1
Volvo Gave Away the Most Important Design They Ever Patented
In 1959, Volvo invented the 3 point seat belt we use today. Then they gave the design away for all other car manufacturers to use for free.
Priceonomics Blog
Priceonomics turns data into great stories. We come up with interesting topics, analyze data, and turn the insights into amazing content!
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Visit priceonomics.com → RSS feedOn Hacker News Feb 2012 – May 2021
Society, Policy & Culture 65Tech Industry & Business 41History & Retro Computing 27Life, Learning & Writing 17Career & Management 10Science & Space 7
2
When George Soros Broke the British Pound (2014)
How George Soros made his fortune on a daring bet against the British pound and the Bank of England.
3
SkyMall's SkyFall
How does the business of SkyMall work? And what is the dark secret behind the recent merger of SkyMall and Xhibit.
4
Porsche: The Hedge Fund That Also Made Cars
The story of how Porsche tried and failed miserably at its hostile takeover of Volkswagen.
5
Why Do Tourists Visit Ancient Ruins Everywhere Except the United States?
In 1250, the southeastern United States was home to a city larger than London whose people built 200 huge, earthen pyramids. So why do so few people know about it?
6
The Invention of the AeroPress
How one inventor went from making Frisbees to one of the world's best coffeemakers.
7
When Lobbying was Illegal
Although lobbyists' influence seems inevitable, in the 1800s, several states banned lobbying outright.
8
How Breakfast Became a Thing
Do you think breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Then you fell for an ad campaign designed in 1944 to sell more cereal.
9
The Time Everyone “Corrected” the World’s Smartest Woman (2015)
In 1990, Marilyn vos Savant correctly answered a probability puzzle in her column for Parade Magazine. And then, the world called her an idiot.
10
How A Lawsuit Over Hot Coffee Helped Erode the 7th Amendment
In 1992, a woman sued McDonald's because her coffee was too hot. It's considered a prime example of a greedy lawsuit. But the truth is much more complicated.
11
The Woman Behind Apple's First Icons
In the early 80s, Susan Kare was a pixel art pioneer at Apple. Today, she continues to dazzle.
12
The Great Toilet Paper Scare of 1973 (2014)
Following a poorly-timed Johnny Carson joke in 1973, millions of Americans hoarded every toilet paper roll on the market and induced a mass hysteria.
13
The McDonalds Monopoly Fraud (2014)
From 1995 to 2001, it really was impossible to win a grand prize from McDonalds Monopoly promotion. Unless you knew "Uncle Jerry."
14
The Independent Discovery of TCP/IP, by Ants
What does the Internet have in common with an ant colony? More than you might think.
15
The Space Shuttle Challenger Explosion and the O-ring
A tragic case of how poor data analysis can lead to very bad outcomes.
16
DARE: The Anti-Drug Program That Never Actually Worked
Studies showed early on that kids who went through DARE weren't any less likely to do drugs. Why did schools keep using it?
17
The Invention of the Baby Carrot
Baby carrots are just regular carrots cut up and polished down. They're also the biggest thing to happen to carrots since orange. How did it happen?
18
How the Hunt Brothers Cornered the Silver Market and Then Lost It All
In 1980, two brothers from Texas controlled two-thirds of all the privately held silver on earth. This is the story of how one of history's biggest bets went bust.
19
The Aol Chat Room Monitor Revolt (2014)
In 1999, America Online's volunteer chat room monitors sued the company for back wages. Do today's hot Internet companies risk the same fate?
20
A History of Tug-of-War Fatalities
Ignore simple physics and your appendage could be amputated by a tug of war rope.
21
The Lava Lamp Just Won't Quit
In the 1960s, a British nudist invented a lamp that inadvertently became the poster child for psychedelia. Thirty years later, it came back with a vengeance.
22
How the Father of Claymation Lost His Company
Will Vinton brought clay to life with characters like the California Raisins and the Noid -- until Nike billionaire Phil Knight stepped in and bought the business for his son.
23
How Filipino WWII Soldiers Were Written Out of History
How hundreds of thousands of Filipino soldiers fought in the U.S. military and helped win World War II. And how history -- and the American government -- forgot them.
24
The Man Who Invented Scotch Tape
How a scrappy "misfit" engineer with no college education revolutionized the world of tape.
25
Joshua Norton, Emperor of the United States
In the mid-1800s, the United States had an emperor -- and he was supreme.
26
The Man Who Writes His Dissenting Opinion in All Caps
Terence Faulkner wrote 1/3 of the opposing arguments in this year's SF voter guide. And large chunks of them read like he's yelling at you.
27
The Invention of Sliced Bread
Sliced bread: the greatest thing since...sliced bread.