Clive Thompson took a look at photocopiers and what they may tell us about the future:

• Crude attempts to create copies of documents before the advent of the copier included using a runny ink to write something and then pressing another page on top of it to transfer some of the ink.
• Companies used to have routing slips on important letters with a record of who had seen it and who it had to go to next.
• When Xerox rolled out the first mainstream commercial copier machines in 1959 some companies removed doors so that they had the space to install them.
• The machines were a hit and the number of photocopies jumped to 14 billion a year.
• They affected international politics. America’s Pentagon Papers were leaked through a photocopier, and the Soviet Union soon began to tightly control them.
• Activists used the copiers at their companies to make flyers for social causes such as the fight to raise awareness for AIDS.
• The CEO of Xerox wasn’t sure that the popularity of his company’s machine was a good thing, concerned that employees were mostly copying “junk and nonsense”.

Read about some of the naughty things that people liked to photocopy, some of the more innovative things they were used for, and what they tell us about the future of 3D printing here.

Source: Smithsonian

Writing and selling a book is a lot like launching a business wrote The Economist in an article titled “authorpreneurship”:

• To get a book widely recognized in this day and age a bit of outside help is required. A celebrity endorsement from the likes of Oprah or Mark Zuckerberg can help.
• So can a Hollywood film deal or a Pulitzer Prize.
• For authors that can’t go for that kind of prestige, they can always try to get onto bestselling lists.
• Preorders for books are usually recorded as sales during the first week that the book is published, meaning that authors may spend months drumming up interest and collecting pre-orders before the book is released or even written.
• Smart authors can look to release their books in months when few others are released to limit the amount of competition.
• But getting a book popular is just the first step and isn’t always that lucrative. The real money comes from the speaking engagements that a successful book can lead to.
• In this way authors, like musicians, no longer make their money from their main product. Rather they release these to drum up interest, then cash in through public performances.

Read why this is a problem for budding writers who want nothing more than to stay at home and write, what readers want, what this means for the book industry, and other ways to ensure that your book is successful over here.

Source: The Economist

Japan has more vending machines per square kilometer than any other country. Brian Ashcraft looked at why the country has such an affinity for them:

• The machines make business sense. They’re cheaper to operate than a shop and make a brand’s products widely available.
• They also serve as free advertizing since the sides of the machines act as billboards pushing the brand.
• Some use the machines as publicity stunts. One company announced that it would sell lingerie through a vending machine, just for the media coverage it garnered.
• The country has a long relationship with “unmanned sellers” which were just open stalls with fruits and vegetables. Buyers were meant to take what they wanted and leave the correct amount of money.
• These days the machines appeal in part due to their technical sophistication. They come with giant touch screens that do things like display the latest headlines.

Read more about the machines, the kinds of things you can get from them, why low rates of crime have boosted their popularity, and much more over here.

Source: Kotaku

Ashley Feinberg covered a service that aims to be the Uber for helicopters in New York City:

• A typical flight on the service costs $219, a bargain compared to the $1,000 cost of chartering your own helicopter.
• For the ride to work at least three (and up to five) other people have to have booked it at the same time.
• At launch the service will run from 8am to 8pm, but the plan is to ultimately make it 24 hours a day.
• The only two destinations at the moment are the major airports in the area.
• Passengers can wait for their ride in a lounge at the heliport with hors d’oeuvres and cocktails.
• Upon boarding they’ll be offered a pair of Bose noise-cancelling headphones to make for a more pleasant ride.

Read other attempts at the same idea, why the service will probably fail, its founder’s dreams for it, and much more here.

Source: Gizmodo

Joe Pinker looked at the question of making public transportation free:

• Some feel so strongly that getting around the city shouldn’t cost anything that they’ve come up with ingenious workarounds. In Sweden around 500 subway riders make a monthly $12 contribution to a common pool, cheaper than the $35 weekly pass. They then jump the turnstiles and if anybody is caught, the pooled funds pay the fine.
• In theory public transportation is a win-win for all. It would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and alleviate traffic congestion.
• In practice experiments with free public transit have found that it barely increases ridership – and when it does it’s usually pedestrians who take the subway rather than drivers.
• Singapore found that free rides at non-peak hours were a good idea, since they reduced the load on the subway during periods of high congestion.
• But proponents of free public transit note that the poor should be able to get around the city and so public transit has to be free, even if it doesn’t increase usage.

The full article looks at the experience that cities around the world have had with free public transport, and provides many other fascinating details. Read it here.

Source: The Atlantic

Alison Griswold looked at how a start up’s name can affect its success:

• According to researchers startups with fewer than four words in their name are 50% more likely to succeed than those with long names.
• Short names in general seem to lead to success. People with shorter names usually have higher salaries.
• For firms short names can be sharp and memorable, leaving a lasting impression on customers.
• New companies are also fond of intentional misspellings with dropped vowels and the addition of ‘ly’ to the end of names – such words do well in search engine results.

See how the region that a company is from can affect its success, and read more over here.

Source: Slate

While Spiderman is a Marvel Comics character, Sony Pictures has long held the film rights for the hero, preventing him from appearing in Marvel movies . That’s about to change write Marc Graser and Brent Lang:

• Marvel and Sony have come to an agreement which will allow for Spiderman to show up in Marvel movies.
• This could mean that web slinger may make an appearance in future Avengers installments, as well as cameo appearances in other Marvel movies.
• Sony agreed that it wouldn’t make a dime from Spiderman’s appearances in Marvel films – the publicity and exposure for the character will be payment enough.
• Andrew Garfield will be recast, and a new, younger Spiderman to return the character to his high school roots will be found.

Read details about the agreement here.

Source: Variety

Sean Hollister believes that we’ll soon live in a world where digital screens have replaced mirrors:

• On cars dashboard cameras can provide a much better view of what’s behind the driver than side or rear view mirrors.
• In bathrooms a digital mirror could help men shave by zooming in on their stubble.
• Those who apply makeup may prefer digital mirrors that can provide advice and feedback as they make adjustments.
• Digital mirrors could show a person what they look like in different outfits before they put them on.
• Also? We’re all just sort of used to it, but real mirrors reverse everything when we look at them. Future generations may find that unacceptable as digital mirrors will be able to eliminate the effect.

See some photos that show why cameras are superior to mirrors, and read other parts of the argument here.

Source: Gizmodo

Los Angeles has the worst congestion in all of America. The Economist took a look at how this changes purchasing incentives:

• Becker Automotive Design builds customized vans that give LA’s elite ways to kill time as they wait in traffic.
• Features include flat screen televisions, touch-screen computers, wireless internet, seats for a family, and even bathrooms.
• One fitness obsessed customer wanted a stationary bike nailed to the floor so that they could work out in traffic.
• The cars are decadently luxurious on the inside, but look dull on the outside so as not to attract the attention of fans – as the traffic would make it impossible to get away from them.
• The basic model costs $150,000, and the cost can go as high as $500,000 for armour which is popular with Middle Eastern and African customers.

Read more about the vehicles, and other famous clients here.

Source: The Economist