Insider Inc. is hiring a paid copyediting intern to work in our New York City office for six months.

The copyediting intern will primarily edit copy for our videos across Insider Inc. but also edit a variety of news articles and features.

This person will be responsible for editing copy on-screen for grammar, punctuation, spelling, sense, and Insider Inc. style.

We’re looking for someone who can work quickly and independently, sometimes without the luxury of querying reporters and other editors.

Attention to detail is necessary but so is speed.

Requirements:

• Professional experience copyediting, preferably for a newspaper or news website. (If you do not have experience copyediting, please do not apply.)
• Familiarity with AP style, content-management systems, social media, and instant messaging.
• Team player with a positive attitude, a sense of humor, and a good ear for language.
• Pass a two-part editing test, on page and on-screen.

APPLY HERE with a resume and cover letter if interested.

Please note that this internship requires that you work in our Manhattan office. Interns are encouraged to work full-time (40 hours a week) and the internship is paid hourly.

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

Even though Thanksgiving is over, there's still a lot to look forward to when it comes to food this holiday season. And if you're looking for new holiday treats this year, look no further than Trader Joe's. The grocery chain has a wide variety of seasonal goodies, from traditional favorites to new products.

Here are some of the best seasonal holiday and winter foods you can buy at Trader Joe's right now. 

Butter Toffee Pretzels are the perfect sweet and salty treat.

Combining sweet toffee with salty pretzels is hard to beat, so it makes sense that the new Butter Toffee Pretzels could be a hit at your next holiday party. You can find them sold in 10-ounce bags for $2.99.

Buche de Noël ice cream is like a frozen yule log.

Yule logs are a popular dessert during the holiday season, but this ice cream takes it a step further. According to the Trader Joe's website, it's made by combining ice cream with "pieces of moist, chocolatey Bûche de Noël cake" and a chocolate swirl. And if that doesn't sound amazing enough, this ice cream retails for just $2.99 per pint.

Turkey and Stuffing Seasoned Kettle Chips will remind you of Thanksgiving.

Missing Thanksgiving already but out of leftovers? These chips might make up for it. Turkey and Stuffing flavored kettle chips are meant to taste like your favorite holiday dishes and they retail for just $1.99 a bag.

• We just got our first glimpse of Natalie Portman singing with the newest trailer for her upcoming movie, "Vox Lux." 
• Portman plays Celeste, a pop star who rose to fame following a violent tragedy she suffered with her sister, Eleanor (played by Stacy Martin).
• Later in her career, Celeste is plagued by scandal and more violence as she also tries to raise her teenage daughter (Raffey Cassidy).
• Willem Dafoe narrates the movie, and Jude Law plays Celeste's manager. 
• Sia wrote original songs for the film. 
• "Vox Lux" will hit theaters Friday, December 14.
• Watch the trailer below.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Is an Ivy League degree worth the cost?
• According to a former Yale admissions officer, it's worth considering whether you're getting financial aid.
• A student's education comes down to what they make of their experience on campus, she said. If you're proactive, you can still get the same caliber education if you attend another school that's more affordable.
• Ultimately, students should weigh their options instead of revering an "Ivy League education."

Ivy League colleges are known for their prestige, academic resources, and connections. But, is paying the steep price for an Ivy League education really worth it?

According to Dr. Kat Cohen, a former Yale admissions officer and the founder and CEO of college-counseling firm IvyWise, an Ivy League education can be valuable for many people, but it's possible to get a quality education elsewhere for a fraction of the cost.

"While Ivy League colleges and schools of equal caliber generally have larger endowments and can often devote more resources to career outcomes and professional development, students still need to be proactive," Cohen, who was an application reader at Yale University before founding IvyWise 20 years ago, told Business Insider.

"If it's a considerable financial stretch to attend, students shouldn't enroll just to say they're getting an 'Ivy League education,'" she said.

But Cohen pointed out that many Ivy League schools have larger endowments and offer no-loan financial aid policies bringing the cost down considerably, while others like Princeton and Harvard offer grants that cover the entire tuition of students from families who earn less than $65,000. Still, applicants with a higher expected family contribution may receive admittance to an Ivy League school without financial aid.

"If a student has decided that a specific elite college is their best-fit school and gains admittance, then it can be worthwhile to make that investment — both in time and money," Cohen said. Ultimately, the value of a student's education comes down to what they make of their experience on campus, she said.

Read more: The 50 most underrated colleges in America

"Simply attending an elite college isn't enough to guarantee long-term career success; students need to be active on campus, maintain top grades, develop defined interests, and connect with colleagues and alumni in order to get the most out of their educational experience," Cohen said.

While not all Ivy League students graduate with a plethora of professional connections and potential mentors, it can be easier for students to make connections because of small class sizes, Cohen added. Ivy League colleges typically have robust career development resources and active alumni networks — but the same applies to smaller liberal arts colleges or smaller majors and schools within larger universities.

While Ivy League starting salaries can be high, there are dozens of other schools with equal or higher starting salaries — according to PayScale, an Ivy League doesn't even crack the top five highest-paying bachelor's degrees, Cohen said.

"Ultimately, a student should select a college that is the best overall fit, taking into account academic goals, social preferences, and financial considerations," Cohen said. "It is also important for an applicant to evaluate the programs and classes that directly relate to their interests or passions. Many state schools have top-notch research opportunities, sports teams, and professors that are leaders in specific fields."

SEE ALSO: 20 US colleges where financial aid could be better, according to students

DON'T MISS: The 25 US colleges that give the most financial aid, ranked

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 4 lottery winners who lost it all

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

• If you want your makeup to last longer and look exactly the same hours after you applied it, you need to invest in a good makeup setting spray.
• Our top pick is the Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray because it is a weightless spray that will help your makeup last for up to 16 hours.

We’ve all had those days where we’ve left the house with our makeup looking flawless only to notice by lunchtime that our foundation or eye shadow has started to smudge or fade. Thankfully, a makeup setting spray is the perfect solution to this problem. Much like hairspray, a setting spray is applied at the end of your beauty routine to lock in the makeup and help it last longer.

Unlike setting powders that just protect makeup like foundation, blush, and concealer, a setting spray can be applied to your entire face and it will help keep eye shadow, mascara, and lipsticks from smudging as well. Besides preventing it from melting or fading, the mist of a setting spray also helps stop makeup from caking, creasing, and settling into fine lines.

Not only will the right setting spray keep your makeup in place, but it can also improve the look and health of your skin. Some feature ingredients that work to brighten and hydrate skin, while others help protect your skin from the sun’s harmful rays and boost your skin’s elasticity.

Like most makeup products, the number of setting sprays on the market can be overwhelming. So we did the research to find the best options available. Whether you are looking for a setting spray that works best for your skin type or one that features SPF, these are the setting sprays that will keep your makeup looking great all day and night long.

Here are the best makeup setting sprays you can buy:

• Best makeup setting spray overall: Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray
• Best makeup setting spray for oily skin: NYX Matte Finish Makeup Setting Spray
• Best makeup setting spray for dry skin: Too Faced Hangover 3-in-1 Setting Spray
• Best eco-friendly makeup setting spray: Farmacy Skin Dew Hydrating Setting Spray
• Best makeup setting spray with SPF: Supergoop! Defense Refresh Setting Spray

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks.

The best makeup setting spray overall

Why you'll love it: The Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray is a cult favorite setting spray because it keeps makeup looking freshly applied all day.

The Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray has been one of the most popular makeup setting sprays for years. Not only does it keep your makeup in place for up to 16 hours, but it also makes your skin look smoother. Plus it works on all skin types and prevents makeup from cracking, fading, or settling into fine lines.

Unlike other setting sprays that can feel sticky when first applied, this spray goes on as a microfine mist that you will barely feel. It is made with a patented Temperature Control Technology that actually lowers the temperature in your makeup to help keep it in place even in hot, humid, and windy conditions.

The setting spray is an Allure Best of Beauty winner and has been recommended by both InStyle and Elle magazines. It has more than 430,000 likes on Sephora with more than 8,000 reviewers giving it a 4.4-star average rating.

One Sephora shopper wrote, “I love wearing makeup but have always had a problem with it fading and/or smudging (especially eyeliner). I've tried probably everything on the market to prevent this. This spray is unbelievable. I can put on my makeup at 6:00 AM before work and when I get home after 7, it still looks perfect — hasn't smudged or faded at all! SO happy to have finally found a product that works for me!”

The spray may be on the pricier side, but it comes in a mini size as well so you can test it before you splurge on the standard or jumbo size bottles.

Pros: Lightweight mist, keeps makeup in place for up to 16 hours, makes skin look smoother, works on all skin types and in all climates

Cons: Pricey

Buy the Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray at Sephora for $32

The best makeup setting spray for oily skin

Why you'll love it: If oily skin makes your makeup melt or run, try the NYX Matte Finish Makeup Setting Spray.

The NYX Matte Finish Makeup Setting Spray is a long-lasting setting spray that helps your makeup last all day and night. If you have oily skin, you’ll no longer have to worry about looking shiny, as the spray will leave your makeup with a gorgeous matte finish.

Fans of the product say that not only does it keep their makeup in place for hours, but the matte setting spray also stops excess oil from breaking through. Multiple reviewers said they normally have to use blotting papers to remove excess oil by mid-day but they no longer have to thanks to this handy spray.

The affordable setting spray went viral in 2017 after a shopper named Sofia left a 5-star review on Ulta saying, "I was hit by a car and through the hit itself, the rain, the ambulance ride, and the hours in the hospital my makeup stayed completely intact the entire time. When I was discharged from the hospital I had to take off my makeup and none of it had moved. if this setting spray can survive being hit by a car then that's all the proof I need and I'll definitely be buying it again."

A few shoppers did note that the spray has a strong smell at first but they said it wears off after a minute once the spray sinks in.

Pros: Keeps makeup in place for hours, prevents excess oil from breaking through, sleek matte finish, affordable

Cons: Strong smell at first

Buy the NYX Matte Finish Makeup Setting Spray at Ulta for $8.49

The best makeup setting spray for dry skin

Why you'll love it: Looking for a setting spray that hydrates and moisturizes skin? Try the Too Faced Hangover 3-in-1 Setting Spray.

The Too Faced Hangover 3-in-1 Setting Spray is a multitasking mist that works three ways. It can be used as a primer before putting on makeup, a setting spray to lock makeup in place, and a refreshing spray whenever your skin is in need of a boost.

It is specially formulated with coconut water, probiotic-based ingredients, and skin revivers that work together to smooth, hydrate, and brighten skin, while at the same time promoting skin’s elasticity and tone.

The setting spray has a 4.54-star rating on Influenster and has more than 80,000 likes on Sephora. One reviewer wrote, “I have extremely dry skin and this is AMAZING. It hydrates and refreshes and I use it throughout the day. Without it, my makeup usually gets flaky but this fixes the problem. Love this spray and will always get more”

A few people said the spray bottle’s spritzer was very powerful and can drench you if you spray it too close to your face. So they recommend holding the bottle at least six inches away when applying.

Pros: 3-in-1 product, keeps makeup in place for hours, hydrating and refreshing

Cons: Can get drenched if sprayed too close

Buy the Too Faced Hangover 3-in-1 Setting Spray at Sephora for $32

• John Krasinski, the director and star of "A Quiet Place," talked to Business Insider about making a movie that he didn't know whether anyone would like.
• He also touched on why he decided to put on a motion-capture suit and act as the creature at the end of the movie, and the disastrous reaction by the test screening audience when they saw him in it.
• Krasinski said that after talking to Emily Blunt, his wife and costar, he realized that the sequel to the movie is actually not a sequel.
• Krasinski explained why he's not a fan of the idea of a "popular film" Oscar category.

It was one of the riskiest releases by a big studio in 2018: a horror movie with very little dialogue directed by the guy best known for making funny faces to the camera on "The Office."

But Paramount, John Krasinski, and his movie "A Quiet Place" are now the toast of Hollywood.

Read more: Inside the surprise success of "A Quiet Place"— from a worrisome test screening to a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score

The horror film, starring Krasinski and Emily Blunt, his wife, follows a family trying to survive amid creatures who kill anything that makes a sound. It became a critical darling, a box-office sensation — made for $17 million, it earned over $340 million worldwide at the box office — and is now in the hunt for Oscar recognition.

Business Insider chatted with Krasinski the day after "A Quiet Place" was recognized as one of the 10 best movies of the year by the National Board of Review (one step closer to Oscar glory). We delved into what it was like to make a movie no one involved knew whether audiences would like, why after initially declining to make a sequel he's now on board, and the reason he wouldn't have wanted his movie to be considered for the controversial "popular film" Oscar category.

Jason Guerrasio: Can you recall the moment when you knew this movie could actually work?

John Krasinski: I remember we were filming a scene where Emily was doing homeschooling with Noah [Jupe, who plays the son, Marcus], and it was Day Three, and I had written the movie with sign language. So it was that thing of "Can we pull this off?" But every day that went by was helpful to see it play out, other than theorize that it would be great.

But in that scene, two things happened. Emily was obviously amazing, but one of the things is air started coming out of her mouth when she was mouthing the words as she was signing. There was something so beautiful in that. In that moment, I realized you can even communicate with breath, with no voice. That was really beautiful to me.

Then on top of that was Noah. To watch this kid dealing with these circumstances that are completely imaginary but heavy for a kid to deal with — apocalyptic, losing a family member, a father who has fallen out of love with the whole family — these are big themes, and this kid was able to articulate in that one scene such powerful emotion that it felt so real. I genuinely started tearing up behind the monitor watching this kid act because it was so moving.

I remember after that I turned to my producer, and I said, "Holy s---, dude, this might actually work!" And he said, "Hey, man, it's Day Three! It's a little too late to say this might work." So from that moment on I learned to keep my excitement to myself that this magic trick might actually work.

Guerrasio: But that's fascinating that it wasn't in post-production or watching it with an audience — though I'm sure that confirmed it — but that you could even feel the movie working on set.

Krasinski: Absolutely. And I think that's the thing about a magic trick: You plan and plan and plan, but at the end of the day, you've got to pull it off. It is based on what the audience takes from it. With this in particular, we did need the audience to know if the magic trick worked. You just keep hoping it's going to work. We felt we had made something that was either an art-house movie that no one will ever see but we love it, or someone might actually like it.

So the day before we world-premiered it at SXSW, I was sitting in the mixing stage with my sound designer and mixer, and we were literally putting on the final moments of the movie, at 5:30 the morning of the day we were flying to Austin to show the movie — it was insane. And we all finished the movie, and everyone was feeling really proud, and I turned to my sound designer, who has done everything from "Saving Private Ryan" to a Terrence Malick movie, and I said, "Is this going to work? Is this too much for people?" And I'll never forget: He said, "I don't know, man, but you got to go with it now. When are you ever going to be able to take this big of a swing again?" And I thought, "Thank you, but that wasn't the compliment I was looking for."

So to the last minute we knew we were pushing the boundaries. Not to sound corny, but this is the reason I got into this business. No one gets into this wanting to do cookie-cutter stuff.

Guerrasio: One of the growing legends of your movie was that for the one test screening you had, there's footage of you in a motion-capture suit acting out the final scene as the creature confronting Emily Blunt and Millicent Simmonds' characters. Explain how it came to you getting in the suit.

Krasinski: We had Scott Farra, who is one of the original five guys at Industrial Light and Magic, and he was basically going to be our consultant for 24 hours to explain how our movie would interface with ILM, because they did all the creature work. And he ended up staying on for the whole movie, seven more weeks, which he hadn't done for years and years. And he said he did that because this kind of movie is why he got in the business. He said it was like summer camp all over again. So me doing the creature was the summer camp vibe. Scott was on set that day and we were talking about how the creature moves through the room. And Scott kept saying, "John, he's low to the ground, so we got to make sure the camera knows he's low to the grown for eye line," and we were talking it through and I finally said, "Yeah, that's not how I see it, I sort of see it like this," and Scott goes, "Just put on the suit, man." And I was like, "What?" He was like, " Just put on the suit and do it." And I was like, "Alright." So I went upstairs, put on the suit, still had my Vans on. So during the test screening we were like 86% percent of the movie through and we were shocked that they really liked this movie, then all of a sudden my giant foot with Vans on shows up and we slowly pan up my very colorful, very tight revealing suit, and end on me with a beard pretending to roar. I think there is even audio of me being like [high pitched] "Rooooaaaarrr." And the entire place exploded into laughter and I was like, "Our movie is doomed."

Guerrasio:"What have I done!"

Krasinski: Right. "What have I done! I've just made the worst greatest comedy."

Guerrasio: Will we see that footage, ever?

Krasinski: With any luck, no. [laughs] Because the producers are friends of mine now rather than just producers who think it would be a fun piece of content. 

Guerrasio: You have said that Emily shooting the creature at the end of the movie was not how you planned the ending to be. Before going with that, what was your ending?

Krasinski: It comes back to letting things be organic. I love that. Collaboration is king on all my sets, I learned that a long time ago: best idea ends up on the screen. I don't care if it's mine, I legitimately couldn't care less. So one day [producer] Drew [Form] said, "I have to talk to you about something," and I think it was two weeks before we shot this scene, it was down to the wire. I had the ending of Milly [Simmons, who plays the daughter, Regan] putting the hearing aid up to the microphone and that would kill the creature. And I liked that. One of the first ideas I had on the rewrite was that this girl who is the black sheep ends up being the superhero of our movie. But what happened organically through the shoot, the family became the power. But I felt she still needed to be the hero, that her greatest weakness is her greatest strength. So Drew said, "I think Emily needs to shoot the creature." And I said, "Why?" And he said, "I just think that's what the audience wants." And I said, "With all due respect, that's a producer note, I don't think I'm going to do that. You need to give me more reason than 'The audience will love it.'" And I went home and I thought about it, not thinking I would go for it. The next morning I drove to set and I listened to a podcast and randomly it was an old interview with Steven Spielberg from 1979 and this journalist asked why should we pay attention to these New Hollywood directors when we have these other great directors like Truffaut and others? And he said, "Because we can make great art, but we can also have fun, too." And I thought, that's it. If I can pull this off not just because a producer thinks the audience will like it but make it an elegant moment, that's it. So I told Drew I got it. Yes, the mom kills the creature, but it's played out where it's the mom realizing that her daughter is doing this. She has the power to beat them. And it then becomes this team ending. And the key to it all is realizing this heroic moment but then knowing it's not the end. The gun cocking. It's leaving the audience with: We can take on the world if we have each other.

Guerrasio: I think it was the right choice. Going to take a big turn here, have you seen the trailer to the Netflix movie "Bird Box" yet?

Krasinski: No, I haven't seen it yet, but I've heard about it and it's one of those things where it sounds like a really cool idea. I'm psyched to see it. 

Guerrasio: I bring that up because, at least from the trailer, the movie seems like a distant cousin to "A Quiet Place," with the premise being that people need to stay blind essentially to stay alive. Does that concern you at all that when the sequel to "A Quiet Place" comes out people may have become a little tired of this kind of sensory horror.

Krasinski: No. I mean, most sequels are a hero or villain returning but there's no story behind it. It's basically, let's give the audience the character they want. And I think the brilliant thing about "A Quiet Place" is there's a world. I wasn't going to do a sequel. I told them I wasn't going to participate in one and to find a new writer and director. They asked for guidance and I had this tiny little idea and then Drew was very smart and said, "Think on it some more while we have these meetings with other people." Then he threw the Jedi mind trick of asking me to just write the sequel and he sucked me in. But me going from not wanting to participate in a sequel to doing it is the same reason I hope people will want to see on. My hope is people want to revisit this world and revisit those stakes and those rules you have to abide by. That's my hope. 

Guerrasio: Have you gone to filmmaker friends who have done sequels and asked them some keys to doing it successfully?

Krasinski: No, and the reason why is because I didn't go to anybody on the first one. I had never done a genre movie so I actually made the conscious decision to not go out to anyone. The same weakness I had by not being a genre fan — but I mean I went back and watched everything before directing this — I thought would be my greatest strength. I wasn't stealing techniques, I basically took a notebook and wrote down everything that scared me. What parts of storytelling scare me? I became my own test audience. So for a sequel, I think I kind of have to do the same thing. If I start focusing on something I have never done before and asking people how they did it then I'll dilute the experience. I don't even see it as a sequel. Emily actually blew my mind by categorizing it the correct way after I pitched it to her, she said, "This isn't a sequel at all, this is the second book in a series of books. It's a widening of a world." And I thought that's the best way to look at it. It doesn't feel like a sequel, it's a continuation of living in that world. 

Guerrasio: For the second movie do you feel you can be as quiet, meaning sound design, as you were with the first movie? Or was that what was special about "A Quiet Place" and now you have to explore the next story another way?

Krasinski: It's got to be whatever is organic to the film. I remember reading Steven Soderbergh talking about the editing process and he said, I'm paraphrasing, but that at some point it becomes an organic being that will spit out any bad idea. And I think that's how I feel about this. I can't wait to get in there and keep writing and see what this movie wants to allow itself to be. And that will happen in the script process and the shooting and the editing. But I think what's cool about the second part of this movie is the same set of rules have to apply. I can't just introduce a world where you can make a ton of sound, and if I did there would have to be a reason for it. So it's figuring out if there are smart and clever ways to do it. And I have to give Paramount a lot of credit, I said to them the reason I didn't want to do a sequel is I don't want to do anything just to do it. I understand you made a lot of money but I'm not your guy if you're just going to crank it out. And they were so respectful. This audience response is so unique to any studio that we need to respect the people who gave us that opportunity. So hopefully we will. 

Guerrasio: It would be a travesty if this movie didn't get nominated for Oscars for its use of sound, but what are your thoughts on the Popular Oscar category? Because I think this is the type of movie that would have been considered if the Academy went forward with it. Hypothetically, if you woke up the morning of nominations and were told you were chosen in that category, what would you have thought?

Krasinski: I didn't get a chance to think about it much when it was first announced because I was shooting "Jack Ryan," but this journalist, CNN's Frank Pallotta, tweeted what I think is the most poignant point. The top 10 grossing movies of all time were either nominated for best picture, won best picture, or in the case of "Snow White" was given a honorary Oscar. That to me is film. Everything should be judged on its own merit of the same medium. The second you start putting them in smaller categories and subcategories we might be hurting the idea of what we're celebrating. That's the way I feel about it. I think the way that guy very eloquently put it is the popular category seems to have forgotten that the popular category has existed this whole time. By not just box office, that's one way to say you're popular, but the other is to say was it just a movie people loved that year? And all those movies on that list were nominated because they were just good. So personally I'm glad there's not a popular category because if people don't think "A Quiet Place" is one of the best movies of the year, then that's their subjective choice and I totally respect that. And if they do think it's one of the best movies of the year I'll feel so proud because they saw it as just a good movie, not a good movie that had some sort of subcategory on it. 

"A Quiet Place" is available on Blu-ray, DVD, and streaming.

SEE ALSO: The 8 most anticipated returning TV shows of 2019

Join the conversation about this story »

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• President Donald Trump is meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday and Saturday at the G20 summit in Argentina.
• At the top of their agenda: the US-China trade war.
• The US and China have implemented tariffs on $360 billion worth of goods flowing between the two countries.
• Prospects for meaningful progress are dim as the two sides remain far apart on major issues.
• Trump's mood could also determine the outcome.

The moment of truth for President Donald Trump's trade war with China is fast approaching.

Trump is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday and will attend a formal dinner with the Chinese leader on Saturday.

The meeting with Xi could determine whether the US and China can ultimately resolve their differences and lower tariffs affecting more than half of all trade between the two countries. Or, the outcome could be that the two sides will remain locked in a still-burgeoning trade war with no end in sight.

And you may ask yourself, how did we get here?

The trade fight between the US and China has been brewing for decades, as Beijing’s economic and political ascendance has threatened the US’ dominance on the world stage. Trump, a longtime proponent of tariffs, seized on China's growing strength during the 2016 campaign.

After a year of courting China as an ally in negotiations with North Korea, Trump turned on Beijing in March with the announcement of tariffs on Chinese goods. The administration argued that the tariffs were a necessary measure to punish China for alleged theft of US intellectual property and would force the ruling Communist Party to reform their economic policies.

After a few months of unsuccessful negotiating, Trump imposed the first round of tariffs against China in July. The resulting back-and-forth has led to the current state of affairs: US tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods and Chinese tariffs on $110 billion worth of American goods.

Economists have warned that escalation of the trade war or allowing the tariffs to remain in place for an extended period of time would be seriously damaging for the US economy. US companies have warned that the tariffs are harming their businesses, and American farmers are getting whacked by China's retaliatory measures.

Read more:A new study found that Trump's trade war could take a gigantic bite out of the US economy

If Xi and Trump are unable to reach a deal, the two countries would enter what some experts have called an "economic Cold War."

The US would also likely move forward with tariffs on the remaining $255 billion worth of Chinese goods not subject to tariffs. That round of tariffs would squeeze many popular consumer products, and retailers like Walmart have warned the move would likely result in higher prices for customers.

A dim dealmaking outlook ...

While economic concerns and the summit have brought the two leaders together in Buenos Aires, most experts agree that the Trump-Xi meeting will produce little, if any, results.

Stewart Patrick, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the G20 meeting"offers the prospect of a Band-Aid fix at best."

"Given current mistrust, even a truce seems unlikely," Patrick added.

At most, experts say, the two sides could agree to delay the implementation of even more tariffs. Ed Mills, a policy analyst at Raymond James, said there could be some upside in the form of a rough outline of a deal.

"Officials on both sides have been rhetorically setting the stage over the past week without any indication that either side is willing to back down from the dispute," Mills said. "The two nations remain far apart on a negotiated solution, increasing the chances of deterioration and continuing tariff escalation in 2019."

But the sheer size of issues to discuss likely means that any agreement that could come out of the meeting will be preliminary and not take the larger threat — the so-called economic Cold War — off the table.

"We caution that fundamental issues relating to intellectual property and subsidization appear intractable at this stage, which suggests that the broader threat of Chinese trade tensions will persist," said Isaac Boltansky, a policy analyst at research and trade firm Compass Point.

Trump acknowledged in an interview with the Wall Street Journal this week that a deal to prevent the tariff rate from increasing in January is “highly unlikely.” The president also appeared to express misgivings about a possible deal while talking to reporters on Thursday.

"I think we're very close to doing something with China, but I don't know that I want to do it, because what we have right now is billions and billions of dollars coming into the United States in the form of tariffs or taxes," Trump said.

Most of Trump’s advisers also seem to be urging caution ahead of the meeting, but US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer seemed to be confident ahead of Saturday's sit down.

"I would be very surprised if the dinner was not a success," Lighthizer, a longtime trade negotiator, told reporters Friday.

But the increasing pain from the tariffs could compel Trump to agree to some sort of preliminary deal, said Matthew Goodman, senior adviser for Asian economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"My personal guess — and I’m sticking my neck out here — is that there will be some kind of ceasefire agreed to largely because I think President Trump and President Xi both have an incentive to put this dispute on hold," he said in a recent press call.

Goodman argued that the recent US-stock-market woes and China's slowing economy have put enough pressure on the two sides to make some progress.

… but Trump is a wild card.

But knowing exactly what will happen when the presidents are face-to-face is impossible because of Trump's infamous unpredictability.

For one thing, Trump’s international trips — the G7 summit, the recent trip to Paris, and more — have been anything but predictable.

These trips were marred by fights with other world leaders, Twitter tirades, and refusals to sign on to ceremonial communiqués with other nations. 

"This binary catalyst will be hugely influenced by Trump's mood after a long flight to a foreign country at a multilateral summit that will be filled with world leaders whose voters tend to have an extremely negative view of Trump," Chris Krueger, a strategist at Cowen Washington Research Group, said.

• Read more on the US-China trade war:
• Trump's economic sugar high is already fading, and his trade war could make it even uglier
• Now it's full steam ahead for Trump's trade war with China
• Trump's trade war took a stunning bite out of the US economy, and it's the strongest evidence yet that he's shooting himself in the foot
• Trump's latest tariffs are about to hit you where it really hurts

SEE ALSO: Trump's favorite trade war report card is looking uglier than ever

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NOW WATCH: The Obamas are worth $40 million — here's how they make and spend their money

• Degrassi isn't afraid to try something new all the time — tackling important issues like Islamophobia, gender identity, and various sexualities on a regular basis.
• One of the most important episodes Degrassi ever did was originally not aired on TV in the US — but eventually made it into a marathon on the network two years after its original air date in Canada.
• Most of the cast of "Degrassi: The Next Generation" reunited for Degrassi alum Drake's "I'm Upset" video in 2018.

Those in the US might not know it, but Degrassi has been running in Canada in one form or another for nearly 40 years.

Part of the magic is age-appropriate casting — and a cast who grows up and graduates to make room for a new cast. As long-running Degrassi star Stefan Brogren — who is also a director on the show — told the Hollywood Reporter in 2017, "the drugs have changed, but the problems are still the same."

We rounded up some fun facts about this beloved show. 

You might recognize some former Degrassi stars from other things.

Of course, the first Degrassi megastar everyone thinks of is Drake. But the show also brought the world Nina Dobrev of "The Vampire Diaries" fame, Shenae Grimes-Beech from "90210,"Munro Chambers of the indie sci-fi/horror film "Turbo Kid," model Christina Schmidt, and Cassie Steele who does the voices of Tammy Gueterman and Tricia Long on "Rick and Morty."

Speaking of Drake, he still gets checks from Degrassi today.

Although he left the show in 2007, the residuals are still rolling in — enough for something small at the Dot, perhaps?

As of November 2018, there are five different series in the Degrassi universe.

It's a Canadian institution that started as a miniseries in 1979 and continued through five separate series: "The Kids of Degrassi Street,""Degrassi Junior High,""Degrassi High,""Degrassi: The Next Generation," and "Degrassi: New Class"— which is also the first Degrassi series to be available internationally on Netflix.

As teen dramas go, it has consistently tackled groundbreaking and serious topics that other shows didn't. In 2012, it became the longest-running Canadian television series of all time.

"In a sense, I am on the ticket," President Donald Trump told the crowd at a Cleveland rally one day before this year's hotly contested midterm elections.

After months of tweeted endorsements and dozens of raucous rallies across the nation, 52 Trump-backed candidates won and 37 lost. 

Here are the winners from across the country who had Trump's stamp of approval.

SEE ALSO: Midterm key takeaways: Trump's message flops, and Democrats set the stage for 2020

DON'T MISS: Michigan just became the 10th state to legalize marijuana. Here's where marijuana won and lost in the midterms.

Alabama Rep. Martha Roby

Trump tweeted in June to endorse the five-term congresswoman as "a consistent and reliable vote for our Make America Great Again Agenda."

Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs

Trump tweeted in October that Biggs "is doing a great job for Arizona and our Country!"

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey

Trump tweeted last week to back the incumbent governor.

• Jason Blum, the producer behind Netflix's new thriller, "Cam," wants to make a sequel.
• Stephen King gave his stamp of approval to the movie when it debuted earlier this month.
• Critics also love the movie, which has a 93% Rotten Tomatoes critic score.

"Cam," a new psychological thriller from Blumhouse — the production company behind the latest "Halloween" and "Get Out"— dropped on Netflix earlier this month to glowing reviews and praise from horror master Stephen King.

King wrote, "Loved CAM, on Netflix. Great lead performance by Madeline Brewer."

And there might be more on the way for fans like King. The movie's producer, Jason Blum, tweeted on Thursday that he'd "love to make" a sequel to the movie.

Here's Netflix's description for the film: "When an impersonator takes over her profile, cam girl Alice sets out to solve her own identity theft and regain control of her online persona."

"Cam," directed by Daniel Goldhaber, has a 93% Rotten Tomatoes critic score, and reviews have also praised Brewer's performance. Brian Tallerico wrote for RogerEbert.com that the film "has two things going for it that instantly elevate it above a lot of genre product: a great concept and an even better performance."

Slate's Inkoo Kang compared the movie to Netflix's sci-fi anthology series, "Black Mirror."

"If the first half of 'Cam' is pleasantly episodic and purringly tense, the latter half—in which Alice searches for her hacker—is clever, inventive, and wonderfully evocative," Kang wrote. "A kind of 'Black Mirror' for cam girls, its frights are limited to this tiny slice of the web, but no less resonant for that."

The movie follows another recent horror hit from Netflix, TV series "The Haunting of Hill House," which King also loved. "Hill House" has generated praise from horror fans and critics alike, and currently has a 90% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Between that, "Cam,""Chilling Adventures of Sabrina," and more, Netflix has delivered quality content for horror fans this season.

"Cam" is now streaming on Netflix.

SEE ALSO: An uncensored screening of Lars von Trier's controversial serial-killer movie, 'The House That Jack Built,' violated MPAA ratings rules

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NOW WATCH: How 'The Price Is Right' is made

• Jason Brown, cofounder and CEO of personal-finance app Tally, asks every potential hire, "As a human, are you happy?"
• It's Brown's way of finding out if the applicant is aligned with Tally's mission and has personal motivations for wanting to work there.
• Applicants who can pinpoint the things that drive their happiness tend to also have better reasons for wanting to work at the company, Brown said.

A company runs smoother when all of its employees are aligned with its mission.

For Jason Brown, the cofounder and CEO of personal-finance app Tally, that means determining at the interview stage where a potential hire's priorities lie.

And Brown has a unusual way of finding that out. Whenever someone interviews for a job at Tally, he makes sure he asks them if they're happy.

"One question I ask people is, 'As a human, are you happy?'" Brown told Business Insider.

The point of the question, Brown said, isn't to assess an applicant's mental health or emotional state, but to see if they can put into words the things that drive them. Someone who cites a recent vacation or hanging out with friends, for example, is less likely to get the job than someone who talks insightfully about personal relationships and health.

"It really is very telling of people who understand what makes them happy and who have self-awareness about deeper things driving happiness, versus more shallow things," he said.

"It's not so much the answer," he added, so much as it's "a) have you ever thought about this, and b) do you have at least some foggy notion about the rough elements that matter to you?"

Related:A startup founder who's raised $10 million has a rule to weed out job candidates who seem a little too good to be true

Founded in 2015, Tally helps users lower their credit-card debt by consolidating their debt from multiple cards, paying off the debt, and then charging them a lower interest rate. The San Francisco-based company raised $25 million in Series B funding earlier this year, and has grown from about 20 employees to 60 in 2018.

Inevitably, the Tally applicants who can pinpoint what makes them happy are the ones who have more personal motivations for wanting to work there. For example, some Tally employees had their own struggles with credit-card debt, Brown said. 

Asking them about their happiness tends to make those motivations more clear.

"At that point, I'm like, OK, cool, there's somebody who really does genuinely believe in making people less stressed and better off financially," Brown said.

Hiring people who believe in Tally's mission is the "most important thing" for the company, Brown said.

"If you have everybody on your team who has a personal, deeper reason to be there, I think that's where the next level of ideas come out," he told Business Insider. "Instead of them being done at the end of the day, they're thinking about, 'how can we make this better?'"

• Read more:
• A startup founder who's raised $10 million has a rule to weed out job candidates who seem a little too good to be true
• 9 puzzling interview questions from real execs that seem to have nothing to do with the job
• Former Googlers who run their own tech startup ask candidates 3 questions that seem to have nothing to do with the job

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The 3 key words to use on your résumé to land the interview

• US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto signed the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA on Friday.
• The deal is an update to the two-decade old North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
• The USMCA is the culmination of nearly two years of negotiating among the three countries.
• The deal mostly keeps NAFTA intact but contains key tweaks to the treatment of cars, crops, and labor regulations.
• The USMCA must still pass Congress, which is far from a done deal.
• Both Democrats and Republicans have expressed some reservations about the trade deal.

The leaders of Mexico, Canada, and the US came together Friday in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to officially sign their updated free trade agreement, known as the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto officially signed the USMCA as part the G20 summit.

The signing came just days before Pena Nieto is set to leave office, handing off the presidency to Andrés Manuel López Obrador. It also caps nearly two years of uncertainty over the update to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

"We worked hard on this agreement. It’s been long and hard," Trump said. "We’ve taken a lot of barbs and a little abuse and we got there. It’s great for all of our countries."

But while the ceremonial pomp and circumstance is out of the way, the agreement still has a long way to go before it goes into full effect. The deal still has to be approved by each country's legislature — and in the US, there are still questions about whether the USMCA can pass Congress.

A long road for some NAFTA tweaks

The USMCA process kicked off just a few days after Trump took office in 2017, when he signed an executive order. Formal negotiations took months to begin, finally starting in 2018 after Trump was able to get key trade negotiators confirmed.

The negotiations were at times tense, with disagreements over various aspects of the deal and personality clashes among the countries' top negotiators.

The pressure of Pena Nieto's departure from office pushed the US and Mexico to agree to a bilateral deal in August to ensure the signing happened before Obrador took office. A deal between the US and Canada followed at the tail end of September, but not before a series of threats from Trump and tense moments when it seemed the trilateral deal might fall through.

Read more: The US, Canada, and Mexico's new trade pact looks a lot like NAFTA. Here are the key differences between them »

Ultimately, the USMCA retained a substantial amount of NAFTA's framework, with notable tweaks on the treatment of automobiles, agricultural products, and labor protections.

Still a long way to go

In the US, the USMCA must be reviewed and approved by Congress before going into effect.

Since Trump negotiated the deal under Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), the agreement only needs a majority vote in each chamber of Congress and can't be filibustered in the Senate.

But passage could be complicated by a few factors — first, the incoming Democratic majority in the House. Congress must write implementation legislation to pass any trade deal, essentially conforming US law to the deal. There is wide latitude for the Democrats to try to make adjustments to the USMCA to enforce their own goals, such as labor regulations and environmental protections.

"Thankfully, the Congress has a role in crafting 'implementing legislation' to make sure the deal benefits and protects middle-class families and working people, and isn’t simply a rebranding of the same old policies that hurt our economy and workers for years," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.

Read more:Here's a look at exactly how the USMCA will weave through Congress»

Additionally, Republicans who are generally pro-free trade have not been particularly enthusiastic about the deal.

Outgoing House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady released a statement following the signing that hedged his support for the deal, saying there needed to be careful examination of the deal to ensure that US goods still kept access to the North American markets.

Additionally, a group of 40 Republican House members raised concerns about the USMCA's language protecting LGBTQ workers. The group argues that the trade deal will ultimately force the US to adapt workplace protections for transgender individuals.

"A trade agreement is no place for the adoption of social policy," the group said in a letter to Trump sent November 18.

But Trump seemed confident at the ceremony in Argentina and predicted an easy road through Congress.

"It’s been so well reviewed I don’t expect to have very much of a problem," he said.

SEE ALSO: Trump is about to embark on a trip that could end the trade battle with China — or send the US into an economic Cold War

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

• The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the first major update of the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement, was officially signed by the three countries' leaders on Friday.
• The new trade deal bears a lot of similarities to NAFTA, but there are major differences as well.
• Some of the key differences: increased dairy-market access for the US, a new sunset clause, and tougher auto rules.

Leaders from the US, Canada, and Mexico officially signed their new trade pact on Friday at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, marking a major step toward overhauling the three countries' economic relationship.

The signing ceremony comes after US and Canada sealed the deal on a new trade agreement in September that, along with an earlier US-Mexico agreement, opened the door to a rewrite of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

While the new deal, dubbed the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, is officially signed by the three leaders — US President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto — it must also be approved by each country's legislature before it can come into force.

Trump and other US officials have called NAFTA dead, saying the USMCA is a wholesale overhaul of the agreement.

"Just signed one of the most important, and largest, Trade Deals in U.S. and World History," Trump tweeted Friday. "The United States, Mexico and Canada worked so well together in crafting this great document. The terrible NAFTA will soon be gone. The USMCA will be fantastic for all!"

But despite Trump's declaration,the USMCA still maintains large swaths of the original deal and is more of an update to the existing deal than a full on rewrite. But there are some key differences. 

For instance, Canada scored wins with the preservation of NAFTA's state-to-state dispute-resolution system and cultural provisions that carve out a certain amount of the Canadian media market for domestically produced programming.

Other notable changes include increased dairy-market access, new auto rules, and a sunset clause.

Here's a rundown of some of the key changes in the deal:

• Review clause: The USMCA includes a 16-year expiration date and a provision that requires a review of the deal every six years, when it can be extended. It's less severe than the US's original demand for a sunset clause, which would have forced each side to recertify the deal every five years to keep it in effect.
• Dispute settlement: NAFTA's dispute-settlement system, which allows member countries to bring grievances against other members over allegations of unfair trading practices, will remain the same, a key win for the Canadians. The investor-state dispute-settlement system, which allows investors to bring grievances against member-country governments, will be phased out for the US and Canada, while certain industries such as energy will be able to bring cases against Mexico.
• Dairy access: The US will be able to export the equivalent of 3.6% of Canada's dairy market, up from the existing level of about 1%. This is slightly above the 3.25% market access Canada would have given the US as part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which Trump pulled the US out of last year. In addition, Canada will get rid of the "Class 7" pricing system that was seen as disadvantaging US farmers.
• Access for other agricultural goods: Canada will give the US more access to its chicken, turkey, and egg markets, and British Columbia will allow the sale of US wines at its state-owned liquor stores. Mexico agreed to allow imports of certain US cheeses.
• Auto rules: Members must produce 75% of a car for it to pass through the countries duty-free, up from 62.5%. Additionally, 40% of each car must be produced by workers making $16 an hour or more to avoid duties.
• Tariff side deals: The US came to side agreements with Mexico and Canada that would largely protect the two countries from tariffs on imported autos and auto parts. Canada would be allowed to ship 2.6 million cars to the US without tariffs, well above the 1.8 million it sent last year, and send $32.4 billion worth of parts without getting hit by tariffs. Mexico's deal was similar, except the country can send $108 billion worth of parts.
• Commitment to not mess with currency levels: While the US, Mexico, and Canada do not actively intervene to strengthen or weaken their currencies, the pact to "achieve and maintain a market-determined exchange rate regime" could be a model for future agreements with countries that are more active in currency markets.
• Increased protections for intellectual property: The deal increases the copyright period in Canada to 70 years after the creator's death, up from 50 years, bringing the country in line with the US. Additionally, exclusivity for biologic drugs before generics can be produced will be increased to 10 years in Canada from eight years, a win for the pharma industry.
• Increase in the de minimis levels: The de minimis level is the amount of a good a person can take across the border without being hit with duties. Canada will increase the de minimis level for US goods to 40 Canadian dollars from 20 Canadian dollars; for cross-border shipments like e-commerce, the level will be boosted to 150 Canadian dollars. Mexico will also bump its de minimis level to $50 and duty-free shipments to $117.

SEE ALSO: Trump's new trade deal with Canada and Mexico is winning early praise

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NOW WATCH: Megyn Kelly in 2017: 'I regret a lot' of the controversial stuff I've said on live television

Millennial startup Mic sold itself to Bustle Digital Group for a reported $5 million, a fraction of the $60 million it raised, after financial problems including the impact of Facebook canceling a video show.

But the Mic situation reveals broader challenges with the Facebook-funded shows, and the ongoing relationships between publishers and the social-media giant.

Mic was one of eight publishers, along with the likes of CNN, ABC News, and Fox News, that Facebook picked to produce its first slate of news shows for its YouTube rival Facebook Watch.

Facebook was reportedly spending $90 million to fund Watch shows to signal it was taking news seriously after coming under fire for letting fake news spread on the platform. The first shows were announced in June and rolled out during the summer.

Click hereto read more about what Mic's canceled Facebook Watch show reveals about other Facebook-funded news shows.

In other news:

The holidays are looking like a happy time for digital ads — and for Google, Amazon, and even Facebook.Digital advertising spending appears to be growing at a healthy rate this holiday season, Colin Sebastian, an analyst with Baird Equity Research, said in a new report.

Sheryl Sandberg reportedly wanted to know if George Soros, who publicly criticized Facebook, was shorting the company's stock. The news comes after it was revealed that Facebook had a relationship with the opposition-research firm, Definers Public Affairs.

Facebook is dropping its controversial policy on archiving promoted news, reports Axios. The company is getting rid of a policy that labels publishers' promoted content as political advertising in its ads archive.

We're already getting an indication that Verizon 5G is stealing customers from its competitors. At an analyst event in November, Verizon management said about half of the customers who signed up for 5G Home were new to Verizon.

Twitter keeps a list of everything it thinks you're interested in; here's how to find it.Twitter collects a lot of data on you, including a compiled list of "inferred interests" it uses to personalize your experience.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled will each pay more than $100,000 in fines to settle charges that they illegally touted ICOs. The SEC charged Mayweather and Khaled with promoting an initial coin offerings (ICOs) without disclosing that they were paid for them.

500 million Marriott customers have had their data hacked after staying at hotels including W, Sheraton, and Westin. A breach in the Starwood guest-authorization database meant that millions of people had a combination of their name, address, passport number, date of birth, and other information stolen, the company said.

Today is the last day to nominate rising stars of Madison Avenue. Please submit your ideas via this survey by Nov. 30.

Announcing IGNITION 2018 speakers: Don't miss Mark Cuban, Sir Martin Sorrell, Danica Patrick, Troy Carter, and more!

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NOW WATCH: The first woman in space almost didn't make it back to Earth and she had to keep it a secret for 30 years

• There's a clear disconnect in American healthcare when it comes to certain kinds of health insurance plans.
• "High deductible health plans are designed for wealthy people and sold to poor people," Express Scripts' chief medical officer said at a recent event. 
• Miller is referring to health plans in which patients are often on the hook for thousands of dollars in expenses before insurance kicks in to cover the rest. That can lead to patients paying high prices for prescription drugs at the pharmacy counter, or going without care.

There's one clear disconnect in American healthcare.

Steve Miller, the top doctor at the healthcare company Express Scripts, put it simply. 

"High deductible health plans are designed for wealthy people and sold to poor people," Miller said Thursday at the 2018 Forbes Healthcare Summit in New York.

Miller's remarks came during a discussion about the high costs patients often pay for vital prescription medicines in the US. In high deductible plans, patients can be required to pay thousands of dollars for medical care and prescriptions before their health insurance kicks in. 

The plans can be appealing to people with high incomes because they're often paired with a savings account that lets them put aside money to pay for health expenses without paying taxes on it. But people with lower incomes often end up buying high-deductible plans, because they're typically less expensive.

The plans are becoming increasingly common. This year, nearly half of Americans under 65 had high-deductible health plans, up from about 25 percent in 2010. Those plans require individuals to spend at least $1,350 before their health insurance starts covering their care, or at least $2,700 for family plans.

Some health plans, though, can have deductibles that exceed $10,000. 

Read more:My company offers free health insurance — here’s why I decided to spend $1,000 more on a better plan

High deductible plans and other methods of shifting costs to patients are a key reason why patients face high drug prices at the pharmacy counter. That's an important issue for Express Scripts, which is a company that negotiates prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies, known as a pharmacy benefits manager.

The healthcare blame game

The US system for paying for prescription drugs is complicated. Patients with high deductible insurance plans often don't pay the lower prices negotiated by companies like Express Scripts, until after they've met their deductibles.

Instead, they have to pay the higher list prices set by drugmakers. That's contributed to finger pointing among pharmacy benefits managers, drug companies, and health insurers over who's really at fault for the high prices that consumers are facing.

"We have got to fix the insurance market, because we cannot have people being exposed to some of these high deductible plans when they clearly can’t do it," said Miller, who's the Chief Medical Officer at Express Scripts.

That remark is particularly notable because Express Scripts will likely soon be part of a health insurer. Cigna agreed to acquire it in a $67 billion deal earlier this year, though the transaction isn't yet completed.

The biggest pharmacy benefits manager, CVS Health, is also joining forces with a health insurer. CVS's $70 billion acquisition of Aetna was completed on November 28.

In an interview on the sidelines of the Forbes event, CVS CEO Larry Merlo said his company may look into changing the design of Aetna's health plans, to take into account concerns about high deductible plans. He didn't go into detail.

Merlo said his company is also trying to help eliminate sticker shock, when patients show up at the pharmacy counter and face high costs for their drugs that they're not expecting.

CVS is rolling out a service to 100,000 doctors offices by the end of 2018 that allows doctors to see how much their patients can expect to pay at the pharmacy counter for drugs they've prescribed. The system also suggests alternatives. Merlo said so far, doctors switch to other medications 40% of the time, saving patients on average $125. 

"To us it's an important datapoint that physicians are recognizing that out of pocket costs are now a variable in terms of the quality of care that they can provide," Merlo said. "We think there's a lot more that we can do around that. "

• Read more:

• Amazon is threatening the future of independent pharmacies. Here's how they're fighting back.
• A small but growing movement of doctors that don't accept insurance and charge a monthly fee could be a model for big employers like Amazon and JPMorgan
• 'Waiting for its Uber moment': America's biggest companies are shaking up the healthcare system
• Massive companies like Apple and Amazon are exploring new ways to care for the health of their employees — and it could upend the way healthcare’s done

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: There's so much CO2 in the atmosphere that planting trees can no longer save us

• Zac Efron is playing notorious serial killer and necrophile Ted Bundy in the upcoming movie "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile."
• Efron shared the first look at the movie in an Instagram post Thursday.
• Lily Collins, John Malkovich, Jim Parsons, Angela Sarafyan, Jeffrey Donovan, and Haley Joel Osment also star. 
• Bundy confessed to committing 30 murders in at least seven states over the span of four years, but the number of his victims is thought to be more.
• He escaped from jail twice before being executed in January 1989. 
• The movie is premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2019.
• See the photo below.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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

• The Internet of Things is helping to make commercial buildings more energy efficient.
• One solution is doing so by monitoring usage carefully —where, when, and how much.
• 5G will make it easier to create smart, efficient buildings.

Many of today's commercial buildings predate modern energy-saving tools and techniques. That means they waste a lot of energy — up to 30% of it, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency.

With climate change becoming more and more of a reality, and the cost of commercial electricity up 43% from 2000 to 2017, it's time to think about how to make our buildings smarter. Thanks to the Internet of Things, we can.

One company is tackling commercial building efficiency on several levels, and it starts with understanding energy usage. The system uses sensors in office buildings and factories to monitor data including occupancy, temperature, lighting, and energy use. It allows executives to monitor how much energy they're using, where, and how.

The system also measures less tangible aspects of buildings. It can gain deeper insights into building usage by using video to monitor things like foot traffic volume and usage based on the time of day. This video tracking not only makes buildings more secure by securing keyless access, but also makes them smarter by using big data and AI analytics to sense the hidden life of the workplace. They can then mold energy usage and improve occupants' everyday experiences by altering workplace layouts and adjusting staff schedules.

IoT in action

This company has already worked with Western Australia's Curtin University to saturate it with sensors and deliver insights that can make its campus smarter, safer, and more sustainable. These sensors tell staff how different facilities like lecture halls and libraries are being used so they can "right-size" room designs and class sizes, better using those spaces and energy resources more often. The data provided by the sensors can even extend sustainability outside the university by helping it cut demand for parking spaces and encourage carpooling. The idea is to allow students to opt into a program that will match them up with other students if the system sees them entering class together and knows they live close to each other.

Inside buildings, executives can integrate the system's IoT sensors with building management systems to control energy-consuming systems like lighting, airflow, and HVAC. Making these IoT-based improvements together is more efficient. Companies can save 30% to 50% of their energy with integrated smart-building systems, compared to just 5% to 15% when upgrading individual systems, according to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy.

By connecting to cloud-based analytics systems, companies can build out these efficiencies across multiple facilities, saving costs at scale and contributing to more energy-efficient cities overall.

The next evolution for smart buildings

Boosting efficiency savings is one of the things 5G technology promises to do. And 5G is poised to support the tsunami of new devices that will populate tomorrow's networks — whether that's a smart building or an entire smart city.

Also, 5G is the foundational platform for "fog" computing that marries cloud infrastructure with high-powered computing at the network's edge. This enables 5G-based IoT infrastructures to process data close to its source for fast decision-making, while sending back data to the cloud where necessary to manage multiple buildings as a single ecosystem.

This technology will make it easier to create smart, sustainable buildings by enabling consultants to deploy the right computing power and connectivity in the right place, both inside buildings and out. Edge-based computing devices could process data about water and energy usage in factory production lines and configure equipment to conserve it.

It's about time we updated buildings to learn from what's happening inside and around them. The Department of Energy says that commercial buildings account for 36% of all electricity usage in the US and cost more than $190 billion in energy each year. IoT requires a bit of energy to operate, but it can save much more than that while improving the quality of life for building occupants in the process.

Read the Ultimate 5G Explainer to learn more about how 5G will make commercial buildings more energy efficient.

This post is sponsored by Sprint Business. 

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• High-flying and volatile cannabis stocks have caught the attention of both the Main street and Wall Street this year.
• Recently, Canada became the second country to legalize recreational cannabis and Michigan joined nine states and Washington, DC, in allowing full use of marijuana. 
• Money manager Ken Mahoney explains why 'pick-and-shovel’ companies are a great way to take advantage of the opportunities that cannabis brings while avoiding the volatility of weed stocks.

High-flying and volatile cannabis stocks have caught the attention of both the Main Street and Wall Street this year, especially as Canada and the Michigan have recently legalized the recreational use of marijuana.

While traders are embracing the opportunities of the "green rush," they should be aware of the high volatility of pot stocks, said Ken Mahoney, CEO of the New-York based Mahoney Asset Management. 

"When there is a lot of excitement about it, I get worried because the valuations are stretched," Mahoney said. "People don’t do enough homework before they invest."

Mahoney, who offers clients retirement solutions, says his experience shows smaller investors always end up in the wrong direction when a new concept comes to the market because there's always a high level of uncertainty. 

"It’s hard to find the ultimate winner," he said. "It's hard to be the stock picker."

So, instead of buying individual cannabis stocks such as Tilray, Aphria, Cronos Group, Aurora Cannabis and Canopy Growth, Mahoney recommends using a "pick-and-shovel" strategy, which involves investing in the underlying technology needed to produce cannabis, rather than in the final product.

According to Mahoney, most weed stocks are new to the market and don't have a record of revenues and profits to support their "outrageous valuations." However, old "pick-and-shovel" companies, which provide solutions, such as fertilizing, real estate, and packaging for marijuana producers, already have a well-established business and can capitalize on the opportunities that cannabis brings.

Below Mahoney gives four stock picks and explains why he likes them:

Innovative Industrial Properties

Ticker: IIPR

Industry: Real Estate

The first marijuana-related real-estate firm to be publicly traded, Innovative Industrial Properties (IIPR) provides real-estate solutions and capital for the medical-use cannabis industry. With big bank and direct equity investments hard to come by due to strong federal laws and regulations, IIPRs sale and leaseback option is becoming increasing popular in the industry. It currently runs over 10 properties and has more than half a dozen growers in operation.

Source: Mahoney Asset Management

Scotts Miracle-Gro

Ticker: SMG

Industry:Growing & Fertilizing

A manufacturing firm with a 150-year history. Scotts Miracle-Gro offers fertilizers, plant foods, seeds, soils and pest controls. SMG purchased of one of the top hydroponic companies in the United States, Sunlight Supply, for $450 million began to develop its presence in the marijuana market.

Coupled with the recent law changes in Canada and some US states legalizing marijuana, its hydroponics business, which is the process of growing any plant, including marijuana, has been improving.

SMG has more than 1,000 retail locations spread across major legal marijuana states in the US, so any soil, fertilizer, pest control, or even simple gardening products bought will most likely fall under the SMG brand.

Source: Mahoney Asset Management

GW Pharmaceuticals

Ticker: GWPH

Industry:Testing & Medical Treatment

A British bio-pharmaceutical company recognized for its use of cannabinoid-based drugs for medical treatments. In 2010, one of its products was approved and used in the UK to help treat multiple sclerosis. But more recently (June 2018), here in the United States, it was the first drug-maker to be approved for a cannabis derived drug by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Source: Mahoney Asset Management

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

• Google makes several smart speakers and many well-known audio companies also put the Google Assistant in their smart speakers. 

• We've rounded up the best smart speakers with the Google Assistant onboard to help you find the one that's right for you.

• The original Google Home is our top pick because it is a top-notch Assistant-powered speaker that looks good, sounds great, and has a reasonable price tag.

Google Assistant is one of the best digital assistants along with Alexa. If you own an Android phone and you use other Google products and services, there’s plenty of reason to buy into the Google ecosystem and get a smart speaker that's powered by the Google Assistant. The Assistant boasts excellent voice recognition, access to a huge range of third-party services, the power of Google's search engine, and more.

Of course, ever since the launch of the original Google Home, plenty of smart speakers with the Google Assistant have been released by traditional audio companies, too. All of these speakers are great for different situations. You might, for example, want a speaker with slightly better audio quality. Or, you might want something a little cheaper or more portable. Thankfully, there are plenty of options, and we think there is a Google speaker for everyone.

There are a number of things to think about before buying a Google Assistant-powered speaker. Perhaps the first and most important thing, however, is your budget. As long as you’re willing to spend $50 or more, there will be a speaker for you, but if you’re willing to spend more than $100, you’ll likely find a great sounding speaker. You’ll also want to think about whether you want a stationary speaker or something that's portable.

Here are the best Google Home and Google Assistant smart speakers:

• Best Google Home speaker overall: Google Home
• Best Google Home speaker on a budget: Google Home Mini
• Best Google Home speaker for audiophiles: Google Home Max
• Best Google Home speaker with a screen: Google Home Hub
• Best portable Google Assistant speaker: JBL Link 20

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks.

The best Google Home speaker overall

Why you’ll love it: The Google Home is well-designed and classy, plus, it sounds good and doesn't cost a ton of money.

The original Google Home may be a few years old that this point, but it’s still arguably the best value-for-your-money Google Assistant smart speaker you can buy. It boasts a relatively classy and modern design that should fit in with any decor. The speaker also sounds good for its size.

The first thing you’ll notice about the Google Home speaker is its lovely design. It has interchangeable bases, so you can swap the base to fit the color-scheme of your home decor.

Although design is important, the sound quality is an even bigger deal since it's a speaker. Luckily, the Google Home sounds quite good, especially for the size and price. The speaker does extend the bass a little, which is good for bass fans but not great for those who like a more natural sound. It also offers 360-degree sound and a solid amount of clarity in the high-end.

So what about downsides? Well, apart from the boosted bass, there aren’t too many. At launch, Google Assistant didn’t work with as many services as Alexa, and while that may still be true, we think the vast majority of people will be happy with what the Assistant can do.

The digital assistant is arguably better than Alexa at answering questions, thanks to the power of Google's Search engine. It also works with many of the best smart home devices, including Nest products and Philips Hue light bulbs.

Put simply, the Google Home is a great device. It’s versatile, modern, and not too pricey.

Pros: Nice design, not too expensive, decent sound-quality

Cons: Bass boost may not be for everyone

Buy the Google Home on Best Buy for $129

The best budget Google Home speaker

Why you’ll love it: The Google Home Mini may not sound as full as other Google Home speakers, but it still boasts all the same smart features, plus it comes at a fraction of the price.

Looking for the advantages of the Google Assistant in a speaker but don’t have a huge budget? The Google Home Mini is a great way to go. It’s cheap, well designed, and it offers all the smart features you'd find in any other Google Assistant speaker.

Let’s start with the design. The Google Home Mini is a small puck-shaped device that's covered with a classy-looking fabric that comes in Coral, Chalk, or Charcoal. We think all the colors look good, though if you like a splash of color, the Coral is definitely the way to go.

Then there’s the sound quality, and although it’s not great, it's not bad. We found that while the Home Mini wasn’t terrible in terms of sound quality, the overall tone was a little tinny and thin, with a lack of bass all-around. That's to be expected for such a small speaker, though.

This device is really more for those who want the smart features of the Google Assistant in their homes than those who like listening to music all the time. If you’re a music fan, it’s worth looking elsewhere.

Still, despite that single downside, the Google Home Mini is a great option. It’s not overly expensive, it's very smart, and it integrates very well with Google’s other apps and services, which is super important for Google fans.

Pros: Inexpensive, works with smart home, looks good

Cons: Sound-quality isn’t amazing

Buy the Google Home Mini at Best Buy for $49

The best Google Home speaker for audiophiles

Why you’ll love it: The Google Home Max gets much louder and offers a far superior sound quality compared to the other speakers in our guide.

Perhaps the sound quality of your smart speaker is important to you — and if that’s true for you, then the Google Home Max is the way to go. The speaker is big, loud, and seriously powerful.

The first thing to note about the Google Home Max is its design — it’s very clearly a Google-built product. It features the same design sensibilities as other Google Home speakers, including fabric accents and a clean, simple design. The Max is a large speaker, so it will take up a good amount of space in your home.

Of course, the best thing about the Google Home Max has nothing to do with its design. It’s about the overall sound quality. The speaker not only gets super loud, but it boasts a great frequency response, too.

Like the original Google Home, there’s a ton of bass, but that can thankfully be adjusted in the Google Home app. Also, if you want a seriously high-quality sound, the Google Home Max can be paired with another Google Home Max for stereo sound, making it a great option for audiophiles who like a clear, detailed sound.

So what about downsides? Well, the main one is that the speaker is quite a bit more expensive than the other Google Home speakers. On top of that, the speaker is big, so you may have to set aside a solid amount of space for it. However, that’s to be expected for such a powerful speaker.

Pros: Well-designed, excellent sound-quality, can be paired with second Home Max

Cons: Big and expensive

Buy the Google Home Max at Best Buy for $399

• TJ Maxx and Burlington are both thriving.
• The variety of products, low prices, and increased demand for off-price products is part of the reason why. 
• TJ Maxx's parent company, TJX Companies, reported on November 20 that comparable sales were up 9% at TJ Maxx and Marshalls in the most recent fiscal quarter. Burlington reported on Wednesday that comparable sales were up 4.4% in the third quarter.
• We compared shopping at TJ Maxx and Burlington, and the winner was clear. 

Off-price retailers are thriving as department stores struggle, and TJ Maxx and Burlington are no exception. 

TJ Maxx and Burlington are both well loved by shoppers for a number of reasons, including the low prices both stores have on a huge variety of products.

TJ Maxx's parent company, TJX Companies, reported on November 20 that comparable sales were up 9% at TJ Maxx and Marshalls in the most recent fiscal quarter. Likewise, Burlington reported on Wednesday that comparable sales were up 4.4% in the third quarter.

Both stores are benefiting from a disappearing middle class and a higher demand for budget options — two factors that have been hurting traditional department stores. In addition, because most TJ Maxx stores are located in suburban strip malls rather than shopping malls, it's less likely to be affected by the declining foot traffic that has hurt malls and the retailers that depend on them.

While Burlington has 679 stores in the United States, TJ Maxx has more than 1,200.

When we visited New York locations of the two stores, we found that both of them carried name brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Michael Kors at prices of $35 or less. However, both stores were very cluttered.

But one store was better than the other for a key reason:

SEE ALSO: We shopped at TJ Maxx and Kohl's to see which store was better, and the winner was clear for one key reason

Burlington, in New York's Flatiron District, was my first stop.

Christmas decorations and other seasonal products were set up to the left of the entryway.

Women's clothing was on the right.