• The Cheesecake Factory debuted a deal to give away 40,000 cheesecakes via DoorDash on Wednesday.
• The cheesecakes had already sold out at many locations as of 2 p.m. EST, sparking backlash from angry customers who did not order in time. 
• Stores have been crowded with DoorDash drivers, with one location in Arlington County, Virginia, reportedly calling the police to get the hectic scene under control following an alleged fight between delivery people. 

The Cheesecake Factory's free cheesecake deal proved to be monumentally popular. But, the popularity has created some issues for the cheesecake chain and the delivery service DoorDash.

On Wednesday, The Cheesecake Factory launched a promotion to give away 40,000 free cheesecakes. All customers had to do was order using DoorDash. 

After the deal kicked off at 11:30 a.m., the orders came flooding in. People posted celebratory pictures of their cheesecake on social media and happily dug into their free treats. 

Then, the cheesecakes started to run out. At 1:18 p.m. EST, DoorDash posted on Twitter that all of the cheesecakes on the East Coast had been claimed. 

Some customers were unhappy to have missed out on the chance to get free cheesecakes. 

"The lies they tell about the free cheesecake I download the ap and they said this area isn’t honoring it smh," one person commented on The Cheesecake Factory's Facebook page. 

Additionally, the deal created issues in at least some stores.

People visiting Cheesecake Factory locations reported that stores were crowded with DoorDash delivery people. 

A Cheesecake Factory in Arlington County, Virginia, faced chaos severe enough to required police intervention, ARLnow.com reported.

According to the local news station, police and medics responded to get the crowds under control as DoorDash delivery people flooded The Cheesecake Factory location. Police were called after a fight reportedly broke out in the restaurant. They arrived to discover "an unruly crowd of delivery drivers inside the restaurant, trying to pick up orders, and a rash of double parking around the Clarendon area," though there was not a fight going on at the time.

A Cheesecake Factory representative did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. 

SEE ALSO: Burger King is forcing customers to go to McDonald's for one-cent Whoppers. Here are 7 of the weirdest deals and ads in recent fast-food history.

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• Kevin Durant is one of several NBA players who suggested that it's not appealing for star players to playing alongside LeBron James.
• Durant said the media attention that James commands can create a "toxic" environment and noted that fewer stars want to sacrifice their roles to fit with James.
• Across James' career, star teammates have had to change their games to play with James but have said it was worthwhile to compete for a championship.
• This summer will be a revealing one for James and the Los Angeles Lakers, as they'll have the cap space to pursue a second star to add to James.

When LeBron James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer, it came as something of a surprise that no other stars joined him.

The options were limited, but Paul George re-signed in Oklahoma City, Kawhi Leonard was traded to the Toronto Raptors, and Jimmy Butler was dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers. George and Leonard were both linked to the Lakers early on but ultimately went elsewhere, and Butler did not name the Lakers as one of his preferred destinations.

Including Kyrie Irving's trade demand from Cleveland in 2017, a question began popping up around the NBA: do superstars no longer want to play with James? Even Leonard, a free agent this summer, is said to prefer the Los Angeles Clippers, where he'd be the top star, over the Lakers.

Bleacher Report's Ric Bucher dove into this exact subject and the consensus seemed to be that it is less appealing to play with James than before.

Kevin Durant gave some of the most upfront answers, most notably saying that the media attention that James commands can create a "toxic" environment.

"So much hype comes from being around LeBron from other people," Durant said. "He has so many fanboys in the media. Even the beat writers just fawn over him. I'm like, we're playing basketball here, and it's not even about basketball at certain points. So I get why anyone wouldn't want to be in that environment because it's toxic. Especially when the attention is bulls--t attention, fluff. It's not LeBron's fault at all; it's just the fact you have so many groupies in the media that love to hang on every word. Just get out of the way and let us play basketball."

Several reports indicated that Irving felt belittled by the media attention James received. Whether James was asked to comment on politics, or Irving was asked about improvements James made in his game, the focus was on LeBron.

Durant also said that fellow superstars don't want to sacrifice their style to fit in with James. 

There's a long history of this. When James joined the Miami Heat with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, Wade and Bosh both ceded shot attempts to James, with Bosh most notably becoming the third option and acting as more of a spot-up shooter. 

When James returned to the Cavaliers, Kevin Love had to make the biggest sacrifice, becoming more of a spot-up shooter who was reliant on James to get him the ball.

"Kevin Love, he had to totally change his game to fit, to be a shooter," Durant said. "Which, I think, he deserves way more credit for switching his game. Bosh, same way. LeBron is a player that needs to play with guys that already know how they play the game — and shooters. Like, young players that are still developing, it's always going to be hard because he demands the ball so much, he demands control of the offense and he creates for everybody."

Durant said James does make role players better by receiving most of the attention from the defense and getting them easier shots. But for stars who are capable of dominating a game themselves, taking a lesser role is less appealing.

"If you're Kyle Korver, then it makes sense [to play with James]," Durant said. "Because Kyle Korver in Atlanta was the bulk of the offense, and he's not a No. 1 option at all, not even close. So his talents benefit more from a guy who can pass and penetrate and get him open.

"If you're a younger player like a Kawhi, trying to pair him with LeBron James doesn't really make sense. Kawhi enjoys having the ball in his hands, controlling the offense, dictating the tempo with his post-ups; it's how he plays the game. A lot of young players are developing that skill. They don't need another guy."

The problem is that it is tough to argue with James' success. He's won three championships and made eight straight Finals. Few schemes in the NBA are more successful than giving James the ball and spreading the floor. He can then attack by either scoring for himself or commanding enough attention to get open shots for his teammates.

A league source once told INSIDER that James' methods are so effective that most coaches just let him go because it's hard to convince him otherwise.

"LeBron will break the system all the time to do what he does," said the league source. "And he does it so well that coaches don't have the intestinal fortitude to say, 'No, my [system] is better.' Because he's, like, 'Really? It's better than that?'"

Love has said he considered his sacrifices with James and the Cavs worthwhile because it meant competing for a championship every year. But those sacrifices came with a toll for Love, as ESPN's Brian Windhorst once revealed.

"Love deals with the persecution of being a LeBron teammate, of being blamed, of dealing with his social-media undercutting, of being the fall guy, as he's called himself ... There have been so many days and nights where Kevin Love has walked out of a building feeling beleaguered or beaten down ... because of LeBron."

Read more: NBA insider provides eye-opening quote about the sacrifices Kevin Love has made to play with LeBron James

Often, with James-led teams, the narrative goes: if they win, it's because of LeBron. If they lose, it's because his teammates didn't step up. Phoenix Suns forward Trevor Ariza told Bucher that media should focus on changing that narrative and holding James more accountable when his teams lose.

Of course, it's worth noting that many other players have had high praise for James.

Former Cavs forward Richard Jefferson raved about James, saying he's an excellent off-the-court teammate and leader on the floor. Even Irving praised James after the 2017 Finals, saying James is the type of player you could only dream of getting to play in a big game with. 

This summer will be a major one for James and the Lakers, as they'll have the cap space to add a second star to play with James. Perhaps more interestingly, it may reveal how other elite players view playing alongside James.

• Read more on the NBA:
• 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin talks the team's big trade for Jimmy Butler, his favorite Joel Embiid story, and why he likes Kendall Jenner
• Doctors have discovered a nerve condition in Markelle Fultz's neck and shoulder that may have led to his perplexing shooting woes
• The highest-paid players on every NBA team, from Zach Randolph to Stephen Curry

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Inside an intense training session where aspiring WWE wrestlers learn how to fight

• In 2018, researchers made multiple significant medical discoveries and surgeons completed revolutionary surgeries. 
• A French man became the first person to receive two face transplants and a baby was born via a uterus transplant from a deceased donor.
• A fish oil supplement was found to dramatically reduce cardiovascular risk.
• Researchers created an injection that might prevent migraines and are looking into an effective and safe male birth control.

Every year, researchers quietly pave the way for the advancement of medicine, and 2018 was no exception. Over the past 12 months, professionals in the medical realm worked tirelessly to combat dangers such as cancer and cardiovascular disease and bring treatment to those suffering from various mental illnesses. 

Here are 10 major medical breakthroughs of 2018 that have changed the face of medicine forever.

A cancer "vaccine" eliminated tumors in mice.

In January 2018, researchers at Stanford University announced in a press release that they were recruiting lymphoma patients in a clinical trial to test a potential cancer vaccine. The news came after the researchers successfully eliminated tumors in mice. 

The team of researchers found that injecting "minute amounts of two immune-stimulating agents directly into solid tumors in mice can eliminate all traces of cancer in the animals, including distant, untreated metastases." 

Specifically, by injecting one tumor site with the two agents 87 of 90 mice were cured of the cancer. Although the cancer recurred in three of the mice, the tumors again regressed after a second treatment.

The hope is that a vaccine of the sort would be both affordable and eliminate the need for cancer treatments that attack the immune system and result in adverse side effects. 

"I don’t think there’s a limit to the type of tumor we could potentially treat, as long as it has been infiltrated by the immune system," Ronald Levy, MD, professor of oncology, and the senior author of the study said in the press release. 

A French man became the first person to receive two face transplants.

In April 2018, Jérôme Hamon, 43, of France, became the first person in the world to receive two face transplants. 

The man, who suffers from neurofibromatosis type 1, a genetic disorder that caused benign, disfiguring tumors to grow on his face, initially underwent a face transplant in 2010 but his body began to reject the new face in 2016. He lived two months without a face before French surgeons led by Laurent Lantieri, the same doctor who oversaw Hamon's first transplant, gave Hamon a new face. 

The successful landmark surgery proved that re-transplantation is a possibility. 

A fish oil supplement was found to dramatically reduce cardiovascular risk.

Considering about 610,000 people die of heart disease in the United States every year (1 in every 4 deaths) it's no surprise that when, in September, biopharmaceutical company, Biotech Amarin, announced that its supplement, Vascepa, was found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients by 25%, people rejoiced. 

Though the drug was approved by the FDA in 2015 to treat people with high levels of triglycerides, a type of fat found in blood, it wasn't until 2018 that its success was measured.

"This is absolutely the most significant study in the field of cardiovascular risk reduction since the statins were introduced,"said Dr. Matthew Budoff, a cardiologist at UCLA and a Vascepa study investigator. 

Read more:Amarin's stock soars after its fish oil capsule was found to dramatically reduce cardiovascular risks

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

Shopping for a book lover can be difficult unless you know the entire contents of their bookshelf well enough to avoid buying them the dreaded duplicate of a tome they already own (unless it's a special version like a first edition or a fancy illustrated one — those will be received with enthusiasm).

Don't worry, though — We're here to help. Writers are more or less professional bookworms and wannabe authors, so you can trust that our recommendations will go over well with anyone else who loves the written word.

Whether your giftee prefers ebooks or physical books with that intoxicating new book smell, we have gifts that will send them into their reading nooks with big smiles on their faces.

Just don't expect to see your beloved bookworm any time soon — they'll be awfully busy enjoying these thoughtful gifts.

Still shopping for more gifts? Check out all of Insider Picks' holiday gift guides for 2018 here. Keep scrolling to check out the best book lover gifts.

SEE ALSO: 15 fun and unique gifts for tea lovers to spread holiday cheer

An ebook subscription

Scribd subscription, 3 months for $25, 6 months for $50, or 1 year for $100

Kindle Unlimited subscription,$9.99 a month

If the bookworm you're shopping for is all-in on ebooks and doesn't own or want a Kindle, get them a Scribd subscription. For less than $10 a month, they'll have access to hundreds of thousands of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, and newspapers. Your giftee can read and listen to Scribd books on the apps for Android, iOS, Fire Tablet, or on the Scribd webpage. Ebooks and audiobooks are downloadable for offline reading. To learn more about Scribd, read our full review of the service on Insider Picks.

It's important to note that you cannot get Scribd ebooks on a Kindle, so if your giftee has or wants a Kindle, get them signed up for Kindle Unlimited, which is a similar service for Amazon's Kindle ebook reader and its Kindle apps for iOS, Android, and the Fire Tablet.

A physical book subscription

Book of the Month Club, $44.99 for 3 months, $79.99 for 6 months, $149.99 for a year

Of course, some people don't like ebooks, so we're also recommending a subscription to Book of the Month Club. This subscription gets your bookworm their pick of the best new books for $11.99 to $14.99 a month depending on the length of subscription you choose to give them. They can also request extra books for an additional $9.99 each if they read more than one book a month. You can read our full review of the service on Insider Picks for more details.

An ebook reader

Kindle Paperwhite or Kindle Oasis, available on Amazon, $129.99 or $249.99 

Kindle Unlimited subscription, $9.99 a month

No matter which Kindle you buy, you really can't go wrong. I personally think the Kindle Oasis and Paperwhite are the best ones to buy because they are both waterproof, have a backlight, and are comfortable to hold. If your book lover prefers page-turning buttons, the Oasis is the one to get. It's also a good idea to get them a Kindle Unlimited subscription so they can access hundreds of thousands of books for free.

• Kayla Itsines is an award-winning certified trainer and entrepreneur whose Bikini Body Guide Workout program and SWEAT app has a following of more than 30 million.
• Kayla Itsines' Bikini Body Guide 12-week program includes three 28-minute workouts, four cardio sessions, and two recovery sessions each week.
• I just finished Kayla Itsines' BBG Round 1. Here's what has happened.

Kayla Itsines, an award-winning certified trainer and entrepreneur, was running one-on-one sessions in Australia, when her cousin recommended she post client's transformations to Instagram, she told Business Insider. As her Instagram following grew, people started asking how to do the workout.

So Itsines and her partner, Tobi Pearce, founded Bikini Body Training in 2013. In 2014, they released the Bikini Body Guide (BBG), a 12-week workout program that users could purchase as a PDF and use wherever, whenever.

Next, Itsines and Pearce developed their program into a top-ranking fitness app, Sweat, where users can find Itsines' curated workouts and other features like a nutrition plan, cool downs, a place to save progress photos, and a weekly workout schedule. The Sweat app has been downloaded by more than 30 million people, according to TechCrunch, which estimated that BBG will have generated $77 million this year.

The weekly schedule (which builds up slowly at first) consists of three 28-minute workouts — legs, arms, and abs — four cardio sessions, one recovery session with guided stretches, and a rest day.

I decided to complete the viral 12-week BBG program to see if I would have results like the hundreds of thousands who tag their before and after pictures using #BBGtransformations on Instagram.

Here's how I feel now that I'm done.

SEE ALSO: 10 of the best keto meal options at popular chain restaurants

I am used to working out.

I have run four half-marathons, completed the Physique 57 workout program and Ruth Bader Ginsburg's workout, and exercise regularly. I also finished one round of the Bikini Body Guide last year.

Even though I workout often, I was prepared to be sore because the exercises are tough and you complete them as many times as you can during the two circuits that you repeat at least twice. 

I was motivated by the community of BBG fans who encourage each other online and offline.

The Bikini Body Guide hashtag on Instagram has over seven million posts. BBG fans share their BBG progress and BBG transformations and frequently leave encouraging comments and advice. People even plan local meetups to do the BBG workouts together.

Each high-intensity plyometric training workout targets a different muscle group: abs, arms, and legs. Every workout incorporates two series of four exercises that are completed in seven-minute circuits, twice. You do each of the four exercises as many times as you can in the seven minutes for each circuit.

I usually did each exercise (for example 15 pushups, 15 burpees, 60 bicycle crunches, 30 weighted step-ups) twice per circuit. You get a one-minute break between circuits and a guided stretching session when you're done for the day.

I find the abs day to be the most difficult, in part because I have scoliosis and can't do all of the crunches correctly. I make modifications, like doing regular crunches instead of full-body crunches. Listen to your body and don't be afraid to modify the exercises. If you download the app, you can also check the alternative exercise to see if it works better for your body.

• Citigroup is expecting fourth-quarter trading revenues to dip year-over-year, according to CFO John Gerspach.
• A spike in market volatility has negatively impacted the firm's fixed income business, as well as investment banking, he said.
• As a result, the firm may miss its stated goal of improving operating efficiency by 100 basis points year-over-year.
• "It's a much tougher revenue quarter then we would have anticipated," CFO John Gerspach said.

Citigroup is expecting trading and investment banking revenues to dip in the fourth quarter, and the bank could miss a key efficiency target, according to CFO John Gerspach.

While Citi's equities performance remains robust, the choppy market this fall has stunted progress in the bank's fixed income, currencies, and commodities (FICC) business, Gerspach said Wednesday at a financials conference.

"In markets, going into this quarter, we anticipated we would see year-over-year revenue growth in fixed income and equity markets," Gerspach said. "That's changed."

Citi expected some of the momentum from a strong third quarter in rates and currencies to carry through to the fourth quarter, but that didn't materialize — especially in the rates business.

Read more:Citigroup is expected to announce an overhaul of its investment bank — and there's a big reshuffling at the top

"That combination of fixed income and equities revenues is likely to be lower than last year," Gerspach said.

On Tuesday at the same conference JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said he expected trading results to be flat compared with last year, while Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said the firm's trading results are tracking up by a few percentage points. 

A recent Credit Suisse report predicted that banks on average would see flat trading results during the fourth quarter compared to the same period a year prior. 

Gerspach said that fourth-quarter market volatility has "definitely had an impact" and "put a drag on our fixed income and investment banking revenues," which he also expects to be down thanks to declines in equity underwriting and debt issuance.

The slide in fourth-quarter performance in these business lines means the bank is at risk of falling short of its goal of a 100-basis-point improvement in operating efficiency. He suggested the firm may end up in the 90-basis-point range instead. 

"It's a much tougher revenue quarter then we would have anticipated," Gerspach said. 

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Responding personally to every email you get at work can consume valuable time.
• Instagram executive Eva Chen noticed most of her emails concerned the same 10 topics, so she came up with a clever workaround.
• Instead of typing a response to each email she gets, she keeps stock responses saved as email signatures so she can quickly fire back a message.

It's estimated that the average worker receives almost 90 emails a day.

Responding to all those messages could eat up valuable hours of the workday — but one executive has a clever solution she uses on a daily basis.

Eva Chen, the head of fashion partnerships at Instagram, told Indya Brown at The Cut that she keeps a stockpile of generic email responses saved as customized signatures. 

"Think about the emails you send in any given day. You're probably responding to the same ten topics," Chen told The Cut. "For example, someone will invite me to an event and I'll be out of town, so my response is, 'I'm sorry, I can’t make it. I’m out of town.'" 

"Instead of typing that out, I have it saved as a signature. So basically I have ten signatures saved on my email like, 'Sorry I'm out of town I can't make it,' 'I'll be there,' 'CCing my admin to set up a meeting,' etc. It makes a big difference."

Chen's email hack is reminiscent of Google's Smart Reply feature, which allows Gmail users to instantly respond to emails with short, auto-generated replies like "See you there" or "Sounds good." The feature debuted in 2015 and was released widely in a Gmail update earlier this year.

Microsoft rolled out a similar feature for Outlook, its webmail service, in August.

SEE ALSO: From 'synergy' to 'incentivize,' here are the most annoying buzzwords people can't seem to let die in every US state

DON'T MISS: People can’t decide if Gmail’s 'Smart Reply' feature is genius or just kind of awkward

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Why most people refuse to sell their lottery tickets for twice what they paid

• Buzzer beaters and last-second game-winning shots are some of what makes basketball at any level so exciting.
• This year, viewers were treated to a plethora of thrilling, down-to-the-wire finishes in the NCAA tournament, NBA finals, and beyond.
• We used Google Trends to determine the most talked-about game winners and buzzer beaters of 2018.

Buzzer beaters and last-second game winners can elevate a basketball game, team, or player from good to legendary in a matter of seconds.

Just ask Arike Ogunbowale, the Loyola Chicago Ramblers, and Jimmy Butler.

This year, basketball fans were treated to a plethora of thrilling, down-to-the-wire finishes in the NCAA tournament, NBA finals, and beyond.

We used Google Trends to try to widdle down all of this year's buzzer beaters and game winners to determine which were the most buzzed-about last-second shots of 2018.

Without further ado, here are the 24 best buzzer beaters and game winners of the calendar year.

Gerald Green — Houston Rockets vs Phoenix Suns

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From not being in the league a few months ago to drilling game winners. S/o Gerald Green 💯 pic.twitter.com/zIsPL33xGx

Just months removed from joining his hometown team on a 10-day contract, NBA journeyman Gerald Green knocked down a buzzer-beating corner three to lift the Rockets over the Suns in late March.

Collin Sexton — Alabama Crimson Tide vs Texas A&M Aggies

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With an NCAA tournament bid on the line, the Crimson Tide's star freshman point guard Collin Sexton found his way up the court and sank an underhand floater at the buzzer to take down the Aggies and advance in the SEC tournament.

Al Horford — Boston Celtics vs Portland Trail Blazers

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//twitter.com/mims/statuses/960233699974565895?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
🚨 AL HORFORD WITH A BUZZER BEATER🚨

(🎥: @NBA)pic.twitter.com/LVWhqfx64c

At the beginning of February, Al Horford capped a double-double performance against the Trail Blazers with a turnaround fadeaway jumper to beat the buzzer and win the game for the Celtics.

• From Facebook's Cambridge Analytica debacle to Google's sexual misconduct investigations, 2018 has been a year rocked by scandal in tech industry. 
• Here are the 18 biggest tech scandals that happened this year.

In the tech world, 2018 was rocked by scandal. 

Over the last 12 months, many tech companies have found themselves at the center of our country's most pressing social and political issues. 

Facebook provided Cambridge Analytica — a data firm used by President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign to target voters — with 87 million users' personal information without obtaining proper consent. 

Google reportedly paid an executive tens of millions of dollars after he was let go over a sexual misconduct investigation.

And WhatsApp became a hotbed of misinformation, influencing political elections and costing people their lives. 

What follows are the 18 biggest scandals in the tech industry over the course of the last year:

February: Uber and Waymo go to court over stolen trade secrets regarding self-driving car technology.

In February, Uber and Google's self-driving car spinoff, Waymo, went to court over allegations that Uber stole trade secrets relating to Waymo's self-driving-car technology.

The case centered around Anthony Levandowski, a high-profile engineer who was accused of taking information with him when leaving Google and bringing that information to Uber when he joined the company.

The trial was hugely anticipated among those in tech, as it included two of Silicon Valley’s largest companies, and even featured testimony from Uber's former CEO, Travis Kalanick.

Ultimately, Uber agreed to pay Waymo $245 million in equity.

• Read more:
• Read the text messages from Travis Kalanick and Anthony Levandowski that Uber fought to keep sealed in its legal battle with Waymo
• Uber and Waymo are finally going to trial in an epic war over self-driving tech that could reshape Silicon Valley
• Google spinoff Waymo calls Uber a bunch of cheaters as the long-awaited self-driving car trial kicks off
• The Silicon Valley judge presiding over the Uber and Waymo is so full of blistering criticisms that he's getting his own fan base
• Uber and Waymo have reached a $245 million settlement in their massive legal fight over self-driving-car technology

March: Google’s Project Maven contract to partner with the Department of Defense on AI technology is revealed.

In March, a report by Gizmodo revealed that Google had a contract in place with the US Department of Defense for the use of artificial intelligence technology, known internally as Project Maven.

Critics of the AI tech — which speeds up the process of analyzing video images — believed it could be used for increasing the accuracy of drone-missile strikes, which often result in civilian casualties. As a result, thousands of Google employees signed a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, urging the company to end the contract, saying: "We believe that Google should not be in the business of war."

In June, after facing intense internal and external pressures, Google announced it would not renew its current contract with the DoD, which expires in 2019.

• Read more:
• Google's military work reverses one of its oldest values — and it could jeopardize the company's biggest asset
• Thousands of Google employees asked CEO Sundar Pichai to stop providing AI tech for the US military's drones
• A small military contract started an internal war at Google that's tearing the company apart
• After a dozen employees quit in protest, Google has reportedly decided not to renew its contract for military drone initiative Project Maven
• 'Things have changed at Google': An engineer who quit to protest Project Maven explains why the company's changing values forced him out

March: A self-driving Uber car hits and kills a woman in Arizona.

In March, a woman in Tempe, Arizona, was killed by a self-driving car operated by Uber. It was the first time a pedestrian had been killed by an autonomous vehicle.

Uber, which had been competing with companies like Waymo and GM to bring self-driving services to market, subsequently paused all of its autonomous vehicle testing.

Now, as the company prepares to return its cars to the roads, new reports from Business Insider have revealed the internal debates and dysfunction leading up to March’s tragic accident.

• Read more:
• Self-driving cars could face a 'huge setback' after the tragic death of a woman struck by an autonomous Uber
• Uber removed the second backup driver from its self-driving cars ahead of the crash that killed an Arizona pedestrian
• 'We have screwed up': Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says in an all-hands meeting that the company deserves some fault after its self-driving car killed a pedestrian
• Uber insiders describe infighting and questionable decisions before its self-driving car killed a pedestrian

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

At least once a year, you get to thank your best friend for being your own personal saint for the other 364 days of the year.

They're the ones you rely upon, confide in, and plague with everything from menu choices to whether or not you should move across the country for this new job. So when the holidays roll around, it can be difficult to find something adequately thoughtful to give to that most important person — especially within the relatively affordable under-$100 range.

To make things easier for you, we put together a list of 39 unique, thoughtful gifts that your best friend will actually love to get — all for less than $100.

Looking for more gift ideas? Check out all of Insider Picks' holiday gift guides for 2018 here.

A high-tech towel that's better for their hair

Aquis Lisse Luxe Long Hair Towel, available on Sephora and Amazon, $35

Aquis' cult-favorite hair towels have inspired a slew of rave reviews online, including one from our own team of reviewers.

The towels are made from a proprietary fabric called Aquitex that's composed of ultra-fine fibers (finer than silk) that work to reduce the amount of friction the hair experiences while in its weakest state. It also prevents hygral fatigue — the stretching and swelling of wet hair that makes it vulnerable to frizz and damage — by cutting the hair's drying time by 50%.

Note: Currently unavailable on Amazon

A customized map of their favorite place on earth

Customized Grafomap, available on Grafomap, from $49

Memories tend to be tied to specific locations — places that start to signify whole periods of our lives: where you met your best friend, where they grew up, where they met their significant other, where they went to college. Grafomap lets you take that place and those memories with you through customized maps. You can adjust, pan, and zoom to specific spots; add or remove text; select the size, frame, and orientation; and opt for a specific color theme that matches their interior.  

Insider Picks senior editor Ellen Hoffman tried it, and the process of turning an ordinary map into a work of art only took five minutes. At $49 for a 18-inch by 24-inch print, it's affordable, too.

A small but powerful Bluetooth Bose speaker

Bose SoundLink Micro Bluetooth Speaker, available on Amazon, $79 (Originally $99) [You save $20]

The term "small but mighty" gets thrown around a lot, but this small Bose speaker is only a little larger than the phone used to control the music — and has a much bigger sound. It comes in three colors and has a six-hour battery life. 

• Kate Middleton just wore trousers to a royal outing.
• It's a total style switch-up for the duchess, who usually wears dresses or fitted pants.
• Trousers also happen to be a signature piece for Meghan Markle, so perhaps Middleton was inspired by her sister-in-law.

Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, was spotted getting off a plane in Cyprus with Prince William on Wednesday.

The duchess is usually known for her fabulous dresses (coatdresses in particular), but this time she was wearing a pair of trousers.

It may look familiar to fans of the royals because Meghan Markle is known for being a fan of smart suits, including breezy dress pants.

While Middleton has been known to wear jeans and other fitted, tapered pants every now and then (she's a particular fan of J Brand, per Marie Claire), this pants and blazer look was new. At least, new for Middleton.

It may look familiar to fans of the royals because Markle is known for being a fan of smart suits, including breezy dress pants.

Over the summer, Markle wore a white pair of flowy pants to Wimbledon, where she sat next to Middleton.

Since her marriage to Prince Harry, Markle has been seen out and about several times in flowy business chic pants.

Her suit was made by Altuzarra, according to Glamour.

Middleton style blog Kate's Closet identified the pants as the brand's Jigsaw High Waisted Sport Luxe Trousers in Navy. They retail for about $165.

While Middleton is no stranger to a blazer, these trousers were new territory for her during a royal outing. The Evening Standard reported that it was the first time she'd ever donned such a look.

Considering that trousers are one of Markle's go-to looks, it's quite possible she was the inspiration behind Middleton's style switch-up. So much for all those rumors that they don't get along.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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NOW WATCH: The science of why human breasts are so big

• The Chartwell Estate in Los Angeles is for sale for $245 million.
• That makes it the most expensive home for sale in the US.
• The historic California estate is 960 times more expensive than the typical American home, which costs $255,000.

A Los Angeles mansion is on the market for $245 million, making it the most expensive house for sale in the US — and about 960 times more expensive than the typical American home. 

The median US home price was $255,000 as of the second quarter of 2018, according to data compiled by ATTOM Data Solutions.

Sitting on nearly 11 acres, the main home of the Chartwell Estate was designed by Sumner Spaulding in 1930, according to the listing. In the 1980s, the mansion's interiors were renovated by designer Henri Samuel — but no recent photos have been released, keeping the inside of the home a mystery. 

The expansive grounds of Chartwell include manicured gardens, a 75-foot pool, and views that span from downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Ocean. There's also a car gallery that fits 40 vehicles, a five-bedroom guest house, a tennis court, and a 12,00-bottle wine cellar. Last year, the property was listed for $350 million.

Chartwell is listed with several agents: Jeff Hyland, Drew Fenton, and Gary Gold of Hilton & Hyland (a Christie's International Real Estate affiliate), along with Jade Mills, Joyce Rey, and Alexandra Allen of Coldwell Banker Global Luxury, and Drew Gitlin and Susan Gitlin of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services.

Here's a look at the sprawling estate's grounds.

SEE ALSO: The iconic mansion from ‘The Godfather’ is on the market for $135 million — here's a look inside the 29-bedroom Beverly Hills estate

The Chartwell Estate sits on 10.39 acres in Bel Air, Los Angeles, one of the most "prestigious residential communities in the city of Los Angeles," according to luxury real estate firm Hilton & Hyland.

Source: Hilton & Hyland

The 25,000-square-foot mansion has 11 bedrooms, 18 bathrooms, and a ballroom.

Source: Realtor

The home was built in the 1930s for civil engineer Lynn Atkinson and later purchased by late Univision billionaire A. Jerrold Perenchio.

Source: Los Angeles Times

• Google will soon be shutting down its smart messaging app, Google Allo, according to a report from 9to5Google.
• Back in April, Google product chief Anil Sabharwal confirmed that Google Allo had "not achieved the level of traction that we’d hoped for." 
• The company also announced in April that it's working on Google Chat, which would create a new universal standard for text messaging known as rich communication services (or RCS). 
• Allo will soon join the legacy of Google's failed messaging apps including Gchat, Google Buzz, and Google Wave. 

Another Google messaging app is about to bite the dust — this time, it's Google Allo. 

According to a report by 9to5Google, the search giant's "smart" messaging app — which came equipped with Google Assistant — will be shutting down soon. 

Google did not immediately reply to Business Insider's request for comment on the report. 

Read more:Google is surprisingly bad at building messaging apps, but there are 4 reasons its plans to replace texting may work

Allo was announced at the company's developer conference in May 2016, and after lackluster adoption, the company said in April 2018 it would be "pausing investment" on the app. 

"The product as a whole has not achieved the level of traction that we’d hoped for,” Anil Sabharwal, vice president of product at Google, told The Verge at the time. 

The decision to shutter Allo makes strategic sense, since the company announced — also in April 2018 — that it was working on an initiative known as Google Chat. Google Chat will be similar to SMS and Apple's iMessage, creating a new universal standard for text messaging for Android users known as rich communication services (or RCS). 

Still, it's hard to ignore the difficulties Google has had launching a consumer messaging app throughout the history of the company. Once Google confirms the shutdown of Allo, it will join Google Buzz, Google Wave, and Gchat — technically called Google Talk— in the chat app graveyard. 

SEE ALSO: The 29 best tech companies to work for in 2019, according to employees

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

• Internal Facebook emails released on Wednesday by British Parliament reveal the discussions leading to the "log scraping" practice that collected call and SMS text logs from Facebook users on Android devices.
• Facebook initially planned to make the practice an "opt-in" feature that gave users a choice, and even then it was deemed a "high risk" move.
• The company eventually found a way to implement the log scraping feature without user consent. 
• The practice became known to the public in March of this year.

Facebook's practise of collecting call and SMS logs from users on some Android devices — a practice known as log scraping — was discovered back in March, causing a privacy scandal among users who said they never agreed to let the social network scrape that data.

At the time, the company denied that it did this without permission, though it does provide tools to opt out.

Now, recent documents released by the British Parliament on Wednesday show the discussions that led to Facebook deciding to collect call and SMS text logs without explicitly asking for user consent.

According to the documents, which include internal email communication from 2015, Facebook leadership was aware that log scraping from Facebook users on the Android mobile platform was a "pretty high risk thing to do from a PR perspective."

Despite the "high risk" move, the company's growth team would "charge ahead and do it."

In the same email, Facebook had supposedly planned to make such log scraping an opt-in feature, which would require users to explicitly give the social network permission to grab those call and text logs. 

However, subsequent emails showed that Facebook looked for ways to sneak the feature through "without subjecting [Facebook users on Android] to an Android permissions dialog at all." Essentially, the feature would be enabled when a user updated the Facebook app via the Google Play Store, bypassing the normal process where an app asks the users to allow more security permissions.

Log scraping was designed to improve Facebook's "People You May Know" feature, which suggests potential contacts for you to befriend on Facebook, as well as contributing data towards certain Facebook features and algorithms. 

That might sound innocuous enough, but Facebook's "People You May Know" feature itself had come under fire in 2016, when Facebook wound up denying its original explanation of how the feature works. At first, the company said it uses location data, among other data, to suggest new contacts. Later, the company would do a U-turn and say that location data was not a point of data for the feature. 

Business Insider requested clarification on certain elements of the internal emails included in the documents, but spokespeople for Facebook have yet to reply.

• Read more about the leaked Facebook documents:
• Facebook documents show Mark Zuckerberg presided over a list of competitors and restricted their access to data
• Internal emails show Mark Zuckerberg saying what's good for the world is not necessarily what's good for Facebook
• Emails show Mark Zuckerberg personally approved Facebook's decision to cut off Vine's access to data
• Mark Zuckerberg defends the leaked Facebook documents he never wanted the world to see: The scrutiny is 'healthy,' but don't 'misrepresent our actions or motives'
• Facebook considered charging companies for access to user data, according to explosive internal documents — now Mark Zuckerberg says it was because of Apple's restrictions on iPhone apps
• Mark Zuckerberg once suggested that a Facebook user's data was worth ten cents a year

SEE ALSO: The secret Facebook documents have just been published by British Parliament

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NOW WATCH: NYU professor says Facebook should pay taxes for making us less productive

• Small changes to your daily routine can make you happy— or happier.
• Those changes include journaling, practicing gratitude, and even ordering takeout dinner.
• We collected a list of 10-minute tweaks you can make starting today, and explained why they're helpful.

You don't need to conduct a major life overhaul to be happy in 2019.

Small changes to your daily routine can go a long way. Think capturing the most beautiful photo of a flower garden on your way to work, or hugging a friend you haven't seen in a while.

Below, Business Insider has listed seven tweaks to your daily routine — all of which take 10 minutes or less — that can make you happier, healthier, and more productive. Read on for ideas you can implement starting today.

SEE ALSO: The age when people feel the most — and least — happy with life, in one chart

Jot down your thoughts and feelings

Author and investor Tim Ferris recommends jotting down your thoughts in a journal every morning.

Ferris uses "The Artist's Way Morning Pages Journal" by Julia Cameron, and emphasizes that the process of writing matters more than the final product. What's more, journaling allows you to get fears and worries out of your head so you can stop fixating on them.

Another journal option is the "Five Minute Journal," which comes with inspirational quotations and thought-provoking questions.

You can switch things up and journal in the evening if that's more convenient.

Chat with a fellow commuter

A 2014 study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, found that people are much happier during their commutes when they engage another passenger in conversation.

Still, most people surveyed said they expected their commute to be less positive and productive if they talked to a stranger.

If you can get over the fear that you'd be bothering someone else, you might be doing them — and yourself — a favor.

Take one beautiful photo on your way to work

That's a tip from Mo Gawdat, who is an executive at Alphabet's moonshot lab, X, and the author of "Solve for Happy." Every day during his walk to the office, Gawdat searches for something beautiful and snaps its photo.

The idea behind searching for one perfect photo is that it prevents Gawdat from thinking distressing thoughts, since he's fully engaged in searching for beauty. He calls it a form of meditation: Instead of focusing on his breath, or a spot on the wall in front of him, he's focusing on the world around him.

• China released a statement on Tuesday offering reassurances about the preliminary trade deal made between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
• While the statement was light on specifics, the Chinese official attempted to assuage skepticism about the deal that helped contribute to a major selloff in US stocks.
• The Chinese also made a concrete step toward addressing US concerns by releasing a new set of punishments for intellectual property theft.
• But confusion over the deal and ineffective communication by the Trump team has left many worried.

China is trying to catch up to President Donald Trump's trade deal promises as questions linger about the agreement he made with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit.

After two days of relative silence, a spokesperson from China's Ministry of Commerce offered a short statement on the preliminary agreement Tuesday night:

• The official confirmed for the first time that China had agreed to the 90-day "timetable and road map" to negotiate a further trade deal with the US.
• The official also said China is committed to implementing certain actions agreed to during the Trump-Xi dinner but did not provide specifics.

According to reports, China is planning to reopen up its markets to American soybeans and natural gas. US soybean farmers in particular have been hard hit by the trade fight, as China's tariffs on US product have choked off their largest market.

But it was still unclear whether the tariffs on those American goods would be eliminated, how much of each good China would buy, and the timetable for the purchases.

Additionally, the official made no mention of the Trump administration's issues with China's broader economic policies such as intellectual property theft, forced technology transfers, forced partnerships with Chinese firms, and more.

The statement from the Chinese comes after skepticism over the deal began to grow, which helped contribute to a sharp sell off in US stocks on Tuesday. Discrepancies between the US and Chinese accounts on the meeting, Trump's promise that China would lower auto tariffs going unconfirmed by the Chinese, and a lack of follow up from Beijing all cast doubts on the nature of the negotiations.

Read more:Trump calls himself 'Tariff Man' during raging tweetstorm on China trade war»

Trump touted the Chinese statement in a tweet on Wednesday, pointing to it as an example that China is serious about reaching a more detailed agreement.

"Very strong signals being sent by China once they returned home from their long trip, including stops, from Argentina," Trump said. "Not to sound naive or anything, but I believe President Xi meant every word of what he said at our long and hopefully historic meeting. ALL subjects discussed!"

A small concrete step

The most concrete step toward fulfilling the agreement appears to be an announcement from China's National Development and Reform Commission on punishments for violating intellectual property protections.

Chinese firms stealing US IP, either through counterfeiting or coercing companies to hand over trade secrets, was a major focus of the US Trade Representative's initial investigation into unfair trade practices. That investigation was the mechanism that allowed Trump to impose the tariffs on China.

Beijing said there would be 38 different punishments for violations of IP protections, including restrictions on government contract opportunities and access to loans.

Read more:Trump's newest pick to lead the trade fight against China reportedly took the Chinese by surprise and could be bad news for a deal»

Eswar Prasad, a professor of trade policy at Cornell University, told Business Insider that the announcement is beneficial both for China — which is trying to encourage more domestic innovation — and for the US-China trade tensions.

But Prasad warned that it depends on how strictly Beijing enforces the rules.

"The vigor and consistency with which these regulations are going to be enforced, especially in the case of state-owned enterprises and large private companies, remains the key open question," he said in an email. "China does not exactly have a stellar record of keeping to its commitments to other countries, especially in the context of industries that are part of the government’s plan to restructure the economy towards high-tech, high-value added sectors."

Derek Scissors, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute who previously advised the Trump team on China, held a dimmer view.

"Punishment for IP violations was the major issue 10 to 15 years ago," Scissors said in an email. "It has since been emphatically replaced by the Chinese government actively seeking to acquire IP — legally, through coercion, or through cyber-theft. So this addresses about 5%" of the complaint.

Questions remain

While China seems to be trying to catch up to the Trump administration's pronouncements about the trade deal, the Trump team is also struggling to gets its story straight, as well.

The most obvious instance of crossed wires came Monday when Larry Kudlow, Trump's top economic adviser, said the 90-day delay to tariff rate increases would start on January 1. The White House had to scramble to correct the timeline, saying the timeline actually began December 1.

But Kudlow's slip is indicative of a messy communications pattern from the Trump team that has only fueled confusion. Multiple members of the administration spent the early part of the week walking back Trump's surprise declaration that China would lower tariffs on US-made cars, a deal that Kudlow later admitted was not set in stone.

And Trump's dubbing of himself as a "Tariff Man," as well as general skepticism that the two sides can reach an agreement in such a short time means that the next 90 days of China-US talks will be incredibly volatile.

SEE ALSO: Trump's 'Tariff Man' tweet was an homage one of his favorite presidents who ran on a platform of tariffs

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NOW WATCH: Lindsey Graham once warned there would be 'holy hell to pay' if Trump fired Jeff Sessions

• The special counsel Robert Mueller sent a big message this week: cooperate with investigators and they'll show you leniency. Refuse, and they'll bite back.
• Mueller's office recommended little to no jail time for former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who they said provided "substantial assistance" to multiple ongoing investigations, including the Russia probe.
• Flynn's sentencing memo was heavily redacted, but one DOJ veteran said that "if you read around all that black ink, Mueller did say enough to let us know this: Flynn gave up the goods, and Mueller's work is far from over."
• President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, also pleaded guilty in the Russia probe last week and has shown a keen willingness to tell prosecutors everything he knows.
• Cohen's and Flynn's cases stand in stark contrast to that of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who prosecutors accused of breaching his plea deal and committing additional crimes after pleading guilty.

The special counsel Robert Mueller sent a clear message this week: cooperate with investigators and be forthcoming about what you know, and they'll show you leniency. Refuse, and they'll bite back.

Late Tuesday, prosecutors filed a highly anticipated sentencing memorandum in the case of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty last year to lying to the FBI.

In it, they recommended that Flynn get little to no jail time, citing the "substantial assistance" he provided to the special counsel's investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election, as well as other, separate ongoing investigations.

Flynn was among the first defendants to plead guilty in the Russia probe and has been cooperating with Mueller for over a year. His sentencing was delayed five times after prosecutors said they needed more information from the former national security adviser, who also served as a key adviser to President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

In their Tuesday filing, prosecutors emphasized that Flynn began cooperating early, that his assistance was critical in encouraging other witnesses to come forward and be candid, and that he helped the investigation in several ways.

'Flynn gave up the goods'

In typical fashion, Mueller's office revealed very little information, if any, about the specifics of what Flynn told them. Prosecutors also attached a largely-redacted 6-page addendum to the sentencing memo laying out how Flynn had cooperated in what appears to be a separate investigation not being conducted by Mueller's office.

In the original sentencing memo, prosecutors laid out the crux of what Flynn was charged with: his lies to the FBI about conversations he had during the transition period with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak about US sanctions on Russia.

But that's not the only thread of which Flynn may have had valuable information.

The former national security adviser was also not forthcoming about his involvement in three key areas: his now defunct lobbying firm's work for the Turkish government in 2016, his efforts with Russia and Saudi Arabia to develop nuclear reactors in the Middle East, a project that would have benefited from the US lifting sanctions on Russia, and payments he received from the state-owned media outlet Russia Today that he failed to disclose when he applied to renew his security clearance in January 2016.

Flynn was also a participant in a controversial meeting with Kislyak and senior adviser Jared Kushner during the transition period, in which Kushner reportedly discussed setting up a secret back channel between the Trump team and Moscow using Russian diplomatic facilities.

And he served as an adviser to the campaign when Kushner, then campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and Donald Trump Jr. met with two Russian lobbyists offering dirt on the Hillary Clinton campaign. The meeting, which took place at Trump Tower in June 2016, is a key investigative focus for the special counsel and congressional committees.

Flynn's sentencing memo said he provided "firsthand information" about contacts between Russian officials and members of the Trump transition team.

"We do not yet know everything about Flynn's cooperation," said Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor from the Southern District of New York, in an interview with INSIDER. "The heavy redactions in the filing hide nearly all the details that Mueller provided to the court."

Jens David Ohlin, a vice dean at Cornell Law School and an expert on criminal law, echoed that view.

"There is more to come, but we don't know what that is," told INSIDER. The substantial redactions in Flynn's sentencing memo indicate that the targets of other investigations he's cooperated with have not yet been charged, he said. "It could be a reference to an obstruction of justice investigation, possibly involving the president, but we don't really know. So this is a known unknown."

Honig emphasized, however, that "if you read around all that black ink, Mueller did say enough to let us know this: Flynn gave up the goods, and Mueller's work is far from over."

'Manafort tried to play both sides and got caught'

To be sure, Mueller recently secured a guilty plea from another crucial player: Trump's former longtime lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, who pleaded guilty last week to one count of lying to Congress in 2017.

Like Flynn, Cohen has signaled a willingness to tell prosecutors everything he knows in exchange for leniency. His first meeting with Mueller came in early August, before he pleaded guilty to separate charges in a Manhattan US attorney's office investigation into his and Trump's financial dealings before the 2016 election.

Cohen has voluntarily met with Mueller's team, New York prosecutors, and investigators in the New York attorney general's office several times since, his lawyers said.

They also dropped a number of bombshells about what Cohen knows in a sentencing memo they filed on his behalf last week. Cohen has asked for an early sentencing date so he can go about rebuilding his life, his lawyers said, but that does not signal that he doesn't want to help the investigation.

On the contrary, they said, "he expects to cooperate further."

Jeffrey Cramer, a longtime former federal prosecutor who spent 12 years at the Justice Department, told INSIDER the fact that Cohen and Flynn both pleaded guilty to lying to investigators and have cooperated extensively is a key indication that Mueller is gaining traction.

"When you see people pleading guilty or getting indicted on similar facts, that's when you start building a path forward as a prosecutor," he said. 

The Cohen and Flynn memos stand in stark contrast to what prosecutors said about Manafort, whom they accused last month of breaching his plea deal by lying to investigators after pleading guilty and allegedly committing more crimes. They were also reportedly furious when they learned that Manafort's lawyers were regularly in touch with Trump's lawyers about what Manafort was being questioned about.

Prosecutors are expected to lay out Manafort's alleged misdeeds in intricate detail in a court brief Friday. And Politico reported that the special counsel is weighing putting Manafort on trial again in the wake of his decision to breach his plea deal.

"Even if Manafort decides to cooperate now, there's no chance Mueller accepts it because he's basically a useless witness," Cramer said. "Cohen fell on his sword and has shown that he's a valuable cooperator. Manafort tried to play both sides and he got caught."

Trump, for his part, has defended Manafort extensively in recent days and praised his refusal to cooperate with Mueller. And experts say a presidential pardon may be Manafort's last hope after his plea deal fell through.

"He's like a guy at the casino table who's lost all his money at craps," Cramer said. "And now he heads to the ATM to try to turn things around. Donald Trump is basically the ATM."

Grace Panetta contributed reporting.

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NOW WATCH: Lindsey Graham once warned there would be 'holy hell to pay' if Trump fired Jeff Sessions

• The XFL is set to return in 2020, with eight teams playing spring football under Vince McMahon's business stewardship.
• On Wednesday, the eight cities that would host teams were announced, including New York, Los Angeles, and Tampa.
• McMahon isn't the only one hoping to start a spring football league, with the American Alliance of Football set to kick off its inaugural season in 2019.

In January, WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon announced that he would be reviving the XFL.

On Wednesday, the eight cities getting teams were announced, as well as the stadiums that would host them.

While the original iteration of the XFL was a monumental failure, running for just one season in 2001 and losing WWE and NBC millions in the process, McMahon promised a new vision for the league this time around, selling the league as "football reimagined."

McMahon won't be without competition — a competing spring football league, the Alliance of American Football, is set to start play in 2019. The league was created by Charlie Ebersol, who worked with McMahon extensively while directing the "30 for 30" documentary "This is the XFL" for ESPN.

While the AAF will get a headstart on the XFL, McMahon certainly has an advantage when it comes to brand recognition, and with the cities that will play host to XFL teams now public, he can begin campaigning for the league to help ensure it doesn't meet the same brief end it did in its first run.

Take a look below at the cities that will have XFL teams come 2020 and the stadiums that will be hosting them.

New York City — MetLife Stadium

Capacity: 82,500

Year opened: 2010

Current residents: New York Giants, New York Jets

Washington D.C. — Audi Stadium

Capacity: 20,000

Year opened: 2018

Current residents: D.C. United

Los Angeles — StubHub Center

Capacity: 27,000

Year opened: 2003

Current residents: LA Galaxy, Los Angeles Chargers

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

• Giving gifts is wonderful and wrapping them up in lovely paper is half the fun, so we've rounded up the best wrapping paper and supplies you can buy online.

• We think Target has the best selection of wrapping paper for the most reasonable price, but we also love the gift wrap from the Paper Source, Hallmark, The Container Store, World Market, and Brown Kraft Paper.

Gift giving takes place throughout the entire year to mark holidays and special occasions alike. To many people, one of the best parts of buying gifts is wrapping them up in gorgeous wrapping paper with ribbons, bows, and fancy tags.

Gift wrap adds a layer of beauty and anticipation to every gift, and let's face it, tearing through the paper to find the treasure inside is simply delightful.

We love wrapping gifts as much as we love giving them, so we've rounded up the best wrapping paper and wrapping supplies you can buy.

Whether you want wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, or the accessories that go on top of wrapping paper, we have a pick for you. We've also included the tape and scissors you'll need to wrap all those presents.

Also, if you're doing holiday gift shopping, you can check out all of our 2018 gift guides on Insider Picks.

Here is the best wrapping paper and wrapping supplies:

• Best wrapping paper overall: Target
• Best high-end wrapping paper: Paper Source
• Best affordable wrapping paper bundles: Hallmark
• Best classy wrapping paper: The Container Store
• Best off-beat wrapping paper: World Market
• Best recycled wrapping paper: Brown Kraft Paper
• Best scissors: Fiskars Scissors
• Best utility knife:  Stanley Classic Utility Knife
• Best tape for wrapping gifts: Scotch Magic Tape

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks. Also, if you're doing holiday gift shopping, you can check out all of our 2018 gift guides on Insider Picks.

The best wrapping paper overall

Why you'll love it: Target has tons of wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, tags, and other wrapping supplies in fun patterns for a great price.

If you want a huge selection of wrapping paper and wrapping supplies to choose from, check out Target. No matter what time of year you need to wrap a gift, Target has a wrapping paper for your needs. Its holiday wrapping shop is incredible, too. You can find just about any pattern you want from fun, silly patterns to classic designs and gift wrap for kids.

You can refine results on Target's website by holiday and occasion, as well as brand to quickly find the best options for your needs. You can even get personalized wrapping paper from Wondershop.

Well-known brands like Papyrus, Minted, American Greetings, Hallmark, and so on sell wrapping paper and supplies at Target, too. 

In addition to wrapping paper, you'll find tons of gift bags, gift boxes, tags, bows, ribbons, and other wrapping supplies. 

Pros: Huge selection, fun patterns, classic designs, wrapping supplies of all kinds, options for other holidays and events

Cons: Not all are eco-friendly 

Buy holiday wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, and supplies at Target

Buy wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, tags, and more at Target

The best high-end wrapping paper

Why you'll love it: Paper Source has everything you need to wrap a gift, including gorgeous wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, tissue paper, and cards galore.

If you care about the presentation of your gifts, you'll love the Paper Source's wide selection of artful wrapping paper and wrapping supplies. You can find everything from classic holiday prints and fun playful designs, to gift wrap that will work for any season.

The company also makes gift boxes and gift bags, so if you hate wrapping presents, you don't actually have to wrap them at all. You'll also find lovely tissue paper, cards, and other decorating supplies like tags, bows, and ribbons.

You don't have to worry about the paper ripping mid-wrap or the tissue paper disintegrating as you remove it from the package — Everything from Paper Source is of the highest quality.

If you're worried about the environment and you care where your gift wrap comes from, you can feel pretty good about shopping at Paper Source. The company uses 30% recycled paper in its solid color papers, partners with sustainable forestry mills, uses recycled materials to make many of its cards, avoids chlorine, recycles ink and all paper scraps, and other eco-friendly practices.

The prices are expensive, though. Wrapping paper ranges in price from $2 to $25, and the most expensive paper is hand painted in the US, so it's well worth the price. The gift wrap costs about $10, but you only get two sheets.

Gift boxes cost anywhere from $2 to $15 and they come in tons of fun colors and patterns. Gift bags start at $2 and go up to $16. The tissue paper, ribbons, bows, and tags all cost reasonable prices, though.

Pros: Great selection of designs; gift wrap, bags, boxes, tags, ribbons, etc. are all sold here; well made; eco-friendly practices

Cons: Expensive

Buy gift wrap, gift bags, gift boxes, cards, and more at Paper Source

The best affordable wrapping paper bundles

Why you'll love it: Hallmark is a famous card company that makes affordable wrapping paper bundles that come with everything you need to wrap a gift, including the paper, tags, ribbons, gift bags, and more.

If you have a lot of gifts to wrap, you may not want to spend a lot of money on expensive wrapping paper. Hallmark has very affordable gift wrap bundles that come with everything you need to wrap presents, including the wrapping paper, gift bags, and tags. You can also get the piece separately for good prices.

Hallmark's gift wrap comes in tons of colors, patterns, and styles. You can find fun, festive snowmen beside classic, stately stripes and solid colors. Snoopy and other characters also pop up on certain gift bags in Hallmark's collection.

Single rolls of wrapping paper cost $4 to $10, and a bundle with 3 rolls of wrapping paper, 10 gift bags, and 32 gift tag stickers costs just $20 to $30. The bundle is a fantastic deal for people on a budget with a great deal of wrapping ahead of them.

If you're worried that affordable prices also means bad environmental practices, don't be — Hallmark says its "gifting supplies are made with paper from well-managed forests," and "wrapping paper is made in the USA with European paper." It may not be recycled paper, but at least it comes from a relatively responsible source.

Pros: Affordable, bundles are a great deal, fun prints, classic designs, good variety, well made, accessories available

Cons: Not as eco-friendly as some options

Buy Hallmark wrapping paper, gift bags, gift boxes, tags, and other bundles on Amazon

• On Instagram, Kat Von D shared a video of her infant son, Leafar, breastfeeding.
• In the caption, she revealed that she fed him donor breast milk just after he was born.
• She said a pediatrician suggested it because Leafar's blood sugar was low and her milk "hadn't come in yet."
• Experts say donor milk can be beneficial for babies in some situations. 
• They recommend getting it from milk banks that perform safety checks and donor screening. 

In a new Instagram post, tattoo artist and makeup entrepreneur Kat Von D revealed that she fed her son breast milk donated by a stranger after she experienced early breastfeeding difficulties. 

Von D, who welcomed a son named Leafar with husband Rafael Reyes last month, shared details about the experience in an Instagram post on Wednesday, People reported. 

"During the first two days of Leafar's life, his blood sugar count had been low, and as much as I had committed myself to strictly breastfeed, my milk hadn't come in yet," she captioned a video of her son breastfeeding. "The pediatrician suggested asking around to see if any friends might have a bit of extra milk they could donate — and if not, I'd have to consider supplementing with formula — something we personally did not want to do."

Von D wrote that she called her midwife to see if she knew anyone who might be a willing donor. The midwife connected her with Morgan Campbell, a mother and postpartum doula based in Los Angeles tagged in Von D's Instagram caption, who agreed.

"Without even knowing me, and without question, [she] stepped up and donated a few ounces to us in the middle of the night," Von D added in the caption. "Needless to say, Leafar's levels boosted and we are now happily breastfeeding at home ... This is true community. True sisterhood. True kindness. And I can't wait to pay it forward one day soon."

Campbell responded in an Instagram post of her own.

"Wow — I'm speechless @thekatvond. We are so over the moon for you," she wrote. "I donate my breastmilk because my body has given me this gift and I believe as a mother, it's important to share it with those who need it."

Donated milk can "can save babies' lives" in some situations

In recommendations published last year, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) said that, while a mother's own milk is always preferred, donor human milk "can be an effective alternative when maternal milk isn't available or falls short of the infant's needs."Donated breast milk can be especially beneficial for "high-risk" infants, like those born at a very low birth weight, the organization noted.

The World Health Organization also recommends that infants with a low birth weight who cannot be fed their own mother's milk should be fed donor milk, as long as "safe and affordable" milk-banking facilities are available.

That's an important caveat.

Breast milk from unscreened donors may expose a baby to infectious diseases or prescription drugs that are transmitted via milk, according to the US Food and Drug Administration. Human milk that hasn't been stored properly could also become contaminated and unsafe to consume, just like regular dairy milk. 

This is why obtaining human milk directly from individuals or via the internet could be risky, according to the FDA and the AAP. 

"The use of donor human milk can save babies' lives, but we need to make sure it is provided safely," pediatrician Dr. Steven Abrams, MD, said in a statement about the AAP recommendations.

Experts recommend using milk banks that perform safety checks and screen donors

Donor milk banks that screen donors for infectious diseases and properly store and pasteurize human milk "represent a safe and effective approach" for getting donated breast milk to babies who need it, the AAP said in its recommendations. In the US, safe supplies of donor human milk remain limited, and donor milk may be costly as a result, but the number of milk banks is increasing, the paper added. 

"The way to provide milk safely is through established milk banks that perform adequate safety checks and screening," Abrams said in the AAP statement. "Using milk from informal or online sources is simply too large a risk for infants, who could be exposed to bacteria and viruses like cytomegalovirus, hepatitis viruses, and HIV."

The AAP also called for policies that will "increase and expand" access to safe donated milk. 

It's not clear from the Von D's Instagram post whether the donation she received included any specific safety measures. Campbell and representatives for Von D's tattoo business and beauty brand did not immediately respond to INSIDER's requests for comment. 

Ultimately, different babies have different nutritional needs, and the choice to feed a baby donated human milk should be made in consultation with the baby's healthcare provider, according to the FDA.

To find out if there is a human milk bank near you, the FDA suggests contacting your state health department or checking with the Human Milk Banking Association of North America, a voluntary professional association for milk banks.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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• A woman paused during a 106-mile ultra-marathon to breastfeed her 3-month-old son
• 13 things I wish I knew about breastfeeding before I had a baby

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