Drug Names: The machinations behind the monikersUnveiling the hidden world of pharmaceutical nomenclatureQuartz Staff
The algorithm: Letters of recommendationThe making of the recommendation formulas that influence what we stream, shop, and see online today.Quartz Staff
Video game remakes: Revival of the fittestThe games you loved once? Get ready to spend money on them a second time.Quartz Staff
Green steel: Structural changeWhat if we changed not just the materials we used to make things, but the way we make our materials?Quartz Staff
VR headsets: We’re practically thereVirtual reality has always been a future-tech promise, but today’s applications are more practical than you might expect.Quartz Staff
Smart rings: Digital digitsData-collecting, payment-making tech, wrapped around your finger. Is it worth it?Quartz Staff
Tail lights: Smart signalsThose simple lights on the back of your car are one of the most important technological innovations in automaking history — and they’re not finished yet.Quartz Staff
The World’s Fair: Tech’s bygone showcaseWorld's Fairs provided a glimpse into new inventions and technologies from across the globe.
Smart homes: Built to crashWe fill our houses with the Internet of Things, but the technology leaves much to be desired.
Superapps: There can be only oneDespite antitrust scrutiny, the dream of building a superapp in the US persists.
AI hallucinations: Turn on, tune in, beep boopChatbots aren't always right. Researchers call these faulty performances "hallucinations."
Single-use plastics: The message in a bottleSingle-use plastics are a problem, but why is it often the duty of consumers to do something about it?
Online voting: Yes or noEstonia pioneered online voting in its elections almost two decades ago. Could the US replicate its success?
Public tech bank: A newer dealIn the wake of SVB's collapse, this episode imagines another option for the US government in financing tech innovation.
Algorithmic hiring: We’re only humanWhat is it like going through the job search process without ever interacting with a real person?
Tree planting: Sowing complacencyNot only is tree planting not that helpful in offsetting carbon emissions—it might even be counterproductive
Fusion power: Don't overreactThis new source of energy could revolutionize our approach to consumption and climate change
Green burials: Leave no traceInside the industry devoted to handling death in an ecologically sustainable way
Firetech: A match for Silicon ValleyInside the startups focused on developing technology to control and prevent fires
Earth observation: Taking the long viewInside the most impactful industry to launch into space over the past decade
Your chart: A body of informationEpic, the maker of MyChart, is the keeper of health records for 200 million Americans
The invisible hand: Capitalism's misunderstood metaphorAdam Smith, the legendary 18th century Scottish philosopher, coined the usage of this economics term
Mushroom leather: Fungi saves fashionMycelium leather could be the greenest solution to a big problem for the planet
Podcasts: Let’s get metaAsynchronous, on-demand talk radio was a bold proposition back in 2004, when podcasts first started making waves. Less than 20 years later, podcasting is a big business. But monetization has its downsides: What began as a freewheeling,…
Inflation: The price isn’t rightPrices for goods, from furniture to meat, have been steadily rising for months. It’s the most obvious symptom of inflation, which is when money buys less than it used to. But there’s no need to panic: This is far from the first time inflation has…
Perfume: The strangest supply chainShipping snafus have hit everything from Pelotons to paper towels, and they’re also coming for perfume. From Chanel No. 5’s secret recipe to the modern proliferation of DIY scents, this global industry has supply chains as delicate as the scents…
Dyslexia: Thinking differentlyThough scientists first identified dyslexia over a century ago, politicians, parents, and educators still struggle to teach students that suffer from it. In the English-speaking world, dyslexia has become a great unequalizer, pushing those with…
Replacement rate: Counting our chickens2.1—that’s how many children every woman “needs to have.” Any fewer, and a country’s population will eventually stop growing, age, and shrink, which could inhibit its economic growth and drain government coffers. But it’s easier said than done:…
Pasta: A global staplePasta’s path to pantries all over the world is inextricably tied to Italy, the country that used technology and mass production to turn a homemade food into a commercial product. Even as pasta-makers market an idealized version of the Italian…
National debt: Acceptable imbalanceAs individuals, we know it’s not great to have too much debt. But at the macro level, that narrative falls apart. In fact, most governments need some debt to take care of their people, especially in the wake of a crisis like a pandemic. How a…
Edible bugs: The original superfoodBetween lab-grown meat and veganism going mainstream, we’re in an age of abundance for alternative protein options. But one hasn’t been getting as much attention as the others: Edible insects, popular in places like Ghana and Mexico, are nutritious,…
Puffer jackets: The price of staying warmPuffer jackets have been worn by outdoorsmen, rappers, the military, luxury shoppers, and—eventually—everyone. Today, the market is still heating up.
Sequels: Here we go againAfter the release of a great film, it seems natural to us now that they’d want to make another. But this was not always the case. Now that Hollywood seems to almost compulsively turn successful films into franchises, reboots, and cinematic…
Prosthetics: Upgrade availableAthletes at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics had prosthetics perfectly designed to help them run, jump, or swim as the events required. Now the technology behind those prosthetics is coming to everyday people who need it—and, possibly, to people who…
Disco: Choosing joyThey tried to kill disco, but it will never die. The stubbornly upbeat genre came out of an economically turbulent moment—one to which we see a lot of parallels today. So what is it about a crisis that just makes us want to dance?
Fish sticks: The ocean’s little problem solversFish sticks are more than just an easy way to get kids to eat healthy food. They’re the ocean’s little problem solvers, swimming in to solve a seafood glut after World War II, and to help working parents in need of cheap and easy meals. Now fish…
Indian weddings: The priciest party of your lifeIt’s the stuff of Bollywood dreams, come to life—the big fat Indian wedding has withstood the test of time, economic turbulence, social reform, and even modern technology. But when you factor in pent-up pandemic demand, can India’s $50 billion…
Google docs: Life in the cloudGoogle docs have revolutionized the way we work, and now it even functions as a tool for social sharing and political dissent. This is all because the world shifted from saving files locally to storing them in the cloud. But has Google docs made us t…
Egg freezing: Put it on iceAs more people aren’t sure whether or when to have kids, a growing number of them are turning to egg freezing, a relatively new and expensive procedure that could help women become parents outside their biological bounds. But how realistic is any…
CAPTCHA: Made you lookThose internet security tests that ask you to retype blurry numbers or pick out photos of traffic lights have an important job: They stop robots from gumming up the internet. But by using them everywhere, we’re training computers to see the world…
Japanese whisky: One steep sipAfter spending decades in relative obscurity, Japanese whisky is finally getting global appreciation for its masterful flavors. Global demand is high, with prices to match. There’s just one problem: There’s no technical definition of Japanese…
