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Here's how you can get your money back if an item you buy goes on sale

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It can be extremely frustrating to purchase a clothing item only to see its price significantly drop when it goes on sale a short time later.

Thankfully, that money you spent doesn't have to go to waste.

A wide selection of stores offers customers what is known as a "price adjustment," which means that the store will give you the difference in money between what you originally paid for the item and its current sale price, as long as you make sure to hang on to the receipt. 

Jeanette Pavini, a savings expert at Coupons.com, told Business Insider that many people often don't realize the policy is available, but that it can help to save a good chunk of money in the long run. 

"I use them all the time," Pavini said.

shopping

Nordstrom,Macy's, J. Crew, and AllSaints are just a few of the stores that offer price adjustments. 

There is a time limit for getting a price adjustment, though, which ranges anywhere from seven to 14 days, depending on each company's policy.

The terms vary from store to store, so it's best to ask an employee what their policy is.

SEE ALSO: 11 deadly style sins every guy should avoid making

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How much sex you should be having in a healthy relationship

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How much do you know about your love life? We won't pry, but we will give you some statistics about how and when couples typically have the best sex.

Happify, a website and app that uses science-based interactive activities aimed at making you happier, created this graphic to keep you in the know about sex and happiness. Without further ado, here were their best recommendations and fun facts about the intimate act: (Mobile users, if you're having trouble the infographic click here!)Happify Sex and Happiness graphic

SEE ALSO: Science says couples in lasting relationships typically wait this long to start having sex

DON'T MISS: This simple technique can help you navigate stressful and uncomfortable situations

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NOW WATCH: How a 'sex schedule' could save your relationship

Watch the world’s largest cruise ship being built

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When The Harmony of the Seas is finished, it will be the world's largest cruise ship, and able to carry 5,497 passengers. It'll also have robotic bartenders, 10-story water slides, and virtual balconies for those rooms not facing the water.

Story by Jacob Shamsian and editing by Chelsea Pineda

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15 healthy eating habits that work according to scientists

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sugar

With options as varied as the Paleo diet and the 21-day challenge, there's a fad diet for practically everyone.

But as fun as the diets may seem, it's often difficult to stick with them for more than a few weeks, and as a result few people actually see any long-term results.

Rather than trying one of those, here are 15 science-backed habits that can help boost your health and may help with weight loss as well.

RELATED: 11 fitness 'truths' that are doing more harm than good

NEXT: An exercise scientist told us the biggest mistake people make when they decide to eat healthy

Eat food you enjoy.

It may seem as if the easiest way to lose weight is to stop eating the foods you overindulge in. But this can be short-sighted, Lisa Sasson, a New York University nutrition professor, told Business Insider. "If you pick a diet with foods you don't like, you're doomed to fail," Sasson said. Food is a pleasurable experience; if you cut out all the foods you like, you probably won't stick to your plan.

And as studiescontinue to show, coming up with an eating regimen you can stick with is critical.



Portion sizes are key.

There's a psychological component to eating, especially when you have weight loss in mind. Being conscious of losing weight and sticking to the right portion sizes is half the battle, Sasson said. This phenomenon is why most people in studies lose weight, regardless of whether they're in the group assigned a special diet. Simply being studied can lead to people being more conscious of what they're eating.

But overall, keeping an eye on portion sizes is a great way to help avoid overeating— especially with portion sizes rising since the 1970s.



Skip the restaurant and pack your lunch.

Portion sizes in American restaurants have increased by as much as three times in the past 20 years, and it is changing what we think of as a normal meal.

"One way to keep calories in check is to keep food portions no larger than the size of your fist," Elizabeth G. Nabel, director of NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, writes.

If you're trying to control your portion sizes, it is best to pack your own lunch because restaurants will give you more calories than you need.



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There’s a very simple reason why McDonald’s hamburgers don’t rot

12 adventurous people who made extreme life changes to save money

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Housing — whether it's renting an apartment in a major city, living in student dorms, or financing a home — tends to be a big money suck.

But it doesn't have to be.

From living in company parking lots to making 713-mile commutes overseas, people all over the world have found creative ways to live on the cheap. We aren't recommending you take these tactics ... unless you're ready for a serious lifestyle change of the biggest kind. 

Here are 12 of the more extreme measures people have taken to save on the costs of housing:

SEE ALSO: A 23-year-old Google employee lives in a truck in the company's parking lot and saves 90% of his income

A Google employee lives in a 128-square-foot truck in the company parking lot.

The 23-year-old software engineer's one recurring cost is truck insurance ($121 a month) — and he's saving 90% of his income by avoiding an overpriced San Francisco apartment.

He's used the savings to pay down student loans, get a head start on investing, and set aside money for his goal of traveling the world in a few years.

Read more about Brandon's story.



A San Francisco woman is living on a 136-square-foot sailboat.

Sarah Carter, 23, opted out of settling into an outlandishly priced San Francisco apartment and moved onto a sailboat instead.

She pays for electricity and water, as well as a small monthly docking fee, which includes internet access. Her housing costs add up to about $350 a month — not bad considering the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco is $3,500 a month.

Read more about Sarah's story.



A college student decided to build a 145-square-foot tiny home instead of pay to live in a dorm.

Joel Weber took one look at the cost of residence halls at the University of Texas at Austin (about $1,135 per month) and knew dorm life wasn't for him.

To save on student housing, he constructed a tiny house in a friend's backyard for less than $15,000. He now pays nothing in rent and plans to graduate debt-free.

Read more about Joel's story.



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What marijuana does to your body and brain

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Marijuana, best-known for its "feel-good" effects and touted for its ability to relieve various symptoms of illness and disease, can also be damaging, especially when overused.

When weed's active ingredient, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), hits the brain, it causes brain cells to release the feel-good chemical dopamine. Dopamine is a part of the brain's reward system — it's the same chemical that makes us feel good when we do enjoyable things such as eating and having sex.

Pot also contains cannabidiol (CBD), and this chemical — while not responsible for getting you high — is thought to be responsible for many of marijuana's therapeutic effects.

Most of THC's effects take place in the brain, where it interacts with receptors on brain cells called cannabinoid receptors. Our bodies naturally produce compounds that activate these same receptors, but THC co-opts these pathways to produce its effects. Depending on how much and how often you use, marijuana's effects can vary widely.

bi_graphics_what happens to your body and mind when you're high

READ MORE: 4% of people hear music in a completely different way — and it tells us something fascinating about the brain

SEE ALSO: One type of legal drug is killing far more people than heroin — and deaths just hit record numbers

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The 30 most fun colleges in America

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Syracuse University fans

College may be laden with papers, exams, and long nights in the library, but for many, it's also chock-full of raging parties, intense school spirit, and unforgettable memories with friends. 

To determine which schools have nailed the formula for fun, we looked at 12 categories from The Princeton Review's 2016 college rankings, including lists like "Party Schools" and "Lots of Beer." Since alcohol isn't the only way to have fun, we also included schools that placed on lists like "Happiest Students" and "Best Quality of Life." We then combined these rankings to determine which schools are the most fun overall. You can read the full methodology here.

Based on our results, the typical "fun" school is a large public university with a strong Greek system and competitive athletics. However, several smaller schools with close-knit communities earned spots on the list as well.

Read on to see which 30 schools across the US know how to have the most fun. 

SEE ALSO: The 50 colleges where students work the hardest

DON'T MISS: The best college in every state

30. Loyola Marymount University

Los Angeles, California

Loyola Marymount's Los Angeles location puts students at the forefront of LA culture — not to mention prime access to the beach as well. The warm climate makes hiking, tanning, and enjoying the sun possible year-round.

The school also has strong showings in both Greek life and community-service organizations, with students eager to get involved in their community. 



29. Gonzaga University

Spokane, Washington

Despite a rainy climate, Gonzaga students find plenty of ways to have fun, both indoors and out. During the winter, skiing and snowboarding become popular pastimes, either nearby at Mount Spokane or further away in Montana or Canada.

Nothing's bigger than basketball season, however. Students race across campus and camp out for days to secure tickets, packing the McCarthey Center during every home game. 



28. Wabash College

Crawfordsville, Indiana

Sports are a huge part of life at Wabash College— more than half of the student body plays on one of the school's Division III athletic teams. In return, the all-male campus exudes school spirit for both NCAA and intramural games. 



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The most expensive homes you can buy in 30 countries

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Greece

Ready to play fantasy real estate? Let's take a jaunt around the world to check out the most expensive homes you can buy in 30 different countries, from Argentina to the U.A.E. 

Point2Homes, an international real estate listings database, compiled a list of the priciest properties in far-flung locations across the globe. From a full-scale palace in Morocco to a seaside getaway in Greece, these mansions don't come cheap — but they will wow your houseguests. 

Take a look, below.

SEE ALSO: Go inside a bonkers $195 million Florida mansion that's the second-most expensive home for sale in the US

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ARGENTINA: This 11-bedroom Spanish colonial style villa on a 400-acre farm outside of Buenos Aires is a fully-realized estate, with tennis court, pool, and even a nine-hole golf course — not to mention the livestock — all for $10 million.



AUSTRALIA: For $21 million, this private, contemporary waterfront mansion in Perth has five bedrooms and a full floor dedicated to entertaining.



BAHAMAS: This $45 million Harbour Island getaway is the complete setup: two sets of 400-foot private beachfront, 10+ bedrooms spread across multiple villas, and all the amenities you could dream up for a tropical paradise.



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The 11 best new apps you might have missed

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girls texting walking beach

With millions of apps out there and more launching every day, it can be tough to keep up.

To help you find some apps that are fun and make your life a little easier, we've collected the best apps from the past few months.

From fun ways to stay up-to-date on the world news to an app that can transform your photos, you're bound to find something you'll enjoy.

Pixelmator is a subscription-free Photoshop in your pocket.

If you want a fully fledged photo editor on the go, Pixelmator is one of the best. If you want to edit images beyond the crop and one-tap retouch in the photos app, Pixelmator gives you access to a wide variety of brushes and desktop-class tools including a phenomenal repair tool. A recent update has added a new pixel brush as well as support for the Apple Pencil and 3D Touch, in addition to making the app snappier.

Price: $4.99 (iOS)



FaceSwap lets you trade faces with a friend.

If you've wondered what your life would be like if you and your friend switched faces, FaceSwap will scratch that itch. FaceSwap uses your camera to intelligently find the two faces in the frame, and then switches them. The results are as impressive as they are often hilarious or creepy.

Price: $0.99 (iOS)



Anchor wants to be the Twitter of spoken audio.

Anchor is a bit like Twitter for bite-size audio podcasts. Basically you create a mini podcast and people respond with their own audio snippets, starting a "conversation." To record audio you just hit a button and then talk.

Price: Free (iOS)



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This crazy invention involves vaping, magnets, and bubbles

These guys built themselves a floating hot tub — here's how

47 stunning pools around the world to dive into that have incredible views

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Zemi Beach

Beaches are one thing, but the blissful serenity of a perfect pool is quite another.

Surrounded by mountains, oceans, deserts, and lakes, here are 44 pools worth diving into — and gazing out from.

Between an underground grotto in Italy, a three-tiered pool off the white sands of the British Virgin Islands, and an ocean-water pool carved from lava rock in Hawaii, you'll find somewhere aquatic to spark your fancy. Taking a dip never looked so good. 

Earlier versions of this post were written by Talia Avakian and Sara Bower. 

SEE ALSO: The best tropical beaches in the world

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Swimmers lounging in the three tiered infinity-edge pools at Sandos Cancun resort are served by in-pool bartenders, making it hard to leave.



The Hotel Haciende Na Xamena resort in Ibiza, Spain, is suspended 180 meters in the air at the top of a cliff to offer amazing panoramic mountain and sea views.

Find out more about Hotel Haciende Na Xamena here >



The Oberoi Udaivilas in Udaipur, India, has a gorgeous pool that guests can swim in directly from their private rooms.

Find out more about The Oberoi Udaivilas here >



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How luxury shoppers are changing the face of retail

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bii luxury

Luxury shoppers are highly coveted customers for brands and retailers. The top 10% of US household earners (those taking home $120,000 or more annually) account for approximately half of all consumer expenditures.

This demographic’s growing preference for online shopping is changing the face of luxury retail, and it has significant implications for how brands target luxury consumers.

In a new report from BI Intelligence, we profile the luxury shopper and take a close look at the spending habits and preferences of high-income earners — including how and where they shop.

 

Here are some of the key takeaways:

  • Discretionary spending among the wealthy is growing faster than for the average US consumer. Discretionary spending among those earning $120,000 a year or more is expected to increase 6.6% in 2016, reaching $406 billion, according to YouGov. Among the top 1%, it's expected to rise 10%. By contrast, discretionary spending for the average US consumer dropped 1% between 2014 and 2015.
  • Wealthy consumers are expected to spend the most next year on fashion, travel, and dining. Among these categories, spending on fashion (specifically, apparel, accessories, and handbags) will grow the most, increasing 6.9% to $37.4 billion (roughly 9% of total discretionary spending). 
  • Luxury brands are over-allocating ad spend to print media. The seven largest US luxury brands collectively spent $133 million last year on holiday ad spending, 57% of which was allocated to magazine ads, according to the Shullman Research Center. But among luxury shoppers, recall rates are higher for digital ads.
  • There are signs that luxury shopping is less brand- and status-oriented than it once was. Luxury shoppers, like the average consumer, enjoy the convenience and low prices of online retailers like Amazon vs. shopping via official brand sites. Luxury shopping may become even more price-sensitive as millennials age. 

 

In full, the report:

  • Sizes the market for personal luxury goods, by country.
  • Measures the effectiveness of luxury marketing channels.
  • Breaks down ad spend among luxury brands.
  • Identifies where luxury consumers shop online and in-store.

 

Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:

  1. Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now
  2. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >> Purchase & Download Now

 


 

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Spend the final 2 minutes of your shower doing this simple trick to get healthier skin and hair

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ice bucket challenge, amazingthings

We're not going to tell you you're showering wrong — when it comes to being naked, best practices are clearly a personal preference.

But there is a way to shower optimally, for better looking skin and hair when you step out. And the trick is so simple, you can add it to your everyday routine.

It goes like this: before you step out of the shower, douse your skin and hair in cold water for 2-5 minutes.

The theory, according to GQ, is that the the steam from your boiling shower is bad for your skin and hair, and the heat and moisture actually dries out your skin. Cold water, on the other hand, can help seal the moisture in and improve blood flow, providing numerous benefits, but not the least of which is healthy-looking skin and hair.

And there's some truth to that, according to an interview GQ did with dermatologist Dr. Terrence Keaney.

“Cold temperature decreases transepidermal water loss, contributing to better skin hydration,” Keaney told GQ. What this means is that it draws less moisture and essential oils away from the skin, keeping it where it belongs.

Cold water also constricts blood vessels, decreasing the look of redness and irritation on your skin. As for your hair, dermatologist Jessica Krant told the Huffington Post that cold water can affect the hair by decreasing inflammation around hair follicles, flatting them against the scalp, and making your hair look healthier and stronger.

But cold water can also make you healthier. According to Keaney, it "redirects blood flow to deep blood vessels, improving blood flow to the heart" with the resulting effect of jump-starting your metabolism. Some studies have also suggested, according to Medical Daily, that cold water also increases heart rate, speeds up muscle recovery, and stimulates weight loss. 

For the more morning-adverse among us, it also provides a more immediate benefit: it wakes you up!

To get these benefits, one must run cold water (no lower than 61 degrees Farenheit, since any lower may be dangerous) over you skin and hair for about 2-5 minutes.

And there you have it: A better looking, healthier you and all it took was a little bit of suffering in the shower.

SEE ALSO: You're probably using your deodorant all wrong

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There's a surprisingly simple way meditation appears to change the brain

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meditation

Sit down. Close your eyes. Feel your chest rise and fall with each inhaled and exhaled breath.

For decades, researchers have suggested that this simple practice — known as mindfulness meditation — can have health benefits that range from banal to life-changing. Some occasional meditators report being a little less stressed every once in a while, for example, while other more regular practitioners say it helps them succeed in challenging situations.

And we just got a big step closer to finding out how a few moments of peace may contribute to these benefits: First by appearing to strengthen communication between two areas of the brain involved in self-control and internal focus and by reducing levels of a substance in the blood linked to stress.

A new study published this month and reported in the New York Times shows for the first time that when we meditate — independent of whether we're expert meditators or total newbies — the practice appears to produce measurable changes in two key ways:

1. More communication between two brain regions involved in self-control and focus

  • The left prefrontal cortex, which tends to be active when we're exerting self-control, such as picking the Greek yogurt instead of the glazed donut at your local breakfast joint
  • The default-mode network, which tends to be more active when we're focusing on internal thoughts

2. Lower levels of a stress-linked substance called IL-6 that's been linked with inflammation and can sometimes be used as an early indicator of later health problems.

For their study, associate professor of psychology and the director of the Health and Human Performance Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University J. David Creswell and his team studied 35 unemployed people. (Not surprisingly, they all reported feeling stressed-out.) Then, Creswell split the volunteers into two groups. One of the groups got a 3-day formal mindfulness meditation training at a retreat center, while the other got a 3-day "fake" training where they were taught to distract themselves from stressful feelings by stretching and making jokes.

When their three days were up, people in both groups said they felt better.

But scans of their brains and tests of their blood suggested some critical differences between the group that really learned to meditate and the one that was merely distracted.

In the real meditators, the researchers found more activity among portions of their brains involved in focus and self-control. And four months later, the meditators still displayed lower blood levels of the stress-linked substance (even though only a few of them said they'd continued to stick to a meditation practice).

This finding is bolstered by previous research, which suggests that meditation can have the following benefits:

Boosting our ability to relate to others.

friends laughingIn 2008, University of Wisconsin neuroscientist Richard Davidson led a 12-year study on meditation and compassion which included an experiment comparing expert meditators with people who were not experienced in meditation.

When he had both groups listen to the sounds of several stressed-out voices, two brain areas known to be involved in empathy showed more activity in the meditators than in the non-meditators, suggesting that people who meditate regularly have an enhanced ability to respond to the feelings of others and empathize without feeling overwhelmed.

Improving focus and reducing stress.

Davidson also noted that when he exposed meditators to an outside stimulus meant to startle them — like an alarm going off unexpectedly or a stranger accosting you in the street — during their practice, they were far less put-off by the stimulus compared with someone who was not meditating.

woman writing thinkingSeveral small studies of Buddhist monks have also hinted at the idea that meditating helps improve the process by which the brain takes in new information and helps us make decisions.

Dealing with negative feelings.

Multiple studies suggest that meditation can help reduce depression and anxiety. Mindfulness meditation in particular might help people deal with psychological stress, though more research is needed into how meditation might help lead to positive mental health (beyond reducing effects of negative stresses).

NEXT UP: Psychologists discover the simplest way to boost your mood

LEARN MORE: Scientists tested therapy against antidepressants — here's what they found

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I commute to and from upstate New York and Manhattan twice a day — and it's not as bad as you might think

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Commute Metro North

Let's face it — commuting to New York City from upstate New York or other neighboring states isn't the greatest thing in the world.

It's time consuming, boring, and insanely crowded.

Grand Central Terminal— home to the Metro-North Railroad, five subway lines, and 11 different bus lines — is the biggest station in the world with 44 platforms and 67 tracks.

Over 125,000 commuters, including myself, pass through it to get to work every day.

Twice a day, I commute to and from Wappingers Falls, New York and Manhattan on the Metro-North. In total, my commute is just over 100 minutes — one way.

Below, see what it's really like to spend hours commuting to NYC every day.

 

 

SEE ALSO: 18 apps you should be using on your commute

Metro-North is part of the MTA, which is the largest transportation system North America, serving a population of 15.2 million people. It covers the 5,000-square-mile area from New York City through Long Island, southeastern New York State, and Connecticut. Typically, I need to arrive at Beacon station around 7:18 am to catch my usual 7:21 am train.



For some, the commute can be tough — my commute got easier when I moved to Wappingers Falls from Poughkeepsie. Now, I'm 76 miles outside of Manhattan, making the train ride a total of 80 minutes. Even at my station, on some mornings it's difficult to find a seat if I don't arrive early.



After my 80 minute train ride, my commute is still not over.



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