20 things you don’t actually need to keep in the fridge – CNET

There is probably a bunch of things in your fridge that doesn’t need to be there. Removing these items from your fridge can free up space and improve the taste and quality of items that should be stored at room temperature.

Take a look at this list and then go rummage through your fridge.

Hot sauce stays fresh up to 3 years without refrigeration, even after opening it.

Potatoes should be stored in paper bags in cool, dry pantries. Putting them in the fridge can make them taste funny and rot faster.

Onions do best in dry, ventilated areas. Keep them away from potatoes, though. These tubers can make onions rot faster.
Like onions, garlic is just fine in a dry, ventilated area of the pantry.

Basil absorbs fridge smells, so it is best to keep your fresh basil in a cup or vase of water on the counter much like fresh cut flowers. You can also do this with any other fresh herbs.
Your avocado won’t ripen? That’s because it’s in the fridge. Putting an unripe avocado on the counter will make it ripen much faster. To really speed up the process, put it in a bag with a banana or apple.
Putting berries in the fridge can make them rot much faster due to moisture. They’ll be fine in a bowl or basket on the counter.

Bread is best when kept at room temperature in a sealed plastic bag. Storing bread in the fridge speeds up the dehydration process and makes it go stale faster.
You might have heard that keeping batteries in the fridge can make them last longer. This is false. Extreme cold can actually make them last for a shorter period of time.
Storing tomatoes in the fridge can alter their flavor and make them rot faster. Keeping them on the counter in a bowl is your best bet.
Keep coffee out of the fridge and in a dry, air-tight container in the cupboard.
Most squash, especially those with thicker skin, do well for up to a couple months in the pantry.

Honey is the only food that doesn’t spoil and it doesn’t need to be refrigerated.
Most cakes don’t need refrigeration. If it’s unfrosted or has a buttercream or ganache frosting, it’s fine to store it in an airtight container for around three days.
Uncut melons do best on the counter or in a dry pantry.

Bananas that are unripe should be hung on a banana hook on the counter to ripen. Otherwise, ripe bananas can be stored in the fridge or freezer to prevent further ripening.

Ketchup and mustard can be kept in the cabinet for around a month without refrigeration because they contain acids that inhibit bacteria growth.

Peanut butter doesn’t need to be refrigerated and can be kept in the cabinet for months, unless it’s organic.

Cooking oils can be kept in the pantry, with the exception of nut oils.

Apples, peaches, nectarines and pears can be kept in a basket in your pantry and will last around a week.

10 easy ways to keep your fridge clean and…

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Smaller phones aren’t for everyone, and that isn’t a surprise

AC readers think bigger is better, and we’re not surprised.

In last week’s poll we asked if you care about smaller phones. Apple has announced the new 4-inch iPhone SE which kickstarted the conversation, but we really wanted to know is whether size is important to you. Pretty much everyone has an opinion, whether it’s in favor of small phones, or defending your large phone’s size.

With a serious lead, “No, I love giant phones” came rolling into first place with 42 percent of the vote. “Yes, I need one in my life” trailed behind at 32 percent to come in second place. “Performance is all I care about” wasn’t too far behind with 19 percent of the vote, putting it solidly into third place. Last, but not least, with just 7 percent of the vote was “Size is irrelevant”.

Do you love your giant phone, or do you wish you had something a bit smaller? Sound off in the comments and let us know about it.

T-Mobile reportedly set to launch data-only plans on March 30

T-Mobile is reportedly set to start offering new data-only plans for those who would rather skip the voice portion of their cell service. According to a leaked document obtained by TmoNews, T-Mobile will launch the so-called Simple Choice Data Only plans on March 30 with a variety of data bucket sizes and unlimited texts.

The options start out at $20 per month for 2GB of data and cap out at $95 per month for 22GB. Aside from that 22GB option, the prices and data buckets line up with the tablet plans that T-Mobile currently offers.

Data-only plans would offer an interesting option for a number of smartphone users who communicate more via text and services like Google Hangouts and Skype than over traditional voice calls. In any case, we should find out what T-Mobile has in store on March 30.

Sony PS4.5 might arrive with support for 4K games ahead of PSVR launch

It looks like that 4K version of the PS4 will arrive sooner rather than later.

Kotaku reported earlier this month that Sony has been developing a PS4 with more graphical power so that games can run at 4K resolution. It might not be an entirely new console but a new device/add-on that’ll bring the much-needed power boost. Whatever it ends up being, it is currently going by the name PS4.5 and will include an updated GPU to support 4K resolution for games and more processing power for VR games.

The Wall Street Journal has now added to that report, claiming the upgraded version of Sony’s console will be unveiled before PlayStation VR launches in October. The upcoming device will support 4K graphics and come with extra power to handle virtual reality experiences from the PlayStation VR. So, you can expect an updated processor and GPU, bu we don’t yet know when exactly it will launch nor for how much.

The new PS4 at this point seems to be a mid-cycle upgrade rather than an add-on device as first speculated. Either way, most people are losing their minds at the idea of a Sony releasing an upgraded console, especially so soon after releasing the PS4. It debuted in late 2013 and is already considered to be aging/outpaced by modern gaming PCs. Many expected it would be another six years before Sony updated the console.

Although lengthy breaks between upgrades tend to be the standard when it comes to videogame-console releases, Microsoft recently talked about hardware innovations in the console space, leading some to question whether it is considering a mid-cycle upgrade for the Xbox One too.

All we know so far is that, by supporting 4K resolution (four times the pixel size of 1080p), the PS4 would be able to round out its high-res capabilities. It currently outputs 4K photos and videos, but not for games.

Girl’s superhero-inspired 3D-printed arm spews out glitter

When Jordan Reeves was given the chance to create her own superhero-inspired prosthetic arm, she conjured up something other 10-year-old girls can only dream of. She designed a cannon that can slip into her left arm that stops above her elbow and shoot sparkly ammunition: glitter. Jordan designed her “weapon” named Project Unicorn when she participated in nonprofit KIDmob’s and 3D software company Autodesk’s Superhero Cyborgs program in San Francisco. It connected kids with who needed prosthetic arms with engineers who helped them realize their own superhero-inspired designs.

Jordan and the other participants used Autodesk’s 3D design tools, including user-friendly 3D modeler Tinkercad and Fusion 360, to test their prototypes. They then 3D printed actual, working versions of their creations. Kids like Jordan can have fun with their prosthetics, since it’s not advisable to get more expensive ones until they’re old enough not to outgrow them.

Non-profit group Limbitless Solutions once 3D-printed an Iron Man gauntlet for a seven-year-old kid. A startup called Open Bionics is also working on 3D-printed arms inspired by Star Wars, Iron Man and Frozen’s Elsa. While Jordan thinks her cannon is fun and exciting, she says she’d love to have something more practical, as well. Something that can hold her phone and carry heavy things like groceries. According to Fast Company, Autodesk designer Sam Hobish is helping her create a more useful modular arm, so she can swap out her cannon whenever she needs to.

Via: PopSci

Source: Fast Company, Superhero Cyborgs

NASA’s flying methane meter built for Mars finds work on Earth

Just as new military technologies often trickle down to civilian uses, a high-tech methane detector originally developed to detect gases on Mars has found a new role here on Earth. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab built the the Open Path Laser Spectrometer (OPLS) and have affixed it to a standard quadcopter. And given that greenhouse gas emissions are currently at a 30-year high, according to the UN, this pipeline inspector can’t come soon enough.

A team of JPL researchers teamed with UC Merced’s Mechatronics, Embedded Systems and Automation (MESA) Lab performed initial flight tests of the airborne, gas-sniffing system in late February. These tests involved flying the sensor rig past methane-filled containers at specific distances to gauge the device’s accuracy. However, even from the sky, NASA found its methane meter to be more accurate than the current generation of handheld (or wearable) meters employed by industry inspectors.

“These tests mark the latest chapter in the development of what we believe will eventually be a universal methane monitoring system for detecting fugitive natural-gas emissions and contributing to studies of climate change,” Lance Christensen, OPLS principal investigator at JPL, said in a statement.

Should the system get the go ahead from regulators, it could significantly reduce the amount of effort needed to inspect America’s 300,000-odd miles of natural gas pipelines, not to mention cattle and hog farms, wastewater treatment facilities and other greenhouse gas hotspots.

Source: NASA

What’s on your HDTV: ‘Archer,’ ‘The Walking Dead’ season finale

This week Archer season seven premieres on FX, while The Walking Dead prepares for its season finale. Of course, VR games have arrived including Adr1ft, while the new Rollercoaster Tycoon comes to PCs via early access, and Resident Evil 6 arrives on the new generation of consoles. We also have a day-and-date Ultra HD Blu-ray release, as Concussion is available in 1080p or Ultra HD and, of course, the new Star Wars movie will be available via digital outlets starting Friday, before the Blu-ray arrives next week — I have a (legit) early copy, and it’s as excellent as you would expect. Look after the break to check out each day’s highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).

Blu-ray & Games & Streaming

• Star Wars: The Force Awakens (VOD – April 1st)
• A Clockwork Orange (Netflix)
• Bob’s Burgers (S5), (Netflix)
• Scrooged (Netflix)
• The Hateful Eight
• Archer (S6)
• Concussion (4K)
• Point Break (3D)
• Humans (S1)
• Big Bad Mama
• Bicycle Thieves (Criterion)
• The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2 (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
• Minecraft: Story Mode Episode 5 (Everything)
• MLB The Show 16 (PS3, PS4)
• RBI Baseball 2016
• Rollercoaster Tycoon World (PC – Early Access)
• Adr1ft (PC)
• Gunjack (PC)
• Resident Evil 6 (PS4, Xbox One)
• Tropico 5 Penultimate Edition (Xbox One)
• Killer Instinct (PC)
• No Time to Explain (PS4)
• The Elder Scrolls Online: The Thieves Guild DLC (Xbox One, PS4)

Monday

• 11.22.63, Hulu, 3AM
• Dancing with the Stars, ABC, 8PM
• The Voice, NBC, 8PM
• Gotham, Fox, 8PM
• Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, CW, 8PM
• The Fosters (season finale), Freeform, 8PM
• WWE Raw, USA, 8PM
• American Dad, TBS, 8:30PM
• Only the Dead See the End of War, HBO, 9PM
• The Haunting Of: Kesha, Lifetime Movie Network, 9PM
• Bates Motel, A&E, 9PM
• Everything is Copy, HBO, 9PM
• Lucifer, Fox, 9PM
• The Magicians, Syfy, 9PM
• James May’s Build a Car in 24 Hours, BBC America, 9PM
• Damien, A&E, 10PM
• Blindspot, NBC, 10PM
• Better Call Saul, AMC, 10PM
• Billion Dollar Wreck, History, 10PM
• Bitten, Syfy, 11PM

Tuesday

• New Girl, Fox, 8PM
• Fresh Off the Boat, ABC, 8PM
• The Voice, NBC, 8PM
• Real O’Neals, ABC, 8:30PM
• Deadliest Catch (season premiere), Discovery, 9PM
• Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., ABC, 9PM
• The Outsiders, WGN, 9PM
• Brooklyn Nine-nine, Fox, 9PM
• Shadowhunters, Freeform, 9PM
• Heartbeat, NBC, 9PM
• The Grinder, Fox, 9:30PM
• The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special, CBS, 10PM
• Stitchers, Freeform, 10PM
• Awkward, MTV, 10PM
• Crowded, NBC, 10PM
• Beyond the Tank, ABC, 10PM
• Tosh.0, Comedy Central, 10PM
• American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J. Simpson, FX, 10PM
• Not Safe with Nikki Glaser, Comedy Central, 10:30PM
• Faking It, MTV, 10:30PM

Wednesday

• This is Not Happening, Comedy Central, 12:30AM
• The Path (series premiere), Hulu, 3AM
• The Middle, ABC, 8PM
• Heartbeat, NBC, 10PM
• Unsung Hollywood, TV One, 8PM
• Survivor, CBS, 8PM
• Rosewood, Fox, 8PM
• Young & Hungry, Freeform, 8PM
• The Goldbergs, ABC, 8:30PM
• Baby Daddy, Freeform, 8:30PM
• Empire (spring premiere), Fox, 9PM
• Modern Family, ABC, 9PM
• Criminal Minds, CBS, 9PM
• Law & Order: SVU, NBC, 9PM
• Face Off, Syfy, 9PM
• Black-ish, ABC, 9:30PM
• The Americans, FX, 10PM
• Internet Ruined My Life, Syfy, 10PM
• The Carmichael Show, NBC, 10PM
• Hap & Leonard, Sundance, 10PM
• Catfish, MTV, 10PM
• Broad City, Comedy Central, 10PM
• Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, CBS, 10PM
• States of Undress (series premiere), Viceland, 10PM
• Nashville, ABC, 10PM
• Underground, WGN, 10PM
• MTV Suspect, 11PM

Thursday

• You, Me, and the Apocalypse (season finale), NBC, 8PM
• Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 8PM
• American Idol, Fox, 8PM
• WWE SmackDown, USA, 8PM
• DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, CW, 8PM
• Life in Pieces (season finale), CBS, 8:30PM
• Scandal, ABC, 9PM
• Prey, BBC America, 9PM
• The Eighties (series premierE), CNN, 9PM
• Archer (season premiere), FX, 10PM
• Rush Hour (series premiere), CBS, 10PM
• The Catch, ABC, 10PM
• The Real World: The Big Leap, MTV, 10PM
• Shades of Blue (season finale), NBC, 10PM
• Nightwatch, A&E, 10PM
• Adam Devine’s House Party, Comedy Central, 12:30AM

Friday

• The Ranch (S1), Netflix, 3AM
• Lost & Found Music Studios (S1), Netflix, 3AM
• Dead 7, Syfy, 8PM
• Sleepy Hollow, Fox, 8PM
• Grimm, NBC, 9PM
• Shark Tank, ABC, 9PM
• Motive (season premiere), USA, 10PM
• Banshee (season premiere), Cinemax,
• Vice, HBO, 11PM
• Animals, HBO, 11:30PM

Saturday

• World Figure Skating Championships, NBC, 9PM
• Party Over Here, Fox, 11PM
• Saturday Night Live: Peter Dinklage/Gwen Stefan, NBC, 11:30PM

Sunday

• Cooper Barrett’s Guide Surviving Life, Fox, 7:30PM
• Madam Secretary, CBS, 8PM
• Once Upon A Time, ABC, 8PM
• The Simpsons, Fox, 8PM
• Little Big Shots, NBC, 8PM
• Call the Midwife, PBS, 8PM
• The 51st Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, CBS, 8PM
• The Circus, Showtime, 8PM
• The 2016 iHeartRadio Music Awards, TBS, 8PM
• Bob’s Burgers, Fox, 8:30 & 9PM
• Grantchester, PBS, 9PM
• The Carmichael Show, NBC, 9PM
• Vinyl, HBO, 9PM
• The Walking Dead (season finale), AMC, 9PM
• Crowded, NBC, 9:30PM
• Mr. Selfridge, PBS, 10PM
• Elementary, CBS, 10PM
• Girls, HBO, 10PM
• Talking Dead, AMC, 10:30PM
• Quantico ABC, 10PM
• Togetherness, HBO, 10:30PM
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, HBO, 11PM

(All times listed are ET)

Leaked photos show the Huawei P9 from all angles

Though it’s not the first look we’ve had at the Huawei P9, some new leaked photos show what is reported to be the Chinese manufacturer’s upcoming smartphone at all angles. The shots below, first reported by 9to5Google, once again show off the Huawei P9’s dual rear camera setup, what looks to be a USB Type-C port and the rear fingerprint sensor.

Huawei has already announced that it will be holding an event on April 6, and it’s expected we’ll get our first official look at the P9 there. As for what the phone may be packing, prior rumors point to the possibility of a 5.2-inch 1080p display, a Kirin 950 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage and a large 3,900mAh battery.

Be sure to check out all of the pictures in the gallery below, and let us know what you think in the comments!

Pichai unveiled Cardboard before seeing the final design

Deep within a long, expansive profile piece about Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai, BuzzFeed’s Mat Honan has offered a fresh tidbit about the unveiling of Google Cardboard. Clay Bavor, VP for virtual reality at Google, says he was summoned to Pichai’s office in 2014, eight and a half weeks before the company’s I/O developer conference. Pichai was impressed with Bavor’s work and told him to get Cardboard ready for a launch at the event.

With such a tight timescale, Pichai wasn’t able to keep tabs on the project. “He said, ‘Okay, Clay, run,’ and he didn’t see me, or Google Cardboard, for the next eight and a half weeks,” Bavor recounts to Honan. The idea originally was to put a headset in each of the swag bags handed out at the registration desk, but the night before, Pichai had a change of heart. He wanted to announce Cardboard on stage, during his keynote, and then have Google’s employees hand them out to delegates afterwards.

“He had not even seen the final version of it, or the final version of the software.”

The decision was made and at 11pm, a mad scramble ensued to make it so. The next day, as we know, it was launched without a hitch. “He stood up onstage and announced this product,” Bavor recalls, “and he had not even seen the final version of it, or the final version of the software.” Pichai had put his complete trust in Bavor and the team working on Cardboard.

The rest of Honan’s piece is equally insightful. It delves into Pichai’s history, growing up in India and working through the ranks at Google. His not-so-undercover exploration of CES and a speech at the University of New Delhi stadium provide a snapshot into his busy schedule and how he’s running one of the most important technology companies in the world.

Source: BuzzFeed

Uber recruits engineers with coding puzzles during rides

Uber knows it has a captive audience during rides, and is trying to pick out the coders among them with a new app feature called “Code on the Road.” It pops up in the main app and offers “hacker challenges” that are basically 60-second timed coding and debugging tests. Some riders offered the quizzes (like Twitter user Graham Gnall, below) actually work as engineers, but Uber assures Business Insider that it’s not tapping any personal info. Rather, it’s rolling out the feature in cities with large numbers of tech workers, so you might see it in places like Boston, Seattle and Portland.

If you take the relatively simple tests and show coding aptitude, you’ll be offered an email address to apply for an engineering position. “The option to play gives interested riders the opportunity to show us their skills in a fun and different way — whether they code on the side or are pursuing a career as a developer,” a spokesperson says. Uber has been recruiting engineers and researchers lately as it tries to develop new tech, including self-driving vehicles. It also launched a $10,000 bug bounty program aimed at improving the security of its app and technology.

Playing uber’s hacker challenge in the backseat. Beats snake. pic.twitter.com/BXdhmno6xH

— Graham Gnall (@GGnall) March 12, 2016

Via: The Verge

Source: Business Insider