Christmas Gifts

It’s that time of year where stores are covered in Christmas gift decorations and variations of Jingle Bells are playing over the office music system.

While it’s an exciting and festive time of year, it can also be a headache if you have run out of gift ideas online.

But if you have a business-minded loved one, or someone who likes to be up to date with the latest gadget, we’ve compiled a list of what successful Australian executives are hoping to get this year to make your Christmas shopping a little easier.

Here’s what these 23 Australian executives want this Christmas.

Will Davies, CEO of Car Next Door
I battle to ever think of anything I want. Hopefully someone buys me some nice (trendy) clothes, because I hate buying clothes myself so it’s good to get that job done. I would like to buy a 4 berth sailing boat, but I don’t think that will be happening till Car Next Door has come a long way forward!

Nati Harpaz, CEO of Catch of the Day
Don’t call me crazy but I want to add a pilot licence to my wish list. Perhaps I need to sign up for a few lessons first!

image: https://edge.alluremedia.com.au/uploads/businessinsider/2016/07/stunt-plane.jpg


Photo: George Rose/ Getty Images.
Zoe Pointon, CEO and co-founder of Open Agent
Can I ask for a different US president?
I’d love some new cycle and running gear to help me with my new years resolutions of getting out every morning. Maybe a Garmin power meter if I’m really spoiled!

Levi Aron, country manager of Deliveroo
I’ve been eyeing a few drones lately, I think I could have a lot of fun with one over the summer – and even use it to help with deliveries on a busy Deliveroo night, watch this spot.

Alexis Soulopoulus, CEO of Mad Paws
I saw this really cool thing on Kickstarter recently. It’s called Slow Dance; a picture frame that makes real objects appear to move in slow motion. The frame appears to be using magic, but in actual fact it’s an optical illusion that makes time appear to slow down. It really looks like the animated portraits in Harry Potter’s Hogwarts and so I am a fan!

Bethany James-Best, CEO James Said
I’m hoping for two weeks off undisturbed from work – precious time to switch off with my husband and son. If I could put an order in with Santa I’m sending vibes to the universe for the Canturi Regina Link Ring in white gold and black sapphires.

image: https://edge.alluremedia.com.au/uploads/businessinsider/2016/12/canturi-reginasinglering.jpg


Photo: Canturi.
Craig Adamson, Director of Leading Hotels of the World, Australia and New Zealand
I love a good autobiography, particularly of successful business people. Otherwise, I just want to have time with family and friends.

Tony Windever, VP of Unisys, Asia Pacific

The gift of time! It’s free – but has so much value. But if I were hoping to find something under the tree… there are a couple of things I’d love to learn to do… I’d really love to take a cooking course and lift my game in the kitchen. Or guitar lessons – I was given an acoustic guitar as a birthday present years ago but still don’t know how to play it.


Read more at https://www.businessinsider.com.au/australian-executives-christmas-gifts-2016-12#oPHeF4o1gXcEf8sv.99

Vladimir Putin Gave George H.W. Bush A Very Special Birthday Gift

A helicopter jump might not have been the most special part of Former President George H.W. Bush’s birthday on Thursday. Bush also got a personal phone call and gift from Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Bush spokesman Jim McGrath confirmed the interaction to Business Insider.

“Yes, they spoke at 2 p.m.,” he wrote. “President Putin also sent a portrait. … It is a portrait of President Bush as a young Navy ensign in his dress whites.”

The Kremlin’s official English-language Twitter feed also wished Bush well Thursday afternoon.

“Vladimir Putin congratulated George W. Bush on the 90th anniversary,” the Kremlin said. (George W. Bush is actually the elder Bush’s son.)

The younger Bush famously painted a portrait of Putin. Business Insider asked McGrath whether the portrait of the elder Bush was painted or a photograph. As of this writing, we have not received a response. We’ll update if we find out Putin himself painted the picture.


source - https://www.businessinsider.com.au/vladimir-putin-gave-george-hw-bush-a-very-special-birthday-gift-2014-6

Vladimir Putin Gave George H.W. Bush A Very Special Birthday Gift

A helicopter jump might not have been the most special part of Former President George H.W. Bush's birthday on Thursday. Bush also got a personal phone call and birthday gift from Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Bush spokesman Jim McGrath confirmed the interaction to Business Insider.

"Yes, they spoke at 2 p.m.," he wrote. "President Putin also sent a portrait. ... It is a portrait of President Bush as a young Navy ensign in his dress whites."

The Kremlin's official English-language Twitter feed also wished Bush well Thursday afternoon.

"Vladimir Putin congratulated George W. Bush on the 90th anniversary," the Kremlin said. (George W. Bush is actually the elder Bush's son.)


source - https://www.businessinsider.com/vladimir-putin-gave-george-hw-bush-a-very-special-birthday-gift-2014-6/lightbox?r=AU&IR=T

The science of why flowers smell so good

With Valentine’s Day upcoming, part of your Valentine’s plan may well involve sending flowers to India online . These come in an array of different colours, and also have a range of different scents. What are the chemical compounds behind these scents? That’s the question that this graphic tries to answer, with a more detailed discussion of each below.

Firstly, it’s important to realise that aroma chemistry is complex, and the smell of any flower is never really the consequence of a single chemical compound. Flowers give off a complex mix of volatile organic chemicals, and whilst not all of these will contribute to the aroma, a significant number will impact it to varying degrees. Whilst we can’t point to single compounds as being the cause of flowers’ scents, we can identify those that have a major impact on the aroma that our noses detect; in many cases, there will be molecules that make a large contribution, and it’s those we’ll discuss here.

Roses

Roses online are by far and away the most popular choice of flower for Valentine’s Day — and by association, the most expensive! Their scent is majorly influenced by compound named after the flower, (-)-cis-rose oxide. This molecule is a particular isomer of rose oxide (which has 4 different isomers), and the one which contributes the typical floral rose fragrance. It’s detectable by our noses at very low concentrations in air — down as low as 5 parts per billion. To give this some perspective, one part per billion is equivalent to one second in thirty-two years.

Another compound that contributes to the scent of roses is beta-damascenone. This compound belongs to a family of chemical entities known as rose ketones. It also has an even lower odour threshold than rose oxide, with its aroma being detectable at just 0.009 parts per billion. Another compound with a comparably low odour threshold, beta-ionone, is also an important contributor; both of these compounds are minor constituents of the plant’s essential oil, but of great importance to its perceived fragrance.

Other compounds that make minor contributions to the aroma include geraniol, nerol, (-)-citronellol, farnesol, and linalool.

Carnations

Carnations online, too, are a common component of floral bouquets. In comparison to roses, their scent is much fainter; the major aroma chemicals that make up this scent are eugenol, beta-caryophyllene, and benzoic acid derivatives.

Scents can be very variable between different species of carnations; one study correlated this with the varying proportions of eugenol and methyl salicylate in the aroma volatiles. Eugenol is actually a compound that’s been discussed before on the site, in the context of its occurrence in cloves. Methyl salicylate is also found in many other plants, and is more commonly known as oil of wintergreen.

Read more at https://www.businessinsider.com.au/why-flowers-smell-so-good-2015-2#piev1IJcMAlcHWeR.99

Trump campaign manager: We have not 'formally' invited and 'don’t expect' ex-Bill Clinton mistress to be at debate

Donald Trump will not formally invite a woman who former President Bill Clinton admitted to having an affair with decades ago to this week's presidential debate, his campaign manager said on Sunday.

The Republican presidential nominee on Saturday threatened to invite Gennifer Flowers to Monday's presidential debate at Hofstra University following Hillary Clinton's decision to invite billionaire investor and Trump-agitator Mark Cuban to the debate.

But in an interview on "State of the Union," Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said the Trump campaign had not formally invited Flowers to the debate in Long Island, New York, and mocked the Clinton campaign for being "baited" into responding to Trump's threat.

"Basically, Mr. Trump was saying look, if Mark Cuban is going to send out these texts saying 'The Humbling at Hofstra,' and 'This is his big downfall,' then Mr. Trump was putting them on notice that we can certainly invite guests that make it into the head of Hillary Clinton," Conway said.

She added: "But we have not invited her formally, and we don't expect her to be there as a guest of the Trump campaign."

Clinton's campaign criticized Trump on Saturday for inviting Flowers, with whom former President Bill Clinton admitted having "sexual relations" with at least once when he was attorney general of Arkansas during the 1970s.

"Hillary Clinton plans on using the debate to discuss the issues that make a difference in people's lives. It's not surprising that Donald Trump has chosen a different path," Clinton Communications Director Jennifer Palmieri said in a statement.

Flowers, who is supporting Trump, previously told The New York Times that she would be at the debate, though it was unclear whether she had received a formal invitation or was simply responding to Trump's tweet.

For his part, Cuban has proved deft at getting under Trump's skin.


source - https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-not-inviting-gennifer-flowers-debate-2016-9/lightbox?r=AU&IR=T

GASPARINO: Dan Loeb Yelled At The Secretary Of A Sotheby's Board Member And Then Sent Flowers

Activist hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb yelled at the secretary of a Sotheby's board member and then later apologized by sending flowers, Fox Business Network's Charlie Gasparino reports.

According to Gasparino, Loeb—who has been battling with Sotheby's—tried calling up a board member at the auction house. The board member's secretary answered the phone and informed Loeb that the board member wasn't in the office. She then transferred Loeb to the trading desk. The trading desk transferred him back to the absent board member's secretary.

Gasparino says that Loeb yelled at the secretary.

The next day he sent her flowers.

So at least he apologized. That was the classy thing to do.


source - https://www.businessinsider.com/loeb-sends-flowers-to-secretary-2014-3/lightbox?r=AU&IR=T

The ultimate guide to buying flowers on Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is only a week away, which means people around the country are scrambling to order flowers.

We spoke with floral expert Nic Faitos of New York’s Starbright Floral Design about price point, what to buy, and buds to consider.

Since he's been in the business for over 20 years, he shared his top tips every guy should know before buying Valentine’s Day flowers.

“What I tell people is to try and keep it a little more interesting than just the traditional dozen roses,” Faitos told us. “Price-wise, roses go through the roof.”

Roses are notoriously marked up on Valentine’s Day when demand is high. In some places, the cost of a single long-stemmed red rose will surge by as much as 100%.

You’d be better off ordering different flowers that are in season, such as Lilies, Chrysanthemums, and Amaryllis. Flowers in peak season will not only arrive fresher, but they’ll last longer, too.

“A dozen roses is something that’s expected. You can think a little more creatively and get a better and bigger arrangement for your dollar if you do things a little bit differently,” Faitos said.


source - https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-buy-valentines-day-flowers-2015-2/lightbox?r=AU&IR=T