NATIONAL SCIENCE FICTION DAY – NATIONAL PERSONAL TRAINER AWARENESS DAY – NATIONAL BUFFET DAY – NATIONAL CREAM PUFF DAY
TSA Dogs With “Scary” Pointy Ears Out Of The Job
And you thought people were worried about getting goosed by TSA agents? Turns out, the Transportation Security Administration is saying bye-bye to their airport screening dogs with pointy ears...because pointy-eared pooches are "too scary” for kids.
“We’ve made a conscious effort in TSA… to use floppy ear dogs,” says TSA honcho David Pekoske. “We find the passenger acceptance of floppy ear dogs is just better. It presents just a little bit less of a concern, doesn’t scare children.”
But that doesn’t mean all of their pointy-eared dogs are out of the job. They’ll reportedly use breeds like German shepherd and Belgian Malinois for everything other than screening passengers.
Source: Washington Examiner
What To Do With All Of That Leftover Champagne
One of the best things about New Year’s Day? You have champagne stockpiled in your fridge and ready for the drinking whenever you decide to go for something a little bubbly. But it might do you some good to leave one bottle in the fridge and put the rest somewhere a little less chilly.
Turns out, leaving champagne in your fridge for too long can cause it to lose its flavor AND its bubbles. And if we wanted flat champagne, we’d just go straight for the Pinot. If you’re in the mood for some leftover NYE champagne, just put it in the fridge a day or so before you’re ready to drink it. The last thing you want is to open up a bottle of bubbles only to find that the bubbles are gone.
Oh, and another thing? Instead of going right for the kill when you take the champagne out of the fridge, let it sit for 15 minutes. You won’t be able to taste the wine flavors if it’s too cold!
Source: LifeHacker
New Artificial Fingerprints Could Hack Into Your Phone
Researchers from New York University and Michigan State University have developed new artificial fingerprints that they say have the potential to be used to hack into your devices. According to the paper on their findings, the “DeepMasterPrints” they’ve generated can be used a sort of “masterkey” to unlock one-third of smartphones with fingerprint-based protection.
Many smartphone users opt for fingerprint unlocking features, even for apps with sensitive information like banking. But researchers are saying that it’s not as safe as you think, since the features only really capture and store a bunch of “partial fingerprints,” meaning a potential hacker only needs to match one of them to gain access to your device.
But in a statement, Clear, the firm behind the fingerprint recognition technologies used by Delta and Hertz, says they have “no question” that these “biometric” security features are a safer option. Other companies that utilize fingerprint security, like Apple, Google, Mastercard and Samsung, have yet to comment on the new research.
Source: CNBC
A Dry January May Not Be As Good An Idea As You Think
After a December filled with lots of food and booze, a lot of people decide to take January off from imbibing, but experts suggest committing to a Dry January isn’t exactly the great idea some people think it is.
Yes, it’s true giving up booze for a month can have health benefits, like better skin, more energy and dropping a few pounds, but experts say it doesn’t actually do much to encourage an all over healthier lifestyle. In fact, most people are likely to undo all the good they’ve done once February comes, because they’ll quickly indulge in a a lot of drinking once January is over to make up for what they had been missing.
"Taking a break from alcohol can be a good opportunity to reflect on how much and how often you are drinking, and its impact on your health and wellbeing as well as your finances,” Ben Butler, spokesman for the UK charity Drinkaware, notes. “However, people shouldn’t think that cutting back or having a break from alcohol for a short while means that it’s OK to drink to excess over the rest of the year."
- Experts note that instead of just cutting out booze for a month, folks should put their focus on cutting back on how much you drink overall. They suggest that if you’re drinking too much, try and set weekly limits on how much you consume.
- ONE MORE THING! If you are still thinking of taclking a Dry January, at least one study says it IS a good thing to do. A study out of University of Sussex had 816 UK residents take part in a booze-free January and found that eight months later these people were drinking less on average than before the dry month. They had about one less day of drinking a week, had one less glass of alcohol when they did drink, and got drunk one less time each month.
Source: The Sun
This Is the Maximum Time You Should Be Spending On Social Media
We’re always hearing about cutting back on social media or taking breaks from it entirely. But how much time on social media is actually okay for us? I mean, let’s face it – we’re never going to get rid of social media completely. And sometimes, we just want to check up on old friends and relatives we haven’t spoken to in a while. So how much is healthy?
Scientists at University of Pennsylvania did a study that showed that cutting back your social media use by just half an hour a day can really improve your mental wellbeing. The findings showed that the sweet spot for social media use landed somewhere in the 10-minutes-per-app range. If you’re a huge Instagram user and don’t really use Snapchat or Facebook, try to limit yourself to half hour total a day.
If you’re feeling a little down emotionally these days, it might be good to at least cut back significantly on checking and using your social media apps. Could go on the list of apps you toss when you clean out your phone!
Source: Bustle
The Most Returned Gifts In 2018 - Fashion is leading the list of most returned Christmas gifts of 2018.
B-Stock Solutions buys returned merchandise from leading retailers and resells them. It said women's shirts with too many ruffles and sleeve cutouts. Bedazzled booties were quickly returned. Other gifts that may not have been appreciated were crockpots and espresso makers.
As for children's gifts, parents were apparently not thrilled with the idea of picking up hundreds of tiny Lego pieces. “Star Wars” was also unpopular. Then there are the lifelike looking dolls that creep kids out. Just skip those next time.
Also on the list are small tools, including tape measures. Source: bstock