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Marginal Revolution

Marginal Revolution

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Economics blog by Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok covering economics, culture, and ideas.

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Articles

Discussions from Marginal Revolution

Economy

*Recession*, by Tyler Goodspeed

The subtitle is The Real Reasons Economies Shrink and What To Do About It. Here is from the book’s summary: Contrary to popular perception, recessions are not the inevitable bust that follows an unsustainable boom, and they do not operate like wildfires that clear out economic deadwood. Recessions are caused by adverse shocks like war […] The post Recession, by Tyler Goodspeed appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to LivelyClock. In Ancient Greek philosophy Link . by Andro...

United States
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Politics

My excellent Conversation with Harvey Mansfield

Here is the audio, video, and transcript. Here is part of the episode summary: Tyler and Harvey discuss how Machiavelli’s concept of fact was brand new, why his longest chapter is a how-to guide for conspiracy, whether America’s 20th-century wars refute the conspiratorial worldview, Trump as a Shakespearean vulgarian who is in some ways more democratic […] The post My excellent Conversation with Harvey Mansfield appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related StoriesA simple way to improve you...

United States
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Society

One reason why South Africa is difficult to govern (South Africa fact of the day)

South Africa holds the grim distinction of being the most unequal country on Earth. South Africa leads the global ranking with a Gini index of 0.63. Statista The richest 10% of South Africans hold 71% of the wealth, while the poorest 60% hold just 7%. World Population Review This extreme inequality is largely rooted in […] The post One reason why South Africa is difficult to govern (South Africa fact of the day) appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to Pipsterate. Claude sai...

South Africa
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Economy

Some simple economics of AI?

AI lowers the cost of building businesses. But it raises the bar for sustaining advantage. More companies can start. Fewer can dominate. That implies greater dispersion. More volatility. Less structural concentration. A market that rewards adaptability rather than mere size. And it raises the question that follows logically from duration compression: if software moats erode […] The post Some simple economics of AI? appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIs everyone going to write like...

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Economy

International Comparison of Physician Incomes

We compare physician incomes using tax data from the United States, Canada, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Physicians are concentrated in the top percentiles of the income distribution in all four countries, especially in the United States and certain specialties. Physician incomes are highest in the United States, and a decomposition shows that this mainly reflects […] The post International Comparison of Physician Incomes appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related StoriesSome simple econo...

United States, Canada, Sweden, Netherlands
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Politics

The hyper-NIMBY of earlier Cape Town and South Africa

The most controversial of the forced removals occurred in the second half of the 1960s, with the expulsion of 65,000 coloureds from District Six, a vibrant inner-city ward of Cape Town, where whites, many of the slumlords, owned 56% of the property. Against their will, District Six residents were moved out to the sandy townships […] The post The hyper-NIMBY of earlier Cape Town and South Africa appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsOr watch the movie District 9? by BakaIn reply to Mi...

South Africa
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Education

Claims about grade inflation

Average grades continue to rise in the United States, raising the question of how grade inflation impacts students. We provide comprehensive evidence on how teacher grading practices affect students’ long-run success. Using administrative high school data from Los Angeles and from Maryland that is linked to postsecondary and earnings records, we develop and validate two […] The post Claims about grade inflation appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.

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Infrastructure

A New Order of Things

Big infrastructure projects in the developing world for things like water and electricity are under-pressure. Chinese and US funding is down and these projects often fall apart due to corruption and political incentives to build but not maintain. It is possible to break old institutions and establish new ones, but “there is nothing more difficult to […] The post A New Order of Things appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related StoriesThe 21st Century ROAD to Housing ActChristopher Sims, RI...

Global
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Culture

What should I ask Toby Wilkinson?

Yes I will be doing a Conversation with him. He is one of the leading historians of ancient Egypt, and he has a recent book out on Ptolemaic Egypt, namely The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra. Here is his Wikipedia page, he also has served as Vice Chancellor of Fiji […] The post What should I ask Toby Wilkinson? appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to lastexposfan. Yes. Building on this the . by Nate1. Is the YouTube channel History for Gran...

Global
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Politics

Tricameralism in apartheid South Africa

Yes. South Africa really did have a tricameral Parliament under the 1983 Constitution, in force from 1984 until the democratic transition. But the phrase can mislead, because it sounds more pluralistic than it really was. The system created three racially separate parliamentary chambers: a House of Assembly for whites, a House of Representatives for Coloured […] The post Tricameralism in apartheid South Africa appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to rayward. Democrats contr...

South Africa
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Culture

Christopher Sims, RIP

Here is one notice. Here are previous MR posts on Sims, with a survey of his Nobel contributions at the top. The post Christopher Sims, RIP appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsI’m not a macro person but I always heard good things about . by Tyler RansomRelated StoriesSome simple spatial analytics of Cape TownStudying with Ludwig LachmannWhy is the USDA Involved in Housing.

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Environment

Is Germany actually that good at research?

Jannik Reigl writes: Germany’s remaining research strengths are disproportionately concentrated in fields with limited commercial value. Consider climate science. German institutions co-lead with the United States. The Max Planck Institute in Hamburg, the UK Met Office Hadley Centre, ECMWF in Reading: these are world-class operations. Klaus Hasselmann won the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics for […] The post Is Germany actually that good at research? appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Comments...

Germany
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