Roughly 99.9 percent of the reason you use cologne is to impress women, so why rely on your nose alone? We asked three smart (and funny!) women to smell six new colognes and separate the good from the bad.

The panel, from left to right, is fashion director Caroline Issa of London's Tank magazine, Victoria's Secret model Shanina Shaik, and comedian Nikki Glaser. Here's what they thought about these scents compared to GQ staff.

Lacoste L!VE

WHAT WE THINK: Lime with a bit of woodsy smoke. Sounds like a great gin drink, actually.
WHAT WOMEN THINK: Lacoste was a lady-killer. "I'd follow a man wearing this," said Issa. Shaik saw "a guy in a Hugo Boss suit," and Glaser said, "It smells like a guy who trims his ball hair." (Hint: That's a good thing.)

$69, 3.3 oz., available at lacoste.com

Pharrell Williams Girl By Comme Des Garcons

WHAT WE THINK: Don't worry—this floral, cedary smell is for boys, too. (We swear.)
WHAT WOMEN THINK: This one scored a 1 out of 3. It reminded Glaser of "the lobby bathroom in an expensive hotel." Issa, however, found it "light and insubstantial." Shaik was more to the point: "No bueno."

$135, 3.3 oz., available at doverstreetmarket.com

Masculin Pluriel By Maison Francis Kurkdjian

WHAT WE THINK: We can't pronounce it, but we know a spicy, manly scent when we smell it.
WHAT WOMEN THINK: "This is for a pretentious dad," said Glaser. The other two gals were all for going Continental. It reminded Shaik of "summer on a rooftop," while Issa pictured "a Frenchman who takes care of himself."

$185, 2.4 oz., available at neimanmarcus.com

RELATED: 5 New Rules of Fall Layering

Michael Kors For Men

WHAT WE THINK: If you look up "cologne" in the dictionary, it sprays you with Kors's newest men's scent, a bergamot-and-musk blend.
WHAT WOMEN THINK: Issa caught a sweet undertone she dubbed a "subtle Popsicle scent," while Shaik whiffed manliness, saying, "It's like an aftershave on a guy from the 1960s." And Glaser? "It smells like an expensive baby."

$78, 4 oz., available at michaelkors.com

Luna Rossa Extreme By Prada

WHAT WE THINK: A classic sweet-spicy mix with a few twists: bergamot (as in Earl Grey tea), juniper (as in gin), leather (as in leather).
WHAT WOMEN THINK: "Smells like a tropical air freshener," said Glaser. Issa dug its dirtier qualities—"Like a guy who rolled around in the earth"—and Shaik got a whiff of Florida, saying, "It's like a sexy man on Miami Beach."

$86, 3.4 oz. available at macys.com

Invictus By Paco Rabanne

WHAT WE THINK: A patchouli-and-grapefruit blend sounds like Stevie Nicks's lunch. Here, it makes for a sporty, lightweight scent.
WHAT WOMEN THINK: The sweetness got to Issa, who said, "It smells like cotton candy and little girls." Glaser found it homey, saying, "It smells like fresh sheets," and Shaik found her number one: "Definitely my favorite."

$82, 3.4 oz. available at macys.com

More From GQ:

9 Things Every Man Should Have in His Pockets

The Focused Man's Guide to the Gym

The Ultimate Guide to a Perfect Fitting Suit

Eat Healthy All Week for Just $6

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While Major League Baseball has expanded its replay system in an effort to reduce incorrect calls made by umpires, the strike zone remains the most frustrating aspect of a baseball game and new research shows why.

According to rule 2.00 of the Major League Baseball rule book, a strike zone is defined as "that area over home plate the upper limit of which is a horizontal line at the midpoint between the top of the shoulders and the top of the uniform pants, and the lower level is a line at the hollow beneath the kneecap" and is determined by "the batter's stance as the batter is prepared to swing at a pitched ball."

Here is the diagram that accompanies the definition:

However, what umpires actually judge to be the strike zone is different even though they are getting better.

In a research paper examining the performance of Major League Baseball umpires, Brian M. Mills of the University of Florida shows what pitches are actually called strikes.

The diagrams below, reproduced with the permission of the author, show the strike zone from the umpires point of view. Balls thrown inside the green line were called a strike more than 50% of the time and what we see is something that looks much more like a square strike zone (or even a circle) and less like the rectangle portrayed above.

As shown by Mills, the strike zone has evolved since 2007, the year when Major League Baseball began using Pitch f/x technology to monitor the speed, movement, and location of pitches. The actual strike zone has become a little more narrow and umpires are more likely to call strikes lower in the zone.

But there are still problems.

The biggest issue is that umpires have a different strike zone for left-handed and right-handed batters. The data shows that right-handed batters are more likely to have an inside pitch called a strike and left-handed batters are more likely to have an outside pitch called a strike.

Players and managers always say that the most important criteria for an umpire calling balls and strikes is consistency. However, this data shows that even though umpires now have a strike zone that is starting to look more like the rule book there are still inconsistencies in how it is called.

Even with the expansion of the replay system, it is still hard to imagine a time when something other than umpires are calling balls and strikes. But as we get better at seeing how often the umpires are wrong, something will eventually need to be changed.

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Apple just released its new mobile operating system for iPhones and iPads, iOS 8.

There's a lot of big new features like app extensions and third-party keyboards, but there's plenty of hidden features that you probably haven't heard about.

Luckily, MacRumors reporter Bill Savage has created a nifty video showcasing a few of the lesser-known iOS 8 nuggets, and we've included them below.

1. Credit card scanning from within Safari:

When you're buying something online in Safari, iOS 8 will let you hold your credit card in front of the iPhone's camera. It will then lift the numbers and paste them into the correct field, making checkouts a breeze.

2. Quickly access your favorite Contacts by double-tapping the home button.

3. In the Weather app, swipe all the way to the bottom for a 9-day weather forcast, sunrise, sunset, and UV index.

4. To hide a photo, just hold down and tap "Hide": The photo will be hidden from Moments, Collections, and Years, but it'll still be visible in a "Hidden" folder in Albums.

5. Turn your iPhone screen from color to black and white: Just got to Settings > General > Accessibility and toggle on "Grayscale."

 6. Visualize what Apple's dictation hears: In iOS 7, you used to have to wait until you were done speaking to see what dictation had picked up. Now, you can see what it hears as you speak.

Looking to download iOS 8 for yourself? You can learn more about downloading the software here, or you can watch MacRumors' entire video below.

SEE ALSO: Apple's Design Guru Jony Ive Now Owns Steve Jobs' Private Jet

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A Scottish vote to leave the United Kingdom on Thursday could ultimately lead to the end of the country's nuclear arsenal, which consists of 225 warheads.

The UK's nuclear deterrent is currently housed in western Scotland — and if the newly independent Scots decide to banish the UK's major nuclear base London could decide that the weapons are simply too expensive and impractical to retain.

Britain was the third country in the world to develop a nuclear capability. In the 61 years since its first nuclear test, the United Kingdom has lost almost all of its once-sprawling empire, which included places like Sudan, Belize, and Malaysia the day the UK detonated its first nuclear bomb in 1953.

Back then the UK saw itself as a superpower that needed nukes, partly as a matter of national prestige. "We have got to have this thing over here whatever it costs," Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin said in October of 1946. "We have got to have [a] bloody Union Jack on top of it."

Nukes also represented an important line of defense for a country that had just staved off an attempted German invasion of the island during World War II and suffered sustained bombing of several of its major cities.

But that logic makes far less sense in contemporary times, when Britain seems at far less risk of an existential threat, and what threats there are seem to come from amorphous (i.e., hard to nuke) groups like ISIS.

Britain's arsenal, which is fully integrated into NATO's European nuclear infrastructure, currently hinges on a single nuclear-armed submarine plying the waters off of the Scotland's western coast (Britain has four nuclear attack subs, but only one is actively deployed at a given time). Even this minimal form of nuclear deterrence, however, comes with major back-end costs that Scotish independence would greatly magnify.

According to a report by the Royal United Services Institute, estimates of the cost of moving the UK's nukes out of Scotland "have ranged from the low-billions up to 50 billion [pounds]." The UK would have to build new munitions facilities, along with an "entirely new ship lift ... utility supply buildings, licensed berths, support areas  and earthworks" at a hypothetical replacement base that it would have to constructed more or less from scratch.

And this is on top of the estimated 18 billion pounds needed to replace the existing submarine fleet some time in the next decade or so.

Relocating the nukes wouldn't just be costly but politically problematic as well. There's talk of moving some of the nukes to the U.S. or to NATO bases elsewhere in Europe, but at that point it becomes even harder to justify keeping them under Britain's charge.

The nukes could be moved somewhere within England, but the RUSI report estimates that that could take well over a decade, turning the arsenal into a long-term sticking point between the UK and a newly independent Scotland and possibly a major domestic political issue within a diminished UK as well.

"There may well be a certain financial threshold above which the benefits of retaining nuclear weapons in the event of Scottish independence are felt to be outweighed by their growing costs," the RUSI report states. "However, there is no a priori means of determining where that threshold might lie."

In other words, a "yes" vote on Thursday might force the UK to reconsider whether it even wants or needs nuclear weapons at all — on top of the other fundamental long and short-term issues Scotish independence would force the remaining members of the Union to confront. 

SEE ALSO: Here's where we think the world's nukes are stored — and what it says about global security

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According to a new WalletHub survey, Washington State has the least fair tax system in the country.

After Washington, Americans think the following states have the most unfair tax systems:

• Hawaii
• Arkansas
• Illinois
• Florida
• Indiana
• Mississippi 
• Arizona
• Texas
• Tennessee
• Georgia

The survey also found that over 80% of Americans consider the US tax code "complex" or "extremely complex."

Out of over 1,000 survey respondents, 44% thought the "fairest possible tax code" would have fewer deductions than the current one, and about 65% of respondents think corporations should be taxed at higher rates than consumers.

WalletHub used data from the survey to compile a ranking of the 50 states from most to least fair. The site defined "fair" by comparing the average amount of taxes that respondents thought should be paid by individuals at different income levels with data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. They explain their methodology in detail on the website.

Washington, for instance, is one of the only states that doesn't collect personal income taxes, which sounds fantastic, until you realize that they don't collect corporate income taxes, either. This clashes with WalletHub survey respondents' belief that corporations should pay more in taxes, likely weighting the state's calculation toward the more unfair end of the spectrum.

Washington also earns a place on WalletHub's list of 10 states where the bottom 20% of earners are most overtaxed, and where the top 1% are most undertaxed.

If you want to know more about how other states' taxes work, Bankrate has a cool tool.

Mouse over the graphic below to see each state's ranking in the complete list. The lower the number, the fairer the state's taxes.

SEE ALSO: Here's The Salary You Have To Earn To Buy A Home In These 13 Major US Cities

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Paris (AFP) - France on Wednesday prepared to receive its first Ebola patient, as the World Bank warned the spiralling epidemic is threatening economic catastrophe in west Africa.

Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, said a female volunteer had contracted the killer virus while on assignment in Liberia.

France's health ministry said she "will be repatriated to France in conditions of maximum security in a dedicated air ambulance," without giving further details.

The Ebola outbreak in west Africa is the worst in history, with more than 2,400 people already dead and quickening infection rates threatening to spiral out of control.

The World Bank on Wednesday warned that fear of the deadly virus is choking off economic activity in the worst-hit countries, with potentially "catastrophic" results.

MSF has played a major role in combatting the epidemic, with more than 2,000 staff members in the region including some 200 international workers.

But health bodies have warned that medical facilities are already so overwhelmed by new cases that they are having to turn people away to die on the streets.

The United Nations Security Council is to hold an emergency session on Thursday to discuss ramping up the global aid response to the crisis.

US President Barack Obama on Tuesday pledged to send 3,000 military personnel to west Africa to combat the epidemic, "the likes that we have not seen before".

"It's spiralling out of control. It is getting worse. It's spreading faster and exponentially," he said. 

President Obama's announcement "is a significant moment in the battle against Ebola," Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said in a statement.

"Our American partners realise Liberia cannot defeat Ebola alone," said Sirleaf, whose country has registered more than half of the reported deaths from the disease.

"We hope this decision by the United States will spur the rest of the international community into action."

- 'Catastrophic blow' -

The current epidemic, the worst since Ebola was discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976, has killed more than half of those infected.

The virus can fell its victims within days, causing severe fever and muscle pain, weakness, vomiting and diarrhoea -- in some cases shutting down organs and causing unstoppable bleeding. 

No licenced vaccine or treatment exists, although experts have stepped up their research in response to the crisis. 

On Wednesday, a healthy British volunteer became the first to receive a new vaccine for the Ebola virus in a trial at the University of Oxford.

The volunteer is one of 60 who will receive the drug in tests that will run alongside similar trials in the US in the hope of producing a vaccine by the end of the year.

The vaccine specifically targets the Zaire variety of Ebola, which has killed 2,461 people out of 4,985 recorded cases in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Senegal since the start of the year, according to the World Health Organisation.

But on Wednesday, the World Bank warned that even the fear of the disease is strangling the economies of the worst-hit countries, keeping workers at home and placing a heavy burden on their strained health systems. 

If it spreads unchecked across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the bank predicted its impact could grow eight-fold, "dealing a potentially catastrophic blow to the already fragile states".

"The sooner we get an adequate containment response and decrease the level of fear and uncertainty, the faster we can blunt Ebola's economic impact," said  World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.

In the worst-case scenario, Liberia's economic growth could fall by 11.7 percentage points next year, plunging the country into recession with a 4.9 percent contraction.

In Sierra Leone, the worst-case impact could be 8.9 percentage points lost from growth in 2015, and in Guinea, 2.3 points.

Sierra Leone is preparing for a nationwide three-day lockdown in an attempt to curb the spread of the disease.

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Apple is readying supplies to sell 50 million Apple Watches in 2015, according to DigiTimes.

DigiTimes cites sources at LG Display, which makes displays for the Apple Watch.

There's plenty to suggest that 50 million units would be a heavy lift, even for a tech giant like Apple. As you can see here, Business Insider Intelligence projections for smartwatch sales next year are hover around 30 million units:

Cost is another factor that might impede Apple's smartwach sales. The Apple Watch starts at $349 and the most expensive model could cost $5,000.

The Apple Watch is expected to hit stores early next year.

SEE ALSO: Apple May Have Hired Jony Ive's Friend To Keep Him At The Company

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Human enterovirus 68, the rare respiratory virus that has sickened hundreds of children across the US, has now been detected in New York and New Jersey, NBC New York reports.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 140 cases in 16 states: Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

The illness caused by HEV68 is similar to a cold, but with worse symptoms that may include fever, runny nose, sneezing, cough, mouth blisters, body and muscle aches and rash. Some children who have fallen ill with the virus have had to be hospitalized. Those with asthma are at increased risk of suffering more severe symptoms. 

Most cases of HEV68 that had been reported previously this year were concentrated in middle America and the South, but the virus has now been detected on the East Coast. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed cases in New York City, Long Island, and New Jersey, according to NBC 4.

The CDC noted that "in the upcoming weeks, more states will have confirmed cases," but that this will be expected as clusters of unspecified respiratory illnesses are investigated. Such increases "will not necessarily reflect changes in real time, or mean that the situation is getting worse."

Earlier this month, hospitals in Kansas City and Illinois saw dozens of children turning up for treatment of the rare virus. Some were placed in intensive care.

There is no vaccine, but most of those infected are able to recover on their own. According to the CDC, "We're currently in middle of the enterovirus season, and [HEV68] infections are likely to decline later in the fall."

The virus spreads like the common cold, so to avoid being infected, wash hands frequently and avoid sharing cups and utensils with those who are sick.

SEE ALSO: A Mysterious Virus Is Infecting Children All Over The US

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Warren Buffett's eating habits are the stuff of legend. 

Buffett is a huge fan of Dairy Queen — owned by Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway — and reportedly ordered Dairy Queen and a Coke while dining at the Four Seasons in April. 

Buffett also loves Cherry Coke. 

And according to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, one of the most powerful men in banking has noticed. 

"Warren eats a full meal," Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf said. "When the food comes, Warren grabs a salt shaker in his left hand and one in his right, and it's a snowstorm."

Bloomberg's Dakin Campbell and Noah Buhayar report Stumpf said that in his first meal with Buffett, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman had a T-bone steak (medium rare), a side (!) of chicken parm, mashed potatoes, and a Cherry Coke. 

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is Wells Fargo's largest shareholder — and Wells Fargo is Berkshire's largest holding — owning just over 463 million shares, or about 8.8% of the bank.

Berkshire Hathaway's second-largest holding is Coca-Cola.

What's the saying again?

(via Bloomberg)

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Hampton Creek, the San Francisco-based startup that's creating a plant-based alternative to eggs, is in the middle of raising $50 million at a more than $300 million valuation, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing sources. 

Earlier this year, the company raised $23 million in a series B round. In all, the company has raised around $30 million.  

Hampton Creek makes mayo and cookie dough that are egg-free, and sells them directly to grocery stores, such as Whole Foods. The company says that its product is 48% cheaper than using chicken eggs. 

The company also announced that its most-recent big hire, Ali Partovi — who's also an investor — will be leaving the company. 

Sources told Re/code that Vy Capital is leading the latest round, but other investors are involved as well. 

Previous investors include Horizon Ventures, Khosla Ventures, and Founders Fund. 

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Right now galaxy NGC 1566 is giving us a spectacular light show and astronomers suspect it could be coming from a powerful event called a Type II supernova, which occurs when a high-mass star ends its life in a brilliant, explosive display of light.

And you can watch it live Thursday night, on a livestream from the Slooh Space Observatory website. They'll be broadcasting live from an observatory at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile starting at midnight Friday EDT (9pm Thursday PDT).

The stellar explosion was first spotted last week, by the All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASASSN). They've dubbed it supernova candidate ASASSN-14ha.

They can't say for sure what kind of explosion it is until they study it more. But it's definitely a bright stellar explosion — many are saying it's likely a Type II supernova. If the explosion is a Type II supernova, it's a pretty spectacular stellar event.

"Is is exactly as would be expected for a supernova in a galaxy nearly 40 million light years away," Slooh astronomer Bob Berman told Business Insider. The supernova candidate is about as bright as Pluto, he said.

Only stars with a mass between 8 to 50 times greater than our sun produce Type II supernovae. It happens at when the star grows old and runs out of fuel. That's bad news since the burning fuel provides the pressure that stops the star from collapsing due to gravity. No fuel, no support, implosion, and eventually, a catastrophic explosion from the pressure.

The supernova's host galaxy, NGC 1566, is about 38.4 million light years from the Milky Way, which as galactic distances go is relatively close but sadly not close enough to be seen even with a decent home telescope. Not only that, the supernova candidate is only visible from the Southern Hemisphere, in the constellation Dorado.

If you are located in the Northern Hemisphere (which includes the US and Europe), you can get a look at the stellar explosion on the Slooh livestream below starting at Midnight EDT on Sept 19 (which is colloquially called Thursday night).

The explosion was observed near the luminous central bulge of its host galaxy, which is unusual. Most Type II supernovae occur within the spiral arms of galaxies like NGC 1566, but ASASSN-14ha is "almost smack at the core" of the galaxy according to Berman.

"Type II supernovae are special in that they 'blow' without any prodding or influence from a companion star," Berman told Business Insider. "Such stars are always high-mass, and young, and such stars typically inhabit the spiral arms. So this one almost smack at the core is very special."

"This combination of extreme conditions and odd circumstances makes it a riveting and worthy event for Slooh's real-time monitoring," Berman said in a press release.

Type II supernovae like ASASSN-14ha are crucial for enriching the universe with heavy elements like oxygen and iron that cultivated the origins for life on Earth. But there are still aspects about them that astronomers have yet to understand.

"The last chapter has not been written in understanding them, [including] their variations from each other," Berman says.

Astronomers have observed more than 100 supernovae this year alone, so they are relatively common. According to the International Astronomical Union Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, this is the first supernova for September 2014.

Here's the livestream for tonight/tomorrow, starting at 12:00 AM EDT:

SEE ALSO: Researchers Just Found A New Type Of Supernova

READ MORE: New Supernova Is The Farthest Ever Found

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London (AFP) - Chelsea made a spluttering start to their Champions League campaign as Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's second-half equaliser earned Schalke a surprise 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.

Jose Mourinho's side had been in dominant mood in the early weeks of the season and they looked well in control of their Group G opener after an early strike from Spain midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

But Fabregas's first goal for Chelsea since his £27 million ($44 million) pre-season move from Barcelona was the prelude to a frustrating evening for the Blues, who wasted a string of chances to finish off Schalke and were made to pay when Huntelaar fired home to give the Germans the point their perseverance deserved.

The Premier League leaders will still expect to qualify from a group also including Sporting Lisbon and Maribor, but this was hardly the kind of ruthless performance required to go one step further than last season's semi-final appearance.

Fuelled by the predatory finishing of Spain striker Diego Costa, who has scored seven times in four matches since arriving from Atletico Madrid, Mourinho's men had reeled off four successive victories.

But despite Costa's impressive form, Mourinho opted to rest the Brazil-born star and handed Didier Drogba his first start since his return to the Bridge.

Drogba's last contribution for Chelsea in Europe was to score the decisive penalty in their dramatic win against Bayern Munich in the 2012 Champions League final.

But this turned out to be a night to forget for the Ivory Coast forward as he laboured for long periods and was unable to replicate Costa's menacing displays.

Chelsea defeated Schalke both home and away in the Champions League group stage last season and it wasn't long before Jens Keller's men were in trouble again as the Blues took the lead in controversial fashion in the 11th minute.

Stretching to win possession, Fabregas lunged in on Max Meyer, missing the ball and leaving the Schalke midfielder writhing in agony.

With furious Schalke appealing for the foul, Croatian referee Ivan Bebek instead waved play on and Fabregas sprinted to receive a clever back-flicked pass from Eden Hazard in the area before guiding a cool finish past Ralf Faehrmann.

- Made to pay -

Fabregas should have doubled Chelsea's lead before half-time when he lofted a pass to Branislav Ivanovic and surged onto the return ball, only to miscue his left-footed shot over the bar.

Schalke gradually came into the match and Ghana midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng lashed in a fierce long-range effort that brought a fine save from Thibaut Courtois.

The visitors came even closer to equalising on the stroke of half-time when Julian Draxler's impressive acceleration took him past Ivanovic and Gary Cahill and into the area where he drilled a low shot just past the far post with only Courtois to beat.

Ivanovic was denied by Faehrmann from an acute angle as the hosts pressed for the killer second goal after the interval.

There was more frustration for Chelsea when Drogba muscled his way into a dangerous position from Hazard's pass, but then clipped his shot wide.

And Schalke made Mourinho's side pay for their profligacy in the 62nd minute.

In a reversal of Chelsea's goal, Fabregas was dispossessed after a possible foul from Huntelaar, whose pass released Draxler to launch a rapid counter-attack that ended with Dutch striker Huntelaar planting a clinical low strike past Courtois to stun the Bridge into silence. 

Mourinho called for the cavalry, sending on Costa and Loic Remy for the final 18 minutes.

Remy went close to bagging the winner, but the France striker's shot was headed off the line by Roman Neustaedter.

That set the stage for a tense finale as Chelsea poured forward, but Hazard shot over and then saw his poked effort blocked by Faehrmann.

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Arizona Cardinals running back Jonathan Dwyer was arrested on suspicion of aggravated assault on Wednesday, the Arizona Republic reports.

The Phoenix radio station KTAR reports that Dwyer was pulled out of practice early. Further details of the arrests are unknown.

CBS Evening News confirmed the arrest was related to an alleged domestic violence incident:

Dwyer is a 25-year-old running back in his first season with the team. His arrest comes after Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended indefinitely for punching his wife and Adrian Peterson was given a paid suspension to face child abuse charges.

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The House of Representatives passed an amendment on Wednesday that will give President Barack Obama the authority to arm and train moderate elements of the Syrian opposition, a key part of the president's strategy for confronting the extremist group Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL).

In a twist from typical House votes, more Democrats than Republicans bucked Obama on the vote. The amendment gives Obama so-called "Title 10" authority under the U.S. code with respect to arming certain Syrian rebels.

"Today’s vote is another step closer to having the authorization to train and equip vetted elements of the moderate Syrian opposition so they can defend themselves against, and ultimately push back on, ISIL forces in Syria, while creating the conditions for the political solution necessary to solve Syria’s crisis once and for all," Obama said in a statement.

The final vote passed by a 273-156 margin. Here's the partisan breakdown: 

• Republicans: 159 yes, 71 no

• Democrats: 114 yes, 85 no

The House was subsequently passed legislation into which the amendment would be inserted — the continuing resolution to keep the government funded beyond Sept. 30. It avoids a shutdown and keeps the government funded through Dec. 11.

"By authorizing the Department of Defense to help train and equip the Syrian opposition, this measure represents an important, initial step forward in taking on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant," House Speaker John Boehner said. "ISIL represents a direct threat to the safety and security of the United States, and House Republicans are firmly committed to doing everything we can to help keep America safe."

The vote cemented an important part of Obama's strategy to "degrade and destroy" ISIS in Syria, since it involves partnering US airstrikes with allied forces on the ground. Obama emphasized Wednesday that no American troops would be dragged into a ground war in either Iraq or Syria in the fight against ISIS.

The vote on the measure followed two days of at-times intense debate on the House floor. Unusual factions of more liberal, dovish Democrats and isolationist-leaning Republicans opposed the amendment, while leadership in both parties urged their members to support it.

The entire spending bill will now move onto the Senate, where it is expected to pass. The White House hinted Wednesday that Obama would sign the bill if it reaches his desk.

"The administration appreciates the strong bipartisan effort that produced the amendment that provides authorities that are essential in equipping the administration with the tools necessary to provide a comprehensive and sustained counterterrorism strategy to address the growing threat from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant," the White House said in a statement of administration policy.

Updated at 6:35 p.m. ET with comment from the president.

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Paris (AFP) - Jerome Boateng's late goal and a second-half equaliser from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar on Wednesday completed a good week for German clubs against their counterparts from England in the opening round of Champions League group games.

Boateng's first ever goal in the competition was a memorable one as it sealed a 1-0 win for Bayern Munich against his former club Manchester City in Group E, the defender unleashing a fierce drive to at last beat Joe Hart as the teams met in the group stage for the third time in four seasons. 

Meanwhile, Huntelaar's strike allowed Schalke 04 to earn a deserved 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in Group G after Cesc Fabregas had been slightly fortunate to see his first goal for his club stand.

Bayern and Schalke's strong showings against English opposition followed on from Borussia Dortmund's dominant performance on Tuesday in beating Arsenal 2-0.

Elsewhere Bayern coach Pep Guardiola's former club Barcelona eked out a 1-0 home win over resilient Cypriot side APOEL Nicosia with Gerard Pique getting the only goal in a match probably better remembered for legendary midfielder Xavi Hernandez equalling compatriot Raul's Champions League all-time appearance record of 142.

The side likely to be their main rivals to top Group F, Paris Saint-Germain, dropped points with a 1-1 draw away at Ajax.

PSG wasted a host of chances when they were 1-0 up -- Edinson Cavani's 28th goal in his 50th appearance for the French champions giving them the lead -- and paid the price when Danish international Lasse Schoene levelled with a delightful free-kick.

Two other games ended in draws - Athletic Bilbao's first game at this stage in 16 years saw them hold Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk 0-0 in Group H.

Former Manchester United winger Nani got on the scoresheet for Sporting Lisbon but Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will have not seen anything to fear too much from his group rivals as Slovenian champions Maribor fought back to grab a 1-1 draw.

Both AS Roma and Porto bucked the trend of low scoring games by thrashing CSKA Moscow and Belarus outfit BATE Borisov 5-1 and 6-0 respectively, with the Portuguese side's Algerian winger Yacine Brahimi producing the scoring performance of the evening with a hat-trick.

The 24-year-old's second was the pick of them as he collected the ball on the halfway line and ran through to slot the ball home.

- Unbridled celebrations -

For Boateng the goal provoked unbridled celebrations in Munich as he wheeled away and ran to the dugout where an ecstatic Guardiola embraced him -- a contrast to when the German World Cup-winning defender was sent off in a group match between the two sides last season.

"We had so many chances to score, but we wasted all of them until the last minute," said Boateng.

"The ball came absolutely perfectly to me and I thought to myself, this one I will hit into the roof of the net, and that's what I did. It was pure joy for me, but it was hard work. We wanted to win this match and we did it."

For Mourinho, who had to start veteran Didier Drogba up front as leading scoer Diego Costa's hamstring problem prevents him playing three games in a week, said his players should have finished the game off.

"I'm frustrated because we had very good chances to make it 2-0 and after the 1-1 we had a fantastic reaction and had more chances to win the game," Mourinho said.

"Schalke fought hard and congratulations to them. It's a good point for them and a point for us, but not a fantastic point."

Schalke manager Jens Keller by contrast was ecstatic with his side's performance.

"I'm very proud of what we did against such a top team. Our plan went perfectly.

"It's possible they underestimated us, but my team produced a really good tactical performance."

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Chipotle is changing the fast food industry and taking market share from McDonald's. 

Analysts attributes Chipotle's meteoric success to its classic menu, speedy service, and ethical values.

Chipotle's popularity "point[s] to a longer-term trend of fast casual chains growing market share at a much faster pace" than fast food restaurants like McDonald's, Stephen Anderson, analyst at Miller Tabak, said in a note.

"It would be tough to bet against Chipotle becoming the next McDonald's or bigger," analyst Brian Nichols writes for The Motley Fool.

But Chipotle actually owes much of the credit to former parent company McDonald's. 

McDonald's took a stake in Chipotle when it had 14 locations based in Denver, Roben Farzad wrote in Businessweek last year.

By 2005, McDonald's had a 90% stake — and Chipotle had 460 locations. 

Without the deep investor pockets of McDonald's, Chipotle would not have been able to expand so rapidly.

Being associated with McDonald's also gave Chipotle more visibility in the business world than it would have had on its own.  

But McDonald's spun off Chipotle in 2006 to focus on burgers and fries. 

Since then, the burrito chain has gone public and tripled its number of locations. 

Chipotle posted a 9.3% sales gain in 2013. Meanwhile, McDonald's saw sales fall by 1.4%.

Chipotle founder Steve Ells has less-than-kind things to say about McDonald's.

In an interview with The Huffington Post's Joe Satran, Ells explained why Chipotle couldn't reach its full potential with McDonald's in the picture.

“Think about the systems at McDonald’s,” Ells said. “It’s a very mechanized world, where you take out a highly processed patty. This frozen puck. You put it on a grill. You put it on a machine. You push a button. It beeps when it’s done, right? How are you going to attract top performers to fill that function?”

SEE ALSO: How McDonald's Cheeseburgers Are Prepared

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Here is a photo from 1978 of Oracle's co-founders celebrating their company's first anniversary.

This was even before the company was named Oracle. At that time it was still called Software Development Laboratories (SDL).

The co-founders couldn't know that their company would one day become a multi-billion empire, the world's largest database maker, one of the world's largest enterprise software AND hardware vendors.

Here they are (left to right) Ed Oates, Bruce Scott, Bob Miner and yes, that tall guy on the far right is Larry Ellison.

Ed Oates, the project manager

Ed Oates retired from the company in 1996. "I had told Larry, when the company gets to 10,000 people, I'm out of there. I couldn't quit fast enough. I quit when the company had 20,000 people," he told attendees of a San Jose State University lecture he in 2011.

He then bought a high-end home theater store, called the Audible Difference which had clients like Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison. He sold it in 1999.

He is currently a member of the board of advisors of big data analytics company Auguri Corp. and is on the Board of Directors of the San Francisco Zoological Society and a guitarist in the band CHOC'D, with an album on iTunes.

Here's how he describes the co-founders: "What we brought to the table: Larry brought chutzpah. Technical wizardry, Bob Minor. Project management and knowledge of how computers worked at their core level, that was me. Notice we didn't have any business acumen. We weren't marketeers. We weren't sales guys. Other than a little bit of project management, we couldn't run a large organization to save our lives. We had to learn."

Bruce Scott, the first employee

Although Bruce Scott is widely considered an Oracle co-founder, technically he wasn't. He was its first hired employee -- or, if you count the founders, employee No. 4.  He was the co-architect of the first three versions of the Oracle database.

Scott was with Oracle its first five years and left in 1982 to help launch Gupta Technologies with another ex-Oracle employee, Umang Gupta. (It was later known as Centura Software). The company created the first client/server SQL database and flew high for a while but eventually filed for bankruptcy, and its tech was sold to investors.

Scott landed on his feet, co-founding another database company, PointBase which was acquired by DataMirror, a company that would later be acquired by IBM. Ironically, PointBase is still being used in Oracle's WebLogic software.

Scott took on a number of other engineering roles in the Valley since then and in 2012 co-founded a startup called Cedarcone, a tool to help salespeople.

Bob Miner, the technical genius

Bob Miner was the architect of Oracle's database and for most of his career at the company he led product design and development.

In 1992, he left that role and spun off a small unit within Oracle that worked on advanced technology.

If Ellison was considered the hard-driving "brains" of the company, Miner was considered its heart, a well-liked manager that counterbalanced Ellison. He wanted his employees to see their families, not work through the night.

He died in 1993 at age 52 from a rare form of lung cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

BOOM.

The British Pound is surging to its highest levels of the day, as a final poll from YouGov says 54% of voters in the referendum on Scotland's independence are NO, and 46% are YES.

For the very latest on Scotland, see here >

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Safra Catz, who was co-president and CFO of Oracle until Thursday, has just been promoted to co-CEO — alongside Mark Hurd — after its founder and longtime CEO Larry Ellison announced he’s stepping down to the Executive Chairman position.

Oracle said in a statement that Catz will be responsible for all manufacturing, finance, and legal decisions, while Hurd will be in charge of sales, service, and global business units. Ellison will continue to oversee all software and hardware engineering functions.

The move might come as a bit of a surprise, but Catz’s track record tells she was a natural choice for Oracle’s board.

Catz first joined Oracle in 1999 as senior VP. But she quickly rose through the ranks, becoming executive VP within seven months, and president of Oracle Corporation by 2004, a position she had kept for over a decade. She served as Oracle’s interim CFO from November 2005 to September 2008, only to return to the same role in 2011 as full-time CFO. She’s also been an Oracle board member since 2001.

A former banker at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, an investment bank that was later acquired by Credit Suisse, Catz has played a major role in Oracle’s M&A department, overseeing nearly 100 M&A deals worth billions of dollars for the company. Some of the biggest deals she’s led include the $10.3 billion acquisition of PeopleSoft and the $7.4 billion deal for Sun Microsystems. She’s a graduate of the Wharton School, but also holds a law degree from UPenn, which made her Ellison’s consigliere as well.

As remarkable as her resume is, Catz is perhaps better-known for regularly being named the highest-paid woman executive in the world. Last year, she made $44.3 million in total compensation, easily becoming the world’s top paid female exec and CFO. In 2013, she became the first female to hold the highest-paid CFO position, when she made approximately $43.6 million. That amount, in fact, was a drop from her 2012 compensation of $51.7 million.

"Safra and Mark are exceptional executives who have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to lead, manage and grow the company. The Directors are thrilled that the best senior executive team in the industry will continue to move the company forward into a bright future,” Oracle Board's Presiding Director Michael Boskin said in a statement.

SEE ALSO: How Larry Ellison Became The Fifth Richest Man In The World By Using IBM's Idea

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Actual votes have not been reported yet in the referendum on Scottish independence, and won't be for several hours, but the head of polling company YouGov is ready to call it.

There's a 99% chance that NO will win, says the president of the polling firm.

The call is informed by the firm's final poll, which has NO leading 54-46%, a healthy margin of victory.

The good forecasts for the NO side are causing a surge in the pound.

Follow all the latest details on the vote here.

SEE ALSO: Scotland Is About To Vote On Whether To Leave The UK — Here's Everything You Need To Know

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