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Gold StandardA gold standard is a system where a country’s currency is pegged to, and can be converted into, a fixed amount of gold. It’s typically meant to create a sense of security in the country’s currency: When a government uses a gold standard, its currency can be exchanged for an equivalent amount of gold—although regulations around redemption vary by country.
After the Civil War, in 1873, America adopted the gold standard for the first time. At the time, if gold was priced at $100 an ounce, each dollar represented one one-hundredth of an ounce of real gold. However, the US started ramping down its use of the gold standard in 1933 in order to control gold’s supply and price, abandoning the gold standard altogether in 1971.
No government currently uses the gold standard. Some argue that globalization has made the gold standard impractical for modern economies, as it limits a nation’s ability to have a flexible monetary policy.Explore Gold Standard
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Arguments for returning to a gold standard reappear from time to timeHowever, critics argue that globalization has made the gold standard impractical for modern economies, as it limits a nation’s ability to have a flexible monetary policy—hence, none of today's governments have a gold standard. The ConversationA startup is trying to create the diamond equivalent of the gold standardIt’s called the Diamond Standard Co, and it uses an algorithm to assign standard values to all kinds of small diamonds, grouping them together into individual coins. The HustleA gold standard is a system where every dollar in circulation can be exchanged for a set amount of goldFor 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. 1440 DailyThe Michelin Guide is the gold standard in fine diningMichelin may be chiefly concerned with tires, but it's also known for its restaurant rating system, commonly referred to as “Michelin Stars.” The guide awards restaurants between one and three stars to designate varying levels of excellence in cuisine. MichelinA gold standard is a system in which a country’s currency is pegged to, and can be converted into, a fixed amount of goldIn principle, this provides price stability as the amount of gold (and therefore the value of the currency) is limited, but also restricts the ability to modulate the money supply during economic downturns. InvestopediaA look at Mauna Loa, which produces the gold standard of global CO2 measurements.Mauna Loa Observatory is a station that measures the elements in the atmosphere that contribute to climate change. It is located on the side of the Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii. National Geographic SocietyScientific applications of bubbles include logic gates, laser production, and medical imagingMicrobubbles of nonreactive gas can be administered to improve the reflection of sound waves and the resulting imaging during an ultrasound. Bouncing light waves within a bubble can stimulate emission of light from a trapped chemical, just as occurs within a laser, and bubbles can act as valves that control the flow and reaction rates in microfluidic systems. SciShow'Most of man's problems upon this planet, in the long history of the race, have been met and solved either partially or as a whole by experiment based on common sense and carried out with courage.'-Frances Perkins (1880-1965), first female member of US Cabinet Social Science Space'Good deflation' happens when prices naturally track with supply, meaning prices change graduallyThis tends to make products and services more affordable and normalizes the standard of living. Bad deflation usually happens when there are sudden changes to either supply or demand.
Near-zero [interest rates helped create the real estate bubble that sparked the Great Recession when it crashed](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMo9mD8j7IA&t=91s)
Because deflation distorts the value of money, deflation is particularly harmful for borrowers. Low interest rates made it easy for businesses and everyday people to take on enormous debt, which exacerbated the effects of the recession. Foundation for Economic EducationSee a collection of ancient Roman coins used on the Silk RoadsAs ancient Rome's appetite for eastern luxuries grew, long-distance trade routes linking the Mediterranean to Asia emerged along what became known as the Silk Road. Without shared language or legal systems, merchants could use the reliable Roman coins to exchange with other cultures. This exhibit features gold and silver pieces bearing the portraits of emperors and Latin inscriptions. American Numismatic AssociationThe standard measurement for precious metals comes from a small town in France The troy ounce is the standard measurement for precious metals like gold and silver and it’s heavier than a standard ounce. The term “troy” is widely believed to come from the town of Troyes in France, which was a popular trading hub for merchants all across Europe in the Middle Ages. InvestopediaChris Stapleton's 'Tennessee Whiskey' is the best-selling country song of all timeThe 2015 track has sold over 20 million units in the US, making it the third single to be certified double diamond. (The other two are Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are" and Post Malone and Swae Lee's "Sunflower.") Stapleton's track is actually a standard that was written in 1981 and recorded by several other artists, including George Jones. PitchforkAI is not good at understanding satireSocial media has become rife with misinformation. In response, some organizations have deployed AI-assisted programs trying to curb the spread of this inaccurate content. The problem is that misinformation and satire, rhetorically speaking, often use the same kind of language, something AI struggles to understand. Stanford UniversityNorth Carolina adopted 'First in Flight' license plates in 1982—to snarky reviewsMany locals surfaced the irony of enshrining the accomplishments of two men from Ohio on the license plates of North Carolinans. Nonetheless, the style endures to this day, alongside Ohio’s “Birthplace of Aviation.” North Carolina Rabbit HoleThe 1910 Wright Model B was the brother’s most successful aircraftThe model, built from 1910 to 1914, was the first designed to be constructed in bulk, with four built each month in 1911 and 1912. The two-seater was used in exhibition flights and training for some of the earliest uses of airplanes in military contexts. Field of FirstsFort Knox was built to be a secure facility for the US Treasury's gold reservesThe gold reserves were previously used to back the US dollar under the gold standard. Although the US went off the gold standard in 1971, Fort Knox continues to store a large portion of the nation's gold reserves. YouTubeFiat money is a currency with no intrinsic valueUnlike the gold standard, where a nation’s currency is linked to the value of gold, fiat money gets its power from the public’s trust in its value. BankrateClassic movies are prone to decomposition because they're captured on nitrate filmNitrate film was the standard in early Hollywood and is prone to decomposition over time. It's led to an estimated 75% of early American films being lost to history. InsiderContemporary horror novelists on their favorite scary storiesTen of horror's best writers name the books that still give them nightmares. From established classics, like Stephen King's "IT" and Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House," to unexpected picks like Katherine Dunn's "Geek Love," this collection of scary stories is a perfect reading list for Halloween. USA TODAYSam Altman gave his first-ever startup pitch after dropping out of StanfordHe dropped out of Stanford to start Loopt, which sold in 2012 for $43.4M. You can watch his first-ever startup pitch in a video. X (formerly Twitter)Rotten Tomatoes scores have gone up by 13% in the past decadeRotten Tomatoes is the gold standard in the film industry, offering viewers aggregated critical scores of recently released movies. Filmmakers have criticized the site, though, suggesting its scores are now meaningless, evident from the past decade's inflation, and that the company has a conflict of interest. The Town with Matthew BelloniView depictions of world maps throughout historyThe first map to use latitude and longitude positions was created by Ptolemy in 150 CE, over 700 years after the oldest known world map, the Imago Mundi, was made with a Babylonian clay tablet. The Spanish crown created a secret master map from hundreds of sailors’ reports. Visual CapitalistExperts suggest where the UN should be reformedIn 2020, as the United Nations marked its 75th anniversary, the Council on Foreign Relations' Council of Councils published a collection of expert essays proposing reforms to enhance the UN's relevance. This collection of essays is a thought-provoking look at the UN’s future. Council of CouncilsCollege football rivalry trophies range from historic prizes to bizarre odditiesFrom the Paul Bunyan Trophy and the Golden Hat to the Old Brass Spittoon and the Bronze Pig, rivalry games feature prizes that mix tradition, regional pride, and a dash of eccentricity. NFL.comThe Curies developed a way to measure radioactivity in an old medical dissecting roomDespite lacking proper laboratory conditions, Marie and Pierre built an ionization chamber and a piezoelectric quartz electrometer to measure the amount of charged particles released via radiation to a sensitivity of ten-trillionth of an ampere. Substances with different emission rates indicated different elements. Google Arts & CultureThe Great Depression was an international depression felt far beyond the USMany countries suffered through a depression in the 1930s that the First World War, the US stock market crash, and an economic downturn in Germany turned into an international crisis. Office of the HistorianA set of wild fan theories about the 'Wizard of Oz'Both the 1900 book and the 1939 film have become iconic classics beloved for decades. The story's mostly undefined symbolism of a yellow brick road, ruby red slippers, and more has left it open to wild interpretation. Some theories suggest the Wizard of Oz is the father of Willy Wonka, or that Dorothy was the Wicked Witch of the East. Mental FlossJay Blakesberg is the Grateful Dead's longtime photographerJay Blakesberg sold his first photos of the Grateful Dead in 1978 to his hometown paper in New Jersey. 50 years later, he's still shooting the various incarnations of the band, acting as the band's visual historian. SF Standard'The Million Dollar Homepage' is a snapshot of a dead internetIn 2005, 21-year-old Alex Tew set out to make $1M by selling $1 pixels on his website, effectively creating a standalone internet billboard. The gambit worked. Interestingly, because the advertisements were one-time payments, the site is still live and looks the same as it did in 2005, despite many of the advertised sites going defunct years ago. Nostalgia Nerd‘Oz’ was cable’s first hour-long dramaWhen the dark prison story debuted in 1997, it was HBO’s only drama and followed a principle that would come to define the network’s shows for decades: “‘I don’t care if they’re likable as long as they’re interesting,’” show creator Tom Fontana told Vice. “That was my mantra.” VICEThe 'Old Guitarist' challenged art's standards of beautyFor much of Western art history, the definition of “beauty” in art was dictated by academies rather than personal taste. Artists like Picasso challenged these standards with works considered “ugly” for discarding anatomical accuracy or linear perspective in favor of a feeling. SmarthistoryPicasso was a major influence on Jean-Michel BasquiatBoth Picasso and Basquiat are major figures of 20th-century art, with distinctive styles that flew in the face of the formalized standards of their respective times. Below is one of Basquiat's portraits of Picasso, who influenced the younger artist’s approach to form, from 1984. MyArtBrokerBoston police told Stravinsky he had ‘tampered’ with ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’There’s no national standard for arranging the national anthem, though it can be a different story on the state level. Conductor Igor Stravinsky learned that in 1944, when the Boston police commissioner visited his dressing room to warn him about a Massachusetts law against “tampering” with national property. WPRJoseph Pulitzer created modern journalismLong before there was cable news, there were newspapers, and Joseph Pulitzer was their king. A Hungarian immigrant, Pulitzer began his career as a reporter himself before buying a newspaper that he could shape with his editorial vision. Pulitzer's papers were bold, provocative, and visually striking, setting a new standard for newspapers nationwide as they moved into the 20th century. PBSHow John D. Rockefeller became the world's first billionaireFrom a young age, John D. Rockefeller knew he was interested in business. He worked as a bookkeeper and sold candy prior to starting the business empire that would help cement the Rockefeller name in history: Standard Oil. Library of CongressDr. William Gorgas eradicated yellow fever in Panama, crucial to canal constructionThe disease was one of the factors hampering the French effort to build the canal. Gorgas' experience elsewhere in the Caribbean had taught him that good drainage and quaranting patients were essential, and he would eventually apply mosquito prevention tactics on a mass scale. Texas StandardWatch a ship pass through the Panama CanalMany of the world’s cargo ships are built to be as large as possible while still being able to fit through the Panama Canal’s narrowest locks. The size standard even has a name: Panamax (and, since the canal’s expansion in 2016, Neopanamax). To avoid running against the canal walls, locomotives hold the vessels in place as the chambers are filled and emptied. The Panama CanalThroughout most of the 1800s, US currency was backed by silver and goldIn post-Civil War America, the government moved to use only the gold standard. This was how US currency was backed for decades in the US. You can read a comprehensive explainer on the gold standard and its history in the US to learn more. InvestopediaTake a virtual tour of St. AndrewsThe Old Course at St. Andrews is one of the oldest in the world and became the gold standard for modern golf course design. Using drone footage, this Golf Digest video gives an aerial view and detailed description of every hole. Learn how the links course features common fairways and greens for some holes. And learn the bunker names at the courses' most notorious holes. Golf DigestSince its 2019 reveal, the Cybertruck underwent numerous delays and design changesElon Musk first envisioned the Cybertruck in 2012, with its design inspired by "Blade Runner" and "The Spy Who Loved Me." Semiconductor shortages and battery manufacturing issues made it impossible to manufacture enough vehicles to meet the 250,000 preorders without shifting delivery dates. SlashGear
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