You'll sometimes hear from people that they actually do a better job of getting their work done when they have a lot of other obligations - in effect, it removes the possibility of procrastinating.

On Wall Street, fraudulent schemes tend to thrive during economic booms, and to blow up when times turn tough.

In conditions of uncertainty, humans, like other animals, herd together for protection.

As technology improves, on-screen avatars look more and more like real people. When they start looking too real, though, we pull away. These almost-humans aren't quite right; they look creepy, like zombies.

In order to work well, markets need a basic level of trust.

Technology is supposed to make our lives easier, allowing us to do things more quickly and efficiently. But too often it seems to make things harder, leaving us with fifty-button remote controls, digital cameras with hundreds of mysterious features and book-length manuals, and cars with dashboard systems worthy of the space shuttle.

Most corporate name changes are the result of mergers and acquisitions. But these tend to be unimaginative.