Help Us Find the Ugliest City Flag
There sure has been a lot of discussion about flags lately. Flags that are appropriate to fly. Flags that need to be cha…
In 1851, A Man Picked Two Unpickable Locks and Changed Security Forever
The pursuit of lock picking is as old as the lock, which is itself as old as civilization. But in the entire history…
How the Quest for a Perfectly Rational Calendar Created a 13th Month
A month is hardly a unit of measurement. It can start on any day of the week and last anywhere from 28 to 31 days.…
Barbed Wire's Dark, Deadly History
In the mid 1800s, not many (non-native) Americans had ever been west of the Mississippi. When Frederick Law Olmstead…
The Creepy, Surreal Apocalypse of The Sims Online
A few months before the end of the world, everyone was saying their goodbyes.
How One Fed-Up Dude Fixed an Awful Highway Sign Himself
At some point in your life you've probably encountered a problem in the built world where the fix was obvious to you.…
Why Penn Station Sucks
New Yorkers are known to disagree about a lot of things. Who's got the best pizza? What's the fastest subway route?…
Before the Hashtag, There Was the Octothorpe
If you want to follow conversation threads relating to this show on social media—whether Twitter, Facebook, or…
The Factories That Churn Out America's Most Iconic Trophies
There's a little trophy shop called Aardvark Laser Engraving down the street from our office in Oakland. It's small but…
The Problem With the Chair
"A Chair is a difficult object. A skyscraper is almost easier." — Mies van der Rohe.
Why We Still Haven’t Killed Off the High Heel
As a fashion object and symbol, the high heel shoe is weighted with meaning. It's also weighted with the wearer's…
Why the City of Oakland Finally Legalized Pinball Machines
Everyone has tried it at some point. The authorities started turning a blind eye years ago, but it wasn't officially…
This Mysterious NYC Castle Was Actually America's First Cancer Hospital
On the southwest corner of Central Park West and 106th Street in New York City, there's an enormous castle. It takes…
The Stubborn "Nail Houses" That Refuse to Get Demolished
In 1914, the government of New York City took ownership of a Manhattan apartment building belonging to one David Hess.…
The City Pipes and Stairways That Get Left Behind and Lead to Nowhere
Cities, like living things, evolve slowly over time. Buildings and structures get added and renovated and removed,…
The Secret Ways Airports Tell Us Where to Go
As humans have developed cities and built environments, we have also needed to develop ways to find our way through them
The Weird, Eerie World of China's Knockoff Cities
The best knock-offs in the world are in China. There are plenty of fake designer handbags and Rolexes but China's…
The Secret History of Emergency Exits
When designing a commercial structure, there is one safety component that must be designed right into the building from…
The Secret Solid Marble Bathtubs in the US Senate's Boiler Room
In 1869, the bathtubs in the basement of the US Capitol building looked something like the painting below.