Scott Freeman on the Phillips Curve
13 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, business cycles, economics of information, history of economic thought, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, Milton Friedman, monetarism, monetary economics, Robert E. Lucas, unemployment
‘Incomplete Contracts and the Theory of Contract Design,’ by Robert Scott and George Triantis
11 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, economics of regulation, history of economic thought, industrial organisation, law and economics, property rights
Economists and lawyers know that almost every contract is incomplete. Contracts routinely omit or leave undefined important terms, and they rarely anticipate every circumstance that might frustrate performance. The reason is simple: It makes little sense to spend $1,000 drafting a provision that has an expected value of only $100. Parties therefore leave lower-value contingencies…
‘Incomplete Contracts and the Theory of Contract Design,’ by Robert Scott and George Triantis
The case for unilateral recognition
11 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, economics of regulation, industrial organisation, international economic law, international economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, regulation
Bilateral, plurilateral, and multilateral are words that New Zealand’s civil service love. There is nothing that can’t be improved by doing it in concert with others. Sometimes there’s good reason for just doing stuff. New Zealand made the right decision when it unilaterally slashed all of its tariffs. It also progressed all the other trade agreements that helped…
The case for unilateral recognition
Lion vs. Giraffe: Who Will Win? | Lion Kingdom
09 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of information, economics of media and culture
America is still poised for a data center boom
07 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of education, economics of information, energy economics, entrepreneurship, industrial organisation
Eric Levitz, via Matt Yglesias. The post America is still poised for a data center boom appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.
America is still poised for a data center boom
‘The Use of Knowledge in Society,’ by Friedrich A. Hayek
01 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, Austrian economics, economics of information, entrepreneurship, F.A. Hayek, history of economic thought, industrial organisation, Ludwig von Mises, market efficiency, Ronald Coase, Ronald Coase, Ronald Coase, theory of the firm
The wealth and technological sophistication of modern society are readily apparent. Less visible, but no less remarkable, is its ability to coordinate the actions of billions of people who know almost nothing about one another’s circumstances. Every day we make decisions without possessing most of the information on which those decisions ultimately depend. We purchase…
‘The Use of Knowledge in Society,’ by Friedrich A. Hayek
Vice signalling
29 Aug 2026 1 Comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, politics - USA Tags: signaling
Vice signalling is the opposite of virtue signalling, although it is not nearly as established as a technical term. Political scientists are more likely to discuss transgressive signalling, norm violation, incivility, performative transgression, or out-group hostility. Research on populism, for example, explicitly treats deliberate breaches of conventional standards of political behaviour as part of a political style. A […]
Vice signalling
A rent control experiment
13 Aug 2026 1 Comment
in applied price theory, econometerics, economic history, economics of information, economics of regulation, law and economics, property rights Tags: offsetting behavior, rent control, unintended consequences
Occupational Licensing: US and International
25 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, economics of regulation, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, occupational choice, occupational regulation, politics - USA, Public Choice, rentseeking
The potential benefit of having the government require that certain jobs require an official license is quality control and protection. Personally, I rather like knowing that my nurse or doctor or dentist has gone through courses and training. The potential cost is that requirement to have a government license can become a way for those…
Occupational Licensing: US and International
The Supply And Demand Game
12 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, history of economic thought Tags: experimental economics
I played it in each class I taught. A former colleague taught it to me many years ago. As far as I know, I use the game invented by Edward Chamberlin and refined by Vernon Smith. Click here to see the Lessons From the Supply and Demand Game. Or just read it all here. Part…
The Supply And Demand Game
Artificial Intelligence, Natural Ignorance
07 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of information, economics of media and culture, economics of regulation, entrepreneurship, financial economics, history of economic thought, industrial organisation, market efficiency, politics - USA, regulation, survivor principle Tags: creative destruction
Everyone in Washington seems to agree that artificial intelligence must be governed. The only real dispute is who gets the steering wheel. Congress? Federal agencies? State legislatures? Some newly minted task force with a long acronym and a taste for reporting requirements? That debate is already too narrow. President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on…
Artificial Intelligence, Natural Ignorance
Economics is Counter-Emotional, Not Counter-Intuitive
30 Apr 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economics of education, economics of information, history of economic thought, Public Choice
A few months ago, a high school econ student asked me to zoom with his class. I’m working against a tight deadline for Blockade, so I was inclined to decline. But the student’s list of questions was so ambitious that I decided to make the time. See for yourself:Here is the plan:- 5 minutes -WELCOME…
Economics is Counter-Emotional, Not Counter-Intuitive
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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