Rohit Bhargava's Blog, page 40

Lincoln Introduces Scent Cartridges to Enhance the Driving Experience

Who doesn’t love that new car smell? The problem is, eventually it will wear off and then your car smells like something else. And if you happen to have two teenage boys, that something else usually isn’t too good.

Lincoln has a creative solution, as they recently announced on the 2024 Nautilus they partnered with perfumiers to offer seven unique scent cartridges that can be inserted into a panel under the lid of the center armrest.

As the company writes, “the sense of smell is of special interest...

Facebook Brought Back the “Poke” Button … Here’s Why So Many People Started Using It Again

About a decade ago in a Facebook post, Mark Zuckerberg once wrote “we thought it would be fun to make a feature that has no specific purpose.” He was describing the much-ridiculed Facebook “Poke” button which was retired but now may be making a bit of a comeback. The thing people simultaneously loved and hated about it was that it was so hard to explain. What is a poke? Was getting one a good sign or not? And what should come after a poke to keep an online conversation going? 

No one ever...

If Anyone Can Explain The “Weight Loss Revolution” … It Might Be Oprah

The “meta-narrative” of Oprah’s legendary media career has been her weight loss and body image. As a result, she may be the perfect ambassador to explain the impact weight-loss drugs are having on the story of obesity in America and beyond. Should these drugs be considered medical treatment for a condition (obesity) that should be blamed on food manufacturers and not people? Or is this a get-thin-quick scheme destined to offer hope to people desperate to lose weight while the companies behind th...

The Curious Annual Ritual of Frog Shuttling and Why People Do It

You may have seen videos in your social media feed of animal lovers saving a baby chick who falls into a storm drain, or a dog trapped by a flood or a baby elephant struggling to get out of a mud pit. These human-saves-animal videos often go viral at least in part because of how rare they seem … but what if they happened predictably every year? It turns out in some places, they do.

An annual ritual known to volunteers as the “frog shuttle” brings residents together to help frogs who cross a dange...

This Bereavement Startup Shows the Hopeful Human Potential of AI

Dealing with the passing of a loved one is hard emotionally, but the paperwork and procedures involved can make it far worse. A startup called Empathy has made it easier for more than 40 million people and just landed a new round of funding to expand their offering. The need for the tool is clear. Apparently according to US government statistics, it takes an average of 420 hours to “properly wind down a deceased person’s affairs.” Empathy.com helps with everything from using AI to write obituari...

The Rise of Antinatalism

There is a growing movement of people who believe that having children is unethical—which is known as antinatalism. A feature in Harper’s magazine this week explores what may be a growing number of people looking at all the “polycrisis” in the world and deciding that the logical conclusion is to advocate for bringing no more children into the world. 

A South African philosopher named David Benatar first introduced the term of antinatalism in 2006:

“Existence contains both benefits and harm, wherea...

Inside the Big Announcement from Author’s Equity and How It Changes Book Publishing

Two of the best-selling non-fiction authors from the past decade have both indicated they will skip the traditional publishing deals and choose to go with new hybrid publishing entity called Authors Equity for their next books. They have also taken a stake in the company. And it’s founded by the former CEO of Penguin Random House. This is a big deal in the world of book publishing. Traditional publishers are reliant on authors of breakaway hit books … the exact personalities that Authors Equity ...

Inside the Ban on TikTok and Why It Could Work

In general, the idea of banning something that kids really want to do or use hardly ever works. Betting against the ingenuity of young minds is usually a losing wager. Yet the fact that the US House just passed a bill that could ban TikTok if it doesn’t separate from its Chinese parent company could actually work.

It has long been known that the experience of TikTok that kids in the US have is dramatically more evil than the experience in China. One expert even described the difference as opium v...

Why the Key to Bringing Traditional Medicine Back Might Be Better Branding

Yes, this headline and the article it references are a conclusion that only a marketer could make. But it does have a point about how people react to beautiful branding in the health and wellness space. Mari Acupuncture Clinic engaged an agency to reimagine all their branding the result is absolutely stunning.

It is easy to imagine a design like this helping the business connect their services with more customers and perhaps having more people reevaluate acupuncture treatment itself for their ail...

Why Your Eggshells Might Be Cracking More (And What It Can Teach You)

Everything is connected. That’s what you might start thinking after reading this fascinating story about why eggshells are chipping more. During the avian flu, many farmers lost a lot of their chicken population and so hens are being kept “in production” for longer. Usually, a chicken makes it until about age 2 but today there are older hens around 3 years old laying eggs too. And that makes the eggshells thinner which causes more shell bits when you crack them.

Here’s why this is interesting: I ...