Bookmarks (439)

That is the topic of my latest Bloomberg column, you ought to be able to guess most of my arguments.  Here is the very end: I am not arguing for passivity in the face of danger. It is distressing that US policymakers do not seem interested in spending big for pandemic preparedness. America needs a […] The post Let’s eliminate the Covid test entry...

1. Is the YIMBYest city in America in Maine? 2. Dump on Thomas Friedman all you want, he remains grossly underrated these days (NYT). 3. Patrick Collison on how to read and deal with books. 4. Monkeypox starting on Metaculus. 5. With in-house judges, the SEC wins about 90% of the time (WSJ).  It’s about […] The post Thursday assorted links appeared first on...

The crypto market is up! The crypto market is down! The roller coaster can be fearfully thrilling but as thoughtful academics and people interested in ideas let’s look away from the daily ups and downs and focus on the big picture. What is crypto? What is cryptoeconomics? Tyler and I have written a new chapter […] The post Cryptoeconomics! appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION....

This is Daniel Gross my co-author on Talent and the venture capitalist, to be clear.  And here is the audio and transcript.  Of course we focus on talent and also: They also explore the question of why so many high achievers love Diet Coke, why you should ask candidates if they have any good conspiracy […] The post My Conversation with the excellent Daniel...

A study of Russian publications in the 1990s found that some 39 percent of all nonfiction published in Russia in that decade had something to do with the occult. That is from the really quite interesting The Russian Cosmists: The Esoteric Futurism of Nikolai Fedorov and His Followers, by George M. Young.  And for more […] The post Russia fact of the day appeared...

1. New non-profit for geothermal energy. 2. New Allison Schrager podcast, first episode with Joel Mokyr. 3. Who owns the publicity rights to Einstein? 4. Yann LeCun on AI risks.  And why (some) octopus mothers self-mutilate and kill themselves. 5. “The subscribers presumably think they’re talking directly to the woman in the videos, and it […] The post Wednesday assorted links appeared first on...

What explains record U.S. house price growth since late 2019? We show that the shift to remote work explains over one half of the 23.8 percent national house price increase over this period. Using variation in remote work exposure across U.S. metropolitan areas we estimate that an additional percentage point of remote work causes a […] The post Remote work and home prices appeared...

Many people have stopped keeping track of where Covid is headed, if only because it is such a stressful and unpleasant topic.  To be clear, under current circumstances I favor complete “Covid laissez-faire,” though with subsidies for new and better vaccines.  Overall, things are not so peachy keen (NYT): The central problem is that the […] The post The new Covid equilibrium appeared first...

With Daniel Gross as well, here it is. The post Podcast with the excellent Patrick O’Shaughnessy appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.         CommentsI didn’t enjoy this one too much. The host seemed to want to ... by SkepticDaniel Gross, please use a professional microphone. You're ... by Jo YauIn reply to Hugo Flossin. What does? by Flugo HossinAt the end of the interview Tyler...

1. How long-term space missions change the brain. 2. Innovation in NYC subway crimes (New Yorker). 3. “Right to repair” doesn’t have to work out well. 4. “I find that 501(c)(4)s do not have significant effects on [Congressional] candidate vote share when accounting for the spending of candidates, parties, PACs, and Super PACs.” 5. The […] The post Tuesday assorted links appeared first on...

The mismanagement of the metro system in the nation’s capitol is astounding. WashPost: Metro’s train delays are projected to worsen as the agency abruptly yanks from service more than 70 operators who have been working without undergoing a mandatory retraining process for at least a year, officials announced Sunday. The agency pledged corrective action in […] The post The State of Public Transit in...

Here is the episode page (includes transcript): https://www.buzzsprout.com/126848/10628363-tyler-cowen-on-talent Here is the Youtube link. The post My *Talent* podcast with the excellent David Wright appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.         CommentsIn reply to John Mansfield. -a lotta original ideas on a ... by Dr. joe biden junios-alsatian, ph.ddroopy earlobes, common amongst the edmund burke, dr johnson set by nonacademicwith a curious, rectangular, up and adam,...

That is the topic of my latest Bloomberg column, also picked by the WaPo.  Excerpts: “What are the open tabs in your browser right now?” …First, the question measures what a person does with his or her spare time as well as work time. If you leave a browser tab open, it probably has some […] The post What is the best interview question...

You will find it here. The post The excellent Matt Clifford does a *Talent* podcast with Daniel Gross and me appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.         CommentsI receive email notifications of each new post on MR, and I ... by mkt42Just once I'd like to see you have a recommendation from ... by MyroneRelated StoriesSome blurbs for *Talent*, with Daniel GrossInfant Formula, Price Controls,...

The EU is preparing to loosen its environmental regulations as it seeks to replace Russian fossil fuels with renewable energy and imported hydrogen power. Companies in the bloc would be allowed to build wind and solar projects without the need for an environmental impact assessment, according to draft proposals obtained by the Financial Times that […] The post Ask and they shall deliver appeared...

1. New languages for Google Translate. 2. Travel notes from Ukraine. 3. Eric Topol on the current state of the virus. 4. A guy on YouTube mimicking John Lennon, with Yoko and George Harrison, singing Paul McCartney solo songs.  And now here is “John Lennon” doing “Band on the Run” album. 5. David Boaz honors […] The post Monday assorted links appeared first on...

I’ve been reluctant to write about the shortage of infant formula simply because it’s so tiring to say the same thing over and over again. Obviously, this is a classic case where the FDA should allow imports of any food or baby formula approved by a stringent authority. (Here’s the US Customs and Border Patrol […] The post Infant Formula, Price Controls, and the...

Russia has stopped publishing detailed monthly trade statistics. But figures from its trading partners can be used to work out what is going on. They suggest that, as imports slide and exports hold up, Russia is running a record trade surplus. On May 9th China reported that its goods exports to Russia fell by over […] The post Russia fact of the day appeared...

Here is a rather underwhelming list of such purchases in recent times.  West Germany buys three islands from the Netherlands in 1963?  Pakistan buys Gwadar from Muscat and Oman in 1958.  America buys the Danish West Indies in 1916.  In 1947, though the Soviet Union bought part of Lapland in Finland to enable a hydroelectric […] The post Why don’t nations buy more territories...

Some wise words on ESG and innovation from the excellent Bart Madden: Excessive focus on looking good in the short term via ESG metrics can be at cross-purposes with a long-term planning horizon keyed to innovation. A sizable portion of a firm’s major innovations may not move the needle much as to ESG metrics but […] The post ESG Versus Innovation appeared first on...

1. Sheikh Khalifa of UAE passes away (NYT). 2. George H. Smith has passed away. 3. The Economist on India’s economy, a good feature story. 4. Regulatory obstacles to flying electric vehicles (WSJ). 5. Is current comedy favoring the right wing? 6. More on the infant formula crisis. 7. The 666 greatest novels of all […] The post Sunday assorted links appeared first on...

I mean in private conversation, not in public discourse, and this is not to their faces but rather behind their back.  And with at least a modest amount of meanness, I am not talking about criticizing their ideas.  Here are some reasons not to criticize other people: 1. “Complain less” is one of the very […] The post How much should you criticize other...

We have to be more willing to disrupt current animal habitats when building wind or hydroelectric power. That means, to put it bluntly, that we have to be more willing to kill animals. Erecting wind turbines, for instance, often leads to the death of some number of birds. To favor more wind turbines is not […] The post I favor bird consequentialism appeared first...

We now know who is rich in America. And it’s not who you might have guessed. A groundbreaking 2019 study by four economists, “Capitalists in the Twenty-First Century,” analyzed de-identified data of the complete universe of American taxpayers to determine who dominated the top 0.1 percent of earners. The study didn’t tell us about the […] The post Who is rich in America? appeared...