Eating, like traveling, is a way to relate with the world and with new cultures. That’s why when I travel, I make the local cuisine a big part of my adventure. That joy you feel when you taste something so different and so surprising for the first time. When you learn a new word for a new fruit you’ve never seen nor heard of before. When you taste a home-cooked meal in a foreign country and it’s totally not what you were expecting. When you discover unknown fruits, exotic spices, new diets. It’s an exploration—a way to experience a place and a mindset.

So, like every other aspect of my recent trip to Costa Rica, I learned not just the cute and weird phrases, the fun Spanish words or the fact that San José is hugely underrated. I also learned that the Costa Ricans have a serious sweet tooth, that coffee is a vital part of the local cuisine, and that even as sweet as the Ticos might be, they still like their fruits sour.

1. Cas

Like most tropical destinations, Costa Rica is home to a number of unique tropical fruits—ones you’d be hard-pressed to find in other places. And, just like any other warm-weather destination, Costa Rica turns these fruits into smoothies and shakes. The most popular tropical fruit in Costa Rica is without question the small, acidic sour fruit calledcas. Ticos will most often eat the fruit with salt, but if you want it sweet, go for it in a juice.

Where to get cas: It’s available at most sodas (small restaurants) and markets as fresco de cas—an ice-based smoothie made with the fruit.

2. Casado

The most traditional of Costa Rican meals, the Casado is an entire meal including white rice, beans, plantains, picadillo, salad and some type of meat (chicken, fish, pork or beef). In some touristic places and the Central Market, the casados include even more, with a corn tortilla and Turrialba cheese and maybe even some avocado slices. The same dish varies from place to place and the prices in touristic places are often exorbitantly expensive.

Where to get casado: Just about anywhere – it’s a popular dish for lunch. Skip the tourist restaurants and look for it instead at a local soda.

3. Gallo Pinto

Particularly popular for breakfast, the gallo pinto is a rice-and-beans dish prepared with onion, celery and other spices, sometimes accompanied with natilla or scrambled eggs. Ticos usually just call the dish pinto when ordering for breakfast. The origins of this plate are tracked to the Afro-Caribbean populations. Still today near the port-city of Limón, there’s a variant of gallo pinto simply called rice ‘n beans. This dish is similar to the gallo pinto, however it includes the tropical Caribbean flavors of coconut oil and sometimes shredded pieces of coconut.

Where to get gallo pinto: In San José try the gallo pinto at churro restaurant Manolos or the famous Soda Chelles. Both serve the dish all day long. The Central Market may offer both versions, the traditional gallo pinto and the tropical variant, rice ‘n beans.

We all want to maximize productivity within our businesses, large or small, yet the techniques of the past are rarely sufficient for a modern workforce.

More and more, I'm finding that the personal touch goes a long way toward employee productivity, as well as morale and retention.

What is it that drives employees to lose faith in their employers, lose motivation in their careers, and drives them away from your company and to another?

I find that it's often a combination of bureaucracy and stress. To minimize both, you need to identify what it is that your employees reject, and figure out a way to fix the issue.

SEE ALSO: 25 ways to win your boss's confidence after you mess up

1. Minimize the red tape

One of the most frustrating walls an employee encounters is requiring permission to do their job, time and time again.

Yes, there are security reasons for some measures. But often, old policies from petty managers trying to hoard power have led to "the way things have always been done" inertia, which keeps bad rules in place.

Just like in marketing with conversion rates, minimizing the number of obstacles between employee and desired outcome will increase productivity.

2. Be liberal with non-financial benefits

I completely understand that many businesses operate on tight margins. Your best employees deserve raises and bonuses, but when the budget doesn't allow it, you have to do something.

Why not offer a bit more paid time off or allow the occasional work-from-home day? Sometimes it can be as simple as setting up a room for the occasional sanctioned, on-the-job nap.

Personally, I'd much rather have an employee feel safe nodding off for half an hour than having them doze at their computer getting barely anything done for half their shift.

3. Ditch the performance review 

Or, rather, make sure they're relevant if you have one. Performance reviews are a source of stress even for good employees — check out impostor syndrome — and they're often just filed away and never referenced again.

Unless your reviews are both accurate and used regularly, they're probably doing more harm than good.

Frankly, I think official performance reviews are an antiquated relic from the ghost of management past. If you're paying attention and have a working relationship with your employees, you'll be able to tell how they're performing.

More importantly, if you're open and they can come to you with problems they face, you can help stave off the issues that drive down their morale. Half of the reason for a negative performance review is toiling under strict conditions that limit an employee's ability to work in the first place.

If getting the latest Android updates matters to you, the go-to option is usually Google's own Nexus smartphones, which receive the latest updates from Google as soon as they're released.

But if you don't fancy Nexus smartphones, you do have a few other options, as some phone makers push Android updates faster than others.

Research firm Apteligent published a report that ranks how quickly six of the biggest Android smartphone makers pushed the latest Android 6.0 update to phones running Android 5.0. 

Check out the Android phone makers that will get you those tasty updates the fastest.

SEE ALSO: This smartphone has the same specs as the Galaxy S7 but costs $250 less

1. Motorola

Apteligent notes that while Motorola was the fastest to release the Android 6.0 update in November 2015, it pushed it to its flagship devices first, like the 2015 Moto X.

Motorola then rolled out the Android 6.0 update to a wider range of its devices two months later towards the end of December 2015. 

2. LG

Similar to Motorola, LG first rolled out the Android 6.0 update to its LG G4 flagship device, except it did so a little later in January 2016, about three months later than Motorola.

LG began rolling out updates to more compatible devices about a month later in February 2016.

3. HTC

HTC also began pushing the Android 6.0 update in January, and Apteligent notes that it pushed out the update to all its compatible devices from the get go. 

Justin Bieber recently rented a Hawaiian property called Water Falling Estate for two weeks at a rate of $10,000 a night, TMZ reports.

The estate, which sold for $5.7 million at an auction in 2014, boasts "a 450-seat tennis/basketball stadium, a 250 million-gallon Olympic infinity pool with a high dive and two-story water slide," and a helicopter landing pad, according to The Hawaii Tribune Herald.

The mansion stands on a cliff overlooking several waterfalls and the Pacific Ocean, and its listing on Concierge Auctions reveals some spectacular photos of the property. It can also be rented on Home Away.

Check out the opulent vacation home Bieber stayed in:

SEE ALSO: No one wants to buy 50 Cent's incredible $6 million mansion that he's been forced to sell due to bankruptcy

The 9.44-acre property stands atop a cliff on Hawaii's Hamakua Coast.

Source: Concierge Auctions

The estate was once a macadamia nut plantation, but now it boasts an Olympic-size pool, a multipurpose athletic court ...

Source: Concierge Auctions

... a helicopter pad on the mansion's roof ...

When Jim Koch left a comfortable career at Boston Consulting Group in 1984 to start the Boston Beer Company, his father told him he was making a terrible mistake.

The Kochs are a family of brewers, but Koch's dad thought the idea of trying to enter an industry dominated by brands like Budweiser and Coors was destined for failure.

Koch, however, started by aiming at a niche market. Today craft breweries produce 10% of all the beer in the United States, and Sam Adams is at the head of the pack, accounting for a full 1% of that slice, and bringing in more than a billion dollars in annual revenue.

In his new book "Quench Your Own Thirst," Koch shares 10 books he finds have had the most impact on his success. He previously explained the value of the first two selections in an interview with Business Insider last year, saying they helped him develop a philosophy of prioritizing customers over shareholders and using constant innovation as an advantage.

These are the titles he recommends you pick up if you're an aspiring entrepreneur or leader.

SEE ALSO: Anthony Bourdain discusses the new season of 'Parts Unknown,' his favorite restaurants, and how he went from outsider chef to the top of the food world

'Out of the Crisis' by W. Edward Deming

Deming was an American statistician who spent a decade in Japan after World War II. His lectures, consultation, and training contributed significantly to the country's postwar economic boom and the emergence of fine Japanese products on the global market.

In 1951, the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers created the Deming Prize for exceptional achievement in industry, but Deming didn't gain notoriety in the US until the '80s.

His 1986 book "Out of the Crisis," which Koch said is written in charming colloquial language, outlines 14 management points that advocate for the need to forecast, stay innovative, and empower employees.

"Long-term commitment to new learning and new philosophy is required of any management that seeks transformation," Deming wrote. "The timid and the fainthearted, and the people that expect quick results, are doomed to disappointment."

Koch said he takes this approach to his business, ignoring the daily ups and downs of the Boston Beer Company's stock price and prioritizing long-term growth over short-term results.

"So I'm worried about, where are we in two years? In five years? How do I make this the best, strongest, healthiest company I can?" Koch told us.

Find it here »

'The Structure of Scientific Revolutions' by Thomas S. Kuhn

The late physicist's book has become "one of the most cited academic books of all time" since its initial publication in 1962, establishing Kuhn as "perhaps the most influential" philosopher of science in the 20th century, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Kuhn's book is best remembered for introducing the phrase "paradigm shift," representing instances in scientific history when a perspective was fundamentally shifted, like when quantum physics replaced Newtonian mechanics.

The paradigm shift theory can be applied to aspects of business as well, such as the way Americans expanded their beer consumption past huge brands like Budweiser and Heineken over the past two decades.

"The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" helped Koch "think about removing the blinders and not think within constraints," Koch told us.

"To be able to say, 'I know this is the way the world is, but why can't it be different and better?'"

Find it here »

'Accidents in North American Mountaineering' by the American Alpine Club

Before returning to Harvard to finish the dual MBA/JD program in 1978, Koch took a break and spent a few years as an Outward Bound instructor. Outward Bound is organization dedicated to fostering personal development through team building exercises outdoors.

In his book, Koch writes that his Harvard classmates may have turned up their noses at his decision, but he considers it pivotal to his success as an entrepreneur. "I found it invigorating to have no real responsibilities except to myself — life was now a blank canvas, every day a new choice."

One of the guides he came across during this time was the annual safety guide from the American Alpine Club, which uses the year's worst mountain climbing accidents to explain how such mistakes can be avoided. Koch later internalized it as a metaphor for business.

"Most fatalities begin as small mistakes that get compounded by unexpected conditions and bad judgment," he wrote. "There is usually a point where the right decision needs to be made and, if not made, fatality can only be avoided with unusually good luck (which rarely happens)."

Find it here »

Usually when new visitors travel to Europe, it’s to the big capital cities—those cities that make it into all the movies and TV dramas. We travel to Paris, to London, to Madrid and Barcelona and Amsterdam and Brussels.

But in a continent of vastly diverse cultures, it’s often the small cities where local culture really shines. And while big European cities will always hold a special place in our collective global history, it’s the smaller cities which retain the old-world charm with new-world culture.

Nice, France

On the Mediterranean coast of southern France, Nice is the capital of the iconic French Riviera. For a long time, the city was a luxury escape for French and European aristocrats, but today it’s a surprisingly hip beach destination with a friendly and welcoming attitude not often seen in other areas of France.

The city’s picturesque beaches and the old-world promenade are a reflection of the city’s dynamic history, but it’s the city’s commitment today to the arts that make it such a fascinating destination (the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean don’t hurt either!). While there are museums dedicated to the works of Marc Chagall and Henri Matisse, the contemporary art museum (Musée d’art moderne et d’art contemporain) is a real gem featuring modern and contemporary works by both French and international artists. There’s a rooftop terrace as well, with a great panoramic view over Nice.

Besides the art, the local cuisine of Nice is a real treat. Because of the city’s comfortably warm weather year-round, a lot of the local foods are quite fresh and cool—from the city’s namesake salad, Niçoise Salad, to Rosé wine—both popular for a leisurely lunch on the beach.

Ljubljana, Slovenia

Slovenia’s capital city is known for its young population and its many open, green spaces (the city has been named the European Green Capital 2016). Ljubljana has a culture of creativity, best represented by the disproportionately high number of museums and galleries. The city center is a bustling district of small, independent shops, bars and cafés centered around the sleepy Ljubljanica River. The laid-back charm of the small city make it a comfortable destination for any type of tourist, from those seeking a romantic holiday to those looking for a solo adventure.

Again, the city is nearby a number of natural beauties—from the iconic Lake Bled (the jewel of Slovenia) to nearby vineyards and olive oil producers. On the fringes of Ljubljana’s city center, theMetelkova district and old Tovarna Rog are hotspots for alternative culture—with underground parties and street art aplenty.

Freiburg, Germany

Germany is famous for its small towns and old-world cities. In the southwestern region of Baden-Württemburg, Freiburg is a bit of an oasis inside Germany’s famous Black Forest. Known for its relative good weather and it’s large universities, it’s a medieval town turned into a young and vibrant city. While the city culture is significantly less than other German cities, there’s more than enough to see and do in the region. Whether it’s a day trip of hiking the Black Forest (head up to the Schlossberg mountain) or visiting the nearby wineries of the low-laying hilltowns in the Kaiserstuhl.

In Freiburg itself, you’ll find lots of cafés, pubs and small clubs catering to the city’s many students. Food in the region is typical of that German cuisine you expect to find in Germany: think hearty dishes like spätzle, Black Forest Cake or schnitzel.

There are 151 Pokémon in "Pokémon Go." The game contains the entire first run of Pokémon, which originally debuted in the mid-'90s.

You cannot, however, catch them all. At least not yet.

That original list of 151 includes three "legendary" Pokémon — Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres — who definitely aren't in the game yet. It also includes Ditto, Mew, and Mewtwo, who definitely aren't in the game yet. And some Pokémon on that list are exclusive to certain territories (Tauros to North America, Mr. Mime to Western Europe, etc). 

Here's what we know: The in-game encyclopedia of Pokémon, the Pokédex, increases in size as you discover Pokémon (as seen above).

The in-game list is identical to this official list of Pokémon in the online Pokédex, not just in number, but in order.

One of our staff video producers has a Dragonair (#148). None of us has ever seen a Mr. Mime (#122), but our executive editor has a Tauros (one of the region-specific ones, supposedly tied to North America). No one has found Ditto (#132) anywhere in the world.

All of which is to say: Expect the entire lineup of 151 original Pokémon to be capturable at some point. Currently, it looks like each region tops out at 142. Without further ado, here's every Pokémon you can currently find in "Pokémon Go."

SEE ALSO: Here are the crazy things this guy did to become the first person to catch all the Pokémon in the US

1. Bulbasaur — NOTE: We've included the descriptions for each Pokémon from the official Pokédex. Enjoy!

"Bulbasaur can be seen napping in bright sunlight. There is a seed on its back. By soaking up the sun's rays, the seed grows progressively larger."

2. Ivysaur

"There is a bud on this Pokémon's back. To support its weight, Ivysaur's legs and trunk grow thick and strong. If it starts spending more time lying in the sunlight, it's a sign that the bud will bloom into a large flower soon."

3. Venusaur

"There is a large flower on Venusaur's back. The flower is said to take on vivid colors if it gets plenty of nutrition and sunlight. The flower's aroma soothes the emotions of people."

America's love affair with cars has reached critical mass.

According to Experian's quarterly "State of the Automotive Finance Market," the average car payment for a new vehicle is an astounding $482 per month — stretched out for 67 months, or more than five years.

That amount of money is hard to fathom on a national level, but it's even crazier when you consider something else: The average American household is saving just 5% of their disposable income for retirement, which isn't enough for most people to ever retire — let alone retire comfortably.

Almost worse than that is the fact that almost half of American families — including ones with ginormous car payments — couldn't even come up with $400 to cover an emergency or financial crisis.

Yes, you read that right. A recent poll by the Federal Reserve showed that 47% of families don't have the cash reserves to cover emergency car repairs, unexpected medical bills, or any other minor life crisis that pops up.

But at least we'll all look and feel awesome driving our new cars… right? 

What you're giving up for that new ride

Well, on second thought, maybe not. Although we recently argued that 84-month car loans might be the worst idea ever, I'm going to up the ante and say that all car payments suck. 

There are exceptions, of course. If you have the cash to pay for a car but opt for a 0% APR loan so you can invest instead, that's super cool. Or let's say you have other high-interest debts — borrowing money at a lower interest rate so you can completely annihilate your other loans is yet another smart use of your funds.

However, most car shopping isn't quite so strategic. Most of the time, we head to the dealership, fall in love with something shiny, and sign our lives away without thinking twice.

We've been programmed to think that "everyone has a car payment," and that it's an inevitable fact of life. Even worse, we're convinced that a new car is the ultimate sign of affluence — that upgrading is our "right" as we earn promotions at work, secure bigger and better paychecks, and take our position as the head of our households.

Related: Keeping Lifestyle Inflation at Bay

Sadly, all of that is bull$#!t, and complete propaganda perpetuated by the car dealerships and automakers who profit from our hard-earned dollars.

That's why they pay people like Matthew McConaughey big bucks to pretend he won a huge poker game with his friends then drive away smoothly in a Lincoln MKX. When you really think about it, it's so, so, so, so sad that we actually fall for this crap.

In an age when cars are better built and more reliable than ever, there's no need to trade up every five years and live in a state of perpetual new-car debt.

The average age of cars on the road in the U.S. was a record-high 11.5 years in 2015. That's just the average — meaning for every brand-new car sold, there's another one out there that's 20 years old — and an owner who might have been living sans car payments for 15 years by now.

Imagine what the world would be like if everyone (or at least most of us) saved that new-car cash and drove an old beater-mobile. Imagine if we said, "To heck with the Joneses," and drove that smart Honda Civic to the ground instead of buying a new one every few years.

What could we buy then? And what could we save? What dreams could we achieve with that money?

It could be anything, but let's start here:

SEE ALSO: 17 tips to save money, from a woman who lived on $14,000 a year

1. A college education for your child

While no one knows exactly how much a college education could cost five years from now, it's fairly safe to say it will cost a pretty penny.

College Board estimates show that the average cost of tuition at a public, four-year school ranges anywhere from $4,891 in Wyoming all the way to $15,160 in New Hampshire— and that doesn't include room, board, and living expenses. Even tuition at public, two-year schools ranges from around $2,000 per year all the way up to $6,500, depending on the state.

Obviously, a lot of what you'll pay depends on where you live, but it also depends on what type of school your child attends, and for how long. But let's just say your goal is to pay for most of your child's college education — maybe not all, but as much as you can.

If you funded an investment account for your child at the moment of birth with just $500 and added $482 per month for a full 18 years, your child would leave high school with $163,921.02 for college — and that's if your investments earned just a conservative 5% per year!

While we're on the subject, that $482 per month could also bankroll your own online masters degree.

2. An income-producing rental property

While landlord horror stories may have dampened your dream of owning rental property, plenty of people still hope to get in the game one day — and it is a time-tested way to grow your wealth if you can handle the headaches. However, the biggest barrier is usually coming up with a down payment. To buy most rental properties, you need a down payment of at least 20%, plus excellent credit.

Imagine you started socking away that $482 right now, and kept doing so for four years. You might get seriously sick of your beat-up minivan by then, but you would ultimately wind up with $23,136 stashed away.

Depending on where you live, that might be enough for a down payment on a small rental to get you started. Over time, you could let your renters "pay off your property" while building equity in an investment that will hopefully increase in value over time. This plan is totally feasible, but you'll want to prepare yourself for the realities of rental property before you get started.

Related: What I Wish I Had Known Before Buying Rental Property

3. An annual vacation to Europe (or somewhere else really cool)

Let's say you have all your financial ducks in a row — you're saving like crazy for your children's college education, socking away 20% of your pay in your work-sponsored retirement accounts, and sitting on an emergency fund big enough to handle nearly anything that pops up.

That's all fine and dandy, but are you taking the time to smell the roses? If you were able to sacrifice that monthly car payment, you would have plenty of cash to live — and travel — nearly any way you wanted.

These days, you can easily score a sale fare to Europe for $800 or less round-trip, depending on where you live. By saving that $482 per month — or $5,784 per year — you could afford to fly your family of four to Ireland, France, Italy, Portugal, or Spain every year, for example, plus pay for a standard bed-and-breakfast and most of your activities.

Or choose a cheap, all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean, and you could take your family twice per year easily. With average round-trip airfare to most places in the Caribbean at around $400, a family of four could fly for around $1,600 and still have money to select a nice property and have a boatload of fun.

Related: Why I'll Never Feel Bad About My Vacation Spending

As the long, lazy days of summer drift away, it's time to fit in one last vacation before hectic and demanding fall schedules take over, and the extended Labor Day weekend is the ideal time for that last hurrah.

We've got ten great cities where you can celebrate the unofficial end of summer.

SEE ALSO: 14 mouthwatering photos of the best airport food in the world

DON'T FORGET: Follow Business Insider's lifestyle page on Facebook!

New York, New York

The Big Apple is bursting with entertainment, fashion, media, and an energy that few cities worldwide can match. Check out the gorgeous view of the iconic skyline from One World Observatory and pop into a couple of newcomers in the city's top-notch culinary scene for a variety of delicious cuisines.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s New York City Travel Guide

Las Vegas, Nevada

Go all-in for your getaway and hop on a plane to the twenty-four hour entertainment, endless casinos, and elaborately themed hotels of Sin City. Book a stay at a uniquely luxurious hotel suite for an over-the-top weekend or stray from the infamy and bring the kids along for free, family-friendly fun, including a pinball paradise, chocolate factory tours, and the world’s largest permanent circus.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Las Vegas Travel Guide

Chicago, Illinois

There's plenty to do in Chicago this summer. Spend your holiday like a true Chicagoan — hit the ballpark for a Cubs or Sox game, check out the city's burgeoning beer scene, and fill up on Chicago-style dogs, deep-dish pizza, and Italian beef. Relish in the Windy City's free fun by wandering the Lincoln Park Zoo, enjoying an improv show at Second City, or delighting in Navy Pier's fireworks at night.

Plan Your Trip: Visit Fodor’s Chicago Travel Guide

These days, there are endless ways to enjoy a burger, one of America’s favorite comfort foods. While we’ll always be fans of the classic varieties, restaurants today are really pushing the envelope, using different patties — beef, lamb, tuna, veggie and more — and a myriad of inventive toppings and sauces. Here are 17 fancy burgers that’ll surprise and delight even the most experienced fast-food aficionado:

1. Berries & Brie Burger – Grange Hall Burger Bar (Chicago)

The perfect combination of sweet and savory, Grange Hall’s Berries and Brie Burger is made from Tallgrass Beef Company’s grass-fed beef, topped with brie, arugula, mixed berry compote, Dijon aioli and a red wine balsamic reduction, served with either a sesame seed or gluten-free bun or on a bed of lettuce.

2. The Ron Swanson – WHISK (Chicago)

Bacon lovers rejoice at WHISK over The Ron Swanson, an 8oz burger wrapped in 1lb of bacon, topped with bacon-mayo and served with a side of regular or Cajun fries.

3. Spiced Lamb Burger – Amali (New York)

A departure from the classic beef patty, Amali serves up its Spiced Lamb Burger with tzatziki, red onion and arugula on a sesame brioche.

Even the most addicted "Pokémon Go" players crave tips and tricks to help them cheat and level up.

And no, we don't mean the creative kind of cheating, like strapping your phone to your dog or a drone until the eggs you've collected hatch.

The problem is, there's a ton of misinformation out there that might be steering you off course as you desperately try to reach level 30.

No, your friend's friend didn't catch a Legendary Pokémon. And no, there is no mathematical calculation to determine what those footprints mean in your Nearby menu. Sorry! We wish there was just as much as you do. 

The game does, however, have a plethora of secrets hiding just beneath the surface. We've gathered the best cheats and hidden features and put them right here! Happy hunting.

SEE ALSO: 'Pokémon Go' players in Bosnia are wandering into minefields

Start with Pikachu!

There's a simple trick to getting Pikachu right at the start of the game: disobedience! As my colleague Tim Mulkerin wrote, "You have to initially rebel against Professor Willow and refuse to pick a Pokémon when he asks you to. Instead of picking one of the three Pokémon he offers, keep walking until Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur disappear from the map.

The trio of Pokémon will pop up again on your map when you get far enough away from them, and you have to continue to ignore them four times.

The fifth time they respawn on your map, they'll have Pikachu with them! Pick Pikachu instead of one of the original trio, and voila! He's yours." BOOM!

Keep getting the same Pokémon? Keep them! Evolve them! Level up your Trainer!

The most important thing you can do in "Pokémon Go" is level up your Trainer. The higher the level you are, the better Pokémon you'll find. They'll have higher CP and HP, and thus they'll be more capable of going to gyms and winning in battle without you having to power them up. 

So, how do you get there quickly? Be recycling your duplicates. Pokémon like Rattata and Pidgey and Weedle — Pokémon that you run into frequently, that cost very few candy to evolve. Evolving Pokémon gives you a fat payout of 500 XP. You see where I'm going with this?

Every time you collect a Pidgey or a Weedle or whatever else, you get a few candy. When you evolve them, you can then transfer them to Professor Willow for a bonus candy, thus enabling further evolution. 

Here's a bunch more info!

Maximize on your Lucky Eggs and Incense to help with Trainer leveling!

Consider this: If you get 500 XP for evolving Pokémon, and Lucky Eggs double your XP for 30 minutes, you'll get 1000 XP for every Pokémon you evolve in that time period. 

So maybe save those oft-found Pokémon for a special 30 minutes of evolution frenzy? If you're feeling up to it, perhaps add an Incense use to your Lucky Egg time. For every new Pokémon found that you've never found before, you get 500 XP (which then gets doubled). You can see how this could turn into an XP windfall very quickly.

In general, using Lucky Eggs and Incense together is a pretty solid idea to maximize on the use of both. Here's a bunch more info!

Great public schools abound in the US, but for some students the less traditional and often-times smaller educational experience offered by charter schools is a better fit.

Charter schools still operate within public school districts, but typically they don't have to follow all of the regulations other schools do, leaving them open to alternative teaching methods and different programs. These schools usually have limited enrollment and may accept students through an application process or lottery system. 

U.S. News & World Report recently released its list of the best high schools in America, gathering data on more than 21,000 public schools across the country. They also separately highlighted the country's top charter schools. 

The ranking looked at graduation rates, college readiness, and how well students at each school performed statistically compared to others in their state. The college readiness score (out of a possible 100) measures which schools produce the best college-level achievement for the highest percentages of students, using AP and IB scores as benchmarks. You can read the full breakdown of the methodology here. 

For parents and students interested in the charter school experience, here are the top-25 schools to consider in the US — each of which also ranks in the U.S. News' top-100 high schools overall. 

SEE ALSO: The 50 smartest private high schools in the US

DON'T MISS: The best public high school in every state

25. Treknorth High School

Location:Bemidji, Minnesota

Enrollment: 169

College readiness: 86.4

Graduation rate: 76%

24. Early College High School

Location:Laredo, Texas

Enrollment: 416

College readiness: 86.6

Graduation rate: 100%

23. Charter School of Wilmington

Location:Wilmington, Delaware

Enrollment: 970

College readiness: 87.1

Graduation rate: 100%

It’s about that time of year where all the major US carriers shake up their mobile plans.

This year, the buzzword is "unlimited." Both T-Mobile and Sprint on Thursday introduced new plans touting unlimited talk, text, and data. On Wednesday, AT&T refreshed its offerings, loosening its policy on overage fees in the process. Verizon made similar changes in July, too.

Per usual, though, the big four have largely obfuscated what exactly their "unlimited" plans are doing. So let's break things down.

SEE ALSO: If a carrier says you're getting unlimited data, they're not telling you everything

T-Mobile

T-Mobile says its new “One” plan will offer unlimited talk, text, and 4G LTE data.

It costs $70 per month. If you want to add a second line, that’ll cost $50 per month. After that, you can add up to eight more lines, with each of those at $20 per month. You can add a tablet to this as well, giving that unlimited LTE data for $20 per month.

All of this presumes you have your billing set to auto-pay; if not, each rate goes up by $5 per line.

There are caveats to the “unlimited” claim as well.

- Most notably, any video you stream over mobile data with the One plan will be capped at a standard definition resolution of 480p. If you want to be able to stream in higher definition (presumably 720p), you’ll have to buy an “HD add-on” for $25 per month, per line. This is rough.

- If you want to use your phone as a mobile hotspot, that’ll be unlimited, but only at 2G speeds, or 128 kbps. That’s very slow! T-Mobile says you’ll be able to add 4G tethering data, but it’ll cost $15 per month for every 5GB you want to use.

- It’ll still throttle some people’s speeds, too. The carrier says users who consume more than 26GB of LTE data in a month “may see their data traffic prioritized behind other users.” T-Mobile told Business Insider that there is no set speed for this prioritization, and claimed that affected users “won’t notice a difference except during rare instances of congestion on a specific tower.”

T-Mobile One will replace the carrier’s current "Simple Choice Unlimited" post-paid plans. T-Mobile says it’ll address prepaid rates at a later date. Customers on existing T-Mobile plans will be able to keep what they have now.

In exchange for the increased data cap, the One plan will cost more than the cheapest Simple Choice plan that’s available today, which costs $50 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 2GB of data. A more appropriate comparison might be the next step up — that costs $65 per month for a fairly sizable 6GB of data with one line, and $120 per month with four.

Individually, the Simple Choice plan that already has unlimited LTE data costs $95 per month — the same as what it costs to have a One plan with the HD video add-on. It includes 14GB of 4G tethering data as well. A set of four pays $220 for unlimited data now — with One, they could pay $160 for SD video only (the same as a 10GB plan now), or up to $260 if they all wanted HD.

Interestingly, T-Mobile says the One plan will do away with the carrier’s Binge On program, which allows approved apps to stream video over its network without counting against a user’s data allowance. It's also raised numerous net neutrality concerns.

The carrier says existing Simple Choice users will still get Binge On, Music Freedom (essentially Binge On for music), and Data Stash (which rolls over unused data per month), but One will phase them all out. Formally, that is: In effect, the One plan makes those initiatives the norm, at least until you hit that 26GB point.

Cut through the noise and the numbers, and the One plan amounts to 1) a boon for those who need tons of mobile data and are okay with 480p video, 2) a price hike for many, 3) an annoyance for hotspot users, and 4) a minor change for those who already use an unlimited plan today. It goes live on September 6.

Sprint

Sprint’s “Unlimited Freedom” plan, meanwhile, gets you unlimited talk and text, “optimized streaming video, gaming, and music,” and LTE data for “most everything else.”

Much like T-Mobile, it’s technically unlimited, but the “optimized” bit means video streaming will be capped at 480p. Online gaming will max at 2 mbps (which is slow), while music streams will top out at 500 kbps (which is good). It doesn’t appear as if Sprint will offer an HD streaming option a la the One plan. The company hasn’t responded to a request for comment. It will, however, offer 5GB of LTE tethering data before sending you down to 2G speeds.

The new plan starts at $60 per month for one line. A second will cost $40 per month. You can then add up to seven more, each at $30 per month. So a family of four would pay $160.

Again, Sprint already offers an unlimited data plan today. That’s pricier — at $75 per month for the first line, and $45 per month for the second — and only includes 3GB of LTE hotspot data, but also doesn’t have the restrictions this new plan introduces. (Currently, a $60 monthly plan gets you 12GB of “regular” LTE data.)

The Unlimited Freedom plan will be available on August 19. Sprint says its existing plans will all stay intact.

Historic floods washed through southern Louisiana over the past week, and even though the skies over affected parts of the state have at least partially cleared, swollen rivers continue to inundate communities and homes.

In places where the water has started to recede, the extent of the destruction is now being revealed.

Rainfall was so heavy in parts of the state that it could qualify "as a 1-in-1,000 year rainfall event,"according to Dr. Jeff Masters, the director of meteorology for Weather Underground.

The storm left thousands of people without homes, and it'll be some time before it's possible to fully assess the damage. Thirteen people have died, the governor said, and 30,000 have been rescued.

Here's what the scene on the ground looks like:

SEE ALSO: Louisiana governor warns that the state's historic flooding is 'not over' — here's why

Floods were caused by the combination of extreme humidity and an almost-stationary low pressure system that hovered over the Gulf Coast and dumped water for up to three days.

Approximately 40,000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the disaster, according to preliminary reports.

Source: Weather Underground

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is collecting satellite imagery to assess the extent of the damage.

Source: NOAA

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has been on an incredible run of late as he inches closer to becoming the most bankable action star on the planet.

Franchises like "Fast and the Furious" and "San Andreas" are the latest hits that have brought his lifetime worldwide box-office gross to over $5.9 billion, and coming up he's got "Baywatch" and "Jumanji."

He's also stepping into the superhero world in the near future as he's signed on to be Doc Savage.

That's not to mention his other endeavors like a YouTube channel, a production company, and endorsement deals.

Johnson raked in $64.5 million in the past year, putting him at No. 19 on Forbes' list of the 100 highest-earning celebrities.

With season two of his HBO series "Ballers" premiering on Sunday, here we look back on the incredible career of "The Rock" from WWE superstar to box-office champ.

Frank Pallotta and Mallory Schlossberg contributed to an earlier version of this story.

SEE ALSO: Here's the most popular music artist in every state, according to Pandora

Before he was "The Rock," Dwayne Johnson was born on May 2, 1972, in Hayward, California.

Source: Biography

Wrestling is in Johnson's blood. His father, Rocky "Soul Man" Johnson, was a member of the first African-American tag-team champions, and his grandfather Peter Maivia was one of the first Samoan wrestlers.

Source: YouTube

Johnson didn't go straight to wrestling. His first sport was football. After starring in high school, he played in college for the Miami Hurricanes. Over his tenure at the school, Johnson started just once but appeared in 39 games and had 77 tackles, and he was a part of the 1991 national championship team.

Source: ESPN

As summer vacation winds down, many college kids are heading back to campus ready regale each other with stories of their summer internships. 

Few will have more bragging rights than former Facebook interns. 

The social media giant has a particularly robust and perk-laden program, earning it first place on last year's internship ranking from job site Glassdoor. 

So, what's it really like to be a Facebook intern at its Menlo Park headquarters? 

Think cool projects, cushy wages, and an emphasis on empowerment. Facebook treats its interns like regular employees, so even though they're living together dorm-style in free apartments and taking the occasional coordinated trip down the coast to Santa Cruz or Yosemite on the company's dime, they're working their butts off too. 

A few 20-somethings who've been through the program dished on what it was like:

SEE ALSO: Mark Zuckerberg: CEOs need to take risks, but shouldn't have to do 'big, crazy things'

Interns make big bucks and get freebies galore.

For those uninitiated to the Silicon Valley status quo, the pay and perks that Facebook interns get sound almost ridiculous. 

Although Facebook declined to discuss specifics, Glassdoor lists salaries for interns between $6,400 and $7,500 a month. A recent survey cited by Bloomberg pegged wages at $8,000 a month. One intern showed us an offer letter for $8,400 a month.

That would be $100,800 annually. 

To help that sink in, the national wage index was $46,481 when the Social Security Administration last compiled data in 2014. 

And that's not to mention the free food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Facebook's Disneyland-esque campus, the free housing, the free shuttles to-and-from said housing, and all of the activities (a weekend in Yosemite, a day renting out Great America amusement park, theatre performances, Alcatraz tours, scavenger hunts, and more). We also heard about a "wellness" stipend in the range of $240 that one intern used to book a weekend trip to Tahoe.

Of course, those lavish perks come with big expectations (and lots of access).

As an English and literature major at Spelman College in Atlanta, Janelle Gregory never pictured herself working at a tech company in Silicon Valley.

But she applied on a whim to Facebook's FB University for Business program in 2015 after a recruiter visited her school. Now, she earnestly describes her experience as "changing the trajectory" of her life.

After her internship last summer, she returned a second year to research and work on the company's safety products. 

"We're not just here to do grunt work," she says. "[Facebook] allows us to really head our own projects, they really listen to what we have to say. They take our opinions seriously."

Facebook assigns interns to nearly every team — there's no project that's off-limits because it's too secret, Hyla Wallis, who runs the intern program, says. Interns are also given the same access to internal resources and information as regular employees. 

Cesar Ilharco, who interned at Facebook last fall, tells Business Insider that he even asked Mark Zuckerberg a question at its weekly all-hands meeting once. 

"He'll answer anything," Ilharco says (while declining to reveal his question, noting that interns adhere very closely to Facebook's confidentiality policy). 

The 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro have been absolutely epic — from awe-inspiring gold medal victories to, well, confusing stories about robberies.

But at the heart of the Olympic games is the spirit of sportsmanship and a belief that with hard work, you can do nearly anything — except swim as quickly as Katie Ledecky.

And so, the Rio Olympics have been full of some truly heartwarming moments, of athletes helping each other out, celebrating each other's victories and making their dreams come true.

Here are 15 of the most moving pictures from the Rio games.

Brazilian rugby player Isadora Cerullo got engaged to her girlfriend after a match. It was the first proposal of the Rio games.

Read more about the moment here.

Jamaica's Usain Bolt and his Canadian rival Andre de Grasse were so far ahead of the competition during the 200-meter semifinal, they couldn't help but share a laugh.

Read more about the moment here.

This image of Egyptian volleyball player Doaa Elghobashy (left) and German player Kira Walkenhorst (right) sum up what the Olympics are all about: different cultures coming together for the love of sport.

Read more about the moment here.

The Rio Olympics are already more than halfway done, and we've seen new world records, stunning upsets, heartbreaking crashes and injuries, and plenty more excitement. 

One of the best parts of the Olympics, though, is the photography. The photos from every sport are terrific, and they capture the emotion, energy, and athleticism of the games. That Rio is one of the most photogenic cities in the world helps, too. 

Below are some of our favorite photos so far. This is by no means an exhaustive list — there are simply too many terrific shots to choose from. We picked a bunch, but we'll be updating this post throughout the games as more great photos come in. 

Enjoy!

An Australian archer takes aim with a Rio favela in the background.

Nice dig by China's Fan Wang.

There's something exceedingly dramatic about fencing.

Pixar films generally become instant classics due to their stunning animation, creative storytelling techniques, and memorable casts of characters. And while some Hollywood stars like Tom Hanks or Ellen Degeneres are instantly recognizable as the voices behind the animation, other actors are harder to pinpoint.

We've gone through every Pixar film released and identified all the actors you may not have realized were cast in roles both big and small. Scroll down for a look.

"Toy Story" debuted in 1995, with Tom Hanks and Tim Allen starring as Buzz and Woody. But do you remember who voiced Rex?

That would be Wallace Shawn, perhaps best known for his role of Vizzini in "The Princess Bride."

Four years later, a new "Toy Story" character was introduced: Stinky Pete the Prospector.

While we are firm believers that age ain't nothin' but a number, we'll also be the first to admit that there are a few things that simply aren't appealing to anyone over the age of 30.

Here are 20 trips that you should take while the idea of sharing a hostel room or raging all night doesn't make you run the other way.

Sit in a car for 17 hours on a cross country road trip. Your back won't be OK with this for much longer.

Drink buckets of booze while decked out in neon at one of the monthly full-moon parties in Koh Phangan, Thailand. The beach rave starts at dusk and continues till the early hours of the morning.

Take "The Eurotrip" while you're young. Of course, there's no age cutoff for Europe, but that specific "coming of age" trip where you see more bars than sights, spend an inordinate amount of time in Amsterdam, and befriend every other American you come across is a uniquely 20s experience.