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<ul class="summary-list"><li>The German cockroach is one of the most common household pests worldwide.</li><li>New research found that the species evolved to thrive in human dwellings about 2,100 years ago.</li></ul><p>If you ever <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-york-city-cockroaches-rats-mice-exterminator-places-avoid-infestation-2019-3">saw a cockroach</a> scuttling across your kitchen floor or a restaurant wall, chances are it was a German cockroach. The German roach is the most common of the 70 different cockroach species in the US.</p><p>For 250 years, scientists didn't know where it came from and how it managed to spread to every continent on Earth except Antarctica. Now that mystery has been solved, and the answer is that it's largely our fault.</p><p>The German cockroach is "a creation of human-made environments," Edward Vargo, an entomology professor at Texas A&amp;M University and co-author of a new <a target="_blank" href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2401185121">study</a> identifying the roach's origins, told The Washington Post.</p><p>The German cockroach can't survive in "temperate winters outdoors" and all species of cockroaches "prefer warm, moist places where they can feed on human and pet foods, decaying and fermenting matter, and a variety of other items," according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.</p><p>That's why it's pretty safe to say that if human-built establishments like houses, stores, restaurants, and other buildings didn't exist, neither would these pesky pests. </p><p>The researchers published their results last week in the peer-reviewed journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.</p><h2 id="6fb7a1cb-9f81-4197-9939-0d5b65745e61">Where did the German roach come from?</h2><p>Scientists have long understood that the species thrive indoors, but their origins remained a mystery.</p><p>Through DNA analysis, Vargo and his colleagues found that the species' closest relative is the Asian cockroach. </p><p>The German roach evolved from its Asian cousin about 2,100 years ago to adapt to "human settlements in India or Myanmar," the researchers reported in their paper.</p><p>With advancements in transportation and "temperature-controlled housing," the German <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/home/how-to-get-rid-of-roaches">cockroach</a> made its relatively recent global spread, the researchers said in their report.</p><h2 id="76a46be3-d8a0-4b80-a863-ddb4fc30ecca">How the German cockroach took over</h2><p>The German cockroach's adaption to warm environments, ability to rapidly breed, and unique <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-rid-of-cockroachs-2014-3">resistance to insecticides</a> make them a frustratingly common presence in households.</p><p>For example, in a lifetime, one adult female German roach can produce four to eight egg capsules containing up to 48 eggs each, according to Penn State's Department of Entomology. Do the math and that's between 192 to 384 roaches, if every egg survives to adulthood. </p><p>But German roaches didn't migrate thousands of miles across oceans and continents on their tiny insect legs. Their global spread coincides with advancements in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vintage-travel-photos-from-100-years-ago-1920s">human travel</a> and housing, according to the study.</p><p>In particular, the researchers determined that the German cockroach's spread began along two routes, west and east of its origin in India or Myanmar.</p><p>The roach's westward spread likely occurred during times of increasing "commercial and military activities of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-10-greatest-empires-in-history-2011-9">Islamic Umayyad or Abbasid Caliphates</a>" about 1,200 years ago, the researchers reported. Meanwhile, the pest's eastward spread about 390 years ago was likely caused by "European colonial commercial activities between South and Southeast Asia."</p><p>Understanding the German cockroaches' origins could help other scientists understand how the species evolved to become so resilient against <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cockroaches-becoming-resistant-to-insecticide-harder-to-kill-2019-7">common insecticides</a>. One <a target="_blank" href="https://academic.oup.com/jee/article/115/1/259/6469283?login=false">study</a> found that they're resistant to five types of common household insecticides.</p><p>"If we can know the origin of the species, we can try to identify the mechanism of this rapid evolution of insecticide resistance," Qian Tang, a research associate at Rowland Institute at Harvard who led the new study told the Post.</p>

Cockroaches wouldn't exist without humans. We helped them become one of the world's worst pests, according to a new study.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US is currently being colonized by <a href="https://www.insider.com/murder-hornet-insect-capable-of-killing-humans-colonizing-us-2020-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">monster insects called "murder hornets."</a></li><li>They are officially called Asian giant hornets, and have never been spotted in the US before this year. </li><li>YouTuber Coyote Peterson showed us what a sting actually feels like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&amp;v=i7VMcMJBjD4&amp;feature=emb_titlemb_title" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in a video</a> uploaded to <keyword id="10879" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="YouTube">YouTube</keyword> in 2018.</li><li>Peterson calls himself the "King of Sting" and made it his mission to experience the most painful stings from <keyword id="6433816" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Insects">insects</keyword> and creatures around the world.</li><li>He described the hornet's sting as a "searing pain" and his arm started to dramatically swell immediately. </li><li><a href="https://www.insider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>Huge, monstrous insects, nicknamed "<keyword id="9169710" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="murder-hornets">murder hornets</keyword>," have been spotted in the US for the first time this year. Because that's exactly what we need.</p><p>They are officially called Asian giant hornets, and are known to have been the cause of 41 deaths in the Chinese province of Shaanxi in the summer of 2013, <a href="https://www.insider.com/murder-hornet-insect-capable-of-killing-humans-colonizing-us-2020-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">behead entire colonies of bees</a>, and even <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2020/05/04/asian-murder-hornet-kills-mouse-video-huge-size-dead/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">murder mice</a>.</p><p>A YouTuber showed us what a sting from one of these murderous creatures actually feels like in a video uploaded in 2018 to his channel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6E2mP01ZLH_kbAyeazCNdg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brave Wilderness</a>.</p><p>Coyote Peterson, known as the "King of Sting," made it his mission to experience the most painful stings all over the world. He chose the Japanese giant hornet — a subspecies of the Asian giant hornet — for one episode.</p><p>"I haven't been this nervous since the tarantula hawk," Peterson said, shaking, while the hornet writhed between a pair of tweezers. He then lowered it towards his arm and let the insect sting him.</p><p>"Oh man wave of dizziness really quick," Peterson yelled, saying the stinger had lodged in his arm. "Searing pain, absolute searing pain. Did you not see how slow the sting was?"</p><p>Peterson's colleague told him he had to describe the sting, and he said his arm was completely locked in place.</p><p>"When the stinger went into my arm, I had this wave, this wave came over me and I got super dizzy," he said. "Almost didn't feel what was happening, and then the pain was immediately searing."</p><p>His arm started to swell dramatically after just a few seconds, and was still incredibly painful 20 minutes later.</p><p>"No relief yet," he said after a while. "It's just a matter of harnessing the pain, controlling the level of pain, and rolling around on the ground and screaming at this point."</p><p>So it's probably safe to say, a murder hornet sting hurts like hell.</p><p><strong>Watch the full video below.</strong></p><p><strong>Read more:</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/summer-worst-season-photos-2020-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">12 photos that show why summer is the worst season</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/whats-inside-an-anthill-fire-ant-tunnels-2019-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A colony of 250,000 ants call the average anthill home — here's what inside their mound</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/insect-apocalypse-ecosystem-collapse-food-insecurity-2019-11" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More than 50% of insects have disappeared since 1970, an ecologist warns — even more evidence of an 'insect apocalypse'</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/brazilian-man-blew-up-yard-trying-to-kill-cockroaches-2019-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A man in Brazil accidentally blew up his yard while trying to kill some cockroaches</a></p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/microscope-photos-nikon-contest-bugs-creatures-2019-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">13 creepy photos of the microscopic world around us that will make your skin crawl</a></p>Read the original article on <a href="https://www.insider.com/youtuber-coyote-peterson-let-asian-murder-hornet-sting-him-2020-5">Insider</a>

A YouTuber nicknamed the 'King of Sting' let a 'murder hornet' sting him, and his arm ballooned almost immediately

<ul class="summary-list"><li>I arrived in <keyword id="6356662" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="singapore">Singapore</keyword> on January 8 and spent 14 days quarantined alone in a hotel room.</li><li>The key to maintaining my sanity was a mindset I referred to as "low power mode."</li><li>My daily steps topped out at 150, and the meals got repetitive, but you can order food (and wine).</li></ul><p>On January 6, nearly a year into the <keyword id="8763838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="covid-19">COVID-19</keyword> pandemic, I boarded the longest flight in the world.</p><p>It was the dead of winter when I left New York City's JFK airport. For ten months, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-timeline-history-major-events-2020-3">as borders opened and closed and COVID cases around the world surged</a>, two coworkers and I had been delaying a move overseas to launch a new bureau for Insider. Now, a mere 19 hours on the world's longest flight stood between me and my destination: Singapore.</p><p>I booked a seat in premium economy on a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-seats-the-worlds-longest-flight-singapore-airlines-2021-2">Singapore Airlines flight</a> and got a complimentary upgrade to the first row of the section, which meant I could stretch my feet out completely straight in front of me. After a meal and drink, the lights were dimmed and I fell asleep. When I woke up, I found that I'd slept for 10 hours straight.</p><p>It was January 8 when we touched down in Singapore's Changi airport, early morning and pouring rain.</p><div type="image" title="Singapore airlines arrival" height="2268" width="3023" msid="80994495" hostid="261"></div><h2>What it's like to arrive in Singapore during COVID</h2><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/worlds-best-airport-number-1-singapores-changi-photos-tour-2018-6">Singapore's airport is world famous</a> for, among other things, its enormous waterfall and movie theater. My fellow passengers and I, however, saw very little of it. From the minute we got off the plane, we were ushered through its (very empty) halls in an efficient and highly directed manner - no chance for straggling or exploring.</p><p>That's because Singapore has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/singapore-coronavirus-app-tracking-testing-no-shutdown-how-it-works-2020-3">strict COVID-related restrictions</a> in place for anyone entering the country. I had to get a PCR test 72 hours before departure, the (negative) results of which had to be presented at check-in at JFK and again upon arrival at Singapore customs.</p><p>Pre-departure logistics aside, though, the daunting part is what comes after arrival: Anyone entering the country has to self-isolate in a hotel room for 14 days. This period of time is called <a href="https://www.mfa.gov.sg/Overseas-Mission/Mumbai/Announcements/Travellers-to-bear-costs-of-COVID-19-tests-and-stay-at-Dedicated-SHN-Facilities">Stay-Home Notice (SHN)</a>, and it's strictly monitored by the government.</p><p>Once I cleared customs, I hauled my two oversized suitcases to a set of sliding doors where I was told to board a bus that would take me to my SHN hotel. I was one of maybe 20 people on the bus; most of them appeared to - like me - be traveling alone.</p><p>The thing about SHN is that no one knows which hotel the bus is bound for, and it's completely luck of the draw. There's an entire 17,000-member Facebook group dedicated to sharing SHN experiences; one woman <a href="https://www.insider.com/woman-vlogs-free-quarantine-stay-at-shangri-la-hotel-singapore-2020-4">filmed her entire quarantine in the 5-star Shangri-La</a> and posted it on YouTube, but others complained of hotel rooms filled with cockroaches and without windows.</p><p>As the bus pulled out of the airport, I stared out the window and felt like I had somehow reverted back to my childhood: I neither knew where I was going nor could exert any kind of control over my surroundings. The American couple behind me kept drawing their breaths in when we drove past fancy hotels and then letting them out with increasing despondency as the bus wove on through the city streets.</p><p>Some 40 minutes later, we pulled up in front of a hotel in the upscale neighborhood of Newton. Couples were escorted off the bus first, then women, and men last. At the front desk, the terms of my SHN were reiterated to me: I'd get a hotel room and would not be allowed to leave it for 14 days. The only exception would be on the 10th day, on which I'd get another PCR test either in the lobby or at a designated testing center. If and when that test came back negative, I would be allowed to leave the hotel on and start my life in Singapore.</p><p>Oh, and one more thing, the front desk attendant said: There were three food options. Which did I want? She pointed to three laminated pieces of paper, which read, "Asian," "Asian vegetarian," and "Western." I chose "Asian."</p><p>With that, I was directed to take an elevator to the 13th of 14 floors. I pushed my way into my room with both my suitcases, heard the door click behind me, and took a look at my new home.</p><h2>Initial impressions: Lots of windows, but no couch</h2><p>The room was small: A narrow entry hallway opened up to a bathroom (replete with rain shower) on my left and fed right into the bedroom, which is pictured below.</p><p><strong>The immediate pros of the room</strong>: One entire wall was windowed and looked out over the city, and the space was clean. I could control the AC. I had curtains and blackout curtains alike.</p><p><strong>The immediate cons of the room</strong>: There was no couch, no balcony, and the windows didn't open.</p><div type="image" title="Singapore SHN hotel" height="3024" width="4032" msid="80994503" hostid="261"></div><p>I also quickly found a mini-fridge in the dresser. This would come in handy when I started ordering groceries and meals from local eateries to my room.</p><p>It only took a day to establish an approximate understanding of how my next two weeks would go. The doorbell would ring three times a day (8:30 a.m., noon, 5:30 p.m.), at which point I'd open the door and find, draped over the doorknob, a plastic baggie with my meal. Each meal came in a plastic tray with three divisions to it, and each lunch came with a water bottle. </p><p>The meals were ... how should I say this? Inconsistent.</p><p>Initially, I found myself eating rice twice a day, often mixed with raisins. There was also a lot of bok choy, which I loved, and a lot of fish, which I loved a lot less. Here's a sampling of my cuisine when I had the Asian menu:</p><div type="image" title="Meals in SHN Singapore quarantine" height="1220" width="1839" msid="80994508" hostid="261"></div><p>On the seventh day of quarantine, I called the front desk and asked if my food could be switched to the "Western" cuisine. At that point, my days started to look much carb-heavier. My second week of quarantine involved many croissants and many, many potatoes:</p><div type="image" title="SHN meals singapore quarantine western cuisine" height="1220" width="2272" msid="80994513" hostid="261"></div><p>After the meal, I'd put the garbage back outside in the hallway and someone would collect it. Very rarely did I come face to face with any hotel employees.</p><p>Three times a day, I would take my temperature and record it in a location-tracking app called Homer.</p><p>But before all of this became part of my new routine, I have to admit - the compactness of the room freaked me out. How could I work out in this space? Where would I read? How would I differentiate between sleeping time and reading time if I only had a bed?</p><p>Once I stopped being dramatic, I laid out a plan for my days - and I started operating on a little something I came to think of as "low power mode."</p><h2>Like when your iPhone is on low power mode ... but for humans</h2><p>When <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/does-your-iphone-charge-faster-on-low-power-mode">your phone is on low power mode</a>, you can still do things like text, browse the web, and make phone calls, but certain core functions are disabled, and the display brightness is reduced.</p><p>That's more or less how I felt for 14 days. I was still texting and making phone calls (lots of them) across the 13-hour time difference to my friends, parents, and brothers in the US, and I was on the internet pretty much all the time (looking at you, Property Guru). I read four and a half books, did a lot of research on my new home country, started and abandoned a bunch of Netflix shows, spent a lot of time on FaceTime calls and ... that's about it.</p><p>All of that is to say I basically turned the pace of my core functions, if you will, down. In my New York City life, I was often working late, making myself go on long runs, and generally trying to make use of my days - even during the 2020 quarantine - to the max. By contrast, I now intentionally kept my energy, my emotions, my excitement over having finally arrived in Singapore, and, importantly, my expectations of myself over the coming days, simmering on low.</p><div type="image" title="SHN view Singapore" height="3024" width="4032" msid="80994518" hostid="261"></div><h2>Quarantine tips: A little bit of exercise counts for a lot, as does getting out of your PJs</h2><p>Even so, I won't say time <em>flew </em>by.</p><p>The two-week period feels a bit like a black hole in my memory. But in addition to little luxuries like the acai bowls I ordered on local food-delivery app <a href="https://www.foodpanda.sg/">Food Panda</a>, there were two specific habits that helped segment the time and make each day seem somewhat purposeful and thereby more bearable.</p><p><strong>1. Establishing a routine</strong>. On weekdays, I'd get up at 8:30 for breakfast, make the bed (even if only to get back onto it 15 minutes later), organize my stuff, and clean the bathroom. I'd read until lunch came. The afternoons, admittedly, disappeared in a haze of internet searches - like figuring out which local bank to open an account in and researching every <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/singapore-best-place-in-the-world-for-expats-2018-10">expat-favored neighborhood in Singapore.</a></p><div type="image" title="SHN workouts" height="4032" width="3024" msid="80994526" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>2. Staying as active as my space allowed.</strong> The first day was rough, and not just because of the time difference. It was also made all the longer by the fact that after sitting in a plane for 19 hours, I proceeded to sit/lie down for another 24 hours in my room. While I literally didn't walk more than 150 steps on any given day, I did turn the hallway into a workout hallway and hold myself accountable for doing 30-60 minutes of YouTube workouts a day.</p><h2>Parting thoughts</h2><p>In a slight timeline variation from my expectation, I got my PCR test on the 12th day of SHN.</p><p>That morning rolled in with some monsoon season thunder. At 10 a.m. sharp, I heard a knock on my door; it was a hotel employee in head-to-toe PPE, beckoning me downstairs for my PCR test. I pulled on my sneakers and power-walked - and I mean <em>power-walked</em> - down the hallway behind her.</p><p>As we waited for the elevator, she turned to me.</p><p>"How are you doing," she asked. "How has it been for you?"</p><p>I thought about it for a moment.</p><p>"It's been alright," I finally responded. "Some ups, some downs. But really, it's not been so bad."</p><p>In the lobby, I passed through a line of hotel employees who asked for my name and various identifying details before I was seated in a plastic chair opposite a koi pond. My pleasure at finally being outside and feeling the breeze was somewhat offset by the sensation of having an enormous Q-tip stuffed up both nostrils. The whole process took less than 10 minutes, after which I was directed back upstairs to my room.</p><p>Later, after dinner, I opened my door to another knock and found a thin plastic bag hanging off the handle. Inside was an envelope and some colorful chocolates.</p><p>"Well done," the letter inside read. "You have completed your 14-day quarantine period."</p><div type="image" title="SHN chocolates Singapore quarantine" height="1929" width="2573" msid="80994534" hostid="261"></div><p>I'm now three weeks out of quarantine. I - and every single person I've seen on the streets - wear a mask everywhere I go. That includes masking up in restaurants, bars, and cafes until the first drink is served and immediately after the last plate is cleared. Just today I went out for a work lunch, and we had a meal together in the restaurant. I felt not only normal but also safe doing so.</p><p>In retrospect, it was a luxury to spend the time in SHN alone. The space would have been difficult to live in with someone else for 14 days, since I only had a bed and no couch. But the real takeaway for me - <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/singapores-covid-plan-is-working-but-wouldnt-fly-in-the-us-2021-1">and one that my colleague Julie has written about too</a> - is that 14 days in a hotel room is a small price to pay in exchange for the relative normalcy that can currently be found in Singapore, which is mostly COVID-free.</p>

I moved to Singapore alone during the pandemic and spent 14 days quarantining in a tiny hotel room - here's what it was like

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul><li><strong>Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said the company's board is no longer fighting for control after he proposed a new structure last October.</strong></li><li><strong>His proposals curtailed former CEO Travis Kalanick's voting power.</strong></li><li><strong>He said fixing Uber's governance was his first job as CEO, and that he then moved onto company culture and strategy.</strong></li><li><strong>Khosrowshahi commented that Uber would one day be profitable - just as the news broke that the company had turned a $2.5 billion profit.</strong></li></ul><p> </p><p>Uber's divided board is divided no longer, according to chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi.</p><p>Speaking at the VivaTech event in Paris on Thursday afternoon, Khosrowshahi said one of his first actions when taking on the role of CEO was to fix the company's governance issues.</p><p>Khosrowshahi became chief executive in August 2017, replacing ousted CEO and cofounder Travis Kalanick and taking the helm at an extremely troubled time for the company. Uber was under major fire for its treatment of drivers, its cavalier attitude to regulation, and its internal culture. Earlier that year, leaked video showed Kalanick getting into a heated argument with an Uber driver over wages.</p><p>To cap it all off, there was a lot of boardroom drama, with a bitter legal feud breaking out between one of Uber's investors, Benchmark, and Travis Kalanick. Another investor, Shervin Pishevar,<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/shervin-pishevar-accuses-benchmark-of-trying-to-usurp-uber-board-2017-8"> waded into the fight</a>. Even after Kalanick was replaced, he tried to maintain control of the company <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/uber-to-vote-on-governance-proposals-2017-9">by appointing his own board members</a>.</p><p>"When I first came in, the board was very divided in terms of control of the business and where the business was going," said Khosrowshahi. "We enacted governance reforms that included changing the voting strategy, getting rid of high vote shares etcetera so the board could be united."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Ex-Uber CEO Travis Kalanick.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>In October, two months into Khosrowshahi's tenure, the board voted on changes that would reduce the clout of certain board members, particularly Kalanick.</p><p>"Now the board isn't thinking, 'Who is in control?', it's 'How can we move Uber forward?'" he said.</p><p>Khosrowshahi said fixing Uber's governance was his first task, retooling the firm's culture was his second, and coming up with the firm's strategy was third.</p><p>He said the management team crowdsourced Uber's new values from its employees to inform its new slogan: "We do the right thing. Period."</p><p>On strategy, he said the company thought about much more than cars. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/uber-is-going-to-open-a-flying-taxi-hub-in-paris-2018-5">Earlier on Thursday, Uber announced it would open a research hub for flying taxis in Paris</a>.</p><p>"It's no longer just about cars, we are about urban mobility and however you get around in a city," he said. "That includes cars, [carpooling service] UberPOOL, bikes now and, yes, also it's going to include flying cars we hope."</p><p>Khosrowshahi also touched on Uber's profitability, something that has eluded the company, apparently until now.</p><p><a href="https://www.recode.net/2018/5/23/17380952/uber-2018-financials-yandex-grab-softbank">Recode reported that the firm turned a $2.5 billion profit</a>, mostly thanks to the merger of its Russian and Southeast Asian businesses with local competitors. Without that, it would have still posted a loss.</p><p>"Of course Uber will be profitable, one day!" Khosrowshahi concluded at VivaTech. "It'd better be."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-cockroaches-are-hard-to-kill-pest-control-2018-4">Why cockroaches are so hard to kill</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Uber's CEO said a move to grab power from Travis Kalanick means the board is no longer fighting over control

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="Reuters/Cathal McNaughton" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/527a5ef16bb3f73f019ab764-960/rtx10pno.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>Reuters/Cathal McNaughton</span></p></div><p></p></div></p>
<p>What happens when tech geeks go to prison?</p>
<p>It's probably not a question that gets asked around your office every day. But it can happen. A <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sec-alleges-insider-trading-at-microsoft-2013-12">Microsoft executive was charged with insider trading</a> last week, for instance (although he does not face prison time). <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ebay-the-fbi-shawn-hogan-and-brian-dunning-2013-4">Shawn Hogan and Brian Dunning, former eBay affiliate marketers</a> accused of defrauding the auction site of $35 million, face up to 20 years in prison (they have yet to be sentenced).</p>
<p>There is a long history of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-worst-tech-criminals-2013-7">nerds who used their talents for criminal means</a> rather than professional ones.</p>
<p>On Quora, the question and answer site, there is a thread that appears to have been written entirely by <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison">tech geeks who have spent time in prison</a> - and it's absolutely fascinating.</p>
<p>We've excerpted the highlights here, along with some quotes from other Quora threads that address aspects of prison life that might directly relate to tech professionals. The quotes were posted anonymously except where otherwise stated.</p>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="AP" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52b7227c6da8113c4d196497-960/prison-39.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>AP</span></p></div><p></p></div>Yes, it will be scary.</h3>
<p>This <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison/answers/3504930">anonymous writer worked in IT consulting</a> before he was sentenced:</p>
<p>"It was scary, since I hadn't punched anyone since the 7th grade and most of the people I might have to fight were 20 years younger than me."</p>
<p>"... Everywhere you go, you have to be alert.  There are so many dangers.  You could be in danger if you bump into somebody, if you look at someone wrong, or for no reason at all.  I am so much more vigilant of my surroundings, even years later.  My ability to read people is greatly improved, because it was so important there. "</p>
<h3>But you'll also get opportunities.</h3>
<p>"Before prison, I liked to play guitar.  Inside prison, I got to play in the music program and got pretty good.  It was a matter of putting in the time.  I also had books sent in so I could study music theory.  Before prison, I had 6 years of jr. high and high school Spanish.  In prison, I made friends with many people from Spanish-speaking countries and got fluent.  I didn't just talk with them, I watched TV with them, studied the Bible in Spanish with them, read novels in Spanish.  In those 8 years I went from high school Spanish to fluent.  I also found a job where I could program computers, creating databases used within the facility for things like tracking sports leagues or scheduling medical appointments.  I then had books sent in to study new languages, design patterns, Xtreme and Agile methodologies, and more.  I left knowing so much more than when I arrived."</p>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="REUTERS/Suhaib Salem" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52b722d5eab8ea190cb010aa-960/prisoner-behind-bars-1.png"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Suhaib Salem</span></p></div><p></p></div>You'll learn something about the way respect works.</h3>
<p>"I learned many things from inmates that I never learned in my prior life.  I learned that you should go straight to the person you're upset with rather than go to authorities.  I learned that giving and keeping your word is the ultimate measurement of character.  I learned that loyalty is easy to promise, but few really deliver.  Don't be that guy.  Prison is really a learning crucible since the reactions are so quick and amplified.  If you have annoying habits, you'll find out fast.  If you are not respectful to others, you'll hear about it and you may get a "tune up" to teach you respect."</p>
<h3>Yes, they will think older white guys are child molesters.</h3>
<p>Mark Conway, Former Inmate, FMC Devens, now a managing partner at RS Analytics <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison/answer/Mark-Conway-8">confirms that the cliche is true</a>:</p>
<p>"... as my first cellmate used to say about me:  "He kind of strange, but he cool."  He got life for shooting a snitch in the head, and he was the one to greet me when I took that long walk across the floor, and yes there was laughter and snickering."</p>
<p>"The first assumption that other inmates make is that an older white guy is a pedophile, so the first order of business is showing them your paperwork.  Even then, they didn't believe me until I got sent to the camp a few weeks later.  Then a doctor decided that camp was 'vacation' for me, and I was recalled back inside the fence.  So, when I returned from camp, there was my old cellie waiting for me."</p>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="REUTERS/Jonathon Burch" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/51f91123eab8ea0f2a00001b-960/prison-cell-1.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Jonathon Burch</span></p></div><p></p></div>Asian inmates will have less of a problem.</h3>
<p>"There is <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-prison-like-for-Asian-Americans/answer/Murat-Morrison">no racially charged environment where I was</a>."</p>
<p>"I think this is another case of 'if you don't know, don't trust the media.'"</p>
<p>"Very few, and I mean minuscule, prisoners are asian, so there is no group to point a finger to, and claim some sort of a grievance."</p>
<h3>But tech geeks have certain advantages that regular inmates do not.</h3>
<p>"But <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison/answer/Mark-Conway-8">geeks have real value in prison</a> because if you can read, write, type, or research (especially legal work), then you can possibly help them.  So, it was a good idea to be cool with me because I helped a lot of people with their motions and communications with the courts.  And as long as you showed respect for their life on the streets, then you usually got the same respect in return."</p>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="AP Photo" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/520ab1aceab8eae463000009-960/maximum-security-prison-cell.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Inmate-Overcrowding-Assaults/eb51a969114a4e82b5a7f3444e4c14aa/96/0">AP Photo</a></span></p></div><p></p></div>It won't exactly be the Algonquin Roundtable.</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison/answer/Mike-Aguilar">Mike Aguilar, a tech web writer</a>, says:</p>
<p>"It really sucks when it's magazine delivery day and your copy of PC Magazine shows up."</p>
<p>"And then there's the fact that there's very few people to hold an intelligent conversation with: 'So, what are you in for?'  'Meth. There's a cockroach on the floor.'  'Were you selling it?' 'Yes. And using it. Now the cockroach is burrowing into my skin. KILLITKILLIT!'"</p>
<h3>You might get an 'office' job.</h3>
<p>"No matter who you are on the outside, <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-a-geek-in-a-prison/answers/2049072">on the inside you are an inmate</a>. You can be a geek, nerd, a sheep, a thug it doesn't really matter. You will make friends of all sorts and those friends will likely last as long as your sentence, or theirs if they leave before you. Prison doesn't get easier or harder because of the type of work you did on the outside. Nerds and geeks sometimes get clerk jobs based on their knowledge of computer programs or familiarity with office jobs. That's about the only difference. No matter how smart you are, you are still in prison and there isn't anything smart, geeky or cool about that."</p>
<h3><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="Reuters/Lucy Nicholson" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5187f8496bb3f76954000000-960/rtr2n9th.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>Reuters/Lucy Nicholson</span></p></div><p></p></div>While you're inside, do your best to stay educated.</h3>
<p>Eric "Phil" Phillips, <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/How-do-extremely-intelligent-people-pass-time-in-prison/answer/Eric-Phil-Phillips">an inmate at San Quentin</a>, wrote:</p>
<p>"At San Quentin it's a lot easier due to the many different opportunities present here. For example, I work with high definition cameras and edit video on an Apple. Mcc at my job at SQTV as well as compose some of<br />the music with my electric guitar (only at San Quentin) and keyboard. I also take calculus(!!!) at Patten University. Here, there are many ways for one to use their intelligence. At the other institutions, though, it's a different story. Other than certain specialized jobs in the prison, it can be a mind-numbing experience. I can remember the years of intense, restless, crazy boredom at not being able to compose music, mix it down, and lay down original music, period, but just to day-dream about it."</p>
<h3>When you get out, you'll face a huge learning curve.</h3>
<p>"Having been incarcerated for <a href="http://www.quora.com/Prisons-and-Prison-Life/What-is-it-like-to-be-exposed-to-new-technology-after-a-20+-year-prison-sentence/answers/1932489">five years was enough to put me behind the curve</a>. I often ask folks, just to see, what major changes have been wrought since 2007, and interestingly, nobody really knows -- but when I was taken into custody, smartphones were only in the hands of the technorati, and the only real "social media" was mySpace. Now it's unavoidable, you're a freak if you don't FaceBook -- but I don't (can't) do either. I do some social media, sure, via this site or linkedIn. But I'm hardly using any of it to its fullest potential, simply because my mind is still running in 2007 technology."</p>
<p>"Worse still, I was a web designer -- so now, when I go out job hunting, I have a huge five-year gap in my design experience. And technology in the design area has moved so much faster, I was clearly a little insane to think I could keep up simply by hand-writing code or by reading whatever materials I could."</p>

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