Showing archive for: “Economics”
On the ethical dimension of l’affair hiybbprqag
Former TOTM blog symposium participant Joshua Gans (visiting Microsoft Research) has a post at TAP on l’affair hiybbprqag, about which I blogged previously here. Gans notes, as I did, that Microsoft is not engaged in wholesale copying of Google’s search results, even though doing so would be technologically feasible. But Gans goes on to draw ... On the ethical dimension of l’affair hiybbprqag
American Economic Review’s Top 20 of the Last 100 Years
The paper is here (HT: Steve Salop). The AER’s The Top 20 Committee, consisting of Kenneth J. Arrow, B. Douglas Bernheim, Martin S. Feldstein, Daniel L. McFadden, James M. Poterba, and Robert M. Solow, made the selections. The list is alphabetical, of course, but TOTM readers will observe that it starts off particularly well (see ... American Economic Review’s Top 20 of the Last 100 Years
Private equity and corporate jets
I’ve written about the benefits of private equity’s “uncorporate” discipline, including owner exit rights and high-powered compensation, in reducing managerial agency costs in large firms. See my Partnership Governance of Large Firms and the longer version in Chapter 8 of my Rise of the Uncorporation. Here’s some more evidence: Edgerton, Agency Problems in Public Firms: ... Private equity and corporate jets
The Behavioral Economics of Going to Bed Angry
And other lessons in the (applied) economics of marriage (HT: Mankiw).
Microsoft undermines its own case
One of my favorite stories in the ongoing saga over the regulation (and thus the future) of Internet search emerged earlier this week with claims by Google that Microsoft has been copying its answers–using Google search results to bolster the relevance of its own results for certain search terms. The full story from Internet search ... Microsoft undermines its own case
Packers, LLC?
Just in time for the Super Bowl the New Yorker writes about the non-profit Packers — the only NFL team organized in this form. The argument for the NFL rule barring anymore non-profits is that it takes a lot of money to run an NFL franchise. But the article says Green Bay stands as a ... Packers, LLC?
Epstein on Obama at U of C
It’s pretty hard to cycle through the University of Chicago Law School (or at least it used to be back when I was a student) without gaining an appreciation for the extent to which markets, while subject to occasional failures, enhance human welfare by channeling resources to their highest and best ends. It’s also hard ... Epstein on Obama at U of C
No, Nudge Was Not on Trial
Slate’s David Weigel ran an otherwise informative piece on Cass Sunstein’s testimony, as head of OIRA, at a recent House Energy and Commerce Committee. The headline? Nudge on Trial: Cass Sunstein Defends the White House Against a Republican Attack. From Weigel’s description of the hearing, there was some general hand wringing about whether there is ... No, Nudge Was Not on Trial
Planet Money on Kittens, Keynes, and the Stock Market
Prompted by this post at Cafe Hayek, I recently participated in a web experiment sponsored by NPR’s Planet Money. I was asked to watch three short animal videos and vote for the animal I found cutest. The videos were all pretty cute. One featured a polar bear cub sliding along the ice with its mother. Another featured a loris ... Planet Money on Kittens, Keynes, and the Stock Market
Coase on the Role of the Journal of Law & Economics
There is an excellent interview of Ronald Coase conducted in honor of Coase’s 100th birthday and the creation of the Coase China Society. Its an excellent interview (HT: Knowledge Problem). Peter Klein offers some observations on the interview as well. One part that caught my attention was Coase’s discussion of the role of the Journal ... Coase on the Role of the Journal of Law & Economics
Agents Prosecuting Agents
I’ve been blogging over the years quite a bit about a problem I call “criminalizing agency costs,” which is a piece of the general problem of over-criminalization. In fact, this problem was a big reason for my getting started in blogging almost seven years ago. As I mentioned a couple of months ago, I presented ... Agents Prosecuting Agents
Religion, capitalism and compassion
My most avid fans may have noticed I’ve been away from blogging for a few days. In fact, I’ve been traveling for a lot of that time in Israel (among other things, giving a talk at Hebrew University in Jerusalem). Given my recent travels to the Holy Land I thought it might be appropriate for ... Religion, capitalism and compassion
