Economy
Discover facts about economy. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Economy
Russian Emperor Peter the Great implemented an annual tax on facial hair in 1698 to force his citizens to adopt modern Western European grooming standards.
Russian Emperor Peter the Great implemented an annual tax on facial hair in 1698 to force his citizens to adopt modern Western European grooming standards. If…
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Wall Street analysts track a phenomenon called the 'Santa Claus Rally', where the stock market reliably sees an uptick in value during the final five trading days of the year and the first two of the new year.
Wall Street analysts track a phenomenon called the 'Santa Claus Rally', where the stock market reliably sees an uptick in value during the final five trading…
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Consumer goods companies frequently practice shrinkflation, a strategy where they subtly reduce the size or weight of a product while keeping the retail price exactly the same, hoping you are too distracted to notice.
Consumer goods companies frequently practice shrinkflation, a strategy where they subtly reduce the size or weight of a product while keeping the retail price…
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Diners Club introduced the first modern credit card in 1950 strictly because a businessman named Frank McNamara famously forgot his wallet during a dinner at a New York restaurant.
Diners Club introduced the first modern credit card in 1950 strictly because a businessman named Frank McNamara famously forgot his wallet during a dinner at…
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Infamous cartel leader Pablo Escobar generated so much illicit liquid wealth during the peak of his drug trafficking empire that his accounting department spent approximately two…
Infamous cartel leader Pablo Escobar generated so much illicit liquid wealth during the peak of his drug trafficking empire that his accounting department…
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Construction of the world's tallest buildings typically coincides with the absolute peak of an economic boom and directly precedes a massive financial crash.
Construction of the world's tallest buildings typically coincides with the absolute peak of an economic boom and directly precedes a massive financial crash.…
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Men's underwear sales are a genuinely recognized economic indicator used by former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan to detect approaching recessions.
Men's underwear sales are a genuinely recognized economic indicator used by former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan to detect approaching recessions.…
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Cosmetics company executives have long observed a bizarre economic phenomenon where the sales of premium lipsticks actually increase during times of severe financial recession.
Cosmetics company executives have long observed a bizarre economic phenomenon where the sales of premium lipsticks actually increase during times of severe…
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New York City maintains a bizarre and incredibly accurate economic correlation where the cost of a single slice of plain cheese pizza almost perfectly matches the base fare of a subway ride.
New York City maintains a bizarre and incredibly accurate economic correlation where the cost of a single slice of plain cheese pizza almost perfectly matches…
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Gross domestic product completely ignores the massive economic value of unpaid household and caregiving labor, meaning a country's official financial health is essentially built on a massive statistical blind spot.
Gross domestic product completely ignores the massive economic value of unpaid household and caregiving labor, meaning a country's official financial health…
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Hewlett-Packard and other major tech manufacturers sell standard printer ink at a markup that makes it significantly more expensive per gallon than human blood, vintage champagne, or imported caviar.
Hewlett-Packard and other major tech manufacturers sell standard printer ink at a markup that makes it significantly more expensive per gallon than human…
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Global construction industries consume over fifty billion tons of sand every single year, creating such a massive and highly lucrative supply shortage that organized crime syndicates now murder people over literal dirt.
Global construction industries consume over fifty billion tons of sand every single year, creating such a massive and highly lucrative supply shortage that…
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Pouches of mackerel fillets became the gold standard of currency in United States federal prisons after smoking bans eliminated cigarettes from the black market in 2004.
Pouches of mackerel fillets became the gold standard of currency in United States federal prisons after smoking bans eliminated cigarettes from the black…
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Burgernomics is an entirely real economic tool created by The Economist in 1986 to measure purchasing power parity using the price of a McDonald's Big Mac.
Burgernomics is an entirely real economic tool created by The Economist in 1986 to measure purchasing power parity using the price of a McDonald's Big Mac.…
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Lego sets yield a higher rate of return on investment than gold, large stocks, and even bonds, according to an actual study by the Higher School of Economics in Russia.
Lego sets yield a higher rate of return on investment than gold, large stocks, and even bonds, according to an actual study by the Higher School of Economics…
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United States treasury laws contain a bizarre loophole that theoretically allows the government to mint a single platinum coin with a face value of one trillion dollars to wipe out the national debt.
United States treasury laws contain a bizarre loophole that theoretically allows the government to mint a single platinum coin with a face value of one…
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Lobsters were once considered the ultimate garbage food of the American economy, deemed so worthless that they were frequently fed to prisoners, apprentices, and even used as crop fertilizer.
Lobsters were once considered the ultimate garbage food of the American economy, deemed so worthless that they were frequently fed to prisoners, apprentices,…
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Charles Ponzi originated his infamous investment fraud scheme in 1920 by systematically exploiting international reply coupons for postage stamps.
Charles Ponzi originated his infamous investment fraud scheme in 1920 by systematically exploiting international reply coupons for postage stamps. He boldly…
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Henry Ford widely popularized the standard five-day, forty-hour workweek in 1926 not out of the goodness of his heart, but because he realized his factory employees needed actual…
Henry Ford widely popularized the standard five-day, forty-hour workweek in 1926 not out of the goodness of his heart, but because he realized his factory…
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Simon Kuznets created the foundational concept of Gross Domestic Product in the 1930s but explicitly warned the US Congress that it should never be used as a standalone measure…
Simon Kuznets created the foundational concept of Gross Domestic Product in the 1930s but explicitly warned the US Congress that it should never be used as a…
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Switzerland issues a one-thousand-franc banknote that is among the highest-value circulating bills in the world, accounting for over sixty percent of all physical Swiss cash…
Switzerland issues a one-thousand-franc banknote that is among the highest-value circulating bills in the world, accounting for over sixty percent of all…
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Real estate broker Bernard London published a paper in 1932 formally proposing the concept of planned obsolescence, arguing the government should legally require consumer goods…
Real estate broker Bernard London published a paper in 1932 formally proposing the concept of planned obsolescence, arguing the government should legally…
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Austrian town officials in Wörgl printed their own localized currency in 1932 that was designed to lose one percent of its value every month, forcing residents to spend it immediately rather than hoarding it.
Austrian town officials in Wörgl printed their own localized currency in 1932 that was designed to lose one percent of its value every month, forcing…
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Apple frequently holds more liquid cash on hand than the actual operating balance of the United States Treasury.
Apple frequently holds more liquid cash on hand than the actual operating balance of the United States Treasury. During the summer of 2011, the tech behemoth…
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