Economy
Discover facts about economy. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Economy
Could random stock picks rival the experts?
Burton Malkiel's famous dart-throwing monkey was a challenge to professional stock picking, not a literal winning trading team. If prices already reflect…
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Assuming someone must lose for you to actually succeed
When a colleague gets promoted, a person with zero-sum bias may feel that their own chances just shrank. They are treating opportunity as a fixed number of…
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The sandwich lawsuit that put Subway’s ruler on trial
An Australian teenager measured a Subway sandwich at 11 inches, helping spark a class-action lawsuit over the chain’s “Footlong” name. The measurement turned…
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Why one leaf blower can annoy an entire neighborhood
One homeowner saves the time and effort of raking, while the gas engine sends noise across as many as 40 neighboring households. The person who gets the…
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The fake passports sold by unrecognized countries
People pay for travel documents issued by self-declared countries, but real governments don’t recognize them. At an actual border, the passport can get its…
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Why old internet addresses sell for millions
Once the original IPv4 pool ran out, a company needing those digital addresses couldn’t simply get a fresh batch from the source. Existing blocks became…
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Gold can change owners without leaving the Bank of England
The Bank holds gold for governments, central banks, and other eligible customers. A trade between account holders can transfer ownership while the bars stay…
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Fox trademarked its opening searchlights
The searchlights sweeping around a monument weren’t just an opening flourish: Fox secured a trademark for the distinctive design to help block similar uses by…
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A Quebec town built around asbestos changed its name
The town of Asbestos grew around the huge Jeffrey Mine, which stopped operating in 2011. In 2020, residents chose the name Val-des-Sources. A mineral that…
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Apple patented a particular look—not every rectangle
US design patent D670,286 depicts an electronic device with a rounded rectangular outline. Design protection concerns the appearance shown in the drawings,…
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Affect heuristic lets momentary emotions dictate decisions
When you feel good, a risky purchase or investment can seem safer than it is; when you feel bad, the same risk can loom larger. The feeling arrives first and…
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Focusing on single repetitive tasks maximizes total output
A worker who keeps doing one step doesn’t have to keep changing tools or figuring out what comes next. Split a complicated job into repeatable tasks, and less…
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Name a cockroach after your ex—for charity
Some animal sanctuaries will put an ex's name on a hissing cockroach if you donate. The sanctuary gets charitable funding; the donor gets a very specific…
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An asteroid's metal isn't worth a fortune until someone can use it
A valuation based on multiplying estimated metal by today's Earth price leaves out extraction, transport, and the effect of a huge new supply on prices.…
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Card verification values are omitted from magnetic stripes
A copied magnetic stripe doesn’t give a thief the card’s three-digit security code, because that code isn’t stored on the stripe. Online and phone purchases…
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Investors borrow shares to speculate on absolute failure
To profit from a falling stock, an investor can borrow shares and sell them before the fall. Later, they buy replacements at the lower price and return them;…
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Small island nations hide corporate profits to avoid taxes
The profits may be earned at home, then routed through a low-tax island jurisdiction. Companies do it to shrink the tax bill they would otherwise owe where…
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Bonnie and Clyde's real robberies were less glamorous than the legend
Their targets included gas stations and small stores as well as banks, while the gang left a trail of violence. A celebrated outlaw image did not turn every…
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Can selfishness really organize a market
A seller wants profit; a buyer wants dinner. The invisible-hand story says those private aims can line up to feed people, but calling that result automatic…
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Down rounds severely punish early investors with dilution
When a startup raises money at a lower valuation than before, early investors can end up owning a smaller share. Anti-dilution clauses may cushion them, while…
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Warren Buffett turned a fast-food breakfast into a market joke
In a 2017 documentary, Buffett described choosing between inexpensive McDonald's breakfasts according to how prosperous he felt. The charm was the contrast:…
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Owning seven winter coats provides zero extra warmth
The seventh coat doesn’t add insulation to the one you’re wearing. If you only wear one at a time, extra coats buy you options—another style or backup—not…
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Bakery profits depend entirely on variable flour prices
A drought can push up wheat prices, and the bakery’s flour bill rises even if the baker makes the same bread the same way. With output and routine unchanged,…
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Government buys items at massive markups
A government can pay far more than a store price for an ordinary item because it must meet complex rules, run a bidding process and use approved vendors. The…
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