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What I’m Doing Next 🧱
You might be wondering, now that Lesser Tedium is done, what am I doing with your email address? The short answer is more Tedium. Here’s the long…
Jul 21, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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What I’m Doing Next 🧱
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Napoleon’s Resting Place 🪦
One of the most remote islands in the world, St. Helena, held Napoleon during the last few years of his life. He’s still there—and St. Helena just got…
Jul 20, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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Napoleon’s Resting Place 🪦
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Clip Art Before Computers ✂️
The forgotten early history of clip art speaks to a time in which the medium was distributed through literal books in which the art could be clipped…
Jul 17, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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Clip Art Before Computers ✂️
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A Tree Made Of Metal 🌲
Try as they might, it is hard to hide a camouflage a cell tower. For one thing, the towers are way bigger than the trees they’re meant to look like.
Jul 14, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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A Tree Made Of Metal 🌲
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Consider The Plastic Lemon 🍋
The plastic lemon is one of the best-known kitsch objects, but its common nature created trademark problems that a British court had to settle.
Jul 13, 2023
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Ernie Smith
4
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Consider The Plastic Lemon 🍋
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Japan’s Record Rental Revolution 💿
Despite much complaining from trade groups, Japan’s record-rental model made the country’s music industry much stronger in the long run—after some…
Jul 10, 2023
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Ernie Smith
3
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Japan’s Record Rental Revolution 💿
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A Matter of Adhesion ✉️
Why did we decide to lick stamps and envelopes, anyway? Well, it turns out that it was key to the success of the modern-day mail system.
Jul 7, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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A Matter of Adhesion ✉️
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Delivery First 📦
Why the C.O.D. model became popular in the time before the credit card—and why many countries have yet to give up on it.
Jul 6, 2023
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Ernie Smith
2
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Delivery First 📦
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June 2023
Where Do the Coupons Go? 🛒
In the 1950s, a manufacturer’s coupon clearing house had a problem: How do we get rid of all these used coupons? They actively destroyed the local…
Jun 30, 2023
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Ernie Smith
4
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Where Do the Coupons Go? 🛒
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The Game Genie’s Great Gift 🎮
It was more than just a way to cheat. The Game Genie was a gateway to remix culture that we’re seeing amplified with ChatGPT.
Jun 29, 2023
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Ernie Smith
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The Game Genie’s Great Gift 🎮
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The Formula That Shaped Cable TV 📺
A forgotten TV show from the late ’80s played a massive influence on how cable television was made—so much so that the formula it spawned is better…
Jun 26, 2023
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Ernie Smith
5
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The Formula That Shaped Cable TV 📺
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What Happened to Saturday Morning? 📺
The tale of E/I programming, the federal regulation that zapped the energy out of the Saturday morning cartoon.
Jun 23, 2023
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Ernie Smith
2
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What Happened to Saturday Morning? 📺
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