Staying at home during the pandemic, we have shifted our impulse buying from the supermarket to our online shopping cart.
Behavioral Economics
The intersection of psychology and economics, behavioral economics looks at human tendencies that involve biology and culture when predicting and explaining economic decision-making.
How to Select the Best Countries
Instead of collecting a massive volume of statistics, iU.S. News uses people’s perceptions to rank the world’s 78 best countries.
The Feminine Side of City Streets
A headline in the Brooklyn Eagle asks us to imagine a New York where most of the streets are named for women. As they describe their alternative world, we could have Barbra Streisand Lane and Ethel Merman Boulevard. Female names…
What If Cash Handouts Have No Strings Attached?
In a new March 2021 report, we found out the results for the first year of Stockton’s UBI experiment. Recently too, the impact of Rwanda’s cash distribution was in the news. Last year we looked at Rwanda and Stockton. Today,…
How a Citigroup Blunder and a Texas Blackout Are Similar
Last August, Citigroup accidentally wired a $900 million payback to some lenders. Now, Texas is experiencing catastrophic power outages and water shortages. Both could be similar. Outdated Infrastructure Citigroup Our story starts in 2016 with a cosmetics company that needed…
What a Difference a Fan Makes…Maybe
This week, during the first five days of the 2021 Australian Open, the stadium was packed…by pandemic standards. It was 50 percent occupied with up to 30,000 fans. Then, authorities declared a snap lockdown because of a Covid outbreak. The…
What Economists Say On Valentine’s Day
About so much more than money, economics can come in handy on Valentine’s Day. Let’s take a look. An Economic Valentine Economic Laws On Valentine’s Day, economic laws are broken. A production possibilities frontier is supposed to illustrate the maximum…
COVID’s Divorce Rate Surprises
I suspect that you (as did I) will find the newest numbers on the divorce rate rather surprising. Six Facts: Covid Divorce Rates 1. Pre-Pandemic for the U.S. Before the pandemic began, divorce rates had been trending downward: 2.…
How Legos Helped to Build a Vaccination Center
Albrecht Broemme had to figure out the design of Germany’s Covid-19 vaccination centers at two airport terminals, a concert venue, a velodrome, an ice rink, and a convention hall. So, he used Legos. Below, Mr. Broemme is holding a picture…
When Does Money Make Us Feel Good?
In 1974, a University of Pennsylvania economist concluded that there was a happiness plateau. Yes, we feel increasingly good as our income grows. But not beyond $75,000. Called the Easterlin Paradox, even if your earnings continue upward, they don’t bring…
