Thinking of tax reform, we can not only look at what we pay and how much, but also at simplifying taxes through pre-filled forms from the IRS.…
The Time Zone Changes That Massachusetts Might Make
Cows don’t like the switch to daylight saving time. A California organic dairy farmer said he enjoys the extra hour of light that starts in March. But his cows don’t. Because they are accu…
The Difference Between a Sunny and Stormy Business Climate
The World Bank’s Doing Business Index ranks 190 economies to show where the business climate is sunny or stormy because of regulatory policy.…
The Magic of the MetroCard
The introduction of just one small MetroCard transformed NYC by lowering the transaction costs for traveling to work and friends in different boroughs.…
Why December 31st is an Odd Length
Just like having the same weights and measures and money, when we all standardize our time with a soon-to-be-added leap second, our transaction costs drop.…
What If Boston Ignored Daylight Saving Time?
By ignoring the sun through fewer time zones, we coordinate national and international time and create more economic efficiency.…
Weekly Roundup: From Blockbuster Movies to Student Debt
This week’s economic news summary includes the transactions costs of new medical diagnostic codes, the personal and macro impact of the student loan crisis.…
Wacky Maladies in Our New Medical Billing Codes
Praised by some for its disease classification detail, others believe ICD-10 will create massive transaction costs for healthcare providers.…
Weekly Roundup: From Hot Hands to Sunk Costs
The behavioral economics ideas from our everyday economics are confirmation, expectations and projection bias, frames, temporal discounting and sunk costs.…
Explaining the Health Club Memberships We Don't Use
Behavioral economics explains that we sign up for health clubs and then don’t exercise because of unrealistic pre-commitment and upfront payment.…