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The 10 most important things in the world right now

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Jeff Bezos

Hello! Here's what's happening on Wednesday.

1. The death toll from California's fires has risen to 50, with thousands of homes destroyed in Malibu and Northern California. The Camp Fire in northern California destroyed an entire town in less than a day and has killed at least 48 people, making it the deadliest fire in the state's history. The two other fatalities occurred in the Woolsey Fire in the Los Angeles area.

2. Amazon officially announced its HQ2 will be split between New York and Virginia. The company has chosen the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, and the newly formed National Landing area of Arlington, Virginia.

3. US President Donald Trump's top trade advisers appear to be on wildly different pages as the China trade war hits a critical stretch. The cracks come as President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit at the end of the month

4. A former CIA officer claimed the White House is helping cover up Jamal Khashoggi's murder."The chances that Mohammed bin Salman ordered this, we're hitting 100%," said former CIA officer Bob Baer asserted.

5. An official Google account on Twitter was hacked by cryptocurrency scammers trying to convince people to send them bitcoin.Many verified Twitter accounts have been hacked to promote similar cryptocurrency scams — the hackers will commonly impersonate Elon Musk.

6. NATO is looking to 3D-print parts for weapons and deliver them by drone in its quest to retain a competitive edge.It is also looking into areas such as artificial intelligence, connectivity, quantum computing, big data, and hypervelocity.

7. Sir Martin Sorrell said he's no longer a "prisoner of history" after leaving ad giant WPP. Hear more from Sir Martin at IGNITION 2018. Register now.

8. The US Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission have subpoenaed Snap for information about its March 2017 initial public offering. The company described the lawsuit as "meritless."

9. An Australian man and his Thai wife have been sentenced to death for trying to smuggle a half-ton of meth into Thailand. The drugs were valued at over $US216 million.

10. Opening arguments in the trial of accused Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman began.The prosecution described him as a brutal drug trafficker who built a billion-dollar organization.

And finally ...

One ticket, two days, 50+ insightful speakers, and 600+ executives. Business Insider's flagship IGNITION conference headliners include Mark Cuban, Janice Min, Sir Martin Sorrell and Barbara Corcoran. Join us for IGNITION, December 3-4, New York City.

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NOW WATCH: Trump once won a lawsuit against the NFL — but the result was an embarrassment


The family of a self-proclaimed white-supremacist reported him to the FBI after he said the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre was just a 'dry run'

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pittsburgh tree of life shooting

  • An alleged online associate of the accused Pittsburgh synagogue massacre gunman, Robert Bowers, has been arrested for weapons offenses after commenting on social media that the October 27 shooting was a "dry run" and that "there was more to come," NBC reports, citing an FBI affidavit.
  • The US attorney in Washington charged Jeffrey R. Clark, Jr. with transportation of a firearm across state lines and possession of illegal, high-capacity magazines intended for use with AR-15 weapons.
  • The alleged statements alone didn't prompt the formal allegations and the case against the Clark Jr., 30, was filed Friday but unsealed on Tuesday.
  • Family members allegedly called the FBI after becoming concerned about Clark's erratic behavior.
  • Metropolitan Police who assisted in Clark's arrest in Bloomingdale, described a "white supremacist" involved in a "suspected hate crime."

Family members of a "riled up"online acquaintance of the accused synagogue shooter Robert Bowers have led to the arrest of the 30-year-old man, who wrote social-media posts calling the massacre "a dry run" and that "there was more to come."

The US attorney in Washington charged Jeffrey R. Clark Jr. with transporting a firearm across state lines and possession of illegal, high capacity magazines intended for use with AR-15 weapons.

But it was also words that concerned many, including those closest to him.

While the statements themselves didn't lead to Clark's arrest and the formal allegations, but law enforcement involved in the arrest described the suspect as a "white supremacist" involved in a "suspected hate crime" investigation from the Bloomingdale neighborhood of Washington, DC, according to an FBI affidavit, cited by NBC News.

According to the FBI affidavit, filed in support of the US Attorney's criminal complaint, two of 30-year-old Clark Jr's family members contacted the FBI as Clark's behavior, became "agitated" and "really riled up."

They believed he was "heavily involved" in the alt-right movement, according to the FBI.

A self-proclaimed white supremacist, Clark and a younger brother attended the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, last year, FBI agents said.

That gathering of white nationalists and alt-right supporters became a rallying point for a nation divided by race.

One person was killed when a white supremacist, James Alex Fields, allegedly drove a car into a crowd killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring 19 others

The FBI said Clark Jr.'s family believe the brothers had photos of themselves at Charlottesville with Fields.

Charlottesville

The two imagined a race war was coming and "wanted to expedite it," while Clark Jr. once said the brothers killing "Jews and blacks,"according to the FBI.

Additionally, the FBI stated, Clark's adult younger brother committed suicide within three hours of the synagogue attack.

Read more:Here's what we know about Robert Bowers, the suspected Pittsburgh synagogue shooter

After his sibling's death Clark told family members he believed Bowers was a friend on the conservative social media platform Gab.

According to the FBI, Bowers was upset that the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, or HIAS, was a supporter of Central American refugees.

The violence came at the height of intense and fiercely partisan midterm election campaigning, during which the President Donald Trump spoke of an "invasion" of Central Americans, referring to a migrant caravan headed for the US border.

Prosecutors have outlined some of Clark's online writing, including a Gab.com post that describes the victims of the synagogue attack as "all active supporters of pedophilia … and every last one of them deserved exactly what happened to them and so much worse."

Clark, prosecutors say believed that the synagogue violence was justified because, "a homosexual Jewish couple was having an adopted baby circumcised that week," according to the court filing.

Clark also called Bowers a "hero," according to the FBI.

pittsburgh synagogue shooting vigil 16

Eleven people were killed and many injured when a gunman allegedly 46-year-old Bowers shot and killed 11 worshippers with an AR-15 and handguns opened fire in the Tree of Life synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The suspect, whom police identified as Bowers, told one SWAT officer that he wanted “all Jews to die,” CBS News reported at the time.

The shooting is believed to be the deadliest attack on Jewish people in US history.

During a search of Clark's home Friday, agents seized a shotgun, a rifle and a handgun — all registered to Clark and his brother — as well as an unregistered Colt .38 Special that a relative handed over, according to the allegations.

"In addition," the FBI affidavit states, "agents recovered four high-capacity AR-15 magazines capable of holding up to 30 rounds of ammunition."

Washington, DC, has made such magazines illegal.

On Gab, the 30-year-old called himself a "Meth-Smoking, Pipe Bomb making, mailman murding, #Fed, #DemoKKKrat, Che Guevara of the altright," according to the affidavit.

When they were unable to remove Clark's firearms, and concerned he might be taking drugs and posing a danger to himself or others, the family members contacted authorities, the filing said.

Robert Bowers pleaded "not guilty" to 44 counts related to the shooting, including murder, hate crimes, and obstructing religious practices.

Federal prosecutor have said they will seek the death penalty for Bowers.

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NOW WATCH: This mind-melting thought experiment of Einstein's reveals how to manipulate time

The poorest nation in the Pacific will host its richest economic get-together, and it could descend into a dash for cash

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APEC 2018

  • This weekend, 21 world leaders will make their way to Papua New Guinea for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, an event marked by controversy and questionable fashion photo ops.
  • The Pacific region is quickly turning into a contest for influence aligning China against everyone else.
  • China is winning for now, but impoverished nation's like Papua New Guinea often come out the loser.

The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' Summit or APEC, if you're feeling a little lost amid the proliferation of global get-togethers is the one where all the leaders line up afterward in colorful shirts, looking — as some commentators have quipped — out of place.

Usually that's APEC's key takeaway — how out of place everyone is in the Pacific.

This weekend, 21 world leaders will make their way to the faraway host of the annual APEC summit, an event often mired in controversy.

This year, that diplomatic jostle will take place in Port Moresby, the dilapidated capital of perhaps the regions most resource-rich, yet poverty stricken state, Papua New Guinea (PNG).

PNG is the poorest nation of the entire 21-country APEC bloc and its crime-riddled capital, beset by health challenges and institutional corruption, is the fifth least-livable city in the entire world.

The summit's timing could certainly not be more interesting for struggling APEC nations keen to make the most out of the emergence of a sudden race for influence.

In just the last week, the Pacific's simmering struggle for aid, loans and what is being termed "debt diplomacy" has suddenly gone on the boil.

Mike Pence Shinzo Abe

Superpowers jostling for position

China, Australia, Japan and the US have all thrown down the gauntlet in the stampede to embed themselves in regional infrastructure projects and aid funding.

On Thursday, Australia pledged $3 billion in what has been called Prime Minister Scott Morrison's "Pacific Pivot."

On Friday, that pivot segued into a trilateral project as China pushed for cooperation and not competition in the Pacific.

Over the weekend, as Vice President Mike Pence makes his circuitous way to Moresby (via Cairns) he is reported to be carrying the prototype of America's Indo-Pacific strategy, rumored to be based on $60 billion in regional assistance.

Kyodo News of Japan reports the $60 billion announcement is a bid to diminish China's rising influence  through the extension of its One Belt One Road development strategy.

The final piece of the Pacific puzzle, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will this Saturday, fly into Port Moresby's Chinese-built Jackson airport to share his two yen at the APEC summit.

Likewise, Abe will be visiting friends and striving to bind new allegiances to counter China's successes in the Pacific, from the South China Seas to Fiji.

So, with new acquaintances to make and money for sale, Port Moresby's flourishing corruption and eye level impoverishment will be the more than appropriate backdrop for the 21 world leaders' awkwardly iconic fashion shoots that traditionally close out the summit.

Read more:The South China Sea is fabled for its hidden energy reserves and China wants to block outsiders like the US from finding them

Xi Jinping

Chinese President Xi Jinping has a head start

In fairly contrasting optics, Xi will arrive and stay in Moresby for a full state visit, the first by any Chinese president.

The US President Donald Trump isn't attending at all.

But Pence has decided that rather than stay in Port Moresby at all, he will fly in and out of Cairns in Northern Australia, a 180-minute commute.

During his historic stay, Xi will attend the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting from November 17 to 18 and he will also meet the eight leaders of the Pacific Island countries that have diplomatic ties with China.

Xi will then continue on to Brunei and the Philippines shoring up relations there, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.

China has also responded to concerns of its growing debt diplomacy in the region.

"China has no intention to touch the cheese of any country, instead China is committed to make the pie of cooperation larger," Chinese vice minister of foreign affairs Zheng Zeguang said on Tuesday.

"No country should try to obstruct the friendship and cooperation," Zheng said when asked about the expansion of Australian aid in the Pacific.

Then in a fairly extraordinary opinion piece published on Wednesday in the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier, and addressed to the people of PNG, Xi Jinping spoke of the "rapid growth of China-Papua New Guinea relations is an epitome of China’s overall relations with Pacific island countries."

The president said that first off China and the islands "need to bring our strategic trust to a higher level." 

"China will stand firm with Pacific island countries and all other developing countries. Following a policy of pursuing the greater good and shared interests under the principles of sincerity, real results, amity and good faith, China will enhance solidarity and cooperation with Pacific island countries, support their development, and help narrow down the development gap between the North and the South."

"China will work with Pacific island countries to build a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind."

Read more:Australia's new prime minister sounds like he wants to take on China's growing influence in the South Pacific

However welcome the intent, the goals are not so easy to kick in a region beset by inequality, poverty and corruption.

To the chagrin of most observers and a small contingent of striking workers, PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has gone on a bit of a wild spending spree ahead of the summit.

With a tight budget, some workers downed tools when Maseratis began arriving in numbers at Jackson International airport, brought in for the leaders.

Despite more than one-third (37%) of his country according to the UN Development Program living way down below the poverty line, O'Neill decided to welcome leaders with several Bentleys and the extra 40 luxury Maseratis specifically flown in for the meetings.

PNG, which is the one nation (aside from the wayward Australian state of Victoria) signed up to China's One Belt One Road initiative, has been a key beneficiary of Chinese investment and many of it's infrastructure projects will be in display in Port Moresby.

Beijing has fixed bits of the airport, had a crack at some transport infrastructure without enormous progress, donated a squad of fire trucks, somewhere near 50 coaches and 35 mini-buses to shuttle officials to and from the a $35 million convention center built with Chinese money by Chinese companies and workers.

Dr. Graeme Smith, a research fellow at the Australian National University's Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs told Business Insider that it is likely China has invested somewhere around double the $3 billion it is rumored to have staked in PNG.

To keep its hands clean in a time of added scrutiny, neighboring Australia, PNG's biggest aid-donor and former colonial power broker, is not providing any direct financial assistance for the APEC summit, but is flexing its security muscle and military ties, providing assistance to the tune of $130 million of APEC's total costs.

Some 4,000 members of the PNG disciplinary forces and their international counterparts will be patrolling the city for the summit, including 1,500 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel supporting PNG's Joint Security Task Force, with just under 500 of those on the ground in Port Moresby.

For back up, Australia has mobilized up to 16 Super Hornet aircraft to be based near Cairns and three Royal Navy ships are stationed off Port Moresby, accompanied by one helicopter landing dock and several patrol boats.

APEC 2018

So who is coming this year?

Almost 30 years old, APEC began in 1989, to encourage tighter regional economic integration for the Pacific Rim.

Most of the 21 APEC members are from this pacific region with the addition of Russia, United States, Canada, Mexico, Chile and Peru, together accounting for 2.7 billion people — more than a third of the world's population.

Headlining in 2018 is undoubtedly China's Xi Jinping.

Japan's Abe, Canada's Justin Trudeau, South Korea's Moon Jae-in and New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern will also be there alongside the new Australian leader Scott Morrison.

While Pence is standing-in for Trump, so too will Vladimir Putin's proxy, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, fly the Russian flag.

APEC 2018

Putting Papua New Guinea on the map

PNG's Prime Minister Peter O'Neill says he expects $85 million will be spent by leaders during the time of APEC alone and that playing host will put PNG on the map.

O'Neill, whose first move as prime minister was to scrap the anti-corruption body Taskforce Sweep that ushered him into power and then began looking into his own affairs, has allocated around $350 million for the event.

Responding to some of the considerable flak that has come his way, O’Neill says PNG is in fact hosting the cheapest APEC meeting compared to other countries.

 O’Neill said PNG is on the cusp of hosting one of the cheapest APEC Leaders meetings in history.

“We were given the green light to host APEC in October 2016 and in the same year, we budgeted ($US7.5 million) K25 million towards APEC."

That seems unlikely considering the summit's APEC house centerpiece is thought to have cost $75 million alone.

Stephen Howes, the Director of the Development Policy Centre and Professor of Economics in the Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU says the timing is not so great for a PNG facing mounting debts and rising corruption. 

"Excessive borrowing in the boom years has now come back to haunt the government following a collapse in revenue," wrote in the ANU's East Asia Forum.  

But in the second most rural country worldwide, Howes added that there is a stronger, more damning indicator for how things are faring in PNG.

What has really caught the public’s attention is the return of polio, previously eliminated from PNG about 20 years ago.

"PNG is one of only five countries in the world experiencing a polio comeback."

"That the other members of this club are the Democratic Republic of Congo, Niger, Nigeria and Somalia — all four wrought by violence — shows the extent of the health crisis that PNG is facing," Howes said.

"The most recent symptoms of this crisis include the resurgence of  malaria and leprosy, and reports of worsening drug shortages."

Australian freelance journalist Jo Chandler herself contracted drug-resistant tuberculosis while investigating the growing crisis.

So what does Howes expect will come of PNG's APEC?

APEC he says will deliver a mild economic stimulus, and is expected to be accompanied by a round of "announceables."

This is perhaps more likely than ever as the four regional pacific powers make their various bids for lasting influence.

"These may come from China or resource projects. Perhaps PNG will get more aid, but any resource project agreements will be ones that were already in the pipeline.

Howes says that it is widely accepted (including by the government) that PNG needs to get a better deal from its resource projects. Rushing agreements so that they can be announced at APEC only weakens PNG’s negotiating hand.

"By the same token though, APEC is meant to be about reform and development. PNG could have used its hosting of APEC to push through important change in a range of critical policy areas. It hasn’t."

"Whatever happens at the leaders’ meeting this year, in this fundamental sense APEC 2018 is a lost opportunity for its host."

SEE ALSO: The South China Sea is fabled for its hidden energy reserves and China wants to block outsiders like the US from finding them

DON'T MISS: Australia's new prime minister sounds like he wants to take on China's growing influence in the South Pacific

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The true story behind Boston gangster Whitey Bulger

Trump sent thousands of US troops to the border, but they're in the dark about what to do when the migrant caravans arrive

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U.S. Marines with 7th Engineer Support Battalion, Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force 7, place concertina wire at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in California on Nov. 11, 2018.

  • Thousands of US troops are building barriers and hardening ports of entry, but the US military says it does not have a clear plan for what to do when the migrant caravans arrive.
  • Army North said on Tuesday that there is no specific plan or guidance for when the migrants arrive.
  • We're doing the obstacle emplacement," Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon."We will have to see what the future holds, but right now that is the only mission I have."

Thousands of active-duty US troops have deployed to the US-Mexico border to support border agents as large migrant caravans march through Mexico, the first of which began to reach border towns Tuesday.

The troops are building barriers and hardening ports of entry, but the US military says it does not have a clear plan for what to do when the migrants finally arrive, raising new questions about the large-scale troop deployments that President Trump has ordered.

The Pentagon referred INSIDER to US Northern Command (NORTHCOM) for questions on US military activity at the southern border, and NORTHCOM redirected BI to Army North, which is officially in charge of the mission formerly called "Operation Faithful Patriot."

Army North said on Tuesday that there is no specific plan or guidance for when the migrants arrive. Media reports said the first wave of about one hundred migrants began to arrive near Tijuana on Tuesday. Thousands more are presently located near Guadalajara and Veracruz, Mexico.

When asked whether or not someone higher up had a plan, Army North spokeswoman First Lt. Marenda Figgs responded, "Presumably. We are hoping, but it hasn't trickled down to us."

Read More: The military's mission at the US-Mexico border will no longer be called Operation Faithful Patriot

Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said Tuesday that there has been "no change" to the mission at the US-Mexico border. "We're doing the obstacle emplacement," he explained to reporters at the Pentagon." We will have to see what the future holds, but right now that is the only mission I have."

Mattis will visit troops deployed to the border Wednesday.

So far, the military has been running concertina (razor) wire at key crossing points and setting up barriers. Troops have also been building tent cities, which will house US military personnel and border patrol officials.

Read More: More and more US troops are arriving on the US-Mexico border in anticipation of migrant caravans arriving — these photos show what they're doing

Unlike the more than 2,000 National Guard troops deployed to the border in April, the active-duty units at or heading to the southern border are forbidden from engaging in law enforcement activities on American soil by the Posse Comitatus Act.

There are currently around 6,000 active-duty troops deployed, and the president has said that as many as 15,000 could eventually be deployed, although the Pentagon puts operational estimates closer to 7,000.

Critics of the latest deployments argued that the Trump administration sent US troops to the border as a political stunt ahead of mid-term elections. Mattis responded to these accusations, saying, "We don't do stunts in this department."

The day after the election, the operation ceased to be called "Operation Faithful Patriot." Pentagon officials instead call the mission "border support."

President Donald Trump has characterized the approaching caravans as an "invasion," and CBP has stressed that these caravans "are larger than we’ve seen in the past." CBP says the military is hardening points of entry, as well as offering an extra set of eyes on potential security gaps.

SEE ALSO: More and more US troops are arriving on the US-Mexico border in anticipation of migrant caravans arriving — these photos show what they're doing

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Navy SEALs explain the dangers of overplanning in both the military and business

10 things you need to know in markets today

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Good morning! Here's what you need to know in markets on Wednesday.

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May listens to Lord Mayor of London Peter Estlin's speech during the annual Lord Mayor's Banquet at Guildhall in London, Britain, November 12, 2018. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

1. Oil prices extended a slide on Wednesday on the back of worries about weakening world demand and oversupply, while global shares sagged as energy sector strains heightened anxiety about a slow down in the global economy. US crude futures dived 7% the previous day, suffering their biggest one-day loss in more than three years. Brent crude futures lost 0.3% to $65.28 a barrel as of 7:40 a.m. in London. 

2. Theresa May's proposed Brexit deal has the potential to break up the United Kingdom because it will treat Northern Ireland differently, lawmaker Jeffrey Donaldson told BBC Radio. The comments come after the UK government confirmed reports that May's most senior ministers would read the details of a Brexit withdrawal deal on Tuesday evening before a special Cabinet meeting at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

3. US President Donald Trump's top trade advisers appear to be on wildly different pages as the China trade war hits a critical stretch. The cracks come as President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit at the end of the month.

4. Martin Sorrell said he's no longer a "prisoner of history" after leaving ad giant WPP. Sorrell quit under fire last spring as the CEO of the world's most powerful marketing juggernaut. 

5. The death toll from California's fires has risen to 50, with thousands of homes destroyed in Malibu and Northern California. The Camp Fire in northern California destroyed an entire town in less than a day and has killed at least 48 people, making it the deadliest fire in the state's history. The two other fatalities occurred in the Woolsey Fire in the Los Angeles area.

6. The US aviation regulator has launched a high-priority probe of the safety analyses performed over the years by Boeing, following the crash of a Lion Air jet in Indonesia last month. The Federal Aviation Administration said it was reviewing details surrounding the safety data and conclusions the company previously provided to it.

7. A former CIA officer claimed the White House is helping cover up Jamal Khashoggi's murder."The chances that Mohammed bin Salman ordered this, we're hitting 100%," said former CIA officer Bob Baer.

8. An official Google account on Twitter was hacked by cryptocurrency scammers trying to convince people to send them bitcoin. Many verified Twitter accounts have been hacked to promote similar cryptocurrency scams — the hackers will commonly impersonate Elon Musk.

9. NATO is looking to 3D-print parts for weapons and deliver them by drone in its quest to retain a competitive edge.It is also looking into areas such as artificial intelligence, connectivity, quantum computing, big data, and hypervelocity.

10. The US Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission have subpoenaed Snap for information about its March 2017 initial public offering. The company described the lawsuit as "meritless."

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The economist that predicted the housing crisis warns the Fed is engaging in behavior that's almost always caused a recession

10 things in tech you need to know today

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jeff bezos

Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Wednesday.

  1. Amazon officially announced that its second headquarters, or HQ2, will be split between New York and VirginiaAmazon also announced a new office in Nashville, Tennessee, where it said it would hire 5,000 people and invest $230 million.
  2. Amazon will benefit from massive tax breaks from both HQ2 cities. The company will receive $1.5 billion in tax breaks from New York City, and up to $550 million in cash grants from Arlington, Virginia.
  3. Google is consolidating DeepMind's healthcare AI business into its new Google Health unit.The reorganisation comes just four days after Google announced it was hiring big-name healthcare CEO David Feinberg to head up its healthcare initiatives.
  4. SoftBank committed another $3 billion to WeWork, and the deal could value the office sharing firm at around $42 billionAccording to third-quarter financials seen by Business Insider, WeWork has substantially increased its revenue but its losses have more than tripled.
  5. The Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission have subpoenaed Snap for information about its March 2017 initial public offering. The federal inquiries follow an ongoing shareholder lawsuit in which investors allege that Snap misled the public about how competition from Facebook's Instagram service had affected the company's growth.
  6. Over 600,000 Americans followed Instagram accounts that are now believed to be run by Russian trolls. Facebook said it has now taken down 99 Instagram accounts, 36 Facebook accounts, and 6 Facebook Pages. 
  7. Uber released a document on Monday laying out how it is going to categorise reports of sexual misconduct and assault in readiness for a 2019 transparency report. The report outlining the categories contains a "mix-and-match" exercise in which readers match creepy stories of misconduct and assault to the company's new categories.
  8. Goldman Sachs analysts slashed their iPhone unit sales estimate by 6% and downgraded their price target after Apple supplier Lumentum said that a major customer, believed to be Apple, had drastically cut its orderThe analysts said they are worried that "end demand for new iPhone models is deteriorating."
  9. Microsoft is resuming the rollout of the October 2018 Update to Windows 10The update originally came out last month, but Microsoft stopped the rollout after some users said it was wiping their personal files.
  10. The Silicon Valley startup Juul announced on Tuesday that it would temporarily stop selling its flavored e-cigarettes in stores. Researchers nearly unanimously praised the move, which they say could help protect young people by making the products less appealing and harder to purchase.

Have an Amazon Alexa device? Now you can hear 10 Things in Tech each morning. Just search for "Business Insider" in your Alexa's flash briefing settings.

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NOW WATCH: How to train the last days before a marathon

Swelling corporate debt piles are now global fund managers' major concern

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motorcycle weight

  • Around one quarter, 24%, of global fund managers expect corporate bonds to be the worst performing asset class in 2019.
  • The latest survey by Bank of America shows more fund managers want to see companies use capital to strengthen their balance sheet.
  • While global growth expectations have fallen to the lowest level since the financial crisis, only 11% of fund managers forecast a global recession in 2019

Rising levels of corporate debt are well and truly on the radar of global fund managers, and that doesn’t bode well for global stocks.

US corporate debt levels have now risen to a record-high 46% of GDP, according to the latest Bank of America survey of global fund managers.

The past decade has seen a sharp rise in corporate debt issuance, as investors hunt for yield in a low interest rate environment.

There are now concerns that more debt has been issued has been issued on increasingly looser terms, known as “covenant-lite” arrangements.

And the Bank of America survey shows a degree of concern among fund managers, most of whom would rather see companies use capital to strengthen their balance sheet rather than invest in new projects:

Bank of America fund manager survey

As the chart shows, when the focus shifts to reducing leverage, global equities also fall.

A record-high number, 33%, of fund managers in the November survey also thought company payout ratios (e.g. dividend payments) are too high, “reflecting concern about US corporate debt”.

And around one quarter, 24%, of investors expect corporate bonds to be the worst performing asset class in 2019.

Elsewhere in the report, there were mixed signals from fund managers about the investment outlook over the next 12 months.

Expectations for global GDP growth are now at their lowest level since November 2008, which is when the global financial crisis reached its apex following the collapse of Lehman Brothers two months earlier.

And in line with the recent pull-back in US tech stocks — which have been a key driver of US markets in recent years — allocations to the global tech sector fell to the lowest level since February 2009.

While that all sounds pretty bearish, the fund managers surveyed aren’t predicting an imminent market collapse.

Just 11% respondents expect the global economy will tip into a recession next year:

Bank of America economic recession chart

And following the October selloff on global stock markets, cash levels dropped from 5.1% to 4.7%, indicating that investors took the opportunity to increase their exposure to US and emerging markets stocks.

And the majority of respondents still think the S&P500 will peak above 3,000 — a premium of around 12% to current levels.

However, 30% of the fund managers surveyed now think US stocks have peaked, which is around double the previous month’s total, 16%.

Looking ahead to 2019, investors said the best-performing asset classes are likely to be non-US equities, 45%, and the S&P500, 17%.

The latest Bank of America survey was carried out from November 2 to November 8. 225 panelists with a collective total of $641 billion under management participated in the survey.

SEE ALSO: Giant tech firms like Uber and Tesla are lapping up junk debt — here's why investors are lining up to lend it

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The economist that predicted the housing crisis warns the Fed is engaging in behavior that's almost always caused a recession

Oil drops for a 13th straight day as analysts warn it could drop below $50

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oil rig

  • Oil prices remain under pressure and look set to extend their losing streak into a 13th day.
  • Prices dropped as much as 7% on Tuesday after US President Trump again pushed back against Saudi Arabia's plans to increase production.
  • Analysts fear that the price per barrel of oil could fall below $50.
  • You can track oil prices live at Markets Insider.

Oil prices remain under the pump on Wednesday following the commodity's worst single day of trading in several months, as global fears surrounding demand worry investors.

By around 8.50 a.m. in London (3.50 a.m. ET), the price of West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark, is down 0.3% to trade at $55.49 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, is just in the red, down around 0.1% at $65.44. 

If these prices stick, oil will endure a 13th straight day of losses, further extending its record losing streak.

"It’s been a perfect storm for oil as of late, with lower global growth expectations, higher output from the US, Russia and Saudi Arabia, waivers on Iranian sanctions and general risk aversion in the markets sending Brent and WTI rapidly into bear market territory," Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at OANDA, said on Wednesday.

Tuesday's drop, which saw both Brent and WTI fall about 7%, was driven largely by a tweet from US President Donald Trump, in which he urged Saudi Arabia not to cut production. The tweet came in response to Khalid al-Falih, Saudi Arabia's oil minister, saying the kingdom is likely to cut production by around 500,000 barrels.

Read more: Swelling corporate debt piles are now global fund managers' major concern

Oil prices have tumbled into a bear market — down at least 20% from their October peaks — amid concerns of growing stockpiles. Earlier in November, the Trump administration granted eight countries temporary waivers from the sanctions it placed against Iran that were designed to cut off its oil from the rest of the world .

And data released last week by the Energy Information Agency showed US oil inventories climbed by 5.8 million barrels in the week to November 2, while production hit a weekly record of 11.6 million barrels per day.    

The oil market had already been under pressure since the beginning of October as trade tensions and concerns over rising interest rates weighed.

Prices may well have further to fall. Erlam said that he "wouldn’t be surprised to see" prices for WTI to slip to $50 per barrel, and Brent to $60.

"It’s not too long ago that people were talking about the prospect of $100 a barrel oil but that now feels like a distant memory."

The chart below illustrates the drop in WTI oil prices seen since its peak in October:

Screen Shot 2018 11 14 at 08.59.21

SEE ALSO: Big Oil claims it's doing its part to combat climate change. A new study finds it's not even close.

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NOW WATCH: This mind-melting thought experiment of Einstein's reveals how to manipulate time


People are logging how many insects they eat on a huge food tracking app, and users are experimenting with a grasshopper taco recipe

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Eating Insects grasshoppers

  • Food-tracking app Lifesum has added a function to let users log when they eat insects.
  • Lifesum collaborated with North America's biggest insect farm, Entomo Farms, to build the function.
  • Its in-house chef created a grasshopper taco recipe for the occasion.

Lifesum helps its 30 million users track their diets by recording their meals and giving them nutritional information. Now it's welcoming insectivores by letting users track how many bugs they're eating.

The app integrated the new function on October 22, and since then more than 900 of its users have tracked consumption of crickets, mealworms, and various other creepy crawlies.

Lifesum partnered up with Entomo farms, a company based in Ontario and North America's largest insect farm for consumption.

Henrik Torstensson, CEO of Lifesum, told Business Insider that his company first approached Entomo about the collaboration after getting interested in entomophagy, as the consumption of insects is sometimes known.

Read more:London's first insect farm owners are trying get people to eat worms and crickets to save the world

To encourage users to get creative, Lifesum had its in-house chef create a grasshopper taco recipe. Torstensson has sampled the tacos himself.

"It was really, really good," he said. "The crunchiness was a little bit surprising compared to a normal beef taco."

Lifesum will probably integrate more insect recipes in the future, Torstensson added.

grasshopper tacos

According to Lifesum's user data, its grasshopper taco recipe has been tracked 533 times so far, with 85% of loggings coming from millennial women.

Lifesum has previously integrated lifestyle trends into its app, including "plogging," a practice which originated in Sweden (where Lifesum was founded) which involves jogging and picking up litter.

With 30 million members in total, Lifesum's 900 bug-eaters overall is relatively small fry. However, the function has only been live for a few weeks, and Torstensson thinks more people in Western culture are trying bugs.

He says that insects are a cost-effective source of protein, that there's evidence they are good for our gut bacteria, and that they're more eco-friendly to farm than traditional livestock.

"This is still at the early adopter phase... but it kind of ties into being good food at a good price and also has the environmental aspect," he said.

SEE ALSO: 11 bugs that you can eat and what they taste like

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NOW WATCH: Watch Apple's October 2018 event in 8 minutes

Theresa May braced for Cabinet resignations as she tells ministers to back her Brexit deal

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Theresa May

  • Theresa May to hold historic Cabinet meeting with senior ministers to discuss the draft Brexit deal.
  • The prime minister will attempt to persuade ministers to back the deal amid fury among pro-Brexit MPs and speculation of multiple Cabinet resignations.
  • The deal agreed this week will keep the UK wedded to EU customs and single market rules for years after Brexit in order to avoid no hard border on the island of Ireland.
  • EU and UK hope to sign it off in Brussels later this month.
  • However, there is a strong possibility of the deal being voted down by MPs.
  • Around 3,000 People's Vote campaigners gathered in Westminster on Tuesday night.

 

LONDON — Theresa May is braced for a series of resignations from her Cabinet today as she urges them to sign up to the draft Brexit deal agreed between the UK and EU negotiating teams this week.

News broke on Tuesday afternoon that UK and EU negotiators had finally agreed on the text of a Brexit Withdrawal Agreement. Negotiators made a breakthrough on the issue of the Irish border after months of impasse.

Brexit-supporting ministers of the Cabinet, particularly Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, are under pressure from pro-Brexit Conservative MPs to take a stand against May's deal, or even resign from their roles in government.

A member of the European Research Group of pro-Brexit Tories told Business Insider they were "absolutely shellshocked" that May had kept "none of the promises" she had made to the group of around 80 passionate Leavers.

They added that pro-Brexit members of the Cabinet "who campaigned with us [ERG MPS] should make sure this deal never reaches the House of Commons" for a meaningful vote this winter.

Pro-Brexit Conservative MPs including former Tory party leader Iain Duncan Smith, former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, and ERG leader Jacob Rees-Mogg all described the deal as unacceptable.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis tweeted: "This is the moment of truth. This is the fork in the road. Do we pursue a future as an independent nation or accept EU domination, imprisonment in the customs union and 2nd class status. Cabinet and all Conservative MPs should stand up, be counted and say no to this capitulation."

However, the Cabinet's most heavyweight Brexiteers are not likely to resign en masse this afternoon, despite their reservations with the draft withdrawal deal, according to reports.

Raab, plus Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, Home Secretary Sajid Javid, Environment Secretary Michael Gove, Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom and Transport Secretary Chris Grayling are all reportedly prepared to stick with May.

The ministers who are most likely to quit in the next few hours are International Development Penny Mordaunt and Work And Pensions Secretary Esther McVey. Business Insider reported last month that both were prepared to resign if May's Brexit deal didn't satisfy their demands on the backstop for avoiding a hard Irish border.

Before her crunch meeting with ministers, May will lock horns with Jeremy Corbyn in Prime Minister's Questions, where the Labour leader is certain to probe her Brexit deal and the war ensuing within the Conservative party.

Dominic Raab

What do we know about the deal?

UK and EU negotiators on Tuesday agreed to a so-called "backstop" plan designed to ensure there is no return to a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic no matter what the outcome of future negotiations between the two side.

The backstop will come into effect at the end of the two-year transition period if negotiators haven't by that time produced a UK-EU free trade deal that protects the invisible border on the island of Ireland.

According to the reported draft deal, the whole of the UK will:

  • Remain within a customs union with the EU.
  • Northern Ireland will also remain in parts of the single market.
  • There will be no fixed end date to the arrangement.
  • The UK will not be able to unilaterally withdraw from it.

This is a controversial model for a number of reasons. During this period, the UK will be unable to sign meaningful new trade deals with other countries, because it will be locked into the EU's customs arrangements. It will also have to follow a number of strict EU rules in areas like the environment, employment protection, and state aid.

Crucially there will also not be a fixed end date to the arrangement. Instead, an independent panel of adjudicators will decide when it can come to an end and the UK is free to leave the EU's orbit for good.

However, as Politico reports on Wednesday, the EU intends the UK-wide customs union backstop to form the basis of a permanent future UK-EU trade deal. In other words, the EU plans to lock the UK into a customs union forever.

Then there is the Democratic Unionist Party which props up May's fragile government.

The party's leader, Arlene Foster, has repeatedly warned the prime minister that her party will not accept any new border checks between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK after Brexit.

However, under this draft deal, there will be new checks on the east-west border. For example, live animals and animal-derived products crossing the border will undergo checks that currently don't take place. The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said last month that these checks would increase tenfold on current inspections.

"We are clear - we will not be voting for this humiliation!" the DUP's Sammy Wilson tweeted on Wednesday.

People's Vote campaigners tell May: 'We're not buying it'

People's voteOn Tuesday night around 3,000 supporters of the People's Vote campaign gathered in Westminster to hear speeches from MPs including ex-Education Secretary Justine Greening, David Lammy, and Jo Johnson, who quit as Transport Secretary last week to oppose May's handling of Brexit and declare support for another referendum.

Campaigners for a People's Vote — a referendum on the outcome of Brexit negotiations — believe that their cause has been boosted in recent weeks as the chances of May getting a deal through Parliament have decreased. 

Johnson claimed a number of ministers are "looking into their consciousness" and deliberating whether to follow him by quitting the government over the direction of Brexit negotiations.

"The future of the Conservative party will be gravely in peril if it is associated with this deal," he said in a question and answer session with TV presenter and ex-England footballer, Gary Lineker, who appeared at the People's Vote rally.

Greening said that "doesn't need to happen" and added: "Even if some people in my party [the Conservatives] can’t see this is a bad deal, everyone else on the planet can.”

SEE ALSO: UK and EU negotiators have agreed on a Brexit deal

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NOW WATCH: Trump once won a lawsuit against the NFL — but the result was an embarrassment

Prince Charles is 70 — here's the best photo from every year of his royal career

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Prince Charles, Prince of Wales looks at artwork made from recycled plastics as he attends a plastics event at Sandbox on day six of his trip to west Africa with the Duchess of Cornwall on November 5, 2018 in Accra, Ghana.

Prince Charles, heir apparent to the British throne, turns 70 on Wednesday, November 14.

As Queen Elizabeth II's reign stretches ever further, eyes are turning to the heir apparent to try and glean what kind of king he will be.

It's safe to say he has not had the easiest road to sovereignty. His life in the public eye was marred irreparably by his divorce from his first wife, the much-beloved Princess Diana, who later died in a car accident.

While the Queen's inoffensive popularity is somewhat pervasive — even perhaps among some republicans — Charles is a much more divisive royal whose supporters extoll his intelligence and passion for environmental issues and whose critics admonish him for being meddling and pampered.

"Frankly we're very lucky he hasn't been king, because whereas the queen has been the most exemplary monarch and has kept the monarchy much in people's esteem, I think Charles would undermine it," Tom Bower, author of "Rebel Prince," an unauthorized biography, told Reuters.

"You are accused of being controversial just because you are trying to draw attention to things that aren't necessarily part of the conventional viewpoint," Charles said in an interview with GQ in September.

"My problem is I find there are too many things that need doing or battling on behalf of."

Regardless of your opinion on the heir to the throne, he will — one day (almost certainly) — become king of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.

He has also had an extraordinary life.

After graduating from Cambridge University in 1970, the prince embarked on his epic royal career, which began in the British military.

Scroll down to see the best photo from each of the 47 years of his royal career, ordered chronologically.

1971: Having become the first heir to the throne to graduate with a university degree (a 2:2 from Trinity College Cambridge), the prince flew himself to RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire to train as a jet pilot.



1972: After passing his RAF training, Charles embarked on a career in the Royal Navy. He joined his first ship, the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk, in 1972.



1973: Prince Charles visited the Bahamas for the islands' last days as a British colony. After more than 300 years of British sovereignty, the Bahamas became an independent nation on July 9.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Apple's retail stores in the US and beyond will start selling this British startup's 'Harry Potter' coding wand

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Kano coding wand

  • Computing and coding startup Kano is going to release its 'Harry Potter' coding wand in hundreds of Apple stores.
  • CEO and founder Alex Klein told Business Insider that Apple approached Kano to get the wands into stores.
  • From December to January people will be able to demo the wand in stores.

British coding and computing startup Kano has struck a partnership with Apple to sell its "Harry Potter"-themed coding wand in more than 300 Apple stores across the US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand in December.

The coding wand is a physical device that works in tandem with Kano's app. The app allows kids to build blocks of code which are then translated into "Harry Potter" spells when they wave the wand. They can go through step-by-step challenges or simply experiment to see what effect tinkering with the code can have on the spells.

Kano CEO and founder Alex Klein told Business Insider that Apple approached Kano about the partnership. "We've known the folks at Apple for a while in different parts of the organisation but in this instance the opportunity was to bring in the wand, especially because it's designed ground-up to work with iOS and with tablets," he said. The Kano wand also works with Windows and Android.

Read more:A British tech startup made an official Harry Potter wand to teach kids how to code

Among the host of spells available to them, kids can make feathers fly, potions bubble, and pygmy puffs change colour.

You can watch James and Oliver Phelps, who play the characters Fred and George Weasley in the "Harry Potter" films, learning to use the wand here:

Klein said his favourite spell at at the moment is "Musicalis," which allows users to play with the pitch of a musical note by turning their wand.

From December through to the end of January people will also be able to go and demo the wands in the Apple stores. "People will be able to see the wand at work, give it a wave, drag a code block, change the colour of a spell... all of that will be a direct, in-person and explained wizarding experience," said Klein.

Klein says he likes the link between the wizarding world and coding because he feels the wand has the ability to unlock the secrets of how technology actually works.

"Technology which has been delivered to us in these beautiful temples that can solve so many problems but so few of us know how it works, has the ability to create a sort of contemporary magic if you can understand it, and if you can change it and manipulate it," he said.

The wand costs $99.99 in the US and £99.99 in the UK.

SEE ALSO: Meet the coding prodigy who has Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on her side in the fight to boost women in tech

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Save up to 40% on Ultra HD Smart TVs at Samsung — and more of today's best deals from around the web

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TheInsider Picksteam writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

Since you don't have all day to scour the web for noteworthy sales and discounts, we rounded up the best bargains for you to shop in one convenient place.

Samsung

1. Save up to 40% on select Samsung TVs

TVs are always one of the most-purchased tech items on Black Friday, so Samsung is having an early sale to help you avoid the post-Thanksgiving frenzy. Right now, you can save up to 40% on select Ultra HD Smart TVs at most, that amounts to up to a $1,500 savings without any hassle.

Shop the Samsung Black Friday sale now.

mott and bow

2. Save up to 35% on your order at Mott & Bow

To kick off the holiday shopping season, denim startup Mott & Bow is having a huge early Black Friday sale. Today, you can save 25% sitewide, 30% on orders of $200 or more, or 35% on orders of $300 or more with the promo code "SHOPEARLY" at checkout. Here at Insider Picks, we've raved about the brand's extremely comfortable jeans and dress shirts.

Shop the Mott & Bow Black Friday sale now.

eBay shopping guide

3. Get Better than Black Friday Deals at eBay

Now through November 18, eBay is having its "Better than Black Friday Deals" sale by beating Black Friday prices from competitors like Target, Walmart, Macy’s, Kohl’s, JCPenney, BJ's Wholesale, and Costco ahead of Thanksgiving weekend. On Black Friday and Cyber Monday, eBay will continue to beat or match prices with a 110% money back guarantee. Plus, all deals are eligible for free shipping.

Shop the deals on eBay now.

levis

4. Save 30% when you spend $100 or more at Levi's

When it comes to denim, Levi's is one of the most popular and deeply rooted companies in American culture. Now through November 19, you can save 30% when you spend $100 by using the promo code "GIFT30" at checkout. You'll find selections for men, women, and children. 

Shop the Levi's Holiday sale now.

6077501cv15d

5. Save $200 on an ASUS 2-in-1 15-inch Touch Screen Laptop at Best Buy

With a vibrant 1080P display, 12GB of RAM, and a large hard drive, the ASUS two-in-one, 15-inch touchscreen laptop can handle all of your work and entertainment needs. It features the functionality of a traditional laptop and a tablet, so it's perfect for taking on the go. Right now, you can save $200 on one at Best Buy.

ASUS 2-in-1 15-inch Touch Screen Laptop, $629.99 (Originally $829.99)[You save $200]

nordstrom

6. Save up to 40% at Nordstrom

Now through November 18, you can save up to 40% on thousands of items at Nordstrom. The sale includes great deals on clothing, shoes, accessories, and a lot more for the entire family. Check out the 30 best deals from the sale here.

Shop the Nordstrom fall sale now.

woman studying udemy

7. Enroll in thousands of Udemy's online courses for just $9.99

With over 65,000 classes, Udemy is one of the best sites for finding online courses. Right now, you can take classes for just $9.99 each during the Black Friday Sale. Whether you want to learn a new language, photography, music, personal finance, or a skill for your career, there's a wide selection of courses that can help you accomplish those goals. There are seven days left in the sale, so don't wait to enroll.

Enroll in $9.99 online courses at Udemy now.

Adidas

8. Save up to $100 on your order at Adidas

Adidas has great items on sale all the time, but with its current sale, the more you buy, the more you'll save. Right now, you can save $20 off orders of $100, $50 off orders of $175, and $100 off orders of $300 when you use the promo code "BMSM18" at checkout. The discount applies to new arrivals and sale styles with select exclusions.

Shop the Adidas sale now.

Leesa

9. Save up to $225 on a Leesa mattress

This Black Friday, popular mattress startup Leesa Sleep is having one of its biggest sales ever. For a very limited time, you can save $150 on the Leesa Mattress or $225 on the Sapira Mattress, plus a free Leesa pillow — a $75 offer. If buying a mattress online concerns you, know that you can try it out for 100 nights free of risk. If it's not the best sleep you've ever had, you can return it hassle-free.

Shop the Leesa Sleep Black Friday sale now.

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I'm a professor of human behavior, and I have some news for you about the 'narcissists' in your life

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millennial chaos mess wealthy

  • Melody Wilding is an executive coach, licensed social worker, and professor of Human Behavior at Hunter College.
  • She finds people constantly tell her about their narcissistic coworkers, but most of those people don't truly understand what a "narcissist" actually is.
  • She has some news: Narcissism is a spectrum, and most people are on it to some degree. Narcissistic Personality Disorder is something entirely separate, and misusing that label is unethical — and dangerous.

Dealing with a difficult boss or coworker can test your patience and be drag on your productivity. But working with a narcissist, on the other hand, can be downright unhealthy. Their selfishness, manipulative tactics, and power hungry ways can be annoying at best and career-ending at worst.

As an executive coach and Human Behavior professor, I hear from readers every day who claim that they work with a narcissist. They complain about managers and colleagues who make their work-life harder than it should be and frustrate them to no end. They blame the other person’s narcissistic tendencies for a lack of progress, not realizing that their own self-absorption might be contributing to the problem.

The truth about narcissism

Psychologically speaking, narcissism is a personality trait that every person possesses to some degree. Like any characteristic, it exists on a spectrum. We all fall somewhere along the narcissism continuum. In fact, a certain amount of self-centeredness is healthy. Research shows that it contributes to confidence, resilience, and ambition.

However, any personality trait taken to an extreme can become pathological. A person who is excessively high in narcissism is said to have narcissistic personality disorder (NPD), which is a diagnosable mental illness.

A person with narcissistic traits may be mildly self-centered at times, but NPD, on the other hand, is a deeply ingrained, pervasive pattern. These people have an extremely fragile sense of self-esteem (masked by an inflated sense of superiority) to the point where it interferes with normal functioning across a wide range of settings beyond work. Studies show that this may be due in part to brain differences. People with NPD often have less brain matter in areas related to empathy.

Related:How to know if you or someone you know is a narcissist, according to a clinical psychologist

Difficult or disordered

In other words, there’s a difference between working with someone who has narcissistic personality disorder and working for someone who has higher than normal narcissistic traits.

With the recent rise in narcissism and popularity of the topic, I’ve also noticed an increased interest in self-diagnosing the difficult people in our lives and careers. Although narcissistic personality disorder is very uncommon (between 0.5-1% of the general population or one in every one hundred people), it seems like everyone now claims to have a narcissist in their lives, especially at work where relationships can get the most heated.

Chalking up what you dislike about another person to a mental disorder isn’t ethical or fair. You may say things like, “my boss is absolutely crazy” or “she’s a raving narcissist” off the cuff and out of anger, but pathologizing people in this way can be very dangerous. Labeling someone with a psychiatric disorder not only further stigmatizes those who do live with mental health diagnoses, but it also trivializes how serious narcissistic personality disorder can be.

Spotting a real narcissist

Before you jump to self-diagnosing your boss or co-worker as a narcissist, it’s important to understand what differentiates narcissistic traits from full-blown NPD.

Spotting narcissistic personality disorder in the workplace is crucial because it can be very damaging. For example, because they have trouble taking criticism, research suggests that people with NPD are responsible for more work-related lawsuits. Narcissists are also drawn to power, which helps them rise to leadership roles, but their penchant for unethical behavior, need for admiration, and lack of empathy can kill morale and destroy an organization.

Related:The opposite of a narcissist is an 'empath' — here are the signs you could be one

So, how can you tell when narcissistic traits tip over to NPD? According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders to diagnose narcissistic personality disorder, the following criteria must be met:

  • An excessive need for admiration and gaining approval from others
  • A sense of entitlement, seeing one’s self as exceptional, and condescending behavior
  • An inability to recognize the feelings and needs of other people
  • Superficial relationships
  • Vast fluctuations in mood

These criteria must be relatively stable across a person’s lifetime and many situations, including in their personal relationships outside of the workplace.

People with narcissistic personality disorder also typically show extreme behavior like:

  • Overly emotional or unpredictable thinking or behavior
  • Distorting facts and making false accusations
  • Enjoyment of getting away with breaking the rules or violating boundaries
  • Using psychological manipulation like gaslighting, public shaming, and deflection
  • Aggression and antisocial behavior

melody wildingWhether you’re dealing with someone who has NPD or simply higher-than-normal narcissistic traits, you must learn how to protect yourself. Developing assertiveness skills, boundaries, and the ability to stay calm in response to the narcissist's tactics can help you succeed despite their presence or make the decision to move on to an environment that’s a better fit for you.

Melody Wilding is an executive coach, licensed social worker, and professor of Human Behavior at Hunter College. Her clients include high-performing managers and leaders at places like Google, Facebook, and HP.  Sign up for your free guide, The 3-Step Workday Reset at melodywilding.com

SEE ALSO: Narcissists all follow the same patterns — here are some of the most common phrases they use

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Everything we know about Amazon's HQ2 development in Long Island City, Queens

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  • Amazon will divide its second headquarters, known as HQ2, in half between the National Landing area of Arlington, Virginia, and Long Island City, Queens. 
  • In Long Island City, Amazon workers will first move into a 50-story office tower that's currently being occupied by Citigroup.
  • The move is a temporary measure as Amazon develops a 4 to 8 million-square-foot headquarters surrounding the Anable Basin.
  • The owner of the land, Plaxall, recent put forth a proposal for how the site could be developed — but Amazon may have its own ideas. 

Amazon is headed to Queens. After more than year of silent negotiations, the company finally landed on the winners of its second North American headquarters. The new HQ2 will be divided into two sites: the newly-minted National Landing area of Arlington, Virginia, and Long Island City, Queens. 

A mere hours after the announcement was made, Citigroup revealed that it was handing over space in a 50-story office building to make way for the retail giant. The tower, known as One Court Square, has become an iconic fixture of the Long Island City skyline, thanks to its massive height and "Citi" logo, which is visible from Manhattan along the East River. 

Read more: Amazon is headed to New York City — here are the neighborhoods that could start swelling with HQ2 workers

Starting next year, Citigroup will begin moving 1,100 employees out of the office tower, freeing up one million square feet of real estate for Amazon. The displaced employees will move to alternate locations in Long Island City or transfer to Citigroup's global headquarters in Tribeca. Amazon will introduce 700 employees in the next year, followed by 2,200 employees in 2020.

According to Constantine Valhouli, the head of research for NeighborhoodX, the building is a "natural choice" for Amazon, given its dominance and height. Amazon's move, he said, could symbolize the growing takeover of West Coast technology companies in New York City, where major office towers have long been occupied by financial firms. 

amazon hq2 lic queens arlington virginia locations graphic

But the move is only temporary. Over the next ten years, Amazon will build a 4 million-square-foot headquarters to house its 25,000 new employees. From there, the company will expand the project to around 8 million square feet, accommodating an additional 15,000 workers.

The entire development is set to be complete in 15 years, at which point Amazon will have spent $3.7 billion on the project. 

That's a hefty price tag, given that the company's parallel development in Arlington. Construction on the4 million-square-foot headquarters, known as National Landingis set to begin in 2019.

plaxall

Though Amazon hasn't revealed too many details about its Long Island City headquarters, the company plans to occupy the space along the Anable Basin, an artificial inlet separating Queens from Brooklyn.

In a memorandum of understanding, New York's Empire State Development said the new site would include open public space, community facilities, artist workspaces, technology accelerator space, and room for a public school. 

To carry out this vision, Amazon will have to work with the owner of the land, Plaxall, which recently proposed its own ideas for a mixed-used district along the waterfront. Its 2017 proposal included flood resiliency measures and plans to preserve the neighborhood's industrial character. 

Though Plaxall and Amazon could share a similar wish-list, there's plenty left to determine, including the project timeline, fate of existing businesses, and location of Jeff Bezos's controversial helipad

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: You've been blowing your nose all wrong — here's how you should do it


Zoë Kravitz says British singer Lily Allen 'attacked' her with a nonconsensual kiss

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zoe kravitz and lily allen

  • Zoë Kravitz appeared on Bravo's "Watch What Happens Live" on Tuesday and recalled a story that British singer Lily Allen shared in her memoir, which was released in September 2018. 
  • Allen said that they "went out partying and ended up kissing" in 2014.
  • In response, Kravitz said: "If by kissing, she means, like, attacking? Then yes. She kissed me."

 

British singer Lily Allen said that she kissed Zoë Kravitz years ago, and now the actress is sharing her side of the story. 

Kravitz appeared on Bravo's "Watch What Happens Live" on Tuesday with her "Fantastic Beasts" co-star Eddie Redmayne. After a fan asked Kravitz if she was warned in advance that Allen would discuss the incident in her memoir titled "My Thoughts Exactly," the 29-year-old didn't mince words. 

"Who's Lily Allen?" Kravitz replied. 

When Redmayne chimed in and said that he loves the singer, Kravitz said, "No you don't," and explained that she remembers the 2014 event differently.

Read more: Here's the cast of the 'Fantastic Beasts' movies and who they're playing

Allen's book was released in September 2018. In it, the 33-year-old said that the pair became friends since Kravitz's band, Lolawolf, was an opening act for a few of her shows. Allen went on to say that they "went out partying and ended up kissing."

In response to Allen's claim, Kravitz told host Andy Cohen: "If by kissing, she means, like, attacking? Then yes. She kissed me."

Kravitz added that she thought the kiss was portrayed "like I wanted it," but to her, the action wasn't consensual.

After Cohen asked Kravitz if she read Allen's memoir, Kravitz said: "I don't think anybody read the book."

A representative for Allen told INSIDER that a comment from the singer is forthcoming.

Watch the video below.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.   

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NOW WATCH: 7 places you can't find on Google Maps

Amazon decided to split its second headquarters in 2 months ago, exec says (AMZN)

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amazon hq2 lic queens arlington virginia locations graphic

  • Amazon has settled on a new home for its second headquarters, which it calls HQ2. It will be split between two locations: Long Island City in Queens, New York, and an area of Arlington, Virginia, dubbed National Landing.
  • The company originally said it would select one city for its new headquarters.
  • According to Amazon senior vice president Jay Carney, who spoke with The New York Times, the decision to split HQ2 was made months ago. 

For over a year, Amazon has kept the search for its second headquarters, dubbed HQ2, very secret, leaving the public and even the cities who had made proposals to live off rumors alone.

On November 5, The Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon was considering splitting its headquarters in two. That was the first time a solution of this kind had been reported, but according to an Amazon executive, it had been in the works for months. 

Jay Carney, a senior vice president at Amazon, told The New York Times that the decision to split HQ2 was made during a meeting in August. The team running the search decided that it would be easier to find the 50,000 employees that they intended to hire if they split the office between two locations. 

An Amazon spokesperson later told The Times that that decision had been made in September. The company did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. 

Read more: The losers of Amazon's HQ2 contest have been revealed — but some locals are rejoicing

On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal reported that some city officials may have had their suspicions that Amazon could split HQ2, even before it was officially announced. 

"During a second visit in Los Angeles, a city official asked whether Amazon should break up HQ2 among several cities because there wasn't enough tech talent in one location. Ms. Sullivan and her staff appeared to give each other knowing glances," The Journal wrote. 

Holly Sullivan is the Amazon exec who led the search for HQ2. 

The Journal first reported that the decision to have two HQ2 locations was related to the company's ability to recruit enough tech talent. 

Amazon reiterated this in its blog post announcing the selections on Tuesday.  

"We can recruit more top talent by being in two locations," the company said. "These are fantastic cities that attract a lot of great talent."

It would also allow Amazon to ease issues related to housing and transit. 

“25,000 as a floor is easier for the communities to absorb,” Carney told The Times.

These problems have been highlighted at Amazon's main headquarters in Seattle, where locals complain of skyrocketing rents, prolonged construction, gentrification, and gridlock traffic.

Read more about Amazon's HQ2 project:

SEE ALSO: Amazon just unveiled its HQ2 selections, and some locals are furious

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Bitcoin tumbles to its lowest level in over a year

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Bitcoin

Bitcoin was getting demolished Wednesday afternoon, down more than 10% and at its lowest level in over a year.

The world's largest cryptocurrency touched a low of $5,550 a coin, its weakest since October 2017, as widespread selling wreaked havoc on the crypto space ahead of the coming fork in the rival bitcoin cash.

Ethereum, XRP's ripple, and litecoin were all trading down by about 10%, while bitcoin cash was lower by 13%.

On Thursday, bitcoin cash, the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is set to experience a hard fork amid a fight that is playing out between its two biggest proponents, Craig Wright and Roger Ver.

"Both Roger and Craig are advocating a different version of Bitcoin Cash," according to Mati Greenspan, the senior market analyst at eToro.

"The end result will most likely be a split in the network resulting in two different versions of Bitcoin Cash when both upgrades go into effect this Thursday."

It has been a tough year for digital-currency investors, who saw prices explode in 2017 as cryptomania swept over the world. Bitcoin, for example, began 2017 worth less than $1,000 a coin before soaring more than 2,000% to a high of $19,511 a coin.

This year has been a different story, however, with the cryptocurrency's value having plunged by 60%.

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America's 'war on terror' has cost the US nearly $6 trillion and killed roughly half a million people, and there's no end in sight

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Afghanistan

  • The US will have spent nearly $6 trillion on the war on terror by the end of fiscal year 2019, according to a startling new report. 
  • "If the US continues on its current path, war spending will continue to grow," the Costs of War report states.
  • Between 480,000 and 507,000 people have been killed in the United States’ post-9/11 wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan – including nearly 7,000 US troops – according to the Costs of War project. 
  • America is conducting counterterror operations in 76 countries and US troops are fighting and dying everywhere from Afghanistan to Niger. 

The US will have dished out nearly $6 trillion on the war on terror by October 2019, and there's no end in sight to the convoluted, ill-defined conflict. 

According to an annual report from the Costs of War project at Brown University's Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs, the total cost of the war on terror will reach roughly $5.9 trillion through fiscal year 2019.

This is far higher than the Pentagon's official calculation of $1.5 trillion because it goes beyond Defense Department appropriations and includes the cost of "spending across the federal government that is a consequence of these wars."

Read more: The most elite US-trained forces in Afghanistan routed by the Taliban, another sign the war is a lost cause

The report also factors in war-related spending by the Department of State, past and obligated spending for war veterans' care, interest on the debt incurred to pay for the wars, and the prevention of and response to terrorism by the Department of Homeland Security.

"If the US continues on its current path, war spending will continue to grow," the report states.

"Even if the wars are ended by 2023, the US would still be on track to spend an additional $808 billion to total at least $6.7 trillion, not including future interest costs," the report adds. "Moreover, the costs of war will likely be greater than this because, unless the US immediately ends its deployments, the number of veterans associated with the post-9/11 wars will also grow." 

Read more: 'We are losing': Trump and his top advisors aren't publicly admitting how bad things are in Afghanistan

'This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while'

The war on terror was born out of the 9/11 terror attacks over 17 years ago.

"This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while," former President George W. Bush said on the White House South Lawn on Sept. 16, 2001. "And the American people must be patient. I'm going to be patient... It is time for us to win the first war of the 21st century decisively, so that our children and our grandchildren can live peacefully into the 21st century."

This was two days after Congress passed the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), which essentially gave Bush and his two successors carte blanche to deploy US military personnel and assets virtually anywhere in the world for the sake of fighting terrorism. 

Nearly two decades later, America is conducting counterterror operations in 76 countries and US troops are fighting and dying everywhere from Afghanistan to Niger. At this point, it's not clear what victory would even mean in the context of this broad conflict, which the US public seems to pay less and less attention to. 

Read more: This map shows how the US is fighting terrorism in 76 countries around the world

Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, is dead. But the Taliban seem stronger than ever in Afghanistan, Al Qaeda and its affiliates are active across multiple continents, and the US is also still fighting against the Islamic State group. It's unlikely the roughly 14,000 US troops in Afghanistan will be coming home anytime soon, and the same goes for the approximately 2,200 US troops in Syria

The war has been accompanied by hundreds of thousands of deaths as well as violations of human rights and civil liberties, both at home and abroad.

Between 480,000 and 507,000 people have been killed in the United States’ post-9/11 wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan – including nearly 7,000 US troops – according to the Costs of War project. 

Beyond the monetary issues related to the so-called war on terror, there's a massive human cost as well. 

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Astronomers found a 'snowy' super-Earth less than 6 light-years away — and it may be the first planet we'll photograph beyond the solar system

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exoplanet extrasolar planet cold super earth barnards star b gj 699 b illustration IEEC Science Wave Guillem Ramisa shutterstock

  • Astronomers think they've found a "cold super-Earth" exoplanet orbiting Barnard's star.
  • Barnard's star less than 6 light-years away from us and the closest single-star system to our sun.
  • The new world is called Barnard's star b (or GJ 699 b) and is at least 3.2 times as massive as Earth.
  • It orbits in the "snow line" of its parent star: a region at the edge of a star's habitable zone where scientists suspect most rocky planets form.
  • This Earth-size exoplanet may be the first to be photographed by a new generation of powerful telescopes.

Astronomers have suspected for decades that a nearby red dwarf star, called Barnard's star, might be hiding an Earth-size planet.

On Wednesday, researchers revealed that they've discovered the first such exoplanet with about 99.2% certainty.

A team of dozens of scientists published that work in the journal Nature, and said there are even hints that a second world may lurk nearby.

Barnard's star is just 5.87 light-years away from Earth, making it the closest one-star system to us. Only Proxima Centauri, a three-star system, is closer.

What's more, the newly discovered world is close enough to Earth — yet far enough from its blindingly bright star — to be photographed by an upcoming generation of giant telescopes.

"This is probably the first Earth-sized planet we will directly image by future missions,"Abel Méndez, an astrobiologist at the University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo who wasn't involved in the study, told Business Insider.

The new world is currently known as Barnard's star b or, in other circles, GJ 699 b. The team who found it leaned on more than 20 years of telescope observations, and that data suggests the planet is at least 3.2 times more massive than Earth and has a 233-day-long year.

The world appears to orbit in the "snow line" of Barnard's star — a region just on the edge of the habitable zone, where liquid water can exist on the surface of a planet.

For that reason, scientists consider the possible planet to be a "cold super-Earth," and some are wondering if alien life might exist there.

What it might be like on Barnard's star b

exoplanet extrasolar planet cold super earth barnards star b gj 699 b illustration ESO M Kornmesser

Barnard's star is not like the sun — it's an M-dwarf, which means it's smaller, cooler, less massive, and older than our own star.

"M dwarfs are prime targets for planetary searches because they favor the detection of small companions," Rodrigo F. Díaz, an astrophysicist at University of Buenos Aires who wasn't part of the research team, wrote in a Nature "News and Views" piece.

The newly discovered planet is about as far from its star as Mercury is from the sun. That's fairly close. However, next to a smaller and lower-temperature star, this puts Barnard's star b at the edge of its habitable zone in the snow line region.

exoplanet extrasolar planet cold super earth barnards star b gj 699 b orbits sun distance illustration IEEC Science Wave Guillem Ramisa

Practically, this means the surface temperature of Barnard's star b is likely -150 degrees Celsius. This is cold enough to freeze carbon dioxide solid into dry ice.

But bone-chilling temperatures doesn't mean the exoplanet is a dead world.

Can a cold super-Earth be habitable?

europa jupiter ice moon half hemisphere 2x1 nasa jpl galileo pia19048

The surface of Europa — an icy moon that orbits Jupiter — is 10 degrees colder than the newly discovered world. And Ganymede — a smaller icy moon around Saturn — is about 20 degrees colder than that.

Yet both have expansive oceans of salt waterhiding below their crusts, and there's growing evidence that organic molecules are mixed into that liquid.

Plus, the researchers' estimate of the temperature of planet Barnard's star b assumes there's no atmosphere hugging the world. But there very well could be.

"Since the planet is more massive than Earth, it may retain a hydrogen atmosphere,"Sara Seager, the deputy science director for NASA's TESS mission and an astrophysicist at MIT, told Business Insider.

It's not a far-fetched idea. Seager said all planets — even Earth — are born with a hydrogen atmosphere. This is because hydrogen is the dominant material in nebulas, the clouds of gas and dust out of which stars (and their planets) form.

"Hydrogen is a potent greenhouse gas and could conceivably keep the surface temperature warm enough for life, if the atmosphere pressure is high enough," Seager said.

Future ground observatories like the Extremely Large Telescope, or perhaps even the Giant Magellan Telescope, might be able to capture a small image of Barnard's star b. Some of the light that passes through or bounces off its atmosphere might even be sampled for indirect signs of life.

If Barnard's star b turns out to be a bust, future observations may discover it isn't alone.

"I don't discard the possibility of smaller Earth-sized planets in the habitable zone of Barnard's Star, now we know that Barnard has planets and there is plenty of space between the star and this new planet for a few small ones," Méndez said. 

SEE ALSO: 28 iconic photos of the Earth from space that will make you feel puny and insignificant

DON'T MISS: A 'mind-boggling' telescope observation has revealed the point of no return for our galaxy's monster black hole

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