Will London Continue to be a Superstar City Post-Brexit?
London has long featured extremely high housing prices and has been ranked with New York City and San Fran and Los Angeles and Paris as one of the world's most desirable cities.
Don Trump = Henry George? Or Does a Country Equal a Golf Course?
The New York Times has some fun mocking Don Trump today. Here is a quote from this piece. "At one point, Mr. Trump even compared his renovation of Trump Turnberry to how he is hoping to overhaul the United States.
Lessons from the Brexit for the Role of Demographics in Determining Policy
The NY Times reports that the old in the UK support leaving the EU while the young wanted to stay remain in the EU.
Reducing Pollution Exposure in Urban China: The Case of Toxic School Running Tracks
While environmentalists sometimes celebrate ingenuity in turning waste into a productive input, the NY Times reports a case where this approach may have been taken too far.
UCLA Law Professor Richard Sander's Research is Questioned in the NY Times
During my years on the UCLA faculty, I made many friends across the University. Rick Sander is one of them. Today, his work faces criticism in this NY Times piece by Richard Lempert. Dr.
Will Tesla Go Bust Under President Trump's Reign?
Professor Nordhaus started the political business cycles literature many years ago. As I read about Elon Musk's running up a lot of debt as he tries to push Tesla forward, I wonder whether Tesla will go bust under a Republican President? Given that Mr.
African Maize Yields Offers a Test of the Climate Change Adaptation Hypothesis
This is an interesting article. Researchers are spreading the news that rapid climate change in Africa may sharply reduce maize yields.
Are Tepid Campaign Contributions to Trump Due in Part to Fears of Crowding Out?
"Crowding Out" is a powerful economic idea.
Celebrating the Career of Columbia Prof. Phoebus Dhrymes
I am very sad to learn that Prof. Phoebus Dhrymes has recently passed away. We were colleagues at Columbia from 1993 to 1996 and from 1998 to 2000. He was a highly skilled econometrician who wrote comprehensive econometrics textbooks.
Presidential Leadership and Economic Growth
Do leaders matter for determining economic growth? A New York Times OP-Ed writer claims "not really" in this piece. In contrast, Ben Jones and Ben Olken argue using cross-national econometric evidence that "leaders matter" (especially in autocratic states).
Robert Paine: An Ecologist Running Field Experiments in 1966
Does economic research lead or lag scholars' methodological contributions in other fields? This obituary suggests that we lag. The NY Times has published a touching obituary of Professor Robert Paine. My UCLA colleague Peter Kareiva (Paine's student) is quoted.
Economists who Graduated from Hamilton College
Ever since I graduated from Hamilton College back in 1988 and entered a Ph.D. econ program, I knew that there were two very successful economists who also attended Hamilton. John Donohue of Stanford wrote the famous crime and abortion paper with Steve Levitt.
The Lucas Critique Applied To an Attempt by Physicists to Model "The Equation" for Predicting Terrorist Attacks
Yes, this blog post's title is a mouthful but let me help you to digest it because I only think deep thoughts (I'm half kidding).
Creatures Adapt to Climate Change by Migrating
Most species do not fly and can't afford airplane tickets so they need "connected areas" in order to migrate from place to place.
The Economics of Air Pollution in Mexico City
The NY Times has a great piece about air pollution rising in Mexico City. The article claims that such pollution mainly is due to the transportation sector. So, let's start with some algebra and then dive into some empirical research.
Define N as the population of a city.
Does Microsoft + Linkedin = Facebook for Grown Ups at Work?
Will this merger between Microsoft and Linkedin cause any trouble for Facebook? It crossed my mind that there are 24 hours a day that can be roughly divided between sleep, work and play.
Winding Down at UCLA
My last two dissertation students at UCLA Economics have graduated. I congratulate Owen Hearey and Devin Bunten for their hard work. Over the years, they taught me a lot of economics and they heard me crack a lot of bad jokes. Here is Owen's dissertation and he is Devin's dissertation.
Do the Laws of Economics Hold in California?
The WSJ has published a thought provoking letter to the editor by Oliver Watson.
June 12, 2016 1:05 p.m. ET
4 COMMENTS
Regarding your editorial “Jerry Brown’s Budget Blowout” (May 19): Do Gov.
The Economics of Why Paris Smells Bad
A garbage pickup strike is now unfolding in Paris. The tourists have noticed that the place smells. During a time of economic uncertainty, safe government jobs provide a low risk sinecure for many workers. Take a look at this chart below (the source).
Conservatives and Conservation
The NY Times has published a piece that optimistically argues that conservatives are increasingly willing to engage on conservation issues. I hope this is true but the author ignores some basic economic issues.
General Equilibrium Effects and Climate Change Adaptation
This article sketches a useful "teachable moment". Climate change will cause geographic specific shocks. For example, there can be a heat wave in Moscow or a flood in New Orleans.
Tiebout Migration and Climate Change Adaptation
The voters of San Francisco have approved a local referendum to raise taxes to earmark the money to fund wetland preservation. While wetlands provide many eco-services, they also reduce flood risk. In my 2010 book Climatopolis, I predicted that we would see this.
Harvesting Big Data and the 2016 Presidential Election
It appears that the Clinton Campaign will make ample use of "micro targeting" of reaching out to specific voters while the Trump Campaign will not invest heavily in such "Big Data" approaches and instead its leader will issue subtle tweets such as "Crooked Hilary" and "Make America Great".
Singapore Offers a Preview of Our Future Adaptation to the Heat
Using 2016 technologies, Singapore is a thriving city. Here are the data on its monthly average temperature. The high temperature averages in the upper 80s (F). How does this nation thrive in the heat? The answer is simple. It is an urban nation and activity occurs inside and at night.
Employment in France Declines in the Face of Retail Regulation
My previous post discussed the impact of labor market regulation on employment. Firms that anticipate that labor protection regulation raises the costs of firing workers hire fewer of them. Welcome to dynamic economic logic.
Do the French Need to Retake Econ 101?
Jean Tirole may want to offer the French people a refresher course in Econ 101. Read this opinion piece. In Europe, the unemployment rate is very high. This means that there are people who seek a job who can't find one.
The Allocation of Scarce Resources: The Case of NBA Warriors Ticket Prices
If you want to see the NBA Warriors play in their home stadium, then you will be paying more and more. The NY Times is concerned about this unsurprising fact. Rising demand coupled with a vertical supply curve may lead to a higher market clearing price.
Will Virtual Reality Reduce Commercial Real Estate Demand?
I live six miles east of the Pacific Ocean. As I drive west to the beach along Wilshire blvd, there are many upscale car dealerships that take up a whole block because cars can't be stocked on top of each other. I have thought that this was an inefficient use of land.
Lessons from Switzerland's Rejection of a "Guaranteed Income for All"?
Would Milton Friedman have predicted that the Switzerland would reject his policy proscription for how to help the poor? Of course, Dr.
Is Larry Summers' Pessimism About President Trump Correct?
Professor Summers poses some important hypotheses about Donald Trump in this FT piece. Micro economists model people as if they have a clear goal and use their scarce resources including time and markets and their talents to achieve their life goals.
Adapting to Suburban Fire Risk
A fire is burning in Britney Spears' town of Calabasas (a Los Angeles suburb) just north of Malibu.
The fire started around 4:15 p.m. PT Saturday when a pickup truck struck a power pole on Mulholland Highway in Calabasas, the sheriff's department said.
Some USC Economics Rankings
Ball don't lie and neither does REPEC. USC Economics is currently ranked #27 among U.S Economics Departments even though our Department is currently 35% smaller than our rivals.
A Quick Economic Discussion of "Trump Economics": Rules vs. Discretion Revisited
In the WSJ journal today Peggy Noonan delivers a fascinating quote from JAG; "We support Trumpism, defined as secure borders, economic nationalism, interests-based foreign policy, and above all judging every government action through a single lens: does this help or harm Americans? For now, the prin
Some Economics of Net Zero Energy Homes
The NY Times has published a great piece on net zero energy homes being built in Fontana California (many miles east of Los Angeles).
Deconstructing Edward
Forget "Deconstructing Harry". Harvard Prof. Ed Glaeser's work is analyzed by Prof Jamie Peck. He delivers a full "deconstruction" (I don't know what this word means or if I'm using it correctly) of neo-classical urban economics and uses Ed's work to make the key points.