Economics
The Concept of Path Dependence in Institutional Evolution
Quick fact
The QWERTY keyboard layout was designed in the 1870s to prevent mechanical typewriter jams, not to maximize typing speed, yet it remains the standard over a century later due to path dependence.
Why this is interesting
Have you ever wondered why your keyboard layout is QWERTY, even though it's not the most efficient? That's a classic example of path dependence: the choices we make today are constrained by decisions made decades ago.