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This Photographer's Pictures Of Her Tinder Dates Say A Lot About Modern Dating

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Tinder

Online dating can be a sticky and confusing subject, one full of ups, downs, and embarrassing stories. 

Kirra Cheers, a photographer from Brooklyn, recently set out to document her trials and tribulations using Tinder, a wildly popular app that allows users to approve or deny potential mates based on a small number of pictures and a short bio.

If two users approve each other, they can chat and potentially meet up. While the app certainly makes it easy to meet new people, the lack of substantial information on the other person makes for some interesting first dates.

Cheers went on 17 Tinder dates over the course of two months, and photographed many of them. The resulting series shows what it's like to navigate modern dating, on both a personal and universal level. "I wanted to document my own experience so that people can compare it to their own," she tells Business Insider.

Cheers originally began the project for a group show she was curating about modern romance. "I wanted my take on the theme to have more of a personal approach, putting myself into the project and documenting my experience with online dating," she tells Feature Shoot.

Source



Cheers told all of her potential beaus about the project and asked to photograph them during the dates. Initially, she asked before meeting, but found that she had much higher chances of her dates agreeing in person.



Cheers tells Business Insider that "the use of flash is aggressive and revealing. I think it works well within the gritty New York landscape and defines my style as a photographer."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider







9 Tips To Help You Train For Your First Marathon

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new york city marathon 2013

The number of people who run marathons in the U.S. is steadily rising, according to Running USA's annual report. Perhaps you’re even planning to run the New York City Marathon on November 2nd.

But are you really ready to run 26.2 miles?

We spoke with running experts Jenny Hadfield, Matt Fitzgerald, and Jeff Galloway, accomplished runners who teach marathon newbies how to have a successful first race.

These are their top tips for acing your first marathon.

GIVE YOURSELF ENOUGH TIME TO TRAIN

The biggest mistake rookie runners make is starting too fast and with too much mileage. This can inflict high stress on your cardiorespiratory, endocrine, and neuromuscular systems, and lead to injury.

“It's one thing to sign up for a marathon. It's another if you have, like, a four- or six-week window to train,” Jenny Hadfield, an author and frequent columnist for Women’s Running Magazine and RunnersWorld.com, says. “I would recommend a solid 12 to 14 weeks to train for a half, and 18 to 20 weeks for a full marathon. I usually lean toward a longer time frame because life happens, vacations happen, sickness happens, and, if you rush, you end up running with less mileage under you."

FIND A TRAINING PLAN THAT SUITS YOUR NEEDS

There are a ton of training plans out there. If you do a quick Google search, you’ll be up all night checking out the free training plans online.

The key is to think about how training will fit into your current lifestyle so that you stick with it. For instance, is date night usually on Thursday? Do you typically run errands on Sunday? Choose a schedule that syncs well with your routine.

“You want to make sure that the first week of training is close to what you're doing right now,” Hadfield says. “If you're running three to four times a week and anywhere from three to six miles, you want to make sure your training plan begins similarly to that. If you jump into a training plan that has a lot more mileage right away, your risk for injury and burnout is going to be super high.”

Running Runners California Muscular Man Jogging Barefoot SneakersMAKE IT SOCIAL

Marathon training requires long, slow runs, which can become mentally draining. Signing up with a buddy can make it a lot more motivating and fun.

Jeff Galloway, an author and Olympic athlete, warns his clients to choose someone whose pace is similar to theirs. “If you have a fast friend, ask if they can run at your pace. If it’s too slow for them, you want that kind of honesty because you want to run at your own pace so you don’t get injured.”

EASE INTO YOUR TRAINING

It’s important to build up your strength slowly, and not try to run too many miles too quickly.

“The No. 1 mistake people make is running too hard and too often,” author and trainer Matt Fitzgerald says. “You have to ease into any aerobic exercise. Really take your time and take a cautious approach with the running.”

Galloway recommends that beginners start with a combination of running and walking. “Using the very easy patterns of running and walking, the human body can adapt to long-distance running,” he says. “You want to ease up the distance so that two to three weeks before the event, you could cover that distance.”

TRAIN BY YOUR BODY, NOT A PACE

Instead of relying on iPhones or GPS monitors that say how fast you’re going, listen to your body. You will have good days and bad days, but the important thing is to make sure the pace always feels comfortable, even if it’s slower than your last run.

All three coaches recommend using what’s called the talk test. “If you can have a conversation and talk in sentences, you're running at an easy effort, which is great,” Hadfield says. “If you can only talk in one-word responses, you're going too fast. That pace is going to change daily depending on where you're racing, how you’re fueling, and what's going on in your body.”

lifting weights MAKE SURE TO CROSS-TRAIN

You don’t want to run every day; instead, run every other day and fill in the gaps with rest days and cross-training. Choose exercises that make you move in different ways than running to give your joints a break and build strength.

“Cycling or swimming lets you work out aerobically without the added impact,” Fitzgerald says. The coaches say strength training is vital to increasing balance, strength, and endurance.

KNOW WHAT YOU'RE EATING AND WEARING BEFORE THE RACE

Race day is not the time to start a new diet or try on a new running outfit. Practice what works ahead of time. Does your body respond better to Gatorade or gel packets? Do those spandex shorts ride up too much on longer runs? These are things you’ll want to know early on.

Think of your practice runs as rehearsals for the marathon. Try different nutrition and wardrobe options, and figure out what works for you.

Hadfield suggests dressing for 20 degrees warmer than the weather. Fifty degrees may seem chilly if you’re just standing around outside, but it’s better to wear a T-shirt and shorts, because once your body heats up, it’ll feel like it’s 70.

nyc marathonDURING THE RACE

On the day of the race, first-time marathoners tend to make the mistake of starting too quickly. They're refreshed, tapered, and pumped up by the music and crowds.

But don’t! Starting too quickly could cause a drop in energy, and runners may hit a mental wall as their blood sugar drops. Better to run slower than necessary at first, and then pick up the pace during the last leg.

“Hold yourself back,” Hadfield says. “The first half you want to stay at a conversational and easy effort. After that, if you're feeling good, you want to start to pick it up for the last stretch. It's all about conserving that energy early on so you can push when you really need it.”

Also, if you’re running in summer weather, be sure to pace yourself extra thoughtfully because of the added heat. “Those who start their marathon training now are going to be running in hot weather in the summer,” Galloway says. “Be aware that you're probably going to be running 30 seconds more slowly for every 5 degrees above 60.”

AFTER THE RACE

Congratulations! You’ve officially finished your race. But don’t sit down just yet! These are the five things you want to do now that the marathon is over:

  1. Walk around for 10 to 15 minutes to allow your body to come back to reality. “It helps your body to purge that lactic acid and recover, as well as bring your circulation back to normal,” Hadfield says.
  2. Have a protein recovery drink and nibble on some food. “Within the first half hour, you want to eat a snack of 300 calories that is mostly simple carbohydrates, because that will help to reload the muscle glycogen,” Galloway recommends. “It's best to pick something that is going to digest very easily. Even things like gummy bears or cola drinks will often work.”
  3. Sit in an ice bath for five minutes with your sweatshirt on to help with inflammation.
  4. Wait three to four hours before getting a massage, if you decide to get one post-race (otherwise, your massage therapist will be rubbing the lactic acid all over muscles, making you feel worse).
  5. Treat yourself! “Go out for a greasy hamburger, go for a beer,” Fitzgerald says. “None of this is going to help you recover faster, but who cares? There's a time to let your hair down a bit, and just give yourself time to recuperate. If you do everything right after the marathon, you're still not going to be able to run one for another four months. Have the burger.”

SEE ALSO: 10 Awesome Marathons To Sign Up For Right Now

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How Life Has Changed For The 3,200 People Who Live On Larry Ellison's Hawaiian Island

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lanaiOracle cofounder Larry Ellison — who stepped down from his position as CEO on September 18 — bought a 97% stake in the Hawaiian island of Lanai in 2012. The reported sale price was a jaw-dropping $300 million. 

A new piece in the New York Times Magazine takes a deep dive into how Lanai residents have responded to their island's new owner. 

At first, there was a widespread feeling of hope, writes Jon Mooallem. David Murdock, the island's previous owner, had made plans to install a 20-square-mile group of 45-story wind turbines and sell the electricity to Oahu. The plan upset the balance of the small island, and residents protested in the streets. Murdock reportedly referred to Lanai residents as "children."

Larry EllisonOnce Ellison came along, people were optimistic that things would change for the better. He proposed ambitious plans that included the construction of a third resort and the expansion of the island's airport. Ellison's revitalization would create new jobs and double the island's population, all while operating under a system that was greener and smarter than ever before.

"He is renewing, refreshing, rejuvenating every part of the island," a woman named Mimi Evangelista told the New York Times. "I feel blessed, blessed beyond my wildest dreams."

Henry Jolicoeur, a French Canadian hypnotherapist who's working on a low-budget documentary about Lanai, caught some more enthusiastic reactions when he visited the island in the summer of 2012, not long after Ellison's purchase was made public. 

"Mr. Ellison! Thank you for being here! We love you!" one woman said to Jolicoeur. "I’ve never met you before and really would like to, and I can imagine that you will do awesome wonders for this place!"

A group of landscapers tell Jolicoeur's camera: "Thank you for work, Mr. Ellison! Thank you very much!"

Jolicouer's film is still in the works, but he has posted some of the footage to YouTube, including these interviews with local business owners. 

But two years later, it seems like not everything has gone according to plan. Ellison rarely visits the island himself (though locals know when he's there because they can see his enormous yacht docked in the harbor) and has instead set up a management company called Pulama Lanai, according to the Times.

Pulama holds frequent meetings on the island, but it seems to be largely inaccessible.

The organization itself is extremely vast — about half of Lanai residents are employed by Pulama or its hotels. Many of its employees are told not to speak with reporters, and there have been some conflicts with residents over the delayed renovation of the golf course as well as the construction of a new water desalination plant. 

The huge amount of construction work that Ellison's plan requires has actually intensified a housing shortage on the island as well. Locals looking for housing have been placed on a waiting list that has quickly filled up with Pulama employees who have been relocated to the island specifically for the purpose of building up its infrastructure.

"I don’t think Mr. Ellison’s trying to hurt people, but I don’t think he realizes what a delicate little ecosystem the economy is here," Lanai resident Gail Allen told the New York Times. She lives near the golf course that Ellison said he would be renovating, but now Pulama has delayed the project until 2015. The stench from ponds on the course is starting to invade people's homes. 

"We were so zealous: 'Oh, my God, he’s coming to save our island!'" Allen said. "It just feels like everything’s in limbo now. All of a sudden, there’s a fear factor: 'What are we going to do if this thing falls apart?'"

Read the full article in The New York Times Magazine here >

SEE ALSO: The Incredible Life Of Oracle Billionaire Larry Ellison

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FLOWCHART: How To Order Whiskey Like A Pro

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So you've decided to drink whiskey. That's good, but it's just a first step.

Scotch Whisky, Irish Whiskey, Bourbon, or Rye — the options are at once tantalizing and intimidating if you haven't wrapped your mind around the range of flavors and ways whiskey is served. Remember, this is an art hundreds of years in the making.

Business Insider is here to help you do that tradition proud.

We asked Pam Wiznitzer, a mixologist at the award-winning New York City cocktail bar The Dead Rabbit, to walk us through the whiskey decision-making process. Think of this as the adult version of Choose Your Own Adventure — except the end is more rewarding.

"Don't necessarily walk into a bar and slam down the order of whiskey you want and assume they have it," Wiznitzer advised. "Feel free to have a dialogue with your bartender. It's a good converastion."

With every conversation you'll learn a little more, and you'll be talking like an expert in no time.

That is, if you dedicate enough time to it of course.

whiskey flow chart infographic


NOW WATCH: Why Pappy Van Winkle Is The White Whale Of Bourbons

 

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8 Reasons Why Stanford University Is An Awesome Place To Go To School

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For the first time in years, Stanford University took the top spot in Business Insider's latest list of the Best Colleges in America, knocking the Massachusetts Institute of Technology down to number two after a four-year reign.

The California college is now also the most selective college in America, as well as the top "dream college" for students applying from high school. To help understand why everyone wants to go to Stanford, here are eight reasons why it's such an awesome place to go to school:

1. Even though students study a lot, they still make time for an active social life

Stanford University Students Fans Football

While Stanford is undoubtedly one of the top academic institutions in the world, that doesn't prevent students from having fun when they're not in the library.

Students gather every fall quarter for Full Moon on the Quad — a drunken welcome from upperclassmen to the new freshmen — and check out the Greek scene with Sigma Alpha Epsilon's Back to School kickoff or Kappa Alpha's roaming Nomad Party.

The school has an active Greek life and on-campus social scene for just about anyone, but students will also explore off campus in the surrounding Bay Area.

2. Stanford athletic teams are dominant in a number of sports

Stanford University Women's Basketball Student Chiney Ogwumike

For the 20th year in a row, Stanford took home the NADCA Directors' Cup last year — given annually to the school with the most overall success in collegiate athletics.

Some highlights from 2013 include Stanford football's repeat win of the Pac-12 Conference title — in a season that had the Stanford Cardinals dominate rival Cal 63-13 in the "Big Game" — and women's tennis winning the NCAA national championship.

5 Reasons Why Stanford Had A Better 2013 Than Any College In The Country >>

3. Stanford has one of the most beautiful campuses in the country—and incredible weather year round 

Stanford University Campus Oval

Know affectionately as "The Farm," Stanford's more than 8,000 acre campus is one of the largest in the United States. Mission revival style architecture dominates Stanford's landscape, including its historic Main Quad.

Some of Stanford's most iconic structures include the non-denominational Memorial Church and Hoover Tower, the tallest building on campus.

The California university also has the added bonus of great weather — unlike elite east coast schools, it's nice out west most every day.

4. Students participate in lots of fun annual traditions

Stanford University Mascot Tree Marching Band Students

Stanford's most notorious tradition is probably Full Moon on the Quad, an inter-class kissing event where freshmen and seniors interlock lips on the night of the first full moon. As The New York Times reported last year, students will often wear "bingo boards" to keep track of the various types of kissers they're seeking out for the night.

The school also has a quirky tradition for its unofficial mascot — a "tree" (pictured above) — that changes every year based on a unique design by a member of Stanford's marching band.

5. Stanford academics are top-notch and professors are among the best in the fields

Alvin Roth Stanford University Professor Nobel

Stanford is home to some of the best professors in the world, with top academics in a range of subjects. The university currently counts several Nobel Prize winners among its faculty. Among its best academic programs are computer science, chemistry, and practically every engineering discipline.

In part due to its proximity to Silicon Valley, Stanford sometimes features courses taught by true tech luminaries, such as a current business school class led by ex-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

The 10 Best Professors At Stanford University >>

6. Stanford offers great value and helps students who need financial aid

stanford engineering

Stanford recently placed in the top five for U.S. News and World Report's latest list of the Top Value Colleges— a ranking that combines schools' affordability and education quality.

Although the school advertises its total cost at more than $60,000, with need-blind admissions and nearly 50% of students on some sort of financial aid, Stanford should be affordable for most every student. That is, if you can get in.

7. Stanford does a great job of encouraging student entrepreneurship

StartX Stanford Startup Accelerator

When Stanford students have a great idea for the next big company — something they have a history of — they don't have to look much farther than their own school for help. One avenue for funding is StartX, a Stanford student-started incubator that is now run by the university, offering money and support to accepted startups.

Stanford's alumni network is solid in pretty much every industry, but might be strongest in nearby Silicon Valley, where recent graduates are behind some of the buzziest companies.

Snapchat started life in CEO Evan Spiegel's Stanford fraternity house, while Clinkle founder Lucas Duplan had the largest seed round in history while still a student at the school. Stanford alumni are also at the helm of some of the biggest companies in the world, including Google and Yahoo!

9 Incredibly Successful Startups That Were Born At Stanford >>

The 25 Most Successful Stanford Business School Graduates >> 

8. Stanford alumni go on to make a lot of money.

Peter Thiel

After graduation, the average Stanford student will take home a salary of $62,900 in their early career, according to data from PayScale. By comparison, the average starting salary for a recent college grad nationwide hovers closer to $45,000.

Stanford is also one of the top five schools in the world for producing undergraduate alumni billionaires and only Harvard can count more millionaire alumni.

SEE ALSO: The 50 Best Colleges In America

FOLLOW US! Check Out BI Colleges On Facebook

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The Most Talked-About Food In Every State

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durian fruit

Researchers at the University of Arizona have released a study that reveals America’s food preferences based on the most commonly used Twitter hashtags.

Spotted on FirstWeFeast, the researchers analyzed 3.5 million tweets with food hashtags that were taken from Twitter’s API between October 2013 and May 2014. 

The original purpose of the study was to determine whether people's hashtags and discussion topics on Twitter can convey information about their community and health, like their likelihood of diabetes, their weight, and even their political preferences.

What they found was that our food preferences can actually reveal a lot about us. Diabetes sufferers, for example, were more likely to tweet about Mexican food, fried food, or bacon. Food also delineated party lines, with Democrats tweeting about vegan food, brunch, and the deli counter, while Republicans were all about lunch, snacks, and #party.

The researchers created visual maps of the food patterns they found as well, including which foods each state hashtagged the most on Twitter.

fav foods arizona university twitter results

Some of the findings were unsurprising, with Texans loving brisket and Wisconsinites favoring sauerkraut. But other states had bizarre results, like the spiky fruit durian being popular in Maine or Alaska loving to tweet about the herb tarragon.

It should be noted that these results don’t necessarily show the state’s favorite food, but rather the food that is most often hashtagged on Twitter. New York’s “prune” result, for example, was not about the fruit at all but is instead the name of a popular NYC restaurant.

fav foods by city arizona university twitter resultsThe researchers also filtered out the highest-weighted hashtag results for some major US cities where, it seems, everyone loves to get drunk. Mixed drinks were one of the most popular hashtags across the board (especially if they were bottomless), as was #wine, #foodie, and #brunch. 

fav meal arizona university twitter resultsLast but not least, researchers broke down the findings by region for the West, Midwest, South, and Northeast. The Midwest was most likely to tweet about breakfast and recipes, the Northeast loved its brunch, the South favored lunch as well as mixed drinks like bloody marys, and the West tweeted most about dinner and #foodporn.

You can read the paper online here or play with this interactive tool that allows you to create your own graphic visualizations.

SEE ALSO: The Best Food You Can Eat In Every State

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Here's What You Can Rent For $3,000 A Month In San Francisco

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SF apartments downtown

San Francisco's rental market is exploding.

According to a report released by online real estate marketplace Zumper last week, San Francisco is the most expensive place to rent a one-bedroom apartment. 

The study found that the median rent for one bedroom in San Francisco was $3,100, compared to $2,995 in New York City and $2,250 in Boston.

Our friends at Zumper helped us compile a list of one-bedroom apartments you can rent for around the median price in different San Francisco neighborhoods. 

This one-bedroom apartment is located on the 17th floor and has its own private balcony.

Rent: $3,100/month

Neighborhood: Civic Center

Located at the top of Cathedral Hill, you'll get spectacular views of the city. Amenities include a gym, indoor saltwater pool and sauna. 



In North Beach, this older one-bedroom apartment rents for $3,000.

Rent: $3,000/month

Neighborhood: North Beach

There may not be a washer, dryer, or a dishwasher, but there is 600 square feet of space to furnish.



In SOMA, $3,000 will get you a cozy but functional one-bedroom apartment down the street from Twitter and Square.

Rent: $3,074/month

Neighborhood: SOMA

There's ample closet space and a fitness center in the building.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






Calling All Marketing Executives: Please Take Our Short Survey

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mad men emmy poster don

Do you hold the keys to your company's marketing budget?

If so, we’d like to hear from you.

How are you allocating your advertising dollars? Is "native" just another buzzword or the next big thing? How firm is your grasp on the ever-changing programmatic landscape?

Whether you represent an agency, brand, publisher, or ad-tech firm, we’d like to hear from you. 

Take the survey by clicking here

Thanks in advance for your candid answers.

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Meet The 18-Year-Old Greek Princess Who Is Fashion’s Next ‘It’ Girl

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Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece tatler cover shoot

Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece is the latest royal to be swept up into the fashion world.

The 18-year-old daughter of Crown Princess Marie-Chantal and Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece is already becoming a known face on the cover of magazines and in the front rows of designer catwalks.

Olympia, who was born in New York and has lived in London since she was seven, does not have the royal responsibilities of most princesses — her grandfather’s reign was cut short after a messy coup in 1974. She has numerous royal relatives, however, including her father’s aunts Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen Sofia of Spain, as well as the Prince of Wales who is her cousin and godfather.

As you can expect, the young royal’s life is filled with travel, designer duds, and more. 

This is Olympia. The 18-year-old is considering attending NYU for her graduate studies, she told The Tatler, and lives in London with her parents and four younger brothers.

Her mother Marie-Chantal is a first-generation American heiress (daughter of billionaire Robert Warren Miller) and founder of an eponymous children’s clothing brand with celebrity customers like Kim Kardashian, the Beckhams, and Spanish royalty.

Her father is Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece and Prince of Denmark. When her parents married in 1995, it was a fairytale wedding that cost a reported $1.5 million and was attend by 1,300 guests.

Like any other posh royal, she has a love for horses. Here she is kissing her dad’s horse Pinkerton. 

The family also loves dogs. Among their brood, they own a Pomeranian, Boston Terrier, and Vizsla.  

When she was 17, Olympia had a three weeks’ work experience in the couture department of Dior. She hopes to have a career in fashion or photography, according to her Tatler interview.

Olympia drives a cute little Fiat.

Her globe-trotting family takes the best vacations. Olympia posts awesome travel pictures of her trips, like this visit to the Pantheon in Rome, Italy.

Here she is at a gorgeous vacation home in Greece (she is a Greek Princess, after all).

Her family also went to the Harbour Island in the Bahamas this summer.

And Ibiza.

And Capri — and those were just a few of the family’s vacations this year.

Olympia also attends all the cool fashion week shows. Here she is at Diane Von Furstenberg's NYFW with the Hilton sisters.

And another picture of her sitting front row with Emma Watson at Valentino.

Olympia has become a fashion darling. She’s currently shooting an upcoming spread for W Magazine.

Her family is even on a first-name basis with Ana Wintour. Olympia’s mother made the flower girl shoes for Anna Wintour’s son’s wedding.

She has appeared in Vanity Fair Spain in the past with her mom. 

And even covered the British society journal, Tatler. 

Chances are we can expect to see a whole lot more of Olympia. You can keep up with her and her mom Marie-Chantal on Instagram.

DON'T MISS: Instagram Pictures Reveal What Life Is Like For The 19-Year-Old Daughter Of Billionaire Roman Abramovich

SEE ALSO: 26 Regular People Who Married Into Royalty

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The Sexiest CEOs Alive!

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elon muskA chief executive officer is the face of a brand. He or she announces earnings, attends events, and leads the company into the future. But some companies' faces are hotter than others.

We've scoured the world to find the sexiest CEOs around the globe.

Sexiness, we will remind you, is a subjective measure. It's not just about looks. Sex appeal is the culmination of a person's success, power, ambition, charisma, altruism, fashion sense, and style. We also considered how sexy and buzzworthy the company is.

For this ranking, we have only included CEOs of companies with at least 100 employees.

50. Gina Bianchini, Mightybell

The self-proclaimed theater nerd and Stanford grad is an expert in social networking. Before Mightybell, Bianchini and Marc Andreessen co-founded Ning, a platform that lets users create and manage their own social networks.

Today, the 41-year-old is still top dog in the "Internet of People" space. Mightybell is a platform for creating your own smarter, more personalized social network among small groups.



49. Safra Catz and Mark Hurd, Oracle

When Larry Ellison announced that he would be stepping down as CEO of Oracle, Safra Catz and Mark Hurd were quick to step up, both as CEOs of the large software company.

The Israeli-born Catz, 52, joined Oracle in 1999 as a senior vice president and was serving as a president and CFO of Oracle when she was named a CEO. She's often cited as being the highest-paid female executive. Hurd, 57, formerly chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard, is also a president at Oracle. He joined the company in 2010.



48. Charles Phillips, Infor

The former co-president and director of Oracle Corporation, Phillips has risen from the ashes of an executive power play scandal. His new enterprise software company now poses a huge threat to Ellison's Oracle, as Infor hit almost $2.8 billion in revenues in 2013.

The 55-year-old is described as being "tall (6' 3"), graceful, and impeccably dressed" and poised to become "the 'Steve Jobs' of business software."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






A Simple Reason Why Fewer And Fewer Americans Are Getting Married

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fixed steady job pew research chart

America's young adults aren't rushing to tie the knotand findings from a new Pew Research Center report suggest that couples are not getting married because 78% of single women want a partner with a "steady job."

Unfortunately, with considerable changes in the labor market, the number of available employed men is a rapidly shrinking demographic.

Wendy Wang and Kim Parker from the Pew Research Center write:

As the share of never-married adults has climbed, the economic circumstances faced by both men and women have changed considerably.

Labor force participation among men, particularly young men, has fallen significantly over the past several decades. In 1960, 93% of men ages 25 to 34 were in the labor force and by 2012 that share had fallen to 82%.

And among young men who are employed, wages have fallen over the past few decades. For men ages 25 to 34, median hourly wages have declined 20% since 1980 (after adjusting for inflation).

Over the same period, the wage gap between men and women has narrowed. In 2012, among workers ages 25 to 34, women’s hourly earnings were 93% those of men. In 1980, the ratio was less than 70%.

According to the report based on census data, when millennials reach their mid-40s to mid-50s, approximately 25% of them (a record high share) will most likely still be single.

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Michelin Reveals The Best Restaurants In NYC Where You Can Eat For Under $40

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bar primi pasta dish

Michelin's 10th New York City restaurant guide comes out October 1st, but the company has released its annual list of "Bib Gourmands" Wednesday.

The Bib Gourmand restaurant winners are widely considered the best and most affordable restaurants in NYC. To qualify, establishments must not only cook delicious fare, but also serve two courses and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less (tax and gratuity not included).

This year's New York City list has 126 restaurants with new eateries like Andrew Carmellini’s new Bar Primi making the cut.

“While the famous Michelin stars remain the most celebrated international distinction in the Michelin Guide, the Bib Gourmand is a highly desired honor among restaurateurs and one that is recognized by the many people who covet quality food at a reasonable price,” the company explained in a press release.

Check out the full list of restaurants and their locations below.

restaurants 1

michelin bib gourmand restaurants 2

   

SEE ALSO: The Best 'Cheap Eats' In New York City

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Lululemon's Pants Aren't Worth That Much More Than The Competition

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Lulu vs. Atheta

Lululemon Athletica charges about $20 more for a pair of basic yoga pants than Gap Inc.'s Athleta simply because it knows women will pay for the brand.

Lululemon's $98 pair looks almost exactly like Athleta's $79 pantsThe materials, a mixture of nylon and Lycra, are also the same.

The Lululemon "Groove" pants are made of the brand's own patented "Full On Luon," which is 81% percent nylon and 19% Lycra.

Athleta also makes its yoga pants with its own patented material — called Pilayo — which is 88% nylon and 12% Lycra.

Both are advertised as stretchy, breathable, and moisture-wicking.

The only real difference we found between the two pairs of pants is that Lululemon's has a hidden waistband pocket. So is that pocket worth $20?

Probably not, which has led some analysts to wonder whether Lululemon can keep its prices so high as the yoga apparel market gets increasingly crowded. 

"Our biggest concern [with Lululemon's business] lies with the flood of new competition," Morningstar analyst Bridget Weishaar wrote in a recent research note. "With few barriers to entry and new, well-capitalized entrants possessing the capability to innovate and grow quickly, we think pricing pressure will increase."

Nike, Under Armour and Reebok sell comparable yoga pants for $95, $59.99, and $38, respectively. Nike's pants are 86% nylon and 14% spandex, Under Armour's are a mixture of nylon and elastane, and Reebok's are 90% cotton and 10% spandex.

YogapantsLululemon has long had a loyal following that has helped the company fend off the pressures of growing competition. But that loyalty has begun to erode, according Weishaar.

"Lulu has now fallen victim to its success," she wrote. "With yoga increasing in popularity, active-wear commanding some of the best pricing premiums in the apparel space, and athletic garb increasingly worn for purposes other than exercise, the formerly niche market has become mainstream, and competition is flooding the space.

"Add to that a diverse array of company-specific challenges including supply-chain management, brand image, and management troubles, and we have the perfect storm pressuring stock performance."

Lululemon suffered a huge blow in March of last year when it had to recall 17% of its pants for being too sheer. Since then, its market value has shrunk from $10 billion to $6 billion.

Spelling more trouble for the company, customer reviews for Lululemon's basic yoga pant — the "Groove" — have turned increasingly sour. On Lululemon's website, the pants have three stars out of five based on hundreds of customer reviews. Athleta's pants, by comparison, have a customer rating of 4.3 stars out of five.

In the most recent reviews for the Lululemon pants, a majority of customers complained that the material feels cheaper than the brand's original yoga pant, and several said their pants are see-through and have begun pilling.

"They are SEE-THROUGH. As in I could see my purple underwear through them perfectly. And no I wasn't wearing a small size and no I would not suggest sizing up because then these pants would fall off," wrote one reviewer. "For the money one pays for these pants, you'd expect better quality!"

Another reviewer lamented, "They are so comfy but are pilling like crazy," while a third said, "I found they stretched out in the waist and hips and crotch area to the point they're unwearable in public."

A fourth customer wrote, "They are thinner than my last pair, have pilled all in the thighs and stretch out when I wear them! ...I feel like I wasted my money."

Unfortunately for those unhappy customers, the retailer doesn't accept any returns after two weeks, and only accepts merchandise with original tags that has never been worn. Athleta, on the other hand, accepts returns at any time, even if the items have been worn.

"With so many options out there, we think Lululemon will be forced to keep its prices in a competitive range or to justify higher prices with a technically differentiated product," Weishaar wrote.

SEE ALSO: Lululemon Had An Awesome Response After Screwing Up A Customer's Order

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How iOS 8 Completely Changed The Way You Use Your iPhone

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Apple rolled out its new operating system, iOS 8, in conjunction with the brand-new iPhone 6. While it may not look a lot different on the outside, there are all sorts of hidden features. Check them out.

Produced By Matt Johnston.
 
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London Has Finally Fixed The Most Annoying Thing About The Tube

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Starting in 2015, certain lines on the London Underground will operate all through the night, joining cities like New York and Berlin that already have 24-hour service. Even though the all-night tubes will only run on Fridays and Saturdays while largely serving central, west, and north London, the Night Tube service is still a welcome improvement for locals and visitors who enjoy staying out after midnight, currently the time when most underground trains stop running.

Transport for London released a map of the Night Tube service, which will go into effect on Sept. 12, 2015, just in time for the Rugby World Cup in England. There will be six trains each hour on the entire Jubilee (gray), Victoria (light blue), and most of the Piccadilly (dark blue), Central (red) and Northern (black) lines.

See here:

London Night Tube

London already has night buses that run after hours, but this mode of transport tends to be less efficient than the rails because there are so many stops on each bus route, with each drop-off placed fairly close together.

According to managing director of London Underground Mike Brown, half a million people in London currently use the Tube after 10 p.m. on the weekend. The 24-hour train service will almost definitely be a boon for London's late-night scene. 

For reference, here's the what the regular day service Tube map looks like. There are clearly large splotches of London that won't have Night Tube service. 

tube medium zoned

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Everything You Need To Know About The Best Colleges In The US

Facebook Likes Can Predict Intimate Personal Details With A Scary Degree Of Accuracy

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Colbert ReportIn his new book, mathematician and OKCupid founder Christian Rudder explores how data correlations can reveal deeply personal characteristics with a scary degree of accuracy. And it seems Facebook's like button has particularly strong predictive power.

The book, "Dataclysm: Who We Are When We Think No One's Looking," cites a 2012 study from the UK which found that using only Facebook likes, researchers could accurately predict race, sexuality, intelligence, and political affiliation.

In their article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America from April 2013, the researchers wrote:

[T]he best predictors of high intelligence include “Thunderstorms,” “The Colbert Report,” “Science,” and “Curly Fries,” whereas low intelligence was indicated by “Sephora,” “I Love Being A Mom,” “Harley Davidson,” and “Lady Antebellum.” Good predictors of male homosexuality included “No H8 Campaign,” “Mac Cosmetics,” and “Wicked The Musical,” whereas strong predictors of male heterosexuality included “Wu-Tang Clan,” “Shaq,” and “Being Confused After Waking Up From Naps.” 

The likes could also indicate whether a person's parents had divorced in their youth. Researchers reported that children of divorced parents are more likely to be preoccupied with relationships on Facebook, liking pages such as “If I’m with you then I’m with you I don’t want anybody else.”

Arby's, fast food, curly fries, french fries, food

"You know science is headed to undiscovered country when someone can hear your parents fighting in the click-click-click of a mouse," Rudder writes.

The researchers seemed surprised to find that in some cases, fewer than 5% of correlated likes had any direct apparent relevance to the characteristic in question. For example, while liking Barack Obama was obviously indicative of the person being a Democrat, it was also notably popular among Christians, African Americans, and gay men and women.

Correlation Is Not Causation

To be clear, the research doesn't suggest that eating curly fries makes you smarter or that straight people are naturally more confused after waking up from naps; it only indicates a correlation between the two.

To see how accurate these predictions are, take a look at the chart below from the original report. The number represents the likelihood out of 1 that the prediction is correct.

 

Facebook likes research chart

 

Rudder notes that this could have significant privacy implications for job applicants, with employers able to reasonably accurately assess someone's IQ without a test or any consent, based purely on their Facebook likes.

Rudder also notes that other personal information would likely yield similarly telling data; examples include cellphone metadata, credit card purchase data, email keywords, and location data.

Most people lack a comprehensive understanding of how much personal information such data collection can yield, according to Rudder.

"Because so much happens with so little public notice, the lay understanding of data is inevitably many steps behind the reality," he writes.

SEE ALSO: Discovery Is Becoming More And More Ridiculous With Its Fake Documentaries

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9 Crazy Facts About Larry Ellison's Hawaiian Island

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lanai island hawaii

Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison — who stepped down from his position as CEO on Sept. 18 — bought a 97% stake in the Hawaiian island of Lanai in 2012. The reported sale price was a jaw-dropping $300 million. 

The transition of ownership has been controversial among residents, as the island has played a number of roles in a fascinating history stretching hundreds of years.

We've rounded up some of the most interesting facts you may not have known about this tiny Hawaiian island. 

1. Lanai is known as the "Pineapple Island" because it once was home to a plantation that produced 75% of the world's pineapples.

In 1922, pineapple tycoon James Drummond Dole purchased most of the island of Lanai for $1.1 million, an enormous sum of money for the time. He plowed the fields, created a harbor, and laid out a small town in the island's center to house Dole employees. According to the New York Times, the island was exporting 65,000 tons of pineapples a year by 1930.

Production ended in 1992, a few years after ownership of the island had transferred to David Murdock, who had acquired Castle & Cooke and Dole Foods' holdings in Lanai. Much of Lanai City has retained the vintage feel it acquired when Dole created his company town.

lanai

2. Before that, it was owned by sheep-farming Mormons. 

Mormons started settling on Lanai in the 1860s, led by a controversial figurehead named Walter Murray Gibson. He built a Mormon colony in the interior of the island, fraudulently paying for the land with the church's money though he put the titles in his own name. Gibson was later excommunicated, and many Mormons moved to Lai'e, where they built a still-thriving community. 

3. According to local Hawaiian legend, Lanai was ruled by the god of nightmares for thousands of years.

lanai

Legend has it that a teenage chief from Maui was sent to Lanai to be punished for his bad behavior. In retaliation, he killed the nightmare god who ruled Lanai. Then he lit a fire, which the people in Maui saw and interpreted as a signal that it was safe to come to Lanai. 

One of the most popular tourist attractions on Lanai is the Garden of the Gods, an interesting red lava formation in the northern part of the island. Hawaiian legend says that the formations were created by gods who had dropped rocks from the sky while tending their gardens.

4. Lanai is the sixth-largest of the Hawaiian islands, but only about 3,200 people live there.

lanai road

Most of the population lives in Lanai City, a small collection of buildings in the center of the island. Lanai City is really the only area of the island that can be classified as a town, and many of the island's businesses are centered around the town square. There's only one school, Lanai High and Elementary School, where residents attend kindergarten through 12th grade.

5. There are no traffic lights anywhere on the island.

Lanai is, for the most part, 141 square miles of  rocky coasts and barren scrub. There's only a total of 30 miles of roads, and not a single traffic light on the entire island.

6. There are few natural predators on the island, so some animal populations grow unchecked.

lanai cats

In one memorable example from an upcoming low-budget documentary on Lanai, French-Canadian filmmaker Henry Jolicoeur visits an animal-rescue shelter that houses up to 380 feral cats. According to an employee at the shelter, the cats have no natural predators on Lanai, so they continue to multiply.

7. Ellison owns a third of all the houses and apartments on the island.four seasons lanai

When Ellison bought 97% of the island in 2012, he took over pretty much everything. That includes small, local businesses — restaurants, shops, galleries, and markets — and large businesses like the two Four Seasons hotels on the island. He owns two golf courses, the community swimming pool, the water company, and a cemetery. He also owns nearly a third of all of the island's housing. The rest is owned by the government.

8. All public transportation is supplied by the island's hotels.

Lanai is small enough that there's no established public transportation system. There's a ferry that can shuttle visitors between the island and Maui, located just eight miles to the east, but otherwise guests have to rely on cars or hotel vans to get around. 

9. Ellison reportedly bought out fellow tech billionaire Bill Gates.

Ellison isn't the only tech billionaire to have an interest in the island. Bill and Melinda Gates got married here on New Year's Day in 1994, reportedly during a ceremony that took place on the 17th hole of the Four Seasons' golf course, which looks out over the Pacific Ocean. The ceremony was so secretive that the couple booked all of the rooms at the hotel to keep reporters from coming. Gates had reportedly expressed interest in purchasing Lanai before Ellison snatched it up. 

SEE ALSO: How Life Has Changed For The 3,200 People Who Live On Larry Ellison's Hawaiian Island

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12 Teddy Roosevelt Quotes On Courage, Leadership, And Success

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roosevelt

Among US presidents, Teddy Roosevelt stands out. He's the only one to win both the Nobel Prize and the Medal of Honor. Plus, he busted up corporate trusts, fathered the Panama Canal, and set aside 230 million acres of land for public good, kickstarting the American conservation movement.

Born in Manhattan in 1858, Roosevelt served as lieutenant colonel in the Spanish-American War, and then came back to New York to serve as governor. 

In 1901, a 43-year-old Roosevelt became the youngest president after President McKinley was assassinated. He'd hold the office until 1909.

Roosevelt was also a master orator. We combed through his speeches, interviews, and letters for a few of his most blazing turns of phrase.

On inaction

"To sit home, read one's favorite paper, and scoff at the misdeeds of the men who do things is easy, but it is markedly ineffective. It is what evil men count upon the good men's doing."

[The Higher Life Of American Cities, December 1895]



On courage

"A soft, easy life is not worth living, if it impairs the fibre of brain and heart and muscle. We must dare to be great; and we must realize that greatness is the fruit of toil and sacrifice and high courage... For us is the life of action, of strenuous performance of duty; let us live in the harness, striving mightily; let us rather run the risk of wearing out than rusting out."

[Campaign address, October 1898]



On work

"I don't pity any man who does hard work worth doing. I admire him. I pity the creature who does not work, at whichever end of the social scale he may regard himself as being."

[Speech, September 1902]



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19 Stunning Photos Show Why Autumn Is Crisp, Cozy, And Awesome

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With Tuesday's equinox, we've entered into autumn. The season is marked by several telltale signs: The air cools, the light dims, sweaters appear, and so do ghosts.

These are but a few of the arguments for why fall is the best season. If we missed yours, tell us in the comments.

1. Because forests turn technicolor.

autumn forest

2. Because crunching leaves is the most fun you'll have all year. 

leaves autumn family

3. Because the sun is bearable, yet bright.

autumn sun

4. Because football.

lambeau

5. Because whether you're talking cardigan, hoodie, or crew neck, you look good in sweaters. 

sweater girl fall

6. Because Halloween is easily the most awesome of holidays. But beware of ghosts.

Halloween

7. Because Thanksgiving is great, even if it gets a little crazy sometimes.

thanksgiving

8. Because we all need to spend more time with quilts.

quilt

9. Because people go crazy for pumpkin spice lattes. 

pumpkin spice latte

10. Because pumpkins are really where it's at, especially giant ones.  

giant pumpkin

11. Because pumpkins turn into pie.

8210516228_93f9639942_o

12. Because we can't forget the rest of the squash family, who are equally awesome.

squash

13. Because apple picking rules as much as this kid's shades.

apple picking

14. Because apples turn into cider.

apple cider

15. Because cider turns into donuts.

cider donut kid

16. Because fall makes cooking easy, since crockpot = win.

crockpot

17. Because fall style is awesome. Need proof? Consider the universe within corduroy. 

corduroy

18. Because scarves make your life better.

scarf guitar fall

19. Because, when we really get down to it, it's all about the leaves.

leaf autumn

SEE ALSO: 24 Reasons Sweden Is The Most Delightful Country On Earth

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