Demand, Supply, and Markets

July 13, 2014
global learning
Published by Elaine Schwartz at July 13, 2014
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Chart of the Week: To Which Job Will Your College Major Take You?

Our Sunday chart of the week Just some human capital facts today… Showing the proportion of people from a college major that go to a certain […]

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July 7, 2014
Indian development and tradeoffs from roads and cars
Published by Elaine Schwartz at July 7, 2014
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The Difference Between India's Stories and Statistics

There is a village in Southern India called Kadapakkam. It had been a home to farmers and fishermen whose thatched huts had no running water and no electrical appliances. At traditional tea shops […]

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July 4, 2014
Weekly Economic News Roundup and economic independence from Alexander Hamilton
Published by Elaine Schwartz at July 4, 2014
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Celebrating Economic Independence

Yes, the United States declared independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776 and won the American Revolutionary War. But still, we were not truly independent. George Washington’s Secretary of […]

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June 16, 2014
Published by Elaine Schwartz at June 16, 2014
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How Big is the Leisure Gap Between Men and Women?

Our Monday gender issue focus Married or single, weekends and weekdays, men have more leisure time than women. Imagine a typical weekend. Yes, mom might spend a […]

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June 11, 2014
Prius Purchases Could Reflect Conforming to a Local Social Norm
Published by Elaine Schwartz at June 11, 2014
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Prius Purchases and Conspicuous Conservation

Our Wednesday Environment Focus Reporting that Prius was the top selling car in California, Bloomberg said the reason was tough emissions standards. I wonder… In a 2011 paper, […]

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May 30, 2014
What's Communicated by a College Degree?
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 30, 2014
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What Signals Does a College Degree Really Send?

Some economists have an unexpected reason for the college earnings premium. First, the premium… In 2011, a diploma from a 4-year college meant you would earn 83% more than your […]

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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 25, 2014
Weekly Economic News Roundup and Medicare worries
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 25, 2014
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When Does it Cost Too Much to Save a Human Life?

Is $1 a day for someone else’s pill too much to pay with your tax dollars? $10? $100? $1,000? Kaiser Health News recently reported that a new treatment for […]

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May 15, 2014
Experience of a babysitting co-op with scrip provides a monetary policy lesson and a debate
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 15, 2014
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The Monetary Policy Mistakes of a Babysitting Co-op

There once was a French economist whose name was Say. Proclaiming that “Supply Creates Its Own Demand,” Jean-Baptiste Say (1767-1832) entered economic history with Say’s Law. All he meant was that workers […]

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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 6, 2014
Gary Becker opened a new world when he used economics to study human behavior
Published by Elaine Schwartz at May 6, 2014
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The Rotten Kid Theorem and Other Gary Becker Ideas

Gary Becker image courtesy of University of Chicago. All too often, if you say you are looking at the economics of the family, people assume you […]

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