An urban planner, infinite scroll, and … what is a public good?

Summary

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Episode Summary: "An urban planner, infinite scroll, and … what is a public good?"

Podcast: The Indicator from Planet Money
Date: June 22, 2026
Hosts: Wayland Wong & Adrienne Ma
Guest: Jim Umbach, urban planner and author

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Overview

In this lively, mid-year edition of The Indicator Quiz, Wayland Wong and Adrienne Ma invite listener and urban planner Jim Umbach to test his knowledge on economic topics covered by The Indicator over the past six months. The episode is a fun, fast-paced quiz that touches on technology, public goods, health and finance, and the oddities of today’s economic landscape—all with the goal of both recapping key learnings from previous episodes and offering listeners an engaging way to refresh their understanding of economic concepts.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Quiz Introduction and Guest Welcome

• The hosts explain the quiz format, invite listeners to play along, and introduce Jim Umbach, the contestant and urban planner from Fernley, Nevada.
• Quote:
  • Jim: “It's been a while since I've taken an economics quiz, but I think I'm gonna do great and make my entire area proud.” (00:37)

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2. The Addictive Nature of Social Media & Infinite Scroll

• Question: What did entrepreneur Aza Raskin invent that contributes to the addictive nature of social media?
  • Options: The like button, the poke feature, video autoplay, or Infinite Scroll.
  • Jim’s Answer: Infinite Scroll (03:14)
  • Correct!
  • Raskin has publicly discussed both the efficiency and the regrettable addictive potential of Infinite Scroll.
• Notable Quote:
  • Wayland: “He also said he regretted his part in making Infinite Scroll a thing.” (03:22)

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3. Capital Concepts: What is a Public Good?

• Question: Which is a true public good: visas for foreign STEM workers, AI dietary guidelines for schools, or GPS?
  • Discussion:
    • Hosts discuss public goods as non-excludable, non-rivalrous.
    • Jim initially selects dietary guidelines but is corrected; the answer is GPS.
• Memorable Moment:
  • Jim second-guesses himself, citing diminished processing power, before being corrected by hosts.
  • Adrienne: “So that feels counterintuitive to me, to be honest.” (05:30)
  • Wayland: “Take it up with the economists, Adrian.” (05:34)

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4. Early Signs of Dementia Through Financial Behavior

• Question: Which financial behavior can indicate early onset of dementia?
  • Options: Missed bill payments, investing in crypto, hoarding coupons, or forgetting passwords.
  • Jim’s Answer: Missed bill payments (06:11)
  • Correct!
  • The show underscores that financial slip-ups like missed payments often precede dementia diagnoses by years—important information for families and caregivers.

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5. Merchant Cash Advance Trend and Small Business

• Question: What recent economic factor led small businesses to seek merchant cash advances?
  • Options: Inflation concerns, cost of import tariffs, rising global STEM worker salaries, or energy market shock from geopolitical conflict.
  • Jim’s Answer: Import tariffs (07:08)
  • Correct!
  • Merchant cash advances, though often high-interest, were used as a lifeline, with some rates as high as 300%.

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6. Numerical Nuggets: The Pokemon Card Craze

• Question: By what percentage did rare Pokemon card valuations jump in the last year?
  • Options: 170%, 67%, $0.52, 200%
  • Jim’s Answer: 200% (08:26)
  • Correct Answer: 170%
  • The hosts jest about rounding up and commend Jim’s bold style.
• Quote:
  • Adrienne: “Go big or go home they say, right?” (08:46)

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7. Coverage of GLP-1 Weight Loss Drugs by Employers

• Question: What percentage of employers currently cover GLP-1 weight loss drugs for their employees?
  • Options: 0%, 20%, 50%, 100%
  • Jim’s Answer: 20% (09:29)
  • Correct!
  • The Indicator previously discussed, with the Trade Offs podcast, the low but significant rate of coverage, reflecting ongoing debates about health cost containment.

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8. Wrap-up and Contestant Farewell

• The hosts praise Jim’s performance—he only missed two questions—and thank him for participating.
• Quote:
  • Jim: “Well, thank you. […] I look forward to hearing you every day.” (10:07)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jim’s self-deprecating humor and quick thinking are highlighted throughout.
• Wayland’s wry asides to economic orthodoxy: “Take it up with the economists, Adrian.” (05:34)
• Adrienne’s playful support, acting as Jim’s “phone-a-friend” (02:45)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:06 — Hosts welcome & quiz intro
• 02:33 — Quiz begins
• 03:14 — Infinite Scroll question
• 03:48 — Public goods concept discussion
• 06:11 — Financial signs of dementia
• 07:08 — Merchant cash advance/import tariffs
• 08:26 — Pokemon card value increase
• 09:29 — GLP-1 coverage question
• 10:07 — Contestant wrap-up & farewell

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Conclusion

In this episode, The Indicator team delivers a fast-paced, informative mid-year quiz, offering a review of diverse economic topics with a playful spirit. Urban planner Jim Umbach shines as a contestant, while listeners get a fresh look at public goods, behavioral indicators for dementia, trends in business finance, the impact of digital design, and the fluctuating value of collectibles—making economic learning both memorable and fun.

Transcript

[A]

Npr.

[B]

This is the Indicator from Planet Money. I'm Wayland Wong.

[C]

And I'm Adrienne Ma. And this is the Indicator quiz where we test your knowledge of topics that we've been covering on the show. And you, dear listener, can play along too.

[B]

We haven't had one of these in a while and it's the middle of the year. So this one is going to cover a little bit of everything from the past six months. Today we have listener Jim Umbach, who works as an urban planner for the city of Fernley in Nevada. He's also an author. Welcome to the show, Jim.

[A]

Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. It's been a while since I've taken an economics quiz, but I think I'm gonna do great and make my entire area proud.

[C]

Okay, well, time to brush up, Jim. You're gonna be playing today for your choice of NPR Merch.

[B]

Yes, we've got shirts and mugs and so many options. And Merch, by the way, is available to purchase on shopmpr.org that's just a little plug before the quiz and now I think it's time.

[C]

That's all coming up after the break.

[D]

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[B]

all right. It is Indicator Quiz Time with our guest, Jim. Let's start with an easy question before heading into some of our other quiz segments. Adrian, here is your helping hand. If you need a hint.

[C]

That's right. I am, you know, your phone, a friend.

[B]

All right, question number one. The entrepreneur Azeraskin recently testified in court about the addictive nature of social media apps. Which interface feature is he widely credited with creating? Is it A, the like button, B, the poke feature, C, video autoplay, or D, Infinite Scroll?

[A]

I'm gonna have to say it is the Infinite Scroll.

[B]

Very confident. And you are correct.

[A]

Ooh, yes.

[B]

Azeraskin recently talked to Adrian for an episode and he said that, you know, this is a more efficient interface rather than hitting the next page button so many times. But he also said he regretted his part in making Infinite Scroll a thing. So great job, Jim. Off to an amazing start. Now, here is a segment we call Capital Concepts, where we see what concepts you've retained from an indicator episode. Are you ready?

[A]

I sure am.

[B]

Here's the question. The Planet Money book highlights public goods. This is a service or benefit that everyone can access and that more people using it doesn't take away from others using it. Which of the following is a public good? Is it A, visas for foreign STEM workers in science, technology, engineering and math? Is it B, AI C, Maha, Make America Healthy Again? Dietary guidelines for schools? Or is it D, gps? What's a public good?

[A]

Well, this all could be classified as beneficial to the public, but what does not take away from others using it? And I would have to say that would be. I'm leaning toward gps. Maybe EJ can help me out a little bit here.

[C]

Okay. The good has to be non excludable and non rivalrous.

[A]

Non rivalrous?

[B]

Yeah, that's just a fancy way of saying that the more people use it doesn't take away from others. Are you still leaning gps?

[A]

I would have to say that actually still takes away some processing power or however minor from people. So I'm going to change my answer to the health standards.

[B]

Oh, well, I'm so sorry. Maybe we steered you wrong. The answer is indeed D gps. It offers a broad collective benefit that isn't depleted by use and cannot be easily restricted. I guess the data processing are notwithstanding, it's still considered a public good.

[A]

It's that old. Always trust your first instinct. That's what they say.

[C]

So that feels counterintuitive to me, to be honest.

[B]

Take it up with the economists, Adrian.

[C]

That's on me. Jim.

[B]

It's all right. We have more questions to come and the next one goes like this. We had a really eye opening story about the connection between money and health. What financial red flag is could actually be an early indicator of dementia even years before a medical diagnosis. Is it A, missed bill payments, B investing in crypto, C an intense hoarding of coupons, or D, constantly forgetting passwords?

[A]

It had to be missing bill payments.

[B]

That is correct. Missing bill payments, yes. These financial slip ups can start happening years before someone even receives an official medical diagnosis for dementia. So it's important to keep an eye on your loved ones. Great job, Jim. We are rolling along to the next question. We had an episode about a small business that turned to something called a merchant cash advance as a financial lifeline. What specific recent economic pressure drove this trend? Was it A, getting ahead of inflation concerns in our economy? Was it B, the need to cover the cost of import tariffs, C rising salaries required to compete for global STEM workers, or D, the energy market shock from the US and Israel war with Iran? What caused a small business to turn to this lifeline?

[A]

It was the import tariffs.

[B]

Excellent memory, Jim. You are on a roll. That's correct, yes. Our colleague on the business desk, Alina Selyuk, reported on these mostly unregulated loans and her reporting said that MCA merchant cash advance interest rates had gone as high as 300%, which has been very difficult, as you can imagine for a lot of these small business owners. So amazing job, Jim. The recall is just superb. Thank you. Now, here's a segment we call numerical nuggets. We test you on numbers featured in episodes and the hints that you'll get here if you need a hint is you can get two answers wiped off the board. Does that sound okay?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Wonderful. Here is our first numbers question. In our episode about the Pokemon card craze, we mentioned an index that tracks rare Pokemon cards. It saw a massive valuation jump in just one year. By what percentage have valuations for rare Pokemon cards increased in the last year? Is it A, 170%, is it B, 67%? Is it C, $0.52 or is it D, 200%?

[A]

I believe it's 200%.

[B]

Ooh, so close. We kind of tricked you a little bit there because 170 and 200% are kind of close, but it was 170%.

[A]

I knew it was one of those two.

[C]

I admired the confidence though. You were like, no hint needed. I'm just going straight for the basket.

[A]

Go big or go home they say, right?

[B]

Honestly, rounding up 170 gets you to 200 so as far as I'm concerned, you got that one right.

[A]

I'll take it.

[B]

All right, here's our next numerical nugget question. Only Some employers cover GLP1s for weight loss for their employees. They're hoping it will reduce long term medical costs related to obesity. What percentage of employers cover GLP1s? Is it A, 0%, B, 20%, C, 50% or D 100%? Because GLP1s are legally required to be covered in some form due to the Affordable Care Act?

[A]

Go ahead and go with the 20%.

[B]

You are right again, it was 20%. This isn't an episode we did with Julie Wernau of the Trade Offs podcast. And yeah, very well played, Jim. I wasn't keeping track, but I feel like you got almost all of them. I think you got all but two, which is incredible.

[A]

Well, thank you.

[B]

Well, Jim, you have been a superb contestant. It's been so fun to have you.

[A]

Thank you. It's been all fun.

[B]

And yeah, we will be sending you some indicator or NPR merch in the very near future. And we really appreciate you taking the time to be on our show.

[A]

I appreciate it. I look forward to hearing you every day.

[B]

Oh, thank you.

[C]

Thanks, Jim.

[B]

If you couldn't come to one of our book tour events back in April, now is your chance. We're doing a live virtual version for our NPR supporters. It's on Thursday, June 25th at 3pm Eastern Noon. Pacific Planet Money's Jeff Guo and the book's main author, Alex Masi will be there along with some special guests. If you've already joined npr, listen to our most recent bonus episode to find out how to register. If you haven't joined yet, just go to plus.NPR.org Again, that's plus.NPR.org this episode was produced by Angel Carreras with engineering by Travis Hagan. It was fact checked by Sierra Juarez, and Kat Concannon is our editor. And the indicator is a production of npr.

[E]

This message comes from Capella University. That spark you feel, that's your drive for more. Capella University's flexpath learning format lets you earn your degree at your pace without putting life on pause. Learn [e-mail]. this message comes from St. Martin's Press, publishers of how to Try Again by Steve Kam. How to Try Again is a book about quitting unhealthy expectations and making changes that stick. How to Try Again is available wherever books are sold.