Making Sen$e

Part-timers are the dark side of the bright jobs numbers

By Paul Solman

The economy added a healthy 192,000 jobs in March, but what's worrisome, Paul Solman explains, is the rise in the number of people working part time because they couldn't find a full-time job.

The good you do for the dollar when you pay your taxes

By Jon Shayne

Why does the U.S. dollar have value? Hint: It's tax time, and there's only one way you can pay the U.S. government.

What’s the big deal about Michael Lewis and high-frequency trading?

By Simone Pathe

Michael Lewis' "Flash Boys" is reigniting the debate over high-speed trading and what its risks are.

Homeless professor protests conditions of adjuncts

By Simone Pathe

Mary-Faith Cerasoli is an adjunct professor of Spanish and Italian with a master's degree from one of the country's leading language schools. She's also homeless.

Make your standard of living the basis for all financial planning

By Laurence Kotlikoff

Unlike conventional financial planning methods, which force your standard of living to adjust each year to annual changes, Larry Kotlikoff explains how an economics approach protects your standard of living.

Sanctions against Russia: What will and won’t work

By Paul Solman

Sanctions work best when they're targeted -- not at oil, but at the most vulnerable parts of the economy: the financial system and the very rich.

U.S. ‘underbanked’ population increasingly using mobile banking

By Simone Pathe

Mobile banking is on the rise, especially among those consumers who are "underbanked" and rely on other financial services besides a traditional bank account.

Virtual reality’s early adopters worry what mainstream usage will look like in the Facebook era

By Simone Pathe

Facebook has reached a $2 billion deal to purchase Oculus VR, the maker of the virtual reality headset that exposed Paul Solman to a terrifying subterranean pit. But how should that technology be used outside of the lab? Making Sen$e…

How candid should Janet Yellen be? Watching emerging markets overreact to Fed transparency

By Simone Pathe

When the Fed chair speaks, emerging markets take note. New research about their reaction to the Fed's early hints of tapering raises bigger questions about global financial integration and the Fed's transparency.

Former IMF chief economist Simon Johnson on why loans won’t help Ukraine

By Simon Johnson

Simon Johnson doesn't think Ukraine's problems can be solved with more money, and he doesn't want to see IMF reforms tied so closely to Ukraine's aid package.