Economics

June 29th, 2011

Seat Maps Should Airlines show their seat map to customers shopping for tickets?  I’m going to argue they should not.  Not all do (kudos to them), but many have started to show the seat to customers before they buy their tickets.  And what do you think when you see a seat map like this? When [...]

Continue reading about Should Airlines Show Their Seat Maps?

June 23rd, 2011

Yes. There has been a lot of discussion lately on the rising cost of tuition and the piles of student debt that is crushing recent graduates, but the fact remains higher education is an excellent investment. It will remain so until employers stop valuing college degrees.  And I don’t see that happening anytime soon.  You [...]

Continue reading about Is College Worth It?

May 10th, 2011

I’m about a third of the way through Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value (and How to Take Advantage of It), and I think I’m going to call it quits.  I was expecting something more like Freakonomics or something more Gladwell-esque, but definitely didn’t find it here.  Author William Poundstone is a serious academic and [...]

Continue reading about Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value

April 27th, 2011

It took a while, but I finally finished Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.  You may recognize the cover with its lettuce and the book’s key advice: “Eat food.  Not too much.  Mostly plants.”  It was a very interesting read, thanks Chris for the recommendation. Pollan believes our “Western Diet” is the [...]

Continue reading about In Defense of Food

February 16th, 2011

I read a really interesting article in Inc. magazine this week on business in Norway.  The gist of it is that Norway — land of Vikings, fjords, and ridiculously high taxes — is beating America at it’s own game.  Norway has more entrepreneurs per capita than the US, and their economy grew nearly 3% during [...]

Continue reading about How Should Countries Measure Success?

February 11th, 2011

After I finish (or give up on) the crossword puzzle in the in-flight magazine, I sometimes like to peruse the SkyMall catalog.  Is there any other publication that can instill an intense pride in American capitalism, while simultaneously making you fear for the future of mankind? I love the SkyMall catalog, and here are some [...]

Continue reading about 10 Best SkyMall Products