Alphabetical Order
99% Invisible1 Dec 2021

Alphabetical Order

In much of the western world, alphabetical order is simply a default we take for granted. It’s often the one we try first -- or the one we use as a last resort when all the other ordering methods fail. It’s boring, but it works, and it’s so ingrained that it’s hard to imagine not using it. But despite its endurance for most of its history, the alphabet wasn’t initially used to order much of anything. Judith Flanders, author of A Place For Everything, a history of alphabetical order, says that in societies like ancient Rome and early medieval Europe, writing implements were still rare. So what mattered most was organizing knowledge in a way that helped you to memorize it. And that was usually much easier to do in the order you naturally came across the information, like: chronologically, or by size, or geography, or region, or hierarchically.

Alphabetical Order

Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early.

Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Avsnitt(780)

According to Need: Prologue

According to Need: Prologue

The way homelessness has exploded in California over the last decade, you’d think there was no system in place to address it. But there is one -- it just wasn’t designed to help everyone. According to...

1 Dec 202017min

According to Need coming December 1

According to Need coming December 1

According to Need is a documentary podcast in 5 chapters from 99% Invisible’s Katie Mingle that asks: What are we doing to get people into housing? Coming December 1 Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to...

29 Nov 20202min

The Great Indoors

The Great Indoors

Emily Anthes is the author of The Great Indoors: The Surprising Science of How Buildings Shape Our Behaviour, Health and Happiness, and she notes that even before the pandemic hit, we humans spent abo...

25 Nov 202027min

Sean Exploder

Sean Exploder

As you might know, we have our own composer here at 99pi named Sean Real who works with the producers to score our episodes with original music that she writes and records right here in Oakland. She h...

21 Nov 202031min

In The Unlikely Event

In The Unlikely Event

If you’ve ever flown on a plane, you’ve been directed to study the safety briefing card in your seatback pocket. Every passenger plane, commercial or private, has to have safety cards on board. Mo Lab...

18 Nov 202030min

You've Got Enron Mail!

You've Got Enron Mail!

Enron collapsed nearly 20 years ago, but chances are something you use today was affected by emails sent by 150 of the company's top employees. These emails — about meetings and energy markets but als...

11 Nov 202031min

The Lost Cities of Geo

The Lost Cities of Geo

Geocities was an online collection of metropolises, each with their own neighborhoods built around shared interests. The city metaphor helped make a whole new group of users understand the world wide ...

3 Nov 202042min

Take a Walk

Take a Walk

During publicity interviews for The 99% Invisible City someone asked us, “What is your favorite way to experience the city?” The answer is walking. If you have nothing to do, take a walk. If you are o...

27 Okt 202033min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

framgangspodden
badfluence
varvet
rss-jossan-nina
rss-svart-marknad
uppgang-och-fall
avanzapodden
rss-dagen-med-di
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
rss-borsens-finest
bathina-en-podcast
rss-den-nya-ekonomin
lastbilspodden
borsmorgon
market-makers
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
fill-or-kill
rikatillsammans-om-privatekonomi-rikedom-i-livet
svd-tech-brief