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The market for big, expensive luxury cars in China is over

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2014 BMW 3 Series Long Wheelbase China

China has been, in a word, awesome for luxury automakers. As the country has minted millionaires and billionaires, its newly wealthy have gone shopping for high-end German cars.

And they haven't been all that budget conscious — a great thing for car makers, given that they can make ever-ascending profits as buyers march up the luxury ladder.

But as with some may things, politics is ruining the party. 

Bloomberg's Christoph Rauwald and Ying Tian have the story. "[A]fter a government crackdown on graft and conspicuous consumption, growth in luxury-car sales is slowing, and Chinese buyers are settling for less opulent models," they wrote. "That could spell an end to the gold rush for brands such as Porsche, BMW, and Audi ...."

Interestingly, luxury makes up a bigger chunk of the Chinese car market than it does in the US or Europe. Chinese buy mass-market cars, but relative to the development of more mature global markets, they buy a disproportionately large number of luxury vehicles. 

Bloomberg's Rauwald and Tian suggest that a wave of middle-of-the-road cars isn't necessarily on the way in China. Rather, the likes of Porsche are downsizing their offerings, providing more image-sensitive Chinese customers — due to corruption reforms — with modest luxury. Luxury in smaller packages.

This is nothing new; luxury automakers have been selling smaller cars for years, in an effort to expand ownership to customers with lower incomes. There have been serious questions about whether this strategy erodes their brands. But in China, the move to build modest luxe has given these automakers some options as the market have shifted.

SEE ALSO: 30 awesome photos from Formula One's glamorous Monaco Grand Prix

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We tried In-N-Out Burger's 'secret menu' — and there was only one thing that we really liked

Here's what people eat for breakfast around the world

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Pancakes, Bacon, Eggs

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, keeping us healthy and sharp.

But breakfast foods vary wildly from place to place.

Inspired by a HostelBookers.com post by Victoria Philpott and a Quora post,  we took a look at some classic breakfast choices from countries around the world.

Whether it's bread and cold cuts in Germany or baked cheese pancakes in Russia, each country does their first meal of the day a little differently.

An earlier version of this post was written by Max Rosenberg.

AUSTRALIA: The typical breakfast consists of cold cereal and toast with vegemite.



BRAZIL: Expect to find ham, cheeses, and bread, served with coffee and milk.



CHINA: Traditional breakfasts vary based on the region, but dim sum, small plates of food prepared in a variety of ways, is popular.



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Neil deGrasse Tyson reveals how to see the most spectacular sunset happening in New York this year

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Manhattanhenge

For only two days a year each July, the sun perfectly aligns with Manhattan's city grid, generating the city's most spectacular sunset of the entire year.

What it looks like is similar to what happens on the summer solstice at Stonehenge: As the sun shrinks below the horizon, its circular outline fits perfectly in the center of the tall towers lining the streets and avenues of the Big Apple.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History and host of the wildly popular television series "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey," described it as "a rare and beautiful sight."

Because of its similarity to what happens at Stonehenge, the event is appropriately called Manhattanhenge. And it's a big deal on Instagram, so get your cameras ready.

The event will take place Friday and Saturday at sunset, which is at about 8:12 pm ET.

DeGrasse Tyson says that you need perfectly straight streets to see the phenomenon and not to be fooled by some streets like Sunrise Highway.

"True, some municipalities have streets named for the sun, like Sunrise Highway on Long Island and the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. But these roads are not perfectly straight. And the few times a year when the Sun aligns with one of their stretches of road, all you get is stalled traffic solar glare temporarily blinds drivers."

If you want to get a spectacular view of this year's Manhattanhenge, the best cross streets include 14th, 23rd, 34th, 42nd, and 57th. Also, the Chrysler building on 42nd and the Empire State Building on 34th are ideal vantage points.

Whatever location you choose, arrive 30 minutes prior to 8:12 pm. If you miss it or the weather doesn't cooperate, don't fret: Manhattanhenge occurs again on July 12 and 13 at 8:20 pm.

Here are some incredible pictures of the Manhattanhenge of former years:

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If you get any shots of the Manhattanhenge, send them with a description, your name, and location to our science team at science@businessinsider.com and we might feature them on our site.

SEE ALSO: The 10 most beloved tweets by NASA astronauts in space

CHECK OUT: This photo shows a mysterious mechanism of the sun that has baffled scientists for centuries

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NOW WATCH: Watch SpaceX launch their Falcon 9 rocket right at sunset








This dating app exposed its married users and now hundreds of men are deleting it from their phones

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hinge married user profileDating site Hinge is supposed to be a safe space compared to apps like Tinder — but as it turns out, almost 4% of its male users are either married or dating someone already.

Hinge's slogan is "Meet people through friends," and its users can only connect with others through their shared Facebook friends. This is supposed to make daters feel more secure and less like they're about to hook up with a complete stranger.

I’ve met up with someone on Hinge because you have mutual friends, so you can be 80% sure they’re not a full-on wacko," user Tibby Iz told the New York Times last year.

But earlier this month, Hinge's status as a relative safe space wavered as hundreds of male users fled the service when it came to light that they were using it to cheat.

Hinge uses data from Facebook to populate users' profiles — photos, college and employment info, and location are all fair game. Until now, relationship status wasnt. 

But that's changed. Hinge announced earlier this month that its users’ relationship statuses are now visible to others on the app.

This means that if someone has designated themselves as “married,” “engaged,” or “in a relationship” on Facebook, Hinge users will be able to see that information before deciding whether to swipe right. 

Since this change, 450 of Hinge’s male users have quit the service, Fusion reports. It turns out 1.6% of Hinge users list themselves as married or engaged on Facebook, while 2% are listed as being in a relationship.

It's unclear how many of the 450 departures were directly tied to relationship statuses, but this week's numbers were 40% higher than the usual male attrition rate, Hinge’s Vice President of marketing, Karen Fein, noted in a company statement. The company has not released any data regarding female users leaving the app.

Hinge is not alone in this problem. Thirty percent of Tinder users are married, according to a GlobalWebIndex report.

SEE ALSO: 30 universities where the alumni have both brains and beauty

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NOW WATCH: Tinder is now pulling your Instagram photos into your profile








21 tips for spelling like the pros

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arvind spelling bee champion

The 88th Scripps National Bee began Wednesday. Of the 285 contestants in Oxon Hill, Maryland, this year, only one will win Thursday.

These students spend months, sometimes years, studying for their big moments on the mic. They painstakingly memorize definitions and learn various etymologies to aid their spelling.

Aside from the extra training though, common spelling tips also help contestants reach the end of the competition.

Learn from the best.

General

1. Put "i" before "e" except when the letters come after "c" and sound like "ee" or when they sound like "ay" — with many exceptions.

Almost everyone knows the rhyme: "I" before "e" except after "c."

This rule has some value but only if you remember all of the exceptions.

First of all, the "c" rule holds true only for "e-i" combinations that sound like "ee," as in "ceiling." When the "e-i" combination after "c" makes a different sound, the "i" usually goes first, as in "science" or "efficient."

Second, "e" can come before "i" even without a "c," such as when the vowel combination sounds like "ay," as in "feign" or "vein."

Lastly, many words don't fit the rules at all, such as "their" and "weird."

2. The letter "u" always follows the letter "q."

Exceptions to this rule exist but often as Anglicized versions of foreign words — such as the favorite Scrabble word "qi."

Nouns

3. Use "-acy" in all but four cases: apostasy, fantasy, ecstasy, and idiosyncrasy.

Those are the only words in English that end in "-asy."

4. If the part of the word before the ending can't stand alone as a complete word, you'll usually use "-ary" as in "library."

5. Words that take "-ery" often relate to nouns with "er" already included.

For example, "brewer," "bluster," and "shiver" become "brewery," "blustery," and "shivery."

Also, if the part of the word before the ending can stand alone, you'll usually add "ery."

6. Many nouns (or adjectives) that take "-ory" relate to words with "or" already included.

For example, "contributor" becomes "contributory." They also often stem from a noun that ends in "ion." Consider that "introduction" becomes "introductory."

7. If you pronounce the end of the word "zun," as with "confusion," use "-sion."

The suffix -sion will also usually follow a final "-l," "-n," or "-r" regardless of pronunciation. (Keep in mind the verb forms of words like "exertion" and "invention" actually end in "t," as in "exert" and "invent.")

8. If you pronounce the end of the word "shun, " as with "station," you'll usually use "-tion."

Also, "-tion" will usually follow any letter other than "-l," "-n," or "-r."

9. To pluralize basic nouns and ones that end in a hard "ch" or "f," just add an "s."

As in "monarchs" and "chefs."

10. When a word ends in soft "ch," "sh," "s," "x," or "z," add "-es."

Verbs

To create the present participle and past tense of a verb, you need to add "-ing" or "-ed," respectively, to its infinitive, like "to dream." (Present participle refers to an action happening in that moment, such as "I am running.")

11. If the verb ends in an unpronounced "e," like "bake" or "smile," drop the "e" and add the "-ed" or "-ing."

"Bake" and "smile" become "baking" and "smiling."

12. If the verb contains only one syllable, like "stop," or ends with a stressed syllable containing one vowel and a consonant, like "refer," double the final consonant before adding "-ed" and "-ing."

For example, "stop" becomes "stopping" and "stopped," while "refer" changes to "referred" and "referring."

13. If the verb ends in a hard "c," as in "traffic" or "panic," add a "k" before adding the ending.

"Traffic" becomes "trafficked."

14. If the verb ends in a "y," "ure," or "ear," add "-ance" to make it a noun.

For example, "ally," "reassure," and "clear" become "alliance," "reassurance," and "clearance."

If the verb ends in "ate," like "tolerate," you'll also most likely add "-ance," though not always.

15. If the verb contains "ere" at the end, you'll need "-ence" at the end to make it a noun.

"Revere" and "adhere" become "reverence" and "adherence."

The endings "-ancy" and "-ency" work the same way. For example, because "vacate" ends in "-ate," the noun is "vacancy."

Now, to turn the noun version into an adjective, add "-ant" or "-ent." The same rules apply, only in the reverse order. If a noun ends in "-ancy," you'll usually add "-ant." If a noun ends in "-ency," it normally takes "ence."

16. Use "-ify" in all cases but four: liquefy, putrefy, stupefy, and rarefy.

Those are the only words in English that end in "-efy."

Adjectives and adverbs

17. Spell a word with "-able" when it can stand alone.

Usually, a word that takes the suffix "-able" can stand alone as a word, like "understandable." The same still goes for a dropped "e," as in "advisable" (stem: advise) and double consonants such as "stoppable" (stem: stop).

When in doubt, choose "-able." The Oxford Online Dictionary lists more than 1,000 adjectives that take "-able" compared with only 180 with "-ible."

18. Spell a word with "-ible" when it can't stand alone or when it ends in a hard "c" or "g."

Words with "-ible" almost never function as words on their own, such as "audible." Also, words with a hard "c" (pronounced like "k") and a hard "g" (as in "gig") usually take "-ible."

If you can recognize whether a word has a Latin root, remember that "-ible" usually accompanies words from Latin, such as "audible."

19. Spell adjectives with "-ful."

Words like "beautiful," "careful," and "spiteful" require only one "l." If you turn the adjective into an adverb, however, like "beautifully," you'd need to double the "l."

20. Using the basic rule, you just add "-ly" to the end of an adjective to make it an adverb. But if the adjective contains two syllables and ends in "y," as in "happy," replace the final "y" with "-ily."

For example, "happy" becomes "happily" and "angry" becomes "angrily."

21. If the adjective ends with a consonant followed by an "e," as in "terrible," drop the "e" and add "ly."

"Terrible" becomes "terribly."

SEE ALSO: 13 rules for using commas without looking like an idiot

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here are the 11 smartest boarding schools in America








These are the only types of jewelry men can get away with at the office

Science says people decide these 9 things within seconds of meeting you

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angelina jolie

Psychologists call it "thin slicing." 

Within moments of meeting people, you decide all sorts of things about them, from status to intelligence to promiscuity.

If you're trustworthy

People decide on your trustworthiness in a tenth of a second

Princeton researchers found this out by giving one group of university students 100 milliseconds to rate the attractiveness, competence, likeability, aggressiveness, and trustworthiness of actors' faces.

Members of another group were able to take as long as they wanted. While other traits differed depending on time spent looking, trustworthiness was basically the same.

 



If you're high-status

A Dutch study found that people wearing name-brand clothes — Lacoste and Tommy Hilfiger, to be precise — were seen as higher status than folks wearing non-designer clothes. 

"Perceptions did not differ on any of the other dimensions that might affect the outcome of social interactions," the authors wrote. "There were no differences in perceived attractiveness, kindness, and trustworthiness." 

Just status.



If you're straight or gay

People can read a man's sexual orientation in a twentieth of a second — the minimum amount of time it takes to consciously recognize a face. 

"The rapid and accurate perception of male sexual orientation may be just another symptom of a fast and efficient cognitive mechanism for perceiving the characteristics of others," wrote study authors Nicholas O. Rule and Nalini Ambady.



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20 incredibly impressive kids graduating from high school this year

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Jack Griffin, high schoolFrom finding a new way to treat breast cancer to raising awareness about mental health issues to earning gold medals at the Olympics, this year's crop of high school seniors already boast impressive resumes.

Based on reader nominations, news stories, and word of mouth, we found 20 incredibly impressive students graduating from high school this year who are already accomplishing more than most adults.

Amara Majeed is eradicating stereotypes about Muslims and empowering Muslim women.

High school: Towson High School, Baltimore, Maryland

Majeed started a global initiative, The Hijab Project, in order to promote the understanding and empowerment of Muslim women. The project encourages women from all backgrounds to try wearing a hijab the next time they go out in public and share their stories of how they feel they were treated by others. Global News and The Baltimore Sun interviewed Majeed about the project, and she was also featured on MSNBC.

She also recently published "The Foreigners," a book which chronicles the lives of Muslims around the world. "I wanted to show the world that the majority of Muslims aren’t corrupt leaders of organizations that steal, rape, and sell girls on the market," Majeed told BI. She also writes for CNN, The Huffington Post, and Bustle.

Plans after graduation: Majeed plans to double major in international relations and philosophy at Brown University in the fall, and conduct research on conflict resolution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.



Andreas Pavlou used gene therapy to test new ways to treat breast cancer.

High school: Sewanhaka High School, Elmont, New York

Last summer, Pavlou had the opportunity to research the long-term effects that night-time light exposure has on breast cancer patients, and identified a gene that showed abnormal expression in triple-negative breast cancer, and in patients exposed to light at night. Using new gene therapy concepts in conjunction with a common cancer drug, Pavlou and his lab mates noticed mainly negative growth in cancerous cells, rendering their experiments a success and pointing to new ways gene therapy can be used to treat cancer.

Pavlou is also the editor-in-chief of his high school's newspaper, the president of the student council, and the co-president of the mock trial program.

After his father died in 2014, Pavlou began helping care for his family, and recently earned the prestigious Questbridge scholarship for low-income students, which grants recipients a full ride to college.

Plans after graduation: Pavlou plans to attend the University of Pennsylvania and study international relations.



Andrew Jin created an algorithm that's helping us understand the genetic causes of diseases like schizophrenia.

High school: The Harker School, San Jose, California

Earlier this year, Jin took home the First Place Medal of Distinction for Global Good from the Intel Science Talent Search, along with a $150,000 prize, for crafting a machine-learning algorithm that analyzes massive data sets of DNA and identifies adaptive mutations in them.

His algorithm discovered over 100 mutations related to metabolism, brain function, and disorders like schizophrenia. Not only do these findings help researchers better understand human evolution, but they can potentially be used to help develop new vaccines and treatments.

Before that, Jin and a friend created a new chemotherapy treatment that increased potency, reduced toxic side effects, and prevented drug resistance, earning him second place at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and third place in the Siemens Competition. 

Plans after graduation: In the fall, Jin will start at Harvard University, studying computer science and biology. He'll also spend the summer interning at Facebook to work on machine learning with the search team. 



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13 chefs tell the stories behind their tattoos

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Growing up in and around a restaurant kitchen (my dad owned a fried chicken joint) and now spending much of my career writing about food and the people who make it great, I always like to hear chefs talk about their tattoos.  

Being a chef of any kind is intense as all hell. But it's also an art that requires a free-roaming, slightly unhinged frame of mind. They're sensitive beings with complex emotions and fabulously twisted senses of humor, so naturally they have rad tattoos.

For the past week I've been emailing with 13 East and West Coast chefs to find out the backstories of their tattoos. What I ended up getting went so much further than why and when. 

1. JESSE SCHENKER 

Chef/owner, The Gander and Recette
Author, "All or Nothing: One Chef's Appetite for the Extreme" 

JESSE SCHENKER

I got it in 2005, while I was in a work release program, newly sober and cooking my heart out. 

“My left arm is tattooed with the words 'ALL OR NONE,' written in my own handwriting. It’s inspired by the Pearl Jam song that reflects my mentality for the extreme, whether it be my dark past with drugs or intense passion for cooking. The words are surrounded by a piece of caul fat — the membrane surrounding a pig's internal organs — wrapped around a piece of meat and punctuated by a slicer from Japanese knife-maker Misono. I got it in 2005, while I was in a work release program, newly sober and cooking my heart out. 

I’m a longtime Pearl Jam fan and the band has been a big part of my life through thick and thin. Serendipitously, the song “Alive” even came on in the back of a cop car after my final arrest, which signified a moment of life-changing clarity.” 


2. MARC FORGIONE

Chef/partner, Restaurant Marc Forgione and American Cut

marc forgione

"I use [tattoos] almost like a roadmap of my life. They all have their own little story. It's a badge of memory. The wild turkey feathers are a sign to the great spirit that I'm always listening and paying attention to the simple gifts in life."

Editor's note: Forgione is really into Navajo art — it's what inspired him to open his first restaurant. The "1621" on both of his biceps represents his 2010 win on "The Next Iron Chef," for which he recreated the first Thanksgiving meal.


3. STEPHEN COLLUCCI

Pastry chef, Colicchio & Sons 

stephen collucci_collicchio and sons

"I wanted to get a tattoo that reflected my love of the craft but wasn't feminine. The tattoo [the Italian word for sugar] is meant to express my dedication to my art and pay homage to my roots, which inspire me on the daily.”


4. LUKE WALLACE

Chef de cuisine, CraftBar New York 

luke wallace craftbar

It stands for act 3, scene 1, lines 58-92 ... the 'to be or not be' speech from Hamlet. 

"My father was in the navy and served in the Vietnam War. I always loved his stories of travel, food, and excitement in Southeast Asia. He had a similar tattoo of an anchor that he got in the navy, with 'made in Brooklyn' written underneath it. By the time I was born it was already a blurry mess, but I still remember thinking it was so cool. 

When [my father] passed away from cancer a few years back, this seemed like a good way to honor his memory. I also took my first Southeast Asia trip to Vietnam shortly after.

The banner at the top is a part I added — it stands for act 3, scene 1, lines 58-92, probably one the most famous speeches ever written, the to be or not be' speech from Hamlet, a classic tail of life, death, and loss of fathers.”


5. MICHAEL CHERNOW

Owner, Seamore's (coming summer 2015)
Co-founder, The Meatball Shop

Michael Chernow

"On my left arm I have a tattoo of my first dog, Duke. I got him when I was 18 and he was truly like a son to me. My right arm is tattooed with orchids because they are my mother’s favorite — and now I can give her flowers every time I see her.

Basically, every tattoo I have represents something that is very near and dear to my heart. They keep me grounded and remind me what matters most in life.”  


6. ADAM GERINGER-DUNN

Executive chef/owner, Greenpoint Fish & Lobster Co.

chef adam geringer dunn

Being a pescatarian, I believe oysters to be a perfect protein.

“My first and only tattoo is of Wellfleet oysters. I’ve been going to Cape Cod with my family for 25 years. I think Wellfleet consistently produce some of the best oysters in the country.

Being a pescatarian, I believe oysters to be a perfect protein. They have a net positive effect on the environment, [they're] totally sustainable, incredibly healthy, delicious, and [don't] need any cooking or significant preparation to eat.” 


7. JEFF MAHIN

Chef/partner, Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants

jeff mahin

My first tattoo I got when I was 16 — that my friends and I did to each other — probably wasn’t the best idea

“My first tattoo I got when I was 16 — that my friends and I did to each other — probably wasn’t the best idea.

I met a guy when I was 18 who was totally covered in tattoos, and he was 75. I randomly talked to him and he told me a story that I still remember to this day. He always wanted tattoos but his wife didn’t really like them. When she died, he decided to move to Japan and find the best tattoo artist and do a full body tattoo. 

Japanese artwork has always been a big part of my life, as my dad was an engineer.


8. EMILY CHAPMAN 

Sous chef, Louro

emily chapman louro

RIGHT: "These are all warriors from ancient history, what I used to study before culinary arts. They help support my inner warrior and remind me of my love of history."

LEFT: "I got this tattoo on the second year anniversary of Louro. Some restaurants really change you as a chef and person, and I wanted to carry those lessons with me always."


9. KEVIN ADEY

Chef/owner, FARO

kevin adey

RIGHT: "'Commis' represents the lowest/least experienced person in the kitchen. It’s a symbol that we are always learning."

LEFT: "[Called 'Pig Arthur'] this represents that the meat I cook came from animals that had to die — so don’t mess it up!"


10. SEAN OLNOWICH

Chef, Bounce Sporting Club 

sean olnowich

"The one large tattoo I have stems from my studies of Eastern cultures and, more specifically, the way of the Bushido and Japanese ideology in general. There are three major components to the tattoo: The most prominent is the dragon, which represents wisdom, strength (for the good of mankind), and generosity; next is the koi fish, which represents courage, desire, and determination; and last is the cherry blossom tree and petals, which represents beauty, love, and the essence of life."


11. RAYMOND ALVAREZ

Executive chef, Toca Madera 

toca madera

“This tattoo serves as a thank you to my mom for all she has done, and for making me who I am today.”


12. SAM MASON

Chef/co-owner, OddFellows Ice Cream Co.

sam mason

I actually have no reason or inspiration behind my tattoos. 

“Believe it or not, I actually have no reason or inspiration behind my tattoos. I don’t give a concept to the artist.

I just seek out great artists that I trust and give them free reign to do what they do best. All of my tattoos are original work that I’ve consented to right before going under the needle. So far, so good!”


13. LUIS JARAMILLO

Executive chef, Blue Water Grill

Luis Jaramillo

RIGHT: "The Inca god Viracocha represents the heritage where I come from, Ecuador."

LEFT: "It is a philosophical way of not being afraid — freeing your thoughts, mind, soul."

SEE ALSO: Top chef explains how to make the perfect prime rib

SEE ALSO:  LIFE More: Eating Sushi Japan Restaurants New York is losing one of its best sushi chefs in July — let the reservation race begin

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NOW WATCH: A Master Chef Shows How To Cook The Perfect Burger In Your Own Kitchen








This unnerving style of dance is taking Instagram by storm and it might make you sick

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The dance style "bone breaking" is just as eye-catching as its name suggests, and it's exploding on Instagram.

Bone-breakers are known for dislocating their shoulders to create fluid movements that are spectacular to watch — but also might make you a bit squeamish.

Instagram users are loving it, though. Dancers have uploaded more than 7,000 posts under the hashtag #bonebreaking, with 4,000 more under #bonebreak.

 

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Bone breaking has its roots in Brooklyn, where young dancers regularly compete in dance competitions such as Battle Fest, according to a blog post from Opening Ceremony. It is a type of flex dancing, which is a contortionist style of dance.

Flex dancers have competed in Brooklyn since at least 2006, according to the New York Post. Another competition will take place on July 26.

 

 

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While many hold the misconception that bone-breaking evolved from hip hop dance, it actually emerged from a Jamaican dance style called bruk-up, according to a recent video exploring bone breaking in The New Yorker.

Busta Rhymes has featured bruk-up dancers in his music videos, and on Madonna’s MDNA tour in 2013, six of her 22 dancers were bone breakers.

 

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One of Madonna's dancers, Jahzrel "Vibez" Henderson, told Opening Ceremony, “I’m double-jointed so I’m a natural bone breaker.”

 

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Fellow Madonna dancer Stanley Mondesir isn't double-jointed. He told Opening Ceremony that it took plenty of stretching and practice to build up his skills.

Either way, bone-breaking isn't exactly easy on the body. Henderson recommends using Tiger balm to ease soreness. He also takes baths in Epsom salt.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Watch These Daredevil Dancers Leap From A 22-Foot Spinning Ladder








People are turning their deceased loved ones' remains into jewelry — and it's gorgeous

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Dying is expensiveThe average cost of a funeral with burial and headstone ranges from $7,000 to $10,000. 

But a less costly alternative to this traditional practice has been gaining popularity in recent years: Cremation. 

For about a decade, if you had a couple thousand dollars at the minimum then "memorial diamondsmade from the carbon found in ashes were an alternative to a traditional urn. Now, a new company with a lower cost technique and greater attention to design will transform your loved one's ashes into a treasured keepsake.   

Grateful Glass

Grateful Glass was started in 2012 by 31-year-old Matthew Olian. The company offers everything from hand-blown glass pendants, rings, and cuffs to sparkling orbs and urns made with Pyrex glass and, of course, ash.

Olian got started blowing glass as a sophomore in high school after watching a documentary on famous sculptor Dale Chihuly. Soon after, Olian's mother allowed him to set up his own small studio in their garage.

Cobalt Perpetual Pendant

Through college at the University of Vermont and during an apprenticeship in Murano, Italy, he continued to hone his craft, and by 2007, Olian was spending most of his time on the road, traveling from trade show to trade show to show his work.

During one of his shows, a customer asked Olian to make a memorial pendant. Having never heard of the concept, Olian was surprised, but determined.He took on the order and, within a few weeks, he managed to deliver the piece.

"It was one of those moments where I was like 'Wow, this is a really special concept, and I don't think anyone else is doing it and I should run with it,'" Olian recalls.

"It was a pretty special feeling to give this[customer] such happiness through my work," he said.

With a little research, Olian discovered how many people were turning to cremation, and realized he'd found an untapped market for memorial keepsakes. Even once he'd recognized this potential business opportunity, Olian still had no idea how — or even if he could — create a company out of the idea.

It was around thistime that Olian's grandmother fell ill and became increasingly sick. She had no idea that her illness would leave behind a special gift that allowed Grateful Glass to, quite literally, rise from the ashes.

Olian needed sample pieces to show his clients, he recalled, and his grandmother told him it was her wish to be cremated.

"By the time I had decided this is what I wanted to do, she had just passed away," said Olian. "So all of the sample pieces are made from her ashes.” 

Close to a decade after his journey with glassmaking began, Olian launched Grateful Glass. Word of his new business spread — he quickly connected himself with a large network of funeral homes around the country.

The process

Today, Olian continues to create all of his pieces by hand, with occasional assistance from interns. 

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First, he receives the ash from his customers, which is mostly bone, and is made up of calcium phosphates and small traces of other minerals. Then, he combines it with molten glass using his own encasement methods unique to each piece he designs. Over the years, he said he's found the perfect combination of temperature and time to produce a piece of glass that showcases cremated remains in the best way possible.

Given the subtle chemical variations in remains, the ashes react differently with the glass each time, Olian said.

"Sometimes the encased ashes look like a myriad of flecks while others create more organic bubble patterns. Sometimes they even produce interesting colors through the piece," said Olian. 

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Olian also makes keepsakes for people's pets.

In fact, he estimates that between 35% and 40% of his orders are for former dog and cat owners. While he works with pet crematories, Olian says most of his customers who are looking for pet memorials find him by searching online.  

"Something you can always keep on you"

Although he wouldn’t reveal specific numbers to Business Insider, Olian did tell us that he receives orders for his pieces daily and ships them all over the world. Last year, he said, the business grew by 25% on pieces that range from $150 to $375. He is also commissioned to make unique pieces for several thousand dollars, he said.

Due to the delicate nature and sensitivity of his business, Olian says he does most of his promotion through word-of-mouth and his funeral home network, but he also has a Facebook page filled with comments from happy customers.

But he adds, "Having something tangible can provide a lot of comfort and a lot of closure particularly if it’s something on a smaller scale that you can always keep on you."

UP NEXT: A man wrapped his dead dogs in wet towels, flew them to Korea and paid thousands to clone them

SEE ALSO: Here's what it actually means to die 'of old age'

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The cheapest way to end homelessness is ridiculously simple, according to the largest-ever US study

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Housing first homeless

The Economic Roundtable just came out with the largest study on homelessness in American history

And it turns out the best way to combat homelessness is to provide homes.

The study's focus was on Santa Clara County, California, home to the extreme wealth of Silicon Valley and the highest percentage of homelessness in the entire US

The methodology is enough to make a social scientist swoon: Researchers analyzed information about everyone in Santa Clara County who had been homeless between 2007 and 2012 — 104,206 people. 

Homelessness, the report details, gets very expensive.

Between costs related to healthcare, social welfare, and the justice system, Santa Clara County as a whole spent $520 million on services for homeless residents. 

Those costs didn't come from everybody who was homeless in that time period. As Gabrielle Canon at Mother Jones notes, much of those costs came from the roughly 2,800 people who were persistently homeless.

"Close to half of all county expenditures were spent on just five percent of the homeless population, who came into frequent contact with police, hospitals, and other service agencies, racking up an average of $100,000 in costs per person annually," Canon writes. 

That's a ton of money. 

And it's why the simplest solution to ending homelessness — giving them homes — makes so much sense. 

The study detailed the efforts of the nonprofit group Destination: Home, which housed 400 of the people tracked in the report. Before they received housing, these homeless created public costs of $62,500 a year — and housing cost less than $20,000 per person. 

That's more than $42,000 in savings every year, more than offsetting the costs of housing. 

For that reason, the report's authors argue that the best way to work with homelessness is to identify the people who put the biggest strain on community resources and give them homes. 

The strategy, known as Housing First, has a track record of success. 

New York University psychologist Sam Tsemberis was the first to propose it back in 1992. He tested his theory on 242 chronically homeless people in New York City. Five years later, 88% were still living in their apartments at a lower cost to taxpayers and the state government.

The model spread to Washington, Colorado, and Massachusetts. 

Most recently, it's had huge effects in Utah. Using the Housing First method, the state is projected to end chronic homelessness by the close of 2015.  

What's counterintuitive about housing first is that people get to keep their homes even if they keep using drugs or alcohol. As we reported last February, this method is better at keeping people from lapsing back into homelessness than traditional housing methods, where homeless people have to lock down jobs and stay sober to keep their temporary housing. 

So you could say that the Housing First method isn't just more compassionate to the people who suffer from homelessness, it's also more effective at keeping them off the streets and preventing the drain on community funds. 

"If you move people into permanent supportive housing first, and then give them help, it seems to work better,” Nan Roman, the president and CEO of the National Alliance for Homelessness, told The New Yorker in September. “It's intuitive, in a way. People do better when they have stability."

Natasha Bertrand contributed research to this article.

SEE ALSO: Brooklyn is officially the most unaffordable housing market in America

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This mind-blowing graphic shows how many Snapchat photos are sent per second

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snapchat

Now that Snapchat has almost 100 million daily users in addition to the geotagged Our Story feature and its Discover tab, it sometimes seems impossible to keep track of everything going on within the platform.

But this new website might make you feel a little less guilty about missing your friends' snaps.

The British phot0-printing site Photoworld has created an infographic that will help you visualize just how many thousands of snaps are sent every single second.

snapchat per second

The graphic shows a mini Snapchat ghost logo for each of the 8,796 photos sent per second. In fact, because of just how quickly the logos appear, there's a warning at the top of the page for people with photosensitivity.

"It would take you 10 years to view all the photos shared on Snapchat in the last hour," the site says. "By the time you'd viewed those, another 880,000 years' worth of photos would have been shared."

The tool also shows how many photos are being shared on Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram in the time you've been looking at the page. Whatsapp is the only one that comes close to surpassing Snapchat. Click here to check it out.

snapchats per second infographic

Photoworld posted the infographic yesterday to coincide with Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel's announcement that the company has a plan to file for an IPO.

To create the graphic, Photoworld gathered the information using stats culled by Techcrunch, the Daily Dot, Business Insider and the Guardian.

The company also created a similar infographic about Instagram in October 2014, which showed that if you printed out and stacked all of the Instagram photos uploaded over a 12-hour period, the pile would reach the height of Mount Everest.

SEE ALSO: This plastic surgeon broadcasts every detail of his surgeries on Snapchat

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15 gorgeous beaches that are easy to get to from New York City

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Coney Island Beach

It's getting be that time of year when the heat in New York City becomes unbearable.

Which means it's time to start planning your weekend getaways.

If you're not lucky enough to have a house in the Hamptons that you can escape to, there are plenty of beaches close enough to the city that can be reached by public transport.

Grab your bathing suit and take a look at our list of beaches that won't cost you a lot of time or money to get to.

Long Island's Jones Beach is one of the largest beaches in New York. There are 6.5 miles of sand and two miles of boardwalk, along with two swimming pools, a miniature golf course, and a nature center. The easiest way to access the beach is by taking the Long Island Rail Road from Penn Station.



If you're looking for a mix of nature and beach, Jacob Riis Park Beach in Queens is your answer. It's part of the Gateway National Recreation Area and can be reached via the M, the N and 5, or the 5 and 6 subways.



Although it can be somewhat of a tourist trap, Coney Island offers more than just sand and water. There's a ferris wheel, other amusement park rides, and Nathan's famous hot dogs. Hop on the F or Q subway and you'll be there in no time.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider







Michael Jackson's restored Neverland Ranch has hit the market for $100 million

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Neverland Ranch train stationMichael Jackson's famed Neverland Ranch has hit the market for $100 million. 

Now called "Sycamore Valley Ranch," the 2,700-acre ranch in Los Olivos, California was bought by private investment firm Colony Capital in 2008 for $23.5 million. 

With millions put into its restoration, the listing is being split by Sotheby's broker Harry Kolb and Hilton & Hyland's Jeffrey Hyland.

Hyland told The Wall Street Journal that they're "not encouraging a lot of showings." Added a representative from Sotheby's, "We’re not going to be giving tours."

Alyson Penn contributed to an earlier version of this story.

Welcome to Neverland Ranch, the famed 2,700-acre property that once belonged to the late Michael Jackson.



Passing through the gates into the driveway, visitors will see a bronze statue of children playing in front of the main house.



Here is a full view of the front of the Normandy-style mansion.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






Step back 25 years in time to the gritty days of New York City's Meatpacking District

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meat packing and chelsea

It's almost hard to conceive how much New York City has changed over the past 25 years. Derelict industrial zones and abandoned buildings have been transformed into a hub of industry; what was once a wasteland now is a clean, safe, and very expensive city.

Photographer Grégoire Alessandrini remembers the old days, though, before all that gentrification. He recently began posting images he shot of Manhattan during the early and mid-nineties on his blog, and they create a fantastic window into another time. Alessandrini captured all sides of the city, and all the characters who inhabited its scenes. 

We put together a slideshow of old photos of Chelsea and the Meatpacking District, two neighborhoods that have seen extensive growth and change over the years. You can see many more images of New York on Alessandrini's blog, where you can also buy prints of his work.

Since the 1900s, the Meatpacking District was used for just that...



...packing meat and shipping it off to retailers.



However, by the time Alessandrini got there, times had gotten rough.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






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Why a wife bonus makes complete sense

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Mad Men Betty Draper

A week ago, The New York Times revealed that some women on Manhattan's Upper East Side were receiving so-called wife bonuses.

A wife bonus is just what it sounds like. A wife is given a nice year-end chunk of cash for performing her wifely duties. For instance, "how well she managed the home budget, whether the kids got into a 'good' school," The Times said.

This predictably led to outrage. But guess what?

The wife bonus is completely defensible!

A marriage is an equitable joining of two people for their mutual benefit. Traditionally, this has meant a splitting of duties — he's the farmer, she's the cook, etc.

We live in a society where, like it or not, most women are the default parents and still do most of the household chores. In a traditional household, the wife picks up these duties full time and is unpaid, leaving the husband free to venture out into the workforce and provide monetarily for his family. This has ceased to be true in many households, but it still happens a lot at the upper echelons of the income spectrum, where a single individual can make more than enough to provide a luxurious life for a family but often needs to spend long hours at the office.

One parent working and one doing the unpaid upkeep of the house and kids is unfair and too often split down typical gender lines, but it's not economically irrational.

If this is the way your household works, a wife bonus makes good sense. The wife is doing a significant amount of work to keep the family running, and she deserves her equal share of the family income. And then something extra at the end of the year.

January Jones Betty Draper Mad MenThe counterargument is that a joint account is just as equitable, without the uncomfortable feeling that the husband is the "boss" of his wife, doling out money as he sees fit. The key is not to see the relationship as that between a boss and an employee, but between two profit-sharing partners. Her share of the profits should be negotiated when the two decide that she will stop working, and most likely renegotiated as things like children and extra houses come up. (We're talking rich people here — second, third, and fourth houses need to be taken care of.)

A joint account is its own psychological minefield. There's a tendency for the working partner to believe he has more of a right to determine how it's spent, because he made it. A wife bonus can cut down on that mentality. Polly Phillips explains in the New York Post:

The wife bonus gives me not only financial freedom, but freedom from guilt too. We have a joint account, and before we started the system, I was reluctant to spend our money on myself, even though my husband insisted he was happy for me to. Now that I have a quantifiable amount to treat myself with, I don't feel guilty doing so.

Running a household is a job. It's time women were compensated for it. This isn't the perfect solution, but it's not as irrational as it seems at first glance.

And, frankly, if a wife doesn't get her bonus at the end of the year, it might be time to look for another gig somewhere else.

Join the conversation about this story »

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15 incredible new photos of Liu Bolin, China's 'Human Chameleon'

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Liu_Bolin_HITC_Art_No.1_photograph_2013

Chinese artist Lui Bolin has an amazing talent. He can blend into any surroundings he chooses, making himself practically undetectable to the human eye. No, he doesn't have magic powers or an invisibility cloak. What he does have is great artistic ability and extreme patience.

Bolin, known to many as the "Human Chameleon," decorates his body and clothes with color, painting himself into his surroundings, making him almost imperceptible at first glance. The process can take 10 hours at a time.

His work has been exhibited all over the world and can be seen in his book "Liu Bolin: The Invisible Man." Bolin has shared these new works with us, courtesy of Liu Bolin Art Studio and Eli Klein Fine Art.

We'll start with a relatively easy one. Here's Bolin blending in at the 7 July Memorial in London's Hyde Park.



But they get harder. Here he is in front of the Hollywood sign in California.



In Colombia, Bolin poses in front of some graffiti.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






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