The criticism continues but nothing much happens.
Paul Seabright of Toulouse School of Economics has this latest criticism on state of micro teaching. He says micro textbooks and mico researchers look at different worlds:
Archive for December 5th, 2013
Changing the undergraduate microeconomics syllabus..
December 5, 2013Who Should Lead the Global Economy?
December 5, 2013Harold James and Domenico Lombardi reflect on who would lead the global economy given massive probems in US. Laughingly they evaluate whether Eurozone (along with China) can play the role of global leader. Eurozone? Really? EZ was poised to take control as the crisis hit US shores but graduallt we realised how faulty the design of EZ was and needs to be fixed.
Why does ban on child labor increases child labor..
December 5, 2013Prashant Bharadwaj, Leah Lakdawala and Nicholas Li explain this puzzle in this voxeu column.
They say the ban increases the supply of child labor as wages decline:
Delhi Airport Metro Fiasco…Lessons and Way forward
December 5, 2013Kumar V Pratap of Planning Commission writes a nice case study on Delhi airport metro fiasco:
The latest public-private partnership project to fall through, the Delhi Airport Metro Express, brings to light flaws in the concession agreement between the public and private parties. Improper risk sharing and aggressive bidding, coupled with the application of the jugaad principle, have led to contractual disputes resulting in the cancellation of the partnership.
In most infrastructure PPP projects, the key reasons for failure are nearly similar- overbidding, overestimation of traffic flows and confusion over responsibilities. These reasons were responsible for failure of Delhi Metro Airport line too.
How to Invest in a New City?
December 5, 2013John Macomber of HBS has this article sharing his experiences and lessons while building new cities. He says private sector should be roped in to build new cities. If certain initiatives in Saudi and Vietnam work, then it will show the ways for future private sector intervention in city space as well:
Rapid urbanization and resource scarcity pose problems—and opportunities—for businesses and governments all over the world. But who can best lead the building and developing of these municipalities? One model: promotion and regulation by the private sector. Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer John Macomber writes about his recent investigative visits to nascent privately-funded municipalities in Saudi Arabia and Vietnam.
Nice read. Though not sure whether private sector alone can help build cities in future…
How companies choreograph analysts’ earning calls to hide bad news….
December 5, 2013The investment bankers who sell IPOs at roadshows tell you how certain hawkish analysts are avoided/incentivised etc not to ask tough questions. The calls of dove analysts are entertained of course and that is how the show is managed..
Lauren Cohen, Dong Lou, and Christopher Malloy of HBS look at this problem from a different angle. They say companies post earnings call those analysts who have given a buy on the firm. Others are not entertained.
HBSWK has a superb discussion with Prof. Cohen showing how he latched on to this idea:
Prof. Kahneman on How to Control Irrational Tendencies
December 5, 2013Big Think has this video and a brief write-up on the topic and mental accounting.
Prof. Kahnemann explains:
Mostly Economics 
