World Model · podcast knowledge graph

Alphabetical Order

2021-12-01 · 32 min · episode 468 · 10 entities

Asserted relationships

  • → authored A Place For Everything book
    0.62
    evidence rules-v4
    author of A Place For Everything
  • → hosted by Roman Mars person
    0.55
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed author/publisher: Roman Mars
  • → discusses Arts concept
    0.40
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Arts
  • → discusses Design website
    0.40
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Design
  • → hosted by SiriusXM Podcasts and Roman Mars company
    0.40
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed author/publisher: SiriusXM Podcasts and Roman Mars

Entities found in this episode

books 2

persons 2

  • mentioned Roman Mars person
    0.70
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed author/publisher: Roman Mars
  • hosted by Roman Mars person
    0.55
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed author/publisher: Roman Mars

companys 2

concepts 2

  • mentioned Arts concept
    0.50
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Arts
  • discusses Arts concept
    0.40
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Arts

websites 2

  • mentioned Design website
    0.50
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Design
  • discusses Design website
    0.40
    evidence rules-v4
    Feed category: Design
Episode description as stored
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.