private return Archives

The Little Cotton Swab That Had a Big Impact

Soon to celebrate its 100th birthday, the cotton swab is a seemingly small innovation that had a massive impact.

Learn With Elaine: Inventing Post-it Notes

An accidental innovation, Post-it Notes had a massive economic impact through the private and social returns that they created.

Milton Friedman

An Innovation That Stuck

Accidentally inventing the Post-it Note, two scientists and one large corporation demonstrated where an innovation can take us.

Innovation

The Trouble That Is Brewing for Tea Drinkers

A small innovation that made a big difference, the teabag has remained pretty much the same for more than a century.

Weekly Economic News Roundup and pizza wars

What's Trending

The One Way That Apple and Pizza Hut Are Alike

Propelled by Apple and Pizza Hut, new pizza box design could bring us takeout pizza whose taste and temperature weather a journey.

economic news roundup and bovine bingo insurance

Economic Thinkers

The New Food Technology That Could Change What We Eat

Whether about cows or chicken nuggets, sometimes seemingly insignificant new food technology can have an unexpectedly massive impact.

Weekly Economic News Roundup and soggy French fries

Economic Thinkers

McDonald’s Soggy French Fries Problem

Because of their new delivery partnership with UberEats, McDonald’s has a soggy French fries problem that they need to solve.

Economic History

How the Movies Became Cool

An August release, The Shape of Water could be in theaters during hot summer weather because of the invention of air conditioning.

Everyday economics and air conditioning as an innovation

Business

What It Means to be Cool

As a technological innovation, air conditioning led to a ripple of positive externalities. Affecting how we live and work, it had private and social return.