Microeconomics

April 18, 2014

China’s Demographic Flipflop

The wait list for the most popular retirement home in China has topped 10,000. With 1100 available beds and just 11 beds emptying annually, it could […]

April 16, 2014

How To Cope With (Water) Stress

Being water stressed means you are unusually vulnerable to a water shortage. Sort of like a household where one emergency can push it over the edge because it […]

April 14, 2014

Gender Issues: What If We No Longer Said “He” and “She”?

Our Monday Gender Issue: In the February 10th issue of the New Yorker, I read “Pronoun Envy” by Anne Carson. Here is the beginning: Pronoun Envy […]

April 13, 2014

One Reason That Quitting is Good

I have read that Fed Chair Janet Yellen is particularly interested in JOLTS. Representing Job Openings and Labor market Turnover Survey, JOLTS data tell an interesting […]

April 11, 2014

Should Detroit Sell Its Art?

During 2009, a still life painted by Henri Matisse was sold at a Christie’s auction for $46 million. The Detroit Institute of Arts owns Poppies, also a […]

April 10, 2014

Why Would the Nigerian GDP Double Overnight?

We might have to say BRINC rather than BRICS. As a developing nation with the highest GDP in Africa, South Africa has been the “S” in […]

April 9, 2014

The Big Impact of a Little Salamander

The woodland salamander made me think of Adam Smith. In North American forests, wherever it is dark and damp, under a rock or a log, a […]

April 8, 2014

Unusual Ways to Achieve Deficit Reduction

Hoping to diminish their country’s deficit, last year, Malta’s President and Parliament decided to sell citizenship. The price tag is $891,000 and the perk is that […]

April 7, 2014

Does It Matter That Men Boast?

Our Monday Gender Issue: Teaching at a girls’ school, I continually run into the problem of modesty. My women know the answers and yet go to […]

April 1, 2014

Should Kids Get Paid for Grades?

What happens when you combine a $100 student payment with a teacher bonus for high A.P. grades, better lab equipment, free tutoring, Saturday classes and extra […]

March 26, 2014

A Water Shortage During Brazil’s World Cup

A major source of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s water supply has shrunk. Down to 14.7% of its capacity, the Cantareira Basin supplies almost half the area’s water. […]

March 24, 2014

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Feminism

Our Monday Gender Issue: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Nigerian writer, former MacArthur genius, National Book Critics Circle Award winner, author of the book, Half of a Yellow Sun on […]