definitely deactivated my Facebook account in the past. But I don't plan on deleting my account anytime soon.

Show me a better alternative

A better social network may be coming, but it's not here yet. And the fact is, Facebook is the most popular social network for many different reasons.

Facebook has a great name, great colors, and great branding. It's also the rare social network in 2019 where everyone still uses their real name. LinkedIn has these things too, but it's really geared toward professional connections and older folks; you won't see kids, teenagers, or college students using LinkedIn to share their weekend adventures.

Facebook is also a great place to share photos, since you can tag all of your friends (who doesn't have Facebook these days?) and they can add those memories to their own walls. I personally use iCloud to share personal photos with family and friends, but I can't see random friends' posts on there. Facebook (and Instagram, by extension) is the best place for that.

But the main reason I can't bring myself to delete Facebook for good is that I've accumulated too many memories there.

I have wall posts from high school friends dating back to 2006. I have a big archive of direct messages, happy birthday wishes, and photo tags. I don't post to Facebook as much these days, but it's still one of the best websites where you can easily visit your past self. I could download all of that data, but Facebook organizes and presents it all in a better way than I ever could (and with much less effort on my part).

Facebook, for its part, says it is committed to fixing complex issues on its platform in 2019, which include "elections, speech, privacy, and well-being." But even if those problems aren't resolved — hell, even if they get worse — I probably still won't quit Facebook unless there's a better alternative. So far, no other platform is even close.

SEE ALSO: Facebook endured a staggering number of scandals and controversies in 2018 — here they all are

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: British Airways has a $13 million flight simulator that taught us how to take off, fly, and land an airplane

• Microsoft is making a big push to develop a streaming service for gaming.
• The service, which is planned for a public trial this year, aims to deliver high-end, blockbuster gaming experiences on whatever device you're using.
• Microsoft calls the service "Netflix for games" internally, as a shorthand for what the service intends to do.

Microsoft's ambitious vision for the future of gaming doesn't involve a high-powered, expensive box sitting underneath your TV.

Instead, it's as simple as Netflix. 

Just as Netflix allows you to watch movies and TV shows from any device, a streaming gaming service would let you play high-end, blockbuster video games anytime, anyplace and on any device — your phone, or tablet, or laptop, or TV. No game console required.

With "Project xCloud," Microsoft aims to establish itself as the de facto standard in video game streaming services. And, in 2019, the service goes public.

Here's everything we know about Microsoft's ambitious plan to change how we play games:

SEE ALSO: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella just laid out the company's vision for its 'Netflix for games'

The goal: to reach more people who play games.

"There are 2 billion people who play video games on the planet today. We're not going to sell 2 billion consoles," Xbox leader Phil Spencer told Business Insider in an interview in June 2018. "Many of those people don't own a television; many have never owned a PC. For many people on the planet, the phone is their compute device," he said. "It's really about reaching a customer wherever they are, on the devices that they have."

The best way to do that is by lowering the barrier to entry — stuff like owning a TV, nonetheless owning a game console and having a stable internet connection, are barriers to entry for the potential userbase Microsoft is targeting with its streaming initiative.

The same could be said for the move from DVD — physical media — to streaming services and digital entertainment. Far, far more people are able to watch TV and movies thanks to smartphones and the digitization of so much media. 

Since games can require serious processing power, digitization alone only opens the door so much — making high-end, processor-intensive games available through streaming services kicks open the door.

The competition: Several major tech companies, from Amazon to Verizon to Google and Sony, either already have game streaming services or are working on game streaming services.

Nearly every major tech company is working on a form of video game streaming technology right now.

Some have been announced or are already operating, like Google's Project Stream and Sony's PlayStation Now, while others are little more than whispers at the moment, like streaming services from Verizon and Amazon.

The competition is stiff, to put it very lightly.

Broadly speaking, the next two years appear to be the general launch target for most of these new game streaming services. Both Microsoft and Google have been testing their streaming services with limited, invite-only audiences, while Amazon's and Verizon's streaming services are little more than talk at this point.

Google's Project Stream demonstrated the ability to stream blockbuster games — "Assassin's Creed Odyssey," specifically — in web browsers. A public, limited test ran from late last year until mid-January 2019.

Microsoft promised "public trials" of Project xCloud in 2019, but has yet to give specific dates; it's otherwise testing the service privately on an invite-only basis.

Sony, meanwhile, has been operating a subscription-based video game streaming service in PlayStation Now for five years. The service enables players on PlayStation 4 and PC to stream PlayStation 2, 3, and 4 games without a download. It costs $20/month or $100/year.

How Microsoft plans to do it:

As seen above, Microsoft already has data centers all over the world — and that helps tremendously given the demands of video game streaming. 

It's relatively simple for Netflix or Hulu to stream video data to your television, smartphone, laptop, PC, or whatever other device. If you have a stable internet connection, even if you're on a smartphone, you can probably stream video. Occasionally it might need to buffer, or maybe it'll drop in resolution in an attempt to mitigate buffering, but those stutters aren't such a big deal if you're just watching an episode of "The Office" idly during your lunch break.

Those stutters matter much more if you're playing a game, and can mean the difference between playable and unplayable in some cases.

Microsoft intends to offset those issues as much as possible by harnessing its worldwide data centers, matching players geographically with the connection closest to them.

• The five richest men in the US are worth a combined $415.4 billion.
• Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world, is worth $135 billion.
• He's followed by Bill Gates, worth $92 billion, Warren Buffett at $81 billion, Mark Zuckerberg at $54.7 billion, and Larry Page at $52.7 billion.
• Their combined wealth equals more than 2% of the US GDP, which was $20.66 trillion in the third quarter of 2018.

The richest men in the US are worth a mind-boggling combined wealth of $415.4 billion. And all but one of them made their fortunes in the tech industry.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos tops the list with a net worth of $135 billion, followed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates ($92 billion), investor and Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett ($81 billion), Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg ($54.7 billion), and Google co-founder Larry Page ($52.7 billion), according to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index.

Their combined fortune comes out to more than 2% of the US GDP, which was $20.66 trillion in the third quarter of 2018. (Exactly 2% of $20.66 trillion would be $413.2 billion.)

A Business Insider analysis found that for a billionaire, buying a vacation to Bali is the equivalent of a typical American buying a candy bar. And that's based on a net worth of just $2 billion, the median fortune of a Forbes list billionaire. 

While these five men are the richest in the US, they are not the top five richest in the world. Bernard Arnault, the French businessman who controls LVMH and is worth $69 billion, Amancio Ortega, who controls the world's largest clothing retailer that includes Zara, worth $60.1 billion, and Carlos Slim of Mexico, worth $57.1 billion, are all currently wealthier than both Zuckerberg and Page.

While many of the world's richest billionaires live in the US, Hong Kong overtook the US in 2018 to become the city with the most super-rich people — individuals worth at least $30 million — people in the world. 

SEE ALSO: To a billionaire, the cost of a trip to Bali is like buying a candy bar — here's what spending looks like when you're that rich

DON'T MISS: 21 quotes from self-made billionaires that will change your outlook on money

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Japanese lifestyle guru Marie Kondo explains how to organize your home once and never again

• Actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard have listed their four-story Brooklyn townhouse for $4.59 million.
• They purchased the home 12 years ago for $1.91 million, as The Wall Street Journal reports.
• The past several months have seen an assortment of high-profile real estate transactions in Brooklyn, including Matt Damon purchasing Brooklyn's most expensive apartment in late December.

Hollywood power couple Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard are selling their 3,600-square-foot Brooklyn townhouse for $4.599 million.

As The Wall Street Journal reports, they purchased the home at 36 Sterling in Park Slope in 2006 for $1.9 million. The couple moved in while Gyllenhaal was pregnant with their first daughter; now that both daughters are attending schools outside the neighborhood, they're listing the house.

According to the Sotheby's listing, the house has four bedrooms, a fireplace, and a south-facing garden.

Read more: Shaq is selling his lakeside Florida mansion for $22 million, and it comes with a 17-car garage and a 6,000-square-foot basketball court — here's a look inside

The past several months have seen a variety of high-profile celebrity real estate transactions in Brooklyn. Matt Damon bought the borough's most expensive home — a $16.7 million penthouse— in December. And, in January, Curbed reported that celebrity couple Emily Blunt and John Krasinski splashed out $11 million for a condo in the same building as Damon.

Gyllenhaal and Sarsgaard's four-story townhouse is listed with Debbie Korb of Sotheby's International Realty.

Below, take a look at the property.

SEE ALSO: Hollywood-style trailers, exclusive dinner parties, and 'Instagram museums': The CEO of a real estate PR firm dishes on how he sells multimillion-dollar mansions to the super-rich

READ MORE: A SoHo triplex penthouse got a $5.5 million price chop, but it could still break the record for the most expensive apartment ever sold in downtown NYC

Celebrity couple Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard got married in May 2009 and, in 2012, purchased a Park Slope, Brooklyn, townhouse for a reported $1.9 million.

Source: People, The Wall Street Journal

The couple has two daughters and, according to The Wall Street Journal, is selling the house because both girls are going to school outside of the neighborhood.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

The couple's home is in Park Slope, an expensive Brooklyn neighborhood that borders Prospect Park to the east.

Source: Google Maps

• Google is being criticized for allowing an app on its Google Play Store that promotes the controversial practice of gay conversion therapy.
• LGBTQ+ advocates say the religious group behind the app has incited hate against the queer community, and "casually trashes LGBT people as living 'destructive lifestyles.'"
• An online petition calling for the app to be removed has garnered almost 40,000 signatures.
• The same app was already removed from Apple's app store in December.

Google is facing criticism over an app in its Play Store that promotes gay conversion therapy.

An online petition calling on Google to remove the app has received almost 40,000 signatures since it surfaced a week ago on Change.org. The LGBTQ+ advocacy group behind the petition, Truth Wins Out, says the app "casually trashes LGBT people as living 'destructive lifestyles,'" which goes against Google's "stated policies of inclusion, respect and diversity."

The app, from the religious group Living Home Ministries, was already removed from Apple's App store in December after Truth Wins Out created a similar online petition to plead its case. But while Apple reacted "swiftly" to kick the app from its store, Google has been dragging its feet, Truth Wins Out says.

"By any standard, the app is awful. It brazenly compares homosexuality to an addiction," the petition reads. "Every moment that this app remains at Google’s online store, vulnerable LGBT teenagers can download it, so time is of the essence."

Google's policy for its Google Play Store states it doesn't allows apps that "incite hatred against individuals or groups based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, nationality, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or any other characteristic that is associated with systemic discrimination or marginalization."

Google did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment. The app has been available in Google's Play Store since 2014, and has been downloaded more than 1,000 times, the app store data shows.

Read more:The author of 'Boy Erased' reveals what gay conversion therapy is really like — and how he survived it

The religious nonprofit behind the app, Living Hope Ministries, describes itself as adhering to "a Christ-centered, Biblical world-view of sexual expression rooted in one man and one woman in a committed, monogamous, heterosexual marriage for life." The organization promotes this belief through support groups, counseling, and education that counter the rise of "homosexuality, gender confusion, and sexual and relational brokenness."

Living Hope Ministries said in a statement to the Telegraph that Truth Wins Out claims' were "inaccurate" and "not descriptive" of the services the organization offers.

Gay conversion therapy, like Living Hope Ministries' "ex-gay" program, has been widely criticized for its negative effects on the lives of LGBTQ+ individuals. The American Psychiatric Association has warned against efforts to "mischaracterize homosexuality and promote the notion that sexual orientation can be changed."

Research has shown that LGBTQ+ individuals who went through gay conversion therapy are 63% more likely to have attempted suicide. Nonetheless, almost 700,000 Americans have received conversion therapy, according to a study from UCLA's School of Law in January 2018.

The realities and negative effects of gay conversion therapy were brought center stage in 2018 with the release of two popular movies— "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" and "Boy Erased." The author of the memoir "Boy Erased", Garrard Conley, also helped to produce a podcast from WNYC that tells the stories of LGBTQ+ individuals who have experienced gay conversion therapy.

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• Billy McFarland is best known for organizing Fyre Festival, the VIP party that turned into a nightmare and instantly became infamous when hundreds of attendees were left stranded in the Bahamas.
• McFarland pleaded guilty to wire-fraud charges in relation to Fyre Festival and sentenced to six years in prison last October. He was also ordered to forfeit $26 million.
• This wasn't the first time McFarland had come under scrutiny for questionable businesses. Find out more about his wild life below.

Until April 2017, Billy McFarland was relatively unknown outside of the New York elite clubbing scene, but this changed overnight when Fyre Festival, the VIP party that turned into a nightmare situation as attendees were stranded with half-built huts to sleep in and cold cheese sandwiches to eat, lit up social media. 

McFarland, the 27-year-old founder of the company behind the festival, pleaded guilty to wire-fraud charges and was sentenced to six years in prison last October. He also faces a $26 million forfeiture order. 

Find out more about his wild life below:

SEE ALSO: These photos reveal why the 27-year-old organizer of the disastrous Fyre Festival has been sentenced to 6 years in prison

Billy McFarland was raised in New Jersey by two real-estate developers. He set up his first business — a service that matched websites and designers — at the tender age of 13.

After a short stint at Bucknell University, McFarland dropped out to set up his next business venture: Spling, an online ad platform. 

Source: The New York Post

It wasn't until 2013 that the then-22-year-old McFarland started to make a name for himself with Magnises, an elite club for New York millennials, which was accessed with the club's black card.

Magnises was run out of a West Village townhouse. Members were invited to come and hang out or attend cocktail parties, dinners, art shows, and lectures.