It is once again time to update Chrome—even if you don’t use Chrome, it still might be time to update your browser. Depending on how you surf the web, you might be at risk from a new zero-day vulnerability.

What’s going on with the latest Google Chrome update?

The latest update for Google Chrome—version 120.0.6099.129 for Mac and Linux, and versions 120.0.6099.129/130 for Windows—patches just one security flaw, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore it. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-7024, is a heap buffer overflow in WebRTC, a platform that adds communication features like video and audio without the need for plugins. When this type of flaw occurs, bad actors can exploit it to gain arbitrary code execution: In other words, they can take over the system. Bad news.

When a flaw like this is discovered, it’s always important for developers to patch it as soon as possible. However, CVE-2023-7024 is essential to patch immediately, as it is a zero-day vulnerability. That means bad actors know about the flaw and have exploited it already. Google confirmed as much in its blog post, saying they are aware an exploit for this flaw exists in the wild.

Zero-day flaws like CVE-2023-7024 mean that anyone running the version of software before the patch are vulnerable to the exploit. It’s not clear how many times this flaw has been exploited, or how wide-spread the situation is, but it is imperative to update your browser as soon as possible.

As this flaw affects Chrome, it affects Chromium, the platform Chrome is built on. That means any browser that uses Chromium, including Microsoft Edge, Brave, and Opera, all too must update as soon as possible to protect against this zero-day.

How to update Google Chrome to patch this zero-day flaw

To update Chrome yourself, click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner of your window, then choose Help > About Google Chrome. Allow Chrome to look for a new update. When it does, follow the on-screen instructions to install the update and relaunch the browser.

Source: LifeHacker – Update Chrome ASAP (Even If You Don’t Use It)

What would eventually come to be known as a glove box started out as a tool storage compartment built into the wood-paneled dash of the 1900 Packard Model B. In addition to the car’s crank, it also turned out to be a handy place to stash gloves, which were an essential accessory for driving an early 20th century vehicle lacking heat, a hard top, and power steering on the country’s mostly unpaved roads.

While cranks are no longer a necessity, it is helpful to keep a few other key items in your glove compartment. I asked a professional mechanic what you should be storing in yours.

What you should keep in your glove compartment

According to Todd Bialaszewski, a mechanic and founder of Junk Car Medics, “a well-prepared glove box is a mechanic’s best friend.” But you don’t need to be a professional to benefit from what you can fit in the storage compartment. Here are his suggestions:

Flashlight

“Whether inspecting under the hood at night, or peering into a dark car interior, a strong beam helps illuminate problems,” Bialaszewski tells me.

Your vehicle manual

Need to change a tire or your oil but not sure how to do it? Check your manual. “It’s essentially a guidebook for your vehicle,” says Lim.

Proof of insurance and registration

You’ll need these documents in the event of an accident.

Tire pressure gauge

“This small tool allows you to check your tire pressure anytime, anywhere,” says Lim. “Maintaining the correct tire pressure can improve your vehicle’s handling, fuel efficiency, and the lifespan of your tires.”

Mini first aid kit

It’s always a good idea to keep a basic first aid kit with bandages, antiseptic wipes, and gauze in your glove compartment. “This can be crucial if you or a passenger suffers a minor injury while on the road,” says Lim.

Pen and paper

Sure, you’ll probably have your phone on you, but it never hurts to have a pen and paper on hand. “They can be used to exchange information after an accident, write down directions, or leave a note if you’ve had to park someone in,” Lim explains.

A Multi-tool

Instead of a Swiss Army knife, Lim recommends a compact multi-tool that includes pliers, a screwdriver, and a small knife. “This can be useful for minor repairs or adjustments,” he says.

Spare fuses

“If a fuse blows while you’re on the road, having a spare can be the difference between getting where you’re going and getting stuck,” says Lim. Check your vehicle’s manual if you’re unsure how to replace them. 

Source: LifeHacker – What You Should Keep in Your Glove Compartment, According to a Mechanic

When we talk about sex, some of the most widely-used euphemisms point to how private the act usually is. We refer to what we do “behind closed doors” or “in the bedroom.” Naturally, then, the thought of taking the show on the road is taboo and sexy. Public play is a pretty common fantasy because it feels a little risky (and sometimes is). You can bring it to life without going all the way to Pound Town by engaging in public foreplay—but there’s a respectful and safe way to do it.

Getting frisky in public: How common is the fantasy?

It’s hard to know exactly how common the sex-in-public fantasy really is, but 2018 research suggests that novelty and adventure are elements of the third most common fantasy genre for Americans, right behind threesomes and BDSM. For what it’s worth, while working on this article, every time I tried to Google for information, I mostly got links to porn, where there are tons of staged upskirt videos of women on buses and clips of performers banging while seemingly unsuspecting friends and family are mere feet away.

Because we live in a capitalist society, we can gauge the popularity of this fantasy in a more money-minded way. If people didn’t want to take their play out into the real world, we wouldn’t be able to buy wearable toys designed to be tucked discreetly into our undies and controlled by an app on a partner’s phone, would we?

Ways to engage in public foreplay

Ultimately, it doesn’t really matter how common the fantasy is. You’re here looking for information, so it’s important to at least one person and that’s what counts. The issue with fantasies is they can be abstract or too complicated. There are easy ways to implement public foreplay into your sex life without orchestrating overly complex scenarios.

I spoke to Amanda, aka “The Kink Consultant,” a sex and relationship coach, about ways you and your partner can pull this off on your next night out. Here are a few tips:

• First, make sure you’re at a busy restaurant or bar, as noise and general commotion will actually give you some cover.

• Try the toy or wearable vibrator in private first to get a feel for how it works and how you like it.

• Only insert it when you’re going to start playing; if you do it at the start of the night, “things could get uncomfortable if it’s being worn for too long.”

• Think outside the box: “Restrictive devices like a chastity belt or cage can add spice. Using a butt plug or nipple clamps can provide some tantalizing fun.”

Discuss the strategy with your partner before you get to your chosen site. Have a plan in place for what you’ll do if you end up not enjoying it, for instance, and set some clear guidelines for when you’ll leave to go home and really get busy. Setting up a timeline and boundaries might seem a little clinical, but it doesn’t have to zap the fun out of your adventure: “It can add a little extra spice for the controller to give the directions to the wearer,” Amanda says. If you’re handling the directing, something as simple as handing the toy over and telling them to go to the bathroom to put it on can be exciting.

You can also try a few non-toy options, like heading to the bathroom and removing your undies, then slipping them in your partner’s hand when you return to the date. Hell, gamify it by challenging each other to see who can talk the dirtiest throughout dinner. Whichever person folds and asks for the check first because they’re ready to get out of there has to pay the bill.

Respect other people when being horny on main (street)

All of this is fun and good, but it’s morally wrong to make your sexy adventure someone else’s problem, so be respectful of everyone around you at all times. The presence of strangers is kind of the whole crux of the fantasy, but they should never, ever know what you’re up to. It’s not fair to them.

“Consent is key and bystanders should never be exposed to your play,” says Amanda. “Busy and loud places allow for more anonymity—which means you’ll be able to get away with a little more without being noticed.”

If you’re using a wearable vibrator, make sure you gauge how loud it is in your at-home trial run and nix it if it’s going to be audible to people around you. If you’re planning to talk dirty at the dinner table, keep your voices low. In addition to being respectful of others, it can actually be more fun for you if you set a no-touching rule while you’re out, waiting instead until you’re somewhere more private. Amanda even suggests planning your outfit around your plans, pointing out that skirts and looser-fitting clothing can make it easier to adjust things without drawing attention. A loose top can obscure clamps and a long skirt can hide the fact that you’re going commando. Planning goes a long way, so don’t leave anything to chance.

Source: LifeHacker – The Dos and Don’ts of Public Foreplay

Disney—the corporation, the man, and the way of life—has long been a flashpoint for misinformation and conspiracy theories. The corporation’s “have fun or we’ll break your arm” philosophy, the life of its enigmatic founder, and Disney’s ownership of our collective imagination in the form of Marvel, Star Wars, and more, make it seem like anything you hear about Disney could be true. When you factor in the unbelievable-but-verifiable facts about the company and the man, no one could be faulted for mistaking Disney fiction for Disney fact. Maybe Disneyland really was used for CIA mind control experimentation! You don’t know!

Disney is currently the boogeyman of cranks on the right side of the political spectrum, with extremists calling for boycotts of its parks and cruises over their “wokeness” and allegations that the corporation’s real purpose is not making money, but “grooming” children. But Disney used to be every bit as deeply distrusted by cranks on the left—not for grooming kids, but for its corporate malfeasance and cynical profiteering. The result: There are many flavors of misinformation to enjoy in the expanded Disney Conspiracy Universe. Below, I’ve compiled a collection of lies about Disney, along with an equal number of truths that are nearly as unbelievable. 

Lie: Disney’s head was cryogenically frozen

The granddaddy of all Disney conspiracy theories is the one about Walt Disney attempting to cheat death by freezing his head (or his whole body) so he could be thawed out and reanimated at some future date. This story originated as far back as 1967, when a reporter for a tabloid called The National Spotlite claimed he’d snuck into the hospital where Walt Disney died and saw his body had been frozen in liquid nitrogen. From there, it caught on and grew for no real reason beyond the fact that it seemed like something Walt Disney might do. Sadly, the rumors are not true: Disney was cremated and his ashes are interred in Glendale.

Truth: Disneyland still maintains an apartment for Walt Disney

Walt Disney spent so much time at Disneyland during its construction that he had an apartment built for himself above the firehouse on Main Street so he could avoid commuting to work. Sensible maybe, but why did Disneyland keep the rooms as he left them after he died? Why is there a light on in the window to this day? The park occasionally offers tours of the room (for a price, of course), but is it really a stretch to think the real reason they keep Walt’s apartment is because they’re hoping he’ll will return one day, with his thawed head attached to a new body, ready to start production on Song of the South 2? (Yes.)

Lie: Walt Disney was a Nazi

As far as we know, Walt Disney was not a Nazi—but it’s complicated. When Nazi propagandist Leni Riefenstahl visited Hollywood in 1938, the industry gave her a cold shoulder—but not Walt Disney. Walt gave Riefenstahl a tour of his studios, but he refused to watch or endorse Olympia, Riefenstahl’s documentary about the 1936 Olympics. He also hired a lot of Jewish people who never reported any incidents of antisemitism. But the best evidence for Disney’s non-Nazism is an anti-Nazi cartoon Disney produced. “Der Fuehrer’s Face” stars Donald Duck and features music by Spike Jones, and it is such an effective takedown of Nazi Germany that it’s doubtful a Nazi would have approved it.

Truth: Walt Disney was a racist

Disney’s live action/animation feature Song of the South is racist, and not just when viewed through modern eyes. During its production, both the NAACP and the American Council on Race Relations basically told Disney, “Hey, your movie is really racist.” The Hays Office reviewed the script and demanded the removal of objectionable racial terms. Crew members quit the production over the film’s depiction of African Americans, and it was met with protests on its release. So Walt knew full well that his movie was racist, but he didn’t care, and made no move to make it less racist.

Lie: Disneyland is removing Donald Trump from its “Hall of President” display

This piece of outrage bait comes from the “satirical” website Mouse Trap News, an outlet that propagates many fake news stories designed to appeal to modern conservatives’ hatred of Disney. Donald Trump will remain in the Hall of Presidents, so bored visitors seeking an air conditioned place to sit can check out his animatronic likeness. (Also, for the record: Disneyland is not planning to serve human flesh in any of its restaurants or snack bars, Moana is not “the First Transgender Disney Princess,” and Mickey Mouse is not going to play a leading in The Mandalorian season 4.)

Truth: Richard Nixon loved Disneyland

Until recently, our most corrupt president (as far as we know) Richard Nixon was also a huge Disney fan. He visited Disneyland multiple times, oversaw the dedication of the Monorail when he was vice-president, and, when president, invited Disneyland’s Golden Horseshoe Revue to perform at the annual White House Correspondents’ dinner. (I’m sure they delighted D.C.’s cynical political reporters.) But the best Disney/Nixon crossover of all is the fact that Nixon’s famous “I am not a crook” speech was delivered on the grounds of Disney’s Contemporary Resort in Florida.

Lie: Lemmings commit mass suicide

This isn’t a myth about Disney, but one that Disney helped spread. The mistaken belief that lemmings intentionally kill themselves when their population reaches a certain point existed before Disney’s 1958 “documentary” White Wilderness, but the film cemented the untruth in the popular imagination by showing footage of hundreds of lemmings leaping off a cliff to their deaths. Except the lemmings were actually pushed off the cliff to get the footage. To be fair: The Walt Disney Family Museum says that photographer and filmmaker James R. Simon Simon faked the footage without the approval of Walt Disney.

Half truth: Walt Disney’s last words were “Kurt Russell”

While he didn’t mutter “Kurt Russell” on his death bed (again, as far we know), the actor’s name was the last thing Walt Disney wrote before he was brought to the hospital, where he died due to complications of lung cancer. At the time of Disney’s death, Russell was a 15-year-old actor on the Disney lot shooting Now You See Him, Now You Don’t. Russell’s name appears in Walt’s hand on sheet of paper with the printed title “TV Projects In Production: Ready for Production or Possible for Escalation and Story.” No one knows exactly why. “I assume, as [does] everybody else, that he was talking about some movie that he was thinking about having me in…I don’t know what to make of it other than that,” Russell once told Barbara Walters.

Lie: No one is allowed to die at a Disney park

There is a widely believed rumor is that Disney is so protective of its parks’ image that they will transport dead or dying people off the property to ensure that no one will ever be declared dead at a Disney park. While Disney has never publicly disclosed its internal policy regarding guest deaths, people have indeed been declared dead at Disney parks at various times over the years.

Truth: The Beatles broke up at Disney World

While the end of The Beatles didn’t involve an ill-fated ride on the Matterhorn, it is true that the Beatles broke up while at a Disney resort. John Lennon signed the legal papers finalizing his exit from the band while he was on vacation at the Disney World Polynesian Resort. You can even stay in the “death of the Beatles” room if you want.

Lie: Walt Disney’s will contains a clause promising $10 million to the first man who gets pregnant

This is really strange rumor that spread through chain emails in the 2000s. There doesn’t seem to be a discernible reason to believe that this could be so—Disney never said or did anything in his life that suggests he had any interest in seeing this scenario play out—but there is something weirdly plausible about the theory. It just feels like something that’s true. But it’s not. From what we know about Disney’s will, he actually left 45% of his estate to his immediate family, 45% to the Disney Foundation, and 10% his sister, nieces, and nephews. 

Truth: Harlan Ellison was fired from Disney for imitating Disney characters having sex

Irascible science fiction writer Harlan Ellison once worked for Disney, and according to an autobiographical essay in his 1982 book Stalking the Nightmare, Ellison’s tenure ended after one day at lunch with his co-workers when he jokingly suggested Disney should make a porn movie starring his well-known creations. He then acted out the noises various Disney characters might make in said porn movie. What Ellison didn’t realize was that Roy Disney was at the next table and overheard the whole routine. Roy apparently didn’t find it amusing, and Ellison was terminated. 

Source: LifeHacker – What People Are Getting Wrong This Week: Disney Conspiracy Theories

In the smart home world, an automation is a routine (or series of commands) a smart hub app will execute on the user’s behalf. For instance, you could tell the app: At sunset, turn on the porch light; when the temperature sensor is over 80 degrees, turn on the fan. One of the most flexible hubs is Google Home, and you can set up these routines from the automations tab in the Google Home app. Here’s how. 

Google Home has a few automations already set up for you

Google assumes you’d enjoy some routines around getting up and going to sleep, so in the automations, you’ll see options for “Good morning” and “Good night.”  If you tap on them, the actions will be pre-populated, allowing you to tweak them, such as what sleep sounds to play (Google has an impressive array of sounds from white noise to ocean or forest sounds), which lights to switch off, or whether to list the day’s appointments. Using these premade automations is a helpful way to better understand how automations work. 

Figure out what you want to have happen, and why

Before you start, determine what action should take place and what should trigger it.  We’ve talked about IFTTT (“if this, then that”) on Lifehacker before, which is another automation platform. But the broader premise of IFTTT is really helpful in understanding automation. The name is literally “If this, then that”, as in “if _____ happens, do ______.” So start by filling in the blanks—a time, a condition, or a specific day. For the first automation, we’re going to focus on just specifying a time to trigger the automation, so consider something you want to happen every day. For instance: At sunrise, turn on the living room lights. The important thing is that whatever devices you want to affect must be connected to Google Home, either by a smart plug or the device itself.  

Start a new automation

Under the automation tab, click the blue button with the plus sign to start a new routine. Since we’re just setting something up to run at a specific time, let’s choose “personal” as opposed to “household.” The screen will refresh, showing a title you can edit and two panels, one for “starters” and one for “actions.” You may also see a panel that asks if you’d like to set up a daylong routine. For now, tap “no.” 

First, let’s call this routine something like “Lights on at sunrise.” Click on the gray pencil next to “Untitled” and enter what you’d like to call this routine. Call it something that concisely describes the routine so you can refer back to it easily. Click the checkmark in the upper right to save the name. 

Choose a starter

Now, click on “Add starter.” You’ll see all the options available to you: 

• When you say a specific phrase to Google, like, “Top of the morning, Google!” or “Living room lights on!” I use an exclamation mark because it’s almost impossible to not speak that way to Google, since you’re basically talking into the air. 

• A specific time of day.

• Sunrise or sunset, which you can offset. For instance, an hour before or after sunset. 

• When you arrive or leave a location, which uses your phone to determine your location. This is helpful with automations such as: Turn on the lights when I get home. 

For now, choose “At sunrise or sunset,” then choose “Sunrise.” Google will ask some questions, like, “Where the heck are you located?” Next, decide if you want to offset sunrise and which days of the weeks you want this routine to run. You can decide if you want to be notified each time the routine runs. I usually set it to notify me, just so I know it works, and then turn it off after a few days. Now save this trigger by clicking the blue button “Set trigger.”

Set your action

There are a ton of things that Google can execute for you. Here’s a list of what’s possible:

• “Get info and reminders,” like the weather, the time, reminders of what’s on your schedule for the day, what happened on this day in history, or the news from any source you’d like. 

• “Communicate and announce,” which means Google can send an SMS or an email, or make announcements across your devices. 

• “Adjust assistant volume,” which could be useful depending on what time of day it is. Set the volume for 10% overnight, perhaps. 

• “Adjust home devices” is the most likely and important feature here. This will allow you to control every single device connected to Google Home, and that’s what we’ll use for this sample routine. 

• “Adjust phone settings” means you can set your phone to “Do not disturb,” change the volume, or my favorite, turning off wifi when I leave the house and turning it back on when I get home. 

• “Get wellness info” works if you’ve attached a health device to Google like a watch. 

• “Play and control media” allows you to play videos, songs, or any other media on your phone to any device you want. Be aware that Google has favorite devices. It also prefers music from Spotify and videos from YouTube, and makes it hard to play any other services. 

• “Try adding your own” allows you to try spinning your own actions, which may or may not work. 

In this case, choose “Adjust home devices.” Find the lights you want to turn on, which should be arranged by room, and click on each. You’ll have options based on that device, which should include “Turn on and off,” but might also include dimming capabilities. Select the light you want, and set it to “On,” then save. You can add more than one action for each starter, so if you have a few lights, go back and add each in turn. 

Save and test your action

All that’s left is to save your new automation. Use the blue “Save” button to do so. Tomorrow at the set time, the action should run. To test the automation, go to the routine we just set up under automations, and press the play button next to the title. It will execute the automation. 

Expand on your basic automations

The same way you can have more than one action, you can have more than one way to trigger an automation. In particular, setting up vocal triggers is not only a fun way to access actions, but also the most accessible way. Go back into an automation, add another starter to your automation, and select “When I say to Google Assistant.” Now, imagine what you’ll say to trigger the automation, like, “Hey Google, turn on the living room lights.” Or maybe, “Hey Google, light up the room.” This is one you can have a lot of fun with. 

Because you can have many actions, try out a few complicated ones, like Good Morning or Good Night, where multiple different things happen at once. It’s a good way to explore what Google Assistant can do for you. 

Daylong routines allow you to turn things on and off throughout the day

Let’s say you have a humidifier and you want to kick it on for 30 minutes a few times a day. Instead of setting up an automation to turn it on and then another to turn it off, you can set one daylong routine. To do so, when you start a new automation, say yes to “Do you want to set up a daylong routine?” Now choose different start times and actions for each. It works just like the basic automation you set up, except you can set up many start times and actions. 

Set up a household routine for even more triggers

In Google Home, you can set up even more complicated triggers by using a household routine instead of a personal routine. Household routines can use devices as the trigger, for instance, when a smart thermostat goes over a certain temperature, turn on a window A/C, or send an SMS. 

Source: LifeHacker – How to Set up Your First Google Home Automation

If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for December 21, 2023 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle isn’t too hard, but it took me five guesses, so make of that what you will. Beware, there are spoilers below for December 21, Wordle #915! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Four of them are in our mnemonic today! The remaining letter is middlingly common.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

It’s related to architecture, and it’s a past-tense verb. 

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

Nope, five different letters today. 

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

There are two vowels in today’s word.

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with B.

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with T.

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is BUILT.

How I solved today’s Wordle

ARISE got me the green I, and TOUCH got me the yellow U and T. I can’t resist trying out a Q word here, so I guess QUILT next. Everything is right except the Q, so obviously it’s GUILT! Right? Nope, it’s BUILT. 

Wordle 915 5/6

⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜
🟨⬜🟨⬜⬜
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: 

• Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

• Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.

Source: LifeHacker – Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Thursday, December 21, 2023

These wireless open-ear conduction headphones are on sale for $33.99 right now (reg. $79). With open-ear conduction, the headphones rest over your ears and send audio sound directly to your inner ears, and they’re designed to stay in place even during workouts. What sets these headphones apart is their ambient sound awareness, which allow you to listen to music or podcasts while still being fully aware of your surroundings. They also have a IPX6 water-resistant rating, great for the gym, running, and the outdoors. They also work seamlessly with Siri and other voice command apps, and they have a 6-hour continuous playback time. While a serious audiophile might want to stick with traditional over-ear headphones, these headphones prioritize comfort and awareness over sound isolation and bass.

You can get these wireless open-ear conduction headphones on sale for $33.99 right now (reg. $79), though prices can change at any time.

Source: LifeHacker – These Wireless Open-Ear Conduction Headphones Are Right Now

Midjourney and DALL-E 3 are two of the best known AI image generators available right now, and you can easily get started with either (or both) of them today. But which of these systems offers an easier-to-use interface, and which one provides better results?

If you’re trying to choose your first AI image generator, then I can help—I’ve spent I’ve spent a good deal of time with both DALL-E 3 and Midjourney since their individual launches, and can tell you everything you need to know to choose between both for all your image generation needs.

How do Midjourney and DALL-E 3 work?

If you haven’t tried out an image generator just yet, then going into it blind can be a bit overwhelming, especially when it comes to getting it to do exactly what you want. Luckily, both DALL-E 3 and Midjourney utilize a text prompt system, which allows you to provide a written description of what you want in the image. The language model behind the generator then takes that information and turns it into an image. The results can vary, and depending on what kind of prompt you give, the quality might not meet your needs.

To create their images, both Midjourney and DALL-E 3 utilize a process called diffusion. This system essentially starts the image as a field of noise, and then adds to it in pieces to create an image it believes matches what you’re asking for.

But just because both options utilize a similar process does not mean they produce similar results. The way that each model interprets your instructions can differ, and while DALL-E 3 might provide better results with some prompts, Midjourney may come out ahead with others. The differences lie in the data the companies behind these systems trained them on, and the way the models have been programmed to respond to prompts.

Is DALL-E 3 or Midjourney cheaper to use? (Only one of them is free)

Like most AI apps, both DALL-E 3 and Midjourney come with their own price points, with a few caveats.

What DALL-E costs per month

Generally, DALL-E 3 is included as part of a $20/month subscription to ChatGPT Plus. That means you can pay for one single subscription and get access to both ChatGPT Plus and DALL-E 3.

What Midjourney costs per month

Midjourney offers several different pricing options. The most basic plan starts at $10 a month, and it gives you about 200 minutes of “fast” GPU time, which Midjourney says equates to around 200 image generations a month—but that really depends on what you’re doing with it. If you’re upscaling images often, or creating a lot of variations, you’ll burn through those minutes quickly. Midjourney also offers $30/month and $60/month plans, both of which come with faster generations and unlimited relaxed generations (relaxed generations are image requests that are placed in a queue and processed when GPUs become available). If you plan to use Midjourney a lot, one of these pricier plans will definitely be the best choice.

How to use DALL-E for free

But it’s also worth mentioning that DALL-E 3 can actually be used for free. That’s because the system is currently available in many of Microsoft’s Copilot features, including its free Copilot chatbot. This not only gives you access to ChatGPT Plus features like GPT-4, but it also means you can easily create AI-generated images without ever paying a cent.

Midjourney doesn’t offer any kind of free option, though Discord sometimes teams up with the company to offer free month-long trials of the service.

The better choice: DALL-E (provided the free options meet your needs)

How to use DALL-E 3 and Midjourney (and which is easier)

Between the two image generators, DALL-E 3 is by far the easier to use. Part of this is because of how readily available it is, thanks to its API being utilized in services like Bing Image Creator, Copilot, and even Microsoft Paint. It also works directly with ChatGPT, allowing you access to a full-fledged application to utilize it.

DALL-E 3 is also smart enough to pick up on what you want just from saying something like “a dog running through the snow.” And if you’re just using it in Copilot or something, all you have to say is “generate an image” followed by the prompt you want to use.

Midjourney, on the other hand, runs everything through Discord. It doesn’t have a web app of its own, which means you’ll need a Discord account in order to create AI-generated images. From there, you can generate images through a DM with the Midjourney Bot, or you can create a special channel in a Discord server that allows you to use the prompts.

When using Midjourney, you’ll have to go into Discord, find the channel or DM that allows for prompts, and then utilize the /imagine command. The rest of Midjourney’s functions are run through similar commands, too, so it can be a bit confusing at first. Once you get it down, though, the process isn’t that complex, but DALL-E is definitely more user-friendly.

It is worth noting that Midjourney is currently slowly rolling out access to a dedicated website app. However, it’s initially limited to people who have generated more than 10,000 images using Midjourney on Discord, and the company hasn’t shared exact details about when access will open to the wider public, just that more users will get access in the coming months.

The better choice: DALL-E

Is DALL-E 3 or Midjourney more powerful?

While DALL-E 3 might be easier to use, Midjourney generally gives you a lot more control over your images, making it the more powerful option of the two. That’s because you are given access to additional commands, including the option to upscale the image that you’ve generated. You can also ask for variations (both strong and subtle) of the image that you generated, and it’ll change things about the image and generate more for you to choose from. You can upscale an image up to 4x in Midjourney. You can even tell Midjourney to zoom out on your image, allowing you to extend the boundaries beyond those it originally created.

And then there’s Midjourney’s remix feature, which lets you make changes to the image in increments by changing your prompt each time. You can also use commands like “blend” to combine aspects of multiple images. Overall, Midjourney has more power to match its steeper learning curve.

DALL-E 3, meanwhile, is not very good at variations. If you ask it to change something about an image, it’ll just make a new image with the added parameters you asked for. That’s because it doesn’t have any built-in variation settings yet, though it’s possible OpenAI will expand DALL-E’s capabilities in the future.

The better choice: Midjourney

Which service is better for commercial use?

Both Midjourney and DALL-E 3 will allow you to commercialize your images. However, it is important to note that the use of these systems for commercial purposes can be a bit complicated. That’s because the U.S. Copyright Office decided in February of 2023 that images created by Midjourney and other generative AIs cannot themselves be copyrighted. As such, any image you create can be reused, repurposed, or edited by someone else in any way they want.

Ultimately, this means you have very limited protections if you want to prevent your images from being used in malicious ways, and while using someone else’s image technically goes against Midjourney’s terms of service, it is unlikely the company will do anything about it beyond banning the account that took your work without your permission. If you do want to commercialize your AI-generated images, make sure to be up front about the fact that you’re using AI, too, as people deserve to know the work they’re getting wasn’t created by human hands.

For the most part, Midjourney is the better option here, too. It offers more freedom than DALL-E 3, as OpenAI’s image generator will block things like images of public figures and a ton of other types of content, according to its usage policies. It’s also worth noting that images generated in any Microsoft service that offers DALL-E 3 aren’t available for commercial use.

The better choice: Midjourney

Downside of Midjourney

If you’re looking to tinker with AI image generation and aren’t exactly excited about sharing your work with the world, then you’ll want to understand a few things before you pick up a Midjourney subscription.

First, if you don’t purchase the $60-a-month plan, then any images you generate are automatically added to Midjourney’s public gallery, allowing members of the service to browse, download, and even copy your prompts. If you want to be able to create images with Midjourney’s “Stealth Mode,” you’ll need to spend a chunk of change for the privilege.

And then there’s the matter of using Discord. I use Discord a lot, so using it for image generation isn’t that big of a deal for me. But the Discord options do make things a bit more confusing at first, and it’s honestly weird that an AI company as competent as Midjourney is taking this long to come up with its own infrastructure.

Downside of DALL-E 3

Where Midjourney does some weird things with how it works, DALL-E 3 is actually a lot more straightforward. However, that doesn’t mean it is without its downsides. For starters, you miss out on a lot of the great control options that Midjourney offers. Secondly, because DALL-E 3 isn’t actually offered as a separate subscription from ChatGPT Plus, users who don’t need access to the rest of the chatbot will find themselves spending more money than they need to for stuff they never use.

Further, DALL-E 3 doesn’t always do a good job of executing your prompt the way that you want it, and since there’s no way to tweak the prompt without it just creating an entirely new set of images, you can’t pinpoint where it went wrong and fix it. You just have to keep playing with it until it gets it right, or you give up, whichever comes first.

The bottom line: Midjourney is more powerful and versatile (but it comes at a price)

Both DALL-E 3 and Midjourney are exceptionally powerful image generators. DALL-E 3 is easier to use overall, and is available to use for free in several places. Midjourney, on the other hand, is more powerful and gives you more control over your image generation—but if you aren’t paying for the most expensive subscription plan, all your creations are publicly shared to the member gallery for downloading and copying, and you’ll have to do everything through Discord (for now).

If you’re just curious what AI image generation is and want to check it out, then give DALL-E 3 a try using Bing’s Image Creator or Microsoft Copilot. It won’t cost you a dime. But if you’re already confident in your abilities with AI, and want to create commercial-grade images with a lot of freedom, then Midjourney is your best bet.

Source: LifeHacker – Between Midjourney and DALL-E 3, Which AI Image Generator Is Best

Surprising someone with a new laptop can be a tricky endeavor unless you were given clear directions as to what they’re looking for in a new machine. Even then, there are very subjective choices, like the size of the screen or whether it has a backlit keyboard. Then again, in a situation like that, a good laptop in time for Christmas may be better than no laptop at all—especially if you can get it for a great price.

Best budget laptop deals in time for Christmas

Budget laptops are great for anyone who mostly needs to check emails, browse the web, type up documents, and jump on Zoom calls. Keep in mind these laptops will be limited in their ability to multitask, so expect some fan noise if you try to share a massive Excel sheet via Zoom with multiple tabs open in the background.

• Inspiron 15 Laptop: With a 12th generation i3 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage, this Dell probably offers the best bang for your buck in the budget laptop department. Don’t expect any fancy features, though: This laptop has the bare essentials to get the job done, and not much else. It does come with Windows 11, so you’ll be getting a new 2023 laptop with many years of updates ahead. Get it for $279.99 (originally $379.99) with free two-day shipping (varies by location).

• HP 15-DY5033DX: This laptop has the same 12th generation i3 processor and 8GB of RAM as the Dell, but only 256GB of storage and slightly worse screen resolution. However, it is an HP and will look and feel better with more attention given to the design. It’s lighter and sleeker than the Inspiron 15, and you’ll look and sound better during Zoom calls with a better camera and microphone. Get it for $299.99 (originally $499.99) with free two-day shipping (varies by location).

Best mid-tier laptop deals in time for Christmas

Mid-tier laptops are best for people who will dip their toes into more demanding work, like heavy Excel sheets, photo editing, or for those who have a habit of screen sharing with a dozen Chrome tabs open. These laptops are better suited for people who work from home and need to work with specialized computer software, work with large Excel files, or host more demanding presentations.

• HP Pavilion Laptop 15t-eg300: If you manage to see this laptop while it’s still $429.99 (originally $949.99) from HP, you’d be getting the best mid-tier laptop deal around. This laptop has an i5 processor and 8 GB of RAM, which is the standard for mid-tier laptops. It also has 512 GB of storage, which is great for this price point. You get a full-size, backlit keyboard with a numeric keypad, which is a nice touch. The audio is better than most laptops for this price range, and it has a clean design with a sturdy feel.

• Surface Laptop 5: If you’re looking for one of the best mid-tier laptops with a decent discount, consider the Surface Laptop 5. You’ll get a compact and portable 13.5″ touch screen with 2256 x 1504 resolution. It comes with a 12th-generation i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. The design is sleek and lightweight, and I personally really like the metallic black color. You can expect up to 18 hours of battery life when fully charged. Get it for $899.99 (originally $1,299.99).

Best high-end laptop deals in time for Christmas

High-end laptops are a must for people who do heavy tasks like multimedia creation, including advanced photo, video, or audio editing and need to multitask without suffering from performance.

• ASUS Vivobook: A great budget option for a great price is the 16″ Vivobook with Ryzen 7, 12 GB of RAM, and 512 GB of storage. This laptop is not quite a staple high-end laptop since it lacks some RAM power, but for the price, you’re getting a better-performing laptop than many mid-tier laptops in its price range. This is a great option for someone looking for a no-nonsense laptop that will perform tasks that some mid-tiers might struggle with, but don’t necessarily care for extra features. Get it for $429.99 (originally $749.99).

• HP Envy: This is a great laptop and tablet hybrid for those who need to use their hands to get some work done. It has a touchscreen and works well with a stylus (sold separately). It has an i7 processor with 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage. You can expect to do a lot of multitasking on this laptop and handle the most demanding applications that you can throw at it without a problem. The graphics aren’t the best, though, so don’t expect to play a ton of high-end games on this laptop. Get it for $699.99 (originally $1,079.99).

Source: LifeHacker – The Best Deals on Laptops That Will Arrive by Christmas

It’s inevitable: If you ask the Internet how to make extra money, someone (more likely several someones) will suggest taking online surveys (also, doing clinical trials). On the surface, this sounds terrific: Sign up with a few websites or apps, spend some downtime answering questions, get paid. And it generally is that easy to make a little money using platforms like Survey Junkie, Swagbucks, or Kashkick. The real question is, how little is the little money? Taking online surveys is easy work, but the Federal Minimum Wage is $7.25, and state minimum wages go as high as $17 per hour. Can you make anything even approaching that via online surveys?

The answer is: No, you cannot. Not even close (with one caveat noted below). Here’s how little the little money in online surveys actually is.

The downside to taking online surveys for pay

Every single online survey site you sign up with will pay you dramatically less than $7.25 an hour. In some cases, you’ll wind up earning less than one dollar an hour, while folks using Survey Junkie can sometimes get as high as $5 per hour—and on SurveySavvy, you can snag 10-minute surveys for $1 each, so theoretically you can earn a majestic $6 per hour if you hustle nonstop. Note that all of these ranges are significantly below the $7.25 you’ll earn—at minimum—from some sort of actual part-time job.

And these numbers assume you’re able to dedicate significant time and effort to surveys, and that you enjoy remarkable efficiency—which is difficult due to three aspects of the platforms:

• The qualification process. When you sign up on these platforms, you fill out an initial questionnaire designed to determine which surveys would find your feedback valuable (you often get a small sign-up bonus for this). When you snag a survey, however, your first few responses will narrow things down even further, and you might be rejected from the survey after you’ve begun the process, and get paid just a tiny amount for your time—often as little as 2-3 cents. For example, one person attempted 152 surveys on Survey Junkie over the course of one and a half months, but only managed to successfully complete 53 of them. The typical success rate for completing surveys is about 25%.

• Search time. While some of these platforms will actively recruit you to surveys you’re particularly well-suited for, you have to spend time searching for surveys to take—and they go fast. And that time is unpaid. If you spend an hour trying to sign up for surveys and then make $3 taking them over the course of the next hour, your pay is really $1.5 per hour.

This means it’s probably better to think about online survey work in terms of monthly earnings instead of an hourly wage. For example, the person who completed 53 of 152 attempted surveys? After one and a half months they’d earned $26.17, or about $13 per month. And the platforms themselves are pretty clear about this. Survey Junkie, for example, explicitly states in their FAQ that you can expect to make “as much as” $40 a month using the site, and Swagbucks states that typical survey-takers “should be able to” earn as much as $1,825 per year, which is about $150 per month—but that’s the high end. And one site reviewing KashKick concluded you could earn $10-$40 per month there.

That’s not nothing! But it’s also not exactly a great way to make a living, and it’s definitely not a replacement for a job.

The upside to taking online surveys for pay

So, online surveys won’t make you rich or replace your 9-5. But used in the right way, there are certainly upsides to online surveys:

• Easy. They typically require no special skills or experience, and signing up is free. While specific backgrounds or demographic details may snag you more or higher-paying surveys, there’s almost zero bar to making at least some money on these platforms.

• Spare cash. That $40 a month might not pay your rent, but since you can earn it in the spare moments between other tasks—clicking through a lunch hour, or tapping on your phone while on the bus to and from work—it’s a low-friction way to toss some extra cash into your accounts.

• Fun. Most people enjoy offering their opinions and learning about new products or concepts, so taking surveys is often a lot of fun—fun you’re getting paid for.

Finally, if you’re a professional in a demanding field of some sort, there can be a lot more upside taking surveys. There are specialized companies that pay pretty handsomely for the opinions of doctors, lawyers, or other professionals—for example, one doctor reported earning as much as $1,000 per month taking surveys offered by companies like InCrowd, Curizon, and M3 Global Research.

There’s also FocusGroups.org, which pays pretty well for online surveys (they also do in-person focus group studies and phone call interviews, which pay more). Many of their surveys fall into the $6/hour range (or less), but if you sift through and do some math to translate their points system into dollars, you can find some that pay out pretty high hourly rates—as much as $60 an hour, according to one review. However, there are generally fewer surveys to take here, and they are harder to qualify for—and that hourly rate depends on how fast you can finish the surveys, so your mileage may vary quite a bit. In the end, even though FocusGroups.org pays a bit better, you probably still won’t make a huge amount there every month.

Source: LifeHacker – Here’s How Much You Can Actually Make by Taking Online Surveys

The end of the year is approaching quickly, which means it’s time to make sure you are taking full advantage of your employee benefits before time runs out. Many workplace benefits have use-it-or-lose-it deadlines or contribution limits that reset each year, so it’s important to review your benefits package and take action before the new year starts.

Spend your FSA funds

Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) allow you to set aside pre-tax dollars for qualified healthcare or dependent care expenses. The catch is that FSAs often have a use-it-or-lose-it policy, meaning any unused funds at the end of the year are forfeited. Calculate your anticipated expenses for the rest of this year and the beginning of next year while there is still time to incur more costs. If you have money left in your FSA, stock up on eligible expenses now before the year ends.

Max out HSA contributions

Much like an FSA, a health savings account (HSA) allows you to contribute pre-tax dollars for medical expenses. The advantage of an HSA is that unused funds roll over year to year. For 2023, the annual contribution limits are $3,850 for individual coverage or $7,750 for family coverage. Confirm what you have contributed to date and, if possible, bump up your monthly contributions through the end of the year to hit the annual maximum.

Use remaining flex time

Before any year-end resets hit, make sure to use any remaining flex time, work-from-home days, or paid time off afforded by your employer. Schedule appointments, knock out lingering tasks, and request days off if allowed under your company policy. With potential schedule changes coming as the year wraps up, now is the ideal time to take advantage of flex time while you still can.

Review retirement savings

Most companies with 401(k) plans have limits on annual employee salary deferral contributions, with the 2023 maximum being $22,500 if you are under 50 or $30,000 if 50 or older. Log into your retirement account and identify gaps between your current savings rate or annual contributions and the legal limits. If you have room to save more before Dec. 31, contact your HR department to increase your deferral percentage.

Check your benefits for other perks

There may be other employee perks or discounts that you have not taken advantage of yet this year. Revisit new hire paperwork or your employee handbook and read through all available programs. Look closely for things like gym memberships, continuing education reimbursements, commuter accounts, employee assistance services, tuition discounts, and more. Learn what is available and use relevant services before Jan. 1 when eligibility may reset.

The end of the calendar year is the ideal time to maximize workplace benefits that have expiration timelines or annual limits. Review all available programs and take appropriate steps to utilize them fully now so that they do not go to waste. A little proactivity this month can add up to major savings and optimized offerings to carry into the new year.

Source: LifeHacker – Do These Things to Maximize Your Employee Benefits Before the New Year

Paramount+ With Showtime’s January slate of original content is anchored by two new series. All Paramount+ subscribers have access to the premiere of Sexy Beast (Jan. 25), a crime drama starring James McArdle and Emun Elliott as petty thieves Gal and Don—younger versions of characters from the 2000 British gangster film of the same name. Paramount+ With Showtime subscribers can also catch The Woman in the Wall (Jan. 19), a psychological thriller starring Ruth Wilson as a survivor of Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries, which confined “fallen women” to institutions against their will.

You can get a lifetime subscription to Ivacy VPN on up to five devices on sale for $39.99 right now (reg. $97.20) through December 25. Ivacy offers 256-bit encryption to help make the internet safer and more convenient, with a strict no-logging policy so your browsing is totally private. It works with Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and most other devices, you’ll just need to redeem your code within 30 days. And after five years, you can reach out to Ivacy to keep your subscription going at no additional charge.

You can get a lifetime subscription to Ivacy VPN on sale for $39.99 right now until December 25 at 11:59 p.m. PT, though prices can change at any time.

Source: LifeHacker – You Can Get Ivacy VPN for Right Now

Piano lessons. Soccer practice. Homework. Activities like these can take up large portions of our children’s schedules, leaving them little time to be with friends and family or simply enjoy being a kid, whether they are seven or 17 years old. 

Imagine a day in the life of a child. They’re engaged at school for six to eight hours. In addition to extracurricular activities, they might be responsible for caring for a younger sibling or have a part-time job. A relentless schedule doesn’t benefit a child’s academic performance or mental health. It’s essential to incorporate some time with family, friends, or themselves into their routine.

We’ll discuss some innovative ways to include downtime into your and your child’s schedule so they (and you) can foster a more balanced lifestyle.

What is “downtime”?

Think back to your own childhood. You might have laid on the grass to feel the warm sun and the breeze, or spent an afternoon engrossed in a book. Perhaps you built a blanket fort with your sibling on a lazy Saturday or play-wrestled with a parent. Remember the exhaustion after a morning of play leading to a satisfying nap? 

These are instances of pure downtime: moments with no obligations or structure, just a quiet period to relax your mind and body. These days, academic commitments, extracurriculars and technology have made these times scarce. But modern problems have modern solutions.

The PDF framework

Denise Pope, Ph.D., and her colleagues at the educational nonprofit Challenge Success have developed three distinct types of downtime for children to succeed: playtime, downtime, and family time. The senior lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education and author of Overloaded and Underprepared: Strategies for Stronger Schools and Healthy, Successful Kids refers to this as the PDF framework and has successfully integrated it into her own family.

“I think adults have to build time in the day to allow kids to decide what they want to do,” says Pope. “We know that a lot of times, kids don’t have that ability to choose. They’re very scheduled throughout the day and need to have that break.”

The PDF framework doesn’t necessarily mean that children should avoid screens or technology. As Pope explains, it’s up to adults to act as guardrails against overindulging in certain activities. 

“The adult has to say, ‘Well, that’s fine for a certain amount of time, but we’d also like you to learn some activities that are not tech-related, and here’s why,'” says Pope.

She describes playtime as unstructured and child-led rather than an extracurricular activity led by adults. It can be as simple as hanging out with friends, playing with LEGO, or even creating music videos on their tablet.

“Playtime is really critical,” says Pope. “Kids need time to move their bodies, go outside, run around. and be in nature. That can be really restorative.”

Downtime is also unstructured. These are the moments throughout their day when kids read, relax, and reflect—but the most vital downtime is sleep. 

“We know just how important sleep is to the brain,” says Pope. “Sleep is connected to learning and mental health.”

Because adults also have responsibilities, family time might be more challenging to pull off. It can consist of sitting together for a family meal, going for a walk, or taking part in little rituals at the end of the day.

“It can be literally anything that’s going to help you unwind, whether that is playing a video game for a little bit or watching some funny TV,” says Pope.

Pope also understands every family operates differently. Caretakers may have to work two jobs, so how a family implements the PDF framework may vary for some households depending on their situation.

Prioritize what’s important

Just because you can get your children to every lesson, practice, and game doesn’t necessarily mean you should. It’s likely something that neither you nor they can sustain over time. Pope explains that since parents act as the guardrails for their child’s schedule, it’s necessary to take a complete look at it and consider what is essential.

She recommends listing extracurriculars, deciding which ones you feel are non-negotiable, and asking your child to rank how much they love the rest on a scale from one to 10. For example, if they rate piano lessons on the low end of the scale, it might not suit them now, but it doesn’t mean they won’t play piano in the future. The number-one priority is that your family spends time together and your children know they’re loved unconditionally.

“If you only talk about grades and homework when you’re together, you’re sending certain messages about what the most important thing is in your kids’ lives,” says Pope.

Take time for yourself

Even when your kids are in bed, you’re probably still working. That could mean doing a load of dishes or spending some extra time answering work emails. While we’re concerned about over-scheduling our children, we’re probably doing the same thing to ourselves. 

“I know for many people, they don’t have a choice,” says Pope. “They’re working multiple jobs. They’re a single parent. [But] if you can find a moment to do some breath work or appreciate five minutes of a sunset, it makes a huge difference.”

Source: LifeHacker – Use This Framework to Give Your Kid Enough Downtime

I saw a thread on X the other day that explained how the design of airports—in terms of function, aesthetics, and general vibes—destabilizes travelers and makes them behave worse than they might otherwise. The airport really is kind of hell all the time, but especially around the holidays. This year, over 7.5 million people are expected fly over the next few days (that a 4.7% bump from last year), making it the busiest year for air travel on record. Whenever you travel, you need all the help you can get to make the experience as seamless and enjoyable as possible—but you especially need it now.

The best gadgets for traveling

First, you need a really good carry-on: No more hauling around a big duffel bag stuffed with your essentials. Upgrade to the Gymax carry on, a 20-inch hardshell carry-on with wheels, a lock, a convenient front pocket for your laptop, an expandable tabletop, and a built-in USB port to charge your phone, headphones, or the other gadgets on this list. It’s $79.99 well spent. 

Not everything fits in a carry-on all the time, though, and it’s really uncomfortable to arrive to the airport only to learn your baggage is overweight and you’ll have to pay some of your trip money toward a fee. Avoid that by spending $10.99 one time on a portable luggage scale, which features a simple, digital display that tells you what your bag weighs before the airline associates ever get a chance.

Sometimes, you need to charge more than one item. Long layovers are the worst, since you’re scrambling to even find an outlet, then making the impossible decision about which device needs to be charged the most. Pick up this folding three-in-one charger ($29.39)to charge your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods and eliminate all that stress. 

Finally, consider a phone-charging passport holder, like this one from Lovie Style ($43.99). There’s no tech-based replacement for your real-life passport (yet), but you can at least make the most of having to tote it around with this zippered container, which not only charges your phone, but has little pockets and holders for your cards, wires, and cash.

The best gadgets for the plane itself

Airplanes are dry. Everyone knows that. You’ll get off at your destination with chapped lips and a stuffy nose if you’re not careful. Pick up the Hey Dewey wireless, rechargeable facial mister ($59.95) to solve the issue. It’s little, lightweight, and quiet, so you can pop it on when you arrive at your hotel to freshen up. And maybe if you’re traveling with family, you could even use it at your seat during the flight—as long as no one around you minds, of course.

There are a lot of phone mounts available out there, but you should try the PROFezzion magnetic one ($18.99)—you can attach your phone to the seat in front of you and (before and after boarding) the handle of your pull-along luggage.

Watching a movie on your phone isn’t that comfortable; it’s better to watch on the screen on the seat in front of you. If you don’t have headphones with a 3.5mm jack, though, good luck. Actually, you don’t need luck. What you need is the Lavales Bluetooth adapter ($29.99), which plugs into the audio jack and connects to your Bluetooth headphones, letting you listen to what you’re watching in peace without having to get (or buy!) those wack little headphones from the flight attendant. 

Or just sleep. Sleep peacefully, in fact. Try the Muciozy sleep headphones ($23.49), which are not only Bluetooth headphones, but an eye mask, so you can listen to white noise, music, or whatever else while blocking out the light from the doofus in the window seat who decided to throw the shade wide open at 7 in the morning. 

Source: LifeHacker – The Best Tech to Help You Travel Comfortably

The word “calorie” may bring up thoughts of nutrition labels and treadmill readouts, but really calories are just units of energy. Your car runs on gas, your house runs on electricity, and your body runs on food energy. So how many calories do we burn each day, and how many should you burn? Let’s dig in.

You actually burn most of your calories at rest

Calories aren’t only burned during exercise. It takes energy to keep the lights on, so to speak—for your heart to beat, your brain to think, your cells to repair themselves, and more. 

In fact, most of our calories are burned doing these maintenance chores. Scientists call this baseline calorie burn our “basal metabolic rate,” or BMR. There are several equations that will estimate your BMR; for a calculator, try the one at tdeecalculator.net. (It uses the Mifflin-St. Jeor formula if you don’t know your body fat percentage, and the Katch-McArdle formula if you do.)

To give you an example, I plugged in my stats—I’m 150 pounds and 5’6”—and the equation guesses that someone my size burns: 

• 1,352 calories for most of my basic bodily functions (not including digestion!)

• 1,623 calories, total, if I’m sedentary

• 2,096 calories, total, if I do moderate exercise three to five times a week

• 2,569 calories, total, if I’m a hardcore athlete or a person who exercises on top of having a physical job

Keep in mind these are just estimates; your actual calorie burn may be more or less. The factors that affect your total calorie burn include: 

• Body size: The bigger you are, the more calories you burn at baseline and the more you burn during exercise.

• Muscle mass: Muscle burns more calories than other tissues (which is why you get a more accurate estimate if you know your body fat percentage; the lower your body fat, the more muscle you have by comparison)

• Age: These formulas assume that your metabolism slows down a bit as you age (although there is evidence that this may not make a big difference)

• Activity: The more you exercise, the more calories you burn

• Genetics and other factors not accounted for in the formula: There’s actually a huge variety from person to person, even if you compare people of the same size, age, etc.

To give you a sense of the range, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans figures that a 5’10” man who weighs 154 pounds will burn, in total, between 2,000 and 3,000 calories each day, depending on his age and activity level. Their example woman is 5’4” and 126 pounds, and she will burn between 1,600 and 2,400 calories. 

So if you’re used to thinking of 2,000 calories as some kind of upper limit for how much to eat—or 1,200 calories as a calorie budget for dieting—you may be surprised to realize how many calories you probably already burn.

How (and why) to burn more calories

If you’re trying to lose weight, logic would say that you should focus more on diet than exercise. After all, if most of your calorie burn is your BMR, exercise is going to be a drop in the bucket by comparison. 

I don’t think that’s the only thing you should consider, though. If your BMR is 1,300 calories and your total burn is 1,600, then sure, you could eat 1,300 calories without exercising and probably lose weight. But it’s hard to be healthy while you’re eating so little. 

Burning more calories through exercise helps your body in two ways: 

1. Exercise is good for us, regardless of calorie burn; we should all be getting at least 150 minutes of cardio per week, plus some strength training to help build or retain muscle.

2. The more food you eat, the easier it is to fit in the good stuff: vitamins, minerals, fiber, good fats, and a variety of vegetables.

A person who burns 2,300 calories and eats 2,000 is in a much better position to benefit from exercise and good nutrition than a person who burns 1,600 and eats 1,300. 

So how do you burn more calories? You can’t get younger, and if you’re losing weight you won’t want to get bigger. The biggest levers you can pull are: 

• Exercise more

• Gain muscle mass (through strength training, and eating plenty of protein)

• Don’t diet all the time

I’ve written before about how I’ve noticed my total calorie burn increases when I’m eating more food; when you feed your body, it’s more willing to expend energy. This is one of the reasons it’s thought to be beneficial to take “diet breaks” if you plan to be in a weight-loss phase for a long time.

Why you shouldn’t rely on “calorie burn” numbers from wearables or exercise machines

You’re probably wondering how much exercise is “enough” to burn more calories. It’s a trick question, though: You want to change what kind of person you are—stop being sedentary and become a frequent exerciser—rather than nickel-and-dime yourself about exactly what numbers you burned in which workout.

This is because our bodies get more efficient with exercise over time. A half-hour jog might burn 300 calories in theory, but at the end of the day you may have only burned, say, 200 more than if you hadn’t jogged. You might end up feeling more tired later in the day, or you might just be getting better at running and burning fewer calories when you do it. (This is an ongoing area of scientific research.) 

There is evidence that exercise machines’ estimates of calorie burn are extremely inaccurate; wearables like Fitbits and Apple Watches are probably a bit better, being personalized to your exercise intensity, but they’re still ultimately relying on estimates that aren’t always accurate.

Source: LifeHacker – How to Figure Out How Many Calories You Should Burn Each Day