Archive for April, 2008
Rational Gus Guzzling
Saturday, April 26th, 2008It infuriates me when Congress calls on the CEO’s of oil companies to justify their profits. Economists routinely study gasoline prices and find no evidence of price manipulation. Washington State recently commissioned a report on gas prices (HT Knowledge Problem: The report, written by University of Washington economist and petroleum expert Keith Leffler, didn’t find […]
Interesting Links
Monday, April 21st, 2008Why you should read Wikipedia articles with a grain of salt. The open source encyclopedia is controlled by a small group of editors. Protectionism in Ping-Pong (HT Ben Casnocha). My chances of representing the U.S. in the 2012 summer games increased dramatically.
Selection Bias at the Carnival
Monday, April 21st, 2008This last weekend my university campus was open to prospective students and their families. Following the spring football game, the university hosted a small carnival with amusement rides and traditional carnival games. I went with a couple friends who satisfied their inner thrill-seeker with a ride on the ferris wheel. However, I was able to […]
Price Discrimation in Education
Wednesday, April 9th, 2008The president of a regional liberal arts college gave a presentation at my university today about price discrimination in higher education. Private colleges almost universally set tuition at a high rate and then offer a combination of need and merit-based scholarships to students based on their willingness to pay. In theory, poor students with rich […]
Markets in Everything: Substitute Grandchildren
Sunday, April 6th, 2008A Japanese toymaker designed dolls for the elderly: As Japan produces fewer children and more retirees, toymakers are designing new dolls designed not for the young but for the lonely elderly – companions which can sleep next to them and offer caring words they may never hear otherwise. Talking toys have become such a hit […]
Skin in the Game
Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008While grocery shopping with a friend of mine, she mentioned that she always buys the slightly more expensive eggs. The higher price signals that the eggs are of higher quality. If the pricey eggs are still on the market, someone must be buying them for a reason. In unfamiliar markets consumers often use price to […]