Category Frances Woolley
Why won’t she just take a taxi?
Three years ago my mother- and father-in-law decided to sell their car. They worked out that they would save enough on maintenance and insurance to pay for a taxi at least once a week. In three years, how many times has my mother-in-law taken a taxi? Excluding trips to the airport or train station – […]
But is it research?
At the back of every academic blogger's mind is a nagging question: does this count as research? A new paper by Glen Ellison (ungated here) argues that the internet is changing the way that top academics publish: "More top economists may realize that the publication hassles they have been enduring are not necessary." Economists at […]
How the quest for ratings distorts research
Imagine yourself in the position of a senior university administrator. Your university employs hundreds of academics, all of whom claim that their research is of vital, earth-shattering import. You have neither the time nor the expertise to evaluate the quality of the work done by individual faculty members. How do you sort out the good […]
Out-sourcing your own job
The Radio-Canada news report sounded like an item from The Onion: Postal worker contracts out his own job. In economic terms, it makes perfect sense for a letter carrier to sub-contract. Say Postman Paul is earning $150 after tax per day for delivering the mail, but can make more money working in construction. (Before taxes, […]
Remembering prisoners of war
For those of us who have not known war, the words of soldiers can help us understand what Remembrance Day is about. Richard Radford is one such soldier. When war broke out in 1939, he left his studies at Cambridge and joined the British army. Captured in Libya in 1942, he spent the remaining war […]
Trick or Treating, reciprocity and social capital
I grew up in Hillsville. Trick-or-treating was exciting – and exhausting. Just a few treks up long, steep driveways were enough to tire out little legs. There are fewer trick-or-treaters in Hillsville these days. There's a newer suburb, just 10 minutes drive away, that has ideal trick-or-treating demographics: above average household incomes, children living in […]
It pays to be hot (sometimes)
There are some research questions you have to answer simply because the data is there: the salaries of Ontario university professors are published on the public sector salary disclosure website, research output is listed on Econlit, university websites and calendars list a person's rank – there are even databases that list every doctoral thesis published, […]
Why readers believe this blog is too left wing — or too right wing or too…
When Stephen Gordon's recent post on heating costs was reprinted in the National Post's Full Comment section, a few commentators were somewhat hostile: "What a surprise that a professor from Quebec believes we should take even more from 'the rich' and give to 'the poor.'" "If this socialist extremist had his way…" My recent post […]
The economics of health care: lessons from the animal hospital
The veterinarian called at 2:30 a.m with an update on our dog's status. The bladder stone was still stuck in Micky's urethra. Did we want to go ahead with surgery, or…? The unstated alternative: euthanasia. As I sank back on the pillow I thought "I've been teaching health economics wrong all these years."
Thank you, Worthwhile Canadian Initiative commentators
Thank you to the commentator who (several months ago) wrote about the anchoring effect of minimum payments on credit card statements – that's the subject of the latest Economy Lab column.
Worthwhile Canadian Initiative 
Recent Comments