About 1 billion years from now, the sun will begin to die, blow off its outer atmosphere, and engulf our tiny planet in hot plasma.

Luckily, the galaxy will have NASA's twin Voyager spacecraft to remember us by.

The two nuclear-powered probes launched 40 years ago and became the first and only robots to take close-up photographs of Uranus and Neptune, the planets' moons and rings, and other objects in the outer solar system.

The Voyagers also carried with them a golden record of sounds, images, and other information about life on Earth — a basic human catalog that aliens might one day discover and decode.

The mission is now detailed in a remarkable PBS documentary called "The Farthest", which premiered on August 23 and will re-air on September 13 at 10 p.m. ET.

"Fifty years from now, Voyager will be the science project of the 20th century," Brad Smith, a Voyager imaging scientist, said in the movie.

Here's why many scientists and engineers not only hail Voyager as the farthest, fastest, and longest-lived space mission, but also one of humanity's greatest endeavors.

SEE ALSO: The 15 most incredible plutonium-powered space missions of all time

DON'T MISS: You live on a tiny spaceship that's lost in the void, and these stunning photos prove it

NASA began working on the Voyager mission in 1972 with a budget of $865 million, or roughly $5 billion in 2017-adjusted dollars.

Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech, Bureau of Labor Statistics

The goal was to tour the outer solar system using a planetary alignment that happens just once every 176 years. The gravity of the planets would speed up the spacecraft, allowing at least one probe to visit Uranus and Neptune for the first time.

Source: "The Farthest"/PBS

NASA worried that Jupiter's radiation fields might short-circuit the Voyagers. So engineers shielded and grounded cables of the probes with kitchen-grade aluminum foil. (It worked.)

Source: "The Farthest"/PBS

When watching "Game of Thrones," do you ever catch yourself wondering, "Wait, is that person dead or alive?"

As the seasons pass, more and more people die. Families have gotten smaller, and some have even disappeared for good. It gets difficult to keep track of who's related to whom, and who is alive and who is dead. There are just so many deaths.  

To help you with these problems, we made an interactive graphic that is your best guide to the life status of every member of the major noble houses in Westeros.

*Note: Ellaria Sand, Obara Sand, Nymeria Sand, Tyene Sand, Jon Snow and Gendry are bastards and not officially members of noble houses. But they are blood-related, which is why they are included.

SEE ALSO: The 24 most gruesome 'Game of Thrones' deaths, ranked

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 6 of 'Game of Thrones'

After a summer movie season that saw some hit movies but a lot of duds, Hollywood is looking for a rebound in the fall.

The fall season will have its share of blockbusters — from the anticipated “It” to "Thor: Ragnarok" and “Justice League” — but there will also be some titles mixed in that will compete for award season attention, like “Call Me By Your Name” and “Stronger.”

Here are 34 movies coming out this fall that you shouldn’t miss:

SEE ALSO: Every "Game of Thrones" romantic relationship, ranked from worst to best

"It" - September 8

The latest adaptation of Stephen King's classic novel looks to be the most chilling yet. In it, a group of bullied kids team up to take on a monster named Pennywise (that looks like a clown) that hunts kids.

"First They Killed My Father" - September 15

Netflix's next anticipated movie from a marquee name is Angelina Jolie's latest directing effort that looks back on the horrific upbringing in Cambodia of Loung Ung. Jolie cast hundreds of survivors and their children to recreate their stories. 

"mother!" - September 15

Darren Aronofsky's latest thriller stars Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem as a couple whose lives are suddenly interrupted when guests arrive at their home. Aronofsky has always had a knack for completely messing with audience's heads, and this one looks to be no different. The movie also stars Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer. 

Everyone wants to achieve their goals as quickly as possible.

But that's usually easier said that done.

So how can we go about achieving what we set out to achieve?

For starters, it helps to look at some real world examples of highly successful people who've employed tricks and strategies to help conquer their own goals.

Here are nine tricks that incredibly successful people use to accomplish their goals:

SEE ALSO: Bill Gates, Richard Branson, and Sheryl Sandberg all use the same old-school organizational hack

DON'T MISS: Successful people share 11 ways to make 2017 your most productive year yet

Sundar Pichai — Know what morning routine works best for you

The CEO of Google sets himself up for success every morning with his pre-dawn routine. Pichai digs into an omelette, drinks tea, and catches up on the news.

There's nothing flashy about this habit, but it works for him. "I'm not a morning person, so I need my time with my paper and tea to wake up and kind of get going," Pichai told Recode.

So take care of yourself in the morning. Do whatever you need to do to get yourself prepared for the rest of the day, whether that means going on a jog, curling up with a nice cup of coffee, or taking some time to contemplate your life.

By taking some time for yourself, you'll be setting yourself up to better tackle your goals throughout the day.

Mark Zuckerberg — Simplify your choices

We all have to make countless decisions throughout the day. That's just life — but sometimes, all those choices can weigh us down.

The New York Times reported that decision fatigue is a real problem: "You can't make decision after decision without paying a biological price."

That's why the CEO of Facebook — whose decisions directly impact the well-being of a $480 billion company— eliminates unnecessary choices from his life.

For example, every morning, Zuckerberg puts on a "uniform" of sorts: jeans, sneakers, and a gray t-shirt.

By adopting a comfortable work uniform, the CEO helps stave off decision fatigue, which can result in impulsiveness and indecisiveness.

Reducing the number of choices you need to make throughout the day is a great way of setting yourself up for success when it comes to making decisions regarding truly important goals.

Beyoncé Knowles — Don't talk about your goals

It's easy to fall into to the trap of gabbing about our goals to everyone who will listen. After all, once your plans are out there, you'll have to follow through, right?

Wrong. Talking too much can actually hurt your chances of success.

Business Insider contributor Daniel Welsey described the problem with talking too much about your dreams: "Communicating your goals tricks the brain into thinking you've already achieved them."

So, basically, the more you talk about your plans, the less motivated you are to actually get stuff done.

We should really be more like Beyonce, who famously released a full album out of the blue in 2016. Queen Bey didn't sit around hyping her work and hawking her new music. She let the album drop and then basked in the commercial success and critical accolades.

There are a lot of ways to help the people of eastern Texas as they suffer through the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

For instance, Facebook has activated its Safety Check system for the area. This not only lets you search for a loved one in the affected area, but lets you respond to pleas of help from people who have been impacted.

More than 570 people have posted their requests for help on the page — requesting food, rides, volunteers for clean-up crews and the like. They are also using the page to share information about the storm.

But perhaps the easiest way to help is to donate $10 to the Red Cross by texting the word REDCROSS to 90999. The $10 donation will be charged to your mobile phone bill.

Even better, if you can afford it, you can follow the lead of people who are challenging their social media followers to donate and then promising to match those donations.

For instance, Mikel Jollett‏ challenged his nearly 100,000 Twitter followers to send that text, then tweet him the evidence to procure a matched donation from him. He's the singer, guitarist, and frontman for LA-based indie rock band Airborne Toxic Event.

Producer Elan Gale (of "The Bachelor" television empire fame) did a similar challenge to his 200,000 followers, although he was capping his match to 50 people, or $500.

Many others are also challenging their own followers, and matching those contributions, as well.

In addition to giving money to the Red Cross's Harvey fund, Twitter user Celeste P. compiled a list of organizations you can donate to to help those affected by the storm.

SEE ALSO: Stranded Texans send pleas for help, share startling photos on social media as flood waters rise

DON'T MISS: Harvey pummels Texas with 'catastrophic', 'unprecedented' flooding — here's what you need to know

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Pilots flew straight into Hurricane Harvey and caught this incredible first-hand footage

• Galore Media says traditional ads just don't work for Gen Z, the 70 million people born between 1996 and 2010.
• Instead it focuses on creating content for marketers and connecting them with influencers.
• "This is how everybody will have to build a media company in the future."

When the digital-media company Galore talks to prospective advertisers, it tries to sell them on its social-media network, its ability to make content for brands, its relationship with influencers, and its track record of producing events. It barely bothers selling them paid ads.

Mike Albanese, Galore's CEO, said that even just a few years ago, digital-media companies looking to capture the millennial market were focused on a fairly traditional ad strategy.

"Let’s make a lot of content, figure out how to drive lots of traffic, get some big audience numbers, and kind of wrap advertising around it," Albanese said. "That no longer holds up."

Today, Albanese says, "display ads on a website just aren't going to get you there, especially with a generation of consumers who don't even think of websites — and if they do, they use ad blockers," he said. "There are just too many challenges with that model."

As an alternative, Galore operates as a specialist agency for its advertisers, helping them make ads, distribute content (videos and photos), and reach a community through a number of outlets.

Many media companies, from BuzzFeed to Condé Nast, have edged into making content and ads for paying marketers. Vice Media operates its own global ad agency. Yet they all still sell lots of ads.

In Galore's case, the ads-are-secondary approach may simply represent a unique strategy for a publication that is focused on a hard-to-reach demographic: women between the ages of 16 to 24. Or it may be a harbinger in an industry where young consumers are increasingly able to avoid traditional advertising, even traditional digital ads.

"Yes, we have an audience that is unique in many ways," Albanese added. "They are younger, they were 10 years old when the iPhone came out, and were raised on Tumblr. So Gen Z Media companies will need new revenue and distribution models. But we think this is how everybody will have to build a media company in the future."

Galore does sell some old-fashioned display ads on its website, alongside articles with headlines like "9 Different Ways to Rock the Wet-Hair Look." But these are almost throw-ins to bigger campaigns focused on connecting brands like L'Oreal and Neutrogena with young women.

The company tries all sorts of alternative tactics. For example, it operates a Slack channel for 1,500 of the company's biggest fans, through which it bounces ideas off the fans as part of a real-time digital focus group — even tapping into this group to serve as "micro influencers" for paying advertisers on occasion.

Last year, Galore launched the Girl Cult franchise in New York, and it has grown it into a full-fledged festival this year, featuring speakers Tyra Banks and Kimora Lee Simmons with a number of performers and sponsors.

In addition, Galore creates and distributes content with the help of stars who resonate with its young audience, such as Kylie Jenner, Zendaya, and Sofia Richie, all while connecting marketers with top influencers through Kitten, an influencer-rep firm that it owns.

Marketers that specialize in trying to reach this young demographic tend to agree that this kind of multipronged approach is necessary.

"This consumer is tuning out standard advertising models," said Nick Woodhouse, president and chief marketer officer of Authentic Brands Group, which owns Juicy Couture and Aeropostale. "Today’s consumer is looking for content that is cool, is peer-driven, and hits a chord."

Albanese says Galore Media is on track to pull in $5 million in revenue this year, up from $2 million last year. Roughly 70% comes from running influencer campaigns and making content for marketers, while 20% comes from events. Just 10% comes from paid ads.

"It's almost like the ads we sell are a nice-to-have for our partners," he said. "It's a total philosophical difference from most media companies."

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's everyone left on Arya Stark's kill list on 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: Huge, enormous spoilers, if you have not seen the "Game of Thrones" season seven finale. Seriously, very big spoilers.

In the final scene of the epic, nearly 90 minute long "Game of Thrones" season finale, we finally see what has become of Viserion. 

Viserion was killed by the Night King in last week's episode of "Game of Thrones," and was then turned into a White Walker or wight dragon by the Night King.

In the finale we got a look at how the Night King has begun to utilize Viserion as a weapon of his own. The Night King rode on Viserion's back to The Wall, where Viserion proceeded to breathe blue fire upon The Wall, eventually causing it to melt and topple to the ground — allowing the White Walker and wight army to cross the barrier that's kept them out of Westeros for centuries.

But some "Game of Thrones" fans, it seems, are a bit confused about what Viserion actually is following his reanimation, and have been referring to him as an "ice dragon." 

But, contrary to what fans might believe, Viserion isn't actually an ice dragon.

The confusion makes sense. The blue flames coming out of Viserion's mouth could easily be confused with ice, but these aren't ice flames — they're just blue flames.

George R.R. Martin has said in the past that ice dragons are a completely different species of dragon altogether - unlike the "common dragons" that we've come to know on the show. 

Here's what Martin had to say about ice dragons in "A World of Ice and Fire":

"These colossal beasts, many times larger than the dragons of Valyria, are said to be made of living ice, with eyes of pale blue crystal and vast translucent wings through which the moon and stars can be glimpsed as they wheel across the sky.

Whereas common dragons (if any dragon can truly be said to be common) breathe flame, ice dragons supposedly breathe cold, a chill so terrible that it can freeze a man solid in half a heartbeat [...] As ice dragons supposedly melt when slain, no actual proof of their existence has ever been found."

So it's important to note that turning Viserion into a White Walker or wight dragon did not in fact change the type of dragon he is, despite the icy blue color of his flames. Viserion is now merely an undead dragon with blue pigmentation that mirrors that of an ice dragon. 

SEE ALSO: Here's what 'Game of Thrones' characters were up to in season one and what they're up to now

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here’s what it’s like to ride on one of the oldest roller coaster rides in America

Warning: Huge spoilers for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode seven, "The Dragon and the Wolf." If you aren't caught up on the series or the season, read at your own risk. 

After a slightly disappointing episode last week, "Game of Thrones" delivered a satisfying season finale that gave us everything we love about the series. "The Dragon and the Wolf" had everything we've come to expect from a "Game of Thrones" season finale: shocking deaths, Tyrion bickering with Cersei, and some partial nudity in the form of Jon Snow's bare butt. 

We get to see a lot of characters come together in King's Landing to watch a wight set free from a chained box, and we finally see the Stark children working together to avenge their father's death in Winterfell. 

Here's our recap of "The Dragon and the Wolf:"

SEE ALSO: Why 'Game of Thrones' fans might have to wait until 2019 for the final season

Most of the characters on the show gather in King's Landing to watch the captured wight revealed.

Tyrion leads his group of heroes into the dragon pit of King's Landing, where they're to meet Cersei to discuss a truce and introduce her to an undead wight. 

Cersei has a look of terror on her face as the wight gets within inches of her, and everyone else who's never seen them before does as well. Except for Qyburn, who looks at it like it's pizza delivery. 

 Jon Snow stupidly tells Cersei that he will stay loyal to Daenerys, no matter what.

Brienne is shocked to see The Hound alive, especially since the last time they crossed paths, she killed him.

The two bond over their fondness for Arya Stark, and Brienne confirms that she's safe in Winterfell and can protect herself now. 

The Hound threatens what's left of his brother, The Mountain.

In the dragon pit, The Hound immediately goes up to The Mountain. He notices his creepy zombie eyes and says, "You're even uglier than me now. What did they do to you?" Then he says, "You know who's coming for you," which could confirm that we'll get Cleganebowl sometime in the last six episodes.  

• Cheap VR headsets, priced at around $300, are coming to Windows 10 later this year. 
• Microsoft just announced those headsets will support apps and games from the Steam platform, which will greatly expand selection. Plus, Microsoft says it's working on "Halo" content for virtual reality.
• The VR headsets will work with less powerful computers, potentially expanding the market.

Microsoft thinks Windows 10 could become the platform of choice for virtual reality, ensuring the operating system stays relevant for years to come. 

In a move that could help make that vision a reality, the software giant on Monday is announcing that it's teaming up with with Valve — the company behind the massively popular Steam digital game store and a major player in the virtual reality industry. As part of the agreement, the super-cheap VR headsets that are designed to be used with Windows 10 PCs that are slated to hit store shelves this holiday season will be able to run VR games listed on Steam. 

The deal could be a winner for all sides. For Microsoft and its hardware partners, the agreement could help them sell more headsets and Windows computers by giving buyers of the new VR gadgets a far wider selection of games to play. 

Prior to this deal, Microsoft had said that the new headsets would only be able to run apps and games that are offered through its Windows Store. Unfortunately, the Windows Store has a relatively sparse selection. By contrast, Steam offers many standout VR games, including "Rick & Morty: Virtual Rick-ality," and "Star Trek: Bridge Crew." It will also soon include "Fallout 4 VR."

Meanwhile, for Valve, the deal offers an opportunity to expand the market for its VR games. Right now, the only headset that's able to play those games is HTC's Vive, a premium headset developed in conjunction with Valve to rival Facebook's Oculus Rift, but whose $599 price has limited sales.

With their sub-$300 prices, the new headsets could expand the market, bringing in new VR players. By opening up its VR games to those headsets, Valve will gets access to the new customers. 

And, if that's not enough, Microsoft also says that it's bringing "experiences" based on its blockbuster "Halo" franchise into virtual reality with Windows 10 in the future.

But wait, there's more

But beyond promoting the inexpensive headsets and teaming up with Valve, Microsoft is taking another step that could broaden the market even further. The company is also announcing that the new headsets will be able to be used with computers that have integrated graphics hardware. In such computers, the graphics capabilities are typically built into the computer's main processing chip.

What's significant about the announcement is that integrated graphics processors are typically found on lower-end or mid-range PCs, and they generally struggle to handle more complex games. By contrast, Vive and Rift will only work with higher-end PCs that have what are called discrete graphics cards. Those cards are typically powerful and pricey processors that are separate from a computer's main CPU. 

By designing the new headsets to work with less expensive PCs, Microsoft and its partners could open VR to consumers who would never be able to afford a Rift- or Vive-compatible PC. 

Microsoft is also promising that the new headsets will be more accessible than their high-end rivals by being as close to plug-and-play as possible. Unlike Rift or Vive, which require extra cameras or sensors to track your head movements in three dimensions, the new headsets won't need any other accessories to be able to do the same thing. 

I had the chance last week to try "Minecraft" on a near-final version of Acer's $299 VR headset that was connected to a laptop with integrated graphics. It wasn't as immersive an experience as when the headset was connected to a more jacked-up gaming PC; the frame rate was choppier, and the refresh rate was slower. But the overall effect wasn't bad, especially for a PC close to the same caliber you'd find in many US classrooms. 

I also had the chance to get some hands-on time with Microsoft's new motion controllers, which are slated to ship later this year as well. You put one in each hand, and use them to point at things in virtual reality. Triggers on the bottom of the controllers let you "grip" virtual objects. They don't feel as solidly built as Oculus' controllers but they work well.

You'll be able to buy the controllers in a bundle with Acer's headset for $399. Microsoft has not said if it will offer the controllers separately or how much it would charge for them if it does. 

Ultimately, Microsoft's intent is clear. It's hoping to be the company that expands the market for VR by promoting cheap headsets that offer access to lots of games and apps, work with a wide variety of PCs, and are easy to set up. Whether Microsoft achieves that goal — with Apple, Google, and Facebook all ramping up the competition — remains to be seen.

SEE ALSO: Here's why Microsoft's holographic genius thinks it can beat Apple and Google to win the next wave of computing

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Watch what happens when kids try virtual reality for the first time

Warning: Spoilers if you have not seen the season finale of "Game of Thrones."

The words "Game of Thrones" normally bring death, destruction, and political intrigue to mind — but that's not all that "Game of Thrones" has to offer.  

There's a lot of romance on "Game of Thrones" that tends to get overlooked in the midst of the battles, and wars, between Houses. 

The romantic relationships on "Game of Thrones" range from steamy and loving to tempestuous and insidious. 

Keeping all of that in mind, we decided to take a look at all of the romantic relationships featured on "Game of Thrones," and rank them from worst to best.

Here they are:

37. Craster and his daughters/wives

Craster is a wildling, and former ally of the Night's Watch known for marrying and sleeping with all of his daughters. Craster also would sacrifice any male children his daughters bore.

Incest, sacrifice, and nonconsensual relationships aren't uncommon occurrences on "Game of Thrones," but the combination of all three makes Craster and his unfortunate daughters/wives the worst relationship on "Game of Thrones."

36. Walder Frey and his child brides

It's hard to consider Walder Frey's relationships with his endless stream of disposable child brides relationships at all.

The nonconsensual nature of Walder Frey's relationships with his young brides makes these so-called relationships some of the all time worst on "Game of Thrones."

35. Sansa Stark and Ramsay Bolton

Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish arranges for Sansa to marry Ramsay, after the Boltons have taken over Winterfell. 

Unsurprisingly, the man who castrated Theon Greyjoy for fun turned out to be a less than stellar husband, physically and psychologically tormenting Sansa.

Sansa exacts revenge upon Ramsay and has him eaten alive by his own dogs, restoring House Stark as the rulers of the North.

The season finale of "Game of Thrones" brought many of the major players together to figure out how to deal with the threat in the North. We finally learned the truth about Jon Snow, and a major character was outsmarted by an unlikely pair.  Here are all the other details you might have missed in episode 7.

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Warning: Spoilers for "Game of Thrones" season seven. If you aren't caught up with the series, read at your own risk. 

Season seven of "Game of Thrones" was one of the most brutal yet. Some major battles have brought some major deaths, including one that made dying look really, really cool.

Not as many major characters died this season as expected. Those deaths will probably come in the last six episodes of the series.

But there were some roastings, epic betrayals, and wights that ended lives in season seven. 

Here is your guide to who died on "Game of Thrones" so far this season:

SEE ALSO: 'Game of Thrones:' Who is alive (and dead) in all the major houses

Obara Sand

Time of death: Episode two, "Stormborn."

Cause of death: In his attack on Yara's fleet, Euron Greyjoy stabs the daughter of Oberyn Martell in the gut with a spear. By the end of the battle, her body is hanging from the ship, so she's definitely dead. 

Nymeria Sand

Time of death: Episode two, "Stormborn."

Cause of death: In Euron's attack, he strangles Nymeria, who is a daughter of Oberyn (and not Arya Stark's direwolf, who shares the same name). At the end of the battle, her body is also hanging from the ship.

Tyene Sand

Time of death: Episode three, "The Queen's Justice" (kind of).

Cause of death: Cersei locks Ellaria up in a dungeon with her daughter, Tyene, who she poisons the same way Ellaria poisoned Myrcella: with a kiss and a poison called "The Long Farewell." So Ellaria has to watch her own daughter die a brutal death, and in another sick twist, decompose before her own eyes, and there's nothing she can do about it.

• George R.R. Martin was already a successful author when he began to write "A Song of Ice and Fire" in 1991

• He has been writing stories since childhood

• Before his writing career took off, Martin was a chess tournament director and a journalism professor

In the summer of 1991, a startling scene popped into George R.R Martin's mind.

A boy watched a man get beheaded, and then found some dire wolf pups in the snow.

"It just came to me so strongly and vividly that I knew I had to write it," he told Rolling Stone.

So Martin began to write "Game of Thrones," the first installment in the series that would become "A Song of Ice and Fire." The book was published in 1996 and sales were "solid," according to the Guardian.

However, Martin's idea would ultimately snowball into a huge success. As of 2016, the Guardian reported that the books have sold 70 million copies. The series also launched HBO's smash hit "Game of Thrones" in 2011.

According to Forbes, Martin is now worth $15 million. But how exactly did this New Jersey native come to be one of the most talked about authors in the US?

Here's a look at the life of the man who Time once dubbed the "American Tolkien":

SEE ALSO: An inside look at how J.K. Rowling, one of the most influential people alive, turned rejection into unprecedented success

Martin was born September 20, 1948 in Bayonne, New Jersey, to longshoreman Raymond Collins Martin and his wife Margaret Brady Martin.

Source: GeorgeRRMartin.com

The "R.R." portion of his artistic name dates back to his upbringing. The first "R." stands for Raymond, his father's name and Martin's middle name. The second stands for Richard, his Confirmation name.

Source: Adria's News

Martin caught the writing bug at a young age. According to his official website, as a kid he started "selling monster stories to other neighborhood children for pennies, dramatic readings included."

Source: GeorgeRRMartin.com

In promotion of its new weed-centric show "Disjointed," Netflix teamed up with a California dispensary over the weekend to release a series of marijuana strains named after ten of its shows, Variety reported.

The varieties of weed, known as strains, were sold exclusively out of a pop-up shop inside a West Hollywood medical marijuana dispensary. Three of the strain names were inspired by the Netflix premiere of "Disjointed," which coincided with the pop-up shop's opening on Friday.

Other strains included a "Banana Stand Kush," named for the show "Arrested Development," and a "Camp Firewood" strain for "Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later."

Marijuana comes in two distinct species — sativa and indica— and they're thought to have different effects on the mind and body. Sativa strains produce a rush of energy that leaves people feeling energized and uplifted, according to strain-review site Leafly. Indica strains, on the other hand, help you wind down into a relaxed, sedated state. However, the characteristics of each are hugely speculative and based on user-reported experiences.

At any rate, the marijuana strains from Netflix aim to produce different effects.

"Each strain was cultivated with the specific shows in mind, designed to complement each title based on their tone," Netflix said in a release. "For example, sillier shows may be more indica dominant, while dramedies will be more sativa dominant to help the more powerful scenes resonate."

The company also explained that it would not be profiting off of the dispensary's sales, as the move was intended solely for promotional purposes. 

Watch the trailer for "Disjointed" below:

SEE ALSO: 33 documentaries on Netflix right now that will make you smarter

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 5 things the iPhone still can't do

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, announced the birth of their second daughter on Monday.

The couple revealed the girl's name — August — but didn't disclose any other details about her, such as what day she was born.

Zuckerberg recently said that he would take two months of paternity leave after his second child's birth — Facebook offers four months of maternity and paternity leave to all employees. He'll take the first month immediately and then he'll go on leave again for the entire month of December.

Zuckerberg and Chan's first daughter, Max, was born in 2015. The couple unveiled their philanthropic fund, The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, on the same day they announced Max's birth. The fund, which is backed by Zuckerberg's Facebook fortune, hopes to cure the world's diseases by the end of this century.

Here's the letter Zuckerberg and Chan wrote to August, which Zuckerberg shared Monday on his Facebook page:

Dear August,

Welcome to the world! Your mom and I are so excited to see who you will become.

When your sister was born, we wrote a letter about the world we hoped she and now you will grow up in — a world with better education, fewer diseases, stronger communities, and greater equality. We wrote that with all the advances in science and technology, your generation should live dramatically better lives than ours, and we have a responsibility to do our part to make that happen. Even though headlines often focus on what's wrong, we still believe these positive trends will win out. We're optimists about your generation and the future.

But rather than write about growing up, we want to talk about childhood. The world can be a serious place. That's why it's important to make time to go outside and play.

You will be busy when you're older, so I hope you take time to smell all the flowers and put all the leaves you want in your bucket now. I hope you read your favorite Dr. Seuss books so many times you start inventing your own stories about the Vipper of Vipp. I hope you ride the carousel with Max until you've tamed every color horse. I hope you run as many laps around our living room and yard as you want. And then I hope you take a lot of naps. I hope you're a great sleeper. And I hope even in your dreams you can feel how much we love you.

Childhood is magical. You only get to be a child once, so don't spend it worrying too much about the future. You've got us for that, and we'll do everything we possibly can to make sure the world is a better place for you and all children in your generation.

August, we love you so much and we're so excited to go on this adventure with you. We wish you a life of joy, love and the same hope you give us.

Love,

Mom and Dad

SEE ALSO: Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan will invest $3 billion into curing all diseases by the end of this century

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The fabulous life and career of 33-year-old Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the fifth richest person on earth

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What is eSports? History & Rise of Video Game Tournaments

Years ago, eSports was a community of video gamers who would gather at conventions to play Counter Strike, Call of Duty, or League of Legends.

These multiplayer video game competitions would determine League of Legends champions, the greatest shooters in Call of Duty, the cream of the crop of Street Fighter players, the elite Dota 2 competitors, and more.

But today, as the history of eSports continue to unfold, media giants such as ESPN and Turner are broadcasting eSports tournaments and competitions. And in 2014, Amazon acquired Twitch, the live streaming video platform that has been and continues to be the leader in online gaming broadcasts. And YouTube also wanted to jump on the live streaming gaming community with the creation of YouTube Gaming.

eSports Market Growth Booming

To put in perspective how big eSports is becoming, a Google search for "lol" does not produce "laughing out loud" as the top result. Instead, it points to League of Legends, one of the most popular competitive games in existence. The game has spawned a worldwide community called the League of Legends Championship Series, more commonly known as LCS or LOL eSports.

What started as friends gathering in each other's homes to host LAN parties and play into the night has become an official network of pro gaming tournaments and leagues with legitimate teams, some of which are even sponsored and have international reach. Organizations such as Denial, AHQ, and MLG have multiple eSports leagues.

And to really understand the scope of all this, consider that the prize pool for the latest Dota 2 tournament was more than $20 million.

Websites even exist for eSports live scores to let people track the competitions in real time if they are unable to watch. There are even fantasy eSports leagues similar to fantasy football, along with the large and growing scene of eSports betting and gambling.

So it's understandable why traditional media companies would want to capitalize on this growing trend just before it floods into the mainstream. Approximately 300 million people worldwide tune in to eSports today, and that number is growing rapidly. By 2020, that number will be closer to 500 million.

eSports Industry Analysis - The Future of the Competitive Gaming Market

Financial institutions are starting to take notice. Goldman Sachs valued eSports at $500 million in 2016 and expects the market will grow at 22% annually compounded over the next three years into a more than $1 billion opportunity.

And industry statistics are already backing this valuation and demonstrating the potential for massive earnings. To illustrate the market value, market growth, and potential earnings for eSports, consider Swedish media company Modern Times Group's $87 million acquisition of Turtle Entertainment, the holding company for ESL. YouTube has made its biggest eSports investment to date by signing a multiyear broadcasting deal with Faceit to stream the latter's Esports Championship Series. And the NBA will launch its own eSports league in 2018.

Of course, as with any growing phenomenon, the question becomes: How do advertisers capitalize? This is especially tricky for eSports because of its audience demographics, which is young, passionate, male-dominated, and digital-first. They live online and on social media, are avid ad-blockers, and don't watch traditional TV or respond to conventional advertising.

So what will the future of eSports look like? How high can it climb? Could it reach the mainstream popularity of baseball or football? How will advertisers be able to reach an audience that does its best to shield itself from advertising?

Robert Elder, research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled an unparalleled report on the eSports ecosystem that dissects the growing market for competitive gaming. This comprehensive, industry-defining report contains more than 30 charts and figures that forecast audience growth, average revenue per user, and revenue growth.

Companies and organizations mentioned in the report include: NFL, NBA, English Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, NHL, Paris Saint-Germain, Ligue 1, Ligue de Football, Twitch, Amazon, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, ESPN, Electronic Arts, EA Sports, Valve, Riot Games, Activision Blizzard, ESL, Turtle Entertainment, Dreamhack, Modern Times Group, Turner Broadcasting, TBS Network, Vivendi, Canal Plus, Dailymotion, Disney, BAMTech, Intel, Coca Cola, Red Bull, HTC, Mikonet

Here are some eSports industry facts and statistics from the report:

• eSports is a still nascent industry filled with commercial opportunity.
• There are a variety of revenue streams that companies can tap into.
• The market is presently undervalued and has significant room to grow.
• The dynamism of this market distinguishes it from traditional sports.
• The audience is high-value and global, and its numbers are rising.
• Brands can prosper in eSports by following the appropriate game plan.
• Game publishers approach their Esport ecosystems in different ways.  
• Successful esport games are comprised of the same basic ingredients.
• Digital streaming platforms are spearheading the popularity of eSports.
• Legacy media are investing into eSports, and seeing encouraging results.
• Traditional sports franchises have a clear opportunity to seize in eSports.
• Virtual and augmented reality firms also stand to benefit from eSports.  

In full, the report illuminates the business of eSports from four angles:

• The gaming nucleus of eSports, including an overview of popular esport genres and games; the influence of game publishers, and the spectrum of strategies they adopt toward their respective esport scenes; the role of eSports event producers and the tournaments they operate.
• The eSports audience profile, its size, global reach, and demographic, psychographic, and behavioral attributes; the underlying factors driving its growth; why they are an attractive target for brands and broadcasters; and the significant audience and commercial crossover with traditional sports.
• eSports media broadcasters, including digital avant-garde like Twitch and YouTube, newer digital entrants like Facebook and traditional media outlets like Turner’s TBS Network, ESPN, and Canal Plus; their strategies and successes in this space; and the virtual reality opportunity.
• eSports market economics, with a market sizing, growth forecasts, and regional analyses; an evaluation of the eSports spectacle and its revenue generators, some of which are idiosyncratic to this industry; strategic planning for brand marketers, with case studies; and an exploration of the infinite dynamism and immense potential of the eSports economy.

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NOW WATCH: 8 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 4 of 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: "Game of Thrones" spoilers ahead.

• HBO's "Game of Thrones" wrapped up Sunday night with an intense finale.

• The show's numerous characters all attempted to out-maneuver one another, as usual.

• Several standout leaders made important choices as the army of the dead broke through the Wall.

Winter has truly come to Westeros, with snowflakes falling as far south as King's Landing.

And, with the Wall destroyed and the army of the dead on the march, the continent could surely use some good leadership at the moment.

A few weeks ago, we ranked the "Game of Thrones" characters based on their leadership abilities. So here's an update, based on all that happened in season seven.

A few notes: This list counts only characters who are still alive on the show, not in the books. So keep in mind that a bunch of people have died recently.

Also, this list takes into consideration only people who could be counted as "leaders." Some characters who aren't currently in leadership roles are not included, like Arya Stark, Jaime Lannister, Jorah Mormont, or Sandor Clegane. The same goes for anyone who is basically out of commission at this point.

Lastly, this ranking looks into characters' track records but heavily favors things that happened this season. This list examines leadership ability, not overall power, importance, or title.

Here are the leaders of "Game of Thrones" that survived season seven, ranked from worst to best:

SEE ALSO: We ranked the remaining 'Game of Thrones' leaders by their abilities — here's how they're doing this week

Honorable mention: The Night King

It's not really fair to count the Night King as a "leader." He's the supreme ruler of an army of humanoid ice creatures and dead things. It's not as if he has to apply any leadership skills when it comes to directing his minions. The White Walkers and wights aren't in much of a position to mutiny or even question his will.

That being said, the Night King has had a productive season. And now that's he's converted poor Viserion into an ice dragon, shattered the Wall, and sent his dreaded forces marching southward, his grand plans seem to be snowballing.

9. Euron Greyjoy

Euron was definitely the least valuable member of the epic meeting between Cersei's retinue and Daenerys' squad.

First, the obnoxious pirate interrupted Tyrion by threatening Yara's life and demanding that Theon submit to him. Because the get together was definitely all about sorting out Greyjoy family drama, right?

Next, he strolled around and harassed Tyrion before Cersei ordered him to take a seat.

And then, once the cat was out of the bag — or, rather, the wight was out of the crate — Euron seemed to peace out, admitting to everyone that he was terrified of the snarling, decaying zombie.

Of course, it later turned out that Greyjoy's exit was merely a ploy, and that he was still eager to woo and wed Cersei. Still, his rudeness, ineffective bluster, and general sleaziness illustrate why Euron's leadership abilities are eye-roll-inducing when it comes to scenarios that don't involve fiery, nautical sneak attacks.

8. Yohn Royce

Yohn Royce hasn't been in the spotlight at all this season, but he is one of House Arryn's most powerful bannermen and a skilled military commander to boot.

In the season finale, Royce had one strong moment as a leader. During the trial of Littlefinger, Royce asserted that the forces of the Vale would not assist him, despite the fact that he was the Lord Protector of the Vale. Of course, Littlefinger was completely outgunned in that situation, but it was still a good call. 

Warning: Spoilers for "Game of Thrones" season seven episode seven, "The Dragon and the Wolf."

This week's episode of "Game of Thrones" set up a gloomy, zombie-ridden future for our heroes in Westeros. The Night King has officially arrived in Westeros, but Cersei privately refuses to join the fight while publicly stating she intends to.

After a show-and-tell starring a wight in King's Landing, a lot of character storylines move forward. The Stark children stage an epic betrayal of the man responsible for instigating everything that started the war that killed their family members. Jaime finally turns on Cersei, and the Night King takes down the wall with a newly resurrected Viserion.

But with the ice settled, we still have some burning questions that will keep us awake at night until season eight.

Here are all the biggest questions we have after this week's season finale of "Game of Thrones":

SEE ALSO: All the biggest moments from the explosive 'Game of Thrones' season 7 finale

When did the Stark children's plan to betraying Littlefinger begin?

Exactly how thoroughly did Littlefinger get played? Was this planned the whole time or only after Littlefinger pitted Sansa and Arya against each other? When did Bran tell his sisters what he knew?

The pivotal moment for Sansa and Arya could've been in "Beyond the Wall," when Arya hands the dagger to Sansa. Or they could've been playing Littlefinger the whole time, fabricating their tension so he wouldn't suspect a thing until it was too late. Our guess is the latter.

Even though Bran is strange now, he is definitely still loyal to his family, which makes us think that the Stark children had this thing planned the whole time. There's no way Bran withheld all he knew about Littlefinger until he noticed his sisters were maybe going to murder each other.

Will Jon Snow (Aegon Targaryen) accept the Targaryen tradition of incest and continue his relationship with Daenerys? Or will he end it immediately?

The scene with Jon and Theon in the Dragonstone throne room solidifies Jon's status as a Stark, no matter who his father is. Even if Stark blood doesn't truly flow through his veins (again, Jon doesn't know this yet), Jon explains to Theon that Ned Stark will always be their father.

Jon will probably be a bit traumatized when he learns his affair with Dany was technically incest, and he could choose to abandon the relationship. Incest is frowned upon in the North, and we're betting he won't abandon his morals because of his newly found identity. He is Jon Snow and he is moral to a fault, just like Ned.

Will Jon accept his true status and compete with Daenerys for the Iron Throne?

Jon admits this often: He does not want to rule. He does it because he has to. It's his obligation, like being a brother of the Night's Watch, to protect his people. He has bent the knee to Queen Daenerys.

But what will he do when he finds out he has a better claim to the throne than she does? Will he compete with her, or let her take it in his place, so he can stay in the North?

A number of Showtime customers displeased with the quality of the network's streaming presentation of the Saturday boxing match between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor have filed a class-action lawsuit against the cable provider, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The complaint was filed in Oregon by a group of consumers who paid $99.99 to watch the fight live through Showtime's iTunes app, but who were unable to view it in the advertised quality of "HD at 1080p resolution and at 60 frames per second, and who experienced ongoing grainy video, error screens, buffer events, and stalls instead," according to the complaint.

"Instead of being upfront with consumers about its new, untested, underpowered service, defendant caused likelihood of confusion and misunderstanding as to the source and quality of the HD video consumers would see on fight night," the suit's attorney, Michael Fuller, wrote in the complaint filed Saturday. "Defendant intentionally misrepresented the quality and grade of video consumers would see using its app, and knowingly failed to disclose that its system was defective with respect to the amount of bandwidth available."

The class-action suit against Showtime is seeking "for each member of the class actual damages or $200 in statutory damages, whichever is greater," according to THR. 

The streaming issues were not exclusive to Showtime's app, however. The title-card fight itself was reportedly delayed due to fans overloading the servers on UFC Fight Pass, though Twitter users posted about issues with both services.

Showtime released the following statement on Monday following complaints of streaming issues:

"We received a very limited number of complaints, and we're reviewing them all carefully, and we will respond accordingly. Refunds are handled at the point of sale, so of course anyone who bought directly from Showtime, via our online distribution or our app, and could not see the fight because of an issue with that distribution, we will issue a full refund."

SEE ALSO: Mayweather beat McGregor with a TKO in the 10th round! Here are the big moments everybody will be talking about

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NOW WATCH: 8 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 4 of 'Game of Thrones'

While we wait for the Obi-Wan Kenobi standalone movie, let’s celebrate his recent appearance on the small screen.

One of the highlights from season 3 of “Star Wars Rebels” was the “Twin Suns” episode. This self-contained story within the season focuses on Ezra’s journey to Tatooine to track down Ben Kenobi, the reclusive Jedi Master (in the time “Rebels” takes place, he’s no longer called Obi-Wan). But we soon learn Ezra has actually been lured to the desert planet by Darth Maul, who wants a final battle with Kenobi (yes, it turns out Maul did survive after being cut in half by Kenobi in “The Phantom Menace.” More on that here.). 

The episode concludes with a thrilling (albeit, brief) final duel between Kenobi and Maul after the Sith Lord senses that Kenobi is doing more than just hiding from the Empire on Tatooine: he’s watching over someone (that being then-child Luke Skywalker).

But a big highlight is hearing that sweet Alec Guinness voice in the episode.

Guinness, the English actor who originated the character in “Star Wars: A New Hope,” died in 2000, but his legacy has continued on and now entertains new generations of “Star Wars” fans through video games and cartoon series. And the man who has done much of the Guinness voice matching for those performances is Stephen Stanton.

The veteran voice actor is no stranger to “Star Wars.” Along with voicing “Star Wars Rebels” character AP-5 and Admiral Raddus in “Rogue One,” he also voices another legendary character from the saga, Grand Moff Tarkin (voice matching the late Peter Cushing), on “Rebels” and “Star Wars: The Clone Wars.”

But his Guinness as Kenobi voice work is what got him his start doing “Star Wars” gigs.

Having always toyed with the Guinness voice since seeing “Star Wars” as a kid, he got a shot to prove his talents in 2004 when he auditioned to voice Kenobi for the video game, “Star Wars: Battlefront II.” He got the job and has since been the go-to guy when Lucasfilm needs to feature Kenobi in one of its projects.

However, unlike the past, where he usually gets a call to brush off his Guinness voice and get to the recording booth, for “Twin Suns” the job came up a bit randomly.

Stanton and the rest of the “Star Wars Rebels” cast were finishing up a recording session in May of last year (it was for the “Double Agent Droid” episode, where his character AP-5 sings at the end) when he and one of the series’ creators Dave Filoni began talking about a recent “Star Wars” video game and Stanton happened to mentioned that he recorded Kenobi for that game.

“Dave said, ‘Oh, that’s right, you do Ben Kenobi,’” Stanton recalled to Business Insider. “He said, ‘Give me a little Ben Kenobi right now.’ So I was in the room with my castmates and my mind went blank, I could not think of a single line. And then I think it was Vanessa Marshall (who voices Hera Syndulla on the show) that said, ‘Do that 'scum and villainy' line.'”

Stanton went into the recording booth and did it a few times and waited as Filoni and a few others on the other side of the glass talked. Because Stanton was in the booth, he couldn’t hear what they were saying.

The session ended and, as Stanton was walking out, Filoni grabbed him.

“He said, ‘Look, we’ve got this idea, it’s kind of an experiment right now, we’re thinking of doing an episode where we wrap up this confrontation Kenobi has with Darth Maul,’” Stanton said. “But it’s very temporary, we might have you come in and do a temp track.”

Time passed and Stanton got a call from Filoni to come in and do some lines as Kenobi for what would become the “Twin Suns” episode. Soon after, Stanton got word that the episode was a go, and he went back and did a day’s work recording all of the Kenobi dialogue for the episode alongside Taylor Gray, who voices Ezra on the show, and Sam Witwer as Darth Maul. Stanton also went in three other times to record rewrites that were done — in one case only two words in a sentence of Kenobi’s dialogue was changed. But Stanton said that's how much attention went into bringing Kenobi back.

“They took a lot of care in the character and made sure they got exactly what they wanted,” Stanton said of how Lucasfilm worked.

And Stanton has his own meticulous process to pull off recreating the voices of legends — whether it be Guinness, Cushing, or the late film critic Roger Ebert, which he voiced in the 2014 documentary, “Life Itself.”

Stanton has compiled hours of audio and video reference files on people he voice matches. For Cushing, he even has a hard-to-find book-on-tape the actor did in the 1980s of his own autobiography. And to master Guinness, he likes to go back and watch the TV interviews he did to promote “A New Hope.”

This is partly to get the voice down, but Stanton uses the material to try to channel the person so he can understand how they might approach the scene he's voicing.

“I take it very seriously,” Stanton said. “You’re not only honoring the person, you’re honoring their performance, their creation. It’s fun, but it can be stressful at times. You’re really trying to understand how they built that character in the first place and hopefully you can do a good job bringing it to life.”

The biggest satisfaction for Stanton doing the “Twin Suns” episode was seeing the glowing reaction by the fans. Being a “Star Wars” fan himself, he didn’t want to let them down.

“When you’re doing an original character it’s always exciting, but when you're getting into those iconic characters where everybody already has an image in their mind, they have their own expectations about the character, you don't want to disappoint them,” Stanton said. “I’m glad the fans accepted it. When you get the call from Lucasfilm and they say people here are asking if we put in outtakes from the original film for the Kenobi dialogue, it puts you at ease.”

Watch the final battle between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Maul from the “Twin Suns” episode below:

The complete third season of “Star Wars Rebels” is available on Blu-ray/DVD August 29.

SEE ALSO: The 35 worst movies of all time, according to critics

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NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 6 of 'Game of Thrones'