We're almost halfway through the 2018 NFL season, and the league still feels crowded.

While a clear group of four has established themselves as the best in football, the remainder of the playoff picture still feels like a complete mystery, with teams playing above expectations looking to keep the good times rolling, and those underperforming hoping to find a fix in the second half of the year.

And of course, at the bottom of the league, there are a few teams that are already looking ahead to the 2019 NFL Draft.

Take a look below to see where each NFL team stands heading into Week 8.

32. Buffalo Bills

Record: 2-5

Last week: 27th

Week 7 result: Lost to the Colts, 37-5

Week 8 opponent: vs. New England Patriots

One thing to know: The Bills quarterback situation remains an absolute disaster. Recently signed backup Derek Anderson was hardly an improvement over Nathan Peterman, throwing three interceptions and losing a fumble in his debut for Buffalo. Lacking a better alternative, he'll get the start again this week.

31. San Francisco 49ers

Record: 1-6

Last week: 29th

Week 7 result: Lost to the Rams, 39-10

Week 8 opponent: at Arizona Cardinals

One thing to know: After losing a heartbreaker to the Packers on Monday night in Week 6, the 49ers came out flat on Sunday. This team could have something when Jimmy Garoppolo returns next year, but until then, they're better off playing for a high draft pick.

30. Oakland Raiders

Record: 1-5

Last week: 32nd

Week 7 result: Bye

Week 8 opponent: vs. Indianapolis Colts

One thing to know: Head coach Jon Gruden is making good on reports that he planned a "fire sale" for the team, most recently shipping away wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a first round pick. Unlike his decision to trade away Khalil Mack before the season, this time, many think the Raiders got the better end of the deal.

• "Reigns: Game of Thrones" is a strategy game that lets players rule Westeros from the Iron Throne with one of nine rulers.
  
• Much like the show, the ruler's decision making is constantly put to the test, and mismanaging the kingdom could lead to death, or worse.
• With nearly 30 different endings, the game offers some fun ideas on where the series might be headed in its final season.

The final season of "Game of Thrones" isn't due out until next year, so I've decided to bide my time by playing "Reigns: Game of Thrones." Devolver Digital's strategy game for smartphones and PC is a great match for the witty dialogue and political intrigue of "Game of Thrones" television series and it rewards dedicated fans for their knowledge of the show.

"Reigns" lets you select one of nine leaders from the series to rule the Iron Throne for as long as you can. Whether your chose Jon Snow, Cersei Lannister, or a another ruler, the king or queen is faced with nonstop decisions that impact four factors in the kingdom: military power, faith in religion, national wealth, and the people's morale. Decisions are made with a simple swap to the left or the right, but as the game goes on, consequences can quickly become dire.

If the leader dies their reign ends, and you'll need to choose a new leader to start from the beginning. In order to be successful the leader must balance all four factors; letting any one factor run empty or grow unchecked for too long will lead to the ruler being assassinated, or worse.

While playing "Reigns: Game of Thrones" doesn't require any prior knowledge of the series, those who aren't fully caught up with the world of Westeros should be ready for major spoilers. The game is set after the most recent season of "Game of Thrones" and is filled with references to major and minor events from the show thus far. Each ruler has their own perks to reflect their personality on the show, and playing to their strengths can unlock secrets and special abilities. While the game takes some liberties to place the different rulers on the Iron Throne, the storylines and dialogue from the game provides some fun ideas on where the series might be headed during its upcoming final season.

Every playthrough of "Reigns" offers a different experience, even when you pick the same ruler. Each time you start over the order of events will shift ever so slightly; changing your responses will open new paths in the story and reveal familiar characters. "Reigns" has 29 different endings for its nine rulers, ranging from gruesome deaths to total triumphs. There are another 49 "royal deeds" to accomplish during the course of the story, adding extra goals to every playthrough.

"Reign: Game of Thrones" came out for iOS, Android and PC on October 18 and is the third game in the "Reigns" series. The first game "Reigns," and the follow-up "Reigns: Your Majesty" feature the same style of gameplay without the extra "Game of Thrones" flavor.

SEE ALSO: "Reigns" is a fun smartphone game that combines Tinder with "Game of Thrones"

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According to Harvard Medical School, our bodies need an optimal level of liquids in order for our kidneys to adequately process waste, our temperature to stay regulated, and for our cells to function normally.

But even though all people need to hydrate, the manner in which some people choose to do so varies. Although some people believe you should drink eight glasses of water a day, others claim swapping traditional H2O for other beverages like sports drinks is a more effective way to maintain the body’s fluid levels.

Read more: Here's how to find out how much water you need to drink

It turns out some of these common beliefs about what’s best for keeping the body hydrated aren’t actually true.

Below is a list of some practices that you might think are helping your body’s hydration levels but actually aren't doing much at all. 

Drinking beverages that taste refreshing aren't necessarily hydrating you.

It turns out thirst isn't actually the best way to assess how hydrated you are. Brian Palmer, a science writer for Slate explained that people tend to crave drinks like lemonade and soda when the weather is hot because consuming them has an instantly recognizable physical effect. He cited research from Japan in the 1960's that stated the acidity level in these beverages stimulates saliva production, which gives our mouth the feeling that our thirst is quenched. 

Further evidence presented by a study in The American Journal of Physiology suggests that drinking soft drinks can actually worsen dehydration. This is because the sugars and caffeine contained in these drinks place additional stress on the bloodstream and kidney function.

Read more: 3 kinds of drinks that actually dehydrate you — and why

So next time you're that refreshing, cold soda, try adding some fruit to sparkling water instead. It can provide the same thirst-quenching sensation while hydrating you much more efficiently than a soft drink.

Chugging large quantities of water isn't hydrating you any more than if you sip it slowly.

It can seem like you're being proactive by gulping down a large amount of water before beginning some extraneous exercise.

But Dr. Leonard Smith, a surgeon and medical advisor for the University of Miami's Department of Integrative Medicine, told Mel magazine last year that drinking a lot of water at once is a big mistake when it comes to hydrating. The main problem is when the body takes in too much liquid at once, it causes the blood to dilute and the kidneys to process liquids much faster. When this happens your body ends up urinating much sooner than it needs to, and all that extra water you drank goes to waste.

In fact, drinking too much water at once can even be dangerous because it can lead to a condition called hyponatremia, which is a severe sodium deficiency caused by excessive amounts of water in the body.

The solution? Drink water, yes. But drink smaller amounts of it throughout the day — ideally, before you get to the point where you're so thirsty you feel like you need to chug an entire liter of it.

Swapping your regular water for sports drinks isn't necessary unless you're working out all the time.

A common belief is that sports drinks hydrate you better than regular water. Many of us have seen advertisements featuring our favorite athletes dousing themselves with sports drinks as if they contain liquid powers that will charge them into some kind of superhumans.

In some ways, these drinks do have special qualities to them because of their electrolyte content. But to say they are more hydrating than water because of this doesn't make sense. This is because electrolytes in sports drinks themselves do not hydrate you. Instead, they help your body regulate the amount of water it contains. And interestingly enough research from Canada in 2014 found that milk was more effective at hydrating people than sports drinks.

This is likely because the main purpose of sports drinks is to replenish the body's electrolytes that are lost through sweating. As noted above it can be harmful when your body's sodium levels get too low. But the ingredient in your Gatorade that actually hydrates you is actually just regular water.

So if you're not sweating as much as Serena Williams or Lebron James on a regular basis, the extra benefits that come with these sports drinks' for hydration purposes aren't really necessary.

Most people simply aren't losing that many electrolytes on a regular basis, and according to Healthline, the sugars in sports drinks can cause more harm than good for those who don't need them.

After being introduced to Tyler Baltierra and Catelynn Lowell on the MTV series "16 & Pregnant," fans have been able to follow their journey as a couple on "Teen Mom OG."And viewers have watched them go through a lot.

From middle school sweethearts to reality TV stars, here's a timeline of Baltierra and Lowell's relationship.

In 2005, Baltierra and Lowell started dating.

According to their book "Conquering Chaos,"Baltierra and Lowell met in seventh grade when they were in the same music class. They were both around 15-years-old.

In 2008, Lowell became pregnant when she was 16 years old.

When Lowell and Baltierra joined the cast of MTV's "16 & Pregnant," they decided they weren't prepared to raise a child and made the difficult decision to place their baby up for adoption.

In May 2009, their daughter Carly was born and placed with a couple named Brandon and Teresa Davis, who have chosen for their daughter not to appear on the show.

"Teen Mom" premiered in 2009.

MTV brought Baltierra and Lowell back for a new series that also included fellow "16 & Pregnant" stars Farrah Abraham, Amber Portwood, and Maci Bookout.

Boasting over 36,000 locations in over 100 countries, McDonald's has fashioned itself as one of the world’s most ubiquitous brands. That doesn't mean you'll find the same menu at every McDonald's, though. Instead, the fast-food chain seems to carefully tailor its menus to cater to the diverse communities it serves.

Staples like the Big Mac still remain at some locations, but unexpected twists on existing fare — along with surprising new additions — have become the norm in McDonald’s locations the world over. 

Before digging into your tried-and-true Quarter Pounder, take a moment to consider some of these popular staples available to McDonald’s enthusiasts around the world.

China and Hong Kong's "Taro Pie" could make you rethink dessert.

A notable twist on one of its most classic menu choices, McDonald’s locations in China and Hong Kong have long offered a neon-colored alternative to its famous apple pie. Deep fried and filled with taro — a root vegetable popular in Asian cuisine — along with a gooey filling meant to resemble ube, or purple yam, it’s a far cry from the 50-year-old pie Americans have grown up with, with reviewers describing the taste as being like a "sweetened" sweet potato.

India's "Maharaja Mac" is the Big Mac's not-too-distant cousin.

During an international expansion in the '90s, McDonald's faced an Indian subcontinent whose population largely didn’t eat beef meant either abandoning the restaurant’s most iconic item or adapting it to fit local needs — and the latter choice, as we now know, reigned supreme.

Though it might look close enough to a Big Mac, the Maharaja Mac is comprised of different ingredients. Made with a chicken patty, much of the Maharaja Mac remains familiar to Big Mac enthusiasts, save for a leaner patty and a healthy heaping of extra vegetables.

No one knows the convenience of the McRib like Germany does.

Though the McRib was invented in America, it's not available there year round, but McDonald’s serves the cult sandwich year-round in Germany. Within the McRib is a barbeque-drenched pork patty,  though there are no actual pork ribs to be found.

• Aurora Cannabis started trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday.
• It wasn't the windfall investors hoped. Shares slid close to 15% throughout the day before recovering as the market closed.
• Analysts and investors aren't worried, however. Most say the volatility is to be expected in an emerging sector like cannabis. 

Aurora Cannabis joined a select list of Canadian cannabis firms when it started trading on the New York Stock Exchange today.

It wasn't the windfall investors had hoped. Shares fell close to 15% through the day before recovering as the market closed.

Scoring a listing on a US-based exchange is coveted for Canadian cultivators (known as licensed producers, or LPs), since cannabis remains a federally controlled substance under US law. Canada legalized cannabis federally on October 17. 

The volatility mirrors Aurora's peers in the cannabis sector. Tilray and Canopy Growth, which already trade on US exchanges, fell around 2% on Tuesday.

Analysts and investors say they aren't worried about the recent sell-off, however. Most believe the volatility is to be expected in an emerging sector like cannabis — and could even present an opportunity to those who can stomach it. 

Canadian cannabis companies got smacked by a report that gave the sector a non-investment grade rating 

David Kideckel, an analyst at the Toronto-based investment bank AltaCorp Capital, said the cannabis stock sell-off could be due to a recent report released by credit-ratings agency DBRS Ltd.

The report, released Monday, gave the Canadian cannabis industry a B-rating, or non-investment grade rating.

"We view yesterday’s sell-off as a consequence of DBRS’s bearish report. While cautious in its stance, we are not surprised given the volatile nature of the cannabis sector," Kideckel wrote in a note.

The DBRS report said that there's much to be determined "regarding consumer reception, competitive behavior, regulation, taxation, and international market potential," in the cannabis industry. 

The report estimates that the adult-use cannabis industry will hit $4 billion to $6 billion in annual sales, which is still much less revenue than Canada's alcohol and tobacco sectors.

"For now, cannabis is still a relatively small-scale subsector within the context of the consumer products industry and the economy in general." analysts at DBRS said in the report.

The analysts pointed to the lack of historical data to use as a benchmark to gauge the sector's performance and highlighted the lack of positive cash flow among the publicly-traded LPs. 

But DBRS isn't totally bearish on cannabis. As the industry settles — and more data becomes available — DBRS said the "risk profile" of the cannabis industry could "improve significantly" especially for LPs that develop strong branding around their products. 

Kideckel, the AltaCorp analyst, said that for cannabis companies to achieve an investment grade credit rating, "predictable cash flow and consumer behavior pattern data will be required in addition to strong branding and international growth opportunities by the LP’s themselves.

Overall, AltaCorp remains bullish about the cannabis sector, with the caveat that it will experience volatility in the short and medium-term.

A lot of investors aren't worried 

Some analysts highlighted Aurora as one of the LPs that may win out in the long term.

Analysts at the investment bank GMP Securities said in a note that Aurora's product successes in the first days of Canada's legal market make the LP "stand out" above the competition.

"The first day of recreational sales in Canada appears to have been a success highlighted by the long lines and enthusiasm from shoppers," the analysts said. "Seeing cannabis shoppers wait in lines as opposed to take the traditional easy illegal supply route is refreshing and bodes well for the recreational market in Canada."

Read more: Some of the hottest companies in the booming cannabis sector are going on hiring sprees as Canada's legal marijuana market opens

According to some investors, the cannabis sector is still in its "early innings," so this volatility is to be expected.

"We are seeing high-profile companies, in addition to institutional investors, waking up to opportunities in the space," Ben Kovler, the CEO of the publicly traded Green Thumb Industries, previously told Business Insider.

Blue-chip companies like Molson Coors and Constellation Brands have pursued deals to create marijuana-infused beverages for Canadian consumers. Coca-Cola is also reportedly eyeing a deal with Aurora to produce beverages infused with cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

Read more of Business Insider's cannabis industry coverage:

• The top 12 venture-capital firms making deals in the booming cannabis industry that's set to skyrocket to $75 billion
• The CEO of the biggest cannabis company in the US reveals what's next following a $682 million acquisition
• Hedge fund legend Leon Cooperman is investing in the marijuana industry — and it's another sign the sector is heating up

SEE ALSO: One of the largest cannabis companies is going public on the New York Stock Exchange

AND MORE: Canada has officially legalized marijuana for all adults

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• A caravan of approximately 7,000 Central American migrants has made headlines across the US as it marches toward the US border.
• The massive and unplanned caravan comes at a fever pitch for deteriorating conditions in Central America and has earned unprecedented attention.
• It's likely the largest caravan of its kind, and started all on its own as people in the Northern Triangle countries flee their homes for a better life in the US.

A caravan of approximately 7,000 Central American immigrants is headed toward the US border in a journey that has so far spanned three countries, earned several public hits from President Donald Trump, and become a major political flashpoint for November's midterm elections.

Though this caravan has garnered a lot of attention, it isn't the first — thousands of Central American migrants have been marching in caravans to escape their countries and come to the US for years. The most recent was in April.

But this caravan may be the largest of its kind, and it keeps growing as more migrants join the journey as they make their way through southern Mexico. Here's what makes this time different.

It happened on its own

In the past, non-profits that help immigrants organized caravans as a way to draw attention to the treacherous journey people have to take to come to the US. But this one started spontaneously.

Rodrigo Abeja, a lead organizer with volunteer group Pueblo Sin Fronteras, or People Without Borders, told The Washington Post that this caravan was the first that wasn't spurred by groups like his, but driven by desperate circumstances in Central America.

"For the first time a caravan didn't need to be organized by NGOs," Abeja said. "They organized themselves and decided to leave their countries, their communities."

The members of the caravan mostly come from the Central American countries known as the Northern Triangle: Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. This collective region is considered to be one of the most dangerous in the world, with common failures among their national systems perpetuating impossible living conditions.

A combination of crippling poverty, deadly gang violence, and corrupt federal infrastructures pushed an unprecedented number of migrants to brave the several thousand-mile journey.

Twenty-eight-year-old Carlos Leonidas Garcia Urbina from Tocoa, Honduras, told the Associated Press he was cutting the grass in his father's yard when he heard about the caravan.

He says he dropped the shears right there and ran to join it with just 500 lempiras ($20) in his pocket.

"We are going to the promised land," he said.

It's the largest

Mexican advocacy groups held an annual caravan for the past several years around Easter to draw attention to the plight of Central American migrants, but the Associated Press reported that the gatherings have grown in size and furor since Trump's 2016 campaign and election.

This time, what started as a spontaneous movement of a group of 160 people in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula grew to more than 1,600 by the time it reached the Guatemalan border as nearby migrants heard about the caravan and jumped at the chance to reach the US border.

"No one is capable of organizing this many people. Nobody," Pueblo Sin Fronteras organizer Irineo Mujica told the Associated Press. "It’s an exodus."

The last caravan to catch America's attention was a group of roughly 200 migrants who traveled through Mexico in April to seek asylum at the border. Trump painted the relatively small group as a major threat, saying they represented an "attack on the sovereignty of this nation."

It's gotten unprecedented attention

As the latest instance of Central Americans fleeing unbearable conditions for the hope of building a new life in America, this caravan first received the same condemnation Trump has directed at previous immigration movements.

Trump has spewed baseless ideas about members of the caravan as it has progressed toward the US, claiming in a Monday tweet that "criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed in" to the caravan's population, and cast the movement as a "National Emergy." On Tuesday, he admitted he didn't have any proof there were Middle Easterners in the caravan.

Trump also blamed the caravan on immigration law passed by Democrats to ensure voters "remember the midterms," and characterized the group as "people illegally coming," though they had not yet reached the American border to break any US laws.

Though these tweets were some of the latest instances Trump sought to blame Democrats for illegal immigration, data show apprehensions of people crossing to the United States illegally from Mexico were at their highest in March since December 2016, before Trump took office.

Trump also threatened to cut off aid to Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador because they "were not able to do the job of stopping people from leaving their country." He has also threatened to have the US military "close" the border.

Though Mexico softened in dealing with the migrants, their legal fate is still unclear. Many in the much smaller caravan in April ended up applying for asylum once they reached the US, and their cases are proceeding through the system.

By Tuesday evening, the caravan still had at least 1,000 miles to travel before they reach the US border.

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This is a preview of a research report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about Business Insider Intelligence, click here.

Regtech solutions seemed to offer the solution to financial institutions' (FIs) compliance woes when they first came to prominence around 24 months ago, gaining support from regulators and investors alike. 

However, many of the companies offering these solutions haven't scaled as might have been expected from the initial hype, and have failed to follow the trajectory of firms in other segments of fintech.

This unexpected inertia in the regtech industry is likely to resolve over the next 12-18 months as other factors come into play that shift FIs' approach to regtech solutions, and as the companies offering them evolve. External factors driving this change include regulatory support of regtech solutions, and consultancies offering more help to FIs wanting to sift through solutions. Startups offering regtech solutions will also play a part by partnering with each other, forming industry organizations, and taking advantage of new opportunities.

This report from Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, provides a brief overview of the current global financial regulatory compliance landscape, and the regtech industry's position within it. It then details the major drivers that will shift the dial on FIs' adoption of regtech over the next 12-18 months, as well as those that will propel startups offering regtech solutions to new heights. Finally, it outlines what impact these drivers will have, and gives insight into what the global regtech industry will look like by 2020.

Here are some of the key takeaways:

• Regulatory compliance is still a significant issue faced by global FIs. In 2018 alone, EU regulations MiFID II and PSD2 have come into effect, bringing with them huge handbooks and gigantic reporting requirements. 
• Regtech startups boast solutions that can ease FIs' compliance burden — but they are struggling to scale. 
• Some changes expected to drive greater adoption of these solutions in the next 12 to 18 months are: the ongoing evolution of startups' business models, increasing numbers of partnerships, regulators' promotion of regtech, changing attitudes to the segment among FIs, and consultancies helping to facilitate adoption.
• FIs will actively be using solutions from regtech startups by 2020, and startups will be collaborating in an organized fashion with each other and with FIs. Global regulators will have adopted regtech themselves, while continuing to act as advocates for the industry.

In full, the report:

• Reviews the major changes expected to hit the regtech segment in the next 12 to 18 months.
• Examines the drivers behind these changes, and how the proliferation of regtech will improve compliance for FIs.
• Provides our view on what the future of the regtech industry looks like through 2020.
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It's been more than five years since the NBC sitcom "The Office" aired its final episode, but it's remained wildly popular, especially as it continues to stream on Netflix.

Even though the show has ended, these fun tidbits about the beloved series can help you to reminisce. 

Here are some surprising things you probably didn't know about "The Office."

Adam Scott auditioned for the role of Jim Halpert.

It's hard to imagine "Parks and Recreation" without Adam Scott as Ben Wyatt, but he could have been in a different mockumentary series instead.

Scott actually auditioned for the role of Jim, and his audition is pretty great — but ultimately, John Krasinski scored the gig.

And Seth Rogen auditioned for Dwight.

Yep, Seth Rogen's audition tape is also out there. As talented as he is, it's pretty much impossible to imagine anyone but Rainn Wilson in that role.

Michael and Oscar's kiss was totally improvised.

As Oscar Nuñez told AV Club, when Steve Carell kissed him in "Gay Witch Hunt,"it was all Carell's doing.

"He wasn't supposed to kiss me, we were just supposed to hug, and he kept hugging me. And that particular take he came in really close, and I'm like, ‘Where is he going with this?'" Nuñez said. "‘Oh, dear, yes here we go.' And then I'm just thinking, ‘Oh God, nobody laugh so we can use it.' And they didn't, and it worked perfectly. It was a lot of fun."

• Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker recounted his two meetings with President Donald Trump during an interview with The New York Times.
• In 1987, Trump ran across a New York City street to introduce himself to Volcker.
• Later, Volcker had lunch with Trump to suggest the then-reality TV star use "The Apprentice" to raise money for charity.
• Trump did not follow Volcker's idea.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker's longest meeting with President Donald Trump was not an Oval Office meeting to discuss policy, according to a new report, but rather an unsuccessful attempt to get Trump to be more charitable.

In an interview with the New York Times' Andrew Ross Sorkin about his new memoir, Volcker recounted two meetings with the now-president. They both took place well before Trump got anywhere close to the Oval Office.

The first encounter with Trump came in 1987, when the then-real estate investor yelled at Volcker from across a New York City street and then rushed across to shake the central banker's hand. Volcker had by that time already left the Fed.

The only other meeting, Volcker told the Times, came during Trump's run as the host of the reality TV show "The Apprentice." The former Fed Chairman said he tried to convince Trump to use the "Apprentice" platform to raise money for charity.

"We had a very nice lunch, and he said, ‘Interesting idea,’ but put me off otherwise," Volcker told the Times.

According to Sorkin, Volcker's suggestion was ultimately unsuccessful, though the celebrity edition of "The Apprentice" did see contestants donate winnings to a charity of their choice.

Outside of the two encounters, Trump has not asked Volcker for advice on monetary or economic policy as Barack Obama did. And the former Fed Chairman isn't particularly fond of Trump, according to the Times.

But Trump did speak to a class of people left behind economically by globalization, Volcker admitted, albeit "in kind of an erratic way."

Volcker also recounted a tense meeting with President Ronald Reagan prior to the 1984 election during which the president's chief of staff ordered the then-Fed chair not to raise rates, a move that echoes Trump's current attacks on the politically independent Fed.

Read the full interview with Volcker over at The New York Times »

SEE ALSO: Trump's attacks on the Fed may be intense, but they're nothing compared to a wild new story about Ronald Reagan from former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker

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• President Donald Trump admitted on Tuesday that he has no proof of 'Middle Easterners' among a caravan of migrants headed to the US from Central America.
• Trump claimed on Monday that "criminals and unknown Middle Easterners" were "mixed in" with the caravan, with Vice President Mike Pence later echoing his assertions in a live interview.
• An estimated 7,200 migrants from Latin America are headed toward the US, fleeing rampant poverty and violence in their home countries. They had reached Hitula, Mexico as of Tuesday.

President Donald Trump conceded in a Tuesday afternoon press conference he has no proof to back up his and Vice President Mike Pence's repeated assertions that "unknown Middle Easterners" were among a caravan of migrants heading to the US from Central America.

Trump said “there’s no proof of anything, but there could very well be"when pressed by CNN reporter Jim Acosta for concrete evidence that people of Middle Eastern descent or that suspected terrorists were among the group.

After initially tweeting that claim on Monday that "criminals and unknown Middle Easterners" were "mixed in" among the estimated 7,000 migrants headed to the US, Trump doubled down later that day, telling reporters "if take your cameras and search ... you're gonna find MS-13, you're gonna find Middle Eastern, you're gonna find everything."

In a Monday interview with The Washington Post's Robert Costa, Vice President Mike Pence echoed Trump, calling it "inconceivable there are not people of Middle Eastern descent in a crowd of more than 7,000 people advancing toward our border."

Trump's denial came after White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump "absolutely" had proof of Middle Eastern people in the caravan, with both she and Pence's spokeswoman Alyssa Farah emphasizing Department of Homeland Security statistics stating that an average of 10 "suspected terrorists" a day were apprehended by Border Patrol in 2017.>

The migrants in the caravan are mainly fleeing El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, three nations riddled with gang violence, corruption, and poor economic conditions to immigrate or seek asylum in the United States. As of Tuesday, they had reached the city of Huixtla, Mexico, about 1,100 miles from the US border.

SEE ALSO: Here's how a caravan of 7,200 migrants crossed 3 countries in 1 week

SEE ALSO: Why the caravan of 7,000 migrants is marching to the US border

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• People.ai raised $30 million in funding from Andreessen Horowitz and other VC firms.
• It's the second startup that CEO Oleg Rogynskyy has founded.
• The process of building a succesfull startup gets more familiar the more you do it, just like a video game, Rogynskyy reckons.

Starting a company is like playing a Super Mario game.

At least that’s what Oleg Rogynskyy, founder and CEO of artificial intelligence startup People.ai, believes.

“The more times you go through the initial levels, the more comfortable you get,” he tells Business Insider. 

Rogynskyy is progressing through an exciting level with People.ai, which he started in February 2016. Before that, he founded Semantria, a startup that analyzes the emotions behind social media posts and which was acquired by Lexalytics. 

In the last two years, People.ai has grown to just over 100 employees and acquired over 50 large enterprise customers. And on Tuesday, the artificial intelligence software startup announced a $30 million series B funding led by Andreessen Horowitz. Rogynskyy said fundraising only took four days, but also “a couple months of homework.”

Peter Levine, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz and one of the first investors in software development platform GitHub, also joined the People.ai board.

“He’s intimately familiar with the problem we’re solving,” Rogynskyy said of Levine. “He was probably the ultimate guy to have this conversation with. We went to the same college together, we had a lot in common.”

The inspiration behind People.ai came from Rogynskyy’s experience as a salesperson when he started his career. Much of his time involved the tedious work of maintaining and updating the Salesforce customer relationship management platform.

“Our COO literally grounded me for a week and had me update Salesforce and spend the week cleaning Salesforce,” Rogynskyy said.

Taking AI to the next level

That needed to change, Rogynskyy thought. People.ai uses machine learning software to gain insights from the behavioral data of employees, improve sales and marketing, and automate time-intensive tasks, like how Rogynskyy had to update Salesforce. Rogynskyy predicts that data entry alone can take up to one day a week.

From previous experience, Rogynskyy says the most valuable lesson he learned was focus — focusing on just one type of customer. So People.ai narrowed its focus on enterprise customers.

He's also getting the knack for other challenges and potential pitfalls in founding a company, like creating an efficient hiring process and building an executive team. 

“You need to start directing and aligning your team to execute the work,” Rogynskyy said. “The challenge with having the time is correlated with how mature your team is to execute the work under your guidance.”

Going forward, People.ai hopes to go public three years from now. Like a Super Mario Game, Rogynskyy is focused on jumping into the next level of artificial intelligence. Within five to 10 years, Rogynskyy believes, artificial intelligence will allow people to free up two days out of their week to focus on creative projects and spend more time with their families.

“Machine learning AI is the software of the future,” Rogynskyy said.  “I don’t think we’ll be writing code for the next few years afterwards … We believe there’s a lot of automation that can improve the quality of life.”

SEE ALSO: Oracle's Larry Ellison says Amazon’s database is like a semi-autonomous car: ‘You get in, you start driving, you die’

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• The UK government will step up efforts to protect businesses from cyber attacks, minister David Lidington writes for Business Insider.
• The National Cyber Security Centre — set up in 2016 — has defended the UK from over 1,100 cyber attacks.
• However, the threat of cyber attacks is not going away, and a majority of businesses are not sufficiently equipped to fight the threat of cybercriminals and hacktivists, Lidington warns.
• The government will offer businesses a "toolkit" for defending itself from cyberwarfare. 
• "Cyber attacks are not going away. It is right that we invest in cybersecurity start-ups and support the wider industry," Theresa May's de facto deputy writes.

The UK is at the forefront of a worldwide digital revolution. Most of us have embraced digital technology, and depend on it more and more in our daily lives, both at home and at work. Our ever-increasing levels of internet access are driving our digital industry which is now growing faster than any other part of the UK’s economy.

However, all this growth brings with it ongoing and developing dangers from hostile states, "hacktivists" and cybercriminals.

Cybersecurity is one of my main priorities, as well as the government’s, and we are committed to making the UK the safest place to live and do business online. In 2016, recognising the need for a comprehensive approach, we launched the National Cyber Security Strategy to help us achieve this and to build our resilience to cyber attacks. Central to this was the creation of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). It has brought together the very best experts and intelligence to fight online attackers — and defended the UK from more than 1,100 cyber attacks.

This morning, I will be opening trading at the London Stock Exchange and meeting business leaders before their first cybersecurity master class. I welcome their engagement — and I am grateful to the financial services sector for developing CBEST, a successful model which tests and improves our ability to find and act against potential threats. Last week, I announced GBEST — a new government scheme inspired by this model which will help protect the public sector from highly sophisticated and persistent cyber attacks.

Government has learned a lot from the business world — and I hope that some companies will recognise they can learn from each other, too. This year’s Government Cyber Breaches Survey revealed that only 30% of businesses have a board member responsible for cybersecurity. Importantly, a significant proportion of companies are still not adopting the basic precautions needed to protect themselves from the large amount of low-level cyber threats that all organisations face.

This is why we are re-focusing our efforts towards driving long-term, cultural change. We are helping boards to gain a better understanding of the cyber risks they face, so they can take the appropriate action. Later this year, I will be writing to all FTSE 350 Chairs to highlight the new Board Toolkit being developed by the NCSC, highlight our 10 Steps to Cyber Security document, and promote the Cyber Essentials scheme, which helps those in industry to take simple steps that can prevent most high volume, low sophistication attacks.

Cyber attacks are not going away. It is right that we invest in cybersecurity start-ups and support the wider industry. This effort is paying off as our world-leading cybersecurity industry is making an enormous contribution — generating more than £5 billion to our economy.

The industry is benefiting from strong and unique support from government, including specialist expertise and world-leading academic institutions. These are providing access to vital funding, business support and testing facilities. There has never been a better time to invest in our high-quality and home-grown cybersecurity start-ups and emerging businesses – of which there are now over 800 companies across the UK.

Their invaluable work will help us all better understand the scale of the challenge we face — and help build up our defences to enable the UK to be the safest place to live and do business online.

David Lidington is the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He has been the MP for Aylesbury since 1992. 

SEE ALSO: A shadowy group spent £257,000 on Facebook ads asking people to drive a knife into Theresa May's Brexit plan

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• NASA astronauts have one of the coolest jobs out there: a job that lets you work in space.
• But becoming an astronaut isn't easy — candidates train for at least two years to become fully qualified and the work is physically demanding. 
• In the video above, we spoke with NASA astronaut Doug Hurley about what it takes to earn one of the most coveted jobs around.

Following is a transcript of the video.

Douglas Hurley piloted the final flight of the Space Shuttle program, in July 2011 and will be among the first to fly in SpaceX's Crew Dragon in 2019. Here's what their training program is like.

Douglas Hurley: Coming from the military, at that time I'd been in the military about 12 or 13 years when I was selected, so you know, coming to NASA from the military as far as going into another training program is fairly similar. I think NASA took some lessons learned from military training, especially Flight School for me, was very much an analog to the kind of training we had here.

To become a fully qualified astronaut, candidates train for about 2 years. It can be extremely physically demanding. 

Hurley: My first six-hour run in the EMU, the space suit, was probably physically, the most challenging thing I've done here. It's a pressurized suit. You're working with gloves that don't exactly fit you very well. You're doing a lot of work with your hands, almost entirely for six hours, you're working with your hands and arms, so that was extremely physically challenging I think, from start to finish. By the time you're done with a six-hour NBL run, you're pretty well exhausted.

Astronauts also undergo extreme mental challenges.

Hurley: The psychological challenge, I think for a lot of us, you know, we come from very high-energy, high-workload, high-tempo type jobs and we're always going and doing things and working for that next goal. So I think psychologically, mentally, getting through that part of it is, I think, for most of us, pretty challenging. You know, year after year working hard to be assignable to a spaceflight and then actually getting one, it is, I think for me, it was psychologically the most challenging thing that I've dealt with maybe in my entire professional life.

Being under constant pressure isn't always bad. It helps astronauts learn how to stay calm under pressure.

Hurley: I think it's just over the course of time, you get to that point where you know the best way to deal with these things is to try to take the emotion and the human aspect of being nervous out of the equation, because in the end, it doesn't really help you solve the problem. And I think the other part of it is, it's just a case of you do it repetitively enough in simulations that I think you get to a point where you not only trust yourself, but you trust your crewmates and you trust the folks on the ground, that together, everybody kinda keeps a cool head and you work through the problem.

So what does it take to become an astronaut?

Hurley: I think, by and large, the first trait is someone who is willing to do anything for the team, you know a team player. Obviously other things that I think are very helpful, is you need to be proficient. You need to know your job. You need to keep a cool head. You need to kinda look at the problem pragmatically, but I think the biggest thing, by far in my opinion, is someone who is willing to do whatever it takes for the good of the team to make the mission successful.

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• A new study from University of Chicago and Rice University researchers shows an uptick in fatal car crashes after Uber and Lyft launched in a city. 
• Prior to the launch of ride-hailing services, fatal traffic deaths hit their lowest number in half a century in 2010, when Uber first began offering rides in San Francisco. 
• The authors of the forthcoming research hope to influence the rhetoric surrounding the ride-hailing debate that's consuming some of the US' largest cities, including New York. 

In the years before Uber and Lyft started popping up in cities across the United States, deadly car accidents were at record lows.

By 2010, just before the ride-hailing services began to expand en masse, the total number of traffic fatalities sank to 32,885 nationwide, the lowest number since 1949, according to government data. But once Uber and Lyft began aggressively expanding, the authors of a yet-to-be-published study have found, those fatal accidents began to slowly rise once again.

"The arrival of ridesharing is associated with an increase of 2-3% in the number of motor vehicle fatalities and fatal accidents," researchers John Barrios of the University of Chicago along with Yael Hochberg and Livia Hanyi Yi of Rice University, write in a draft of their paper, which is in the preliminary stages of publication. 

To examine the effect of ride-hailing on traffic safety, the researchers first took official statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and overlaid them with the dates Uber or Lyft began operating in a specific city. The authors then looked at accident rates in those cities per vehicle miles traveled (VMT).

Not surprisingly, VMT increased dramatically once Uber launched in San Francisco in 2010, quickly followed by other competitors, thanks in part to the miles drivers travel between the end of one fare and picking up another passenger. In New York, a study found this year, drivers travel an average of 2.8 miles between fares.

"Using the staggered introduction of ridesharing across U.S. cities, we show that its introduction in a metropolitan area leads to an economically meaningful increase in overall motor vehicle fatalities," the paper says. "This increase is consistent with acknowledged macro trends in motor vehicle accidents."

To be sure, the study is concerned with total vehicle traffic in a given city and time, so its possible that the accidents are not related to any ride-hailing driver. The researchers add that it "may be too soon to tell whether the effect we document is a short-term adjustment or a longer-term pattern."

In a statement, Lyft pushed back against the study's findings. 

"This study is deeply flawed, from the problematic methodology to its unjustified conclusions," a spokesperson told Business Insider. "Numerous studies have shown that rideshare has reduced DUIs, provided safe transportation in areas underserved by other options, and dramatically improved mobility in cities. The safety and protection of everyone on the road is our top priority."

Still, they hope the findings will add to a growing list of research around ridesharing and the entire gig economy. It could also serve as more fuel for those pushing for further caps on ridesharing, like New York's city council passed in August. Despite loud opposition from the companies, new ride-hailing driver permits will be halted after the legislative body's 36-6 approval of the bill, which also requires Uber and Lyft to ensure drivers receive minimum wage.

"Our findings may be a reason to reframe the discussion around cities’ response to the rapid growth of ridesharing," the paper says. "While much of the resistance to ridesharing has been presented as a case of entrenched incumbents (taxis) seeking rents, our findings suggest considerable societal costs are also at play."

SEE ALSO: Uber raised $2 billion in its first-ever bond-offering — and the entire deal was done in near secrecy

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• Super Typhoon Yutu — the strongest storm of 2018 — lashed the Northern Mariana Islands as a Category 5 storm Thursday morning. 
• Yutu is believed to be the strongest storm to ever hit the Northern Mariana Islands, which are a US commonwealth in the Pacific located near Guam. 
• Satellite imagery from the NOAA shows the eye of the storm passed directly over Tinian, a small island with just over 3,000 residents. 

Super Typhoon Yutu made a direct hit on the Northern Mariana Islands early Thursday morning, lashing the US commonwealth as a Category 5 storm with winds of up to 180 mph. 

Yutu is the strongest storm to form this year, and is believed to be the strongest storm to ever hit the Marianas. 

Satellite imagery from the NOAA shows that the storm passed directly over Tinian, a small island with a population of a little more than 3,000. 

Tinian played an important role in World War II, as the launch site for the atomic bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, according to AtomicHeritage.org.

As Yutu crossed over the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the walls shook in Glen Hunter’s concrete home, a tin roof over the garage blew away and howling winds terrified his cats.

"At its peak, it felt like many trains running constant," Hunter, of Saipan, wrote in a Facebook message to The Associated Press. "As its peak, the wind was constant and the sound horrifying."

On Wednesday night, the weather service in Guam issued dire warnings of possible destruction of homes and others buildings. "Collapse of some residential structures will put lives at risk," the update said. "Airborne debris will cause extensive damage."

The update warned of falling glass from blown-out windows, electricity and water outages for days or weeks after the storm passes and fallen trees isolating residents.

"Gonna be quite a scene when the sun comes up," Hunter wrote to the AP early Thursday.

Hunter, 45, has lived on Saipan since childhood and is accustomed to strong storms. "We are in typhoon alley," he wrote, but added this is the worst he’s experienced.

Power went out the previous afternoon and Hunter was bracing for months without electricity or running water. All government offices and schools shut down two days ago. A few gas stations ran out of gas by Tuesday evening, he said.

"We knew it was going to be big," he said, "but wow."

Meteorologist Matthew Foster in Honolulu said Yutu is moving quickly enough that the main concern will be the strong winds, not huge amounts of rain that have been associated with other recent hurricanes.

"It’s a very powerful storm," Foster said. "It’s going to be more of a wind damage threat versus rain."

A super typhoon would be the equivalent of a category 4 or 5 hurricane.

The Northern Marianas are about 3,800 miles west of Hawaii, and have a population of about 55,000 people. Most of the population is concentrated on the island of Saipan. 

Waves of 25 to 40 feet are expected around the eye of the storm and flooding is likely, forecasters said.

A typhoon warning was in effect for Saipan, Tinian and Rota and a tropical storm warning was in place for Guam and other southern islands.

SEE ALSO: A massive sinkhole in China led to the discovery of a 'world class' underground cave complex

DON'T MISS: Why hurricanes hardly ever hit Europe and the West Coast of the US

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• Sephora is having a Holiday Bonus sale for select members of its Beauty Insider rewards program.
• Customers with Rouge status can get 20% off their purchase on Friday, October 26 - Monday, October 29 and Friday, November 2 - Monday, November 5.
• Rouge members can share their discount with a friend on Friday, October 26.

Sephora revamped its Beauty Insider rewards program earlier this year, and now those who are a part of the top tier get a bonus sale in the lead-up to the holidays. 

According to a recent e-mail sent out to rewards program members at the Rouge level, the store is having a Holiday Bonus sale on Friday, October 26 - Monday, October 29 and Friday, November 2 - Monday, November 5. Rouge members will get 20% off their purchase in-store or online with the code ROUGEBONUS during these dates.

For those who need a quick refresher, here are the different levels of Sephora's Beauty Insider program: 

• The top tier is Rouge, which is for customers who spend $1,000 a year.
• The next level is VIB, which is for customers who spend $350 a year.
• The third and final tier is Insider, which is for anyone in the program who spends below $350 a year.

A representative for Sephora could not confirm to INSIDER if VIB and Insider members will be a part of the sale, although there is one way for non-Rouge members to get the discount. Sephora is allowing Rouge members to bring a friend with them to the store on October 26, and they will also be eligible for the 20% off discount. 

For those who need a little shopping inspiration, INSIDER previously asked Sephora employees for their favorite products in the store.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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• Tesla said on Wednesday in its third-quarter earnings letter that it expects tariffs on parts made in China to cost around $50 million during the fourth quarter of this year.
• The automaker said it expects gross margins on its Model S sedan and Model X SUV to fall slightly due to increased tariffs on Chinese parts.
• Gross margins for the Model 3 sedan should remain stable, Tesla said, due to manufacturing cost efficiencies and fixed cost absorption. 

Tesla said on Wednesday in its third-quarter earnings letter that it expects tariffs on parts made in China to cost around $50 million during the fourth quarter of this year.

The automaker said it expects gross margins on its Model S sedan and Model X SUV to fall slightly due to increased tariffs on Chinese parts, which it said will not be completely offset by cost efficiencies in its manufacturing process. Gross margins for the Model 3 sedan should remain stable, Tesla said, due to manufacturing cost efficiencies and fixed cost absorption. 

Model 3 gross margin exceeded 20% during the third quarter, while the total gross margin for all of its vehicles neared 26%.

Tesla posted adjusted earnings of $2.90 per share (compared to an analyst forecast of -$0.15 per share) on $6.8 billion in revenue (compared to an analyst forecast of $6.315 billion) during the third quarter.

Other automakers, like BMW, Ford, and Honda, have said tariffs on steel and aluminum imposed by President Donald Trump's administration have had a negative impact on their financial performance. The Trump Administration announced tariffs on foreign-made steel and aluminum in March, part of a series of proposed and enacted tariffs that have resulted in retaliatory measures from China and increased tensions between the US and China.

Have a Tesla news tip? Contact this reporter at mmatousek@businessinsider.com.

SEE ALSO: Tesla reports surprise profit in 'truly historic' quarter

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• San Francisco has a new contender for the city's most expensive home: 950 Lombard was recently listed at $45 million.
• If it sells at asking price, it'll shatter the city's current real-estate record of $38 million.
• The compound features an infinity pool, six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, and a four-car garage.

San Francisco is notorious for its overpriced housing market— 60% of tech workers now say they can't afford homes— and nowhere is that more evident than in a new $45 million listing in Russian Hill.

The home straddles two hillside lots and has six bedrooms and eight bathrooms, in addition to an array of terraces and wellness features, including an infinity pool, a wellness center, and a Japanese water-filtration system.

If it sells for its asking price, it will shatter the current real-estate record. According to Terri Tiffany, PR counsel to Pacific Union International, that record is held by 2712 Broadway on San Francisco's Gold Coast, which was listed at $42 million and sold for $38 million.

Here's a look inside the 950 Lombard compound:

SEE ALSO: A $20 million penthouse may be about to shatter the record for the most expensive home sold in Brooklyn

READ MORE: Inside the multimillion-dollar condos of San Francisco's newly opened $850 million residential tower

The house is located at 950 Lombard St. in San Francisco's Russian Hill.

Source: Pacific Union International, San Francisco Business Times

The compound sits on 9,500 square feet of property, which includes 100-year-old olive trees and an outdoor kitchen.

Source: San Francisco Business Times, The Wall Street Journal

And includes a four-car garage, which is entered through a tunnel on the side of the hill.

Source: Pacific Union International

Just because everyone from Ashton Kutcher to Kevin Durant are getting into startups doesn't mean they're all success stories.

After all, nine out of 10 startups will end up failing, and that means the money that venture capitalists put into funding these ideas can disappear too. From analyzing just 12 startups that failed this year, PitchBook found that around $1.4 billion in VC funding wasn't enough to save these businesses.

Theranos, a blood-testing startup, is one of 2018's most notable failures. The company racked up close to $1 billion in funding before questions about the technology and fraud charges against the CEO caused the Theranos to dissolve.

Here are 12 startups that failed in 2018:

Theranos — blood-testing technology

Year founded: 2003

Valuation: $9 billion

Amount raised: $910 million

Read more about Theranos on PitchBook.

Rethink Robotics — robots for manufacturing industry

Year founded: 2008

Valuation: $291 million

Amount VC raised: $150 million

Read more about Rethink Robotics on PitchBook.

Shyp — on-demand delivery platform

Year founded: 2013

Valuation: $275 million

Amount raised: $62 million

Read more about Shyp on PitchBook.