The Diamond Cartel: History’s Greatest Monopoly
A cartel is a group of companies coming together to fix the price of a product. Like how major oil countries come together as the cartel OPEC, to fix the price of crude oil, except with a diamond. Once these locals catch on to how profitable the diamond trade is, they’ll started trading diamonds and smuggling it.
Sintra’s Mysterious ‘Inverted Tower’
Steeped in strange symbology, the breath-taking ‘inverted tower’, or initiation well, found at the heart of Sintra’s Quinta da Regaleira celebrates Portugal’s unique historical connection to the mysterious and enigmatic Knights Templar.
The German Island With A Population Of 16
The 16 residents who live on the tiny German island of Oland must cope with extreme flooding on a regular basis. But they have no intention of leaving.
The Boss Who Put Everyone On 70k
In 2015, the boss of a card payments company in Seattle introduced a $70,000 minimum salary for all of his 120 staff – and personally took a pay cut of $1m. Five years later he’s still on the minimum salary, and says the gamble has paid off.
The Dark Secrets Lurking Inside Your Outdoor Gear
Allegations of abuse have surfaced at Bangladeshi and Malaysian factories whose multinational owner manufactures for some of the most popular outdoor brands we love. Here’s why that should surprise no one.
“Double Tap”, A Short, Satirical, Fast-Paced Comedy & Horror Film
A screen-obsessed teen ignores an Instagram meme chain and unleashes a Dickless Troll. Big mistake. “Double Tap” is a short, satirical, and fast-paced comedy/horror from Eros Vlahos.
Ari Emanuel, WME, And The Great Hollywood IPO That Wasn’t
The entertainment industry’s reigning super-agent planned to put his firm—and the very power structure of Hollywood—on the line with an audacious, now scuttled public offering. With that future on hold and the likes of Netflix and Disney commanding more ground by the day, what’s an ambitious modern macher to do?
The Rise Of Nintendo
Nintendo hasn’t always made video games. It was founded over a century ago and at one point sold ramen noodles and operated a taxi service. Today, Nintendo is part of a crowded video game market, up against companies like Sony, Microsoft, Apple and Google. When Nintendo first got into the home console business in the 80s, it dominated.
“No Other Way To Say It”, A Comedy About Advertising
Director Tim Mason pulls the curtain back on the glamorous world of advertising in this short comedy about a voiceover actor trying to nail the right tone for a pair of indecisive ad creatives selling a fictitious children’s ice cream brand.
China’s Leftover Men: Desperately Seeking Wives
He’s 57 and has never been in a relationship. Now he’s worried that his four nephews who live with him might end up alone – and desperate – just like him. How is China addressing its gender imbalance that has reached epic proportions?
Songdo, The World’s Most Futuristic City
The world’s most futuristic city is Songdo, South Korea. Within the larger city of Incheon, Songdo is a $40 billion project that embraces the 21st century design concepts of Aerotropolis and Ubiquitous city.
The Love Story That Shocked The World
When Seretse Khama, an African prince, and Ruth Williams, a white middle-class clerk from Lloyd’s underwriters, got married in 1948, it provoked shock in Britain and Africa. Khama was exiled from Great Britain and later became the first president of Botswana when it became an independent country.
The Wealth Detective Who Finds The Hidden Money Of The Super Rich
Thirty-two-year-old French economist Gabriel Zucman scours spreadsheets to find secret offshore accounts. The minimum amount Zucman calculated the wealthy stash in offshore accounts: $7.6 trillion.
If Everyone Hates Spirit Airlines, How Is It Making So Much Money?
Spirit borrowed the unbundling model from Ryanair and AirAsia. Instead of thinking of a flight as a means of getting from point A to point B plus a certain set of extras and amenities built into the ticket price, an unbundled fare promised nothing more than the get-you-from-A-to-B part. Everything else would cost extra.
“Locker Room”, Thought-Provoking Short Film About Teenage Friendships
A teenage girl discovers her male friends’ secret group chat, forcing her to question her friendship with them. Through the lens of neither a perpetrator or survivor, Locker Room draws attention to the social responsibility of bystanders to bad behavior and the pressures that can cause them to turn a blind eye.
The Inevitable Decade Of Marvel
On July 21, 2019, ‘Avengers: Endgame’ became the highest-grossing film ever, on its way to adding nearly $2.8 billion to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s $22.5 billion global box office total. The 2010s were defined by this superhero takeover—though the plans for it were laid even before the decade began.
The World’s Biggest Electric Vehicle Company Looks Nothing Like Tesla
BYD Co. is the No. 1 producer of plug-in vehicles globally, attracting a tiny fraction of the attention of Elon Musk’s company while powering, to a significant extent, a transition to electrified mobility that’s moving faster in China than in any other country.
Thailand: Turning Straw Into Gold
Huge amounts of rice straw are left over after the harvest in Thailand. Farmers often burn it, which is terrible for the environment. A young entrepreneur has found a new use for the material. Turned into paper, it can replace plastic food packaging.
The Future Of Work Looks Like Staying Out Of The Office
About 24 percent of US workers employed full-time did “some or all” of their work at home, according to the most recent federal data available. Dozens of studies find remote workers happy and productive. Why not let them be?
Inside London’s £18BN New Railway
Join Fred Mills inside London’s new Tottenham Court Road (TCR) station – part of the £18BN Elizabeth Line that is being constructed by Crossrail beneath the UK’s capital.
Why Socialism Failed in Africa
Considering capitalism to be equal to colonialism, Africa’s founding fathers rejected it and adopted marxist-socialism in the 1960s. Foreign companies were nationalised, state-owned enterprises were created and all sorts of controls on rents, prices, imports and foreign exchange.