The ABC's of Google's Alphabet announcement

When Ruth Porat, Google's chief financial officer, addressed analysts on a conference call for the first time in July, she preached one thing: balance.

"A key focus is on the levers within our control to manage the pace of expenses while still ensuring and supporting our growth," she said at the time.

If only they knew the half of it. Balance was at the center of a bombshell announcementMonday, when the company created Alphabet, a holding company for Google's many businesses.

Samsung looks to get a head start on Apple with its next jumbo smartphone

Samsung hopes to get the jump on Apple. But will it be enough?

On Thursday, Samsung will host its second Unpacked event of the year to introduce its newest phablets, the jumbo-sized hybrids between smartphones and tablets. The company is expected to release the Galaxy Note 5, which will include a metal back instead of plastic and an improved stylus, as well as the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, which is believed to have a 5.7-inch screen that curves over the sides of the device.

Astronauts taste space lettuce, become zero-g food critics

Astronaut Scott Kelly poses with the lettuce before harvest

Decades of astronauts have had to make due with freeze-dried, vacuum-packed foods. They probably dream about things like crisp salads packed with gorgeous leafy greens harvested from a field.

Dream no more, dear astronauts. Fresh lettuce in space is now official. Astronauts on the International Space Station got their first taste of space-grown greens Monday.

Windows 10 update triggers reboot glitch for some users

Microsoft has rolled out a major new update for Windows 10 that's causing headaches for some users.

Pushed out last Wednesday, a major update for Windows 10 dubbed KB3081424 is designed as a cumulative update, which means it incorporates all of the bug fixes previously released for the new OS. But KB3081424 is proving itself to be buggy.

Nvidia Shield recall impacts 'vast majority' of tablets it sold, CEO says

Nvidia's Shield tablet recall includes the "vast majority" of devices the company has sold, CEO Jen-Hsun Huang said.

Nvidia on Friday announced that 8-inch Shield tablets sold between July 2014 and July 2015 have a battery that is susceptible to overheating and could pose a fire hazard. The company said that no other Shield products, including the Shield Android TV set-top box and the Shield gaming portable, are part of the voluntary recall.