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I have found that starting an activity list made me happier and got me off my phone more often. David Rockower Now that I have more free time, I've found myself scrolling on my phone and reaching for it often. To change that habit, I've created a list of activities that satisfy me and reference it often. Instead of scrolling, I now bake, play Scrabble, go bird-watching, and so much more. After I got home from work, my wife Michelle and I would decide how we'd spend our evenings. We did not have cellphones, and a TV was the only "device" we owned at the time. Though we watched the occasional show or sporting event, we both felt agitated if we sat in front of the idiot box for too long. My wife started stenciling the kitchen wall. Each evening, she spent several hours painting. I was bored. I didn't want to watch television; I read a bit, but if I did so for more than 10 minutes, I'd fall asleep. In an attempt to fill my time with meaning, I bought a sketchbook and tried to emulate pictures of dilapidated barns, book covers, and animal faces. I erased more than I drew, but the process was comforting, and regardless of how ridiculous the end product appeared, it always felt like time well spent. That was in 1996, when we were still newlyweds. Over the next several years, I started running, dabbled in photography, bread baking, and writing. None of these endeavors came easily, but I found something valuable in their processes. Soon, we had two young children, and discretionary time all but disappeared. The next two decades were filled with soccer practices, basketball tournaments, playdates, homework, and beach trips. I was so busy working and living outside myself, I didn't think much about my hobbies. When given a brief respite from our busy lives, Michelle and I went out to dinner or fell asleep watching a movie. After raising our kids, I was once again faced with how to spend my free time My wife and I have changed our post-dinner hobbies over the years. David Rockower In the blink of an eye, our children grew up. They are now in college, and most evenings, my calendar is empty. While raising them, I'd longed for free time — time to pursue my interests, pick up my camera, or maybe, write that novel. But once given that free time, I found myself scrolling mindlessly on my phone, which made me feel emptier than watching the idiot box in my 20s. Even when I wasn't endlessly watching Instagram Reels, I was frequently reaching for my phone as a resource. When I'd put my phone down and pick up a book, a question would inevitably surface — and this would require an immediate Google search. Who was president at the start of the Roaring Twenties? How was Prometheus related to Zeus? How many grams of fiber are in a serving of broccoli? Though I knew none of these questions was urgent, I needed an answer — now. As a result, I'd either open my laptop to find the answer or I'd just grab my phone again. One Google search would lead to another, and before I knew it, it was time for bed. What had I done that evening? How was I choosing to fill my free time? What did this say about how I'd spend my time in retirement? I created a list to remind myself of what's important and push myself away from the screens I keep this list in my journal and in my office. David Rockower I did not like my choices, and I was afraid that I'd lost control of my decision-making. Defaulting to my phone or laptop was not how I wanted to live my life. So, I made a commitment to myself: an ongoing to-do list. The activities on it bring me satisfaction and joy: play tennis, strum the guitar (and try to learn a new chord), start a game of Scrabble with Michelle, go bird-watching, plan a dinner with friends, and so on. Scrolling on my phone had become an automatic response to boredom or downtime. I had to train myself to break this habit, and I did so by planning ahead. When I know I'll have a stretch of unscheduled time, I make myself read the list, which is in the front of my journal and on a sticky note hanging in my office. This prompts me to make a commitment to at least one of the activities. It's working. Now, instead of picking up my phone, I'm connecting with my wife, baking a new recipe, or improving my photography skills. My list is still growing. The more things I add, the more options I have, and the less likely I am to mindlessly scroll away my time. Read the original article on Business Insider

From left: Uplane founders Julius Körfgen, Marvin Abdel-Massih, and Lukas Vollmer. Uplane Uplane is a startup that wants to replace marketing agencies with AI. It just raised $4.5 million in seed funding, led by Play Ventures. Sign up for Business Insider's weekly marketing newsletter. Uplane wants to replace marketing agencies with AI — and it just raised $4.5 million in seed funding. The San Francisco-based startup has a platform where brands can launch and test ad campaigns on digital channels like Meta, Google, TikTok, and LinkedIn, and steer their ad spending toward the best-performing ones. Uplane also lets clients launch and test website landing pages. Clients can upload their own ads or use Uplane to make AI-generated visuals. Uplane works on text and video ads. The startup's seed funding round was led by Play Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, 20VC, Rebel Fund, and Multimodal Ventures. Julius Körfgen, Lukas Vollmer, and Marvin Abdel-Massih founded Uplane in November. They're targeting companies that spend $100,000 or more a month on digital marketing and charging them an annual fee. So far, clients include Aonic, a wellness company cofounded by Kim Kardashian's personal trainer; Wagetap, an Australian fintech company; and German railroad Deutsche Bahn. Körfgen said that overall, its clients have improved their return on ad spending by 30% in about six weeks, compared to their agencies' performance — with Aonic, the improvement in return was 60%. Körfgen said Uplane enabled Deutsche Bahn to do the same work its big agency used to in a fraction of the time. "They're literally taking them off many of or all of the tasks in the campaigns that we manage now," he said. Anton Backman, general partner at Play Ventures, said his firm was impressed by Uplane's early signs of success in demonstrating the payoff from ad spending. 2 of Uplane's founders came from performance marketing Körfgen said he got the idea for Uplane while working with Abdel-Massih at Enpal, a German performance marketing company. He realized that the measurable work he did could be improved with AI, from creating ads and landing pages to tracking and improving their performance. They teamed up with Vollmer, who was looking to start a new company. "Each of those steps, AI can do faster and better than humans," Körfgen said. "And right now, only really large marketing teams can achieve this." A number of agencies and marketing companies offer solutions similar to Uplane, including investment-backed players like Smartly and startup Pomo. Uplane is limited by AI's capabilities. It's not yet offering audio as part of its ads, for example. Its focus is on measurable outcomes, not helping brands with their overall strategic direction or story. Using external agencies can also give a brand a useful independent perspective. Uplane plans to use the new funding to grow its 15-person team, bring on new customers, and integrate with more ad platforms. Check out the pitch deck Uplane used to secure its $4.5 million seed investment, shared exclusively with CMO Insider: Uplane is an AI marketing startup. Uplane Its founders bring performance and engineering experience. Uplane The slide lists its founders — Lukas Vollmer, Marvin Abdel-Massih, and Julius Körfgen — and their past employers, including Enpal and Fastgen. This slide shows how Uplane can test variations of a client's ad. Uplane Its platform shows which ads are the most efficient. Uplane Uplane says it takes the guesswork out of digital advertising. Uplane Uplane said it's solving a problem that costs companies billions of dollars. Uplane Uplane describes its offering as a 'full-stack solution.' Uplane It tests ads, makes landing pages, and steers ad budgets to the best-performing ads. Uplane says it can boost clients' growth. Uplane Uplane wants to replace external and in-house marketers with AI. Uplane Uplane lays out its targets to get to the next funding round. Uplane Uplane says it originally sought to raise $4 million (versus the $4.5 million it ultimately raised). It aims to reach $200,000 in monthly recurring revenue and plans to add engineers to build more ads and to implement its tools in new channels. Uplane gives an example of how it helps make marketers more productive. Uplane It says that with Uplane, marketers can multiply the number of ads, landing pages, and budget adjustments they can make each day. Uplane says its capabilities exceed Meta's. Uplane Uplane says its results get better the longer clients use it. Uplane Uplane says it can do more than other digital marketing companies. Uplane Read the original article on Business Insider

Margaret Brown, also known as Molly Brown, survived the sinking of the Titanic. Library of Congress The Titanic, billed as an unsinkable ship, hit an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912. More than 1,500 people died in the maritime disaster, while about 700 survived. Among the victims was one of the world's richest men, John Jacob Astor IV. As a new luxury ocean liner, the Titanic attracted some of the wealthiest and most prominent members of American society. When the ship sank off the coast of Newfoundland on its maiden voyage to New York City in the early hours of April 15, 1912, among its victims were the co-owner of Macy's, an aide to President William Taft, and the richest passenger on board, who was a member of the Astor family. Most of the well-known people on board were first-class passengers. Researcher Chuck Anesi found that 97.22% of the 144 female first-class passengers were rescued, while only 32.57% of their 175 male counterparts were saved. Ultimately, he found that male second-class passengers fared the worst in terms of survival, with only 14 out of 168 making it out alive. The total survival rate for women was 74%, while the male survival rate was 20%, his analysis found. Here are 12 of the most famous victims of the Titanic disaster, and 11 prominent people who survived. DIED: John Jacob Astor, millionaire Library of Congress/Getty Images John Jacob Astor IV, 48, was a member of the prominent Astor family and helped build the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. He was also an inventor, a science-fiction novelist, and a veteran of the Spanish-American War. He was traveling with his wife, Madeleine, in Europe when she became pregnant. To ensure the child would be born in the US, the couple booked a trip home on the Titanic. The New York Times reported that Astor was last seen smoking a cigarette on the deck. His wife, who was 30 years his junior, survived the disaster. He had a fortune worth somewhere between $90 and $150 million, CNBC reported, when he boarded the fateful ship, or as much as $5 billion in today's dollars when adjusted for inflation. He was the richest passenger on board the Titanic. SURVIVED: Archibald Gracie IV, historian and author Public domain Gracie achieved prominence in the wake of the Titanic disaster because of his meticulous and detailed account of the tragedy. The historian and Alabama native, who had written a book on the American Civil War's Battle of Chickamauga, was on the Titanic, returning from a European vacation. He was woken up when the ship crashed into an iceberg. After escorting several women to the lifeboats, Gracie helped other passengers evacuate the ship. When the ship sank, Gracie surfaced beside an overturned lifeboat. He managed to climb on top with other men, and they spent much of the night balanced there. The historian was one of the first Titanic survivors to die after being rescued, on December 4, 1912, after a prolonged illness. He was 54. The New York Times reported at the time that Gracie's final words were "We must get them all in the boats," according to Alabama News Center. DIED: W. T. Stead, investigative journalist W. T. Stead was an investigative journalist who died on the Titanic. Photo12/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Stead was a highly influential editor who, in an uncanny twist, may have foreseen his death on the Titanic. As the editor of The Pall Mall Gazette, the newspaperman published an explosive and controversial investigative series about child prostitution, Britannica reported. He is credited with helping to invent investigative journalism. A devoted spiritualist, Stead also established a magazine dedicated to the supernatural and a psychic service known as Julia's Bureau. He also wrote a fictional story in 1886 that resembled the real-life events of the Titanic in unsettling ways. "How the Mail Steamer Went Down in Mid Atlantic by a Survivor" tells a story of an ocean liner that sinks in the Atlantic. In the story, only 200 passengers and crew members of the original 700 people on board survive the disaster because of a lifeboat shortage. His website reported that Stead didn't hang around on deck as the Titanic sank. Instead, he reportedly spent his final hours reading in the first-class smoking room. He was 62 years old. SURVIVED: Noël Leslie, countess and philanthropist Public domain Leslie, the Countess of Rothes, was one of the Titanic's most famous passengers. A popular figure in London society, Leslie became a countess after marrying Norman Evelyn Leslie, the Earl of Rothes, in 1900. Leslie and her cousin Gladys Cherry booked a trip on the Titanic. When Leslie made it into a lifeboat, she reportedly found it understaffed and volunteered to help row it away from the sinking ship. The countess reportedly helped take care of her fellow survivors on board the Carpathia and was dubbed "the plucky little countess" in the press. After surviving the Titanic disaster, Leslie became a prominent philanthropist and worked as a nurse during World War I. DIED: Thomas Andrews, architect of the Titanic Thomas Andrews, the architect of the Titanic, famously went down with the ship. Universal Images Group/Getty Images Andrews was no ordinary Titanic victim.  The longtime Harland & Wolff employee designed the ship itself. He traveled on the Titanic's maiden voyage to observe the ship and make recommendations on areas where the ship could be improved. When an iceberg damaged the Titanic's hull and he learned that five of its watertight compartments had holes in them, Andrews immediately knew the ship was going to sink, the BBC reported. The 39-year-old shipbuilder then began helping women and children into the lifeboats. He made no attempt to exit the ship and was last seen in the first-class smoking room, not wearing a life vest. SURVIVED: Margaret Brown, socialite Library of Congress Brown, a socialite and philanthropist, is best known for surviving the Titanic disaster. Biography reported that she was born in Missouri to Irish immigrants. She married James Joseph Brown in New York City. The couple became fabulously wealthy when Brown's mining business struck ore. Margaret Brown became a well-known socialite with a penchant for dramatic hats and social activism on behalf of women and children. She was returning from a voyage around Europe when she decided to book a trip on the Titanic. During the disaster, she reportedly helped row the lifeboat and demanded that the group of survivors row back to the spot where the ship went down to look for survivors. This earned her the nickname "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" — though her friends and family reportedly called her Maggie. Brown's life was immortalized in the Broadway musical "The Unsinkable Molly Brown," which was later adapted into a Hollywood film. Kathy Bates also portrayed her in the award-winning film "Titanic." DIED: John Thayer, railroad executive Library of Congress Thayer was well known in 1912 as both a former cricket player and a Pennsylvania Railroad Co. executive. The railroad company vice president was traveling on the Titanic with his wife and son following a trip to Berlin. After the ship struck an iceberg, Thayer made certain that his wife and their maid boarded a lifeboat. According to Encyclopedia Titanic, Gracie's account of the events reported seeing Thayer looking "pale and determined" on deck before the ship sank. Thayer's body was never found. His son survived by diving into the water and swimming to an overturned lifeboat. SURVIVED: J. Bruce Ismay, White Star Line executive J. Bruce Ismay was one of the few men who survived the disaster. George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images Ismay may have survived the sinking of the Titanic, but he never lived down the public scorn he received in the wake of the disaster. The White Star Line managing director was the highest-ranking company official to survive the disaster. He boarded a lifeboat 20 minutes before the ship sank into the Atlantic. He later said he turned away as the Titanic slipped beneath the surface of the water, saying, "I did not wish to see her go down. I am glad I did not," The Telegraph reported. Ismay received a lot of flak for boarding a lifeboat before other passengers. He was ostracized in society and ultimately resigned from his post and kept a low profile. The BBC reported in 2012 that Ismay's family said the press unfairly maligned him and that he never fully recovered from the ordeal. DIED: Isidor Straus, co-owner of Macy's, and his wife, Ida Isidor and Ida Straus went down with the Titanic. Bettmann/Getty Images Isidor and Ida Straus first met after the Civil War when a penniless Straus moved to New York City. Isidor and his brother later acquired Macy's, and he eventually became a powerful businessman and a member of the US House of Representatives. Straus was reportedly offered a spot on a lifeboat while the ship was sinking. He declined, saying he wouldn't board a raft until every woman and child had gotten off the ship. Ida then refused to leave her husband. When her husband urged her to evacuate the ship, she reportedly responded, "I will not be separated from my husband. As we have lived, so will we die, together." She then ordered her maid to board a lifeboat and gave her a mink coat, quipping that she wouldn't need the garment anymore. The couple was last seen together on the deck of the Titanic. Isidor's body was recovered from the ocean, but Ida was never found. Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York, memorialized Isidor and Ida Straus with a cenotaph bearing a line from the "Song of Solomon." "Many waters cannot quench love — neither can the floods drown it," it reads. SURVIVED: Cosmo and Lucy Duff-Gordon, landowner and fashion designer Lucy Duff-Gordon and her husband survived the sinking. Bettmann/Getty Images Cosmo Duff-Gordon and his wife, Lady Lucy Duff-Gordon, were two of the most prominent passengers on board the Titanic.  Cosmo Duff-Gordon was a major landowner and society figure in the UK known for his fencing skills. His wife was a top British fashion designer whose innovations included the precursor to the modern-day fashion show. The Duff-Gordons booked a trip on the Titanic to travel to New York City on business. When disaster struck, they both escaped on the first lifeboat that embarked off the ship. Vogue reported that Lady Duff-Gordon described the scene on the Titanic, saying, "Everyone seemed to be rushing for that boat. A few men who crowded in were turned back at the point of Capt. Smith's revolver, and several of them were felled before order was restored. I recall being pushed towards one of the boats and being helped in." In the wake of the tragedy, Cosmo Duff-Gordon received criticism for not adhering to the ship's "women and children first" evacuation policy. A few years later, in 1915, Lady Duff-Gordon escaped death again after canceling her voyage on the doomed Lusitania. DIED: Benjamin Guggenheim, mining magnate Mining magnate Benjamin Guggenheim died after traveling on the ship with his mistress. Getty Images Guggenheim was a member of the powerful Guggenheim family, which earned its fortune in the mining industry. He was traveling on the ship with his mistress, Léontine Aubart, and staffers. Guggenheim was initially optimistic about the ship's prospects, telling his maid: "We will soon see each other again. It's just a repair. Tomorrow the Titanic will go on again," according to "Life Titanic: The Tragedy That Shook the World," Britannica reported that Guggenheim, whose body was never recovered, dressed in his best evening attire and quipped, "We've dressed up in our best and are prepared to go down like gentlemen." He later passed on a message for his estranged wife to a Titanic survivor. "If anything should happen to me, tell my wife in New York that I've done my best in doing my duty," he said. SURVIVED: Dorothy Gibson, actor Gibson in "Saved from the Titanic." Eclair Film Company After getting her start as a young girl in vaudeville, Gibson became a model and launched a career as a silent film star. She was 22 years old when she booked a passage on the Titanic. Gibson reportedly heard the ship crash into an iceberg. She grabbed her mother, and together they escaped the ship on the first lifeboat. "I will never forget the terrible cry that rang out from people who were thrown into the sea and others who were afraid for their loved ones," Gibson told a newspaper reporter shortly after the disaster, The History Press reported. Gibson subsequently appeared as herself in a now-lost 1912 film about her experience called "Saved From the Titanic." The History Press reported that Gibson sported the same clothes in the film as she had on during the disaster. Gibson quit acting shortly afterward. After that, Gibson's life is a bit cloudy. Her affair with a prominent film producer was a scandal in America and prompted Gibson to move to Paris. As World War II began, there were allegations that she was a Nazi sympathizer — the veracity of those rumors is unclear. Later, while living in Italy in the 1940s, the former actor was imprisoned by fascists. She survived prison but died shortly after the war ended. DIED: George Dennick Wick, steel magnate Public domain The industrialist was the founding president of Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co., a now-defunct steel-manufacturing business.  Wick had been traveling in Europe to improve his health. Unfortunately, he booked a trip on the Titanic to return to the US. Encyclopedia Titanica reported that he was last seen on the ship's deck waving to his wife, daughter, cousin, and aunt as they escaped on a lifeboat. SURVIVED: Elsie Bowerman, lawyer Conservative Women's Organisation Bowerman survived the sinking of the Titanic and went on to have an extraordinary career. Biography reported that the British suffragette and Cambridge graduate booked a trip on the ocean liner with her mother to visit friends living in America and Canada. They both survived the catastrophe by getting on the same lifeboat as Margaret Brown. When WWI broke out, Bowerman served in a traveling hospital unit that moved across Europe. Later, in 1923, she was admitted to the bar and became the first woman barrister to practice in the Old Bailey, the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales. Biography said that later in life, Bowerman headed the establishment of the UN's Commission on the Status of Women. DIED: Charles Melville Hays, railroad executive Charles Melville Hays was nervous about embarking on the Titanic. Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Hays started in the railway business as a teenage clerk. He went on to become the president of the Grand Trunk Railway, which operated in Canada and the Northeastern US.  The American railway magnate may have had some reservations about embarking on the Titanic's maiden voyage. Encyclopedia Titanica reported that he told his companions that the trend toward large boats might end in tragedy. Hays' wife, Clara, and their daughter, Orian, were evacuated from the ship on lifeboats.  After Charles and Clara were separated, she called out to every other lifeboat they came across, hoping that he had made it on one of them. But Hays had died when the Titanic sank — his body was later recovered and buried in Montreal. SURVIVED: Helen Churchill Candee, author Public domain An author and a single mother, Candee wrote the early feminist work "How Women May Earn a Living" in 1900. The American writer traveled extensively and befriended several prominent people, including Theodore Roosevelt and William Jennings Bryan. She booked a passage on the Titanic to return to the US to care for her son who'd been injured. The writer teamed up with Margaret Brown to operate the oars of the lifeboat. Even after surviving the Titanic, Candee continued to travel the world, undaunted. She also spoke of the men aboard's bravery during the disaster. "The men were the heroes, and among the bravest and most heroic, as I recall, were Mr. Widener, Mr. Thayer, and Colonel Astor," Candee said in a 1912 interview, Titanic Archive reported. "They thought only of the saving of the women and went down with the Titanic, martyrs to their manhood." DIED: Henry B. Harris, Broadway producer Isidor and Ida Straus went down with the Titanic. Bettmann/Getty Images Harris was a major player on Broadway when he died on the Titanic. He was returning to the US after a business trip to London. He went down with the ship after ensuring his wife, Renee, who had previously broken her elbow after falling down the ship's grand staircase, got on a lifeboat. "Harry lifted me in his arms and threw me into the arms of a sailor and then threw a blanket that he had been carrying for me through the hours," his wife said, according to the author Charles Pellegrino's website. Renee achieved prominence by taking up her husband's line of work and becoming one of the first female theatrical producers in the US. SURVIVED: Karl Behr, tennis player Karl Behr went on to have a successful tennis career after surviving the Titanic sinking. Bettmann/Getty Images The Independent reported that Behr, a banker and tennis star, booked a trip on the Titanic only to pursue his future wife, Helen Newsom. Behr survived the disaster because he was asked to help row one of the lifeboats. Encyclopedia Titanica reported that he may have asked Newsom for her hand in marriage while they were adrift in a lifeboat. Behr went on to continue his successful tennis career, The New York Times reported. DIED: Jacques Futrelle, mystery writer Public Domain Futrelle achieved success as a mystery author before dying on the Titanic. The Georgia native started out as a journalist, working for the New York Herald and The Boston Post — two now-defunct papers. Futrelle is best remembered for his fictional stories. He wrote a series about the fictional detective professor Augustus S.F.X. Van Dusen. His most famous story was "The Problem of Cell 13." Futrelle and his wife dined with Henry and Renee Harris on the night the ship sank. Futrelle ensured that his wife got on a lifeboat and was last seen speaking on deck with Astor. SURVIVED: Edith Rosenbaum, stylist Public domain Rosenbaum was a stylist, fashion buyer, and journalist who was returning to the US on the Titanic after embarking on a reporting assignment in Paris. The Telegraph reported that a year before the Titanic disaster, Rosenbaum had "survived a car accident the year before in which her fiancé, a German gun manufacturer, had been killed." Following the accident, her mother purchased her a small musical toy pig as a good-luck charm. As the ship went down, the stylist would play the toy's tune to calm and distract the crying children on her lifeboat, The Daily Mail reported. "The children were crying and whimpering," Rosenbaum said, The Huffington Post reported. "And I said, I believe I'll play music and maybe the children would be diverted. ... And the poor children were so interested, most of them stopped crying." DIED: Archibald Butt, presidential aide Library of Congress Butt led a distinguished — and varied — career before dying during the Titanic disaster. Arlington National Cemetery's website said that Butt started out as a reporter but enlisted in the US Army during the Spanish-American War. He served in Cuba and the Philippines. In 1908, he became President Theodore Roosevelt's military aide and served Roosevelt's successor, William Taft, in the same capacity. Butt's "health began to deteriorate in 1912 because of his attempts to remain neutral during the bitter personal quarrel" between Roosevelt and Taft, which may have prompted his decision to travel to Europe. There are a number of unverified accounts of Butt's behavior during the sinking, with many sensationalized stories of the military officer leading the evacuation or threatening male passengers who tried to ignore the ship's "women and children first" protocol. "If Archie could have selected a time to die, he would have chosen the one God gave him," Taft said in a private memorial service, according to the Smithsonian. "His life was spent in self-sacrifice, serving others." He added: "Everybody who knew him called him Archie. I couldn't prepare anything in advance to say here. I tried, but couldn't. He was too near me." Taft then said: "To me, he had become as a son or a brother." The president later broke down weeping while delivering the eulogy at Butt's funeral. Read the original article on Business Insider

When it comes to machine-produced 'literature,' does it really matter whether the outputs can pass for original art? J Studios/Digital Vision via Getty Images At some point in the next several months, I am hoping to receive a modest check as a member of the class covered in the class-action settlement Bartz v. Anthropic. In 2025, the artificial intelligence company Anthropic, best known for creating the chatbot Claude, agreed to pay up to US$1.5 billion to thousands of authors after a judge ruled that the company had infringed upon their copyrights. When I first learned about the settlement, I assumed that Anthropic was primarily interested in teaching Claude about the subject of my stolen work, former socialist activist, British Labour politician and feminist Ellen Wilkinson. It did not initially occur to me that Claude might also be learning about how I, Laura Beers, political historian, craft my sentences and translate my voice to the page. Yet there is increasing evidence that chatbots like Claude can be trained not only to regurgitate an author’s content, but also to mimic their voice. In March 2026, journalist Julia Angwin filed a class action suit against the owners of Grammarly, alleging that the company misappropriated her and other writers’ identities to build its “Expert Review” AI tool, which offers to give editorial feedback in the voices of various authors, living and dead. That a machine might use my writing not only to learn about my subject matter, but also to analyze and ultimately mimic my authorial voice, points to a future that George Orwell envisioned with eerie prescience. In his 1949 dystopian novel “1984,” Orwell imagined “novel-writing machines” capable of mass-producing literature, employing programmed mechanical “kaleidoscopes” as substitutes for individual artistic process. ‘In place of a human mind, a statistical average’ To what extent, I wondered, could Claude mimic my own voice? I prompted the chatbot to write an essay “in the style of Laura Beers” about an early 20th-century politician. I struggled to recognize myself in the resulting prose. But maybe Claude, having only consumed one of my books, didn’t have enough to go on to really nail my tone. I decided to try again. This time, I would ask it to write a brief essay in the style of Orwell. The subject of my book “Orwell’s Ghosts: Wisdom and Warnings for the Twenty-First Century,” Orwell is one of the most distinctive literary essayists and prose stylists of the 20th century. Most of Orwell’s work is in the public domain, meaning it could have legally been used to train Claude. I prompted Claude to write an essay “in the style of George Orwell about the threat to individual identity and freedom of thought posed by AI and particularly by the ability of ‘novel writing machines’ to produce literature.” Primed with ample source material, the AI did a passable job: “Here is a type of comfort, familiar to anyone who has ever been slowly dispossessed of something, that consists not in denying the loss but in not yet noticing it. The frog does not leap from the gradually heated water. The citizen does not protest the gradual narrowing of the permitted thought. And the reader, it seems, does not mourn the novel until the novel has already been replaced by something that resembles it in every outward particular – same chapters, same characters, same approximate sequence of feeling – yet contains, in place of a human mind, a statistical average of all the human minds that came before it.” The final sentence about the statistical average rings false. But Orwell would, I suspect, have liked the image of the slowly boiling frog. “Here is a type of comfort” is also a phrase that Orwell might well have written. Trained on vast collections of text, chatbots can convincingly imitate the prose of the literary greats. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images I am skeptical that anyone would classify Claude’s efforts as indistinguishable from Orwell’s prose. But when it comes to machine-produced “literature,” perhaps it doesn’t really matter whether it can fully approximate original art, as long as it’s good enough to function as entertainment and distraction for the masses. Jam, bootlaces and books This was Orwell’s own dispirited suggestion in “1984. With the help of "novel-writing machines,” the employees of the Ministry of Truth – the government department responsible for controlling information and rewriting history – are able to mass-produce not only novels, but also “newspapers, films, textbooks, telescreen programmes [and] plays.” They churn out “rubbishy newspapers containing almost nothing except sport, crime and astrology, sensational five-cent novelettes” and “films oozing with sex,” along with cheap pornography intended for the “proles,” as the uneducated working classes of Big Brother’s Oceania were known. The technology disgusts Orwell’s protagonist, Winston Smith, who pointedly decides to purchase a diary and pen to write down his own independent thoughts. But to Julia, Winston’s nymphomaniac, anti-intellectual lover who works as a mechanic servicing the machines, “Books were just a commodity that had to be produced, like jam or bootlaces.” ‘Full-Length Novels in Seconds’ According to estimates, thousands of books for sale on Amazon have been written in whole or in part using AI. In other words, today’s AI is also being used to mass-produce literature like jam or bootlaces. Many of these works are not fully machine-written. Instead, they’ve been, as the AI writing tool Sudowrite advertises, “polished by AI.” With its “Rewrite” function, the company promises to give users an opportunity to “refine your prose while staying true to your style, with multiple AI-suggested revisions to choose from.” The service is akin to the “touching up” provided by the Ministry of Truth’s Rewrite Squad in “1984.” Other books for sale on Amazon are, however, entirely machine-generated. The AI writing tool Squibler promises that if you give it an overarching prompt, it can produce “Full-Length Novels in Seconds.” The potential of AI-generated “literature” to turn a quick-and-easy profit ensures that readers will continue to encounter more of this content in the future, especially as AI’s large language models become more refined. Already, studies have shown that readers cannot easily distinguish AI-generated forgeries from original prose. Last year, I had lunch with a screenwriter friend in Los Angeles. He told me that his colleagues are particularly nervous about the use of AI to produce sequels. Once you have an established cast of characters for a movie franchise like, say, “Fast & Furious,” audiences will likely see the next installment whether it’s written by man or machine. Yet my own brief experiments with Claude give me at least some hope for the future of literary art. A chatbot like Claude might be able to absorb and analyze “a statistical average of all the human minds that came before it,” but without the input of actual human experience and sensibility, it is hard to envisage them ever producing true art. Whether AI can produce the next George Orwell novel or essay remains to be seen. That it can and will churn out an increasing volume of popular fiction and screenplays like “Fast & Furious 25” seems less in doubt. Laura Beers does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Meg Leonard created her dream kitchen. Meg Leonard Meg Leonard renovated her kitchen a few years after buying her home in Annapolis, Maryland. She replaced the dark, early 2000s decor with white cabinetry and brass finishes. Leonard also created a cozy nook that serves as a dining and entertaining space. Meg Leonard is rarely as happy as when she's squeezed between loved ones in her kitchen nook. Usually, sports are on the TV hanging from the wall, kids run through the kitchen to the backyard — which she can see from the picture window opposite the screen — and food waits to be eaten on the island a few steps away. Since Leonard and her husband added the nook to their home during their kitchen renovation in 2023, it's become a go-to gathering spot in their house, whether they're dining as a family of three or hosting a party. "Sometimes, almost 15 people are piled in the nook, and it's just so fun," she told Business Insider. Leonard invested $150,000 to renovate her kitchen — a price tag she said was completely worth it. Meg Leonard and her husband bought their dream home in December 2021. Meg Leonard Leonard, 34, is an entrepreneur and content creator who owns a digital and interior design studio. In 2021, she and her husband were living in Baltimore City, but they were dreaming of buying a house in Annapolis, Maryland. "We were looking for something to make our own," Leonard said, telling Business Insider that she and her husband are both drawn to homes with charm that's hard to come by with new builds. Leonard hoped to remodel a home and lean into the traditional, coastal vibe with her design. Then, in May 2021, they found the perfect house: a four-bedroom, three-bathroom house in Annapolis. The 2,900-square-foot space needed a little TLC, which was just what Leonard wanted. "It had great bones, but things were added on in different phases," Leonard said. "It felt entirely meant to be." After some back-and-forth on the sale, they finally bought it in December 2021, eager to start turning the house into their forever home. They now live there with their son and golden retriever. Their early 2000s kitchen was high on the renovation list. Meg Leonard As Leonard told Business Insider, the home's previous owners renovated the kitchen as an addition to the original house. It had wooden cabinetry and windows, tile floors, and a large stone wall framing the oven. "It was definitely Italian style from the early 2000s that was brought into the home," Leonard said of the kitchen's style. Though the kitchen had good bones, Leonard didn't love its details. The stone made it feel dark, despite the big windows, and the 8-foot ceilings didn't help. Likewise, the appliances were high-end but dated. Leonard also wasn't a fan of the orange wood cabinets, which she said were falling apart, or the dark granite countertops. "It wasn't feeling like the happy, airy space that I wanted," she said. Leonard also didn't think the kitchen's dining area was being used to its full potential. Meg Leonard Because the home had been renovated multiple times before Leonard and her family bought it, it had some strange design elements. For instance, the kitchen was added to the front of the house, so the former front door ended up on a wall inside the space after that addition. Leonard also thought the space in front of the door felt too isolated from the rest of the kitchen to serve as a dining area. After they moved in, Leonard and her husband tackled a renovation of their primary bedroom and bathroom, and added a laundry room upstairs. Then, after saving up some money, they hit the ground running with their kitchen renovation in October 2023. "We really tried to balance the function on top of making it look better," Leonard said. "Storage and aesthetically really opening it up was our goal." Leonard designed the kitchen herself. Meg Leonard Leonard liked the kitchen's overall shape, including the placement of the appliances, which helped the design process. "We liked the footprint of everything," she said. "My goal was to kind of create a neutral, timeless base that I can then style everything around through the stools and the accent pieces." To start the process, they gutted the space so they could start fresh. Leonard designed the kitchen herself, but she hired out a contractor and professionals to bring the work to life. Leonard said she thinks it's worth paying professionals to work on rooms like your kitchen, which are so central to a home. "This is the space where you need to invest properly, especially when it comes to plumbing and gas lines in all of the things," she said. "You never want to then resent your space." She also ended up feeling grateful she lived in the kitchen for a while before the renovation began, as it allowed her to see how she really needed the space to function. "I listed out our dream inclusions, how I wanted them to flow, where I wanted the dishwasher to be, and even practiced unloading where the dishes would go," she said. The tile floors and dark wood framing the windows needed to go. Meg Leonard Leonard didn't love the look or feel of the chunky tile floors that were in the kitchen when they bought their home. She didn't think they fit the space, nor did she love the feel of them when she walked around. And while she loved the shape of the windows, she didn't like the wood framing them, particularly because of the color. "To each their own, but orange wood is not something that brings me joy," she said. Wood floors and white windows lightened the space. Meg Leonard Leonard decided to continue the white oak flooring from the rest of her home into her kitchen to create a "seamless" look. "As long as you wipe things up right away, they last," Leonard said about the floors. "So we've been loving that." The walls and trimmings were painted white, making the space feel airy, and Leonard also had white beams added to the ceiling for depth. "As soon as they went in, I think that was the first time that I was like, 'I could cry,'" she said of how much she loved the beams. "It made the room look taller, and I think it's because they weren't a dark-stained wood." Decorative touches — like a dinner bell hanging near the backyard door and dark-wood and wicker barstools at the island — give the kitchen the homey feel Leonard was searching for. The wood cabinetry didn't work for Leonard either. Meg Leonard Although she liked where the cabinets sat, the dark color wasn't Leonard's favorite. She also didn't like that the cabinets didn't go to the ceiling, and she thought the countertops made the whole space feel darker. Plus, the cabinet doors were falling off, so they needed to be updated anyway. Leonard planned to replace the cabinets with new white cabinets that extended to the ceiling, with appliance covers to match. "I wanted inset cabinets that were panel-ready on the appliances just to have a more seamless, perimeter look," she said. White cabinetry and countertops brightened the space. Meg Leonard Leonard got the ceiling-high cabinets she was hoping for, which she complemented with a white marble countertop that extended to the backsplash. "I just loved the idea of it looking a little more rich and and grand by using that marble slab," she said. The real marble was one of the biggest splurges Leonard and her husband made on the kitchen, and she said that even though some people think marble can be hard to maintain, it "was definitely worth splurging on" for her. "Any of the etchings are great signs of life, and it shows that it's natural, real stone," she said. Leonard chose brass finishes throughout the kitchen, from the hardware to her oven and a rack that hangs by a window. It elevates the kitchen's otherwise neutral tones. Leonard also incorporated her personal style through small details, such as the sconce on one side of her sink, which serves as a high-end nightlight they turn on when their kitchen is closed for the evening. "I just love those little bits of character that are a little different," she said. The bulky, arched stone surrounding the stove and oven didn't work for Leonard either. Meg Leonard When Leonard bought her home, the oven sat in an alcove with an arch above it, surrounded by a dark tile pattern. Double ovens were inset into the tile, with a cabinet above them. Leonard wanted to keep the arch above the oven and make it a statement piece in the kitchen, but the dark tile around it had to go. She also wanted to reduce the arch's footprint and decided to remove the double ovens, even though many people find them appealing in a high-end kitchen. It wasn't suited to her lifestyle. "Double ovens sound like a dream, but we really only use those on Christmas," she said. "We needed that storage." Leonard kept the arched shape, but she modernized it. Meg Leonard The new arch is wider and slightly square, allowing the white-and-gold oven and six-burner stovetop to shine. The marble backsplash flows all the way up the arch for a seamless look. Combining the oven and stove freed up space to the right of her kitchen, so now an "appliance garage" sits where the double ovens used to be. The large cabinet gives Leonard space to store things like her coffee maker and air fryer. Her counters were left open for decorative rather than utilitarian touches. She also added cabinets with glass panes framing the oven on either side so she could display some of her everyday items and pitchers. The details around the stovetop helped elevate it. Meg Leonard Leonard had shelving built into the sides of the archway, where she stores everyday items and decor to add a pop to her space. They also added a pot-filler above the stove, which Leonard said she loves. "I know a lot of people are like, 'Is that worth it? Am I actually going to use it?'" she said. "We use that all the time. I love to have tea every day." "It's like a piece of jewelry, but it definitely has changed our day-to-day routine," she added. Leonard liked the large island, but it needed some updates. Meg Leonard Much as she did with the rest of the kitchen, Leonard wanted to keep the island in the center of the room but make adjustments to it. She liked it as a seating area for stools and as a prep space. Leonard said it was particularly important to her to keep the trash can built into the island, as she likes chopping and preparing food there and easily tossing things into the bin below. "We spend most of our time standing over that block and preparing, easily cleaning up, and turning to cook," she said. "It's been really functional for us." The island's built-in features make it more functional. Meg Leonard Rather than white, Leonard decided to use a darker wood for the island. "I always knew I wanted a dark island just to give it more of that traditional, rich contrast," she said. The gold hardware and white marble top gave it continuity with the rest of the kitchen, and Leonard tried to lean into the elevated feel with the design, including table-like legs on one side. The built-in features that make it easier to use are Leonard's favorite parts of the island. The built-in trash can still works great for her family, as does the paper towel bar above it. They also built a cabinet that stows a microwave, creating another hidden space for an appliance. The off-white and brass light fixtures hanging above the island tied it all together. Leonard said she had the lights raised slightly higher than usual. The height allows people to see through the kitchen uninterrupted when they walk into the space. Closing up the old front door was important to Leonard. Meg Leonard "That was actually one of the first projects my husband and my father-in-law did," Leonard said of removing the door and closing up the wall. "We wanted it to feel like a traditional hallway and not have this random door that was an old exterior door there." That left them with an empty square off the side of the room, which used to be cut off from the kitchen by a peninsula. Rather than making it into a traditional dining space, Leonard decided to transform it into a nook with ample built-in storage. "We figured we would get more use out of a nook than a traditional dining area," she told Business Insider. The nook has built-in bench seating. Meg Leonard A three-sided bench seat creates the nook, and a rectangular table with two chairs on the exterior side sits in the center. Leonard also lined the ceiling and walls of the nook with white paneling, making it feel distinct from the rest of the kitchen. "I figured to panel that space would kind of give it a statement without doing some type of bold color," she said. The bench tops also lift up, and Leonard uses them to store items she doesn't use day to day. "We have all of our Christmas stuff on one side, and all of our bigger platters," she said. "We know exactly where things are, and they're not shoved in the basement." The nook has become an entertaining space for Leonard and her family. Meg Leonard In addition to the bench storage, Leonard also had shelving built above the nook along one side, creating additional spots to display her style. She likes that she can change the feel of her kitchen by swapping out items on display. For now, Leonard has platters and sentimental items she doesn't use day to day on the shelving, like a plate she uses for her son's birthday and a portrait of her late dog. A TV also hangs on one wall. The nook has become one of Leonard's favorite spots in her home, both as an entertaining space and a place for her family to relax. People crowd into it for parties, and her family dines there daily. "We never sat in that area before, and now I use it every day," she said. Leonard also wanted to update the pantry. Meg Leonard Before the renovation, Leonard's pantry sat across from the island between two doorways. She wanted to keep it in the same spot, but she didn't want it to extend quite so far into the kitchen. "You would be unloading groceries, and you couldn't walk around because it was basically hitting the island stools," she said of the issues the pantry's size caused. As they designed the new pantry, Leonard decided to make it slightly smaller so there was a larger walkway between the pantry and the island. "People find it hard to believe that you would make a pantry smaller, but we didn't really lose a ton of space," she said. "It was worth it to not have the kitchen feel a little claustrophobic. " She made the new pantry a statement piece in her kitchen. Meg Leonard Leonard said she wanted to play up the island's dark wood as she crafted her space, and the pantry door felt like a natural fit. She hoped to find antique doors that would work, but when she couldn't, she had her doors custom-built. They have glass panels, and brass bolts serve as her door handles and line the center. "I feel like that kind of gave it that look on a lower budget," she said. Striped curtains cover the bottom shelves, peeking through the glass for a quaint touch. Leonard's family loves their kitchen now. Meg Leonard Leonard's family loves the whole kitchen, but she said the nook is her favorite spot in the airy space. "I love having a place to sit down and have a substantial family meal, but it's cozy, and it doesn't feel like we're sitting at a formal dining area," she said. She also said she's happy "having a place for everything," thanks to her ample and well-thought-out storage. "It feels like us," she added of her kitchen. "We're happy to start and end our days in there. And I think that's the biggest thing, just making it a space that you actually enjoy." All in, Leonard spent around $150,000 on the kitchen renovation. Meg Leonard Leonard said her kitchen was "absolutely" worth the price tag because it works so well for her family now. "I was so strategic about not making it just a pretty kitchen but really thinking about where each dollar was going," she said. "I wanted us all to have a space that we're proud of and want to spend time in." Leonard recommends really thinking through a kitchen renovation before starting it, focusing on how the space will function for your family before aesthetics. "List out your priorities, your needs, your current pain points, your dreams, and make sure that they're easily documented, so you can always kind of refer back to that inspiration," she said. "You can have fun with the aesthetic parts and kind of fill that in." Read the original article on Business Insider

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. NASA is building the first nuclear reactor-powered interplanetary spacecraft. How will it work?  Just before Artemis II began its historic slingshot around the moon, NASA revealed an even grander space travel…

Starbucks' new ChatGPT app, which recommends drinks based on user prompts, is now in beta. Courtesy of Starbucks Starbucks launched a new ChatGPT app that lets users ask the AI chatbot for a drink suggestion. The feature will recommend Starbucks drinks based on user taste, the weather, or their outfit. Users can begin their order in ChatGPT and then finish checkout in the Starbucks app or website. Starbucks' newest feature lets ChatGPT turn your "vibe" — or even a photo of your outfit — into a coffee order. The coffee giant on Wednesday rolled out a new app within ChatGPT's app ecosystem that lets users provide a prompt, such as their preference for protein or sugar-free drinks, something that captures the essence of the sunset, or alters the vibe of their workday, and receive a drink recommendation. Users can add customizations, such as cold foam or matcha powder, and choose a location through ChatGPT, then complete their order through the Starbucks app or website. "Over the past year, one thing has become clear: customers aren't always starting with a menu. They're starting with a feeling," Paul Riedel, senior vice president of digital & loyalty at Starbucks, said in a statement about the beta app. "We wanted to meet customers right in that moment of inspiration and make it easier than ever to find a drink that fits." Riedel added that the technology is meant to make customers "more excited" about their drink. "As a beta experience, it's also an opportunity for us to listen, learn, and refine as we go," Riedel said. "You'll see us continue exploring new ways technology can delight our customers while supporting our baristas. This is only the beginning." Users are already turning ChatGPT into everything from a personal stylist to a meal planner, and now, increasingly, a way to decide what to order online. Several major retail brands — including Walmart and Target — have partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into their shopping experiences, allowing users to discover and purchase products directly within the chatbot's interface. The push reflects a broader shift toward "agentic commerce," where chatbots don't merely suggest products, but help users buy them. The practice is expanding among delivery operators and food and beverage brands. DoorDash and Uber Eats have created ChatGPT apps that let users turn recipes into shoppable grocery lists, browse restaurant menus, and place delivery orders, while fast-food operators like Burger King and Firehouse Subs have ChatGPT apps that show nearby locations and help users find deals. The ChatGPT app isn't Starbucks' first foray into AI in its coffeehouses, but it marks one of its biggest public-facing bets on the tech. In June 2025, Starbucks announced it would roll out Green Dot Assist, its AI-powered virtual assistant for baristas, powered by Microsoft Azure's OpenAI platform. First piloted at 35 locations, Green Dot Assist is being rolled out more widely this year. The rollouts signal how quickly AI is becoming part of everyday consumer decisions — including something as routine as ordering coffee. Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert at ktl@businessinsider.com or Signal at byktl.50. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely. Read the original article on Business Insider

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Two recently fixed prompt injections in Salesforce Agentforce and Microsoft Copilot would have enabled an external attacker to leak sensitive data.

How to turn OpenStreetMap data into an interactive map of wild swimming spots using Overpass API and Power BI. The post From OpenStreetMap to Power BI: Visualizing Wild Swimming Locations appeared first on Towards Data Science.

I tried on button-up shirts from Banana Republic (left), Gap (middle), and Old Navy (right). Karen Santos for BI From effortless everyday outfits to business-casual occasions, a good button-up top is one of the most versatile spring and summer fashion staples. I often wear button-ups over a swimsuit with jean shorts for beach days, or pair them with nice slacks for professional lunch meetings or work events. However, I noticed many of my tried-and-true staples were starting to wear down, so I figured it was time for a restock. I ordered similar styles from three Gap Inc. retailers. Karen Santos for BI The first place I always turn to for wardrobe basics is the reliable roster of Gap Inc. retailers — Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy. So, I tested out similar options from each store to see which deserve permanent spots in my closet. I wore each item for everyday activities and rated them based on design, fit, material, price, and overall quality. Here's how it went. I tried on the Banana Republic option first Banana Republic is Gap Inc.'s more upscale retailer that offers elevated staples. I ordered the cotton poplin Everyday Shirt in a brown-and-white striped design — a neutral color combination that would offer diverse styling options. When I first opened my package, I noticed the material felt durable and structured, yet still lightweight. Made from 100% cotton, it felt soft on the skin and breathable when putting it on. @media (min-width: 768px) { .vertical-image-wrapper { display: flex; justify-content: center; } .vertical-image-wrapper .vertical-image { width: min(calc(80vh * var(--img-w) / var(--img-h)), 100%); min-width: 0; } } I wore it with jean shorts and flip flops for a day of running errands. It kept me comfortable going from place to place, and it seemed like it would hold up well over time. In terms of style, I liked the oversize fit, but I wished it were a bit more relaxed and less stiff, especially around the collar and shoulders. Although I typically prefer my button-ups to be slouchy, I think this fit would work well for corporate and professional settings. However, I probably wouldn't wear this again for such a casual outing. The fabric felt soft and breathable. Karen Santos for BI I also didn't necessarily think it was worth the $90 price tag. I did appreciate the natural cotton fabric and well-constructed design, but the cost seemed a bit steep for what it was: a basic button-up. Next, I put my Gap button-up to the test Over the past few years, Gap has continued to earn its place as one of my favorite retailers for high-quality pieces at reasonable prices. I ordered the organic cotton poplin Big Shirt in the blue-stripe shade, which looked nearly identical to its Banana Republic counterpart. It was even comprised of almost the same material. The only true difference was that the Gap version was made with 100% organic cotton and cost $20 less. @media (min-width: 768px) { .vertical-image-wrapper { display: flex; justify-content: center; } .vertical-image-wrapper .vertical-image { width: min(calc(80vh * var(--img-w) / var(--img-h)), 100%); min-width: 0; } } In addition to the lower price, the shirt's cut and fit also caught my eye. The fit was oversize, but it had a tunic length (namely, a slightly longer hem) and a more relaxed fit around the chest and shoulders. I paired it with white linen pants to create an elevated summer aesthetic, and wore the outfit to work from a coffee shop for several hours. I paired the Gap option with white linen pants. Karen Santos for BI The shirt was comfortable and breathable, so I know that I could easily wear this throughout the spring and summer months. At $70, it's definitely an investment, but for the organic materials and flattering style, I think it's a worthy purchase. I wasn't a huge fan of the Old Navy button-up, but I think it's a great option for the price Finally, I was excited to try a piece from Old Navy, which is Gap Inc.'s more budget-friendly retailer. I ordered the classic button-down shirt in the pink stripe design, and loved the vibrant shade for spring and summer ensembles. @media (min-width: 768px) { .vertical-image-wrapper { display: flex; justify-content: center; } .vertical-image-wrapper .vertical-image { width: min(calc(80vh * var(--img-w) / var(--img-h)), 100%); min-width: 0; } } However, as soon as I opened the package, I noticed the shirt felt more flimsy — and of lesser quality — than the Banana Republic and Gap options. Although the tag said this button-up was also made from 100% cotton, the fabric felt much thinner and less durable. This can be due to a number of factors that are invisible to the consumer — like how the cotton is processed, woven, or finished. After putting it on, I also realized the style fit much more snugly than the others, even though I ordered them all in the same size. To be fair, though, this one wasn't marketed as having an oversize fit like the Gap version was. Next time, I'd order a size or two up to achieve a more laid-back feel. I wore this shirt for a trip to the farmers market. Karen Santos for BI Once I styled the shirt with a pair of baggy jeans and some sandals, though, I loved the look of it. I wore it to the local farmers market, followed by brunch. It was comfortable and perfect for a casual outing, but it would have been more breathable if it were a bit looser. This was my least favorite option, but I still thought it was a solid choice. I didn't feel confident it would last more than a year, but for only $30, it's a budget-friendly piece worth wearing for the season. At the end of the day, though, the Gap button-up proved to be my top choice for its durability, materials, and overall style. Read the original article on Business Insider