Oh please say this isn't true. Librarians are eschewing the Dewey Decimal System in favor of bookstore-like organization? This, in an era when bookstores are dying? Talk about being behind the curve. See Libraries replace Dewey with bookstore merchandising.

A Sequence of Lines Traced by Five Hundred Individuals demonstrates that people can't even copy the simplest of things without screwing it up.

This Chicago Tribune article about how to effectively use Craigslist struck me as exceptionally odd, given that Craigslist has decimated the classified ad business formerly ruled by newspapers.

If you've ever had the airlines lose your luggage, and it's only a matter of time until they do if you've been lucky so far, then you know that when you file a claim you're asked to describe your bag. "Umm, it's black and about this big," you say, making a box-like shape with your hands.

It turns out that there are standard ways of describing luggage, but that's arcane knowledge that you and I aren't hip to. Instead of memorizing if you have a Pullman or a trolley, just take out your iPhone and show the person behind the counter a photo of your bag. Then ask them how they'd describe it. They're professionals and spend their entire day figuring out how to distinguish between hundreds of look-alike bags, so what they say is what you want to write on your form.

Taking a photograph of your bag is best, because it will also show the bright pink ribbon you tied on the handle, but you can also use a photo from the manufacturer's website, as I've done for my beloved Filson bag, shown here.

Water Pebble is a fascinating device that is designed to help you lower your water consumption by slowly conditioning you to take shorter showers. It's inexpensive, cleverly designed, and available via Amazon.

This is sure a lot friendlier than the Smart Home Hack of having your home automation system turn off the lights in the bathroom after a preset period of time. Yes, while it didn't make the cut for the book, that is a technique that some people use.

Popular netizen Merlin Mann offers a humorous, and NSFW, video about five surprising household hacks.