A “weird” river in the Himalayas may have pushed the peak of Mount Everest up by 164 feet (50 meters), scientists say.
According to a new study, a river roughly 46 miles (75 kilometers) from Everest was “captured” by another around 89,000 years ago. The erosion from this event carved away a huge gorge, leading to a loss of landmass that made the mountain experience a major growth spurt.
Think about the last time you wanted to make a change. How many of us, when seeking that spark of motivation, sit and wait for some external force to suddenly light a fire within us?
It’s a familiar scene: waiting for that one video, that one book, to be the catalyst for our grand ambitions.
It’s easy to say, “I really want to get in shape, but today’s just not the day,” or “I’ve got this business idea, but I’m not feeling it today,” or “I’d love to paint again, but the inspiration isn’t there.”
We’ve all been there. That looming task or dream sits on the horizon, but instead of diving in, we dawdle. Why? Because stepping out of our comfort zone is… well, uncomfortable.
That hesitation, that pull to avoid what’s challenging, isn’t just laziness or lack of discipline. It’s science.
Believing in yourself is the key to achieving your goals. When you think you can succeed, you’re more likely to take action and push forward. But when you doubt yourself, you tend to hold back or sabotage your efforts. You probably know this, and have experienced it too.
So how do you go about achieving it? And what does “believing in yourself” actually mean?
Simply put, it’s having faith that you can set meaningful goals and take steps over time to make them real.
It’s not about having sky-high confidence all the time or thinking you can snap your fingers to manifest anything instantly. It’s more about trusting that even with ups and downs, you’re able to gradually take control and move your life where you want it to go.
Few areas of the country are as steeped in history, architecture, culture, and outright revelry as New Orleans. It’s a tourist draw year-round. The compact French Quarter, boasting 500 eateries and 100 attractions, gained plaudits from a recent study naming the district the country’s most walkable.
That, of course, isn’t true for everyone—especially Americans with disabilities, mobility or otherwise. With the city set to host the Super Bowl on February 9, its eleventh, local advocates and leaders hope they can use the big game as a catalyst for change, and improve the city so that everyone can enjoy it.
More than 90,000 residents east of Atlanta were told to keep sheltering in place Monday a day after a chemical plant fire sent a massive plume of dark smoke high into the sky that could been seen for miles.
The haze and chemical smell had spread to Atlanta by Monday morning, prompting firefighters to use detectors to check the quality of air in various parts of the city, Mayor Andre Dickens said.
Closer to the source of the fire, officials said chlorine, a harmful irritant, had been detected in the air from the fire at the BioLab plant in Conyers, Georgia, the Rockdale County government said in statement early Monday. The plant is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of downtown Atlanta.
If you’re in the throes of building a company, you are likely not even thinking about what comes next. But now is also the time to start planning the long-term strategy for your exit. To one day pull off a successful—and profitable—business exit, there are four important steps.
Planning your small business exit strategy
1. Start planning early
Do you remember this quote from Mad Men? “The day you sign a client is the day you start losing them.” It’s not all that much different when you start a business. You know that your ownership or day-to-day management will come to an end someday; the question is whether or not you will be prepared for that day.
And there’s another truth that drives home the importance of this principle: You don’t get any mulligans with retirement. You will only get one chance at leaving your business, so you don’t want to be caught unaware when the time comes. Starting to plan five or even 10 years ahead of the date when you’d like to completely step away is about right.
When search engine optimization (SEO) was a new discipline, companies could toss up a piece of content, such as a blog post, that included word-for-word keywords and reap the benefits. As Google’s algorithm evolved and competitors began their own SEO efforts, companies then needed to tweak strategies, but they could still hire someone to churn out some cheap, keyword-laden content to score SEO wins. They could still post guest-written content without reviewing it for quality; they could use and be rewarded for various SEO gimmicks.
The fact is, this is no longer possible—not by a long shot. Here are four outdated SEO practices that no longer work, and what you need to do differently today to improve your website’s Google rankings.
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Visa, accusing the company of monopolizing debit network markets in violation of Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that Visa’s dominance in the debit network markets has allowed it to maintain a monopoly through exclusionary and anticompetitive conduct, undermining choice and innovation in payment systems.
According to the complaint, Visa controls over 60% of debit transactions in the United States, generating more than $7 billion in fees annually from processing these transactions. The Justice Department claims Visa illegally uses its dominance to stifle competition by imposing restrictive agreements on merchants and banks, penalizing them for using alternative debit networks. These practices allegedly protect Visa’s market position and prevent the growth of smaller, lower-priced competitors.
“We allege that Visa has unlawfully amassed the power to extract fees that far exceed what it could charge in a competitive market,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Merchants and banks pass along those costs to consumers, either by raising prices or reducing quality or service. As a result, Visa’s unlawful conduct affects not just the price of one thing – but the price of nearly everything.”
A federal court in the Northern District of Illinois has permanently enjoined Sir Michael Joseph Davenport, a tax preparer from Joliet, Illinois, and his company, My Unity Tax Financial & Tax Preparation LLC (My Unity Tax), from preparing federal tax returns for others.
Davenport is also barred from owning or operating any tax return preparation businesses in the future. The permanent injunction was agreed to by Davenport and his business.
The civil complaint filed in this case alleges that Davenport and My Unity Tax prepared false and fraudulent federal tax returns with the intent to reduce customers’ tax liabilities or obtain undeserved tax refunds. The complaint claims that Davenport and his company regularly reported fictitious businesses, minimal or no income, and fabricated or manipulated expenses on customers’ tax returns to fraudulently reduce taxable income. According to the complaint, many of these businesses did not exist.
One of the upsides of running your own business is that you can set your own schedule and adjust it as needed. However, one of the downsides of being your own boss is that it’s not always easy to take time off. “You must plan ahead — not only for your relaxing trip but also for any work that needs to be done when you’re away,” explained DeAnna Spoerl, co-owner and director of client services at Bear Icebox Communications.
While this process requires diligent planning and thought, it is possible — and important — to take a break, for both you and your company. Here’s how you can take a worry-free vacation as a small business owner.
How to take a vacation as a small business owner
Follow these tips to ensure your business is taken care of without sacrificing your necessary R&R.
1. When possible, plan vacations around slow periods.
Dispatches From The Front 