Naked Economics Undressing the Dismal Science

by Wheelan, Charles

• ISBN13: 9780393049824
• ISBN10: 0393049825
• Edition: 00
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-09-17
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Summary

Naked Economics makes up for all of those Econ 101 lectures you slept through (or avoided) in college, demystifying key concepts, laying bare the truths behind the numbers, and answering those questions you have always been too embarrassed to ask. For all the discussion of Alan Greenspan in the media, does anyone know what the Fed actually does? And what about those blackouts in California? Were they a conspiracy on the part of the power companies? Economics is life. There's no way to understand the important issues without it. Now, with Charles Wheelan's breezy tour, there's no reason to fear this highly relevant subject. With the commonsensical examples and brilliantly acerbic commentary we've come to associate with The Economist, Wheelan brings economics to life. Amazingly, he does so with nary a chart, graph, or mathematical equation in sight?ertainly a feat to be witnessed firsthand.Economics is a crucial subject. There's no way to understand the important issues without it. Now, with Charles Wheelan's breezy tour, there's also no reason to fear it.

Author Biography

Charles Wheelan is the Midwest correspondent for The Economist, an adjunct lecturer at Northwestern University, and an economics correspondent for WBEZ, Chicago Public Radio. He lives in Chicago with his wife and two daughters

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Burton G. Malkiel
Introduction	xv
Acknowledgments	xxi
The Power of Markets: Who feeds Paris?	3	(20)
Incentives Matter: Why you might be able to save your face by cutting off your nose (if you are a black rhinoceros)	23	(20)
Government and the Economy: Government is your friend (and a round of applause for all those lawyers)	43	(20)
Government and the Economy II: The army was lucky to get that screwdriver for $500	63	(18)
Economics of Information: McDonald's didn't create a better hamburger	81	(17)
Productivity and Human Capital: Why is Bill Gates so much richer than you are?	98	(20)
Financial Markets: What economics can tell us about getting rub quick (and losing weight, too.)	118	(19)
The Power of Organized Interests: What economics can tell us about politics	137	(12)
Keeping Score: Is my economy bigger than your economy?	149	(19)
The Federal Reserve: Why that dollar in your pocket is more than just a piece of paper	168	(19)
Trade and Globalization: The good news about Asian sweatshops	187	(19)
Economics: Tee wealth and poverty of nations	206	(23)
Epilogue Life in 2050: Seven Questions	229	(8)
Notes	237	(8)
Index	245