schelling points

You have to meet a stranger in New York, on a given day. You cannot coordinate place and time between you in advance. Where do you meet?

The answer involves something called a "focal point" or Schelling point (after the person who developed the theory), and looking it up leads to some very interesting ideas on coordination without cooperation.

the great bucatini shortage of '20

https://www.grubstreet.com/2020/12/2020-bucatini-shortage-investigation.html

fun piece of investigative journalism