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 bit less time watching the kids and dad does do more housework. However, when it…
Microeconomics
One Reason to Quit A Job
Have you ever gone through a series of phone messages that finally take you to the department you need? Then, after 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15, no one picks up and you start to wonder if you should hang up. Deciding what…
What Golf in China Shows About Economic Development
On a ladder of spending in developing economies, growing affluence first means wheat and meat. Then, climbing somewhat higher, people can afford consumer durables like a washing machine and a car. On a Chinese spending ladder, we could add golf. But it is a…
The Impact of World Cup Soccer On Stock Markets
“Amongst all unimportant subjects, football is by far the most important.” Pope John Paul II (1920-2005) European Central Bank researchers have hypothesized that World Cup Soccer distracts stock market participants. Using data on trading activity during the 2010 games from 15 International…
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, economists Alison and Steven Sexton compared voting patterns and Prius ownership in Colorado and Washington…
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 Sue Monk Kidd. Through a lens that focuses on slavery and women’s rights, The…
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 graph, Hans Rosling connects national income and health. National income closely relates to GDP since people receive…
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 high school classmate who did not attend college. Looked at slightly differently (below), the…
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 in reverse. It all began during the 1960s in Boise, Idaho when Ed Peterson, an auto parts…
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 $12 million contract and Dempsey makes close to $5 million. However, they all take us to income inequality. Using…