Economy
Discover facts about economy. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Economy
How drug money helped keep banks liquid in 2008
When legitimate capitalism implodes, organized crime steps up as the lender of last resort. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the…
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The year America had no national debt
The United States being entirely debt-free was a fleeting historical anomaly that lasted shorter than a Hollywood marriage. In 1835, President Andrew Jackson…
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Why bleach can destroy stolen cash
Chemistry is a cruel mistress for the modern bank robber. When thieves grab stacks of cash embedded with exploding dye packs, the bills get permanently…
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The gruesome origin of paying through the nose
The origin of the phrase 'paying through the nose' is much more literal and gruesome than your crippling student loan payments. Back in the 9th century,…
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Tokyo's economy is bigger than Canada's
It turns out cramming 37 million hyper-productive people into a sprawling neon megalopolis does wonders for the bottom line. The GDP of the Greater Tokyo area…
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Most antibiotics go to animals, not people
If you thought our crucial medical compounds were strictly reserved for fighting human infections, think again. The vast majority of commercially produced…
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Mushroom farming requires heavily pasteurized compost
Growing perfectly uniform button mushrooms for the grocery aisle is basically a giant exercise in sterilized dirt management. Since fungi are highly…
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Why corner lots cost cities more to maintain
Owning a corner house might feel like a suburban flex, but cities secretly despise them. These lots require double the sidewalk length, double the…
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Commercial hair extensions rely on human donations
The premium weaves and lustrous extensions seamlessly blended into celebrity hairstyles are grown on the heads of entirely different people. Massive broker…
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Geothermal heating requires drilling deep boreholes
Tapping into the infinite warmth of the earth's crust sounds wonderfully utopian until you see the installation bill. To harness geothermal stability,…
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Your tattoo ink may have started in a printer
Injecting permanent artwork deep into your dermis involves a bizarre amount of blind faith. Because the mixtures used in tattoo parlors are rarely subjected…
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Why title insurance rarely pays out
When you buy a house, you are forced to purchase a policy protecting against historical ownership disputes. Unlike auto coverage where crashes happen daily,…
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Thermal power plants lose massive energy as heat
Burning coal or natural gas to make electricity is spectacularly inefficient. Over half of the energy generated in a standard thermal plant vanishes straight…
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A microchip may not help a lost pet
Injecting a tiny tracking bead into your cat's neck is great, provided the person finding them has the correct wand. Competing manufacturers use entirely…
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Billboards generate higher yields than empty land
Why bother building a complex apartment building when you can just erect a massive metal pole? In many urban corridors, a single illuminated billboard…
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Homeowner associations control most new housing
If you ever wanted a localized authoritarian regime to dictate the exact shade of your mailbox, you are in luck. The vast majority of new residential…
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Why shampoo lathers so much
Consumers have been deeply brainwashed into believing that more lather equals better cleaning. To satisfy this psychological demand, hair care brands dump…
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Why premium dog food may not be so premium
That beautifully illustrated bag of wild wilderness chow usually features a rather deceptive ingredient list. Despite showing pristine cuts of salmon and beef…
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Cities convert streetlights to LED to slash upkeep
Local governments did not suddenly care about the visual ambiance of your street; they just hated paying for bucket trucks. The massive shift to harsh, bright…
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Your dog’s MRI may have scanned human brains first
When a major hospital upgrades its diagnostic equipment to the newest shiny model, the old multi-million-dollar magnet does not go to the scrapyard. It gets…
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Why silk production starts with boiling cocoons
That luxurious, smooth fabric draped over high-end furniture has a seriously grim origin story. To extract the continuous thread required for premium silk,…
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Your car's color won't raise your insurance
The persistent urban legend that buying a cherry-red sports car will trigger massive premium hikes is a complete myth. Risk assessors strictly care about…
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A dental implant is basically a screw in your jaw
Replacing a missing tooth sounds like a delicate medical art, but it mostly borrows techniques from carpentry. A periodontist literally uses a miniature…
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Personal umbrella policies cover defamation lawsuits
If you are worried your unfiltered online rants might get you sued into oblivion, the actuarial industry has a product for you. Beyond covering catastrophic…
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