DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ The horrific true story behind the 1969 Manson Family murders that changed America forever
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . The Manson murders closed out one era for the US, and heralded the arrival of another. The Manson "Family" killers were following orders from their cult leader, Charles Manson. One of the seven victims was pregnant actress Sharon Tate.

Persons: —, Manson, Charles Manson ., Sharon Tate, Quentin Tarantino's, there's Organizations: Service Locations: Hollywood

☆ The wild life of Alexey Navalny, who challenged Putin and appears to have died in prison
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( James Pasley | Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Russian dissident Alexey Navalny became President Vladimir Putin's biggest opponent. On Friday, Russian officials said he had died suddenly in prison. AdvertisementAlexey Navalny, an outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has died in prison, according to Russian officials. In 2020, Navalny almost died after he was poisoned with a nerve agent, allegedly by Russian agents. Russia's prison agency said on Friday that he had died suddenly.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin's, —, Vladimir Putin, Crooks, Putin, Navalny Organizations: Service, Putin Locations: United Russia, Russian, Germany, Russia

☆ Egypt is trying to make Cairo look like Dubai. It's taken 10 years and cost $58 billion.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

They are building a $59 billion city in the desert and have already built 4,350 miles of new roads and 900 tunnels and bridges. To make way for its new infrastructure, thousands of graves have been razed as well as hundreds of acres of public green space. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . Egypt's president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is trying to turn Cairo into a modern city, like Dubai.

Persons: —, Abdel Fattah el Organizations: Service Locations: Egypt, Cairo, Dubai, He's

☆ Climate change is pushing an Indigenous community in Panama off their island home
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The Guna people living on an island in Panama called Carti Sugtupu will soon relocate to the mainland. Rising sea levels have caused harsher storms and tougher living conditions on the island. The island, which is called Carti Sugtupu, is over the size of four football fields and is only 3.2 feet above sea level. In recent years, its residents have increasingly felt the impacts of climate change, weathering brutal storms and flooding. Here's what life is like for the Guna people of Carti Sugtupu.

Organizations: Service Locations: Panama, Guna, Carti

☆ Here are the most common ways sharks attack and how to survive — and avoid — them
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-23 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The top five most common places for shark attacks are the US, Australia, and South Africa. The most common culprits are great white sharks, tiger sharks, and bull sharks. In 2022, there were 81 unprovoked shark attacks around the world and five people were killed. This was down from nine deaths in 2021 and 10 deaths in 2020, according to the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File. Overall, the odds of getting attacked by a shark are low, and there are things you can do to lower those odds even more.

Organizations: Service, University of Locations: Australia, South Africa, Wall, Silicon

☆ The tumultuous life of Alexei Navalny, Russia's outspoken dissident who has been sentenced to 19 years in prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Alexei Navalny, Russia's most famous living dissident, made a name for himself as an anti-corruption blogger. In 2013, Navalny ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Moscow and — despite a conviction that barred him from running — also attempted to run for president in the 2018 election. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. He dubbed Putin's political party United Russia "the party of Crooks and Thieves," and called Putin "a thieving little man in a bunker." He's now locked in a remote penal colony that's typically reserved for those accused of violent crimes and incarcerated people serving life terms.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Navalny, —, Alexei Navalny —, Vladimir Putin —, Crooks, Putin, Russian agents.He, He's Organizations: Service, Putin Locations: Moscow, Wall, Silicon, United Russia, Russian, Germany, Russia

☆ Inside Operation Barrel Roll, a covert US military campaign that dropped 2 million tons of bombs on Laos over 9 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

For nine years, a covert CIA-run operation called "Operation Barrel Roll" dropped more than 580,000 bombs on Laos. The US was trying to stop North Vietnamese forces from transporting weapons and soldiers through Laos. But the bombs' impact continued long after an estimated 80 million bombs were dropped but failed to detonate. The CIA covertly executed the bombings, which is referred to as the US "secret war" on Laos. Here's what happened and why the bombs are still hurting Laos today.

Organizations: CIA, Service Locations: Laos, Wall, Silicon

☆ Here's what different countries feed their troops, from kimchi to dried cappuccino to pizza with a three-year shelf life
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

They either eat at dining facilities or if they are in the field, they eat vacuum-packed meals called MREs. Most countries tend to provide some local flavors or foods for their soldiers in the MREs. They need to have a minimum shelf life of 3.5 years at a mild temperature, or nine months in a hot climate. US soldiers get pizza with a three-year shelf-life, Korean soldiers get kimchi, and Italian soldiers get a shot of alcohol, to name a few. Advertisement Advertisement Watch:Here are 14 different armies and the foods they feed their soldiers.

Organizations: Service Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ 18 times US presidents told lies, from secret affairs to health issues to reasons for going to war
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Every US president has told a lie — from war and taxes to health conditions and extramarital affairs. When Dwight D. Eisenhower was caught lying by Russia, he said it was his greatest regret in office. "Every president has not only lied at some time, but needs to lie to be effective," Ed Uravic, who wrote "Lying Cheating Scum," told CNN. From President James Polk lying to invade Mexico in 1846 to then-presidential candidate George H.W. Bush famously promising no new taxes, here are some of the most famous lies US presidents have ever made.

Persons: Dwight D, Eisenhower, Donald Trump, Richard Nixon, Ed Uravic, James Polk, George H.W, Bush Organizations: Service, CNN Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Cambodia, Mexico

☆ A look inside Jackie Kennedy Onassis' luxurious homes, from sprawling estates to full-floor apartments
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Before she was a Kennedy or an Onassis, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier spent her early years in New York City. The apartment building at 740 Park Avenue. Stan Honda/AFP/Getty ImagesIn 1932, the Bouviers moved into an apartment on the sixth and seventh floors of 740 Park Avenue. The apartment building later became a home for billionaires and was once considered one of the most iconic apartment buildings in the city. In 2017, her old apartment sold for $25.25 million.

Persons: Kennedy, Jacqueline Lee Bouvier, Stan Honda, James T, Lee, wasn't, Jackie Organizations: Getty Locations: New York City, AFP

☆ How J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI's first and longest director of the FBI, used controversial methods to turn the agency into one of the most efficient investigative forces in the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

J. Edgar Hoover took over the FBI, then known as the Bureau of Investigation in 1924 when he was 29 years old. He later used the bureau to gather information on influential people like John F. Kennedy, Albert Einstein, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Hoover turned the agency from a relatively powerless group into one of the most efficient investigative forces in the world. The list included President John F. Kennedy, Eleanor Roosevelt, Albert Einstein, and Felix Frankfurter. He later said of it, "J. Edgar Hoover was like a sewer that collected dirt.

Persons: Edgar Hoover, Hoover, John F, Kennedy, Albert Einstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, Felix Frankfurter, Laurence Silberman, J Organizations: FBI, Investigation, Service Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ Haunting photos show the day the US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

His government decided to drop the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima. On August 6, the atomic bomb "Little Boy" was dropped on Hiroshima, instantly leveling five square miles and killing an estimated 80,000 people. The explosion wiped out five square miles of the city, including 62,000 buildings. Director Christopher Nolan's film "Oppenheimer," which was released in July, is about the work that went on to build an atomic bomb in the years leading up to Hiroshima. Here's how the bomb drop played out and why it wasn't enough to end the war by itself.

Persons: Harry Truman, Christopher Nolan's, Oppenheimer Organizations: Service Locations: Germany, Japan, Hiroshima, Wall, Silicon, Here's

☆ Inside Dugway Proving Ground, where scientists work with the world's deadliest chemical and biological weapons in a top-secret military zone
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Dugway Proving Ground is a sprawling army base in remote Utah. Despite those incidents, the army base mostly has a good safety record, according to the Pentagon. While the remote army base used to be responsible for creating chemical weapons — and, at one point, testing them on US soldiers — it now only analyzes them. A later report found that Dugway had failed to follow standard procedures — and use enough radiation — to kill the anthrax samples. The US is destroying its arsenal of chemical weapons, such as VX gas, to meet a treaty obligation that its entire stockpile is eliminated by September 30.

Persons: —, Dugway's, William E, King IV, Dugway Organizations: Pentagon, Service Locations: Utah, Korea

☆ The complicated life and career of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the 'father of the atomic bomb,' who refused to develop a more dangerous weapon
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

In the 1940s, physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer led a team to develop the world's first atomic bomb. His work garnered him the title "father of the atomic bomb," but he wasn't an obvious choice for its leader. He was a complicated, intelligent man known for being condescending, volatile, and impractical. He could be condescending, volatile, and impractical. Director Christopher Nolan's upcoming film about his life, called "Oppenheimer," will be released in July, with actor Cillian Murphy portraying the titular character.

Persons: J, Robert Oppenheimer, —, Christopher Nolan's, Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy Organizations: Service

☆ Here's why the 1930s Great Plains Dust Bowl drought-disaster hit so hard and lasted so long, and why it could happen again
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

In the early 20 th century, farmers across the Great Plains harnessed new technology to cash in on a huge demand for wheat. But over-farming led to the removal of prairie grasses which had kept the topsoil in place. For years, the region was bombarded by monster dust storms called "black blizzards" that sometimes buried entire houses in grit. During the 1930s, after an intensive period of over-farming, dust storms regularly wreaked havoc, blanketing towns and farms in grit, destroying crops and making people sick. The drought and storms led to one of the largest mass migrations in a short period of time in US history.

Organizations: Service

☆ Vintage photos show how deep sea diving and exploration has evolved over the years
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Over centuries, diving technology has developed from diving bells to clunky diving suits to "air-lungs." For the last few centuries, inventors, researchers and naval forces have worked to improve human's ability to dive deep. But still much about the deep sea remains uncertain. Tens of thousands of robots are now being used for deep sea exploration and drilling. Here's how deep sea exploration has helped make our oceans a little less opaque.

Persons: —, James Cameron Organizations: Service

☆ 35 vintage photos taken by the EPA reveal what American cities looked like before pollution was regulated
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Before President Nixon created the EPA in 1970, water and air pollution weren't federally regulated. The result was 81,000 photos, often filled with smoke, smog, acid, oil, rubbish, and sewage. In the early 1970s, the EPA launched the "The Documerica Project," which leveraged 100 freelance photographers to document what the US looked like. By 1974, they had taken 81,000 photos. Many of the photos were taken before water and air pollution were fully regulated.

Persons: Nixon, —, Richard Nixon Organizations: EPA, Service, Environmental Protection Agency, Archives Locations: United States, Baltimore, Birmingham, Cleveland , Delaware, Denver , Kansas, Los Angeles , New Orleans , New Jersey , New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Francisco

☆ How Barbie went from poor sales in the 1950s to becoming the most popular doll in the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

In the 1950s, Ruth Handler, the woman behind Barbie, found it difficult to find support for her idea. After being warned it was a bad idea and that no one would buy it, Barbie was a huge hit. Mattel, Handler's toy company, went on to make billions of dollars off the doll. But she kept selling and remains the most popular doll in the world. In July, the highly-anticipated "Barbie" movie, directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie as the titular character, will be released.

☆ Inside the shameful history of the 'Lavender Scare,' when the US government embarked on an anti-gay witch hunt and purged thousands of employees
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

In the 1950s, the US government launched a campaign focused on finding and purging gay government employees. It was prompted due to a misguided idea that gay people were vulnerable to blackmail and considered easy targets for Russia. About 10,000 people lost their jobs because of "the Lavender Scare," which had lasting impact on the queer community. During the Cold War paranoia of the late 1940s and 50s, the US government famously led a witch hunt targeting communists leading to a hysteria dubbed the "Red Scare." The hysteria was later followed by a second government campaign prompted by discrimination against gay people in the federal government, which similarly became known as the "Lavender Scare."

Persons: —, Joan Cassidy, Cassidy Organizations: Service Locations: Russia

☆ The President's power to pardon is broad, unchallengeable, and almost unlimited. Here are 25 of the most controversial pardons and commutations in history.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

US presidents have the power to pardon anyone in the country who has been convicted of a federal crime. Presidents can also pardon other presidents, like when Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon after the Watergate scandal. Loading Something is loading. While the crimes varied, they shared the commonality of their pardons being marred with controversy. From clemency for former confederates to Vietnam draft dodgers to pardoning the billionaire fugitive Marc Rich, here are some of the most notable presidential pardons in history.

☆ Inside India's 15,000 extravagant, abandoned mansions, built by spice and gem tycoons and left to decay
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

There are more than 15,000 elaborate mansions that are mostly decaying in a small region called Chettinad in southern India. The average mansion in the region spans 40,000 to 50,000 square feet and has more than 50 rooms. Now the quiet streets are lined with dilapidated mansions that many owners can barely afford to maintain. For about a century, rich bankers and traders poured their money into erecting the biggest, most beautiful mansions they could create. The average mansion spans up to 50,000 square feet and has over 50 rooms.

☆ Trump isn't the only former president to be embroiled in a hush-money scandal. Here are 10 public figures, including 3 US presidents, who have been accused of making payments to keep people quiet.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Donald Trump was indicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying documents related to alleged hush-money payments. Several public figures also have similar scandals, including Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, and Bill O'Reilly. US presidents Thomas Jefferson, Warren Harding, and Richard Nixon were all involved in hush money scandals. Other notable politicians who made hush money payments include former treasury secretary Alexander Hamilton and former Sen. John Edwards. Outside of politics, there have been several public figures who made hush money payments including Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, Bill Cosby, Jerry Falwell Jr., and Bill O'Reilly.

☆ Why India can't contain 5 million destructive yet beloved stray cows, which killed 900 people in the last four years
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

About 5 million stray cattle roam India, eating garbage, causing car accidents, attacking people, and spreading disease. Farmers are turning to artificial insemination to control numbers, and the government opened housing sheds across the country. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyThere are more than 5 million stray cattle roaming the streets of India. The cow is a holy animal in the Hindu religion, but stray cattle — mostly abandoned males — have been causing chaos in India. India has a whole lot of cattle — it is the second-largest producer of beef in the world and the largest producer of milk in the world.

☆ A fort in Montenegro that was a concentration camp during WWII was converted into a luxury resort starting at 500 euros a night
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A luxury resort in Montenegro opened to the public in April, starting at 500 euros a night. The Mamula Island Hotel used to be a former concentration camp in World War II. The new luxury hotel has angered some locals for converting the Austro-Hungarian fortress. But the remote hotel on Mamula Island has a dark history — it used to be an Italian concentration camp during World War II. But the government awarded the Swiss-Egyptian developer Orascom a 49-year lease, saying there were limited options for the future of the fort.

☆ Inside the world's largest rhino farm, which requires a private army to protect its 2,000 white rhinos, and is now for sale for at least $10 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( James Pasley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

John Hume has been breeding rhinos since 1993 and owns the world's largest rhino farm in South Africa. He fought a global ban on trading rhino horn, which would allow him to sell it to pay for his farm. For a minimum of $10 million, you can buy 2,000 white rhinos in South Africa. For years, he campaigned to make it legal to sell rhino horn — a substance more valuable than elephant ivory, cocaine, or gold. Without being able to sell rhino horn, the cost of running his ranch — including his sophisticated security system consisting of radar detection, helicopter patrols, and armed guards — finally became too much.

Search resuls for: "James Pasley"

25 mentions found