North Carolina native Aaron Canipe knew that independent wrestling matches were popular entertainment in the areas near his hometown of Hickory, but he never opted to go, until recently.

Intrigued by advertisements around town promising cage matches and “bring-your-own-weapons” fights, Canipe drove down to the Hickory National Guard Armory for a Saturday night that he called “more entertaining and less expensive than a movie ticket.”

Independent wrestling, known as the “indy circuit” to wrestling aficionados, is equivalent to the minor league for World Wrestling Entertainment and other pro wrestling organizations. For fans, a trip to the “indy circuit” can be a way to see the next superstar before they make it to the WWE or a place to see hungry wrestlers put in the extra effort to make a name for themselves and rile up the crowd. 

Professional wrestling may be part acting and part sport, but it's clear that, even if the outcomes are predetermined, the way they get there can be pretty violent. 

This match was promoted by local wrestling outfit Milestone Wrestling. The promoters are so small that new wrestlers often show up and wrestlers often change their stage names. 

Like the WWE stars that they aspire to, wrestlers take on colorful names and outlandish stage personalities to curry favor with the audience.

Belton "The House Of Pain" Creedmore is a mainstay on the North Carolina wrestling circuit. He is known as a brutal and vicious competitor. 

The matches attract a lively local crowd. Canipe said he was one of a handful of first-timers, but most of the attendees have been following the matches for some times. 

To drum up interest in the matches, promoters often arrange "bring-your-own-weapons" matches, where wrestlers use a variety of props provided by the audience, such as chairs, tables, light bulbs, and even bats. The results can be dangerous.

Despite their violent nature, most matches are considered to be family entertainment. 

Making it on the "indy circuit" is extremely difficult. Most matches are so small that wrestlers either fight for free or get paid between $50-100. To make ends meet, many sell merchandise and videos or work other jobs.

Canipe says that he's positive that wrestlers get hurt during the matches, though he thinks that they exaggerate the pain they're experiencing for the audience's benefit. 

Mike Fury (also known as Chaotic Fury) is part of Death Proof, a straight-edge (no alcohol, tobacco or drugs) tag-team group. They are one of Milestone's biggest names.

Working on the "indy circuit" is the best way for aspiring wrestlers to build up the experience and fanbase to make the jump to the "pros."

Wrestlers often advertise the dangerous stunts they do, such as walking barefoot over thumbtacks or using barbed wire webs. Canipe says the craziest thing he saw a wrestler do was tear open cans of soda with his teeth. 

"I had to see it to believe it," Canipe says of the match. 

Canipe often takes North Carolina and Southern culture as his subject, publishing personal projects on his website.  

SEE ALSO: This underground fight night is the most intense competition in New York

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After a snowstorm that hit the Northeast and led airlines to cancel over 5,000 U.S. flights in two days, an unlucky group of JetBlue passengers is stuck in Barbados.

Some of them may not get back to New York for a week.

Passenger Lee Cochran told Business Insider that after her Friday afternoon flight to JFK was cancelled, JetBlue rebooked her on a January 9 flight. Her sister got a January 12 trip home.

Cochran asked about the possibility of flying to another city or being rebooked on another airline, but nothing worked out.

She gave credit to the JetBlue employees she worked with — "they did try to look for alternative options, but were limited in resources" — but ended up booking a Monday afternoon flight on another airline, for an "exorbitant" price.

"JetBlue won't pay for anything," Cochran said. She's spared the cost of a hotel, since the rest of her family is staying on the island a bit longer.

Cochran added that she was in line behind a family rebooked on a January 10 flight, who were considering chartering a private plane home.

A JetBlue spokesperson explained that part of the problem is that the New York to Barbados route is served by only one Airbus A321 plane, which seats just 190 passengers. Because many customers had booked trips home after the New Year's holiday, there isn't a lot of extra capacity to absorb passengers whose flights were cancelled.

The airline may be able to run an extra flight if a crew and aircraft are available, but that's not guaranteed. The storm left passengers stranded all over, and new FAA rules that limit the number of consecutive hours pilots can fly go into effect on Saturday.

If customers are stuck without a flight for three days, the airline will "prioritize" getting them home, the spokesperson said. While it's "not likely" that some will be stuck in Barbados for as long as a week, it's not impossible, either.

And like most airlines, JetBlue usually doesn't pay for accommodations for passengers stranded by weather events.

Not everyone was so unlucky, however. Freddie Darzi told Business Insider he was supposed to fly to New York on Friday, but moved his trip up a day (he had booked a flexible ticket). "JetBlue," he said, "were fantastic."

After a few hours delay, he got to JFK around 8 p.m. — in the midst of "horrendous weather."

SEE ALSO: The Scene At LaGuardia Airport Is Absolutely Horrifying [PHOTOS]

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The end of World War II signaled the beginning of a new era of leisure for Europeans and Americans alike. Those with the means started traveling more than ever before, and for many that meant making a trip to luxurious international ski resorts in Switzerland, Austria, and Italy.

An upcoming exhibit at New York's International Center of Photography showcases master photographer Robert Capa's portraits of postwar life in Europe. Capa is best known for his black-and-white war photos, but this exhibit captures an entirely different side of his work, one that shows the glamorous lives of fashionable Europeans in brilliant full color.

Capa shot the photos for magazines like Holiday and Collier's, and they are among those that will be featured in the exhibit, running from January until May. 

1949: Here, skiers begin a run at Zermatt, Switzerland with the iconic Matterhorn mountain in the background.  

1949: A man in Zürs, Austria celebrates Carnival in style, skiing in a full suit and top hat. Carnival is celebrated for several weeks before the beginning of Lent, and it gives Alpine dwellers an opportunity to be silly in anticipation of the coming of spring. 

1949: These skiers opt for a truly Alpine experience at this ice bar outside Hotel Edelweiss in Zürs, Austria. The hotel still provides top accommodations for travelers today. 

1954: Americans John and Betty Marsh are shown here watching an ice skating show in St. Moritz, Switzerland during the filming of "Cinerama Holiday." The wide-screen film was one of the highest-grossing movies of the 1950s, making the Kansas City couple famous.

SEE ALSO: 20 Mountains All Skiers And Snowboarders Should Visit In Their Lifetime

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Simon Beck is a map maker who's proving that maybe snow storms aren't so bad after all.

Beck, an Englishman with a background in orienteering map-making, uses a snow storm as an opportunity to make art — with nothing but an expedition compass and a pair of snowshoes.

Beck typically makes his mind-blowing designs in France, where he lives during ski season, and documents them afterward on his popular Facebook page. But sometimes he'll give fans a glimpse into his process, which requires a keen eye, extreme precision, and attention to detail.

Here's how he does it.

Beck plans out the pattern on graph paper.

When he gets into the snow, he surveys the site and judges where the major points of the design should be, and starts at one of those points, walking to the center of the design.

From the center, Beck calculates the distance to the other points and walks out and back from the center to the other points, using either pace counting or a measuring tape to determine the number of steps he needs to take. 

Each piece is composed of a series of lines, geometric shapes, or arcs and curves, which Beck shades in to fill in the pattern.

Each piece takes about 10 hours on average to complete, though "some are a little unfinished, if my feet get cold or hurt too much," he writes on his Facebook page.

Beck estimates that he's walked more than 40 kilometers to complete some pieces, which only last until the next heavy snowfall.

Beck likes a level, untracked site with a uniform snow depth of about nine inches of powdery snow to make sure his art looks best in photographs, which he takes from either an aircraft or a ski lift.

Here's the finished piece, taken from high above the slopes.

You can find more of Simon Beck's artwork on Facebook.

SEE ALSO: This Giant Replica Of China's Largest Bank Is Made Completely From Ice

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Beauty is not subjective. Contrary to popular belief, men and women generally agree on who is and who is not physically attractive, even across different cultures.  

What makes someone enjoyable to look at? 

High cheekbones, fuller lips, big eyes, and a thin chin are associated with sexiness in women, whereas a big jaw and broad chin are preferred in men. Smooth skin, shiny hair, and facial symmetry are also key aspects of beauty.  

According to various studies, these provide measures of health, good genes, intelligence, and success. More often than not, the world rewards beauty.

Here's why it's better to be hot: 

#1 Beautiful people are viewed as healthier.

Facial symmetry, considered the beacon of beauty, can be perceived as a sign of health, even if it is not related to actual health. In an Australian study, researchers morphed photographs of young adults so that their faces were perfectly symmetrical. In general, the symmetric version of each face — both male and female — received higher health ratings than the normal image. Individuals with asymmetric faces were perceived as unhealthy.

#2 Beautiful people are actually healthier. 

Although the link between facial symmetry and real health is weak, there is some evidence that individuals with more distinct facial features, considered less attractive, are more susceptible to disease, parasites, and other illnesses. Specifically, in a study of 17-year-olds, researchers found that facial distinctiveness was linked to poor health in both men and women, either during childhood or adolescence. Facial averageness, on the other hand, was linked to good health. One theory is that distinctive facial traits are tied to chromosomal disorders. The preference for average faces may have evolved as a way of identifying a mate with good genes. 

#3 It's easier for beautiful people to find mates. 

Men seek attractive women as mates because good looks signal youth, health, and reproductive fitness. 

#4 Beautiful people are more intelligent. 

University of New Mexico researchers found that general intelligence is positively linked to body symmetry, a characteristic that is indicative of attractive qualities like health, social dominance, and fitness-related biological traits.  

#5 Beautiful people are more persuasive. 

Good-looking people can use their sex appeal to command attention and to get ahead, say in a job interview or when asking for a promotion. Attractive people are more persuasive, in part, because they also possess or develop key personality traits — like intelligence and strong social skills — that make them more effective communicators. Researchers also found that compared to unattractive speakers, attractive speakers were much more fluent talkers.  

#6 Companies with good-looking executives have higher sales.  

In a study of nearly 300 Dutch advertising agencies, economists found that firms with better-looking executives had higher revenues. Overall productivity, and resulting sales, were greater in companies with more attractive managers, partly because firms with more attractive workers have the competitive advantage when client interactions are involved. 

#7 Beautiful people have an advantage in politics. 

Beautiful people have the upper-hand in politics, according to a study in Finland which found that both male and female political candidates who look better than their competitors are more successful. A better individual beauty score was associated with an increase of 20% in the number of votes for the average non-incumbent parliamentary candidate. Perceived competence and trustworthiness had less of an effect. The study authors suggests that voters favor good-looking candidates because they enjoy watching them and they fare better in social situations. 

#8 Beautiful people are perceived as more likeable and trustworthy. 

Beautiful people are typically treated better by others. In a study from Harvard University, researchers found that wearing makeup, shown to enhance a woman's attractiveness, boosted people's perceptions of that subject's competence, likability, attractiveness, and trustworthiness.

SEE ALSO: What The Human Face Might Look Like 100,000 Years From Now

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Drug culture in America hit a major turning point on New Year's Day.

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A Seattle woman ate nothing but Starbucks food for an entire year as part of a New Year's challenge. 

The woman, legally named Beautiful Existence, spent between $500 and $600 a month feeding herself the prepackaged salads, sandwiches and pastries from the coffee chain.

The 49-year-old mother of two tracked her daily intake on her blog and posted pictures of her meals to Instagram. She said her kids were excluded from the Starbucks-only diet. 

"I DID IT!" she exclaimed on her blog after finishing the challenge. 

She told the New York Daily News that the last couple weeks of the diet were especially difficult. 

"In the last month, in the last couple weeks, it's been really difficult. People had pizza at the office last week and I was dying," she told the paper. "I'm happy to be able to eat whatever I want (again)."

Here's one of her meals - a "midnight snack" from Starbucks Evenings:

She said Starbucks' chicken and hummus bistro box is a favorite of hers, even after eating it frequently over the last year. 

Apparently this meal of lamb, apple chutney and Brussels sprouts was also made by Starbucks, though we've never seen anything like this served by the coffee chain: 

Beautiful Existence also ate food from Tazo Tea and Evolution Fresh, which are owned by Starbucks. 

Existence told Buzzfeed that the chain did not pay her to complete the challenge, though her sister is a barista.

"WHY? am I doing this challenge? Or WHY? will I do any challenge in the future?" she wrote on her blog. "Because I LOVE being human and I LOVE the privilege of being able to ask the question WHY? in the first place!"

She hasn't said whether she gained any weight during the year-long experiment. We've reached out to her and are waiting to hear back. 

She was so committed to the challenge that she even dressed as the Starbucks siren for Halloween and fashioned part of her costume out of old Starbucks bags.

Existence's first non-Starbucks meal was fish and chips from the Seattle-based restaurant chain Ivar’s.

"The first meal of 2014 for me HAD TO BE a Seattle original, a place that I’ve been to with my family and friends my entire life… IVARS!" she wrote.

SEE ALSO: Missouri Bar Gets Cease-And-Desist Order From Starbucks, Responds With Hilarious Letter And $6 Check

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Behind every great man is a great woman, as they say. But who stands behind the world's dictators?

In good times and in bad, the ladies of the Dictators' Wives Club sure put up with a lot: corruption, political uprisings, and often other wives.

Some, like Rwandan First Lady Jeannette Kagame, use their position to advocate for important charitable causes in their nations.

Others, like Syrian president's wife Asma al-Assad, are pros at looking the other way and smiling for official Instagram photos.

For this list, we defined a dictator as a near-absolute ruler known for human rights abuses, restrictions on freedom of the press, and oppression of opposition.

Ana Paula dos Santos, wife of Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos

The first lady: A former fashion model, Ana Paula dos Santos knew her husband from her time as a flight attendant on the Angolan version of Air Force One. She now has a degree in teaching and law, and is a member of the International Steering Committee.

A diplomat once described the president and first lady as "a handsome couple, elegantly and expensively dressed, looking for all the world as though they're living in southern California." The first lady received a lot of flack from the public when she announced that her son would be attending the Portuguese school in Luanda because of the "bad quality" of state education — something for which many people hold her husband responsible.

Her husband: During President dos Santos' 34 years in office, he has consolidated all political power under his control. Countless atrocities, including torture and mass murders, occurred under his watch during a 27-year-long civil war. There are still reports of torture and repression of ethnic minorities going on in Angola today.

Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, wife of Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa

The Queen Consort: Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa is the first wife of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Aside from being a devoted mother to their four children — one of whom is the crown prince — Ibrahim Al Khalifa is an outspoken activist for women's and children's rights, both in Bahrain and around the world, having addressed the U.N. General Assembly about these issues.

She serves as the head of the Supreme Council for Women in Bahrain, encouraging women to vote in the country, and is also the chief patron of the Society for Women and Children in Bahrain.

Her husband: The country has been run by the Al Khalifa dynasty since 1783. Hamad declared himself king in 2002, previously holding the title of Emir, meaning "commander." After an uprising against him in 2011, Amnesty International condemned the failure of the Bahraini government amidst "spiraling repression," including banning all public gatherings and rallies, revoking citizenships of those who speak out, and torturing both adults and children. In spite of this, Bahrain remains backed by support from the U.S.

Chantal Biya, wife of Cameroonian President Paul Biya

The first lady: Known as a trendsetter (there's even a Tumblr devoted to her famously tall hair-do), the first lady of Cameroon is very social and has met Michelle Obama, Paris Hilton and, just this past September, the Pope. Biya has been quoted as saying that her favorite European designers are Dior and Chanel, and many of the pieces in her wardrobe are custom-made.

Thirty-eight years her husband's junior, Biya is also a member of African Synergy, a club that comprises the wives of 22 of the continent's heads of state.

Her husband: President Biya has been in office for more than 30 years, and in 2008 removed restrictions on term limits so that he could run for office indefinitely. His state security forces have been accused of executing protestors and using other means of violence and oppression to prevent political opposition.

Sriracha has taken our taste buds hostage. Every single year, the company behind the beloved hot sauce, Huy Fong Foods, sees at least a 20% business increase.

The sauce of sun-ripened chilies, garlic, and sugar, packaged in a convenient squeeze bottle, adds spice to almost anything: soups, sauces, pastas, pizzas, hot dogs, hamburgers, and chowmein, just to name a few. 

Even more, Sriracha embodies hipness (much to the dismay of diehard fans.) If you use it, you love it. And if you don't, you'll probably buy a red, rooster sweatshirt anyway and pretend. 

The red sauce has also made its fair share of headlines recently, after neighbors complained about odors emanating from the factory. As a result, the state health department temporarily halted shipping to implement additional safety measures.

Even earlier though, Griffin Hammond, a filmmaker and Sriracha fan himself, found the company's  success a bit mysterious. So he launched a Kickstarter campaign to create a documentary about the spicy condiment— and America's obsession with it.

He reached his goal and then some. Last month, "Sriracha: A Documentary" by Griffin Hammond debuted. Do yourself a favor and splurge on $5 to download the full version.

These GIFs from Hammond's recent flick show you how Sriracha goes from the fields to the grocery store shelves.

Just one company, Underwood Ranches in Camarillo, Cali., grows the chiles used to make Sriracha. And Huy Fong Foods only buys from them. Below, workers dump hand-picked chiles into crates.

Equipment does some of the work though. This year, the farm will grow 48,000 tons of peppers, according to owner Craig Underwood.

That would take up a field about the size of lower Manhattan, south of Houston Street.

After sorting, a conveyer belt hoists the peppers onto trucks. The farm sends about 30 semis to Huy Fong Foods daily, Underwood said.

Vietnamese refugee David Tran founded Huy Fong Foods, located in Rosemead, Cali. 

He named the company after the ship that brought him to America.

Once the chiles leave the truck, processing starts.

They look like red quicksand funneling into factory machines.

First, a windmill-like device washes the chiles, removing any dirt or chemicals.

Then, they enter a grinder.

After that, industrial, blue barrels store the chile-mash.

Later, the mixture gets a dose of garlic and sugar. Below, the sauce cooks while churning.

Then, packaging begins. The old factory (not shown) could produce about 70,000 bottles daily. Huy Fong Foods' new facility, however, is 2.5 times the size and yields about 18,000 daily — on one line.

Factory machines also take care of the the final touch, those signature green caps.

As the bottles leave the conveyer belt, workers package them, twelve to each box.

Aside from the 17- and 28-ounce bottles, the company plans to sell 9-ounce and gallon-sized containers too, according to Tran.

Heavy machinery transports large orders. Huy Fong Foods' new factory more than doubles the old one in size.

Surprisingly, the company doesn't advertise for any product. Fans, however, often pick up the slack. This dancing chicken comes from a YouTube video called "Sriracha Rap." 

Still, Huy Fong Foods has no trouble selling the special sauce. "The past 30 years, the economics sometimes up and down. For me, I feel nothing. Every day, every month, the volume increase," Tran said. 

Most importantly, Tran wants to keep the price low for his "chile friends."

And they use it on almost everything.

Check out trailer for the full video below:

SEE ALSO: The Best Science GIFs Of 2013

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When you sign up for one of the many online dating websites, you've likely culled through your collection of photos to find the perfect ones to upload to your profile.

Now, science has proved that certain kinds of photos will help you attract more dates, and the standards are not the same for men and women.

Online dating site Zoosk recently did a study of 4,000 singles, says The Date Report.

Should my photo be taken indoors or outdoors?

Depends! Women attract 60% more attention with photos taken indoors, while men see an 18% bump when their photos are taken outside.

Either way, your face should be visible. A photo of you climbing a mountain is great, but if you're a teeny tiny blip on the screen, a prospective date will have no idea what you look like.

You should have at least one full body shot.

Full body shots yield positive results for both sexes. Those who use full body photos see a "203% boost in messages received."

To selfie or not to selfie?

When it comes to selfies, women who take them receive more messages, while men who take them receive less. Sorry, dudes.

But ladies, choose just one selfie if you're so inclined. A profile full of selfie shots doesn't give your suitor a good idea of what you look like.

Of course, The Date Report points out, it helps if you're empirically attractive (though there's no accounting for taste), and smiling (no duck faces!).

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With the "polar vortex" bringing frigid temperatures across the country, going outside isn't just uncomfortable — it can be downright dangerous.

The temperature will drop to -25 F in Fargo, N.D., -31 F in International Falls, Minn., and -15 F in Indianapolis and Chicago, according to the Associated Press.

Straight temperatures aren't all that matter. Brave adventurers (or those forced to leave their homes) should really consider wind chill — the temperature it "feels like" outside based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin, according to the National Weather Service.

In colder temperatures, you shiver to produce heat in your muscles. You'll also need to pee more. Exposure to cold reduces blood flow to the skin's surface which also decreased the overall volume that your body can hold. Your body responds by ditching liquid, according to an infographic from the Toronto Sun.

Fingers, toes, ear lobes, or the tip of the nose are the areas most susceptible to frostbite. Your body works hard to keep internal organs warm and your head warm, and sometimes extremities get left behind.

Usually, when parts of your body get too cold, they turn red and hurt. Symptoms of frostbite, however, include a loss of feeling and lack of color. Anyone showing signs of hypothermia or frost bite should seek medical attention immediately.

The chart below shows how long you can be exposed to certain temperatures before it will result in frost bite.

For example, a temperature of 0°F and a wind speed of 15 mph creates a wind chill temperature of -19°F. Under these conditions frost bite can occur in just 30 minutes. In some areas of the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest, wind chill reached below negative 60 degrees, according to the NWS, when exposed skin can freeze in just freeze in 10 minutes.

You can, however, survive a winter scenario like this. Check out these tips— like wearing mittens instead of gloves.

Extremely cold temperature can also cause hypothermia, when the body's temperature dips below 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Warning signs include uncontrollable shivering, memory loss, disorientation, incoherence, slurred speech, drowsiness, and obvious exhaustion, according to the NWS.

Surprisingly, hypothermia can occur at any temperature lower than normal body temperature. Factors like body fat, age, alcohol consumption, and especially wetness can affect how long hypothermia takes to strike.

If you fall into water, the situation becomes drastically more dangerous.

For example, in water 32.5 degrees Fahrenheit or colder, you might not survive more than 15-to-45 minutes. You'll undergo shock within the first two minutes and some functional disability before 30 minutes, according to the United States Coast Guard.

Check out this chart from the Personal Floatation Device Manufacturers Association:

SEE ALSO: Here's What The 'Polar Vortex' That's Hitting The US Actually Is

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You may remember Amy Chua, a Yale law professor, as the "Tiger Mom" who argued that running a severely strict household was the key to raising successful children.

Now she and husband Jed Rubenfeld are out with an even more controversial book about success and parenting, "The Triple Package."

According to a review by Maureen Callahan in the New York Post, the pair have "gathered some specious stats and anecdotal evidence to argue that some groups are just superior to others and everyone else is contributing to the downfall of America."

The authors write:

That certain groups do much better in America than others — as measured by income, occupational status, test scores, and so on — is difficult to talk about. In large part, this is because the topic feels so racially charged.

Here is their list:

• Nigerians
• Jews
• Chinese
• Indians
• Iranians
• Lebanese-Americans
• Cuban exiles
• Mormons

The pair argue that studies about vanishing upward mobility tend to exclude immigrants and their children, who often possess at least one of three character traits — a superiority complex, insecurity, and impulse control — that other, less successful groups allegedly lack.

But just because one's "group" may not enjoy these characteristics doesn't mean an individual within that group can learn them.

“The real promise of a Triple Package America is the promise of a day when there are no longer any successful groups in the United States — only successful individuals," they write.

Read the full review here »

SEE ALSO: The Most Important Charts In The World

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This 507-lb. bluefin tuna caught off northern Japan sold for 7.36 million yen ($70,324 ) at the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo on Jan.5, making it the highest price paid at the market's first tuna auction of the year. 

Check out this massive fish:

The wildest part is that last year the owner of a different Japanese sushi restaurant chain paid $1.76 million for a 489-lb. bluefin tuna.

Svati Kiersten Narula of The Atlantic describes the Sushinomics surrounding the blufin auction, including why the price for the top fish dropped off so much. Here's a snippet:

 If the past decade's trend in pricing continued, this year's first tuna would surely fetch more than a million dollars. But the Tsukiji fish market bucked tradition this weekend and sold its first tuna to Kimura, yet again, for a mere $70,000. That's still way more money than most bluefin go for in Japan. But compared to what everyone was expecting—an extravagant sum to start off the new year and remind us that these are the most prized fish in the sea—that's one crazy cheap tuna. 

SEE ALSO: Rare Video Of Whale Shark Stealing Fish From A Massive Net

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H. Ty Warner, he of Beanie Baby fame, is trying to avoid prison time for evading taxes on secret Swiss bank accounts that held over $100 million, Bloomberg's David Voreacos reports.

Warner, the billionaire founder of the once-mega popular toy, faces 46 months to 57 months in prison. His lawyers argue that his behavior was essentially no different from other tax evaders who have gotten probation.

In 2009, Warner's Swiss bank, UBS, turned over a trove of client names (including Warner's) to the Justice Department as part of a deal with the U.S. government, Bloomberg reports. Then the IRS rejected his application for its "voluntary disclosure program" on the grounds that they already knew about Warner's Swiss accounts before UBS gave them up.

From Bloomberg:

In pleading guilty, Warner admitted to opening an account at UBS in 1996 and transferring $93.6 million in 2002 to Zuercher Kantonalbank, a small Swiss bank.

He filed a false return in 2002 that reported income of $49.1 million, while omitting his UBS income of $3.2 million. He also didn’t file a Treasury Department form called a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, known as an FBAR. He amended his 2002 return in 2007, yet still understated his tax by $885,300.

In pleading guilty, Warner acknowledged that from 1999 through 2007, he underreported his gross income by $24.4 million.

Warner's sentencing is scheduled for January 14.

Read the full report at Bloomberg »

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Cooking is an invaluable skill, but sometimes it can take a long time to master the art. 

Professional chef and restaurant owner Johnathan Law has revealed the top mistakes of amateurs on Quora. 

Law, who operates The Year of the Ram Cafe and Diner in Shenzhen, China, said that most of these mistakes are easily avoidable once you know about them. 

1. Overseasoning. Law said he used to use a dozen spices to season his dishes, but it only confused his palate. "A good dish should have at most 3-4 different primary flavors, coupled with some aromatics," he writes. 

2. Underheating the pan. If you're stir-frying or searing meat, the pan should heat for 5-7 minutes, Law writes. "I have fired an employee before for consistently failing to do this," he said. 

3. Constantly stirring food with a spatula or spoon. "Lots of people seem to think of sauteing as simply cooking something on high heat, and it's not," Law said. "The idea is to make sure the foods being sauteed never steam in the pot, and that means constantly 'jumping' the food, not stirring it with a spatula."

4. Not using an oven thermometer for baked goods. This $10 instrument ensures your cakes or brownies turn out perfect, Law said. 

5. Adding too much liquid to a braise. "I've seen some people add enough water or wine to a braise that the meat is nearly completely submerged," Law writes. "NO! Don't do that! There's a difference between boiling and braising!"

6. Substituting baking ingredients because they taste similar. Make sure you know the chemical properties of the items you're using before doing this, Law says. Otherwise, the consistency of your dish could be totally off. 

7. Adding too much starch to thicken sauces. People get impatient prematurely and add flour or cornstarch to thicken sauces, Law explains. But it's better to wait. "If you add too much starch, you will end up with a bland, grainy, nasty sauce," he says. 

NOW WATCH: These Food Hacks Will Make Your Life Infinitely Easier

SEE ALSO: 16 Tricks You Can Use To Make Fast Food Taste Way Better

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Freezing cold temperatures and heavy snow from last week's storm meant that many of New York's Citi Bikes went unused.

However the hundreds of bikes sitting at docking stations around the city could have been buried under snow and ice, creating a hazard for traffic and snow plows. 

In an effort to prevent snow buildup at select docking stations, hundreds of the bikes were moved to Citi Bike maintenance headquarters, located under the Williamsburg Bridge at Delancey Street. According to Bowery Boogie, it was a precautionary move by the Department of Transportation and NYC Bike Share, which operates the Citi Bike program. 

Bowery Boogie shared their photos of the Citi Bike army with Business Insider. 

The relocation is part of the program's response to concerns that the docking stations would pose a problem once ice and snow arrived. The system will shut down completely if conditions become too severe for biking, though it remained in operation throughout last week's storm. 

SEE ALSO: 15 Tips For Surviving On A Bike In New York City

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The beginning of a new year often signals the beginning of lots of things. Perhaps you created a list of resolutions: get healthier, get out of debt, call home more. 

If giving online dating a try (or perhaps, more effort) was on your list, dating site Plenty Of Fish just came out with a study revealing the types of people who were deemed "most desirable" based on volume of messages received by other members on its site.

This is good news if you're 25, rich, and Catholic. 

The study was based on more than 1.8 million messages sent between heterosexual singles across the U.S. Their sample involved more than 81,000 heterosexual singles between the ages of 25 and 35.

Researchers analyzed attributes, demographics, physical traits, and length of profiles to identify the "most desirable single men and women in 2014."

We suggest you take the following with a grain of salt. For example, Plenty Of Fish is a site that tends to attract more Christian users, so the idea that Christians are the most desirable according to this study makes sense.

So what makes someone desirable?

Millennials Triumph

For both sexes, those in their mid-20s had more success and received more messages.

Get a dog!

Women who own a dog received 5% more messages than those who were without a canine companion. 

Be rich

Not surprisingly, the study suggests you're more desirable if you're not broke. Women who make between $50-75k a year and men who make between $75-150k a year tend to attract more prospective dates.

Lawyers and Drinkers

Men who took the bar and women who frequent the bar are characteristics of desirable singles, says Plenty Of Fish. 

Women who drink receive 4.4% more messages than the average woman on the site. Female non-drinkers receive almost 24% fewer messages. Also, women who describe themselves as "thin" (as opposed to athletic or curvy) receive more messages.

Men who have a doctorate, MD, or law degree receive 33% more messages compared to the average single guy.

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The 30th annual Harbin Ice and Snow Festival opened yesterday in China's northern city of Harbin.

Nearly 10,000 workers built palatial structures out of some 180,000 square meters of ice and 150,000 square meters of snow.

The festival will run through the end of the week, and features well-known structures such as the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and a Disneyland-inspired palace.

Reuters has amazing photos that show the Chinese winter wonderland brought to life with colorful lights at night.

Skiers descend a slope during the opening ceremony of the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival.

Here's an overview of the ice sculpture village in Harbin, China.

The ice structures were life-size at the festival.

The carriage and ice structure decorations are meant to make this look like Disney's castle.

This ice tower appears in the style of a branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the nation’s largest bank.

Visitors could walk around a courtyard in the center of the ice sculptures.

They could even sit inside some of the structures at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival.

A thermometer on an ice sculpture shows it's -30 degrees Celsius (-22 degrees Fahrenheit) inside the ice village.

The Harbin Ice and Snow Festival was a popular spot for families.

This ice structure even looks like the Colosseum in Rome.

SEE ALSO: Inside Huaxi, The Mysterious 'Richest Village In China'

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Inside and outside, the Tesla Model S is a great looking car. But the interior of the Model S is so sleek that it loses some basic functionality.

CEO Elon Musk touts the Model S as a great family car, but there aren't any cup holders in the backseat. And we worry that the huge touchscreen's internet browser can distract drivers.

We go through the good and bad of the Tesla Model S interior in the video above.

Produced by William Wei. Follow us on YouTube >

NOW WATCH: Here's What Really Happens At A Tesla Supercharger Station

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What's cooler than maps? Bizarre ancient maps.

Oxford University Press recently published "The Oxford Map Companion: One Hundred Sources in World History," edited by UC Irvine historian Patricia Seed.

It's more than 200 pages of maps along with Seed's erudite commentary. 

We've pulled five of the most unusual ancient renderings of the world.

Check it out:

The Peutinger Table, c. 350-400 CE. This is actually just a section of a map 23 feet in length and likely designed to be carried as a scroll. It documented the entire extent of Roman roads from eastern Britain through to India. It's named for Renaissance German scholar who published the map after it was rediscovered. 

Medieval Christian "T-O" Map, c. 600 CE. For hundreds of years, versions of maps designed by Isidore of Seville in the 7th century were the industry standard (in Europe at least). It's pretty self-explanatory: the map places the east on top, with the Mediterranean, Black Sea, and associated rivers forming a "T" bisecting the three continents. 

Idrisi's Circular Map of the World, c. 1165 CE. Al Idrisi, a Muslim scholar from Andalusia, created this map for the Christian king of Sicily, whose father had recently conquered the island. The umbrella-looking and rope-like figures are mountain ranges.

The English Hereford Mappamundi, c. 1300 CE, is the largest surviving world map from the middle ages — 64 by 52 inches. The "Garden Of Eden" was still believed to be a real place, located somewhere in India.

Fra Mauro's Map of the World, c. 1448-1459 CE, took three years to make and contains 2,921 different place labels. The map was commissioned by the king of Portugal.

SEE ALSO: 11 Overlay Maps That Will Change The Way You See The World

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