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Archive for the ‘Behavioral Economics’ Category

The Brain on Trial

Posted in Behavioral Economics, tagged , on June 20, 2011 | 4 Comments »

David Eagleman thinks that advances in neuroscience should transform our criminal justice system. Writing in The Atlantic, Eagleman emphasizes how genetic and environmental factors influence cognitive function: We are each constructed from a genetic blueprint, and then born into a world of circumstances that we cannot control in our most-formative years. The complex interactions of genes and [...]

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Nickels Matter: Pigou and the Plastic Bag

Posted in Behavioral Economics, Environment, Microeconomics, tagged , , on September 20, 2010 | 10 Comments »

On January 1, Washington DC introduced a 5-cent tax on disposable shopping bags at grocery, drug, convenience, and liquor stores. The fee had two goals: to reduce the number of bags, in particular plastic ones, that end up blighting the landscape and to raise funds for cleaning up the Anacostia River. The fee appears to be succeeding on [...]

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It’s Back-to-School Season, Time to Lay Your Bets

Posted in Behavioral Economics, Finance, Microeconomics, tagged , , , , on August 10, 2010 | 1 Comment »

According to an article over at the Huffington Post (ht Natalie), students at 36 colleges will have a new option when they start classes this fall. Thanks to an outfit named Ultrinsic, students can now bet on whether they will get good grades. Students put up money at the start of the semester and then [...]

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The Hot Tentacle

Posted in Behavioral Economics, Finance, Nature, tagged , , on July 11, 2010 | 3 Comments »

The World Cup started with vuvuzelas and ended with Paul the octopus. The world’s most famous cephalopod grabbed headlines by correctly predicting the winners of eight straight World Cup matches, including today’s victory by Spain over the Netherlands. I’ve enjoyed Paul’s exploits, but his success got me wondering: just how many animals are out there [...]

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Human Organs, Behavioral Economics, and Insurance Mandates

Posted in Behavioral Economics, Health, Teaching, tagged , , on September 27, 2009 | 6 Comments »

Like the minimum wage and rent control, the market for human organs is a classic topic when teaching the basics of supply and demand. Organ markets are largely outlawed and, as a result, the demand for organs greatly outstrips the supply. For example, according to some estimates, as many as 4,000 people in the United [...]

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Catherine Zeta-Jones & Consumer Finance

Posted in Behavioral Economics, Finance, Internet, Regulation, tagged , , , , , on June 24, 2009 | 4 Comments »

Catherine Zeta-Jones has an important message for policymakers who want to help consumers make better financial decisions. Really. Let’s go to the video: I should emphasize that the message is not that economists are bow-tie-wearing geeks who should be sprayed with garden hoses. That may be true, but it isn’t CZJ’s message to policymakers. No, [...]

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