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Dedicated To Helping Readers
Be More Interesting
Since 2004.

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post thumbnail for Season 5 of the Non-Obvious Show Podcast Is Now Live!

11 2025 July

Season 5 of the Non-Obvious Show Podcast Is Now Live!

Over the past six months I’ve been recording conversations with people whose books and body of work I find most fascinating. Earlier this week I’m...

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post thumbnail for Copenhagen’s Adult Park Offers Rare Child-Free Green Spaces

10 2025 July

Copenhagen’s Adult Park Offers Rare Child-Free Green Spaces

On UNICEF’s latest list of the best countries for children, Denmark came in second place. Copenhagen as a city is known for being kid-friendly, scoring...

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post thumbnail for How Carnival Cruise Killed Their Loyalty Program … And What Happens Next

09 2025 July

How Carnival Cruise Killed Their Loyalty Program … And What Happens Next

In mid-June, Carnival Cruise Lines launched what may be the most shocking (and potentially destructive) experiment in the history of loyalty programs. They essentially ​announced...

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post thumbnail for The Non-Obvious Book of the Week: Generations by Jean M. Twenge

08 2025 July

The Non-Obvious Book of the Week: Generations by Jean M. Twenge

If there was ever a book that could demystify and explain the differences between these generational labels we assign to one another, this is it....

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post thumbnail for Is “Sludge” a Real Customer Service Tactic to Avoid Irate Customers?

07 2025 July

Is “Sludge” a Real Customer Service Tactic to Avoid Irate Customers?

There is a term in Cass R. Sunstein and Richard H. Thaler’s book Nudge, first published in 2008, that introduces the idea of sludge–“tortuous administrative demands,...

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post thumbnail for The Talking Statues of Versailles

04 2025 July

The Talking Statues of Versailles

When my kids were younger (and probably today too!) one of our favorite family movies was Night at the Museum. The idea of museums coming...

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post thumbnail for Digg, the Internet’s Favorite Defunct Brand Is Coming Back

03 2025 July

Digg, the Internet’s Favorite Defunct Brand Is Coming Back

If you were around for the early days of the Internet, you might remember Digg. It was a collection of interesting stories that was so...

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post thumbnail for How Technology Is Changing the Way Perfume Gets Made

02 2025 July

How Technology Is Changing the Way Perfume Gets Made

As AI enters perfumery, are we expanding access to beauty — or automating the soul out of it?” This is the provocative question asked in...

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post thumbnail for The Non-Obvious Book of the Week: The Problems in the Art World by Brainard Carey

01 2025 July

The Non-Obvious Book of the Week: The Problems in the Art World by Brainard Carey

Being an artist is hard. When you choose to do it professionally, you’ll likely face many problems. According to Brainard Carey, the renowned director of...

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post thumbnail for How One Museum Is Reinventing the Way Collections Are Shown

30 2025 June

How One Museum Is Reinventing the Way Collections Are Shown

Imagine spending a day at a museum without seeing the actual exhibits but instead visiting the warehouse where they keep everything that isn’t on display....

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post thumbnail for Inside the Relentlessly Cheerful Campaign of Zohran Mamdani

27 2025 June

Inside the Relentlessly Cheerful Campaign of Zohran Mamdani

Amidst all the coverage of what some news outlets described as a  “political earthquake​” with relative newcomer Zohran Mamdani defeating longtime NY politician Andrew Cuomo...

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post thumbnail for The Perfect Astronaut of the Future Is Changing—Here’s Why It Matters

26 2025 June

The Perfect Astronaut of the Future Is Changing—Here’s Why It Matters

In the late 1950s, NASA recruited 11 men aged 25-48 for a unique experiment that has today been mostly forgotten. The participants, ​known to history...

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post thumbnail for New Event Planner Survey Suggests Celebrity Keynote Speakers May Be a Waste of Money

25 2025 June

New Event Planner Survey Suggests Celebrity Keynote Speakers May Be a Waste of Money

I have “shared the stage” with Jay Leno. That’s industry lingo for saying that I was the second (much less expensive) keynote speaker at an...

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