Another Fourth of July is here, the time for backyard barbecues, picnics, cookouts, parades, swimming and fireworks. One of those Independence Day pastimes, however, stands apart: fireworks. They’re a somewhat controversial topic in the US and are covered by a patchwork of different laws.
Continue reading Is it time to ban all individuals from shooting off fireworks?
What Happens When Greek Banks Are Shut? A Personal Story
The Greek government shut all banks in the country on June 29 after the European Central Bank capped emergency funding to the lenders. Cash withdrawals from ATMs are now limited to €60 a day (about US$67) for Greek citizens. Foreigners who can find an ATM with cash are exempt from the limit, but cash-poor tourists are finding it very hard to find ATMs with money.
Continue reading What Happens When Greek Banks Are Shut? A Personal Story
Jeb Bush promises 4% growth. Could ‘President Bush III’ deliver?
Jeb Bush recently announced his candidacy for president by declaring that “our country is on a very bad course” and promised to fix this with the striking promise of “4% growth, and the 19 million new jobs that come with it.”
The former governor stated in his speech that he grew the Florida economy by that much every year during his two terms in office. Can he deliver the same growth in gross domestic product (GDP) for the entire US if elected? Continue reading Jeb Bush promises 4% growth. Could ‘President Bush III’ deliver?
Five Big Ideas About Self Driving Cars
I have learned five important things about driverless cars since I published a blog post entitled “Cops may feel biggest impact from driverless car revolution.“
1) Self driving cars get into accidents! Continue reading Five Big Ideas About Self Driving Cars
The U.S.’s Economy Did NOT Shrink by 0.7% This Past Winter
Recently, business headlines around the world announced that the “U.S. Recovery Stumbles Yet Again.” These headlines trumpeted news that the U.S. economy shrank by 0.7% during the first quarter of 2015. This 0.7% figure is a large exaggeration of what actually happened to the economy last winter. Continue reading The U.S.’s Economy Did NOT Shrink by 0.7% This Past Winter
My Interview on MSNBC
This past Friday I was interviewed on MSNBC’s NewsNation with Tamron Hall (click here to see the interveiw). Tamron asked me about my post on eliminating tipping. The entire interview took just 4 1/2 minutes, but I spent hours preparing. Even with all the work, it was a lot of fun.
Is LA’s $15 per Hour Minimum Wage Unprecedented?
The Los Angeles City Council recently passed a law increasing the minimum wage to US$15 per hour by 2020. The city joins the ranks of San Francisco and Seattle in boosting the wage to this level. Currently, Los Angeles’ (LA) minimum wage is $9 per hour, which means at least a few low-wage workers in this city are going to receive a $6 (66%) increase over the next five years. Is there any precedent for a minimum wage jump this large? Continue reading Is LA’s $15 per Hour Minimum Wage Unprecedented?
The Future of Work: High Paying Jobs with Crushingly Long Hours
What will jobs be like in the future? FastCompany asked me to write a short article that answered this question. My answer was simple: what is likely in store for a growing number of people are exceptionally long work days combined with exceptionally high pay. Many more people in the future will be bringing home fat paychecks, but rarely be home long enough to spend them. Continue reading The Future of Work: High Paying Jobs with Crushingly Long Hours
The Secret On How To Ace Large Multiple Choice Tests
Every spring for the last dozen years, I have taught and graded a giant introductory course with enrollments anywhere from 180 to 450 students. Over the years, many students have asked me the same question; “How can I improve my score on the exams?” This blog provides one of the secrets that I have learned on how to ace large multiple choice tests. Continue reading The Secret On How To Ace Large Multiple Choice Tests
OMG! Proms are actually getting cheaper compared with the price of everything else
Prom season is now upon us, the key social event of most people’s high school experience. My youngest child is preparing to attend her first senior prom and a steady supply of fancy dresses has begun to appear in our house. As my credit card bills climbed ever higher, I began to wonder, how has the price of the prom changed over time? Continue reading OMG! Proms are actually getting cheaper compared with the price of everything else
Why the NFL and other professional sports don’t deserve nonprofit status
Recently, the National Football League (NFL) announced it was giving up its nonprofit status. This is a much-coveted designation because it exempts the entity from taxation. Continue reading Why the NFL and other professional sports don’t deserve nonprofit status
What Can Economics Tell Us About Deadly Earthquakes?
This past weekend Nepal experienced a massive earthquake centered about 50 miles from Nepal’s capital Katmandu. The Nepal earthquake was rated as 7.8 on the Richter scale, which was created in 1935 by Charles Richter at the California Institute of Technology. Each whole number increase means a 10 times increase in the seismograph that is measuring the ground’s movement. Each time the rating goes up by a whole number, such as from 6.0 to 7.0 thirty-one times more energy is released. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake destroyed many historic temples in Kathmandu and killed thousands of people. Continue reading What Can Economics Tell Us About Deadly Earthquakes?
Is a $15 per Hour Minimum Wage An Insane Increase?
Recently, The New York Times ran a front page story highlighting demonstrations that are being held for an increase in the minimum wage to $15 per hour. Currently, the Federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, which means more than doubling the pay of low-wage workers. Is there any precedent for a $7.75 absolute increase, which is a 107% relative increase? Continue reading Is a $15 per Hour Minimum Wage An Insane Increase?
Why most of us procrastinate in filing our taxes – and why it doesn’t makes any sense
April 15th is tax day, a day many people dread. Economists believe most people are rational calculating machines, but many of us don’t behave rationally about filing our taxes. Instead, most of us wait until the very last minute. Figures from the end of March suggest roughly 50 million or 1/3 of all this year’s individual tax returns in the US will be filed between the end of March and the middle of April. This is NOT a good idea for most of us. Continue reading Why most of us procrastinate in filing our taxes – and why it doesn’t makes any sense
Does The Federal Reserve Know More Than Other Government Economists?
The U.S. Federal Reserve has a complicated mandate. The legislation governing this agency states the Fed is supposed to “promote effectively the goals of maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates.” It does this by controlling or influencing interest rates and controlling the U.S.’s money supply. The Fed has pushed down interest rates close to zero for many years to increase the number of employed people and reduce unemployment. By pushing interest rates down, it has explicitly ignored two of its three mandates. The key question for the Fed is when should it stop focusing on employment and refocus its attention on stable prices and moderate long-term interest rates? Continue reading Does The Federal Reserve Know More Than Other Government Economists?
Why Pump Prices Haven’t Fallen As Fast As Oil (Don’t Blame Greed)
Crude oil prices have dropped dramatically since last summer. Strangely, over the same time period the price at gasoline pumps fell much less. If a barrel of oil today costs less than half what it did last summer, why hasn’t the price people pay at the pump decreased a similar amount? Continue reading Why Pump Prices Haven’t Fallen As Fast As Oil (Don’t Blame Greed)
Cops May Feel the Biggest Impact from Driverless Car Revolution
Recently, the McKinsey Global Institute published an article that predicted self-driving cars will disrupt major parts of the economy. Positive numbers from the article, such as 90% of all accidents would be prevented and commuters would gain 50 minutes a day of free time were trumpeted in the news. The press also focused on industries that would be harmed by self-driving cars. The two largest industries McKinsey pointed out that would be hurt are auto insurers and auto repair shops. McKinsey, however, missed one of the key impacts of self-driving cars in their study. Self-driving cars will have a tremendous impact on police forces around the world. Continue reading Cops May Feel the Biggest Impact from Driverless Car Revolution
Will Flipped Classes Become Widespread In Colleges?
Recently I went to a conference that explored new ideas in teaching. A very interesting seminar discussed “Flipped Classrooms.” In a traditional classroom the teacher first presents the material in class. Then students go home, review the material, and do problems and other homework that reinforce the concepts. A flipped classrooms is the exact opposite. Students first learn the material at home before coming to the class that present the materials. In class the students do problems to reinforce what was learned before class time. Continue reading Will Flipped Classes Become Widespread In Colleges?
What is Really So Amazing About “The Dress” is Not The Color!
This week a huge debate has sprung up over the color of “The Dress.” The item in question is a two-toned sleeveless dress sold by an English clothing chain called Roman Originals. Over the last few days many people have had furious debates over whether the dress is gold and white OR black and blue. Even the Wall Street Journal, a staid conservative publication devoted primarily to business, devoted more than a half-page to the debate over “The Dress’s” color this weekend. For an economist, however, “The Dress” is really amazing because of its price.
Continue reading What is Really So Amazing About “The Dress” is Not The Color!
Should Tipping Be Eliminated?
Tipping is widespread across North America. People tip taxicab drivers, hair dressers and hotel doormen. However, the place where the most people tip is in restaurants and bars. The problem for many customers is that tipping is confusing since tipping rules are not clear and payments are arbitrary. Many people agree the “standard” tip is 15%. However, on what amount do you tip 15%? Is it the total bill? Is it the total bill excluding tax? Is it the total food bill, with expensive bottles of wine tipped at a separate rate? Many people agree the tip rate for large groups should often be higher, but how many people comprise a “large” group? Most importantly, tipping means doing math, which is a difficult task for some people and a challenging task after drinking alcohol in a bar or restaurant. Continue reading Should Tipping Be Eliminated?