Economic History

June 2, 2014
Underutilized female human capital conveyed through gender issues and abolitionist movement in The Invention of Wings
Published by Elaine Schwartz at June 2, 2014
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Gender Issues: The Invention of Wings

Our Monday gender issues focus Combine 1 great read, 2 crucial issues and 3 memorable women (2 who really existed) and you get The Invention of Wings by […]

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June 1, 2014
Italy's and the UK will add marijuana and prostitution to improve GDP accuracy...but will it?
Published by Elaine Schwartz at June 1, 2014
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Should GDP Include Illegal Drug Deals?

In 1987, Italy decided to include its “off-the-books” economy in its GDP. The result was an 18% boost. Now, further complying with EU accounting regulations, Italy […]

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May 31, 2014
Charts and graphs tell stories
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 31, 2014
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An Amazing Story From a Graph

Sometimes one graph can tell a whole story:   A 4-minute animation can also convey a much bigger story. Looking at the same time period as our […]

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May 28, 2014
Beeps like backup warnings from trucks create noise pollution negative externalities.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 28, 2014
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The Beeps in Our Lives

Our Wednesday Environment Focus We have intentionally created some of the sounds that our technology makes. Take the beep… You know that beep..beep..beep sound of a truck […]

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May 27, 2014
In the major sports leagues and for golf, there is a top 1% and income inequality that can be measured with Gini Coefficients.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 27, 2014
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The Income Inequality That Doesn't Bother Us

When people talk about the top 1%, they are probably not thinking about NY Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter or Seattle’s MLS forward, Clint Dempsey. For 2014, Jeter signed a […]

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May 21, 2014
Cost and benefit balance change for dealing with global warming if it creates a national security threat.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 21, 2014
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An Unexpected Cost of Climate Change?

Our Wednesday Environment Focus By Madeleine Vance, guest blogger and student at Kent Place School; edited by Elaine Schwartz Global Warming has become more than just a […]

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May 20, 2014
Technological innovation might have slowed but we could be due for a spurt.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 20, 2014
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Production Possibility Frontiers: Entering (and Exiting) a Discovery Void

After technological innovation multiplies, might the pace of discovery slow down? Think of the history of antibiotics. Starting with the Sulfa drugs that were first discovered during […]

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May 14, 2014
The externalities created by attempts at energy efficiency can be positive or negative.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 14, 2014
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Energy Efficiency Surprises

Our Wednesday Environmental Issue: Trying to optimize energy efficiency, we might have unexpected results. First, where we live… Referring to an environmentally friendly community where he once lived, New Yorker writer […]

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May 4, 2014
Disposable Income can be hand-to-mouth for households with illiquid wealth
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 4, 2014
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Surprising Hand-To-Mouth Households

Close to one third of all households (38 million) in the US live hand-to-mouth. Like me, perhaps you have always assumed that a hand-to-mouth (HtM) household […]

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April 28, 2014
Political gender equity improves human capital far beyond politics
Published by Elaine Schwartz at April 28, 2014
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Why Do We Need More King Peggys?

Our Monday Gender Issue: Having a woman as the king of an African fishing village can make a big difference. During 2008, a secretary who works […]

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April 27, 2014
In Russia now, and 35 years ago in the US, stagflation is a tough problem.
Published by Elaine Schwartz at April 27, 2014
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When Did We Get “Tough Love” From the Federal Reserve?

Demonstrating Russia’s current plight, this graph so perfectly illustrates stagflation: When GDP sinks and inflation increases, the stagflation that results is tough to cure. If monetary […]

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April 25, 2014
A simple and efficient way to do income taxes
Published by Elaine Schwartz at April 25, 2014
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The Reason For An Income Tax Default (Form)

In Denmark, the government automatically prepares people’s taxes. Because they already have the data they need, the tax authority calculates everyone’s income taxes and sends them […]

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