Pretty much any city can claim a Chinatown, but not many cities can lay claim to a Little Persia or Greektown.

From Baltimore to Los Angeles, here are 11 exotic ethnic neighborhoods around the US.

Andersonville, Chicago, Illinois

Swedish flags line the streets of Andersonville, a Swedish sounding, European feeling 'hood that's only 15 minutes from Lake Michigan.

Founded by Swedish immigrants in the 1850s, it's allegedly still one of the most concentrated areas of Swedish heritage in the country.

Clark Street is the neighborhood's nucleus, and home to Swedish bakeries and restaurants galore, the famous Swedish American Museum of Chicago (whose opening ceremony was attended by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden himself), and one of Chicago’s most popular street festivals: Midsommarfest.

Fredericksburg, Texas

Nestled in Texas Hill Country you’ll find Fredericksburg, a small town named after Prince Frederick of Prussia that proudly preserves its unique German heritage.

German was Fredericksburg's primary language until World War II, and today it’s still home to “Texas German,” a dialect that started when the German settlers who founded the town in 1846 refused to learn English.

Here you’ll find the Vereins Kirche (society church), now a museum, as well as the Old German Bakery and Restaurant, Der Lindenbaum restaurant, Opa’s Smoked Meats, and the Fredericksburg Brewing Company, to name a few authentically German haunts.

Greektown, Baltimore, Maryland

Formerly known as The Hill, the neighborhood’s name was officially changed to Greektown in the '80s.

As you may have guessed, the area is home to a thriving Greek community, as well as thriving Greek businesses like Akropolis, Ikaros, Samos and Zorba restaurants, and the annual Greek Folk Festival, a four-day celebration of everything Greek. 

For most young people and their parents, buying a first car is a major step.

One great option is to look at used cars, which can often be had for a fraction of the cost of brand-new versions.

We came up with 15 used cars we think are the best for the young car buyer on a budget. 

To make our list, we focused on cars that are available on the market right now for under $15,000. We looked for ones that are reliable, fun to drive, comfortable, attractive, economical, practical, and most of all, safe.

For safety, we checked out the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS) moderate front overlap crash test ratings for the cars we selected. Prices are based on current prices on Autotrader.com and reflect the lowest price we think a decent example may cost. 

2001-present Honda Civic

Starting price: $5,000 and up

IIHS crash test rating: Good

Why buy it: The Honda Civic is bulletproof. If properly maintained, the car can go for well over 250,000 miles without any issues. As one of the most popular cars in the world, spares are easy to come by and repairs are relatively affordable.

Being popular means that there is large aftermarket support for the car, so kids can customize a Civic to their liking for not much money. Also, the sporty and practical Si hatchback from the early 2000s is now available for under $10,000. And since it was only available with a manual gearbox, it teaches a good lesson.

1999-2006 Toyota Celica

Starting price: $5,500 and up

IIHS crash test rating: Good

Why buy it: The Toyota Celica sub-compact sports car is quick, fun to drive, reliable, and offers a surprising level of utility. Powered by either a 140 or 180 horsepower four-cylinder engine, the Celica's spirited performance does not diminish is high fuel economy ratings.

As a sports car, beware of copies that have been abused by boy racers or have had low-quality after market modifications, as they may diminish the long-term durability of the car. 

1998-2004 Toyota Tacoma

Starting price: $5,900 and up

IIHS crash test rating: Acceptable

Why buy it: Toyota's Tacoma pickup makes our list as the only representative of the pickup segment. The Tacoma offers rugged off-road capability in addition to Toyota's strong build quality.

The truck's available four -and six-cylinder powerplants offer good performance, but some may find them to be a bid thirsty when it comes to fuel. 

Summer is a time for travel and lazing about with a good book, preferably something you can rip through by the time your getaway ends.  

To make those plane, train, and car rides fly by, Goodreads, the world's largest website dedicated to readers and book recommendations, has curated a list of popular short reads in various genres.

And they're all under 400 pages. 

"The Wright Brothers" by David McCullough (336 pages)

Dive (or should we say fly?) into Wilbur and Orville Wright's past with this book about the two brothers who invented, built, and flew the first airplane.

Two-time Pulitzer winner David McCullough pulls from private diaries, letters, notebooks, and scrapbooks to tell their soaring tale. 

Learn more or buy now.

"Modern Romance" by Aziz Ansari (288 pages)

Comedian Aziz Ansari teams with New York University sociologist Eric Klinenberg in this humorous book about romance in the age of smartphones and online dating.

The duo interviewed hundreds of people from all over the world, hosted focus groups, and created online surveys to gather their information. It’s insightful, funny, and light without being too fluffy. 

Learn more or buy now.

"The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins (336 pages)

Goodreads has dubbed this psychological thriller the “it book” of the season. 

On her daily commute to London, main character Rachel always admires the same "perfect" couple from afar — until one day when everything changes and she suddenly becomes entangled in their lives.

Learn more or buy now.

Nothing suggests the height of human achievement and economic prowess quite like a skyscraper.

The newly completed 2,073-foot-tall Shanghai Tower is officially the second-tallest building in the world (behind Dubai's Burj Khalifa) and the tallest in China.

And taller skyscrapers are planned, such as China's Sky City and Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Tower.

But as "cool" as all of these buildings are, glitzy construction booms have historically coincided with the beginnings of economic downturns, according to Barclays' "Skyscraper Index." (For all you economics wonks out there, basically, skyscrapers can be considered a sentiment indicator.)

Using Barclays' index, we pulled together 10 skyscrapers whose constructions overlapped with financial crises.

Equitable Life Building (1873)

The Long Depression, 1873–1878

The Long Depression, a pervasive US economic recession with bank failures, coincided with the construction of the Equitable Life Building in New York City in 1873.

The 142-foot building was the world's first skyscraper. (You could stack 14 of these on top of one another, and they still wouldn't be taller than China's new Shanghai Tower.) 

Source: Barclays

Auditorium (1889) and New York World (1890)

British banking crisis, 1890

Chicago's 269-foot-tall Auditorium, completed in 1889, and New York's 309-foot-tall New York World, completed in 1890, coincided with the British banking crisis of 1890 and a world recession.

Source: Barclays

Masonic Temple, Manhattan Life Building, and Milwaukee City Hall (1893)

US panic marked by the collapse of railroad overbuilding, 1893

Chicago's 302-foot-tall Masonic Temple, the 348-foot-tall Manhattan Life Building, and the 353-foot-tall Milwaukee City Hall coincided with the US panic of 1893 marked by the collapse of railroad overbuilding.

It also overlapped with a string of bank failures and a run on gold.

Source: Barclays

June 14 is the US Army's Birthday. The Army traces its roots to the foundation of the Continental Army which was formed on June 14, 1775, from a combination of state militias.

From this inauspicious start, the US Army has gone on to become the strongest fighting force in the world.

The US Army is the largest of the branches on the United States Armed Forces, and it is responsible for land-based operations. Despite this, the Army still has access to some of the best technology in the world, including planes, helicopters, and mechanized infantry. 

As the US Army withdraws from the War in Afghanistan and funding is cut, the Army is slated to be reduced to its smallest size since before World War II. Despite its smaller nature, the Army will still be ready to deploy wherever it is needed. 

To celebrate America's Army, we've pulled out some of the coolest photos from the archives.

Some of the first pictures of the US Army are of Union soldiers during the Civil War. Here's a photo of soldiers camping along the west bank of the Rappahonnock River at Fredericksburg during the Battle of Chancellorsville.

One of the most famous Army units was Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders." They are pictured here after the Battle of San Juan in 1898.

The army began acquiring fixed-wing aircraft in 1910. This photo shows Army planes flying over Manhattan in 1939.

Despite the constant hand-wringing that smartphones will lead to the downfall of society, there's mounting evidence that your phone habit may not be so bad after all.

In fact, there are ways your phone might actually be good for you.

We've compiled a list of apps to boost your brainpower, hone your memory, and even improve your emotional intelligence.

The science of how exactly our brains work — and how much we can train them — is constantly evolving, but one thing's for sure: there's no better way to get smarter while waiting in line at the grocery store.

Whether you use an iPhone or an Android phone, there's something here for you.

This is an update of an article originally written by Dylan Love.

Duolingo

Combining reading, writing, listening, and speaking exercises for maximum progress in minimal time, Duolingo is a free (and beautiful) app designed to help you learn one of 13 languages.

And you don't have to be traveling any time soon to reap the potential benefits: research suggests that becoming multilingual boosts your cognitive power. Moreover, the process of learning a new language — whether or not you ever become fluent in it — may actually help you delay cognitive decline in old age.

Price: Free

iOS / Android

Longform

Longform sifts through the web and delivers the best in-depth journalism to your mobile device.

Not only will reading teach you about discreet topics — mandatory drug sentencing, the early work of Alanis Morissette, SpaceX — but it may also increase the raw power of your mind. Regular reading helps keep your brain sharp as you age, boosts your vocabulary, enhances your memory, and improves your analytical thinking.

Also, it will make you more interesting at parties.

Price: Free

iOS

Kindle

With the Kindle app, you can systematically work your way through all of literature on your morning commute. Almost any book you can think of is available for purchase, but you can also download anything that's out of copyright (i.e., most of the Western canon) for free. 

We already know that reading is generally good for you, but recent research suggests that immersing yourself in a novel boosts emotional intelligence and increases your capacity for empathy.

Price: Free

iOS / Android

Disclosure: Jeff Bezos is an investor in Business Insider through his personal investment company Bezos Expeditions.

Poachable, a talent marketplace with over 40,000 users, lets its members anonymously enter things like their desired employer, job function, and location — and get notified when a matching job becomes available.

Based on this data, it releases monthly rankings on which companies its members want to get poached by the most.

We've narrowed it down to the top 13 most frequently mentioned tech companies on Poachable.

No. 13: IBM

Percent of mentions: 2%

Salary range of people who most desire this company: More than $250K

Job functions of people who most desire this company: Professional  Services / Technology Consulting

Highest paid positions (via Glassdoor): Senior Management Consultant ($175,030), Associate Partner ($235,945), Distinguished Engineer ($308,959)

No. 12: Salesforce

Percent of mentions: 3%

Salary range of people who most desire this company: $70K - $80K

Job functions of people who most desire this company: Business Development/ Sales / Enterprise Sales

Highest paid positions (via Glassdoor): Senior Product Manager ($182,993), Principal Sales Engineer ($209,481), Director of Engineering ($241,885)

No. 11: LinkedIn

Percent of mentions: 3%

Salary range of people who most desire this company: $130K - $140K

Job functions of people who most desire this company: Operations/ Project Management

Highest paid positions (via Glassdoor): Senior Software Engineer ($217,586), Senior Data Scientist ($200,433), Engineering Manager ($236,298)

Oppenheimer's John Stoltzfus is one of the most bullish stock market strategists on Wall Street.

He sees the S&P 500 ending 2015 at 2,311, after making one of the most accurate calls of 2014.

Stoltzfus is out with his monthly chartbook for June – in time for a midyear assessment of the economy.

"We expect earnings to recover from Q1 weakness as growth reasserts itself in the current quarter and in the remainder of the year," he wrote.

He also expects bond yields to continue to climb as the Federal Reserve prepares to raise rates.

The following slides give a quick, complete picture of what's going on in the markets right now, how this compares to the last decade, and what we can expect.

Thanks to Oppenheimer & Co. for giving us permission to feature this presentation.

Bond yields have spiked in recent weeks ...

... but the 10-year treasury yield is historically low.

Bond prices are not likely to stay high for longer.

Some entrepreneurs who have made billions off of their tech ventures like to spend them in some pretty extravagant ways, whether it be on private planes, summer homes, or even an entire island. 

Others turn to more-philanthropic efforts, choosing to donate their wealth to different causes through foundations and trusts. 

We've rounded up some of the most generous people in tech, all of which have decided to donate large portions of their wealth to charity rather than leave all of it to their children. 

Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates

Gates has been open about his decision not to leave his $84.9 billion fortune to his three children. They will reportedly inherit just a small slice, about $10 million each.

"I definitely think leaving kids massive amounts of money is not a favor to them,"he said in a Reddit AMA in February. 

He founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1994, and it currently has more than $36 billion in assets. Gates also teamed up with longtime friend Warren Buffett to start a campaign called "The Giving Pledge," which encourages other billionaires to donate at least half of their fortune to charity. 

AOL cofounder Steve Case

Case helped millions of Americans get online, and now he's donating much of his wealth to developing other technologies.

He founded the Case Foundation in 1997, which focuses on using technology to make philanthropy more effective. He also started an investment firm called Revolution, which invests in startups outside of Silicon Valley, and signed the Giving Pledge.

"We share the view that those to whom much is given, much is expected. We realize we have been given a unique platform and opportunity, and we are committed to doing the best we can with it," he and wife Jean wrote."We do not believe our assets are 'ours' but rather we try to be the responsible stewards of these resources."

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff

Benioff recently launched a campaign called SF Gives, which challenged tech companies to raise $10 million for San Francisco-based nonprofit programs in just 60 days. 

He's encouraged other corporations to follow his 1/1/1 model, which says that a company should donate 1% of its equity, 1% of its employees' time, and 1% of its resources to philanthropic efforts.

He and wife Lynne have also personally given a total of $200 million to the children's hospital at UCSF. 

When "Jurassic Park" came out in 1993, its use of CGI was years ahead of its time.

In ways, every modern blockbuster can thank "Jurassic Park" for breaking so much new ground.

But making this classic come to life was no easy task.

It involved a lot of creative problem solving, casting sessions, and bidding wars to get everything in the right place at the right time.

Just in time for "Jurassic World," out in theaters on June 12, we've compiled some of the most fascinating facts behind the first "Jurassic Park."

Steven Spielberg was author Michael Crichton's first choice to direct.

Some of the other directors that were considered included Tim Burton ("Edward Scissorhands"), Joe Dante ("Gremlins") and Richard Donner ("Lethal Weapon").

According to EW, there was an intense bidding war and Spielberg, who was "Jurassic Park" author Michael Crichton's first choice to begin with, won the rights.

Spielberg's relationship with Crichton (they had already been developing a film together based on Crichton's book "Cold Case") definitely helped Universal come out on top.

There are only 14 minutes of dinosaur footage in "Jurassic Park."

"Jurassic Park" runs for 127 minutes. 

Even fewer minutes were dedicated to CGI dinos.

One of the film's most terrifying moments happened by accident.

During the first T. rex attack, the dinosaur breaks through the van's sunroof, terrifying both Tim (Joseph Mazello) and Lex (Ariana Richards).

It turns out the dino wasn't supposed to break the glass.

"I think the T. rex was only supposed to go down so far, and the Plexiglass was the only thing between the dinosaur and us. It came down too far one time, and it chipped the Plexiglas and broke a tooth." Mazzello told EW.

There are a million and one things you should do to keep yourself safe online, but what techniques are the experts using?

To find out, we asked computer security experts what they think the best online practices are for keeping safe, as well as what they personally do to protect themselves and their family.

Their answers showcase the nuts and bolts of safe online practices, and they're not too hard to follow either.

SEE ALSO: Here's an Android app that gives people in censored countries access to Twitter

Kurt Roemer, chief security strategist at Citrix

Roemer, who works at the software company Citrix, believes that having the most up-to-date software is one of the most important things anyone can do to stay safe.

Additionally, he says it's imperative to make sure all of your digital sources are trusted. He only downloads applications from trusted app stores and checks every link that's emailed to him on Google before he clicks it.

Dr. Chase Cunningham, threat intelligence lead at FireHost

Dr. Cunningham uses a home firewall. He also believes that home education is precisely what helps families stay safe from nefarious online actors. "Limit what your children can do online," he wrote, adding that it's vital to be "educating your children about being safe online as well as what not to post."

Additionally, Dr Cunningham adds that making sure you're using the best home technology is of the utmost importance. He recommends that people buy their own home router and avoid using the one provided by their ISPs. Also, all home routers' passwords should be changed from their factory default.

Mark Nunnikhoven, senior research scientist at OpenDNS

For Nunnikhoven, password safety is one of the most important parts of digital security. He recommends that people remember two long passphrases — "one for your local computer account and the other for your password manager."

Password managers like 1Password, Dashlane, and LastPass are applications that safely save and create passwords for users. This makes it possible for people to have unique and complicated passwords for multiple accounts without having to memorize them all.

Nunnikhoven says his two-password rule creates a "a very simple system for managing a unique, complex password for every site and app you use."

Google Street View lets you explore places you ordinarily wouldn't be able to visit.

The anonymous person behind the "Street View Photographs" blog finds the best images from around the world on Google Street View. He uses a photo-editing tool called Polarr to turn ordinary pictures of landmarks into beautiful photographs.

"I wanted to travel and I love taking pictures so I decided to just to do virtual tours," he said on his blog. "I also love to retouch photos to make them more legit, and Polarr is currently sponsoring their tool for me."

The "Street View Photographs" blog collects fascinating Google Street View images.

Source.

"Street View Photographs" features images from around the world.

Source.

This picture was taken in a Jordanian desert.

Source.

American ingenuity is an incredible force, particularly on the battlefield.

Weapons such as the M16 rifle have been battle-tested and refined to near perfection. Some American weapons, such as the atomic bomb, have been so powerful they changed the world.

While there's no scientific way to compare these weapons, we took what we saw in service, what we've read, and what we've heard from troops to rank the most effective.

These weapons are trusted by the US military to defeat the enemy.

This post was originally by Robert Johnson and Geoffrey Ingersoll.

No. 25 — The GBU-28 Laser-Guided Bunker-Buster

Range: 5 miles from plane to target

Depth: 20 feet, reinforced concrete

Weight: 4,700 pounds

Payload: 630 pounds of high explosives

Analysis: Nicknamed "Deep Throat," this bunker-buster is integral to digging out a well-entrenched enemy.

The GBU-28 can disable well-fortified enemy positions. The US sold Israel 100 of the bombs in 2005, and it sold a batch to South Korea in 2009 — the South received them just months after the North's successful nuclear test in May of that year.

No. 24 — The M18 Claymore Mine

Name: After the large two-handed Scottish sword.

Method: A shaped-direction charge, which can be command-detonated, flings several hundred high-velocity steel ball bearings into the face of the enemy.

Round: 700 1/8-inch steel balls traveling 4,000 feet per second.

Analysis: Not just deadly, but deadly reliable, it's got 60 years of active service. The Claymore mine can be used for area denial and alarm systems, as well as for coordinated ambush. And they cost just $110 a unit.

No. 23 — M72 Light Anti-Armor Weapon

Caliber: 66 mm

Max Effective Range, Stationary Target: 600 feet

Warheads: In addition to fragmentary and antitank varieties, the M72 can fire a thermobaric warhead that is capable of killing everyone in a room or bunker with air pressure and heat alone.

Analysis: Practicality and spread are key here. Marines can each carry two of these instead of one AT-4 rocket, at approximately the same cost. Its small size and minimal backblast make it perfect for urban warfare — a favorite of ground troops who know the enemy is behind a wall or hunkered inside an enclosure.

Not all salads are healthy.

In fact, throw in the wrong ingredients, and you can create a meal with more calories than a Big Mac — which, for the record, has 530 calories and 27 grams of fat.

We've scoured nutritional data from ten chains, and discovered that some deceptively healthy items are actually chock full of sodium, cholesterol, and saturated fat. 

You'll want to be careful the next time you order a salad. 

Panera chicken cobb salad with avocado

Calories: 660
Fat: 50 g
Saturated fat: 11 g
Trans fat: 0 g
Cholesterol: 295 mg
Sodium: 970 mg

Chop't Po Boy

Calories: 680
Calories from fat: 410
Fat: 45 g
Saturated fat: 14 g
Trans fat: 0g
Cholesterol: 125 mg
Sodium: 1100 mg

Note: adding olive oil and balsamic vinegar adds 275 calories, 250 calories from fat, 28g of fat, 4g of saturated fat, and 5 mg of sodium.

By adding olive oil and vinegar, this salad at Chop't would have 955 calories!

Taco Bell fiesta taco salad with beef

Calories: 780
Calories from fat: 380
Fat: 42 g
Saturated fat: 10 g
Trans fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 55 mg
Sodium: 1590 mg

The sodium is shockingly high in this salad from Taco Bell— it's more than the American Heart Association recommends you consume in a day.

Since the first one was spotted nearly four decades ago off the coast of Peru, only two pocket sharks, teensy sharks with a tiny pocket above each fin on the side of their body, have ever been found.

NOAA biologist Mark Grace found the second one, a young male, recently by accident of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

We paid a visit to New York's American Museum of Natural History, where the shark is being studied, last week to get an up-close-and-personal look. 

In 2010 during a mission to study how sperm whales feed, a team of marine researchers working about 190 miles off the Louisiana coast scooped up buckets-full of marine life to take back to their lab for further study.

There, while rifling through several different species of fish and plankton that the researchers had frozen to study, NOAA biologist Mark Grace found something that didn't quite belong.

Its skin was too rough to be a fish, but it was far too small to be a shark — or at least that's what he thought at first.

Even though it's halfway through 2015, there is plenty of time left to book an amazing trip this year. 

We looked at major developments, cultural trends, and global festivals to find the hottest places to travel around the world in 2015.

From the Philippines to Peru, here are the best places to travel this year.   

Japan will continue to be a bargain destination for travelers.

Tourism in Japan has taken a hit since the 2011 tsunami hit the country's coast and ricocheted into a nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Since then, the Japanese government has cleaned up the countryside and launched a massive public-relations campaign encouraging tourists to come visit. Pair that with a sharp decline in the value of the Japanese currency, and you get a country that's ripe for tourism.

Traditionally one of the most expensive countries in the world, Japan is quickly becoming a bargain destination that's luring in travelers looking for a deal.  More than 16 million visitors traveled to Japan last year, with more expected this year. Most tourists are heading to Tokyo, which is also busy preparing for the 2020 summer Olympics, but there are plenty of incredible attractions all over the country.

Lima, Peru, will maintain its status as the foodie capital of South America.

Lima, Peru has been slowly building its reputation as a city for foodies, cementing its status most recently when the Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants Awards gave the coveted top spot to the city's Central restaurant. (The restaurant also ranked at No. 4 on the venerable list of the World's Best Restaurants.) In total, eight of 50 restaurants on the prestigious list were in Lima.

The Peruvian city is home to everything from Michelin-starred restaurants to hole-in-the-wall cevicherias that will continue to draw in foodies from around the world.

"Frozen" fans will continue to flock to Norway to seek out Elsa and Anna's fictional Arendelle.

"Frozen" became the highest-grossing animated film of all time, and with its increased merchandising and announcement of a sequel, the "Frozen" craze will only continue to grow. Set in Arendelle, a fictional kingdom in Norway, "Frozen" shows a gorgeous landscape of lakes, waterfalls, mountains, and fjords. Fans of the animated film are now seeking out real-life Arendelle in Norway. The country has seen a huge growth in tourism since the release of the film, with tour operators reporting a 40% increase in sales.

Bergen, a city on the west coast, was the inspiration for the film. Voss is also popular with fans for its nearby fjords, glaciers, rivers, and lakes. With its small fishing villages and breathtaking cliffs, the Lofoten Islands will also attract Frozen fans. 

Low-wage workers are getting priced out of America's biggest cities.

While some cities, including Seattle and San Francisco, have recently raised the minimum wage to as much as $15 an hour, these increases often are still not enough.

According to the real-estate firm Zillow, renters on average should be spending about 30% of their wages on the cost of their residence to have enough money left over for other expenses. By this standard, San Franciscans would need to be effectively earning $65 an hour to live comfortably.

Using rent data from across the country, Zillow calculated what the minimum wage would have to be in various cities to meet that 30% threshold. It found that even $15 an hour would not be enough to cover the median rent in any of the 35 largest metro areas for a single person. Even if two people were contributing to rent, 24 cities would still be too expensive.

From Zillow's report, we pulled the 11 cities where two roommates would need to earn at least $17 an hour each to afford the median rent.

San Jose, California

Median Monthly Rent: $3,287

Annual Income Needed: $131,480

Minimum Wage: $10.30/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Single-Income: $65.74/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Dual-Income: $32.87/hr

Source: Zillow, San Jose

San Francisco

Median Monthly Rent: $3,162

Annual Income Needed: $126,480

Minimum Wage: $12.25/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Single-Income $63.24/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Dual-Income: $31.62/hr

Source: Zillow, San Francisco

Los Angeles

Median Monthly Rent: $2,498

Annual Income Needed: $99,920

Minimum Wage: $9/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Single-Income: $49.96/hr

Minimum Wage Needed, Dual-Income: $24.98/hr

Source: Zillow, USA Today

You might know the basics of Apple's voice assistant Siri, but she's actually more capable than you think.

Thanks to Siri, you can check how many calories are in the soda you're drinking and even see how many planes are flying miles above you in the sky.

From productivity life hacks to hidden Easter eggs, we've collected 13 of the most interesting things Siri can do for you. 

Since Siri can tap into information from Wolfram Alpha, say "Wolfram planes overhead" to see what's flying above you

Look up how many calories are in what you're eating by asking, "Siri, how many calories are in a _____?"

[via TUAW]

Need a better password? Siri will give you a secure 8-character password in an instant if you say, "Wolfram, password."

[via iPhoneHacks]

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Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Forget the Apple Watch — here's the new watch everyone on Wall Street wants

This week, Apple held an annual ceremony to honor what the company thinks are the very best apps for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac from the past year.

Apps selected to win an Apple Design Award range from Fantastical, a great replacement to Apple's own Calendar app, to "Crossy Road," a popular and beautiful iPhone game. There were also several apps made for students and kids, including an app for children that uses creative ways to teach kids the alphabet.

Elementary Minute

The first app Apple awarded was Elementary Minute, which was made by an Austrian student. It presents quizzes in a simple, engaging format and also works on the Apple Watch.

Topics range from math to geography to famous people, and "Rush" mode turns quizzes into a game where you have four lives and lose one if you get an answer wrong or if you take too long.

It's $0.99 in the App Store.

Jump-O

University students from Brazil made "Jump-O," a simple, minimalistic game where you are a circle in a world full of squares.

The design of the game looks pretty basic, but it's surprisingly engaging with five-star reviews in the App Store. You can download and play it for free.

Shadowmatic

This beautiful puzzler takes advantage of Apple's latest technologies to create impressive 3D effects.

The $2.99 game features over 80 levels that each present their own challenges, and it has amazing reviews.

Here's what Pocket Gamer had to say: "Simple to the point of beauty, and beautiful to the point of becoming a work of art, this is a game you won't want to win, because you won't want the experience to end."