New coinage by Simon Willison: pokemonetise, v., “
New coinage by Simon Willison: pokemonetise, v., “to make money by appealing to the stupid human instinct to collect dumb things”.
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kottke.org posts about economics
Launch party tonight (4/14) at Eyebeam for Yochai
Launch party tonight (4/14) at Eyebeam for Yochai Benkler’s new book, The Wealth of Networks. “His book shows why labor done outside the constraints of free markets and giant corporations can still have a huge impact on the economy and social relations. He argues that a ‘third mode of production’ offers the promise of a more free society, but only if we make the right collective decisions.”
Hobo financial indicators
Hobo financial indicators, or how to tell what the stock/bond markets are going to do based on how well hobos are living. Short discarded cigarette butts = bad, lots of dogs getting dental work at the vet = good, lots of litter on the floors of movie theatres = good. (thx, zacharie)
Lots of chatter lately about the “broken
Lots of chatter lately about the “broken windows” theory of why the US crime rate dropped so dramatically in the 80s and 90s. Writing in the Boston Globe, Daniel Brook explores the possible cracks in the theory, while proponents William Bratton & George Kelling defend it from “attacks” from ‘liberals”, “anti-police groups”, and “ivory-tower academics”. Gladwell says broken windows holds up, Dubner disagrees, and Gladwell rebuts.
eBay bidders…”would you rather pay $10 and
eBay bidders…”would you rather pay $10 and have free shipping or pay $5 and pay $6 for shipping?” Most prefer the latter.
Beautiful people commit less crime. “Other studies
Beautiful people commit less crime. “Other studies have shown that unattractive men and women are less likely to be hired, and that they earn less money, than the better-looking. Such inferior circumstances may steer some to crime, Mocan and Tekin suggest.”
People are changing how they spend their
People are changing how they spend their money, opting for buying experiences rather than things. “Just as we moved from a goods to a service economy, now we are shifting from a service to an experience economy.” (thx, malatron)
CEO pay and perks can be a
CEO pay and perks can be a good indicator of how healthy a business is, so it makes sense that investors are interested in just exactly how much chief executives make. “We shouldn’t expect to see a dent in executive compensation anytime soon. But in the long run companies that don’t balance pay with performance tend to suffer where it matters most — in the stock market.”
The economics of sex…does fear of
The economics of sex…does fear of AIDS make male less likely to self-identify as homosexual?
Three economists share a cab, getting off
Three economists share a cab, getting off at three different destinations. How do they split the fare? For answers, you might look to John Nash or the Talmud.
Surowiecki on the differences between Europeans and
Surowiecki on the differences between Europeans and Americans when it comes to work. “But since more people work in America, and since they work so many more hours, Americans create more wealth. In effect, Americans trade their productivity for more money, while Europeans trade it for more leisure.”
Surowiecki on the economics of textbooks, i.
Surowiecki on the economics of textbooks, i.e. why they cost so damn much. “You can often buy the same textbook abroad for significantly less than it costs in the U.S., so students have learned to buy directly from places like the U.K., and a host of small businesses have sprung up to import books.”
In-game space station recently purchased for $100,000. The
In-game space station recently purchased for $100,000. The game, Project Entropia, lets players earn real-world cash in the game, so it’s not such a silly investment. (via cd)
Debate between economist Milton Friedman, John Mackey (
Debate between economist Milton Friedman, John Mackey (CEO of Whole Foods) and T.J. Rodgers (CEO of Cypress Semiconductor). The discussion centers around Friedman’s assertion that “the social responsibility of business is to increase its profits”. (via mr)
James Surowiecki on insider trading and members
James Surowiecki on insider trading and members of Congress. From 1993-1998, “senators beat the market, on average, by twelve per cent annually”. Here’s a piece on the same study from the FT early last year.
A Brief Economic History of the World, 10,000
A Brief Economic History of the World, 10,000 BC-2000 AD, consisting of several PDFs. I only read the intro, but it seems pretty interesting if you’re interested in such things.
Investing is risky?
From a Washington Post article about google.org, Google’s philanthropic effort:
Shareholder activists said Google’s charitable commitment raises questions about whether this is an appropriate use of company cash or whether company founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page ought to make donations to their favorite causes personally. The foundation of Bill Gates, the founder and chairman of Microsoft Corp. and the nation’s richest person according to Forbes, gave away more than a billion dollars last year to fight poverty, hunger and disease around the world. But Gates donates through a personal foundation, rather than through Microsoft itself.
“The board of directors should make it clear to the company’s founders what should be personal and what should be corporate,” said Patrick S. McGurn, special counsel to Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. “Google is spending shareholders’ money, and it raises questions if there is not a valid corporate purpose.”
Shareholder activists? You’ve got to be kidding me. You’d think that stock shareholders are a bunch of babies that need their noses wiped and hands held to go potty or something. If you don’t want to support Google’s philanthropic efforts and think that they’re throwing your money away by doing so, there’s an easy way to opt out: DON’T BUY GOOGLE STOCK. It’s a free country and open market…vote with your money on what you think is a “valid corporate purpose”. There are thousands of other companies to invest in that are doing other things, many of which operate exactly the same…nice and safe and by the book. The information on what these companies are doing with their shareholders’ money is freely available…get informed about what you’re buying. Given their P/E ratio, unique corporate approach, and incredible rate of growth, Google might just be the riskiest large-cap stock opportunity out there, but the potential upside (as well as the downside) is a lot greater than all of those companies playing it safe. As long as it’s stated (and I believe Google certainly has made their views very clear), risk isn’t something from which shareholders should be warned away.
James Surowiecki on the Mei Moses Fine
James Surowiecki on the Mei Moses Fine Art Index and why investing in art “mutual funds” might not be such a good idea. Here’s more on the Mei Moses Fine Art Index.
Wonderful interview of Milton Glaser by Chip
Wonderful interview of Milton Glaser by Chip Kidd from a couple of years ago. Touches on his iconic I [heart] NY logo, the updated version (which the NY Commerce Dept. tried to sue him for), and the economics of design. (via df)
Nimble companies like FedEx have helped stabilize
Nimble companies like FedEx have helped stabilize the US economy by becoming more flexible. FedEx keeps 5 empty planes flying over the US each night to help fill in surprise delivery gaps as needed.
Joel Kotkin rebutts Richard Florida’s argument that
Joel Kotkin rebutts Richard Florida’s argument that what cities need to thrive are “gays, twentysomethings, and young creatives”. Florida’s ideas, which are laid down in The Rise of the Creative Class and Cities and the Creative Class, have been adopted in cities around the world with, Kotkin says, little success. Kotkin stresses that “great cities need schools for families, transport that works, jobs for the middle and the aspiring working classes”.
Freakonomists Dubner and Levitt propose a solution
Freakonomists Dubner and Levitt propose a solution for people who don’t clean up after their dogs in NYC: a mandatory doggie DNA database against which sidewalk dookies are compared and fines mailed out for offenders.
September sales of SUVs were down sharply
September sales of SUVs were down sharply from last year. “Sales of F-Series pickup trucks plunged 30 percent. Sales of Ford’s large SUVs, including the Ford Explorer and Expedition and the Lincoln Navigator, sank by more than 55 percent each. At GM, overall sales of trucks, minivans and SUVs dropped 30 percent.” Most blame the $1/gal difference in gas prices from a year ago, but auto execs blame poor inventory after summer sales. Perhaps everyone went to the movies instead of car shopping.
The Army’s Be All You Can Be
The Army’s Be All You Can Be ads don’t really work all that well, despite being the 25th largest advertiser in the US. Recruiting is actually correlated more closely with the economy…the economy goes bad and the number of recruits goes up. Here’s a better way to spend that ad money: give it to incoming recruits as bonuses…the same strategy Amazon uses in offering free shipping to customers rather than spending that money on TV ads. (thx garrick)
Update on the Million Dollar Homepage…it’s
Update on the Million Dollar Homepage…it’s actually starting to fill up. He’s sold almost $100,000 worth of space so far. This is beginning to look like an absolutely brilliant idea.
Interview with Edward Castronova, video game economist.
Interview with Edward Castronova, video game economist. Quite an interesting thought from him about using MMORPGs to test economies and social systems. “I think the smart thing for the US state department to do today is build a game about Islam but make it a democracy. And set it up so that every 16-year-old from Morocco to Pakistan can go into that world when they get a computer. Not say anything overt about democracy but have them play — have them vote, for example.” (via bbj)
Suroweicki on gas prices and Katrina: “Americans
Suroweicki on gas prices and Katrina: “Americans are happy with the free market when it allows them to buy cheap T-shirts and twenty-nine-dollar DVD players, but they tend to like it less when they have to pay fifty dollars to fill up their gas tanks.”
James Surowiecki, the New Yorker’s resident economist,
James Surowiecki, the New Yorker’s resident economist, weighs in on the tipping debate. (Previously discussed here.)
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