Page 49 - Business Facts

When “Coke Classic” returned, it wasn't actually the same as the original.

In 1985, The Coca-Cola Company discontinued the original Coke formula and introduced “New Coke.” It was an overwhelming failure. Less than three months later, it was announced that “Coke Classic” would return. This was such a big deal that David Pryor, a US Senator, called it “a meaningful moment in US history.” 

As soon as the “Coke Classic” began circulating again, people were not all convinced it was the same formula, which turned out to be true. This was due to a change from cane sugar to high fructose corn syrup. So the pre 1985 Coke is actually gone! People speculate that the introduction of the new Coke only to make the old Coke return was a marketing ploy to make Coca-Cola Classic sell more.

Changing beloved products can be a very difficult thing to do. Another good example of this is Tropicana and Gap, which changed their iconic branding. After facing similar backlash to the one that Coke got, they also reversed their decisions. Tell us, what brands or sites have you stopped using after they changed?

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A 1982 study accurately predicted the effects that technology would have on society today!

The report was commissioned by the National Science Foundation in 1982. It said that by the end of the century, electronic information technology would transform American society. It suggested that 'teletex' and 'videotex' would revolutionize the American home like the automobile and TV had done. They described teletex and videotex as two-way home information systems. Sounds a lot like the Internet doesn't it? 

The report also said that our style of life would be defined by the videotex terminals in our homes. Videotex would allow people to create their own newspapers, control manufacturing to get custom products (Hello Dell!)  and that the home would become another workplace. They wisely warned that the technology would bring up difficult issued regarding privacy and control. They estimated that this would begin happening by 1998. They did a pretty decent job in predicting the outcome. The one thing they didn't get right was that they predicted that these technologies would mean the end of the US two-party system. Other than that, they did a pretty good job describing the effects this technology would you have, don't you think?

Carrots do not give you better night vision. The myth was spread around by British forces trying to hide the radar!

Lack of Vitamin A can worsen your night vision. However, it is an urban legend that eating a lot of carrots will allow you to have superhuman night vision. Here's the crazy story of how this rumor became so widespread.

Between July 10 and October 31st 1940, Germany attacked the United Kingdom in what was called the Battle of Britain. It was the first major battle to be entirely fought in the air. Germany wanted to destroy the British air defenses and get them to surrender. However, the British were able to defend themselves quite effectively thanks in a large part because new Radar techniques had been discovered. Radar was such an advantage, that the Royal Air Force wanted to keep it a complete secret. The solution? Carrots.

During World War II, British gunners spread the rumor that eating tons of carrots was what allowed them to shoot down German planes in the darkness of night. They were trying to cover up any discovery of the radar they had in their hands. The rumor proved somewhat successful as it reinforced German folklore. It also encouraged Britons to improve their night vision by growing and eating more carrots. 

Worried about sand getting everywhere? Sand is nothing compared to moon dust.

The Apollo Moon missions of the late 60's and early 70's were inconvenienced by the annoyance of moon dust. Moon dust is as fine as flour, but more rough and corrosive than sandpaper. The particles can cause endless trouble on space suits and other equipment. During the Apollo 17 mission, some crew members wound up with moon dust gummed up in the joints of their space suits, and as a result could barely move. 

The dust was so corrosive that it wore through three layers of Kevlar-like material. To make matters even worse, moon dust suffers from very strong static cling, making it almost impossible to remove. The moon dust also poses a health threat, because it contains iron, and is so fine that it can easily be absorbed and can cause iron toxicity in the body. The only bright side is that because of the iron, it responds well to removal by magnets. Hopefully this hasn't crushed anyone's dreams of living on the moon someday! 

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Pinball used to be illegal!

Pinball’s origins can be traced back thousands of years to ancients playing similar games on grass with rolling stones. The modern pinball game that would commonly come to mind was popularized in the 1700’s with the introduction of the spring launcher. By the 1930’s pinball was one of the most popular games in the world and one of the bestselling.

However, this would all have to be put on pause as gambling laws began to become much more strict. In New York City, pinball bans were particularly stringent. Beginning in the early 1940’s until 1976 no pinball machine was allowed in the city. Mayor Fiorello La Guardai was behind the ban because he believed the game robbed school children of their hard earned change.

La Guardia would enact raids throughout the city. If a pinball machine was found police, and the mayor himself, would stand in the street and destroy them with sledgehammers and dump the remains in the rivers.

The ban was not removed until a man named Roger Sharpe testified that pinball took skill and was not linkable to gambling. He reportedly played a game in the courtroom and the jury was so stunned by his skill that they voted to remove the ban! 

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