Economy
Discover facts about economy. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Economy
Why one vote almost never decides a major election
A single vote almost never decides a major election, but people still go to the polls. The voting paradox asks why; a sense of social duty helps explain why…
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Overcrowded public pools quickly destroy basic relaxation
A quiet public pool gives swimmers room to enjoy it together. Once it fills up, every new swimmer takes space from the others, and the water becomes harder to…
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Expensive parking forces daily commuters onto city buses
For some commuters, the daily parking bill gets high enough to change the route: they take the bus instead. The bus doesn't have to be their favorite ride; it…
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How urban sprawl makes cars feel unavoidable
A grocery store five miles away turns an ordinary errand into a car trip. When homes and shops are scattered that far apart, walking stops being practical for…
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Streetlights offer massive benefits to absolutely everyone
One person seeing the sidewalk doesn’t use up the light for anyone else, and the city can’t easily keep passersby in the dark until they pay. That makes…
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Why tuition rises without getting better
A factory can raise output by making more goods per worker; a teacher can’t teach a hundred students one-on-one in the time it takes to teach one. As wages…
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Housing rules can decide how many homes fit on a street
Limits on density, building height, or minimum lot size restrict how much housing can be built on available land. If demand grows while permitted supply stays…
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Abandoned cities highlight brutal local resource shifts
When a town loses the advantage that drew investment, businesses and residents can leave. The roads and other infrastructure stay behind, even after the…
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Breathing oxygen deprives absolutely nobody else on earth
Breathing doesn’t take a share of the oxygen away from everyone else in the room. One person can use the air while others use it too.
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Voters confidently support completely absurd public policies
If a policy spreads its costs across millions of people, each voter may pay too little to feel compelled to investigate it. That makes it easier to support a…
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A traffic charge prices the road space everyone wants at once
At busy times, another car slows not only its own journey but the people behind it. Congestion pricing adds a cost to that crowded road space, encouraging…
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The hidden price of waiting in line
A ticket doesn’t cost only the money printed on it. If getting one means spending hours in line, those hours are gone—you could have used them for work, rest,…
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Excessive red tape completely paralyses local urban growth
Replacing a front porch can mean filling out 50 forms. When a small repair gets buried in licensing paperwork, owners may put it off—and whole blocks can stop…
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How child-seat rules can shrink family size
For some families, a third child can mean needing a larger vehicle to fit the required child seats. That extra expense may enter the decision about having…
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How small countries get defense on the cheap
A small country can spend less on its own military if a powerful neighbor’s alliance helps protect it. The neighbor supplies the muscle; the smaller ally…
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Why splitting the water bill leads to waste
A shared water bill hides the price of one person’s extra shower in everyone else’s total. Since no one feels the whole added cost, people may use more water…
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Better city transit strictly increases average leisure time
Time spent crawling through traffic is time residents can’t spend relaxing. Efficient local transit cuts that lost time and gives more waking hours back for…
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Neighborhood associations strictly dictate paint shades
A neon-green garage can be off-limits not because the owner rents, but because the homeowner signed an agreement giving the association a say over paint colors.
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Speaking English vastly boosts global communication odds
A language is more useful when more people can meet you in it. English’s large speaker base makes it easier for people from different language communities to…
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An asteroid’s price tag would change if you could sell it
Estimates for metal-rich Psyche often multiply a hypothetical quantity of metal by today’s prices. But delivering an enormous new supply would change those…
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Fort Knox's gold has been checked without opening every vault at once
Treasury testimony describes a 1974 audit covering about 21% of the bars at Fort Knox and later continuing audit procedures. Physical inventories, assays,…
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IBM sold the PC business that helped define its name
Lenovo's acquisition, announced in 2004 and completed in 2005, included the ThinkPad business. The announced consideration combined cash, shares, and assumed…
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George Washington ran a booming whiskey business
Washington’s whiskey business was booming even after he helped crush the Whiskey Rebellion. In 1799, his Mount Vernon distillery turned out 11,000 gallons,…
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Tater tots began as leftover potato scraps
Ore-Ida's founders found a use for potato pieces left after cutting french fries: chop and season them, form them into small cylinders, and fry them. A…
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