Over the last several months, gas prices have plunged from around $3.50 a gallon to $2.00 a gallon. 

As prices plummeted, economists began to discuss the benefits to the US consumer — and the US economy — due to this decline, which they argued would serve effectively as a tax cut and boost consumer spending. 

But with recent retail sales data disappointing, economists have wondered what happened to all that extra money consumers had to spend.

And it looks like they saved it. And spent it on gas.

In a note to clients, economists at Wells Fargo wrote:

[G]asoline sales fell 9.3 percent in January. Inflation data detailing the price change in gasoline prices for the month is not yet available, but AAA gasoline prices show the cost of a gallon of gas fell 18 percent over the month after seasonal adjustment. With nominal sales falling at nearly half the rate as prices, it suggests that some of the savings from lower gasoline prices went toward consumers actually buying more gasoline. Already we have seen real sales of gasoline pick up in the wake of price declines, increasing 4.3 percent between September and December. More recently, we saw the personal saving rate jump to 4.9 percent in December. Therefore, it looks like much of the recent savings from gasoline prices is going to just that: savings and gasoline. 

This chart from FRED shows the uptick in personal savings in December.

And this chart via Wells shows the surprising increase in gas spending.

SEE ALSO: Americans don't believe that gas prices aren't going to go right back up

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The world's largest fly farm is about to open in South Africa as part of an initiative to produce sustainable feed for chicken and fish.

Industrial farmed chicken and fish eat fish meal, which is bad for the environment because it depletes already fragile fish resources. To create 1 kilogram of high-protein fish meal, for example, it takes 4.5 kilogrammes of smaller pelagic fish such as anchovies and sardines, according to Time Magazine.

The cost of fish meal is also rising with increased demand for fish. Fish meal sold for less than $500 (£325 ) a tonne in the early 2000s, but last year it peaked at $2,400 (£1,562) a tonne, according to Bloomberg.

But AgriProtein, a South African farming company, has a solution. AgriProtein produces MagMeal — animal feed that is made from fly larvae that feeds on waste. The benefit of MagMeal is two-fold: It offers a sustainable, natural source of protein for farmed animals (there's no shortage of flies), and at the same time, helps to eliminate garbage. 

In 2012, AgriProtein received funds from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support its insect-based protein product and the company's commitment to waste solutions.  

“It is not different from what already happens in nature,” Jason Drew, the founder and director of AgriProtein told Business Insider UK. “The anomaly is what we do now — 30% of the fish we take is not consumed by humans, but rather fed to fishes or chickens. I mean, if a chicken was meant to eat fish it would be called a seagull."

AgriProtein, founded in 2009, started building its first industrial-scale factory in May 2014. The plant, which can house more than 8 billion flies and produce 22 tons of larvae every day, is set to open next month, according to Drew. 

How it works

Common flies are harvested with organic waste, such as food leftovers from supermarkets and restaurants and remains from slaughterhouses. The flies lay their eggs in the waste, and these eggs rapidly turn into larvae, eating the waste as they grow. The BBC calculated that one kilogram of eggs becomes 380 kilogrammes of larvae in just three days.

After a few days, before they become flies, the larvae are collected, washed, and pressurised into MagMeal, which can be delivered to chicken barns and fish farms.

Opening a new fly farm costs about £5.2 million ($8 million), but the investment would be amortised very quickly since the operational costs are low. AgriProtein already has an agreement with Cape Town’s waste disposal agency, helping them to sort out what to do with the garbage of a city of four million.

AgriProtein raised £7.15 million ($11 million) from private backers like Twynam and s.Oliver to help build its latest commercial farm.

The future of the food industry

A native Yorkshireman, Drew moved to South Africa in 2003. Five years later, he quit his job as manager to dedicate his career to the environment.

Now, Drew calls himself an “environmental capitalist.”

“The industrial revolution is over, and the sustainability revolution has begun," Drew says. "During the industrial revolution you either were environmentalist or a capitalist, and you couldn’t be both. But I am a capitalist and an environmentalist the same time."

He adds: "I am in the business to make millions, but I want to defend the environment. The sustainability revolution can be both: the environmentalists needs to understand that they must follow the market, or otherwise they will fail, and the markets need to understand that if you are a businessman who doesn’t understand the environment you will fail.”

Drew has written two books with one more, "The Environmental Capitalist," set to arrive in April. Drew also spoke about his flies at TEDx and Creative Innovation.

Drew's aim is to feed a growing world population without further depleting the planet’s natural resources. Every day, the world populations grows by 200,000. To meet this growth, combined with an increase demand for protein from the developing world, the world’s annual production of meat will have to increase to 376 million tonnes by 2030, according to the World Health Organization. Fifteen years ago, it was little more than 200 million tonnes.

Although AgriProtein has approval in South Africa, it is still banned in Europe due to a regulation introduced during the mad cow disease epidemic that prohibits the feeding of livestock with processed meat. MagMeal falls into this category.

The new farm, located about 120 kilometres north of Cape Town, will be joined by another South African facility later this year. 

“We are in talks to license our technology abroad," Drew says. "We want to bring fly farming to the US, Latin America, Asia, and Australia. In 15 years, we could have 40 to 45 of these farms worldwide.”

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NOW WATCH: Animated map of what Earth would look like if all the ice melted

Analysts vastly underestimated how well "Fifty Shades of Grey" would perform at the box office President's Day Weekend.

The adaptation of the best-selling erotica fan-fiction series by E.L. James brought in an adjusted $85 million over the three-day weekend (originally that number was $81.7 million). In four days, the $40 million Universal Pictures and Focus Features' film made $94.4 million.

Analysts thought it would make just over $60 million.

That was probably due in part to comparisons with "Twilight.""Fifty Shades" started out as fan-fiction of the popular teen novels. The first "Twilight" movie debuted to $69 million in 2008, so an opening around $60 million would have made sense for the first installment of "Fifty Shades." 

Instead, the film became the best-opening weekend in February ever at the box office, knocking 2004's "Passion of the Christ" from the top spot.

Here are a few other records it now holds:

• Largest opening weekend for a romantic movie (beating out 2001's "Pearl Harbor," $59 million)
• Largest opening weekend for an erotic thriller (topping 2009's "Obsessed," $28.6 million)
• The biggest R-rated ticket-seller on Fandango

The film also has the fourth-largest opening weekend for an R-rated movie.

Since its release, the movie has made over $266 million worldwide. In the UK and Ireland, the film made $21.5 million.

Why didn't analysts think "Fifty Shades" would make more?

For one thing, history precedes it.

Typically, February isn't a month where we see a lot of break-out box-office hits.

"The LEGO Movie" started to change that thought process last year when it surprised everyone with a $69 million opening weekend, and a second weekend where it nearly performed just as well.

The biggest thing "Fifty Shades" had going against it was how previous R-rated films and films in the erotica genre have performed at the box office opening weekend.

Take a look at the biggest opening weekends for R-rated movies. "Fifty Shades" is the only film of its kind to crack the top five.

Instead, here's how the top erotic thriller films have performed opening weekend at theaters:

"Fifty Shades" had the advantage of not only being an R-rated erotica film, but unlike the other films listed above, it had a huge "Twilight"-sized fan following. Over 100 million copies of "Fifty Shades of Grey" have been sold. 

The combination of both helped it break any box-office expectations. 

SEE ALSO: Meet the author behind the steamy "Fifty Shades of Grey" phenomenon

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NOW WATCH: Learn what all the fuss is about — here's the regular guy's guide to 'Fifty Shades of Grey'

Last Friday, President Barack Obama sat down with Re/code co-executive editor Kara Swisher to talk about cyber warfare, cyber security, and other tech topics.

One answer in particular is stirring up angry sentiment across the pond in Europe. When Swisher asked Obama about Europe’s investigations into Google and Facebook, he accused Europe of protectionism:

In defense of Google and Facebook, sometimes the European response here is more commercially-driven than anything else. As I’ve said, there are some countries like Germany, given its history with the Stasi, that are very sensitive to these issues. But sometimes their vendors — their service providers who, you know, can’t compete with ours — are essentially trying to set up some roadblocks for our companies to operate effectively there.

...

We have owned the Internet. Our companies have created it, expanded it, perfected it in ways that they can’t compete. And often times what is portrayed as high-minded positions on issues sometimes is just designed to carve out some of their commercial interests.

Many in the EU were not happy with the answer. One European Commission spokesperson told the Financial Times that Obama’s point — that Europe’s regulations are there to protect European companies –  was “out of line.”

Ramon Tremosa, a Catalan member of the European Parliament told the Financial Times that the EU's position isn't based solely on self-interest.

“President Obama forgets or maybe isn’t aware that among the dozens of complainants in the Google antitrust case, there are several US companies. Some companies, like Yelp, have no problem going public. Others don’t want to attack Google openly because they fear retaliation measures, such as demotion/exclusion and penalties supposedly applied by Google to some rival companies,” Tremosa said.

In recent years, the European Union has targeted Google, among other US tech giants, in numerous cases. The EU is currently in the middle of a four-year anti-trust case against Google and, in November, the European Parliament passed a resolution suggesting the break up or unbundling of Google. As of May last year, Google has had to comply with Europe’s “right to be forgotten,” allowing citizens to have personal details removed from the search engine.  

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NOW WATCH: 14 things you didn't know your iPhone headphones could do

Paris (AFP) - Environmental scientists raised concern Monday at rising levels of gases that attack Earth's protective ozone layer, including manmade chemicals not covered by a key UN treaty.

Researchers at Leeds University in northern England said two computer models highlighted the impact of so-called "very short-lived substances" -- VSLS -- that deplete the stratospheric shield.

The damage they do to the ozone layer is significant and likely to increase, they said, as emissions of man-made chlorine gases rise.

Ironically, one of the chemicals named in the report, dichloromethane, is used in the manufacture of substitutes for ozone-depleting gases outlawed by the UN's 1987 Montreal Protocol.

VSLS are gases that have a short lifetime, usually breaking down in less than six months.

They are not covered by the landmark Montreal Protocol that requires the phaseout of longer-lasting chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs) and halon gases.

"Our model simulations indicate that VSLS account for a significant portion of ozone loss in the stratosphere," lead investigator Ryan Hossaini told AFP by email.

"In the Antarctic region, where the ozone hole forms each year and where ozone decreases are the most dramatic, we estimate that VSLS account for about 12.5 percent of the total ozone loss. 

"Globally averaged, the ozone loss due to VSLS in the lower stratosphere could be as much as 25 percent, though it is much smaller at higher altitude."

Around 90 percent of VSLS are natural -- they are bromine compounds produced by seaweed and the ocean's phytoplankton. 

The rest is man-made chlorine gases, and their contribution to the VSLS total is rising fast.

"Dichloromethane appears to be one of the most abundant man-made VSLS that we know of," said Hossaini.

Compared with the notorious CFCs, dichloromethane's impact today is small. The computer models suggest it reduces the ozone layer by less than one percent, he said.

"However, our study also shows that the atmospheric concentration of dichloromethane has increased dramatically in recent years," said Hossaini.

"At some locations its atmospheric concentration has doubled since the late 1990s."

The study, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, looked at two decades of raw data provided by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Ozone is a three-atom molecule of oxygen. At ground level, as a byproduct of traffic pollution, it can be a dangerous respiratory irritant.

- Ozone defence -

But in the stratosphere, a layer that lies between 10 and 50 kilometres (six to 52 miles) in altitude, it is a life-saver: it filters out harmful ultraviolet light that can cause skin cancer and cataracts and damage crops.

The ozone "hole" -- in reality, a thinning -- occurs naturally because of extreme cold.

But it is also eroded by man-made chlorine compounds such as coolants in air conditioners and refrigerators, insulation foams and propellants in hair sprays.

Most of these are being phased out under the Montreal treaty, which has been ratified by all 197 UN members.

Last September, UN agencies said the ozone was "well on track" for recovery by mid-century, although fixing it over Antarctica would take longer.

Some of the progress, though, would be offset if VSLS continue to increase, the paper said.

It was unclear whether global warming would hasten VSLS emissions by unlocking ocean sources, Hossaini said.

The gases were, however, not contributors to the greenhouse gas effect, which is separate from the ozone hole as an environmental problem.

Instead, VSLS exert an indirect cooling impact through the ozone loss.

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US consumers are getting more cautious about how they spend their savings from low gas prices.

Gas prices have fallen 40% since September, giving consumers a 'tax break' of more than $60 billion, according to Morgan Stanley chief US economist Ellen Zentner.

As gas prices fell, the pace of real Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) growth accelerated above the 2% average of the last four years, Zentner said in a video Friday. It reached 4.3% for the fourth quarter of 2014.

Yet, that was less than what it could have been.

"What we found is some lingering caution, that sales could actually be stronger," Zentner said. "So some of the discretionary categories have shown some weakening of late. Households simply aren’t spending as much out of the gas savings as we thought they would."

"That lingering caution we think continues in the first quarter," she added, showing that real PCE growth is estimated to fall to 3.2% for the first quarter. The benefit of the slowdown in spending is that people are using the extra money to pay off debt, or are stashing it away as savings, Zentner said. This ultimately improves households' finances.

Here's a chart that shows the estimated slowdown in real PCE:

On Monday, Business Insider's Sam Ro explored this issue, noting that in the most recent University of Michigan consumer sentiment report, consumers expressed doubt that low gas prices would persist.

This caution has seen consumers opt to hang on to their gas savings rather than spend it. 

President Obama had told US consumers to enjoy their savings from low gas prices because "they won't be around forever." Rather than splurge, Obama advised Americans to save.

One area where it appears Americans have been spending their extra savings is restaurants and bars. According to last week's January retail sales data, sales at restaurants and bars jumped 23% in January, the most among all categories of businesses.

SEE ALSO: Why Americans aren't spending all that money they're saving on gas

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NOW WATCH: Learn what all the fuss is about — here's the regular guy's guide to 'Fifty Shades of Grey'

Paris (AFP) - A first-half away goal by Branislav Ivanovic and some fine goalkeeping by Thibaut Courtois put Chelsea in command of their Champions League last-16 tie with Paris Saint-Germain as Tuesday's first leg ended 1-1.

Ivanovic headed in on 36 minutes after Gary Cahill had helped the ball into his path to give Chelsea the lead from their first and only chance of the evening at the Parc des Princes.

Edinson Cavani replied with a header of his own in the 54th minute and PSG enjoyed the bulk of the chances but Courtois intervened time and again to keep the Premier League leaders on level terms.

Jose Mourinho's side should now fancy their chances of progressing to the quarter-finals when the second leg comes around in London on March 11, with Paris needing to score in that game to keep the tie alive.

That was something Laurent Blanc's side failed to do when the teams met in the last eight a year ago, allowing Chelsea to go through on away goals despite losing the first leg 3-1 in France.

Seven points clear at the top of the Premier League, Chelsea are a stronger side than they were then, while PSG had been forced to deal with something of an injury crisis in the build-up to this game.

With Lucas, Thiago Motta and Yohan Cabaye among the players on the sidelines, Blanc opted to start David Luiz in midfield against his former club while Marquinhos lined up in central defence despite being a doubt ahead of the game.

Chelsea were at full strength but their chief creator, Cesc Fabregas, struggled to make an impact on the match up against the combative Luiz.

In a cagey opening, it was the hosts who created what chances there were, with Blaise Matuidi the first to test Courtois on 11 minutes with a header from a Cavani cross.

The Belgian goalkeeper was equal to that effort and was called into action again seconds later to keep out a Zlatan Ibrahimovic header from a Matuidi centre.

Ibrahimovic and his fellow forwards were afforded little space in the final third and they had to wait until after the half-hour mark to trouble Courtois again, Cavani seeing his near-post header from Ezequiel Lavezzi's corner turned behind.

- Sucker punch -

Chelsea were happy to soak up the pressure and hit Paris with a sucker punch nine minutes before the interval thanks to a rare attacking combination between three of their back four, Ivanovic stealing in behind Luiz to head home after Cahill had flicked on a Terry cross.

However, those defenders hardly covered themselves in glory as PSG drew level nine minutes after the restart, leaving Cavani completely unmarked to head home his 17th goal of the season -- his sixth in the Champions League -- from a Matuidi left-wing cross.

With their backs to the wall, Paris came out fighting in the second half and Chelsea were again grateful to the outstanding Courtois as he saved from Ibrahimovic before Lavezzi's follow-up was blocked just in front of the line.

Courtois, again preferred to Petr Cech between the posts by Mourinho, then got his fingertips to a Luiz header from a Lavezzi free-kick.

PSG's unbeaten record at home this season did not appear under threat in the closing stages, but they could not get the winning goal on the night.

Cavani put a glorious chance wide of the far post 10 minutes from time and, when Ibrahimovic got a header on target in stoppage time, that man Courtois was on hand yet again to save Chelsea.

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After originally estimating that LeBron James' return to Cleveland would bring an annual $500 million boost to the local economy, one economist is now calling that number "outlandish" while others explain why the true impact is likely much less.

Shortly after James signed with the Cavaliers and decided to return to Cleveland, economist LeRoy Brooks outlined for Time.com how the NBA star could help generate $495 million in additional revenue for the area. The Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office reached a similar estimate of a $500 million a year impact on the Cleveland economy.

While attendance at Cavs games is up more than 3,000 fans per game, another economist explained for Cleveland.com how the earlier estimates ignored one important point and why the overall impact of LeBron's presence is misleading.

Edward "Ned" Hill, an economist at Cleveland State University said the original estimates ignored where the money was coming from. If it is not coming from outside the Cleveland area, it is not a boost to the economy and is rather just a shift in entertainment spending. That is, people might be spending more on Cavs games and at restaurants and bars near the arena, but they are probably also spending less on movies and other forms of entertainment.

Brooks did concede that the $500 million estimate was "outlandish" telling Cleveland.com it was just a first estimate made in haste. 

This doesn't mean the return of LeBron won't have a positive impact. There are signs that James' presence has helped the Cleveland economy.

Bar owners near the arena have seen a 30-200% increase in revenue on game nights. Bartenders and waitresses that would normally be laid off until the summer are being kept on the payroll. In addition, demand for local hotel rooms are up 8.6% from the same period last year compared to the national average increase of 5.8%.

But at the same time, Cleveland.com reports that sales taxes in Cuyahoga County are only up 10% from the same point last year, an increase that is actually below the Ohio state average of 11%, suggesting any increase is just due to a healthier economy overall.

The true impact of James on the local economy won't be known for some time and is almost certainly dependent on a deep run in the NBA playoffs. One study conducted in 2010 showed that $150 million of the $200 million in local spending tied to LeBron and the Cavaliers came during the playoffs.

Whatever the real impact ends up being, most agree it will be far less than $500 million.

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NOW WATCH: Cristiano Ronaldo, wearing a wig and glasses, surprised a young fan on the streets of Madrid

Not only was Tiger Woods the most talented golfer in the world in the early 2000s, he was one of the most innovative.

Tiger has been heavily criticized throughout his career for incessantly tinkering with his game. In his pursuit of the perfect golf swing, he has disassembled and rebuilt the swing that won him majors, and he's done it multiple times. He's never satisfied, probably to a fault.

But if it wasn't for his willingness to try new things, he would have never been as dominant as he was.

After the 2000 Masters, Tiger became one of the first well-known players to switch from a wound-core ball to a solid-core ball. 

"A lot of people look at 2000 as Tiger at his best but it was probably the first and only time in Tiger's career that you could argue that maybe he had better equipment than the rest,"ex-PGA golfer Frank Nobilo told Reuters. "Only a handful of guys had gone to the solid ball. The rest of us all thought a wound ball was better."

At the 2000 Masters, less than half of the players used a solid-core ball, according to Mark McClusky, author of the book Faster, Higher, Stronger. A year later, all but four players used a solid-core ball.

Part of the reason this transition was so swift and total: Tiger had one of the greatest years in the history of golf after he switched to the new type of ball.

He debuted the new Nike ball at the Deutsche Bank Open in Germany in May of 2000. That summer he won the U.S. Open, British Open, and PGA Championship. The next spring he won the Masters to complete the "Tiger Slam."

In the 12 months after he switched, he won nine tournaments and all four majors.

In 2014, Woods spoke at a Nike event and talked about the significance of the switch. Even 14 years later, you can tell how proud he is that he helped change the sport by taking a chance on this new type of ball:

"I think the biggest transition I ever made was back in 2000. It was the wound-ball technology at that time, and we came out with a solid-construction ball. I tested it and felt great about it and what it did for me, how it performed around the greens and especially in the wind. I believe it was, in Germany at the Deutsche Bank event in Hamburg, where I put it in play for the first time. Then I came back and played Memorial and won, and then I had a good showing at the U.S. Open at Pebble and then won the British and the PGA. It was a nice little run, and I basically won four straight majors with that ball.

"The rest is history because the wound-ball technology is gone. Everyone switched. Being a part of that innovative wave was pretty exciting for me. And then (David) Duval switched as well, and we were both No. 1 and No. 2 in the world, so you couldn’t have had a more opportunistic and dynamic showing of evolution happening, and it was fantastic. Then he won the British Open a year later."

Tiger had been using Titleist balls before the 2000 Deutsche Bank. Part of that was because Nike didn't make balls at the time. They started as his apparel and shoe sponsor, and only started making equipment in the early 2000s.

Nike Golf president Bob Wood said in 2000, "If he decides to switch, it's an earthquake." 

Don't weep for Titleist, though. The company debuted its own solid-core ball that year. That ball, the Pro V1, is widely regarded as the ball that revolutionized the sport.

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NOW WATCH: Cristiano Ronaldo, wearing a wig and glasses, surprised a young fan on the streets of Madrid

Lviv (Ukraine) (AFP) - Bayern Munich’s Xabi Alonso was sent off on his 100th Champions League appearance as the German side were held to a scoreless draw by Shakthar Donetsk in the last 16 first leg clash on Tuesday.  

Alonso picked up his second booking after 65 minutes but Bayern comfortably held on to secure a positive result in a first leg played out in sub-zero temperatures in Lviv.

The Bundesliga champions will be confident they can complete the job in three weeks’ time in Munich but Pep Guardiola will be relieved that they survived an ill-tempered encounter in Ukraine.

Shakhtar Donetsk -- who had not played a competitive match since the last group game on December 10 -- had been forced to host this game over 1,000 kilometres from the club’s Donbass Arena due to ongoing violence in the east of the country.  

But they successfully stifled the German visitors, who had come into the match brimming with confidence following an 8-0 win over Hamburg at the weekend.

Bayern almost got an away goal after only two minutes, when Arjen Robben clipped a ball into Bastian Schweinsteiger who hooked wide from inside the penalty area.

Shakhtar could be forgiven for a slow start since they had played their last competitive game 10 weeks ago in their final group game in the competition.

And after 11 minutes, Robben created another good opportunity when his reverse pass picked out the run of Thomas Mueller inside the penalty area.

From a tight angle, Mueller prodded the ball past keeper Andriy Pyatov but did not find the net.  

The home team dug in after that and rarely looked threatened despite allowing Bayern 70 per cent possession in the opening half hour.

After 24 minutes, Alonso picked up his first booking and Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer almost fumbled the free-kick that followed into Douglas Costa’s path.  

Just past the half hour Bayern created another opening.

Shakhtar coughed up possession cheaply in front of their own penalty area, allowing Franck Ribery and Mueller to combine to good effect.

Mueller slid in to connect with Ribery’s neat cut back but the German international could not steer his strike from the penalty spot on target.

Shakhtar contained the German league leaders until half-time and a scrappy second half only came to life when Ribery and Costa were involved in an altercation after a foul by Darijo Srna.

Just a couple of minutes later Costa was lucky to escape with only a yellow card after his elbow caught the Bayern midfielder flush in the face.

The complete commitment of both sides was illustrated just past the hour when Alonso and Shakhtar’s Luiz Adriano both called for treatment when they collided near the centre circle.

But Alonso’s luck ran out when he was shown a second yellow card for hauling down Alex Teixeira.  

Six other players were booked in a hard-fought game, with Ribery coming in for particularly rough treatment, but Shakhtar never looked like taking advantage of the extra man.

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Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau vowed to disrupt Nigeria's general election in a new video released Tuesday, after two suicide attacks in the northeast blamed on the Islamists killed 38 people.

"This election will not hold even if we are dead. Even if we are not alive Allah will never allow you to do it," Shekau said in what appeared to be the first video released by the group on Twitter, a sign of its changing media tactics.

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There hasn't been this much hype about a nonexistent Apple product since Steve Jobs was quoted in his official biography as saying he had finally "cracked" TV.

It was the line that kicked off a thousand blog posts: When is the Apple television coming? What will it be able to do? What will it look like? Analysts like Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster assured us the Apple television was imminent. 

That was over three years ago, and Apple has yet to launch a television or even an updated version of the Apple TV box.

Starting last Friday and through the long weekend, all anyone in the industry could talk about were the various reports that Apple is working on a top-secret car project. The Wall Street Journal said the car will be an Apple-branded electric vehicle that currently resembles a minivan. (A minivan?) Reuters reported Apple is working self-driving technology. The Financial Times reported Apple has a secret research lab filled with automotive experts trying to work on new products for cars. And an Apple employee emailed Business Insider to say the company's working on something that will "give Tesla a run for its money."

Within a few days, there was so much smoke about Apple's secret ambitions for the car that there has to be fire. But as neat as it sounds, there are some who are overly optimistic about Apple's ability to turn cars into its next major business.

A Cantor Fitzgerald analyst implied that Apple's car could be the company's next iPhone. Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor Keith Rabois thinks Apple will be able to turn cars, which are modestly profitable, into something that's suddenly and magically able to mint profits.

All of those thoughts are wildly optimistic.

As Business Insider's Jay Yarow wrote a few years ago, the iPhone is a once-in-a-lifetime megahit. I'll probably be an old dude or dead before someone comes up with a product that fundamentally changes the way people live and interact with each other.

For all the talk and criticism about Apple "needing" to find its next big thing, Apple has proven that it can do just fine as the iPhone company. The iPhone happens to be wildly profitable and sells in massive quantities, unlike cars that cost tens of thousands of dollars and are subject to a lot of uncontrollable factors like personal taste.

That doesn't mean Apple is wrong to start experimenting with cars, even if it doesn't turn into a revolutionary money machine like the iPhone. Instead, like Apple's other, less profitable products such as the iPad, Mac, and (soon) the Apple Watch, it's part of building a perfectly curated ecosystem. iOS is already sneaking into cars thanks to CarPlay, and the latest rumors of Apple's car ambitions could be a greater extension of that.

Plus, the car is the next fertile ground for tech to take over, and with competitors like Google already openly experimenting in the space, it makes sense for Apple to play too. Apple could make its own car, and it sounds like that's exactly what it's doing, but it could also bring its innovations to others thanks to CarPlay, which just requires an iPhone and a car that supports it.

It's all about building out Apple's most valuable asset, the iPhone and the ecosystem that supports it.

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"Fifty Shades of Grey" may have dominated the box office this weekend, but it wasn't exactly easy adapting E.L. James' best selling novel for the big screen.

While Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan ended up playing Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, respectively, finding the right chemistry between two actors with available schedules proved fairly difficult.

Initially, "Sons of Anarchy"actor Charlie Hunnam was cast as Christian Grey, but many fans of the book didn't approve of the choice.

A petition to re-cast the movie garnered 20,000 signatures on Change.org, and due to scheduling conflicts and reported clashes between Hunnam and Universal Pictures, Hunnam eventually dropped out of the project.

Just 11 days later, "Once Upon A Time" actor Jamie Dornan was cast in the role.

Amid all of the casting back-and-forth, the film's producer Dana Brunetti tweeted somewhat of an explanation:

"There is a lot that goes into casting that isn't just looks. Talent, availability, their desire to do it, chemistry with other actor, etc … So if your favorite wasn't cast, then it is most likely due to something on that list. Keep that in mind while hating and keep perspective."

Brunetti was apparently hinting at the handful of actors who actually turned down the leading roles.

While "50 Shades" author E.L. James has said actor Ryan Gosling was the original prototype for Christian Grey, he doesn't do sequels.

"50 Shades" is a guaranteed trilogy.

Before Hunnam got the gig, Garrett Hedlund reportedly turned it down.

"Hedlund was heavily courted by Universal, but the 'Tron: Legacy' star passed in July because he couldn't connect with the character," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Backing for "White Collar" actor Matt Bomer was so strong that a petition started by fans to cast him garnered almost 100,000 signatures.

Other actors in the mix included "Magic Mike" star Alex Pettyfer, who auditioned for the role, "Gossip Girl" actor Chace Crawford, who publicly stated he would "love the challenge" of the role, Alexander Skarsgård said on "Access Hollywood" he was "born to play" Christian Grey, and "The Vampire Diaries" star, Ian Somerhalder, told Ryan Seacrest that being cast "would be an incredible thing. Hopefully that could pan out."

Fans had their own casting ideas, pushing for Somerhalder as Christian Grey and Alexis Bledel to play Anastasia Steele, in a fan-created mashup trailer that received over a million views.

The role of Anastasia Steele was also a tricky one to cast.

According to Newsweek, "'Pretty Little Liars' star Lucy Hale auditioned, as did 'The Carrie Diaries’' Chloe Bridges, but neither was quite prepared to tackle the subject matter. Hale said the audition made her 'uncomfortable.'"

Bridges, meanwhile, told Cosmopolitan the role was too risqué.

"The scene was, like, the girl telling her friends about some sexcapade she had," explained Bridges. "But it goes into extreme detail and uses the word 'sperm' a couple times. I was like, 'I don’t know, guys, I have to go home to my grandparent’s house in a few months at Christmas, I don’t know if I can do this.'"

Despite early rumors that Emma Watson was being considered, the "Harry Potter" actress tweeted:

And so, the role went to Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson's 25-year-old daughter, Dakota Johnson, who had previously only appeared in minor but memorable roles in "21 Jump Street" and "The Social Network."

Whether "Fifty Shades" fans agreed with the Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan casting or not, they clearly have star power as the duo pulled in a record-breaking $266 million worldwide over President's Day weekend.

SEE ALSO: MEET DAKOTA JOHNSON, the 25-year-old Hollywood royalty at the center of the 'Fifty Shades' phenomenon

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Copenhagen (AFP) - Copenhagen police late Tuesday confirmed the identity of the suspected gunman behind the weekend's double shooting as 22-year-old Omar El-Hussein.

Police also said that in his first attack, on Saturday, he had unsuccessfully tried to use several entrances to a cultural centre that was hosting a debate on Islam and free speech attended by controversial Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks.

"The Copenhagen police can now confirm the reports published by the press about the alleged perpetrator's identity," it said in a statement.

El-Hussein, a Danish-born man of Palestinian origin, was killed in a shootout with police early Sunday after opening fire at the cultural centre, killing a filmmaker, after which he shot dead a Jewish man outside a synagogue.

Five police were injured in the attacks.

"Questioning and technical investigation shows that the perpetrator upon his arrival at the site first tried to come in through other entrances than the main entrance," police said of the first attack.

On the street outside the cultural centre where the event was being held he met his first victim, whom he shot with a weapon later found on a football field at Mjoelnerparken, the low-income housing estate where he grew up, it said.

Two weapons were used in the attack outside the synagogue, both of which were found on El-Hussein when he was shot dead.

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Sydney (AFP) - Australia's Toll Holdings on Wednesday recommended shareholders accept a US$5.07 billion takeover offer from Japan Post to create one of the world's largest logistics companies.

The Japanese behemoth, a state-owned global postal and logistics player, unexpectedly offered Aus$9.04 a share for Toll, a 49 percent premium to the company's closing price on Tuesday, valuing it at Aus$6.49 billion (US$5.07 billion).

Few had been anticipating an acquisition. 

Under the proposal, the Melbourne-based transport logistics giant will be run as a division within Japan Post and retain the Toll name, with the company's chief executive Brian Kruger reporting to his counterpart Toru Takahashi. 

"We are delighted to recommend to shareholders that Toll joins with Japan Post," said chairman Ray Horsburgh.

"Japan Post is one of the world's leading postal and logistics companies and Toll is the largest independent logistics group in the Asia-Pacific. 

"Together, this will be a very powerful combination and one of the world's top five logistics companies."

A shareholder meeting to vote on the offer will be held in May, with the deal also requiring approval from Australian Treasurer Joe Hockey under the nation's foreign investment laws.

Toll has a global network spanning road, air, sea, and rail routes with significant operations in Asia, and Takahashi said it was a perfect fit for Japan Post as it looks to expand its global footprint.

"We believe the combination of Japan Post and Toll will be a transformational transaction for both our companies and we are very pleased we have been able to reach agreement," he said.

"In partnership with Toll we are starting a new chapter of looking outward and becoming a leading global player."

- A solid move -

The government of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi split the state-owned Japan Post into four units in 2007, to handle deliveries, savings, insurance and counter services at each of its post offices.

The government retained full ownership of the group at first, with plans for the bank and insurance units to go fully private by 2017.

But the plan was stalled after the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party lost power to the Democratic Party of Japan between 2009 to 2012.

After returning to power in 2012, the current LDP-led government resumed the privatisation project with Japan Post in December confirming it will list its shares in Tokyo this year.

IG Markets strategist Stan Shamu said the deal was a good one for Toll.

"Japanese companies hold an enormous amount of cash on their balance sheets and, given the two-way trade between Australia and Japan, this is a solid move," he said. 

Shamu's IG Markets colleague Chris Weston added that "no-one was expecting a bid and if they were they weren't expecting that sort of magnitude".

Toll, which was founded in 1888 as a horse-and-cart coal haulage business in the Australian port town of Newcastle, said the merger would enhance its service to existing and new customers.

"The proposed combination is a reflection of the strategic value of our business and our strong footprint throughout the Asia-Pacific region," said Kruger.

"The great Toll culture built on safety and operational excellence will work well alongside Japan Post's established values. I am delighted to have been invited to lead this powerful new division of Japan Post and look forward to working with the rest of the group."

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New details have emerged about Apple's circular "spaceship" campus which is currently under construction, and it sounds like the interior of the headquarters will be just as futuristic as its curved-glass exterior.

Apple designer Jony Ive discussed the extensive work that went into designing the new campus in a lengthy New Yorker profile, where he revealed that the floors and ceilings will be unified as "forty-four hundred precast-concrete units that will have a floor on one side, a ceiling on the other, and a cooling system between them."

Ive calls these custom floor and ceiling pieces "void slabs," all of which are currently being constructed in a factory built by Apple in Woodland, California.

"We’re assembling rather than building," Ive told The New Yorker.

Manufacturing these 4,400 concrete slabs is only one example of Apple's attention to detail. The new campus has faced delays and cost increases in the past due to lack of "fit and finish," mostly due to strict requirements put in place by Steve Jobs, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. 

Jobs reportedly insisted that gaps between surfaces be 1/32 of an inch instead of the standard 1/8 inch, and that the polished concrete ceilings be cast in a mold and hoisted into place to guarantee uniformity, which "left one person involved in the project speechless."

Ive appears to have continued Jobs' intense attention to detail, mentioning that he had "a big fight" in order to be able to simplify the control panels on the campus elevators. Ive also had a hand in the design of the interior staircases and signs.

When it's finished in 2016, Apple's Campus 2 will eventually feature curved glass panels, an underground parking lot, a private auditorium for keynotes and product launches, and a 360-degree view of nature. 

"This is something that Steve cared about passionately," Ive said of the campus to The New Yorker. "There is a bittersweetness here, because this is obviously about the future, but every time I come here it makes me think of the past as well — and just the sadness. I just wish he could have seen it."

You can check out a photo timeline of the project's construction progress right here.

SEE ALSO: The 10 best iPhone widgets you should be using

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Amazing cafeteria food is just one of many perks that tech workers in Silicon Valley get to enjoy.

The more than 6,000 employees at Facebook's Menlo Park headquarters are no exception.

With 11 spots serving up Asian cuisine, burgers, and BBQ, Facebookers have to choose from any given day.  All of the food is available either for free or at a heavily discounted rate for Facebook employees and guests.

Epic Cafe is the largest of the Facebook 11 eateries. You can find a variety of dishes there, like this surf and turf meal.

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Here's a happy hour meal made up of a bacon kimchi hot dog and black bean sauce fries.

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And here's a fancier dish of duck confit and peach jam.

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A new "Jurassic Park" sequel is coming to theaters this June.

"Jurassic World" will return to Isla Nublar 22 years after the original 1993 film. Starring Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, the island is now home to a dinosaur theme park that's open to the public.

Attendance isn't booming, and to attract some new visitors, scientists at the park begin engineering some hybrid dinos. 

While we've seen a few trailers for the new film tease a few of the new dinosaurs, we haven't had a good look at them until now.

President's Day Weekend, we headed over to Hasbro's Toy Fair in Times Square to check out the new lineup of "Jurassic World" toys coming out later this year.

We were pretty blown away by the big reveal of two of the big dinosaurs that will be in the film. 

Check them out below.

Indominus Rex

This is the big one right here. This female dinosaur is the giant, mysterious hybrid dinosaur that has been teased in every trailer.

Here are a few looks at her.

One more shot for fun of her in the park.

The following four dinosaurs are part of the Basic Figure Assortment and will be on sale for $9.99 each this spring. They're recommended for ages 4+. 

Allosaurus 

Anklosaurus

Here he is in the box.

Pachycephalosaurus

Spinosaurus

This next group of dinos lights up and makes sounds. They'll be out in the spring. Each one retails for $14.99. They're also recommended for ages 4 and up.

Dilophosaurus

The flap on this dinosaur flips back and forth and he'll be able to spit a dart out of his mouth. 

Dimorphodon 

Ceratosaurus

This guy looks pretty intense.

You'll also be able to get your hands on a blue Velociraptor.

Along with that velociraptor, the film will feature three raptors by the names of Charlie, Delta, and Echo.

Here's Charlie.

We had some hands on time with the trio last month.

Here's Delta and Echo.

If they look familiar, it's because you may recognize these guys as Chris Pratt's buddies in the trailer.

Remember the shark-eating dinosaur from the "Jurassic World" trailer?

You'll be able to buy him, too.

The Mosasaurus will come with a scuba diver.

You'll also be able to get your hands on one of the Pterodactyls seen in the film.

The biggest toy reveal was the presence of a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex

We haven't seen a T. rex hinted at yet in any of the trailers, and that may be why the following toy may not be released until fall 2015 unlike most of the other toys which will be released in the spring.

The cool thing about this toy was that when you stomp his feet on the ground, he makes sounds. 

When you flip his tail down, the rest of his body dropped down and he let out a roar. When you flipped his tail back up, he roared again.

The T. rex will also get his own battle arena playset that will be available in fall 2015.

Inside, kids will get a smaller version of the T. rex. The set above is a giant call back to the original 1993 film.

SEE ALSO: The visual effects in the new "Jurassic World" ad look vastly different from the first trailer

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Apple may bring its Touch ID fingerprint sensor to Mac laptops and desktops in the future, according to a new rumor from Taiwanese website Apple.club.tw, as reported by 9to5Mac.

The website claims Apple might integrate the fingerprint scanner in the trackpad of its rumored 12-inch MacBook Air and next-generation MacBook Pro.

For desktop computers like the iMac, Mac Pro, and Mac Mini, Apple is likely to put Touch ID in its Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad.

There's also a chance we'll see new color options for the purported 12-inch MacBook Air, according to the report. This could include silver, space grey, and gold just like Apple's more recent iPhones.

It's unclear whether or not the blog's sources are legitimate. But, as 9to5Mac's Mark Gurman pointed out, Apple.club.tw did publish early photos of the iPad Air 2's Touch ID and the A8X chip that powers Apple's latest iPads in the fall.

If Apple does bring Touch ID to the Mac, it's probably part of a push to further promote Apple Pay. And as Gurman also notes, Apple will have to make sure it's just as secure as it is on the iPhone. Touch ID's functionality is based on a secure element within Apple's A-series chips that power its iPhones and iPads, which keep financial transactions safe. Apple will have to create the same experience on the Mac.

We're expecting to learn more about Apple's future additions to the Mac line later this year. The company has been rumored to be working on a 12-inch MacBook Air with a Retina display and an even thinner design than the current model. 

SEE ALSO: I just found my new favorite Windows laptop, and it's cheaper than the MacBook Air

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NOW WATCH: 14 things you didn't know your iPhone headphones could do

Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Two suicide attacks in northeast Nigeria killed at least 38 people Tuesday, less than six weeks from elections, as the leader of Boko Haram vowed to disrupt the vote. 

The Islamist insurgency has already forced a delay in the polls, initially scheduled for February 14, and officials had voiced hope that a regional military offensive could contain the bloodshed before the new election day, March 28.

But the latest wave of attacks blamed on the rebels underscored the challenge facing Nigeria and its neighbours -- Cameroon, Chad and Niger -- despite claims of successes in the joint operation launched this month.

"This election will not be held even if we are dead," Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau said in a new video, in what appeared to the first from the group released on Twitter.

Speaking before Shekau's threat, Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou vowed that his country would herald the end for the rebels, whose six-year insurgency has killed more than 13,000 people.

"Niger will be the death of Boko Haram," he told a cheering crowd after a protest against the insurgents in the capital Niamey.

But Boko Haram has proved resilient an experts question whether the group can be overpowered in the short-term. 

- Checkpoint, restaurant attacked -

In Nigeria's Borno state, three assailants in a motorised rickshaw detonated explosives at a checkpoint at Yamarkumi village, near the town of Biu, at about 1:00 pm (1200 GMT).

The suicide attack killed 36 people and injured 20, a source at the Biu General Hospital told AFP, requesting anonymity. 

"Most of the victims were child vendors and beggars that usually crowd the checkpoint," the source added.

Boko Haram has repeatedly tried to seize Biu, 180 kilometres (110 miles) from the state capital Maiduguri, but has been repelled by troops and local vigilantes.

Some four hours later, in Potiskum, the economic capital of neighbouring Yobe state, a bomber blew himself up inside Al-Amir restaurant, a popular chain in northern Nigeria. 

The restaurant manager and a steward were killed, while 13 staff and customers were seriously injured, a police officer and nurse the Potiskum General Hospital said.

Meanwhile, the Chadian army said its troops had engaged in fierce combat with Boko Haram militants near the town of Dikwa, some 90 kilometres from Maiduguri.

Two Chadian soldiers and "several" militants were killed in the clashes," a Chadian military source said on condition of anonymity.

In the video, Shekau repeated threats against Chadian President Idriss Deby and Niger's leaders, vowing that his fighters would outlast the multi-national offensive. 

He also said the insurgents freed their brothers-in-arms during a weekend raid in the Nigerian city of Gombe, rejecting a military claim that the attack was repelled. 

- Neighbours claim major gains -

Nigeria had long complained that lack of action from its neighbours had hampered efforts against Boko Haram and has said the new cooperation could prove decisive. 

Niamey said that more than 200 rebels were killed in its first cross-border raid on the southeast of the country and on Tuesday claimed to have averted a suicide attack in the Diffa region.

On Monday, police in Diffa, which is currently under a state of emergency, claimed they had detained more than 160 people suspected of being allied to the outlawed group.

Cameroon's army separately announced that it had killed 86 militants and detained more than 1,000 people suspected of having links to Boko Haram in the country's far north.

But with access difficult to the remote regions increasingly at the centre of the conflict and communications often non-existent, there was no independent corroboration of the claims.

Analyst Ryan Cummings of risk consultants Red24 said the regional forces may be repeating Nigerian tactics in the early counter-insurgency.

Cummings said the numbers "may not be indicative of actual Boko Haram support" but rather point to local communities, particularly in Cameroon's Far North region, arming themselves against the insurgents.

"This may be creating the perception that they are antagonistic towards government forces and therefore aligned to Boko Haram," Cummings, said in an email exchange.

- Campaign violence -

In violence unrelated to the Boko Haram uprising, explosions and gunfire at an opposition election rally in southern Nigeria's Rivers state killed a police officer and injured four others, while a reporter covering the event was stabbed and taken to hospital. 

The unrest happened in the hometown of President Goodluck Jonathan's wife Patience. 

A political motive was likely, with tensions running high between Jonathan's ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

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