Economics In Ten

How do you achieve the magic formula of low inflation and economic growth? In the 1970s this was beginning to move further and further away from the reach of policy makers using the traditional approach of ‘demand management’, In the post-war era fiscal and monetary policy to manage the vagaries of the economic cycle but this approach was undermined by the curse of "stagflation". The late 1970s and 1980s so the emergence of a "new" approach and policy-making saw a big swing towards the use of what became known as supply-side policies. On both sides of the Atlantic Thatcherism and Reaganomics introduced ‘trickle-down’ economics to the world and a whole suite of new policies to manage (or not manage!) the economy - but what were they trying to do and did they actually work? In this new special by Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists, we dive into the world of supply-side economics. As always we discuss 10 questions that we hope will give you a good overview of what supply-side policies are and the key debates surrounding them. Along the way, you will come across a ‘supply’ quiz and find out which economist has actually seen one of our paintings of them! Technical support as always comes from Nic. Enjoy and afterwards, you might think about what kind of graph you might draw on a napkin that would change economics forever!

Have you ever wanted to walk in the footsteps of the great economists? Do you want to breathe the same air they breathed? Do you want to be inspired by the ghosts of Economics past? Well now's your chance. Cambridge is rich with economic history and in this podcast special, recorded on the hoof, your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete and Gav, take you on a 4 mile journey around Cambridge. Starting at Keynes’ family home and ending at Jesus College, you will find out why certain landmarks are important within the world of economics. It should take you 90 minutes to walk and on the journey, you can pay homage to the likes of Robinson, Marshall, Deaton and Malthus. Technical support as always comes from 'I think they are usable' Nic.

Imagine looking at the world and seeing economics everywhere. Whether it was in family dynamics, discrimination in the workplace, the criminal mind…absolutely anything!!! When first mooted this was an alien idea to many, including many economists but this was the novel approach of the highly influential and award-winning economist Gary Becker. Becker is many economists' favourite economist, at least those economists keenest on market-based, "rational" approaches. Where once economics stayed in its lane, now, post-Becker, Economics goes wherever it chooses, with tools such as cost-benefit analyses applied in all areas of human activity. Nothing is safe from economics thanks to Gary Becker! Whether he deserves our thanks our opprobrium for this is debatable but in this episode of their award winning podcast, Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists, explore his life and ideas. So if you are wondering why students should now do an investment appraisal before going to university or why siblings are nice to each other, even when they are horrible to other people, then this podcast is for you! As always there is a quiz, some music and book recommendations and a cocktail you can make to compliment the episode. Technical support comes from ‘Ace of Bass’ Nic.

“A word after a word after a word is power.” – Margaret Atwood. Many of the great economists we have looked at in our past episodes were voracious readers, and whilst we in no way put ourselves in their company we are great believers in reading widely. Simply put we at EconomicsInTen are great believers in the power of reading and the power of words.  Therefore in this sequel to the first Summer Reading special, your friendly neighbourhood economists Pete and Gav answer one simple question 10 times. What book would they recommend and why? All the books are linked to economics in some way and if you read them all, you will become a better economist and who knows, perhaps a better human being too! So while away those long summer days catching up with our podcast and reading these beauties.   As always, this podcast comes with technical support from the great Nic and comes with music from Jukedeck – create your own at jukedeck.com. PS Apologies for the delay in this episodes release; we hoped to get it out at the start of summer but have been hit by "pings", mic problems and various other modern ills. These books will keep you going well into the Autumn!

Quiz Question: Who is the only economist to win the Nobel Peace Prize? Answer: Muhammad Yunus.... and yet strangely he has never been in the running to win the equivalent Economics Prize.  Is there a reason why his ideas,  and those of the institution he founded - The Grameen Bank - have been so welcomed by US Presidents and other dignitaries and yet not been as well received by his peers? It could be the fact that microfinance, his big idea to solve poverty, has proved somewhat controversial in the world of development economics... Whatever you believe we think you will find Yunus's life and thoughts fascinating, particularly if you have ever struggled to get credit or been a member of the Scout Movement. Warming themselves around the podcast campfire as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by "Akela" Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com

Are you lucky enough to own your own home or business? But do you ever stop and think about what you would do if someone tried to take it from you, or bulldoze it? Do you ever stop and reflect on the economic power that legally protected property gives you? It's very easy to take property rights for granted but one economist is convinced that they are the key to the success of capitalism and unlocking the entrepreneurial power of the developing world; his name is Hernando de Soto. So if you are interested in the ideas of the man Bill Clinton calls 'the world's greatest living economist' then have a listen and discover the potential power of 'dead capital'! Guiding you through as always is Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by our good friend Nic (or 'The Weaver' as we like to call him) and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com.

Did you hear about the psychologist that won the Nobel Prize for Economics? Sounds like the start of a joke doesn’t it? But in 2002 Daniel Kahneman won the award for the revolutionary work on "prospect theory"  carried out with his colleague and friend Amos Tversky.  Their work changed the course of economics by introducing the world to behavioural economics. So if you’ve ever felt like you have been tricked into buying something at a higher price or have fallen into the trap of just following the crowd, then you could do with knowing some of the behavioural biases that mean you don't quite conform to the model of homo economicus aka rational economic man (or woman).  Guiding you through Kahneman’s life and ideas as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by our good friend Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com

When Thomas Carlyle famously described Economics as ‘the dismal science’ it was said that it was inspired by the writing of Thomas Malthus. His doom and gloom essay on population was to have a legacy that lasted his lifetime and beyond but were his predictions correct? And if he wasn’t, why do we still talk about ‘Malthusian’ economics now? As always, your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete and Gav will be guiding you through the numerous arguments surrounding Bob’s work and wondering whether he was just a mild-mannered vicar, a headline-grabbing egotist or just a son who wanted to prove his dad wrong. Technical support as always comes from the Drop Down Thread tea maker Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at jukedeck.com.