Free Stops

The economics of transportation pricing is a fascinating topic that spans multiple semesters of university-level courses. However, the result of many sensible policies often leads to unique and beneficial tricks. One of which is the Amtrak free stopover trick. Say...

Fortuna, Not So

There once was a cow named Fortuna who lived in the area near Lansdale, PA. Nearby was the Reading Railroad, whose tracks connected Doylestown, PA with Center City Philadelphia. One fateful day, ironically-named Fortuna was crossing the tracks on the cowpath when...

Je M’appelle KESSLER Jeff

Comment vous appelez-vous? Quel est votre nom? If you ask someone their name in French, you might expect a reply with a typical first and last name. But what about in written works? For someone like me, you might see it listed as KESSLER Jeff. Why the different layout...

People & Places

We end this week with a relatively quick but useful tidbit: What do Americans, Californians, New Yorkers, Texans, Europeans, Canadians, Mexicans, and “Massholes” alike have in common? They’re all demonyms! Demonyms are words used to identify the...

Gridded Intuition

Everyone knows Boston’s roads are somewhat nonsensical. Curving through the city, intersecting at odd angles, and having crazy conventions where Winter Street becomes Summer Street, navigating Boston without a GPS is nearly impossible. Contrast that with Philadelphia,...