Kyle Stock noted that Taylor Swift’s new album, the Xbox One, and even Ebola toys are apparently selling like hot cakes these days. What’s odd is that hot cakes aren’t selling well at all:

• Hot cakes are basically pancakes and the term “selling like hotcakes” comes from the days when people bought them at bake sales and ate them before they got cold.
• Pancake mix sales declined in 2014.
• The average American spends just over a dollar on pancake mix every year.
• Google search trends also show that the popularity of the term “hot cakes” has waned.

Stock suggests that from now on we say that things are selling either “like quinoa” or “like ramen”. Read more here.

Source: Businessweek

The Economist, no doubt with a twinge of envy, wrote about a country where economists are big celebrities:

• In Argentina the top celebrity economist has more than four times as many twitter followers as the top actor and the top rock star.
• The best economists date models, are followed by both financial reporters and the paparazzi, and are asked for autographs when they go out in public.
• Their popularity seems to be driven by the uncertain and volatile state of the Argentine economy.
• In a time of crisis people look to the top economists for guidance on how to manage their finances.

Read more about what it’s like to be an economist in Argentina, and see what a star power couple looks like over here.

Source: The Economist

Ashifa Kassam wrote about a quirk of Spain’s tax law and how one theater company is exploiting it:

• During the Euro crisis the Spanish government increased the tax on theater tickets from 8% to 21%, but left a 4% tax rate in place for magazines.
• One theater group decided to exploit this by selling porn magazines which included a free ticket to the theater.
• Another Spanish group sold carrots which included free theater tickets since carrots are only taxed at 4%.

Read more here.

Source: The Guardian

Via: Quartz

Over the past two weeks computer security experts have been analyzing a piece of malicious software known as Regin which is targeting computers in many countries including Russia and Saudi Arabia. It is thought to be British. The Economist took a look at how experts figure out where such software comes from:

• There are usually clues in the targets of the software. Anything targeting Iran is likely Israeli. Suspicion would fall on NATO countries for anything targeting Russia.
• Sometimes there are clues in the code itself. In the case of Regin there were references to “Legspin” a type of cricket bowling. This has led experts to suspect British involvement.
• Code in Korean, Mandarin, Arabic or any other country specific language also provides a signpost.
• Of course designers of malicious software know that people will be looking for such clues and may plant a trail of false breadcrumbs.
• If done correctly cyber-attacks can be impossible to trace, highlighting their appeal.

Read about some famous examples, the clues that point towards the real perpetrator, and more over here.

Source: The Economist

‘Tis the holiday season in the west and families will be looking to purchase Christmas trees. David Yanofsky looked at data from Square to come up with a few tips:

• The worst part about shopping for Christmas trees is the large crowds. Sales peak three weeks before Christmas making it a bad time to go shopping.
• Instead buying Christmas trees the week after America’s thanksgiving ensures high quality trees and sparse crowds.
• Most sales take place between Friday and Sunday. Those hoping to avoid the rush should go on Wednesday – the slowest sales day of the season.

Read more here.

Source: Quartz

Back in 2011 Centives reported that New York City taxi medallions were a better investment than both gold and shares. Oh how the times have changed. Josh Barro wrote:

• As a result of services such as Uber and Lyft prices for taxi medallions across the US have crashed.
• The average New York City medallion is down to just under $900k, 17% below its peak.
• Things are worse in Boston where prices have fallen 20%.
• And in Philadelphia the taxi authority was unable to sell any medallions at all.
• Taxi medallion owners face a death spiral. Services such as UberX are cheaper than cabs. Why, then, should taxi drivers pay to lease medallions if customers will actively avoid their cabs?

Read more here.

Source: The New York Times

Via: Marginal Revolution

It’s always been somewhat unfortunate that Black Friday, the biggest, more materialistic, sales period of the year, is preceded by Thanksgiving, a holiday where people appreciate the things that they have. Luckily Brits don’t have to grapple with that contradiction. The Economist wrote:

• This Black Friday Brits are expected to spend £6,000 ($9,500) an hour.
• Amazon is responsible for bringing Black Friday to Britain. In 2010 the UK version of the website began offering Black Friday details.
• In 2013 a supermarket chain owned by Walmart also started offering Black Friday deals, and the holiday had come to life in the UK.
• Not all stores have accepted the idea; many are waiting to see if customers will be willing to pay normal prices after seeing the discounts on offer on Black Friday.

Read about the history of Black Friday in Britain, what experts have to say, and more over here.

Source: The Economist

If it makes you feel any better about your food today, it turns out that turkeys granted a Presidential pardon don’t have that great a life, as Zachary Crockett wrote:

• The National Turkey Federation (seriously) is responsible for breeding and presenting candidates for a Presidential pardon.
• 80 hatchlings are selected as potentials and are fed a high calorie diet to make them as fat as possible for the cameras.
• Of those only 20 of the largest and best-behaved make the cut.
• They then go through an intensive regime where they are trained to handle the spotlight so that they don’t panic amidst the flash photography and noisy crowds.
• Only about two make it to the next round where they are pampered. This year’s candidates got $350 a night hotel rooms covered in wood shavings.
• After being pardoned they are sent to a farm to live out the rest of their years in peace.
• It turns out though they don’t live very long. The high calorie diet means that they die early, obesity related deaths.
• Of the past eight turkeys that have been pardoned, seven died less than a year after they earned a pardon.

…Happy Thanksgiving!

Read about how contrary to popular belief, the history of the Presidential Turkey pardon only goes back to the late 80s, how myths around the tradition got started, a list of the names of each of the turkeys pardoned, and more over here.

Source: Priceonomics

Oliver Roeder delved into the world of art:

• The most expensive work of art by a man is Francis Bacon’s “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” which sold for $142.4 million at auction.
• This meant that up until last week, the most expensive work by a woman was worth just 8% of the most expensive work by a man.
• But recently Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1” (pictured) sold for $44.4 million, almost quadrupling the previous record for a woman’s (artistic) touch.
• Now the “record gender pay gap” is at 31 cents for women, compared to the dollar that a male record holder earns.
• In contrast in America the standard business gender pay gap is about 84 cents to the dollar.

Read about the difficulty of tracking the data, an excellent visualization, and more over here.

Source: FiveThirtyEight

Via: Marginal Revolution

Tom Heyden took a look at billboards:

• In the world of billboard marketing, those in areas with a lot of foot traffic are highly valued as pedestrians are more likely to gaze at the lights.
• Those on foot are also likely to take photos which end up on social media and spread an advertizer’s message to broad audiences.
• Marketers like places with lots of traffic jams and delayed flights since frustrated travelers will take in more ads.
• New York’s Times Square will soon hold the record for the world’s biggest digital billboard, with one stretching 100 meters.
• Advertizing space on the billboard is expected to cost $2.5 million a month.
• Size isn’t the only way companies are trying to draw attention. In 2010 the world’s first scented billboard produced pepper and charcoal smells to sell beef.

Read about the history of billboards, the best location for one in the world, and other ways that advertizers are trying to push the envelope over here.

Source: BBC