Mar 20 Can you really live better longer without long-term care insurance? By Lewis Mandell Not all readers bought Lew Mandell's skepticism of long-term care insurance. Is it not a smart investment for Americans who can't afford to self-insure their future care? Mandell returns to explain when this investment makes sense and when it's a… Continue reading
Mar 19 Is Janet Yellen right for the job? By Richard F. Syron At the end of the Fed's two-day policy meeting Wednesday, Janet Yellen holds her first press conference as chair. Former Fed governor Richard Syron examines Yellen's preparation for the job in light of her predecessors' tenures at the central bank. Continue reading
Mar 14 Economics explains why you resemble your mate By Paul Oyer In this adaptation of "Everything I Ever Needed to Know About Economics I Learned from Online Dating, " Paul Oyer explains how our decisions to stick with people whose backgrounds resemble our own lead to stagnant economic mobility. Continue reading
Mar 13 An economic way to nudge Putin out of the crisis in Ukraine By George C. Lodge The way out of the crisis in Ukraine and toward serious negotiations over Crimea, George Cabot Lodge argues, is to carefully convince Russia of its dependency on the world economy. Continue reading
Mar 12 The secret to improving health and productivity at work By Simone Pathe Staying physically active in the office is good for your health and your employer's insurance premiums. But new research suggests working out while you work is also good for your office productivity. Continue reading
Mar 07 Why economists take out their own trash before the monthly jobs report By Karen Kosanovich, Julie Hatch Maxfield On "jobs Friday," Making Sense speaks with two Bureau of Labor Statistics economists about what it's like to prepare one of the most closely-watched, and guarded, economic indicators in America. Continue reading
Mar 07 A welcome 175K jobs, but long-term unemployment here to stay By Simone Pathe The economy added 175,000 jobs last month, a relief after anemic growth earlier this winter. But 3.85 million Americans have been unemployed for over 27 weeks. Continue reading
Mar 06 Watch Why obsessing over economic indicators may hinder economic improvement By PBS News Hour The monthly jobs report is big news on the first Friday of every month, swaying the financial markets and prompting immediate analysis. But should these numbers matter so much? A new book, “The Leading Indicators,” argues we overvalue data like… Continue watching
Mar 06 How counting the unemployed started as a progressive reform By Zachary Karabell Economists and the media use the monthly jobs numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to take the pulse of our economy. But the collection of that data actually grew out of a progressive reform movement to asses the plight… Continue reading
Mar 05 Are your grades killing your grandmother? Dan Ariely’s prescription: The perfect MOOC By Dan Ariely More college students lose grandparents right before taking college exams. Duke professor and irrationality expert Dan Ariely has a solution: Enroll in Massive Open Online Courses to spare grandparents some fatal stress. Continue reading