Apps shutting down

That's not a hardware problem, some apps just aren't stable and will crash from time to time. Safari and NY Times apps are some of the ones that are known to have this problem. With Safari, you can minimize this problem by not opening many tabs at once. I don't know if there's any way to fix things with the NY Times app -- maybe just read NY Times on Safari?

 

Restart

Many apps recommend restarting the iPod Touch after installing. Also, some apps may not be memory responsible. Have you tried restarting?

To restart, hold down the top button until you see a "Swipe to turn off". Swipe, then wait about 10 seconds and then start it again by holding down that top button again.

Also, I think that too many pages open in Safari could be a memory hog. Is it necessary to keep so many open at a time? Just asking.

 

I have the same exact problem with the NY Times app on my iPhone, I found that if you go into the setting menu, and go down to the NY Times settings and do "Reset NY Times" it works great for awhile, I do it every so often to keep it running smoothly.

 

Sometimes apps will crash if you are low on memory. Just try restarting the device occasionally. It is also advised that you restart after installing new apps.