Archive for 2009
Next Entries »It’s Not Always a Mask
Thursday, March 26th, 2009When Facebook came out, I was intrigued by how people presented themselves. Initially, membership was confined to university students. When crafting a profile, students knew their audience well. Pictures from last night’s party were okay. Divulging your secret love of Hanson was not. In the real world, people act differently around different groups of friends. […]
Education: An Inferior Good?
Monday, March 16th, 2009Last week, Obama spoke about education and argued that American children don’t go to school long enough. He said:
We can no longer afford an academic calendar designed for when America was a nation of farmers who needed their children at home plowing the land at the end of each day. Our children…spend over a month […]
Libertarian Paternalism
Sunday, January 25th, 2009I just finished Nudge, by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein. These University of Chicago professors advocate “libertarian paternalism” which recognizes that people often act irrationally and recommends that governments “nudge” people to make better choices. In their own words:
Libertarian paternalism is a weak, soft, and non-intrusive type of paternalism because choices are not […]
Thanks
Sunday, January 25th, 2009I’m about to write another post, but first I wanted to to thank all of my readers for sticking with me recently over the past couple months. Between finals and traveling to see my family, December and January are always a busy time. This year I had my qualifying exams to boot, and […]
How to Make an Economist Mad
Sunday, January 18th, 2009Say that economics isn’t a real science. Someone told me that over Christmas, and I have to admit that it rubbed me the wrong way. I don’t want to delve into what “science” really entails. I’d be the first to concede that economists don’t study the physical world. What bothers me […]
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