Business leaders didn't get to where they are today without a bit of wisdom guiding them along the way.

Many of them cite books — whether strategy guides or novels — that inspired them or changed the way they think.

Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer

In an interview with LittlePinkBook.com, Mayer revealed her favorite book as "The Design of Everyday Things" (2002) by Donald Norman. She said:

"I think a lot about design and products and how things should work. But it makes you notice things that can be infuriating. Like, why does my sandwich shop have meat all the way over there? At the same time, it makes you think about design in new ways, because when you use something everyday it needs to be absolutely efficient and not get in your way. It’s cool to be able to articulate and discuss that on a level that is really accessible and interesting."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg

Zuckerberg named "The Aeneid" by Virgil as one of his favorite books in a 2010 New Yorker profile:

He first read the Aeneid while he was studying Latin in high school, and he recounted the story of Aeneas’s quest and his desire to build a city that, he said, quoting the text in English, “knows no boundaries in time and greatness.” 

Trump Organization CEO Donald Trump

Trump named "The Power of Positive Thinking" by Norman Vincent Peale as his favorite book, according to ShortList Magazine. This book inspired Trump at his lowest moment when he was billions of dollars in debt. He told Psychology Today:

"My father was friends with Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, and I had read his famous book, 'The Power of Positive Thinking.' I'm a cautious optimist but also a firm believer in the power of being positive. I think that helped. I refused to be sucked into negative thinking on any level, even when the indications weren't great. That was a good lesson because I emerged on a very victorious level. It's a good way to go."

Out on the Interstate, barely ten minutes into our first drive of the 2014 Infiniti Q50, my co-driver and had already found something to marvel about in this sport sedan: We could carry on a quiet conversation.

That might sound like a low bar—and there's much more truly marvelous, world-first technology in the Q50 to beam about—but it points to how Infiniti really has recalibrated its baseline with this model.

In short, we think the luxury brand is going to sell many more of these than it did the brand's G37 predecessor: because in addition to all that tech, it now feels like a true luxury car.

Bert Brooks, Infiniti's senior manager for product planning for the Q50 sedan (and the upcoming Q60 coupe version) admits that the lack of refinement was a common complaint from the previous car—and that to appeal to a broader base of customers this time (in addition to all the new Q50's performance and tech improvements) the company also wanted to provide much more of it, “and even another word that's sometimes taboo—comfort,” he quipped.

The most recent G was a sport sedan that we loved—and, at times, actually loathed. We loved it from the driver's seat, on a curvy road, for its crisp, communicative steering, great brakes, and well-sorted, balanced dynamics. It essentially offered the sensory thrills of a sports car, but with more practicality. But then there was the downside: namely, all the noise, vibration, and general coarseness from the road and the powertrain that made it feel less than luxurious—downright unpleasant, really, on some long highway slogs.

Enter the Q50, and Infiniti has seemingly covered all the abrasive parts of the former sedan's personality with a thick blanket while leaving the core charm intact. From what we could tell in an admittedly brief drive of the Q50 up and down I-95 and some New England backroads, it's (almost) all the personality we loved in the G, with some traits that are going to make your passengers much happier.

VQ37, But No More Racket

Go for the Q50 3.7—powered by a 328-horsepower version of the familiar 3.7-liter V-6—and you'll no longer fault this powertrain for feeling too ragged and coarse. Although the engine itself hasn't changed, engineers put a lot of effort into smoothing and isolating, with new intake and exhaust manifolds, as well as other measures that aid drivability in the middle of the rev range.

The seven-speed automatic transmission has been refined a bit, too, but the big change is that it's been given a taller final-drive ratio. Infiniti has lost 50 pounds in the new car—mostly in the structure—and you take off from a standing start with plenty of verve despite the taller effective ratio. Lower revs in higher-speed cruising (less than 2,500 rpm at 75 mph) is the other big advantage—to contribute to the quiet inside and raise this powertrain's mileage up to 20 mpg city, 30 highway with rear-wheel drive.

Paddle shift controls are available, and you get nice throttle-blipped downshifts and remarkably little driveline shock. Overall, the 3.7-liter sings up its range with much more harmony than it ever did in the G. All-wheel drive will be an option in all Q50s. The manual gearbox is gone this year—it got thrown by the wayside in Infiniti's quest to put more refinement and technology into the Q50—but we're told it's not completely a lost hope for next year.

Very Smooth, Very Responsive Hybrid

That said, we might just choose the Hybrid. It's heavier, yes, but it feels just as quick, with very well-coordinated throttle response and 360 combined horsepower with a special version of Infiniti's 3.5-liter V-6 plus a 50-kW motor system and a unique dual clutch-pack hybrid system (with a dry clutch fore of the transmission and motor system and a wet clutch aft of them) that effectively smooths out both shift shock and transitions in power. This is a system that can gently take off on electric power alone, or turn off the gasoline engine to 'glide' along down gradual expressway downhills. And with EPA ratings of 29 mpg city, 36 highway (and an observed 29 mpg over about 100 quick miles) it boosts real-world mileage in a way that Lexus' performance hybrid system doesn't.

There's only one respect in which the Hybrid doesn't quite measure up, and that's braking. The last bit before a complete, gentle stop is 'muddy'—that's the best way to describe it—but if you stop harder it's more precise.

Infiniti's new Drive Mode Select also helps make sure you get the driving personality right for the driving mood. With Standard, Sport, Eco, and Snow modes—as well as a customizable Personable mode—the system changes shift patterns, the sensitivity of the throttle, and even the Direct Adaptive Steering's effort and ratio.

True Steer-By-Wire

Yes, you read that right. You can actually change the effective ratio of the steering. With what Infiniti believes is the world's first true steer-by-wire technology in a production model, driver input is carefully measured, converted to steering rack inputs, while feedback is relayed back to the steering wheel. Three different parallel processors provide lots of redundancy for safety, and if the system entirely fails, the steering column is clutched back into lock with the rack via a mechanical connection.

The other big advantage of this system is that it allows the steering rack to be hard-mounted—in a way that you would never be able to do with any kind of mechanical linkage. The system also has a set of complex filters that take out so-called dirty-noise vibrations while keeping some feedback from the road.

And the geometry of the rear suspension has been altered to provide a little more compliance. We’re not yet sure how that manifests in body control and dynamics, as our preliminary drive was on semi-residential, quite heavily patrolled New England backroads.

We drove both an Infiniti Q50S with no major option packages, as well as a Q50 Hybrid with Direct Adaptive Steering and found the systems to be very, very different in behind-the-wheel character. Infiniti seems to have reduced the effort of the much-loved base steering system while leaving the steering ratio rather quick, and the result is steering that feels great around town and on the backroads but needs frequent small adjustments at highway cruising speeds.

Opt for a car with Direct Adaptive Steering (on all Hybrid models, or optional on others), and you get from what we could tell on this short drive, nice weighting, and a mix of quick ratio when you need it and a longer one for the highway. Off-center, you do indeed get a feel of the road surface, although that disappears on center and the steering wheel feels a little too rudder-like and stoic—read, numb. Meanwhile a new Active Lane Control system makes it easy to glide along in your lane on the highway, with seemingly no small adjustments needed for the pavement surface or crosswinds—and the system uses a camera system to fine-tune your lane placement in an oddly unobtrusive way.

Yes, you can turn that lane system off—it helped on the highway, where we felt at times at odds with the adaptive steering—and the Q50 otherwise offers quite the mother lode of active-safety technology that should be there if and only if you're really getting into trouble. With Lane Departure Warning and Prevention, Blind-Spot Intervention, and an Around View Monitor with Moving Object Detection, is has you covered—in a less scolding way than the systems of just a few years ago.

Anticipating The Vehicle Ahead Of The Vehicle Ahead Of You

Otherwise of note is something called Predictive Forward Collision Warning, a world-first system that warns the driver of risks far ahead of what he/she might otherwise see—by sensing the second vehicle ahead, and warning the driver visually and audibly, while also tightening the seatbelt.

One other major debut in the Q50 is Infiniti InTouch—a next-generation infotainment system that will eventually be deployed on the brand's entire model lineup. In the Q50, it includes twin touch screens, with an eight-inch one up top and a seven-inch one below. A lower rotary/button controller on the center console also navigates menus in the top screen and can potentially bring up a menu of frequently accessed features.

By the system's logic, the lower screen is the first place to look for infotainment, while the upper screen is for driving-related information. And that's all supplemented by a five-inch screen in the middle of the gauge cluster.

From a first, very limited experience with the system—one in which we encountered some pre-production software niggles—we like what we see. This setup skips the confusion over which screen to use that we still find in Acura vehicles, as well as the lack of redundancy in many other German luxury models. You'll still find lots of hard buttons for climate and audio to press, if you prefer that.

More Spacious, More Comfortable; Still A Sport Sedan Interior

You'll also find a bit more space inside than you did in the G Sedan. With either the standard sport seats, or the ones with extendable side bolsters that much of the lineup gets, the driving position in front is great. And with both thinner front seats, plus side pillars moved forward just a bit (and slimmed, with more high-strength steel), there are a few more inches of rear legroom. Unfortunately what there isn't much more of is rear legroom (six-footers will still find headroom very tight).

The Q50 comes in base, Premium, and Q50S models; if you want the Hybrid you'll need to step up to the Premium or S—and even then it's $4,400 more than an equivalent Q50 3.7. With fully loaded models equipped with the Deluxe Touring and Tech packages stickering in the $60k range, the Q50 is no bargain.

What's missing from the lineup at this point are the more fuel-efficient, affordable models such as those available in the BMW 3-Series and 5-Series lineups, in the Cadillac ATS, and even in the Jaguar XF. Although Infiniti's offering a turbo four and a diesel in Europe, that's not yet part of the American offerings.

But virtually all the rest of the details are in place, and the Q50 is bound to make its way to more households than the G37—even if name recognition is an issue at first.

From a first taste, we have no doubt the new Q50 is engaging, packed with technology, stylish, and refined. Does it remain the best-handling (or one of the best) sport sedan in this class? We'll have to reserve judgment for some time on the track, or on mountain or canyon roads. For now, it's setting a great new direction for Infiniti's new sedans.

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TEST DRIVE: We Tried Jaguar's Brand New Sports Car, And It's An Incredibly Fun Ride

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A $200 million "yacht hotel" is set to put down its anchors permanently off the southern tip of Spain by the end of the year. 

The Sunborn Gibraltar is one of the largest yachts in the world at an astounding 465.8 feet long and seven stories high, and it's being marketed as a high-end hotel. In land-scarce cities like Gibraltar, ships like these may be the future of hospitality.

The yacht will be moored at the Gibraltar Ocean Village Marina, a prime Mediterranean location, and guests will be ushered onto the boat via an enclosed glass walkway. Six super-strong hydraulic arms, each weighing 8 tons, will hold the boat to its mooring and keep it in place.

The Sunborn Gibraltaris the first of a fleet of luxury yacht hotels by Sunborn. The company is planning to launch more yacht hotels in London and Barcelona.

The yacht hotel is set to open sometime in late 2013, and room rates are expected to cost anywhere between $300 and $3,000 per night depending on the room.

The Sunborn Gibraltar will permanently dock at the Ocean Village Marina in Gibraltar, at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula.

At 7 stories tall, the ship dwarfs everything in its immediate vicinity. Its size means that it will rarely feel like a boat and will instead feel like a luxury hotel.

The ship will feature 189 beautifully decorated rooms. Even the "standard" rooms feel luxurious.

If you didn't know any better, you'd most likely pass these gems by on the street: small, graffiti-riddled, sometimes with barred windows—vestiges of their speakeasy past.

But most of these classic dive bars are bastions of history, spots that have endless stories to tell. Inside, it won't take much whiskey before you start hallucinating ghosts of gangsters, spirits of Old Hollywood stars, or phantom moonshiners. 

Pro boozers Dr. Clint Lanier and Derek Hembree would never miss one: they teamed up to write Bucket List Bars, chronicling America's most historic watering holes. Here are their top 10 dive bar picks for summer sips.

Silva's Saloon - Bernalillo, New Mexico

Opened the day after prohibition ended, Silva’s Saloon was founded by Felix Silva Sr., a known moonshiner, bootlegger, and rumored supplier to none other than Al Capone. Even after opening his legal saloon in 1933, Felix continued to skirt the law by staying open on Sundays (it was illegal in New Mexico at the time), running card games in the back rooms, and supplying liquor to local Native Americans (also illegal).

Silva’s was and is a local’s saloon, and the interior reflects the love of its past and present customers. Hats and drivers licenses from patrons who have passed away litter the walls and ceiling and have become their makeshift memorials. Felix’s still and masher are set up in corners of the bar in memory of the founder, and wax-sealed liquor bottles from the 1920’s, 30’s, and 40’s line the top of the bar. On rare occasion Felix Jr. opens a bottle and lets customers sample prohibition-era whiskey. But even if you’re not lucky enough to be there when that happens, the trip will be worthwhile.

El Patio Bar - Mesilla, New Mexico

El Patio Bar was founded in 1934, but the building itself has been in use since at least the 1870’s. That’s when the current owner’s great grandfather—Colonel A.J. Fountain—opened a newspaper and a law office here. Fountain had a high profile in the community and was the defense lawyer for Billy the Kid, who was tried and jailed on the next block. Fountain later disappeared in the desert on the way back from a trial in Lincoln County.

His body was never found—just his wagon, horses, shell casings, and two pools of blood (his eight-year old was with him and also disappeared). His great-grandson’s bar is dark and sparsely lit by Christmas tree lights and beer signs. The taxidermy, mismatched furniture, and faint smell of beer tell you all you need to know upon entering.

Ear Inn - Manhattan, New York

Tucked into what’s known as the James Brown House on 326 Spring Street in Manhattan, the Ear Inn carries on a tradition started in 1816, when the previous bar catered to nearby sailors and longshoremen. In fact, the Hudson River was a stone’s throw from its door when it was first serving. It gained notoriety through the 1800’s when it was no doubt serving local gangs and villains and housing a brothel upstairs. During prohibition the bar continued serving, and a number of relics from that period—bottles and such—can be seen above the bar. The crowd comprises hipsters, professionals, celebrities, and tourists—all generally quiet and welcoming. They do serve a variety of pub grub, as well as craft and local beer.

If you can't afford your rent in New York City, join the club. 

According to a study by the NYU Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, when home prices fell by 20% between 2007 and 2011, rent prices jumped by 8.6% to an average of $1,191.

That's not exactly news. Everyone expected the rental market to get inundated as ex-homeowners flocked to downsize and young people put off homeownership during the recession.

But what also happened, most unfortunately, was that the average income of New Yorkers dropped 6.8%.

Since two-thirds of New Yorkers rent their homes, this is no small statistic.

In 2011, almost one-third of New York residents were severely rent burdened, meaning they spent more than 50% of their income on rent, according to the study. 

Still, we are a resilient bunch. New York actually saw population growth throughout the recession, and the city still has one of the lowest rental vacancy rates in the U.S.

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Maharlika is a restaurant in Manhattan's East Village that sells one of the strangest foods you can buy in New York City.

It's called balut, and it's basically a hard boiled egg with a fertilized duck embryo inside. In other words, there's a partially formed duck fetus in the egg.

While it might seem strange to most, balut is actually a common dish in the Philippines and parts of Southeast Asia. The second annual balut eating contest also takes place on Saturday, August 3 in Manhattan's Lower East Side with last year's winner downing 18 eggs in 5 minutes.

We learned how to properly eat a balut from Maharlika owner Nicole Ponseca, who's eaten these fertilized duck eggs since she was a kid. We then took some back with us to the Business Insider offices to see how our co-workers would react to eating the balut.

Produced by William Wei

Additional Camera by Justin Gmoser

SEE ALSO: Here's Why Kale Is So Wildly Popular

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Star Trek features fictional alien races known as Klingons and Vulcans. But, believe it or not, the languages they speak have become real languages. So real that there are institutes and dictionaries dedicated to teaching humans to speak them.

Microsoft Bing, will even translate your words into Klingon.

So Netflix released the 1984 "Stark Trek III" film with Klingon and Vulcan subtitles.

Oops! Turns out, they got some of the translations wrong and it forced them to pull the movie down from live streaming, the company told the Huffington Post.

It's funny, but serious. "Star Trek" is the most-watched TV show on streaming sites, according to market research group GfK's 2013 report HuffPo. But not to fear, within 24-hours Netflix located alien linguists, fixed the subtitles and made the movie available again.

Sometimes real life is stranger than fiction. Or, if we have the translation right, in Klingon that's: "yIn real stranger puS fiction."

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One of the most hospitable experiences I've ever had took place in a Moscow Starbucks.

It was a hot, humid day in July, and cold caffeinated beverages were calling my name. I copped out on having a uniquely Russian experience in a small family-owned coffee shop and fell into a Starbucks instead.

I ended up having a uniquely Russian experience anyway, drinking and socializing with the employees!

There's the familiar logo. It's a welcome symbol of refreshing drinks on such a muggy day.

Heading inside, I was greeted by the usual thrum of activity you'd expect in an urban Starbucks.

In-store merchandising, of course.

Ankkit Aggarwal loves Airbnb. He's a web developer who owns several luxury condos in Toronto and rents them out via Airbnb, Roomorama, HouseTrip and through his own website, Hydewest.

(See photos of Aggarwal's trashed condo and broken furniture.)

Since 2012, Airbnb has sent him more than $160,000 worth of bookings, according to his Airbnb account.

But Aggarwal was booted from Airbnb when he submitted claims after one of his guests severely damaged an Italian bed in a luxury condo worth $2.5 million that will cost over $6,000 to replace, he said.

In response, the room-renting company decided he had broken their rules, cut him off, blocked his account and cancelled over $25,000 worth of upcoming bookings, he says, and then told those guests that it was him, not Airbnb, that cancelled the rooms.

Airbnb promises hosts that it will cover them for up to $1 million worth of damage, as part of the Airbnb's Host Guarantee. While it won't cover everything (like missing cash or rare art), generally, Airbnb has a great reputation when it comes to protecting hosts against nightmare guests.

Airbnb tells Business Insider it cancelled his host's account because they'd received too many complaints about him. They say he was collecting money outside the Airbnb system and before booting him, tried to work with him.

Airbnb spokesperson Kim Rubey explained:

In 2012 there were 3 million total guests who stayed on Airbnb, yet there were only 400 situations resolved under the Host Guarantee program. Only a tiny percentage of guests on Airbnb result in a Host Guarantee situation, and we take each one very seriously, including this host’s claim of damaged furniture. Unfortunately, this host consistently provided very poor experiences to guests -- he violated Airbnb’s Terms of Service multiple times and we’ve received numerous complaints from guests about bad experiences.

Aggarwal denies much of this. It's a he-said, she-said story, for sure. But the tale is also about what can go wrong when Airbnb believes a host is breaking its rules.

Here is how it happened.

This is what Aggarwal's Toronto apartment looked like before all the drama started.

Aggarwal says he had the typical problems of any rental business. This set of guests, however, trashed the apartment. Guests are required to leave Airbnb apartments in a clean condition.

"Out of 86 guests, I've only had problems with 15 guests," Aggarwal told Business Insider. "You see, I love Airbnb, that's why I take all these bullets as a business expense."

When I saw where I'd be staying for the International Conference on Quantum Technologies in Moscow, I didn't even think it was a hotel.

Skip straight to the photos >

The Radisson Royal Hotel is located on the bank of the Moscow River and it's a downright imposing building, looking more like a house of worship than a place for tourists to sleep off their vodka hangovers.

Formerly called the Hotel Ukraina, it's one of Moscow's "Seven Sisters," a collection of seven majestic buildings constructed between 1947 and 1953.

The locals call them Stalinskie Vysotki, or "Stalinist Skyscrapers."

At 650 feet tall, the Radisson is the second-largest of the seven and it's home to 34 stories of luxury. It boasts 505 single bedrooms and 38 suites.

Here's what it looks like inside.

Welcome to the Moscow Radisson!

Here's the lobby – opulent columns, marble floors, and atmospheric chandeliers.

Back behind the lobby, though...

Some people are born brilliant, lucky, or both. The rest of us have to work a little harder.

In his latest best-seller, "Mastery," author Robert Greene analyzes great figures from history, interviews contemporary leaders, and draws from years of psychology research to distill steps anyone can follow to become a master.

His other books discuss the strategies of power, seduction, war, and 50 Cent.

With permission from the author, we've highlighted some tips for mastering your destiny.

STEP 1: FIND YOUR LIFE'S TASK

Many people have an intense feeling about what they do best. Too often, they're driven away from it by other people. The first step is to trust yourself and aim your career path at what's unique about you.

Leonardo Da Vinci didn't come into his own as an artist alone, but when he followed his childhood curiosity about everything, he became an advisor and expert in subjects from architecture to anatomy. 

Source: Robert Greene's "Mastery"

Rather than compete in a crowded field, find a niche where you can dominate.

Legendary neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran was once a restless and dissatisfied professor of Psychology. What was supposed to be a calling felt like a job. When he began the study of phantom limbs and anomalous brain disorders, he found questions about the brain and consciousness that fascinate him to this day. 

Find your perfect niche, and stand out. 

Source: Robert Greene's "Mastery"

Rebel against the wrong path, and use that anger as motivation.

Mozart was a child prodigy on the piano. At a very young age, his domineering father toured Europe with him. When he discovered a talent for unique composition, his father suppressed it. It wasn't until he rejected his father entirely that he became a master.

We are often attracted to the wrong things, whether it be money, fame, or approval. 

Source: Robert Greene's "Mastery"

August is National Sandwich Month!

The killer sandwich has always been an essential part of New York food culture. From a classic pastrami on rye to a simple falafel, a great sandwich is the go-to lunch option for many New Yorkers.

Eataly — which is the large Italian market started by Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, Lidia Bastianich and their partners Oscar Farinetti, Alex Saper and Adam Saper in three years ago — brought some tasty new additions to the New York Sandwich scene, but one stands out for its simplicity and popularity: the prime rib.

Executive Chef Alex Pilas showed us how he and his team crank through 8-12 whole prime ribs every lunch service to make what has become the market's most popular sandwich.

"From 11:30am to 2:30pm it's pretty much prime rib, prime rib, prime rib," says Pilas.

Watch the video below to see how it's done.

Produced by Robert Libetti

SEE ALSO: Food Hacks That Will Make Your Life Infinitely Easier

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Each year aviators, enthusiasts, and spectators from more than 60 countries flock to Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin to attend the "world's greatest aviation celebration."

The week-long 2013 EAA AirVenture is now in full swing, and the displays have been eye-popping.

Over 500,000 people showed up on the shores of Lake Winnebago for the flying displays, aerobatics, pyrotechnics, and amazing, unusual aircraft.

We picked the 20 best photos from the show so far, from the latest display of the flying car, to vintage warbirds, to the flying "Jetman" himself.

The air show has been well-attended this year, and for good reason.

The ultra-modern Terrafugia (known to most as the flying car) stole the show on the ground.

It also demonstrated its abilities in the air.

Twins Georgia and Patterson Inman, 15, have grown up horribly abused and neglected, but when they turn 21 they could inherit $60 million.

In "The Poorest Rich Kids In The World" in this week's Rolling Stone (not available online), Danielle Levitt tells the story of the twins, who are the great-niece and nephew of celebrity tobacco heiress Doris Duke. Their father, Walker Inman, inherited a portion of Doris' $1.3 billion fortune in 1993.

In interviews with Levitt, the twins claim they were bolt-locked into feces-strewn bedrooms and abused both physically and mentally by their father from the time they were two years old to 2010 when Walker died of a heroin overdose.

Their mother Daisha was forced out of the picture in 2000 after Walker allegedly kidnapped the 17-month-old twins and hired lawyers to prove Daisha was incompetent and mentally unstable. The twins were told by Walker that their absent mother was an alcoholic who gave them fetal alcohol syndrome and made them "retarded."

More shocking details from Rolling Stone:

• Walker and his fifth-wife Daralee caused $30,000 in damage to their 10,000-square-foot Afton, Wyoming home dubbed "Outlaw Acres." It was a drug den filled with antiques, priceless artwork, and stacks of gold coins.

• Even though Georgia and Patterson grew up with a pet lion cub (that died after Walker fed it too many hamburgers) and brought loose diamonds to school for show and tell, nannies and tutors all say the children were malnourished.

• Walker Inman loved to blow things up. He would chuck dynamite into ponds and call it "fishing," and had a trailer filled with explosives, artillery, and ammunition.

• One of Patterson's happiest childhood memories is when his father accidentally set off a tear gas grenade while trying to teach him and Georgia a lesson. The entire family had to run out of the house, and Patterson was crying from laughing while retelling the story to Levitt.

• One of Georgia's first memories is of startling abuse: "They. Stuck my brother and I. In hot boiling water in our bath. It felt like our skin was melting away"

• Once, a skunk wandered into the living room, and Walker mowed it down with a machine gun.

No matter how many times these incidents were witnessed by nannies and tutors and reported to authorities, no one intervened. The Department of Family Service came to the home a few times, but Walker had always been tipped off to hide his guns and drugs.

By the time Walker died and their mother received custody, the twins reportedly tried to shoot Daisha during a stand off with police after being told for years by their father and step-mother that she was "the enemy."

Doris's $1.3 billion fortune was left mainly to charity. The remaining $60 million going to the twins is still being haggled over by their stepmother Daralee, Walker's attorney, and their own mother Daisha. 

You can read the full shocking and sickening story in the August 15th issue of Rolling Stone.

SEE ALSO: The Fabulous Life Of Formula One Billionaire Bernie Ecclestone

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It's more than halfway through 2013 and even though the summer is winding down, there's still plenty of time to book a trip to a great destination.

We looked at major developments, cultural trends, and global festivals to find the hottest places to travel around the world in 2013. 

There are vast untouched landscapes that offer incredible outdoor experiences, cities that are experiencing a cultural rebirth, and up-and-coming destinations that offer great deals and few tourists.

London, England

Since Kate Middleton gave birth to Prince George Alexander Louis last week, England has been in the national spotlight, and is expecting a tourism boost.

But that's not the only reason to visit the UK right now. The 2012 Summer Olympics in London came and went, but many of the buildings, restaurants, hotels and venues that sprouted up to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of visitors who came for the Olympics still stand.

Several new buildings went up in London before the Olympics, including the very controversial Shard, a 1,016-foot-tall building that houses offices, restaurants, the Shangri-La hotel, and apartments. Officially called the London Bridge Tower, The Shard garnered negative reactions from Londoners and critics when it opened in July, but we thought it was one of the coolest new buildings this year.

The Olympics took place in East London, which means that the neighborhood — which had been in the process of gentrifying for years — is now one of the coolest areas in the city.

And the restaurant scene is booming in London. City restaurants have won several awards recently, with Le Caprice being named 2012 Restaurant of the Year by the London Lifestyle Awards and Artesian, a London bar in the Langham Hotel, being named Best Bar of the Year by Drinks International.

Antarctica

With unprecedented droughts, hurricanes, and unseasonably warm (or cold) weather patterns around the world, it's becoming harder and harder to deny global warming — especially in Antarctica, where the ice caps are melting at a somewhat alarming rate.

That means that now is the time to go visit Antarctica, the coldest and driest continent on earth. There is breathtakingly beautiful scenery with few man-made interruptions. It's an ideal trip for adventurers, who can kayak, trek or just take in the incredible landscape. You can also see penguins, whales, and elephant seals.

Tourism to Antarctica is getting more popular. According to International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), about 35,000 visitors will come to Antarctica this season, most of whom are American.

There are a few ways to visit the continent: by cruise ship with excursions to shore (the most popular), by land expeditions with tour operators, or sightseeing by air.

Brooklyn, New York

While Brooklyn isn't exactly a new hotspot, the New York City borough has become even hotter in 2013 with more hotels, restaurants, and shops catering to hip locals and tourists.

Within the last year and a half alone, five hotels have opened in Brooklyn, including the Wythe Hotel, Hotel BPM, and the Hotel Indigo, making the borough more accessible to visitors. And with the opening of the new Barclays Center, the borough will see even more hotels: another 10 hotels are currently being developed and are expected to open in 2013.

The borough is also home to a 3 Michelin-starred restaurant (Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare), one of the best steakhouses in the country (Peter Luger's), a great brewery (Brooklyn Brewery), and hipster-friendly markets, restaurants, and bars.

By the architectural standards of Southampton, New York—where magnificent old piles built by Yankee blue bloods and extravagant contemporary mansions constructed by moguls of finance and industry are perched along one of Long Island’s toniest beaches—entrepreneur J. Christopher Burch’s house is a modest affair.

Most buyers in this community would likely have torn down the ranch-style structure, which clocks in at 6,000 square feet, and replaced it with an imposing Georgian Revival or Shingle Style residence, replete with pomp and pergolas.

But its unassuming character suited Burch, the founder and CEO of Burch Creative Capital and the man behind the retro-preppy lifestyle retailer C. Wonder. “I didn’t want anything too grand,” he says. “I wanted it to feel more like a cottage than an estate.”

Modifications, however, were necessary to bring the place up to snuff—namely streamlining the awkward floor plan and upgrading the surfaces. New Jersey architectural designer Marina Lanina stripped the building down to its wood frame and reconfigured the interior, more or less hewing to the original footprint save for an expanded kitchen at the rear. Lanina, who honed her skills in the office of interior designer David Kleinberg, also added guest quarters above the attached garage and, at the opposite end of the home, constructed a second-floor master suite. Bridgehampton-based landscape designer Joseph Tyree recast the 2.75-acre grounds with, among other touches, a charming parterre garden that is visible from the master bedroom’s small balcony.

See inside Burch's unassuming cottage >

“It would have been a lot cheaper to tear it down,” admits Burch, who cofounded, with Tory Burch—his former wife, with whom he has three young sons—the clothing and accessories label that bears her name. (He also has been a major player in the development of the Faena Hotel+Universe in Buenos Aires and, in February, he became a co-owner of Nihiwatu, a 580-acre ecoresort on an island in eastern Indonesia.)

But the remodel in Southampton has resulted in an eight-bedroom retreat that is perfect for easygoing summer weekends with his companion, fashion designer Monika Chiang, and his children. (Burch also has three grown daughters from another previous marriage.) “I rarely go out when I’m in the Hamptons,” he says. “I prefer watching movies, hosting very small dinner parties, and hanging out with my kids.”

The getaway exhibits the spirited, all-American styling of C. Wonder, but the brand’s candied hues are toned down. “I didn’t really want to do my stuff in the house,” Burch says, adding that he began the renovation before launching C. Wonder in 2011 with a flagship store in Manhattan.

The residence is instead New York interior designer Christopher Maya’s interpretation of his client’s somewhat eccentric taste, which Burch himself describes as “a very quirky sense of classicism.” The decorator’s first meeting with the entrepreneur was inspiration enough. “Chris was sitting in the conference room with colleagues, a pink Hermès scarf wrapped around his head. I thought, This is going to be fun,” Maya recalls. The designer soon set about conjuring schemes for each room of the dwelling, aiming for an inviting, energetic atmosphere reflective of Burch’s playful personality.

SEE ALSO: RANKED: The 9 Best Towns In The Hamptons

Entrepreneur J. Christopher Burch relaxes on the porch of his Southampton, New York, retreat, which was renovated by Marina Lanina Studio and decorated by Christopher Maya.

Painted in Benjamin Moore colors, the living area features photographs by Len Prince (on the bookcase) and John Stewart (over the mantel), a Roy Hamilton Studios table lamp, and custom-made stools upholstered in a Clarence House horsehair.

Maya designed the dining area’s table and side chairs, the latter of which are clad in a Cowtan & Tout fabric; the photograph is by Han Lei, the rattan chairs are vintage, and the sisal is by Merida Meridian.

Before you choose between plastic and wood for your decking, ask yourself one question: Where is your deck?

If your deck is in the sun or in the shade for the majority of the day — particularly in summer, when it will be used most — you'll want to choose the material that will be comfortable in that spot on the hottest days of the year.

Of course, size, cost, style and maintenance should factor into your decision, too.

We talked to four decking experts from across the country to find out how to choose a decking material.

Types of Decking

• Plastic: 100 percent plastic decking is stain resistant and won't crack, warp or splinter. It doesn't require any finishing. Some plastic decking is made from new plastic; others are partially or completely recycled.
• Composite: This decking is made from wood fibers (usually recycled maple sawdust) and recycled plastic. Dense, weather and stain resistant, it won't splinter, warp or rot.
• Wood: Most of today's wood decks are made of cedar, redwood (pictured), pressure-treated pine or ipe, a sustainable tropical wood. You can find sustainably produced versions of most hardwoods, including bamboo, cedar, redwood and ipe. Make sure to buy wood from a Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified company to avoid illegally harvested wood.

Charlie Jourdain, President of the California Redwood Association, says substantially more people have started using plastic and composite decking over the past 10 years, and Denny Rossi of Seal It Green agrees. "Michigan seems to favor plastic and composite decking, and now plastic-capped composites as the ever-growing field of less maintenance materials evolves," Rossi says.

Clemens Jellema of Fine Decks Inc. in Maryland now installs almost all composite decking for his clients. Capped composite decking, in particular — where the composite is covered in a thin, plastic material — has become popular for its durability and quick installation.

Heat Resistance
"At the time composites and plastics were made, there wasn't a lot of thought as to how they'd perform in heat," Jourdain says.

While composites and plastics have their benefits, comfort on a hot day is not one of them. "Composites and plastics can get so hot, you can't walk on them barefoot," Rossi says. Capped composites are no different. "The plastic layer surrounding the composite holds heat," Jellema says. "But the lighter the color, the less heat it holds."

This photo: Azek plastic decking


For this reason, many professionals recommend using wood in climates with extra hot summers. Tropical woods, such as ipe and teak, wear and weather well. However, some of this wood is dark, so it holds more heat than lighter woods, such as the commonly used pressure-treated Southern yellow pine. Redwood tends to be the West Coast's — primarily California's — predominant decking material due to its reasonable price tag, low maintenance and cool surface. "Redwood is definitely the cheapest material in California because there's so much of it," says California contractor Bonny Weil. "Manufacturing costs are very low, versus a composite decking board that might take a lot of time to make, so it tends to be about twice as much."

This photo: Pine decking


Maintenance
No matter what material you choose for your deck, it's going to need maintenance — a minimum of one annual cleaning. Most composites and plastics need a regularly applied finish (once or twice a year) to keep from fading, but most decking wood can be left finished or unfinished. While wood is more susceptible to rot and warping, mold spots are more difficult to remove from composite and plastic decking.

This photo:Redwood deckingCost
Composite or plastic decking can be twice as expensive as wooden decking because the materials cost more and the structure tends to be more extensive. Composite decking isn't as stiff as lumber, so it generally needs more support to prevent sagging. This can easily add hundreds of dollars to your decking cost.

Here are some average prices for a completed deck per square foot, according to Rossi and Jellema. Note that prices will vary according to location, design features and construction costs.

Estimated price for a complete deck per square foot:

• Pressure-treated wood: $15-$25
• Cedar: $24-$45
• Composite: $32-$45
• Redwood: $30
• Top-end plastic: $48
• Ipe: $55
  

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This is for all of the gentlemen out there with the too-wide shirts that billow out in the front like a sheet (bad).

This is also for the guys with the too-tight-over-the-chest-shirts where the buttons look like they're about to burst (even worse).

Hugh and Crye is a D.C.-based men's clothing company with a distinct way of sizing their shirts. With two questions on their site they take into account a guy's height and body type to find a more precise fit from a range of 12 sizes (you can check out their sizing chart below).

Dress shirts are priced at $85, blazers come in at $245.

Founders Pranav Vora and Philip Soriano launched the company in 2010 for the same reason their clients go there — they thought the shirts they were buying in stores could fit better.

"There's typically too much fabric around the chest and waist, and through the sleeve. The other end of the spectrum is 'custom', which is often made-to-measure - an unfulfilled promise," said Vora. "The fit of most made-to-measure/custom shirts can be inexact, take a lot of time to fix and can be costly. We noticed that guys were generally just dealing with the options offered to them."

Yes, this is all a part of what everyone's saying about men's fashion — it's getting better, more stylish. But style falls to pieces if it isn't grounded in fit.

Neither Vora nor Soriano had backgrounds in fashion when they started Hugh and Crye. Vora went to grad school at the London School of Economics and worked in consulting while Soriano worked at a non-profit. After about a year of research and development, though, the duo set up an online store.

The first clients were friends and family, and then little pockets of buyers started popping up. There was even one in Wheeling, West Virgina, where it was clear one guy was telling all of his friends about the business.

"We had little clues along the way to tell us we were on the right track," said Vora and Soriano. "When we were working out our sizing (3 different heights with 4 different fits which result in 12 sizes), a world-renowned pattern maker told us we were doing things with the fit that she had never seen in menswear, but that it could be revolutionary."

When Hugh and Crye customers wanted to start trying shirts on, Vora and Soriano and  set up a storefront in Georgetown. The guys say they get their inspiration from pictures of grandfathers, uncles, fathers and other fresh looking gentlemen of old that knew they had to buy quality clothes and accessories that lasted for life.

In short: Sure, there are trends, but this is men's fashion, stick to the classics.

And of course, stay away from a few massive no-nos.

"Hem your pants and denim, gentleman," Pranav said. "Triple breaks aren't a thing, and probably never were. Hate seeing guys wearing cuff links without a jacket... Stay fit. Being in shape is the best way to look fantastic, no matter what you're wearing."

Soriano's fashion don't? — he actually has a few:

"The collar of a shirt is the most noticeable part of a wardrobe when you're talking to someone one-on-one. Two pet peeves: 1) When the collar flops down 70s style. 2) When the collar of the undershirt doesn't coincide with the way a guy is wearing his dress shirt. I often see guys wearing a crew neck undershirt when they have the top button of their dress shirt open. Or they wear a v-neck undershirt when they wear a dress shirt with a tie — you can see the V-neck through the dress shirt. Both are very noticeable and look tacky."

Don't be tacky.

Check out the Hugh & Crye fit chart below:

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With fresh bounty from the sea and local farms, food and summer go hand in hand in New England.

From lobster rolls and clambakes to fried dough and wild blueberry pie, we've rounded up the best of the season, Yankee-style.

Whatever your dish of choice, rest assured that it will likely be followed by a heaping scoop of homemade ice cream.

Wild Blueberry Pie

Blueberries grow all over the country, but there's nothing quite like the tiny, wild bleuets found in Maine. Bake them inside a two-crust pie and you get the sweet essence of summer concentrated in dessert form.

Originally made by early American settlers, blueberry pie remains simple with a nostalgic, just-like-grandma-used-to-make quality. In fact, it is so loved that it won the battle for the state's official dessert. Sure, you can eat it year-round, but it's truly best in August when the berries are just plucked and absolutely fresh, not frozen or canned. So when you head Down East this summer, be sure to stop for a slice along the way.

Where to Go: The pie is available at many roadside restaurants and diners up and down Maine's coast, but Helen's Restaurant in Machias is famous for its rendition. The Broad Arrow Tavern at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport serves it a la mode with homemade vanilla ice cream. And the version atWaterman's Beach Lobster in South Thomaston (near Rockland) is showing up on "best of New England" lists. For blueberry-pie extremists, the annual Machias Wild Blueberry Festival in August is host to a pie-eating contest.

Lobster Roll

While other regions have the hot dog, New England has the lobster (locally pronounced "lobsta") roll. Available in all the coastal states, the sandwich usually consists of a split-top bun, often warmed and buttered, stuffed with large chunks of rich tail and claw meat.

Fried Clams

Battered in milk and corn flour, then deep-fried: That's how clams are done in New England. Harvested in tidal mudflats and served up in seaside shacks, these bivalves—often soft-shell clams, also called "steamers"—come crispy, in strips or whole bellies, and are synonymous with summer.

Likely invented in Ipswich, Massachusetts, by Lawrence ("Chubby") Woodman in 1916, fried clams are now a staple along the coast. The shacks serving them tend to be open seasonally and have long lines, but the anticipation is part of the experience.

Where to Go: New Englanders take fried clams very seriously; this is evident in the Boston Globe's recent Shack Showdown that pitted some of the area's best eateries against each other, head-to-head. While top honors in the contest went to the Clam Box of Ipswich in Massachusetts, each state has its own favorites. Woodman's of Essex offers the Clam Box serious competition in Massachusetts and claims to have invented the fried clam, and SmarterTravel staff likes The Bite in Menemsha on Martha's Vineyard as well as Bob's Clam Hut in Kittery, Maine. Find a great list of clam shacks onBoston.com.

Women and men who turn to plastic surgery to engineer a better face may be disappointed: a new study suggests that going under the knife or needle makes patients look slightly younger, but not more attractive.

In a small experiment, 50 raters guessed the age and ranked the attractiveness of 49 plastic surgery patients, aged 42-73, as seen in photographs before and after surgery.

Patients had all types of face surgical procedures, including brow-lifts, face-lifts, and neck-lifts.

Here's the good news: raters thought that patients looked 3.1 years younger, on average, than their real age after surgery. In contrast, attractiveness scores did not show a statistically significant change following surgery, the study said. This was the outcome regardless of the cosmetic procedure or the age of the patient.

Describing one limitation of the study, the authors note that "rating attractiveness is perhaps more subjective than guessing one’s age," and "further investigation is warranted to verify these findings." 

Plastic surgery remains a worldwide phenomenon with American leading the trend.

In 2012, over 14.6 million cosmetic procedures, surgical and non-surgical, were performed in the United States alone, according the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The most popular nip-tuck? Lipoplasty (fat removal) followed in a close second by breast augmentation, based on a study from the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons.

The study appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Thursday, August 1.

SEE ALSO: 8 Scientifically Proven Reasons Life Is Better If You're Beautiful

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