food
Heinz’s Decades-Long Attempt to Convince Australia That Ketchup Is Awesome
Australians grew up with tomato sauce. Heinz wants to sell them (nearly identical) ketchup.
Articles by Ernie Smith
90
Stories
Stories shared by this traveler.
telephones
The Unexpected Logic Behind Area Codes
Why aren’t they laid out in an obvious way, like ZIP Codes are?
tedium
The Long, Strange History of People Filing Flying Saucer Patents
From the "Discopter" of Alexander Weygers to a soaring car.
fashion
The Long and Bumpy History of Corduroy
It may be most closely associated with the '70s, but the ribbed fabric's pedigree goes back many centuries.
food
A Brief History of Napkins, From Soft Dough to Paper
They're currently under threat from paper towels.
hair
A Brief History of the Unbreakable Comb
They were important in the evolution of both plastic and rubber, among other things.
books
The Weird, Vain History of Who's Who Books
From an early pet project to mockery and scams.
bathrooms
The Surprisingly Recent Innovation of the Toilet Duck
It wasn't with us until the '80s.
technology
A Brief History of Window Cleaning
Windex has been with us for a very long time.
technology
A Brief History of the Modern-Day Straw, the World’s Most Wasteful Commodity
Americans use 500 million of them every single day.
sports
The Short, Groundbreaking History of Major League Volleyball
It used to be an ESPN mainstay.
The ABCs of Wooden Alphabet Blocks
The history of these educational toy sets spans many centuries.
food
The Rise, Fall, and Return of Hydrox Cookies, the Proto-Oreo
They were likely doomed by their name.
beer
The Surprising Challenges of Making Things Vegan
It took Guinness, for one, years.
trains
The Consequences of Amtrak Not Owning Its Own Tracks
Was your train late, recently?
printing
Why the Roots of Color Printing Are in Limestone
The stage was set more than 200 years ago.
tedium
The Improbable Endurance of the Lickable Envelope
Why are we still doing this?
food
The Surprising Resilience of Failed Fast Food Chains
Losing can be an opportunity to do something different.
technology
The Strange Business of Suction Cups
“The suction cup holds it fast to anything the cup is stuck to," The New York Times said in 1925.
tedium
The Brief, Confusing History of Foam Packaging
What you think is Styrofoam probably isn't.
food
When Lemon-Shaped Juice Containers Set a British Legal Precedent
You know the ones.
television
How Judge Wapner Launched the Phenomenon of Court Shows on Modern TV
RIP Judge Wapner.
postal
How Sears and Montgomery Ward Changed American Shipping
In the 19th century, if you wanted a package delivered and you didn't live in a big city, you were pretty much out of luck.
tedium
The Long, Slightly Strange History Behind Fingernail Clipping
Everyone does it.
