The Economics of Everyday Things

Mannequins may be made out of plastic or fiberglass, but for retailers they’re pure gold. Zachary Crockett strikes a pose. SOURCES:Stacie Bornn, vice president of sales, marketing, and creative at Fusion Specialties.Judi Henderson, C.E.O. and president of Mannequin Madness. RESOURCES:"How This Oakland Business Gives Mannequins New Life (Almost)," by Christopher Beale (KQED, 2024)."Nike's Controversial Plus-Size Mannequin Is a Brilliant Business Decision," by Kate Taylor (Business Insider, 2019)."A Glance at History of Store Mannequins," by Anne D'Innocenzio (AP News, 2014)."Making a Fashion Statement, With or Without Clothes," by Elisabetta Povoledo (The New York Times, 2011)."Stores Demand Mannequins With Personality (Heads Optional)," by Stephanie Clifford (The New York Times, 2011)."Body Design, Variable Realisms: The Case of Female Fashion Mannequins," by Sara K. Schneider (Design Issues, 1997).

Incarcerated people grow crops, fight wildfires, and manufacture everything from motor oil to prescription glasses — often for pennies per hour. Zachary Crockett reports from North Carolina.SOURCES:Laura Appleman, professor of law at Willamette University.Christopher Barnes, inmate at the Franklin Correctional Center.Lee Blackman, general manager at Correction Enterprises.Brian Scott, ex-inmate, former worker at the Correction Enterprises printing plant.Louis Southall, warden of Franklin Correctional Center.RESOURCES:"Prisoners in the U.S. Are Part of a Hidden Workforce Linked to Hundreds of Popular Food Brands," by Robin McDowell and Margie Mason (AP News, 2024)."Ex-Prisoners Face Headwinds as Job Seekers, Even as Openings Abound," by Talmon Joseph Smith (The New York Times, 2023)."Captive Labor: Exploitation of Incarcerated Workers," by the American Civil Liberties Union and the University of Chicago Law School Global Human Rights Clinic (2022)."Bloody Lucre: Carceral Labor and Prison Profit," by Laura Appleman (Wisconsin Law Review, 2022)."Prison Labor Is on the Frontlines of the COVID-19 Pandemic," by Eliyahu Kamisher (The Appeal, 2020).Correction Enterprises.EXTRAS:"Can Data Keep People Out of Prison?" by People I (Mostly) Admire (2023).

It takes millions of giant green placards to make America navigable. Where do they come from — and who pays the bill? Zachary Crockett takes the exit.  SOURCES:Lee Blackman, general manager at Correction Enterprises.Gene Hawkins, senior principal engineer at Kittelson and professor emeritus of civil engineering at Texas A&M University.Renee Roach, state signing and delineation engineer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation. RESOURCES:"Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways, 11th Edition," by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (2023)."Who Picks the Businesses on Highway Exit Signs?" by Janet Nguyen (Marketplace, 2022)."The Road to Clarity," by Joshua Yaffa (The New York Times Magazine, 2007). EXTRAS:"Do People Pay Attention to Signs?" by No Stupid Questions (2022).

When a zoo needs an elephant, or finds itself with three surplus penguins, it doesn’t buy or sell the animals — it asks around. Zachary Crockett rattles the cages. SOURCES:Hollie Colahan, deputy director of the Birmingham Zoo and chair of the AZA's Animal Population Management Committee.Dwight Lawson, executive director and C.E.O. of the Oklahoma City Zoo. RESOURCES:"Oklahoma City Zoo Announces Near-Total Redesign in 2024 Master Plan," by Sam Royka (The Oklahoman, 2024)."Panda Diplomacy: What China’s Decision to Send Bears to the US Reveals About Its Economy," by Chee Meng Tan (The Conversation, 2024)."Oklahoma City Zoological Trust Financial Statements," (2023)."Modern Zoos Are Not Worth the Moral Cost," by Emma Marris (The New York Times, 2021)."The Tiger King of the 19th Century," by Betsy Golden Kellem (Slate, 2020).Animal Population Management Committee of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.