• The US government shutdown threatens payments of subsidies to American farmers, according to an agricultural economist.
• University of Illinois academic Scott Irwin said the shutdown could hamper aid payments created to protect them from President Trump's trade war.
• "If you're talking about cash in the farmer's pocket, the longer this goes on, the longer it's going to delay that program, which is really just getting ramped up," Irwin told Reuters.
• The shutdown is also likely to affect the release of agricultural data, which would show whether Chinese purchases of US crops have resumed.

The continuing US federal government shutdown could have substantial negative consequences for American farmers, many of whom are already feeling the squeeze from the ongoing trade conflict between the US and China.

President Donald Trump's sudden reversal on a bipartisan funding extension before Christmas forced a sizeable portion — but not all — of the government to shut down last Saturday. Nine days later, no solution has been found.

According to University of Illinois agricultural economist Scott Irwin, that could be bad news for farmers hoping to receive subsidies from the federal government, which were first introduced with the aim of reducing the negative impacts of the tariffs placed on agricultural goods being sent from the US to China.

Irwin told Reuters this week that the partial shutdown of the government may lead to delays in aid payments to American farmers.

"If you're talking about cash in the farmer's pocket, the longer this goes on, the longer it's going to delay that program, which is really just getting ramped up," Irwin told Reuters.

Read more: The government shutdown is now in day 8 — here's how long previous government shutdowns have lasted

In August, the administration launched a $4.7 billion initial investment plan aimed at helping those farming corn, cotton, dairy, hog, sorghum, soybean, and wheat. It could expand to as much as $12 billion. 

The trade war has already had a clear negative impact on many American farmers who rely heavily on exports to China to make money.

In November it was reported that farmers in some US states are being forced into plowing their crops under— effectively burying them in their fields — because there is not enough room in storage facilities, and they can't sell their products thanks to Chinese tariffs.

All grain depots and silos are almost full, meaning farmers have to figure out their own storage or let the crops rot.

After the summit between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, it was agreed that China would resume purchases of some US agricultural products, including soybeans, but the continuing government shutdown is making it difficult to know whether this is happening.

Reuters reported on Friday evening that the US Department of Agriculture has said it is unlikely to publish its World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report and reports by its National Agricultural Statistics Service if the shutdown continues.

The data is supposed to be released on January 11, and would likely make clear whether China is once again purchasing US crops.

SEE ALSO: Trump's government shutdown has traders in the dark about a key issue in the US-China trade war

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NOW WATCH: The equity chief at $6.3 trillion BlackRock weighs in on the trade war, a possible recession, and offers her best investing advice for a tricky 2019 landscape

• A company hired by the government to charter ferries in the event of a no-deal Brexit owns no ships, has never operated a ferry service, a local UK councillor says.
• Seaborne Freight was hired to run ferry services between Ramsgate, UK and Ostend, Belgium if the UK leaves the EU without a deal in March 2019 in a bid to avoid chaos and gridlock at Dover, Britain's busiest port.
• A Ramsgate councillor said: ''It has no ships and no trading history so how can due diligence be done?''

LONDON -- A company hired by the government to charter ferries in the event of a no-deal Brexit owns no ships, has never operated a ferry service, and has no plans to do so until shortly after Britain leaves the EU.

Seaborne Freight was awarded a £13.8 million contract to operate ferries carrying goods between Ramsgate, UK, and Ostend, Belgium if the UK leaves with no deal in March next year. But a local councillor questioned why the contract had been awarded to a ''shell company'' with no trading history and no experience in running ferry services.

Paul Messenger, Conservative county councillor for Ramsgate, told the BBC: ''It has no ships and no trading history so how can due diligence be done?''

''Why choose a company that never moved a single truck in their entire history and give them £14 million? I don’t understand the logic of that.''

Messenger said he did not believe it was possible to set up a new ferry service between Ramsgate and Ostend by March, when the UK is scheduled to leave the EU. He also said the narrow berths for ships mean very few commercial vessels are usable at Ramsgate, and most of them are already in use.

Mr Messenger said he didn't believe that it was possible to set up a new ferry service between Ramsgate and Ostend by 29 March - the date when the UK is due to leave the European Union.

The contract is one of three agreements worth over £100 million which were signed by the government in a bid to avoid chaos and gridlock at Dover, Britain's busiest port. Leaving the EU without an agreement would mean the UK crashed out of the customs union, a move which would require a significant increase in border checks and which experts say would cause miles-long queues.

Seaborne was established in 2016 and said in a statement to the BBC that its business had been ''financed by the shareholders'' during a development phase which involved ''locating suitable vessels, making arrangements with the ports of Ostend and Ramsgate, building the infrastructure – such as bunkering – as well as crewing the ferries once they start operating.''

The government plans to ease some potential pressure by increasing ferry passage from other ports, including Ramsgate, which has not had a cross-Channel service to France since 2013.

The Department for Transport, which awarded the contract, told the BBC: ''This contract was awarded in the full knowledge that Seaborne Freight is a new shipping provider, and that the extra capacity and vessels would be provided as part of its first services. As with all contracts, we carefully vetted the company’s commercial, technical and financial position in detail before making the award.''

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NOW WATCH: Anthony Scaramucci claims Trump isn't a nationalist: 'He likes saying that because it irks these intellectual elitists'

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

1. Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel and wife Miranda Kerr only allow their seven-year-old child to have 1.5 hours of screen time per week. In an interview with the Financial Times, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel also said that he wasn't allowed to watch TV while growing up.
2. China has ended its freeze on licensing video games. China has approved 80 new video game titles after a nine-month freeze.
3. Documentary filmmaker Louis Theroux was among those targeted by a Twitter hack perpetrated by a security company to expose a security flaw. British cybersecurity company Insinia was able to post tweets on other people's accounts, The Guardian reports.
4. A startup may have found a way to build longer lasting, less expensive lithium batteries for electric cars. 24M launched in 2010, and in an interview last week, its chief executive said it's working to deliver its first products by 2020, according to the MIT Tech Report.
5. A clinic is using a $3 million grant from the US Department of Defense to develop a treatment for PTSD using VR. The clinic specialises in treating emergency services workers and veterans.
6. Players who have been barred for cheating in videogame "Fallout 76" are being told to write an essay to reclaim their account. Players accused of cheating by Bethesda, the game's developer, received an email from the company saying that to appeal their ban, they would need to write an essay explaining why "cheat software" is detrimental to online games.
7. A judge dismissed a suit against Google over the use of its facial recognition software. A woman filed the suit in 2016 and accused Google of taking her biometric data without informed consent.
8. Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook is on the right track in fixing its problems, and people are watching 50 million fewer hours of viral videos a day. Zuckerberg wrote in a post on Friday that he's "proud of the progress we've made."
9. Instagram accidentally released an update last week that removed scrolling and replaced it with a horizontal feed, resulting in a backlash from users. Instagram said it didn't mean to roll the update out as widely as it did, and that it was only intended as "a very small test."
10. Amazon's Alexa suffered outages on Christmas Day in Europe as people around the world started using their new Echos. The connection issues lasted a few hours but were ultimately corrected by Amazon.

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: NASA sent an $850 million hammer to Mars and it could uncover clues to an outstanding mystery in our solar system

• Scientists are constantly researching food and nutrition.
• It feels like there's more information every week about what we should and should not eat.
• Here's a round-up of everything we learned in 2018.

There's been a lot of research into what we should and should not be eating, drinking, and consuming this year. With such a vast amount of information being passed around, it's hard to keep up with the latest advice. 

So, INSIDER has created a list of some of the most recent and important research about food, drink, vitamins, and diets that you should be following.

Ultimately, not a lot has changed from the widely accepted advice — diets rich in vegetables, fruit, protein, and with not too many processed foods and refined carbs are good. A broad diet is best, and everything should be eaten in moderation. 

Scroll down to see the latest research behind the advice in 2018.

Read more: 11 foods with a bad reputation that you can feel good about eating — including coffee, butter, and cheese

Do drink: milk

A study in September found that milk is good for the body, despite having many naysayers. Results showed that people who had 3.2 daily servings of low-fat dairy products had a lower mortality rate than those who had none, and also had a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke specifically

Some people in the world are lactose-intolerant because they don't have the necessary enzyme to break down the components of dairy. But for everyone else, there isn't much evidence to suggest you should avoid milk to be healthy.

Do drink: alcohol (in moderation)

A study published in the summer found there may be some evidence that people who drink in moderation outlive tee-totalers. Results showed that people who never drink alcohol had a 7% higher chance of dying or getting cancer than people who drank up to three bottles of beer or glasses of wine per week.

Another study this year found that drinking in moderation could also increase male fertility, as men who drank four to seven units a week had higher sperm counts and semen volume.

However, a global study in August concluded that no amount of alcohol is safe, and the risks far outweigh any benefits.

Do eat: nuts

A study from July found eating two handfuls of nuts a day could improve men's sperm counts. The research came after an alarming study found that men's sperm counts in the western world have been dropping since 1973.

This is a preview of The Reverse Logistics Report from Business Insider Intelligence. Current subscribers can read the report here.

With e-commerce becoming a lucrative shopping channel, retailers and their logistics partners have been primarily focused on how to quickly move goods through the supply chain and into the hands of consumers — a process commonly referred to as forward logistics. However, the opportunities presented by the growing popularity of e-commerce also come with a challenging, multibillion-dollar downside: returns.

Return rates for e-commerce purchases are between 25% and 30%, compared with just 9% for in-store purchases. Turning reverse logistics — the process of returning goods from end users back to their origins to either recapture value or properly dispose of material — into a costly and high-stakes matter for retailers.

Not only are retailers experiencing more returns as a result of e-commerce growth, but consumer expectations also demand that retailers provide a seamless process. In fact, 92% of consumers agree that they are more likely to shop at a store again if it offers a hassle-free return policy (e.g. free return shipping labels). Some consumers even place large orders with the intention of returning certain items. 

And e-commerce sales are only going up from here, exacerbating the issue and making retailers' need for help more dire. However, for logistics firms that can offer cost-effective reverse logistics solutions, this has opened up a significant opportunity to capture a share of rapidly growing e-commerce logistics costs in the US, which hit $117 billion last year, according to Armstrong & Associates, Inc. estimates. 

InThe Reverse Logistics Report, Business Insider Intelligence examines what makes reverse logistics so much more challenging than forward logistics, explores the trends that have driven retailers to finally improve the way in which returns move through their supply chains, and highlights how logistics firms can act to win over retailers' return dollars.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• E-commerce is now a core shopping channel for retailers, and it's still growing. US e-commerce sales are set to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14% between 2018 and 2023, surpassing $1 trillion in sales, according to Business Insider Intelligence estimates.
• Booming e-commerce sales have driven product returns through the roof. Business Insider Intelligence estimates that US e-commerce returns will increase at a CAGR of 19% between 2018 and 2023, surpassing $300 million dollars. 
• Consumers have high expectations about how returns are handled, and retailers are struggling to find cost-effective ways to meet their demands. Sixty-four percent of shoppers stated they would be hesitant to shop at a retailer ever again if they found issues with the returns process. And retailers don't have the expertise to effectively keep up with how demanding consumers are about returns — 44% of retailers said their margins were negatively impacted by handling and packaging returns, for example.
• Logistics firms are well positioned to solve — and profit from — returns. These companies can take advantage of their scale and expertise to solve pain points retailers commonly experience as goods move through the reverse supply chain. 
• Reverse logistics solutions themselves present a lucrative opportunity — but they're also appealing in the potential inroads they offer to supply chain management. The global third-party logistics market is estimated to be valued at $865 billion in 2018, according to Bekryl. 

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• Italy's parliament passed a budget with less than 48 hours to spare, closing a turbulent chapter for the country.
• Earlier in December, after weeks of wrangling, Rome and the European Union agreed an uneasy compromise on the budget.
• A previous Italian government had agreed with the EU not to increase its deficit above 1.8% of GDP.
• Its populist successor wanted to bust the limit, and run a deficit as high as 2.4%.
• In the end, Italy settled for the compromise figure of 2.04%, reducing spending by almost $7 billion to meet the lower threshold.
• Italian stocks have bounced on the news, with the country's FTSE MIB around 1.5% on the last day of 2018.

Italy's parliament approved the country's uneasy compromise budget with the European Union on Saturday, finally ending several months of uncertainty over its fiscal future.

With a year end deadline to pass the budget in the country's parliament, Italy passed the legislation with just over 48 hours to spare.

The dispute centred on how large a deficit the Italian government proposed to run.

A previous government had agreed with the EU to keep the deficit below 1.8% of Italy's GDP.

Italy's new, populist government had proposed to increase the deficit to 2.4% of GDP.

On December 19, Brussels and Rome agreed a compromise budget after a long period of negotiations, to allow a deficit of 2.04%, some €6 billion ($6.7 billion) less than the first proposal.

Lawmakers in the country's lower house approved this budget by 313 votes to 70 on Saturday evening.

"I hope this will be the last budget being approved after long and complicated negotiations with Brussels," Matteo Salvini, Italy's deputy prime minister and leader of the Lega Nord said in an interview with the Corriere della Sera newspaper on Monday.

Read more: A star economist says these 30 risks will define markets in 2019 — and Italy is one of them

The agreement will provide the "basis for balanced budgetary and economic policies in Italy," Valdis Dombrovskis, the EU's most senior official dealing with the euro and financial systems, said at the time.

Italy, however, "urgently needs to restore confidence in its economy to ease financial conditions and support investment," he added, describing the solution as "not ideal."

The agreement means Italy will no longer be subject to the so-called Excessive Deficit Procedure, which has the power to fine countries within the eurozone that break the bloc's spending rules. Italy's entry into the EDP was set to be announced on the day the budget was initially agreed.

Markets welcomed the news of the budget passing through the Italian parliament, with Italy's benchmark share index, the FTSE MIB, up 1.44% after around an hour of trading on New Year's Eve.

SEE ALSO: An economist who predicted Trump's rise as early as 2011 explains how he's changing the face of American capitalism forever

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NOW WATCH: The equity chief at $6.3 trillion BlackRock weighs in on the trade war, a possible recession, and offers her best investing advice for a tricky 2019 landscape

• President Donald Trump fired off a series of tweets on Monday morning, lambasting critics.
• He appeared to be responding to critiques of his decision to withdraw US troops from Syria.
• Trump has backed away from his claim that the terrorist group ISIS had been defeated, and whether and when US troops actually pull out is unclear.

In a flurry of tweets early on New Year's Eve, President Donald Trump lashed out at criticism of his recent decision to withdraw troops from campaign against the terrorist group ISIS in Syria.

"If anybody but Donald Trump did what I did in Syria, which was an ISIS loaded mess when I became President, they would be a national hero. ISIS is mostly gone, we're slowly sending our troops back home to be with their families, while at the same time fighting ISIS remnants," Trump said in one tweet, again softening his earlier claim that the group had been defeated.

Read more:Trump says he has 'no plans at all' to withdraw US troops from Iraq during his first visit to troops in a combat zone

"I campaigned on getting out of Syria and other places. Now when I start getting out the Fake News Media, or some failed Generals who were unable to do the job before I arrived, like to complain about me & my tactics, which are working. Just doing what I said I was going to do!" he tweeted.

He added in another tweet, "Except the results are FAR BETTER than I ever said they were going to be! I campaigned against the NEVER ENDING WARS, remember!"

Trump's reference to "failed Generals" appears to be a response to comments by Stanley McChrystal, a 34-year Army veteran and retired general. (Other former US generals have criticized Trump in recent days; outgoing White House chief of staff and retired Marine Gen. John Kelly differed with Trump on some issues in an interview this weekend.)

In an interview Sunday with ABC, McChrystal said he didn't think Trump "tells the truth" and, when asked if he thought Trump was immoral, said, "I think he is."

McChrystal was head of Joint Special Operations Command from 2003 to 2008, overseeing the effort to kill Al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

Read more:What Stanley McChrystal learned from Al Qaeda's leader in Iraq before leading the operation to kill him

McChrystal took command of forces in Afghanistan in summer 2009 but was relieved in mid-2010 after some of his staff members were quoted disparaging senior US civilian officials in a Rolling Stone story. (McChrystal was also criticized for his handling of the death of Pat Tillman, an NFL player who became an Army Ranger and was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004.)

In the ABC interview, McChrystal was asked about the withdrawal of some 2,000 US troops from Syria, where they have been assisting partner forces fighting ISIS.

Describing a renewed Russian presence and increased Iranian presence in the region, McChrystal said a US pull-out would likely lead to more instability, "and of course it'll be much more difficult for the United States to try to push events in any direction."

"There's an argument that says we just pull up our stuff, go home, let the region run itself," McChrystal added. "That has not done well for the last 50 or 60 years."

Read more:Jim Mattis' brother says he had 'no anger' about being forced out by Trump

"I don't believe ISIS is defeated," he said when asked about the group.

"I think ISIS is as much an idea as it is a number of ISIS fighters. There's a lot of intelligence that says there are actually more ISIS fighters around the world now than there were a couple of years ago," he said.

That lingering presence didn't mean the US and its partners hadn't done well against the group in Iraq and Syria, he added, but "ISIS is an idea, and as long as the fertile ground exists — the causes that cause people to flock to a movement as extreme as ISIS exists — you're going to have it flare back up again."

Trump says US can't be 'policeman' of the world

Trump's decision to withdraw US troops from Syria was announced suddenly on December 19, and he was widely criticized for the move.

Even those opposed to a protracted US presence in Syria or who were supportive US withdrawal took issue with the apparent haste of the decision, which reportedly came as a surprise for US officials and allies.

Read more:Trump says 'the generals' asked for more time in Syria, but he said 'Nope' because 'We've knocked them silly'

Trump has said the US cannot be the "policeman" of the world and that the presence in Syria was not meant to be "open-ended." During a surprise trip to Iraq the day after Christmas, Trump said "the generals" had asked him for more time in Syria and that he told them "Nope" because "We've knocked them silly."

The decision also appeared to be the final straw for Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who announced his resignation days later.

What ultimately happens with US personnel in Syria remains unclear, however. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday he had met with Trump and characterized the withdrawal as being "in a pause situation."

• Read more:
• The Navy's top officer in Europe says the US' new strategy has already duped the Russians
• Here's how Donald Trump took shots at NATO in 2018 — and it spurred Jim Mattis to quit in protest
• 'We can do better': The Navy's newest fleet commander says US ships and sailors got 'beat up' during NATO's biggest exercise since the Cold War
• The US Army is gearing up for a potential fight with Russia, and it just put a crucial defensive weapon back in Europe permanently

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NOW WATCH: Why Russia is so involved in the Syrian Civil War

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NOW WATCH: Some animal fathers are impressive parents, like seahorse dads who give birth to 2,000 babies

• Some truck drivers have been enjoying pay raises recently.
• Some states are more lucrative than others for truckers.
• Truck driver salary is highest in Alaska, where they earned a median wage of $56,250 last year. 

Truck driver salaries have been on the up and up for some truckers in 2018. 

Nearly 50% of all truckers in the National Transportation Institute's quarterly survey on trucker pay received salary bumps in 2018, according to Gordon Klemp, principal of the National Transportation Institute. Last year, only 11% did.

America's nearly 1.8 million tractor-trailer truck drivers earned a median income of $44,500 nationwide in 2017, according to the Bureau of Labr Statistics. 

Truck driver salary is highest in Alaska, where they earned a median of $56,250 last year. In comparison, in West Virginia, truckers earned a median of $38,580 — the lowest nationwide.

Business Insider gathered the median income in each state for long-haul truck drivers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and ranked them in ascending order. Take a look below to see how well your state pays its truck drivers.

SEE ALSO: Truck drivers' salaries are experiencing an 'unprecedented' jump, but it's not enough to end the driver shortage that's making everything more expensive

West Virginia: $38,580

Number of long-haul truckers: 11,010

Alabama: $40,080

Number of long-haul truckers:30,720

Arkansas: $40,620

Number of long-haul truckers:32,640

• Philadelphia Eagles backup quarterback Nick Foles headed to the locker room early Sunday afternoon after sustaining a chest injury during the Eagles' first drive of the fourth quarter.
• With a playoff game against the Chicago Bears looming and starting quarterback Carson Wentz likely out for the remainder of the season with a fractured back, the Eagles opted to send third-string quarterback Nate Sudfeld into the game and kept Foles sidelined for the rest of the contest.
• Foles had a $1 million incentive in his recently renegotiated contract if Philadelphia reached the postseason and he took 33% of the team's snaps on the season.
• Thanks to the last-minute injury, Foles came up four snaps — or 1% — short of the 33% benchmark.

Nick Foles did everything right against the Washington Redskins Sunday afternoon, but he still came up $1 million short.

The backup quarterback who famously led the Eagles to a Super Bowl victory last season secured Philadelphia's spot in this year's playoffs thanks to a 24-0 win over the Redskins, but he headed to the locker room early after sustaining a chest injury during the Eagles' first drive of the fourth quarter.

Still, with a playoff game against the Chicago Bears looming and starting quarterback Carson Wentz likely out for the remainder of the season with a fractured back, the Eagles opted to send third-string quarterback Nate Sudfeld into the game on the following drive and kept him under center for the remainder of the contest.

Foles, meanwhile, had a $1 million incentive in his recently renegotiated contract that was contingent on his playing through the final two drives of the game:

As NFL Insider for ESPN Adam Schefter pointed out on Twitter, Foles played 32% of Philadelphia's snaps on the season, putting him a grueling 1% short of the necessary mark.

It's worth noting that the Eagles could still decide to give Foles the bonus despite his four snap deficit. New York Yankees ace CC Sabathia came two innings short of a $500,000 bonus when he intentionally hit a batter and got ejected from his final game of this past season. The team still decided to award the $500,000 prize to Sabathia come December.

Read more:CC Sabathia was 2 innings away from a $500,000 bonus when he got ejected on what could be the last pitch of his Yankees career

Assuming he overcomes the rib injury that sent him to the locker room Sunday, Foles has plenty more incentives to fulfill heading into the playoffs. The 29-year-old can earn $500,000 for taking 50% of the snaps in a playoff game, and that incentive bumps up to $1 million if Philadelphia comes away with a win.

Foles will look to recover quickly for the sake of both Eagles fans everywhere and his wallet.

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NOW WATCH: 6 airline industry secrets that will help you fly like a pro this holiday season

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• The Casper adjustable bed frame works with all foam mattresses. I don't have a Casper mattress, and it functions just fine with my alternative foam-based choice.
• The controller for the bed frame is about twice the size of an Apple TV remote and includes six buttons: Two adjust the top part of the bed, two move the bottom part up and down, and two control both halves of the bed simultaneously.
• For $1,195 for a queen size, the bed frame isn't cheap, but it only took a few nights of sleeping on it to convince me that it's well worth the price.
• I'd recommend it to people with sleep apnea, indigestion, bad backs, swollen legs — the list goes on. 

As someone who's in the habit of stacking three flimsy pillows behind my head to read or watch TV in bed, switching to an adjustable bed frame was a greater comfort than I'd expected.

Honestly, sleeping on an adjustable bed frame had never occurred to me before I was sent Casper's queen-size version to review a few weeks ago. For $1,195, it isn't cheap, but it only took a few nights of sleeping on it to convince me that it's well worth the price.

I discovered one of the handiest uses of the adjustable bed frame when I developed a cold shortly after my purchase. Congestion always gets worse when you're lying down, so having the bed frame to prop my head up while sleeping saved me from waking up unable to breath.

Sleeping with your upper body lifted also helps prevent snoring. Elevating your whole upper body (and not just your head) can remove pressure from your airways, making it easier to breath through the night. It can even stave off indigestion. As someone who suffers from acid reflux, sleeping upright let gravity do its work by stopping stomach acid from reaching my esophagus, something that occasionally wakes me up at night.

While I quickly learned that I'd be using the adjustable frame to lift my upper body, I hadn't thought about the positive effects lifting my lower body would have on my feet, legs, and back. After long days of pounding pavement (in New York City's summer heat, no less), letting the blood drain from my swollen legs has proven to be a huge relief.

I recently spent a day at the beach, during which I plodded through sand to get as far away from the boardwalk as possible to avoid the weekend crowds. Walking for so long in the hot sun, my feet and legs needed some extra TLC when I got home, which the adjustable bed frame easily provided through targeted elevation. Kicking your feet up at the end of the day can also provide relief from aches related to varicose veins and can help you avert blood clots (though luckily I'm not accustomed to worrying about either of those issues).

My partner, who experiences knee and back pain, particularly enjoys the lower body lift. He usually puts a pillow beneath his legs while lying in bed. Now, being able to angle his legs upwards brings him improved comfort (and frees up an extra pillow).

That being said, the biggest hazard of the adjustable bed frame is that there's just one controller, and my partner and I can fight about it like we do the TV remote. However, Casper does have a two-person adjustable bed frame option, which requires the purchase of two twin mattresses so each sleeper can customize their own experience without disturbing the other. My partner and I are both happy sleeping just short of 180 degrees on most nights, though, and we've had fun experimenting with alternative angles (yes, the adjustable bed frame can also be a pretty decent game for the less than mature).

The controller for our bed frame is about twice the size of an Apple TV remote and includes six buttons: Two adjust the top part of the bed, two move the bottom part up and down, and two control both halves of the bed simultaneously. At first, I felt a little weird about sleeping on an electronic bed base — what if it malfunctioned in the middle of the night? However, that hasn't happened, and even if it did, the worst-case scenario is that the slow, gentle movement could wake me up.

Besides that unlikely hazard, plugging the bed into a nearby outlet could prove a challenge, what with air conditioners and phone chargers often taking up the most convenient spaces. However, a power bar easily solves that problem. (I happened to have one near my bed anyway.)

The Casper adjustable bed frame works with all foam mattresses. I don't have a Casper mattress, and it functions just fine with my alternative foam-based choice.

Another plus — it's not ugly. My previous metal bed frame certainly didn't add to my bedroom décor. Meanwhile, the sleek, subtle design of Casper's bed frame is pleasing to look at and works with the various eclectic furniture items adorning my bedroom. It doesn't stand out as particularly ornamental or industrial and can fit into nearly any design scheme.

My last concern when opting for the new bed frame was the storage space. Living in a small, New York City apartment means I need all the extra space I can get, so I've long used my under-the-bed area to store out-of-season clothing and extra towels and bed sheets. Fortunately, Casper's adjustable frame is 15 inches off the ground, providing even more space than my old bed frame — my four under-the-bed storage containers fit with room to spare. And the movement of the frame never obstructs access to my belongings.

Though it's a bit of an investment, my new adjustable bed frame has brought both me and my partner relief we didn't previously think a bed frame could provide. I'd recommend it to people with sleep apnea, indigestion, bad backs, swollen legs — the list goes on.

Buy the Casper Adjustable Bed Frame for $1,095 (twin XL), $1,195 (queen), or $1,995 (split king/California king)

SEE ALSO: I tried Buffy, a popular down-alternative comforter made of recycled plastic bottles — and it was super effective at regulating temperature

DON'T MISS: A new bed-in-a-box went through over 200 mattress prototypes before it landed on the perfect design — it offered me excellent pressure relief and it slept cool

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• The 2019 Golden Globes are being held on January 6, 2019, for the 76th time.
• In honor of the award show's long history, we've rounded up some of the best photos throughout the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's history.
• From Marilyn Monroe to Marlon Brando, every big name in Hollywood history has appeared.

The Golden Globes, the award show decided by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), has long been considered the "fun" awards show— and these photos prove that reputation.

Since the 76th Annual Golden Globes are upon us, INSIDER combed the internet to find the best vintage photos throughout the show's decades-long history.

Keep scrolling to see what the Golden Globes looked like up to six decades ago.

The Golden Globes were first held in 1944 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, a band of writers that came together in 1943.

The first ceremony was held at 20th Century Fox. It then moved around for two decades until finding its permanent home, the Beverly Hills Hilton, in 1961.

The award ceremony became more glamorous as time went on. By the 20th Golden Globes, the stage looked more like the one we are accustomed to.

This year, the Golden Globes will be held on January 6, 2019, and will be hosted by actors Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh.

All of Hollywood's best and brightest of the time attend the awards, such as Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay in 1958.

These two have a famous daughter of their own, Mariska Hargitay, a.k.a. Olivia Benson of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."

• Fourteen hotels were named the best boutique hotels in the world for 2018.
• Boutique Hotel Awards chose a series of standout boutique hotels from more than 300 nominees in 80 countries.
• The hotels were judged on dining and entertainment, design, facilities, location, service, and "overall emotional impact."
• A hotel in Bali was named the best overall boutique hotel, while hotels in Portugal, South Africa, Greece, New Zealand, and other countries also won top honors.

A hotel has the possibility to make or break your vacation — but, if it's one of the best boutique hotels in the world, chances are you'll be in very, very good hands.

In 2018's Boutique Hotel Awards, fourteen hotels around the world took home top honors in a range of categories.

The hotels were judged on "all aspects of the guest experience covering six categories: dining and entertainment, design, facilities, location and, most importantly, staff service and overall emotional impact," according to the news release.

A hotel in Bali was named the best overall boutique hotel, while hotels in Portugal, South Africa, Greece, New Zealand, and other countries also won top spots. Categories include World's Best Beach or Coastal Hotel, Best Honeymoon Hideaway, Most Stunning Views, and more.

Here are the top boutique hotels in the world, from a beachside retreat in the Maldives to a wellness resort in Austria.

SEE ALSO: Disappointing photos show what 9 top luxury destinations look like in real life

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World's Best Beach or Coastal Hotel: Reethi Faru Resort

Location: Filaidhoo, Maldives
Rates starting at: $171

World's Best City Explorer: Corpo Santo Lisbon Historical Hotel

Location: Lisbon, Portugal
Rates starting at: $133

World's Best Classic Elegance Hotel: Relais & Chateaux Hotel Heritage

Location: Bruges, Belgium
Rates starting at: $222

• Maleeka Hollaway is a millennial entrepreneur who teaches small business owners and entrepreneurs to position themselves to grow sustainable businesses and brands.
• When she first started her own business, she knew she wanted to create multiple income streams — but she wasn't sure where to start.
• So she began doing just about everything that came her way, until she realized there was a common thread through all of her business offerings: communication.
• Below, she explains how she built her own streams of income, and where she recommends other small business owners start.

When I first started my own business about four years ago, I had no clue what I really wanted to do.

I knew that I could not build a sustainable business doing one-off projects. I needed to diversify my offerings and extend my professional reach. I needed to be one of those people who made money in my sleep.

To be that person, I knew I needed multiple streams of income. For as long as I can remember, I’ve heard people say that the average millionaire has seven streams of income — so that was a good place to start.

So, I started digging into what it took to start a successful business and I started seeing articles suggesting that the best thing to do was to market every skill I had that people would pay me for.

A bonus just for you: Click here to claim 30 days of access to Business Insider PRIME

Before I knew it, I was editing, ghostwriting, managing social media accounts, coaching freelancers, consulting on building brands, pitching myself and others for media features, and getting paid to write for publications. It seemed like I was all over the place. Sure, I had multiple streams of income, but there was too much going on.

I took step back and realized a thread joined all of these tasks together: I am a communicator. Everything I did then and that I do now in my business revolves around communicating.

Now I’m a publicist, a writer, a coach, and a consultant. I’ve created a small arsenal of digital products including workbooks and masterclasses that teach my customers about productivity, marketing, branding, and public relations. I collaborate with other business owners whose products or services complement mine, and I promote their products as an affiliate. I’ve also created a stream of income speaking and training. While the income isn’t passive like the affiliate income, it doesn’t feel like work because I speak about things that excite me, and that I am passionate about sharing.

When you are looking to diversify your service and product offerings, consider all the things you can teach others about your area of expertise. Try these three steps:

Condense your knowledge into a book, an informative ebook and create a mini-course teaching a specific tactic someone can use

Not only do you only have to write the e-book or create the course one time, but once it’s out there, it can sell while you’re sleeping! Imagine putting in the work to develop your content one time and then being able to watch it sell repeatedly.

Google became my best friend as I read a few articles on how to set up my course or sell my e-books from platforms like Thinkific and Teachable. I did a bit of on-the-job training by trialing both platforms before I made my decision based on ease of use.

Read More:I started my own business more than 15 years ago, and I wish I could have given myself 3 crucial pieces of advice

I learned quickly that having digital products available for sale at all times increases your chances of establishing your credibility and allows you to “make money in your sleep.” Not every stream of income you have needs to be attached to your immediate attention. The creation of passive income products allows you to reach people without taking time out of your day.

Consider being an ambassador (aka affiliate) for the products and services you already use

Affiliate marketing where you get commission based off selling someone else’s products. The first time I ever saw the power of affiliate marketing was when I noticed that my email marketing platform sent me an email that said “Get a free month for everyone you recommend to use our platform!” And although I was only paying $15 a month, I figured if one person started using the platform, that’s $15 I could save.

I started looking at every tool I was using to see if they offered the same type of promotion deal and most of them did. Some offered a free month of service and others offered 20% residual of every service sold. Email marketing platforms, scheduling apps, e-commerce platforms and more typically have a form of affiliate marketing to offer. It’s not a lot, but if you leverage the power of your network, it adds up.

If you like public speaking or teaching, turn your expertise into signature talks or workshops

Joining your local Toastmasters program can help you build a foundation for public speaking. If you are a member of any professional associations, chamber of commerce clubs, or business groups, find out their process for speaker selection at their meetings or events.

I started off searching Facebook for business owners who were hosting events and needed speakers to get my feet wet. I did about seven free events before I started packaging my talks to get paid to speak.

There are organizations who will pay for your genius, so position yourself to share it. Even if you don’t get paid upfront for speaking, learn to master the art of selling from the stage or from the back of the room. Either way, you’ll grow your influence and reach by leveraging your expertise and connecting with more people and you’ll have an additional avenue of earning extra income.

Maleeka T. Hollaway is a millennial, entrepreneur, speaker, and writer obsessed with personal development, leadership, and small business growth. Her goal is to teach SBOs and entrepreneurs to position themselves to grow sustainable businesses and brands. Meet her on www.maleekahollaway.com.

SEE ALSO: 4 times you never need to apologize at work, according to an executive coach

Join the conversation about this story »

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• The Plaza, a five-star hotel overlooking Central Park, is one of the city's most legendary and luxurious hotels.
• The hotel is throwing a lavish New Year's Eve bash that will include aerialists, decadent desserts and hors d'oeuvres, live music, and of course, plenty of Champagne at an open bar.
• Tickets start at $1,200 for two people and include a night's stay at the hotel.
• For non-hotel guests, one admission to the party is $850.

One of New York City's most iconic hotels is hosting a New Year's Eve party to remember.

The Plaza, a five-star hotel that overlooks Central Park, is holding a lavish black-tie masquerade ball on December 31, and it will include aerialists, live music, a decadent dinner and dessert, and of course, free-flowing Champagne. Tickets start at $1,200 for two people.

"Welcome 2019 with an evening fete unlike you've seen before," reads the Plaza's description of the event. "Just steps from the comfort of your room, embrace a black tie affair complete with delectable hors d'oeuvres, a decadent dinner and an evening of dancing under the legendary laylight in the selection of Fine Wines and Champagne."

The Plaza promises glitz, glamour, and a midnight balloon drop.

Read more: A luxury hotel in Times Square hosts a rooftop New Year's Eve party where guests are only 150 feet from the ball drop and box seats cost up to $125,000

The party will take place at the hotel's glamorous and iconic Palm Court, with its palm trees and soaring ceilings.

Tickets to the party start at $1,200 for two people and include a night's stay at the hotel, a representative for the Plaza told Business Insider. But at the time of publication, the cheapest New Year's Eve packages available was $2,767, which includes a night in a deluxe king room, one admission to the Palm Court party (with each additional ticket costing $900), and a $100 in-room dining credit.

For non-hotel guests, a ticket to the party will cost $850 and can be obtained by emailing or calling the hotel.

SEE ALSO: Rich people can now celebrate New Year's Eve twice with a private jet company that flies them around the world in a Gulfstream G550 for $250,000

DON'T MISS: I stayed at New York’s most iconic luxury hotel that charges up to $50,000 a night and was once owned by Donald Trump

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• Netflix said its original movie "Bird Box," starring Sandra Bullock, was viewed by 45 million accounts in its first seven days on the streaming service, a record for the company.
• The streaming giant said that a "view" counted as someone watching at least 70% of a movie, but no other specifics were given, and that stat wasn't verified by a third party.
• Producer Rebecca Green believes Netflix needs to be more transparent about the performance of its titles, not just so people can better understand the context of the data, but also to help more of these types of movies get made.
• "Bird Box" and another title this year that Netflix said had a major impact with subscribers, "To All the Boys I've Loved Before," were both directed by women and had female leads.

On Friday, Netflix said that over 45 million accounts on its service had watched its latest original movie, “Bird Box,” the Susanne Bier-directed thriller that follows Sandra Bullock as she tries to survive an unseen presence that causes people to kill themselves.

According to Netflix, "Bird Box" broke its record for the most-watched Netflix film over the course of seven days (it premiered on the site on December 21).

This isn’t the first time the streaming giant has boasted about one of its projects having a major impact with its subscribers. But it did mark a first by the company in giving the public the number of accounts that had watched a project: 45,037,125 to be exact.

That number instantly grabbed the attention of the industry.

Instead of a broad (but vague) declaration — like in Netflix's Q3 earnings report when the company said Susan Johnson’s rom-com “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” was one of the “most viewed original films ever with strong repeat viewing,” or earlier this month when Netflix’s CCO Ted Sarandos said that its holiday title “The Christmas Chronicles” had the “most impact” of any from the movie’s star Kurt Russell in his 56-plus year filmography — this was something of substance.

Or was it?

Though Netflix revealed the huge number, it didn’t give specifics. How many of those 45 million watched the movie from beginning to end? What were the demographics of the viewers? Those are the types of stats that movie studios and TV networks release about their content.

Netflix has historically been guarded about its data, even keeping the information from the filmmakers and producers who have made the projects for the company. Netflix views data as a competitive advantage and does not want to give it away unless there is something to be gained. 

But over the weekend, as the industry publicly debated how real that 45 million number was, Netflix gave another rare reveal: it defined what a single view was.

A Netflix spokesperson told Entertainment Weekly that a "view" counted once it surpassed 70% of the total running time, including credits. Netflix also specified that a single account “may include multiple views and viewers, but is only counted once.”

Despite the clarification, people inside Hollywood are skeptical.

“I’m a huge fan and proponent of Netflix, but to believe that nearly one-third of all of their subscribers not only watched 70% of the movie, but did so in the first week of it being on the site is all but unfathomable,” one producer told Business Insider over the weekend. “I want to believe it, but just can’t. It’s not a watch for the faint of heart after all.” 

That 45 million number has not been verified by a third-party measurement company in the way TV ratings and box-office results generally are.

Others industry insiders wondered about the performance of Netflix's other recent high-profile titles, which didn't get a data shout-out.

“Not a peep about how many subscribers watched ‘Roma,’” one industry insider said, referring the company’s Oscar hopeful.

But the biggest debate that the “Bird Box” viewing stat prompted was around how to compare it to box-office returns.

Some even claimed the movie would have had the biggest opening week in box-office history:

“That assumes that 45 million people would have gone to the theater to see the film, which I do not believe would have been the case,” producer Rebecca Green (“It Follows,” “I’ll See You in My Dreams”) told Business Insider. “Netflix is not up against the same barriers as theaters, they don’t have to account for consumer logistics — figuring out what theater is playing the film you want to see, getting up and leaving home, especially in the snow, purchasing tickets. Because of this, in no way does one Netflix viewer equal one ticket sale at the theater.”

The biggest irony of the “Bird Box” box-office conversation is that Netflix did show it in theaters. But the company has not released its box-office gross for the movie (it has never released the box-office figures of any of the movies its released in theaters).

Read more: Netflix's "Black Mirror: Bandersnatch" is an interactive movie with 5 different endings, and fans can expect more "Black Mirror" in 2019

Green — who along with producing created the website, Dear Producer, which champions and mentors others in the profession — believes the latest Netflix news is nothing but a publicity stunt and that Netflix's lack of transparency about data hurts filmmakers. 

“My goal is to create original content for wide audiences, but how do I cater to an audience if I do not know what they are turning in to watch?” she said. “'It Follows' has been on Netflix for two years and I have no idea how many people have viewed the film. ‘I’ll See You in My Dreams’ has been on Amazon Prime for two years as well and I have no idea how many people have viewed the film on that platform. Why share the stats for one film but not the others aside from wanting to create buzz?”

Green said a company like Netflix being transparent could be a game changer in the industry. In an era when inclusion of women and people of color is a rallying cry in Hollywood, Netflix could help push it forward.

Two movies that Netflix said were some of its biggest this year, “Bird Box” and “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” were directed by women and had female leads. In the case of “Boys I’ve Loved Before,” it was directed and written by women and had a Vietnamese-American as its lead.

“If we had metrics showing that these films were performing well, getting these kind of films financed would be a lot easier,” Green said.

Netflix did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

SEE ALSO: 13 of the biggest movie flops of 2018 that failed dramatically at the box office

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Bernie Madoff was arrested 10 years ago today — here's what his life is like in prison

• NASA's New Horizons probe, which visited Pluto in 2015, is closing in on a mysterious object called Ultima Thule.
• New Horizons will fly past Ultima Thule, formally known as 2014 MU₆₉, on New Year's Day.
• Ultima Thule will be the most distant object humanity has ever visited (if the flyby goes as planned).
• The nuclear-powered spacecraft will take hundreds photos of the space rock.
• The flyby is "about 10,000 times" more challenging than visiting Pluto, the mission's leader said.

NASA scientists are about to make history by flying a probe past a mysterious, mountain-size rock beyond the orbit of Pluto.

The object is called Ultima Thule (pronounced "tool-ee"), and it's more than 4 billion miles from Earth. If the flyby goes as planned, this will be the most distant object humanity has ever tried to explore.

NASA's nuclear-powered New Horizons spacecraft will attempt the maneuver on New Year's Day, taking hundreds of photos in a highly choreographed, pre-programmed sequence. The space probe will reach its closest point to the space rock — about 2,175 miles— at 12:33 a.m. EST. New Horizons will also turn around to photograph its exit at a speed of 35,000 mph.

The mission is as surprising as it is ambitious: NASA didn't know Ultima Thule — or 2014 MU₆₉, as it's formally known — existed when New Horizons launched toward Pluto in 2006. There wasn't even a reliable way to detect the object until astronauts plugged an upgraded camera into the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009.

The uncertainty about Ultima Thule makes planetary science researchers like Alan Stern, who leads the New Horizons mission, all the more excited about the flyby.

"If we knew what to expect, we wouldn't be going to Ultima Thule. It's an object we’ve never encountered before," Stern told Business Insider. "This is what what exploration is about."

Here's what to expect from the flyby and how to watch a live broadcast.

What Ultima Thule is and where it's located

New Horizons is coasting through a zone called the Kuiper Belt, a region where sunlight is about as weak as the light from a full moon on Earth. That far away, frozen leftovers of the solar system's formation called Kuiper Belt Objects, or KBOs, lurk in vast numbers. (Pluto is one of them.)

Ultima Thule is one of these pristine remnants. It has presumably remained in its distant and icy orbit for billions of years, and it's also too small to deform under its own heft and erase its early history from humanity's prying eyes.

Studying the object might therefore reveal new clues about how the solar system evolved to form planets like Earth, Stern said.

"Ultima is the first thing we've been to that is not big enough to have a geological engine like a planet, and also something that's never been warmed greatly by the sun," he said. "It's like a time capsule from 4.5 billion years ago. That's what makes it so special."

Stern compared the flyby to an archaeological dig in Egypt.

"It's like the first time someone opened up the pharaoh's tomb and went inside, and you see what the culture was like 1,000 years ago," he said. "Except this is exploring the dawn of the solar system."

Stern considers Ultima Thule to be a "planetesimal" or seed that might have formed a planet if it had acquired enough material.

"It's a building block of larger planets, or a planetary embryo," Stern said. "In that sense, it's like a paleontologist finding the fossilized embryo of a dinosaur. It has a very special value."

Journey into the unknown

New Horizons performed the first-ever visit to Pluto in 2015, and following that successful encounter, NASA added the bonus mission to Ultima Thule.

In June, New Horizons woke up from half a year of hibernation to begin zeroing in on its new target. Mission managers then fired the probe's engine in October to put it on a more precise path to Ultima Thule. Last week, researchers confirmed no moons, debris, or other potentially dangerous objects were floating in the flight path of New Horizons, so they kept the robot on-course for its historic encounter.

Stern said the first images that New Horizons captures will each take two hours to transmit. Then each bit of image data, moving at the speed of light as radio waves, will take about six hours to reach antennas on Earth. Those early photos will be released to the public on January 2.

However, those pictures will be small (as they were for Pluto). It will take months to receive the most detailed, full-resolution images due to the power, antenna, and other physical limitations of the New Horizons spacecraft. The first full-resolution images won't arrive until February, and it could take up to two years for the researchers to get all of the flyby data.

Stern shied away from making any predictions about what the images might show, citing how shocking the first close-up pictures of Pluto were.

"I don't know what we're going to find," he said. "If it's anything as surprising as Pluto, though, it will be wonderful."

Once scientists are finally able to pore over New Horizons' images of Ultima Thule, they will pay close attention to the outward appearance of the rock. Learning whether the surface is relatively smooth or features a mix of pebbles, huge boulders, cliffs, and other features will yield clues about how planets form.

'10,000 times harder than reaching Pluto'

Stern, who recently helped write a book titled "Chasing New Horizons: Inside the Epic First Mission to Pluto," said Ultima Thule got its name from a Norse phrase that means "beyond the farthest frontiers."

Hubble first definitively photographed Ultima Thule in June 2014, which was about a year before New Horizons visited Pluto.

This upcoming flyby is dramatically more difficult than the Pluto visit, Stern said.

"Rendezvousing with something the size of a large, filthy mountain covered in dirt, a billion miles away from Pluto, and honing in on it is about 10,000 times harder than reaching Pluto," he said. "That's because it's about 10,000 times smaller. The achievement of getting to it is unbelievable."

In a New York Times op-ed published on New Year's Eve, Stern described the mission as "mind-boggling."

"As you celebrate New Year's Day, cast an eye upward and think for a moment about the amazing things our country and our species can do when we set our minds to it," Stern wrote.

The target of New Horizons' cameras and other instruments won't just be Ultima Thule itself, either.

"We're plastering all of the space around it for moons, rings, and even an atmosphere," Stern said. "If any of those things are there, we'll see them."

Watch live coverage of New Horizons' flyby of Ultima Thule

Anyone interested in watching Ultima Thule flyby events can tune into several live video broadcasts being hosted on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Broadcasts that feature the first images and science results will occur later, on Wednesday and Thursday.

Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physical Laboratory (JHU APL), which manages the New Horizons mission, will host the suite of broadcasts through the lab's YouTube channel.

Additionally, NASA TV and NASA Live will mirror some of the New Horizons coverage, even though the government shutdown— led by President Donald Trump over border-wall funding — has sent many NASA workers home.

The first Ultima Thule broadcast will be a press conference with Stern and other mission scientists on Monday at 2 p.m. EST. Then, at 12:02 a.m. on Tuesday, Queen guitarist and astrophysicist Brain May will release a song dedicated to the mission. Video coverage will continue through 12:15 a.m. EST — the moment New Horizons flies past Ultima Thule about 4 billion miles from Earth.

Michael Buckley, a JHU APL spokesperson, said there will be a video feed of the moment scientists learn that the mission succeeded. That live coverage should begin on Tuesday around 9:30 a.m. EST, and the "ok" signal from New Horizons should arrive around 10 a.m. EST. A press conference will follow at 11:30 a.m. EST.

On Wednesday at 2 p.m. EST and Thursday at the same time, JHU APL will host follow-up press conferences to discuss new photos and scientific results.

You can watch the main New Horizons events via the NASA Live video player we've embedded below.

This story has been updated. It was originally published on December 22, 2018.

SEE ALSO: Pluto is hiding a gigantic liquid ocean you would never, ever want to swim in

DON'T MISS: Is it Planet 9 or Planet X? Scientists spar over what to call the solar system's hypothetical missing world

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NOW WATCH: NASA has over 100 images of Pluto — and the footage is breathtaking

We’re hiring a Research Associate to join our Digital Health team at Business Insider Intelligence.

At Business Insider Intelligence, we’re passionate about making market research that industry leaders use to make strategic decisions. To accomplish that goal, we hire great writers with an unrelenting curiosity to uncover the deeper truths in industry news and craft them into compelling narratives on what the future will look like and what companies can do to get there first.

The digital health associate will create content on the development of digital technologies — from wearable devices and mobile health apps to telehealth services, artificial intelligence, and even blockchain — that are transforming everyday access and delivery of healthcare for patients, doctors, insurers, and pharmacies alike.

This is a role for someone with 1-3 years of relevant work experience, who is passionate about digital transformation (particularly in the healthcare sphere) and business, and loves to write.  

About Business Insider Intelligence

Business Insider Intelligence is Business Insider’s real-time, premium research service focused on digital disruption. We publish market data, trend analysis, and proprietary survey data for executives in many industries.

Desired Skills & Experience

• Ability to quickly sort through masses of data and pull out what really matters to professionals and why

• Ability to write clearly and concisely about data-driven trends, consumer and business-to-business markets, and the larger tech industry

• Diligence and persistence in researching

• Ability to work in a team-oriented, fast-paced, and rapidly-changing environment

• Attention to detail

• Proficiency in MS Excel required

• Solid grounding in business analysis fundamentals

• Strong communication and writing skills

• An interest in data-driven visual storytelling

• Internships in market/consumer research, consulting, tech research, or relevant experience in a similar position is helpful but not required

If this is the right opportunity for you, please apply online and tell us why you're a good fit for the role.

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• Miley Cyrus' mom, Tish Cyrus, shared a photo that was taken in Tennessee 25 years ago when she and Billy Ray Cyrus got married in their living room.
• She called it "full circle," since Miley recently wed Liam Hemsworth on December 23, 2018, in their Tennessee home. 
• Both couples have experienced ups and downs in their relationships.

An old photo shows that Miley Cyrus' parents got married 25 years ago in their living room, around the same time of year that the singer tied the knot with Liam Hemsworth in 2018. 

Tish Cyrus (Miley's mother) took to Instagram to share an old photo of herself and Billy Ray Cyrus (Miley's father) on their wedding day, in honor of their anniversary. 

"25 years ago today @billyraycyrus and I stood in our living room in Franklin Tn and said 'I Do.' I would definitely say everything has come full circle! I love u Lovey..... if I had to do it all again, I wouldn't change a thing 💗 #happyanniversary" Tish captioned an image of the couple.

Similarly, Miley and Hemsworth had a low-key wedding that took place at their Franklin, Tennessee, home on December 23, according to "E! News."

They haven't spoken in detail about the celebration, but posts shared on social media have given fans a glimpse of what it was like. The couple was joined by family members on both sides, including Liam's famous brothers, actors Chris Hemsworth and Luke Hemsworth.

Cyrus' relatives were also on hand for the wedding, including her parents and her siblings: Brandi Cyrus (Miley's half-sister from Tish's previous marriage to Baxter Neal Helson), Braison Cyrus (Miley's younger brother), and  Noah Cyrus (Miley's younger sister). Missing from the photo was Trace Cyrus, Miley's half-brother from Tish's past marriage.

The wedding celebration included pink "Mr. and Mrs." balloons, a two-tiered cake, a "shotski," and a pastel balloon arch, which was visible in a photo shared by Braison's fiancée, Stella McBride.

Read more: All the photos you may have missed from Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth's gorgeous, low-key wedding

The "Malibu" singer wore a simple $8,600 Vivienne Westwood gown.

The couple met 10 years ago, while on the set of the 2010 movie "The Last Song." The film was based on a novel written by Nicholas Sparks and two stars played love interests.  

When Cyrus was asked about their relationship in 2009, she referred to Hemsworth as her "best friend" and played coy regarding whether or not they were an item. They confirmed their relationship the following year while attending the 2010 Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party.

The couple was off and on with a series of breakups and makeups through 2010 to 2015 that included a broken engagement. By 2016, the "Wrecking Ball" singer confirmed that the pair were engaged for the second time. 

Most recently, Cyrus called Hemsworth her "survival partner" after he rescued their animals amid the California wildfires that destroyed their Malibu home.

"He thinks it's not romantic, but I learned that it is," she told Howard Stern on his radio show. "That is why you pair up with someone, for survival, and he was so incredible. He got all the animals out in his truck."

Tish and Billy Ray also had an on-again-off-again relationship. Prior to becoming a couple, Tish gave birth to Brandi and Trace with Henson. Billy Ray also has a son named Christian Cody from a previous relationship with Kristin Luckey. 

Tish and Billy Ray welcomed their first child together, Miley (who was born Destiny Hope), in November 1992 and got married on December 28, 1993. The couple later expanded their family with the birth of Braison in 1994 and Noah in 2000. 

Throughout their relationship, Tish and Billy Ray have been open about their ups and downs. In 2010 the singer filed for divorce but later called it off. Three years later, Tish filed for divorce, but the couple got back together shortly after.

"We both woke up and realized we love each other and decided we want to stay together," they said in a statement shared by People. "We both went into couples therapy, something we haven't done in 22 years of being together, and it's brought us closer together and really opened up our communication in amazing ways."

Speaking to People in 2016, Billy Ray opened up about how he and his wife continue to make their relationship work.

"It's like everything in life," he said. "You take it one step at a time. One day at a time. I think one of the most important things in life and in a relationship is, you make adjustments."

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.   

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NOW WATCH: Bernie Madoff was arrested 10 years ago today — here's what his life is like in prison

• Padmanabh Singh is the 20-year-old 'king' of Jaipur, India.
• Although he's not officially considered a king by the state in democratic India, his position is still respected.
• Singh is a polo star who has studied at New York University and walked the runway in fashion shows.
• Estimates of the royal family's wealth vary, but Singh is estimated to control a fortune of between $697 million and $2.8 billion.

At 20 years old, Padmanabh Singh controls a fortune of between $697 million and $855 million and is called a "king."

Padmanabh Singh, full title Maharaja Sawai Padmanabh Singh of Jaipur, is the young monarch of Jaipur, a city in northwestern India famous for its pink architecture and imperial palaces.

Singh's royal title is not officially recognized by law, as India is a federal parliamentary democratic republic with a president and a prime minister. But it "still inspires respect in this deeply hierarchical country where the aristocracy is venerated despite rapid social change," according to the Guardian.

The wealth of the royal family is estimated to be between $697 million and $2.8 billion.

Singh spends his time playing polo, studying liberal arts, walking in fashion shows, and traveling the world.

Here's a look at the young royal's life.

SEE ALSO: Meet the Ambanis, the richest family in Asia, who live in a $1 billion skyscraper and mingle with royals, politicians, and Bollywood stars

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Padmanabh Singh is the 20-year-old king of Jaipur, India. His full title is Maharaja Sawai Padmanabh Singh of Jaipur.

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Source: Elle India

Singh, whose family and friends call him "Pacho," is the 303rd descendant of the royal family of Jaipur.

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Source: Elle India

He became king in 2011 after the death of his grandfather, Sawai Man Singhji Bahadur, who was called "the last Maharaja of Jaipur" when he died because he ascended to the throne soon before royal privileges stopped being recognized in India.

Source: The Guardian, Getty Images