- Atul Gawande on how one should be a scientists in this world, whatever be your profession–as quoted by Seth;
- An academic blog makes it to in-flight magazines–Brian at Crooked Timber on the rise of Language Log (which is a favourite of mine too);
- Brad Delong quotes Tim Lee on software patents;
- Brad Delong quotes James Galbraith on what should be the characteristics of an alternative to neoclassical economics (Here is one of the prescriptions: Mathematics should mainly clarify the implications of simple constructs);
- Economic principals on the academic politics with specific reference to how UCLA’s economics department is disintegrating;
“UCLA is a mess, no matter what the people you’ve talked to have to say about it,” says one competitor. “It’s not very much due to their public status, either, but to a cataclysmic split in the department. One group of true-believers blocks every appointment that the other group wants to make and vice versa. I’ve heard this time after time from the people there that we’ve interviewed. Still another example of people who think they’re geniuses acting like pinheads.”
Sounds familiar?
- Steven Leavitt on a trait that makes good economic sense but still is rare, namely, good customer service.
Have fun!
