A startup is trying to create the diamond equivalent of the gold standard

The new phenomenon of 15-minute lab-grown diamonds

In 2024, scientists developed a groundbreaking method to create diamonds at normal room temperature and pressure. This efficient and simple process contrasts with the traditional high-pressure, high-temperature method. While limitations still exist, such as minuscule sizes, this discovery moves us toward an exciting new era in diamond synthesis. Check out the article for further information about how diamonds are made.

A gold standard is a system where every dollar in circulation can be exchanged for a set amount of gold

For centuries, the things people used as money had intrinsic value, such as precious metals like gold. In medieval Italy, giant wheels of parmesan cheese were once used as a store of value.

Many bitcoin enthusiasts have compared the cryptocurrency to digital gold

Gold is valued for its stability and reliability, serving as a hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty. Bitcoin shares both of these characteristics, but also provides near-instant liquidity and isn’t subject to government regulation.

Diamond engagement rings were popularized via an ad campaign

In 1947, an ad agency copywriter wrote the De Beers diamond company's slogan, "a diamond is forever"—and diamond engagement rings became basically required for brides-to-be. This video tells the story of exactly how the ad campaign happened, and why it was so impactful.

Explore how fine jewelry investing works

Experts recommend that fine jewelry investors focus on the most in-demand brands like Cartier, and on trends, time periods, and stones with staying power.

The platinum coin, explained by the creator of the idea

An obscure US Mint law permitting it to create platinum coins of any amount surfaced as a possible means of quickly paying down the national debt. Here's an explanation from the creator of the idea.

Several birthstones play key roles across modern technologies

Diamonds are used in drills and quantum computing, while peridot and zircon help in steelmaking and carbon capture. Rubies, sapphires, and alexandrite enable several varieties of lasers found in medicine and advanced optics. Garnets are found in water filtration systems and radiation detectors. Sapphires are used as substrates in semiconductors.

A diamond's color comes from impurities, defects, and unique formation processes

While most diamonds are transparent and sparkly, the presence of nitrogen and boron during formation can make them yellow, orange, or blue. Radiation can produce green diamonds, and structural deformities can introduce red hues.

The cryptocurrency equivalent of going public

An initial coin offering (ICO) is cryptocurrency's version of an initial public offering (IPO). Similar to the way a company offers shares on the stock market for the first time, ICOs occur when a cryptocurrency company seeks to raise funding for a new coin, app, or service. If you're entering the field, get the details on how it all works.

Dogecoin, the seminal memecoin that has no specific use

Dogecoin has ridden a wave of enthusiasm to become one of the most valuable cryptocurrencies. Created in 2013 by software engineers as a joke, the token has become the poster child for the viral and unpredictable nature of the cryptocurrency market, and has inspired tens of thousands of imitator coins.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Some ads help create ‘symbolic value’ for products

A Rolex watch and a watch from the Dollar Store serve the same purpose: helping the wearer tell the time. But a Rolex is worth thousands of dollars while the Dollar Store watch is costs $1 because of symbolic value, or what the watch says about its wearer. This article helps break down the difference between the two.

Worldcoin: the cryptocurrency collecting biometric data

An ambitious project launched by OpenAI's founder Sam Altman, Worldcoin aims to provide a global financial and identity network based on proof of personhood through biometric scanning of individuals' irises.

One $100 investment in the Medallion Fund skyrockets over time

The Medallion Fund, the famously secretive quant fund that invests billions of dollars for the partners and employees of a single firm with a legendary track record, has trounced the market for more than three decades. While its results are an extreme outlier, this visualization showcases the power of compound interest.

The different types of stablecoins include algorithmic stablecoins

In addition to fiat-backed stablecoins, commodity-backed stablecoins, and cryptocurrency-backed stablecoins, algorithmic stablecoins use smart contract-based mechanisms to maintain a stable value by responding to supply and demand.

A 'unicorn' is a private company with a $1B-plus valuation

Just like a horse with a spiraling horn on its head, private companies with a more than $1B valuation are rare creatures. But unlike the mythical creature, this type of “unicorn” is occasionally spotted in the wild. Unicorn companies include SpaceX, OpenAI, Skims, and more.

Decentralized autonomous organizations organize on the blockchain

Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are typically formed with a specific goal in mind. ConstitutionDAO, for instance, was made to raise funds to buy a copy of the US Constitution (it failed).

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

Startup founders’ equity becomes diluted as they bring in more investors

When an angel investor funds a company in exchange for equity, startups issue new shares to them, rather than giving them existing shares, and boost the company’s valuation.

Why blockchain applications are worth investing and building

Chris Dixon is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz. In this hourlong podcast episode, Dixon shares his overall thesis for investing in the cryptocurrency space, the opportunities and limitations of blockchain applications, and why this is the most interesting area for investing and building over the next 10 years.

It's tough to measure just how much the global commodities market is worth

That's partly because of all the different ways and places commodities are traded—such as futures exchanges, spot markets, and over-the-counter deals. Additionally, the same commodity can be traded multiple times in different markets, making it easy to risk duplicating trade values in calculations.

The Dow Divisor keeps the index consistent through time

To adjust for stock splits, mergers, and replacements, the DJIA uses a figure called the Dow Divisor. Originally valued around 12 in 1896, and now less than one, it ensures today’s index levels remain comparable with the past.

Startups follow a 'minimum viable product' strategy to determine demand

Michael Seibel, group partner for startup incubator Y Combinator, explains how to build a minimum viable product (also known as an MVP) for any startup idea. Using real companies that experienced the Y Combinator program as examples, he walks through how to determine an MVP feature set, how to present an MVP to potential investors, and more.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

Play a game that reveals if investors with a crystal ball make better trades

The "crystal ball" game reveals how well you would do trading stocks and bonds if you could see the front page of the Wall Street Journal one day in advance.

NFTs are unique assets that exist on the blockchain

This SNL skit accurately defines non-fungible tokens in a song and skit. They are cryptographic tokens that represent digital assets like art, and their value can be volatile.

Why deep-sea mining companies may begin extraction without global guidelines

International Seabed Authority negotiators have spent over a decade drafting regulations that all countries would have to follow before collecting minerals from the seabed. Because deadlines to finalize these agreements have been missed, some entities have discussed unsanctioned mining, despite about three dozen ISA countries calling for a pause on activity and automakers and tech firms pledging they will not use seabed minerals.

Silicon Valley startups Orchid, Nucleus, and Genomic Prediction are selling so-called polygenic tests for prospective parents

These tests claim to show how at-risk a hypothetical baby would be for genetic syndromes. The newfound industry has prompted ethical and medical debates, with critics questioning their accuracy and highlighting the potential problems behind pursuing the perfect baby.

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

Dozens of S&P 500 stocks, including Coca-Cola and Walmart—known as the dividend aristocrats—have increased dividends every year for 25 years

Watch how deep-sea mining equipment collects and processes polymetallic nodules—metal-rich, potato-shaped rocks—from the ocean floor and creates environmentally damaging plumes of sediments.

The US dollar is the most widely circulated currency in the world, and is involved in nearly 90% of global transactions

Watch how algorithms can be designed to train themselves and self-improve without human input, to the point where the optimized code is too complex for programmers to understand.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

While atoms are normally made of protons, neutrons, and electrons, exotic ones have been built with antimatter—alternate versions of normal matter that live for fractions of a second and are about a billion times as rare.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

Explore chaos in this simulation of two double pendulums, where small differences in the release angles produce wildly different outcomes.

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Walt Disney's early film 'Alice's Wonderland' was a groundbreaking innovation in the silent film era

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Shooting stars, or meteors, are fragments of asteroids and comets that burn up as they enter Earth's atmosphere, creating streaks in the sky called meteor showers.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

The 2026 Ebola outbreak in the DRC is spurring new Ebola vaccine development for the Bundibugyo species.

'Saturday Night Fever,' the 1977 film that introduced disco to the mainstream, was based on a fabricated magazine story.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.