Ceiling decorations
Most ceilings are sparsely decorated, with the rare exception of spaces that are meant to leave an impression of grandeur (e.g. religious sanctuaries and lobbies »
Sealing bags before check-in
I like that many foreign airports require passengers to send all of their bags, including checked bags, through x-ray machines to even enter the terminal. Then, »
Honking as echo location
In places where traffic lanes are treated as suggestions, it makes sense that people use their horns to make other drivers aware of where they are. »
Self-censorship
Many people are uncomfortable visiting websites like WikiLeaks because they're afraid that it could look suspicious and eventually come back to haunt them. The fact that »
Printed travel documents
Printed travel documents still work better than digital versions of the same documents. Physical boarding passes work more smoothly than scanning the QR code on my »
Overloaded terms
The word "sanction" can mean either to give permission and to impose a penalty. Determining which of these opposite definitions is applicable is relatively »
Intuition pumps
Finding effective intuition pumps to help people understand your point of view can be tricky because what works well for one person, may fall flat with »
Election observers
Given that there's doubt about the Democratic National Committee's ability to conduct a fair and impartial primary, I wonder whether this kind of foul play would »
Proving residency for a library card
To get a public library card, you need to prove residence. In the past, you'd bring a utility bill with your name on it. But now, »
Voting is a collective action problem
Individually, it may be rational not to vote, but collectively if too many people have that attitude, democracy is meaningless and ineffective. In other words, voting »