The Economics of Everyday Things

It takes fungi-sniffing dogs, back-room deals, and a guy named “The Kingpin” for the world’s most coveted morsel to end up on your plate. Zachary Crockett picks up the scent.

 

SOURCES:Jason McKinney, co-founder and C.E.O. of Truffle Shuffle.Besart Morina, truffle dealer.

 

RESOURCES:"Dogs Pay the Price in Italian Truffle War," by Margherita Stancati (The Wall Street Journal, 2022)."How Truffles Took Root Around the World," by Federico Kukso (Smithsonian Magazine, 2022)."Has the American-Grown Truffle Finally Broken Through?" by Rowan Jacobsen (Smithsonian Magazine, 2021)."Sonoma County Farm Strikes Black Truffle Gold After 9 Years of...

Once considered noble and heroic, pigeons are now viewed as an urban nuisance — one that costs cities millions of dollars a year. Zachary Crockett tosses some crumbs.

 

SOURCES:Andrew Blechman, journalist and author.David Champagne, owner of Bird Busters, Inc.

 

RESOURCES:"Racing Pigeon Sells For A Record-Breaking $1.9 Million At Auction," by Carlie Porterfield (Forbes, 2020)."Feathers of Honor: U.S. Army Signal Corps Pigeon Service in World War I, 1917–1918," by Frank A. Blazich Jr. (Army History, 2020)."Pigeon Wars," by Jon Mooallem (The New York Times, 2006).Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Revile...

How do criminals turn their ill-gotten gains into taxable income? And how does law enforcement stop them? Zachary Crockett follows the money.

 

SOURCES:Patrick McKenzie, fraud prevention expert and strategic advisor at Stripe.Kerry Myers, associate professor of instruction at the University of South Florida and former F.B.I. special agent.

 

RESOURCES:"National Assessments of Money Laundering Risks: Stumbling at the Start," by Joras Ferwerda and Peter Reuter (Risk Analysis, 2024)."Hacker 'Washes' $25M in Stolen Crypto Through Magic: The Gathering Card Scheme," by Oliver Dale (Blockonomi, 2023)."Money Spending or Money Laundering: The Fine Li...

Thanks to online booking platforms, the way we make reservations has changed — but a table at a hot restaurant on a Friday night is still a valuable commodity. Zachary Crockett books a four-top for 7 p.m.

 

SOURCES:Lisa Blount, director of marketing and public relations at Antoine’s Restaurant.Adam Iscoe, writer.

 

RESOURCES:"Why You Can’t Get a Restaurant Reservation," by Adam Iscoe (The New Yorker, 2024)."New York Passes Bill to Make the Restaurant Reservation Black Market Illegal," by Emma Orlow (Eater, 2024)."When Canceling Your Reservation Costs as Much as Dinner," by T.M. Brown...

There are more firefighters than ever — and fewer fires for them to fight. So the job has changed. Zachary Crockett slides down the pole.

 

SOURCES:Joshua Hurwitz, lecturer in economics at Tufts University.Eric Mackintosh, administrative battalion fire chief for San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department.Steve Pegram, retired fire chief and township administrator in Ohio.

 

RESOURCES:"The Dire Shortage of Volunteer Firefighters in the US," by Sam Becker (BBC, 2024).San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department 2023 Annual Report (2024)."Essays on the Economics of U.S. Firefighting," by Joshua Hurwitz (Harvard University doctoral dissertation, 2021)."Over Last 20 Years, Annu...

How did love stories about vampires, cowboys, and wealthy dukes become the highest-grossing fiction genre in the world? Zachary Crockett gets swept away.

 

SOURCES:Delaney Diamond, romance novelist.Danielle Flores, high school math teacher and avid romance novel reader.Brenda Hiatt, romance novelist.Diane Moggy, vice president of editorial at Harlequin.

 

RESOURCES:"Even as Overall Book Sales Are Declining, Romance Novels Are on the Rise," by Elena Burnett, Sarah Handel, and Juana Summers (All Things Considered, 2023)."Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey," press release by the Authors Guild (2023)."How Amazon Turn...

Performing at a strip club can be lucrative, but it requires financial and psychological savvy — and an eye for social trends. Zachary Crockett takes a look.

 

SOURCES:Layla, stripper.Dave Manack, publisher and editor-in-chief of Exotic Dancer.

 

RESOURCES:"A Look at Washington State’s ‘Strippers’ Bill of Rights’," by Aimee Ortiz (The New York Times, 2024)."These L.A. Strippers Won a Union. But the Dance Isn’t Over," by Suhauna Hussain (Los Angeles Times, 2023)."Dancers at Northwest Portland Strip Club Vote to Form City’s First Strippers Union, Second in U.S.," by Kristine de Leon (The Ore...

Why does treating a venomous snake bite cost as much as a house? Zachary Crockett slithers over to North Carolina to find out.

 

SOURCES:Steve Anderson, emergency medicine business unit leader at BTG Pharmaceuticals.Nick Brandehoff, professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado and executive director of the Asclepius Snakebite Foundation.Sean Bush, emergency physician and president of the North American Society of Toxinology.Nitin Deshpande, business consultant with Premium Serums & Vaccines.Jack Facente, owner-operator of AGRITOXINS Venom Production Laboratory.

 

RESOURCES:"This New Antivenom Defangs the Toxins of Cobras, Black Mambas and Mo...

Online companies promised to bring transparency to the mattress-buying experience. Did that work out? Zachary Crockett takes a look under the sheets.

 

SOURCES:Derek Hales, founder and editor-in-chief of NapLab.com.Joe Megibow, C.E.O. of Casper Sleep.

 

RESOURCES:"Drake Has a $400,000 Bed − We Asked Why and Where You Can Buy It," by Emilia Hitching (Homes & Gardens, 2024)."Casper Tests a New Store Design as It Rethinks Its Retail Strategy," by Anna Hensel (Modern Retail, 2024)."Is The Direct-To-Consumer Bedding Business Turning Into A Bad Dream?" by Warren Shoulberg (Forbes, 2019).

 

EXTRAS:"Are We in a...

Channeling the voices of celebrities can be a lucrative career — one that requires empathy and discretion as well as literary chops. Zachary Crockett checks the acknowledgements.

 

SOURCES:Valerie Frankel, ghostwriter.Madeleine Morel, President and Lead Agent of 2M Communications.Daniel Paisner, ghostwriter.

 

RESOURCES:"Ghostwriting History: Churchill, Kennedy and the Authenticity of Authorship," by Andrew Mumford (The International History Review, 2024)."Column: How many ways can a political memoir backfire? Ask Kristi Noem," by Robin Abcarian (Los Angeles Times, 2024)."Notes from Prince Harry’s Ghostwriter," by J. R. Moehringer (The New Yorker, 2023)."Confessions of a Celebrity Ghostw...