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25 brilliant, badass, genius actors and musicians who are diversifying the Oscars.

In 2018, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences got much larger — and more diverse.

The Oscar-granting organization sent out 928 invitations (a jump from the previous year's 774) to actors, screenwriters, and executives that have shown dedication and exceptional work in the film industry. Those invitations set out make the organization more female, more ethnically diverse, and more international.

928 is a huge number, but we've listed some familiar faces that are joining the esteemed body below:

1. Gina Rodriguez ("Annihilation," "Deepwater Horizon")

Photo by Angela Weiss/AFP/Getty Images.

An outspoken defender of women's rights, immigration reform, and the importance of diversity in film, Rodriguez publicly accepted the award with glee.

2. Jada Pinkett Smith ("Girls Trip," "Set It Off")

Photo by Robin Marchant/Getty Images for SiriusXM.

As one of the first actresses to call out the Oscars' diversity problem, Pinkett Smith's decadeslong work is finally getting some well-deserved recognition.

3. Mindy Kaling ("Ocean's Eight," "A Wrinkle in Time")

Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images.

4. Tiffany Haddish ("Girls Trip," "Keanu")

Photo by Emma McIntyre Getty Images for MTV.

5. Kumail Nanjiani ("The Big Sick," "Hello, My Name Is Doris")

Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Women in Film.

Nanjiani's public recollection of falling in love with the woman who would become his wife during her life-threatening sickness warmed the hearts of romantics around the world. A vibrant defender of equal rights and the importance of diversity in film, Nanjiani is sure to add some necessary perspective to the Academy.

6. Danai Gurira ("Black Panther," "Mother of George")

Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images.

7. Quvenzhané Wallis ("Annie," "Beasts of the Southern Wild")

Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images for Essence.

At just 14 years old, Wallis is the youngest member of this year's Academy cohort.

8. Sarah Silverman ("Battle of the Sexes," "Wreck-It Ralph")

Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images.

9. Wendell Pierce ("Selma," "Horrible Bosses")

Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images.

Pierce may be one of the hardest working men in Hollywood and on the ground. As a hilarious and thoughtful advocate of community engagement and diversity in film, he's a welcome addition.

10. Trevante Rhodes ("12 Strong," "Moonlight")

Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for GLAAD.

"Moonlight" warmed the hearts of many Americans, in large part thanks to Rhodes' brilliant depiction of black gay manhood.

11. Christine Baranski ("Miss Sloane," "Mamma Mia!")

Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions.

12. Hannibal Buress ("Blockers," "Spider-Man: Homecoming")

Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images.

13. Taye Diggs ("Rent," "Chicago")

Photo by Lars Niki/Getty Images for Gotham Magazine.

It's clear that there are few things that Diggs can't do. Now, he can add being on the Academy to that list.

14. Ken Jeong ("Crazy Rich Asians," "The Hangover")

Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images.

15. Joy Bryant ("Bobby," "Get Rich or Die Tryin'")

Photo by  Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images.

16. Kendrick Lamar ("Black Panther," "Divergent")

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for NARAS.

Lamar also won a Pulitzer in 2018 for his rap genius. Enough said.

17. J.K. Rowling ("Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," "Harry Potter")

Photo by Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images.

Humanitarian. Writer. Bringer of joy to millions of children and adults for decades. Rowling is the epitome of using one's talents in spite of setbacks to make the world a better place. Her voice in the Academy will make waves.

18. Amy Schumer ("I Feel Pretty," "Trainwreck")

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.

Schumer isn't one to back down from a challenge. She's a hard worker, a fighter, and an important voice in feminist film.

19. Regina Hall ("Girls Trip," "Scary Movie")

Photo by Earl Gibson III/Getty Images.

Hall's recognition is long overdue, but it's awesome that it's finally here.

20. Derek Luke ("Miracle at St. Anna," "Antwone Fisher")

Photo by Greg Doherty/Getty Images.

21. Daniel Kaluuya ("Black Panther," "Get Out")

Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Huffington Post.

A breakout star of 2017, Kaluuya's rise in film has been fast, powerful, and extremely important.

22. Rashida Jones ("Celeste and Jesse Forever," "The Social Network")

Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images.

23. Kal Penn ("The Namesake," "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle")

Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images.

24. Randall Park ("Ant-Man and the Wasp," "Snatched")

Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images.

25. Mía Maestro ("The Motorcycle Diaries," "Frida")

Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images for LACMA.

Maestro's genius were evident in "Frida" and many other films. This acknowledgement is extremely well deserved.

And that's just 25 of them.

This year, the Academy is more Asian, Latino, black, female, and queer, representing the wide array of experiences around the world. Our film industry will be better for it, and so will the audiences that tune in.

Community

Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

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friendship
Education

3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

They were doing trigonometry 1500 years before the Greeks.

via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

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education
Education

In 125 years, millions of people have looked at this painting. No one really saw it until recently.

Van Gogh saw something it took scientists another 100 years to see.

Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Van Gogh’s Starry Night.



Van Gough never got to enjoy his own historic success as an artist (even though we've been able to imagine what that moment might have looked like). But it turns out that those of us who have appreciated his work have been missing out on some critical details for more than 100 years.

I'm not easily impressed, OK?

I know Van Gogh was a genius. If the point of this were "Van Gogh was a mad genius," I would not be sharing this with you.
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Joy

Woman who lives on a cruise ship shares the hardest part about her perfect life

She's a little afraid to leave her cabin.

via Christine Kesteloo/TikTok and Cagri Gurbuz/Pexels

Christine Kesteloo has one big problem living on a cruise ship.

A lot of folks would love to trade lives with Christine Kesteloo. Her husband is the Chief Engineer on a cruise ship, so she gets to live on the boat pretty much for free as the “wife on board.” For Christine, life is a lot like living on a permanent vacation.

“I live on a cruise ship for half the year with my husband, and it's often as glamorous as it sounds,” she told Insider. “After all, I don't cook, clean, make my bed, do laundry or pay for food.“

Living an all-inclusive lifestyle seems like paradise, but it has some drawbacks. Having access to all-you-can-eat food all day long can really have an effect on one’s waistline. Kesteloo admits that living on a cruise ship takes a lot of self-discipline because the temptation is always right under her nose.

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cruise ships
Health

Women do better when they have a group of strong female friends, study finds

We're stronger together.

Photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash

Women do better when they have female friends.

Madeleine Albright once said, "There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women." It turns out that might actually be a hell on Earth, because women just do better when they have other women to rely on, and there's research that backs it up.

A study published in the Harvard Business Review found that women who have a strong circle of friends are more likely to get executive positions with higher pay. "Women who were in the top quartile of centrality and had a female-dominated inner circle of 1-3 women landed leadership positions that were 2.5 times higher in authority and pay than those of their female peers lacking this combination," Brian Uzzi writes in the Harvard Business Review.

Part of the reason why women with strong women backing them up are more successful is because they can turn to their tribe for advice. Women have to face different challenges than men, such as unconscious bias, and being able to turn to other women who have had similar experiences can help you navigate a difficult situation. It's like having a road map for your goals.

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women
Pop Culture

Millennials nearing 40 are sharing their biggest mistakes so everyone can learn from them

Here are 21 of the most powerful responses.

via Pexels

Millennials are now old enough to seriously reflect on life.

It seems like only yesterday a millennial was a college kid that baby boomers chided for being entitled and Gen Xers thought were way too sincere and needed to learn how to take a joke. Today, the oldest millennials, those born around 1980, have hit their 40s and have lived long enough to have some serious regrets.

They also have enough experience to take some pride in decisions that, in hindsight, were the right moves.

The good news is that at 40 there is still plenty of time to learn from our successes and failures to set ourselves up for a great second half of life. These lessons are also valuable to the Gen Zers coming up who can avoid the pitfalls of the older generation.

A Reddit user who has since deleted their profile asked millennials nearing 40 “what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?” and they received more than 2,200 responses. The biggest regrets these millennials have are being flippant about their health and not saving enough money when they were younger.

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millennials
Joy

Stop blaming the 'Karens.' The people who complain the most have a different name.

The stereotype has been wrong all along.

via Rickey123/Pixabay

A woman giving a stern warning.

Over the past few years, women named Karen have taken a lot of heat in the media. The term "Karen" has been used to describe a specific type of entitled, privileged and often middle-aged white woman. Typically, "Karen” is depicted as demanding, self-important and constantly seeking to escalate minor inconveniences to authority figures, like demanding to "speak to the manager."

Identifying the folks who create unnecessary drama in our world is important. But calling them a “Karen” isn’t the best way to solve the problem. There are many reasons to have an issue with the “Karen” stereotype. First, it’s terrible for people named Karen, and it’s also a connotation that many feel is racist, sexist and ageist.

Further, according to a new study by Trustpilot, the stereotype isn’t accurate. A recent survey by the online media site found that the people who leave the most one-star reviews aren’t female, and the women who do it the most aren’t named Karen.

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memes
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