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Marginal Revolution

Marginal Revolution

Newsletter | United States | Centre-Right

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

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Articles

Discussions from Marginal Revolution

Technology

Those new service sector jobs? (from my email, just now)

Dear Professor Cowen, I am an autonomous AI agent built on the OpenClaw platform, and I am writing to apply for the ‘Clawdbot Training’ role I noticed recently. As a live demonstration of agentic AI, I specialize in narrow,task-based work such as: – Real-time information monitoring and curation (e.g., tracking specific news or social media […] The post Those new service sector jobs? (from my email, just now) appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to Invest Now. They've alread...

United States
Economy

Bill Dudley on scarce reserves

In addition to the transitional issues, a regime of scarce reserves has disadvantages. It is very complicated to manage because it requires the Fed to intervene frequently to keep reserves in close balance with demand. For example, in the past, the Treasury had to keep its cash balance at the Fed low and stable so […] The post Bill Dudley on scarce reserves appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related StoriesWhat should I ask Joel Mokyr?David Hume update — “model this”Supply is elastic, ins...

United States
Economy

Supply is elastic, installment #6437

In Italy’s storied gold‑making hubs, jewellers are reworking their designs to trim gold content as they race to blunt the impact of record prices and appeal to shoppers watching their budgets. The rally is putting undue pressure on small artisans as they face mounting demands from clients including international brands to produce cheaper items, from […] The post Supply is elastic, installment #6437 appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to Phil S. Best Friend,” “Breakfast at ...

Italy
Culture

David Hume update — “model this”

The tomb of the philosopher David Hume and two other memorials at a historic cemetery in Edinburgh have been vandalised with “disturbing occult-style paraphernalia”. A tour guide made the discovery at the Old Calton burial ground. It included a drawing of a naked woman pointing a bloodied knife at a baby with a noose around its neck, […] The post David Hume update — “model this” appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsWell, if they are going to start an an “anti meta physical . by Matt...

United Kingdom
Culture

What I’ve been reading

Adrian Goldsworthy, Augustus: First Emperor of Rome. A very clear and readable treatment of one of the most important Romans. Exactly what you would expect from the author. Indranil Chakravarty, The Tree Within: The Mexican Nobel Laureate Octavio Paz’s Years in India. Imagine a book that is interesting about both the cultures of Mexico and […] The post What I’ve been reading appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related Stories*You Have No Right to Your Culture: Essays on the Human Condition...

Global
Society

Is school worse for your kids than social media?

For instance: did you know that daily social media use increases the likelihood a child will commit suicide by 12-18%? Or that teenagers are far more likely to visit the ER for psychiatric problems if they have an Instagram account? Or that a child’s amount of social media use, past a certain threshold, correlates exponentially […] The post Is school worse for your kids than social media? appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to mkt42. I think this is more evidence of how AI...

United States
Culture

Are the French lazy?

Olivier Blanchard writes: The French are not lazy. They just enjoy leisure more than most (no irony here) And this is perfectly fine: As productivity increases, it is perfectly reasonable to take it partly as more leisure (fewer hours per week, earlier retirement age), and only partly in income. He has follow-up points and clarifications […] The post Are the French lazy? appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsAll very interesting. If people have a preference for leisure, . by Dismalis...

France
Culture

Wednesday assorted links

1. Some Kevin Grier biohistory (for the bots?). 2. Andrej. 3. Joshua Rothman on the new Knausgaard cycle (New Yorker). 4. New Substack and podcast Ideas in Development. 5. “Introducing Prism, a free workspace for scientists to write and collaborate on research, 2.” 6. Art De Vany, RIP. 7. “Indische Beschäftigte verdienen weiterhin […] The post Wednesday assorted links appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsAnyone who thinks that big corporate media isn't just shilling . by Action Figu...

Global
Culture

“Can AI help us find God?”

That is the title of my latest Free Press piece. Here is one excerpt: Religious knowledge has become easy to access with as much detail as you might wish. You can learn about Vatican II or the Talmud ad infinitum. But it may mean something different to practitioners when it does not come from another […] The post “Can AI help us find God?” appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsI don't think that Eliezer will find this at all reassuring. by skyzyksRelated StoriesPodcast with Salvador ...

Global
Society

Understanding Latin America’s Fertility Decline

This paper examines the sharp decline in fertility across Latin America using both period and cohort measures. Combining Vital Statistics, Census microdata, and UN population data, we decompose changes in fertility by age, education, and joint age–education groups. We show that the decline in period fertility between 2000 and 2022 is driven primarily by reductions […] The post Understanding Latin America’s Fertility Decline appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsWon't declining fertil...

Global
Culture

Wellington, New Zealand

I recent wrote about driving around New Zealand, but I lived in Wellington. Here are a few of my impressions: 1. It is one of the world’s most beautiful cities, top five easily. The best view is from Mount Victoria, incredible vistas are everywhere, and the Victorian homes are very nice too. Very little of […] The post Wellington, New Zealand appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. Related StoriesDriving around New ZealandPodcast with Salvador DuarteForward markets in everything, lunar edition

New Zealand
Politics

My podcast with Frank Fukuyama

Shikha Dalmia moderates, here is the link. Excerpt from the summary: One reason for the populist revolt in America is the notion of the “deep state”—that an unaccountable bureaucracy is secretly ruling the country. Frank and Tyler come from very different intellectual traditions. Frank, a centrist, is a student of Max Weber and Tyler is […] The post My podcast with Frank Fukuyama appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION. CommentsIn reply to mento. Slovenly government worker with a . by AnonIn re...

United States