What I’ve been reading – Marginal REVOLUTION
1. Paul Mendes-Flohr, Martin Buber: A Life of Faith and Dissent. A beautifully written, first-rate intellectual biography of Buber. It is hard to imagine finding
India fertility facts of the day
Ten notable facts from India’s new SRS Statistical Report 2024 published two days ago: 1) India’s total fertility rate (TFR) has dropped to 1.88 (rounded
John Burn-Murdoch on phones and fertility
From my email: Hi folks, appreciate the discussion of the piece here, as ever. I just wanted to chime in briefly with an analogy that
South Korea facts of the day
When I was young, the South Korean model was generally lumped in with places like Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong as a case of “export-led
My excellent Conversation with Bob Spitz
Here is the audio, video, and transcript. Here is the episode summary: Bob Spitz has written major biographies of the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan,
The interstate trade effects of autonomous trucks
Recent advances in autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicle technologies promise substantial cost savings for goods shipped by truck. In this study, we quantify the impacts of
How Poverty Fell – Marginal REVOLUTION
The share of the global population living in extreme poverty fell dramatically from an estimated 36% in 1990 to 9% in 2015. We describe how
Is psychotherapy underdiscussed these days? (from my email)
I listened to your recent conversation with Arthur C. Brooks and found myself struggling with his core premise. His framing of happiness seems to reduce
Words of wisdom, on China shock 2.0
Michael Pettis frequently claims that, by running large surpluses, China is forcing “the demand-suppressing cost of their policies onto their trading partners.” The idea here is relatively
The economic rise of Latin America?
When the world goes looking for shelter during an oil war, the destinations are predictable: the dollar, gold, short-term Treasuries. Nobody puts Latin American sovereign