Markets
« Previous EntriesParadox of Choice
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009A friend of mine, an aspiring ecologist with a blog of his own, sent me a link to Barry Schwartz’s 2005 TED talk on the paradox of choice. Schwartz, a psychologist, has written a book with the same title that I have not read. The video is entertaining and thought-provoking. Schwartz argues that too much […]
Secret Menus
Thursday, September 24th, 2009As happy as I am with the buzz generated by my last post, I feel the need to update so new visitors are greeted with something a little more upbeat. A post about fast food and cable television (the keys to a good life) seemed to fit the bill.
Tyler Cowen recently blogged about secret menus […]
Hot Dog Pricing Paradox
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009Over Labor Day weekend I visited Chicago and spent Sunday afternoon watching Boston pummel the White Sox. Walking into the ballpark I had noticed a stand selling premium Chicago-style hot dogs with all of the fixings. While I was tempted, the ballpark level prices dissuaded me. Fortunately, on this particular day the ballpark was running […]
Lessons from My Laundromat
Wednesday, July 15th, 2009In the current hard economic times, most businesses have been lowering their prices. Burger King reduced the price of their daily specials from $4.50 to $3.99. Car companies are offering to forgive your monthly payments if you lose your job. Frito Lay is putting more chips in their bags for free. However, I’ve also noticed […]
Has the Internet Made Advertising Obsolete?
Friday, April 3rd, 2009Eric Clemons over at Tech Crunch argues so in this thought-provoking article. His points are:
Consumers do not trust advertising. (References Dan Ariely of Predictably Irrational)
Consumers do not want to view advertising
Consumers do not need advertising
The crux of his argument is that the internet has made information so widely available that advertising no longer […]
Sunk Costs: Literally
Thursday, November 13th, 2008When the cost of maintaining a boat exceeds it’s value, owners abandon them. From MSNBC.com:
Unlike cars, wooden and fiberglass boats have virtually no scrap value. So rather than pay the high cost of hauling their boats to the dump, people ditch them or sell them for as little as $1 to anyone […]
My Visa Credit Line Just Increased
Sunday, October 12th, 2008By 25%. I wouldn’t know we were in a “credit crunch” if I wasn’t reading the news. About 3 weeks ago Alex Tabarrok wrote a post pointing to evidence that consumer, industrial, and real estate loans are at all time highs. While these numbers don’t include the latest data, housing prices have […]
Nigerian Bailout Satire
Saturday, September 27th, 2008The following letter has been floating around the web. If you have ever received an email from a Nigerian scammer (i.e. if you’ve had email for more than a month) it’s quite funny.
Dear American:
I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great […]
Assorted Bailout Thoughts
Friday, September 26th, 2008I’m not a Macroeconomist. And, I’m conflicted about the Paulson plan. But, given the recent unprecedented events, I figure I should chime in. A few thoughts:
I had a Macroeconomics test today. In our models we assume No Ponzi Schemes. Representative agents aren’t allowed to pay off their debts by borrowing […]
A New Take on Bottled Water
Friday, September 19th, 2008Bottled water is immensely popular in the United States. And, while bottle labels display gurgling springs and mountain glaciers, most bottle water comes straight from municipal water sources. The two most popular brands of bottled water, Dasani and Aquafina, (owned by Coke and Pepsi respectively) both get their water right from the tap. […]
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