Upset Patterns

Antagonism towards global trade imbalances has become a big political issue, from US-China relations to the Euro Zone. Are trade imbalances appearing because some countries are just more responsible with their money than others? Do they have such productive industry that they just keep selling more to foreigners? Matt Klein, co-author with Michael Pettis of the recent book "Trade Wars Are Class Wars," discusses how distributional imbalances within countries manifest themselves to appear as trade wars between countries.

Conor Dougherty of the New York Times discusses his recent book "Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in America." Want a chance at getting a free copy of the book? For a chance to win, email upsetpatterns@gmail.com with the tv show Conor says resembles the town hall meetings he writes about.

At their best, democracies hold public officials accountable and reflect the will of the people. For countries with less mature democracies, national governments will sometimes mandate that local and state governments provide institutions that allow for citizen participation. Can this top-down approach to democracy improve civic engagement, or will it just provide a smoke screen for corrupt officials? What circumstances would lead a country to enact such reforms? In this episode, Stephanie McNulty of Franklin and Marshall College discusses the background behind mandatory participatory reforms featured in her upcoming book "Democracy From Above? The Unfulfilled Promise of Nationally Mandated Particpatory Reforms."

Work life and home life have a synergistic relationship. A good day at work can lead to better relationships at home and vice versa. Because the demands of parenthood change throughout the stages of a child's life, it only makes sense that this synergy changes as well. Katherine Lin of Dartmouth College joins us to talk about her recent paper "Working, Parenting, and Work-Home Spillover: Gender Differences in the work-home interface across the life course." Read Katherine's paper here An article discussing the evidence from Denmark mentioned in the episode

We often see economic policies being bundled together: one political party likes more regulation, high social spending, and overall government intervention in the economy; the other party favors less regulation and less government presence in the economy. But these different choices don't need to be packaged together. In fact, it's possible that high social spending can even reinforce and create more popular support for market-friendly policies. In this episode, Sam Hammond of the Niskanen Center talks about his recent paper "The Free Market Welfare State." Read Sam's paper here: "The Free Market Welfare State" Music provided by The Benevolent Dictators via their recent album "Silent Revolution" all about Adam Smith.

There's a perception that economics has shifted away from theoretical work and more towards empirical research. New volumes of available data and increased computational power seem to have ushered in a new era of empiricism. But evidence shows that this is a false dichotomy and there is much more to the story. In this episode, Beatrice Cherrier of the University of Caen in France talks about how the relationship between theory and empirics has changed, how to better understand recent changes in economics academia, and the effect on policy.

The Benevolent Dictators recently released their album "Silent Revolution" - 8 songs inspired by the works of 18th century Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith. Will joins bandmate Fraser Thompson to discuss the story behind each song's lyrics and how they fit into Smith's overall framework. Find the album on bandcamp for free web streaming, digital download, and physical CD purchase. Check out Spotify, Apple Music, and most other streaming services as well. Available for digital purchase on iTunes. Follow the band's Instagram account.

The United States has seen an increase in opioid use and abuse the last few decades. Spurred on by changing economic conditions and prescription standards, the country is in the midst of what is being called an "opioid crisis." What are the signs that the US has reached crisis levels? What are some predictors of opioid use? And how does the availabilty of opioids around the house affect use? Marissa Seamans of Johns Hopkins University talks about the effect of household availability on opioid use and the general crisis nationwide. Visit our sponsor! Payfully is a safe and secure way to get paid for your upcoming reservations on Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway, and others. Go to https://www.payfully.co/?afmc=5v for your first request absolutely free with code Upset Patterns.

Brink Lindsey and Steven Teles argue in their new book "The Captured Economy" that the last few decades have been characterized by an increase in political rent-seeking. Focusing on the financial sector, intellectual property laws, occupational licensure, and land use, they show how legislation has been captured by special interests in ways that slow growth and increase inequality. In this episode, Lindsey and Teles discuss how these policies distort various markets and cause upward redistribution, as well as the different ways we can work to better "rent-proof" our politics.   Visit our sponsor! Payfully is a safe and secure way to get paid for your upcoming reservations on Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway, and others. Click Here for your first request absolutely free with code Upset Patterns.   Buy The Captured Economy here.

Nobel Laureate Vernon Smith pioneered the use of experimental economics - using laboratory settings to better understand decision-making and economic behavior. Some of his experiments suggested more to human behavior than is typically modeled by modern economic methodology. In this episode, Vernon discusses his work in experimental economics and how 18th century Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith helped him develop a more complete view of human nature. Music provided by the Benevolent Dictators from their upcoming album all about Adam Smith

Generalized trends in real world observations can be boiled down to what are sometimes called "stylized facts," empirical regularities in search of theoretical and causal explanations. Simple statements like "democracies rarely go to war with each other" or "the share of income going to the top 1% has increased" enter into public discourse and eventually shape public policy. The process by which stylized facts go from raw observations to academic discourse to the public eye can be messy but incredibly influential on policy. Discourse regarding income inequality in the United States has specifically been shaped by the stylized facts that came out of available data during different periods. Dan Hirschman of Brown University discusses this process and its effects on public policy.

Political discourse on migration tends to focus on how the wages of natives in the receiving country respond to long-term migrants. In the case of Nepal, the story is a little different: a significant number of Nepalese men migrate temporarily to Gulf countries, sending remittances home but leaving women to run the households on their own. How does extra income affect the role of women in Nepalese communities? What does it mean for educational opportunities of the children? Nell Compernolle of the University of Michigan discusses the effects of this under-appreciated migration story and what insights it gives the world overall.

Consumers who "buy local" often cite the environmental benefits of reducing food miles, the economic effects of keeping money in the area, and the fostering of community ties through in-person commerce. Do the perceived benefits of buying local match up to the realities? When it comes to ethical food consumption, how important is it to buy local relative to other efforts? Carson Young of the University of Pennsylvania joins us for a fascinating discussion on locavorism.

Bringing areas together under a common currency can increase labor mobility and decrease transaction costs. However, currency unions also bring with them a loss of monetary autonomy and difficulty regarding political, cultural, and legal integration. As the Euro Zone struggles to get back onto a steady path of economic growth more than six years after the onset of the financial crisis, it begs the question - does the Euro Zone work as a currency union?**This is part of an upcoming series from the NYU Eurocrisis Discussion Group Podcast Series**

We know economics is all around us, but spotting everyday examples and understanding the intricacies aren't always immediately obvious. Could economics be more effectively taught if the "invisible hand" has four fingers? Is there such thing as a free Duff? We talk with Joshua Hall of West Virginia University about his new book "Homer Economicus: The Simpsons and Economics" and using popular media like The Simpsons to help teach students about economics. 

Despite the amazing abilities of the witches and wizards in Harry Potter, the characters are still bound by many of the fundamental economic principles we observe in the muggle world. But would Harry be better off facing Voldemort on his own rather than hanging around characters like Ron and Hermione? Is the ownership of house elves rational? If we reject trade, are we bound to go down a road to becoming Lucius Malfoy? We talk with Marta Podemska-Mikluch of Beloit College about the economic themes found in the Harry Potter series and see how many of the problems Harry faces can be observed through an economist's lens.

Can water shortages like those in California be left in the hands of the market? Is it beneficial to host the Olympics? Where does the name Upset Patterns come from? We reach inside our mailbag and answer listener-submitted questions in this special episode covering three mini-topics.

Our concept of money is so engrained in our day-to-day life that it's hard to imagine money in any other form. Unlike fiat paper currency, Bitcoin is a virtual currency that instead of being printed by a central bank like the Federal Reserve exists only on an electronic ledger of transactions. Its proponents point to its ease of exchange and independence from the manipulation of governments. Opponents find it unstable and unlikely to realistically compete with existing currencies. We talk to William Luther, Assistant Professor of economics at Kenyon College, to figure out how Bitcoin works, what its strengths and weaknesses are, and what its future looks like.

We have become accustomed to free or cheap parking in American cities. Rather than letting prices coordinate how to use scarce land, governments set seemingly arbitrary mandates dictating how much space businesses and residences must devote to parking. This causes cities to become largely car-dependent, creates sprawl, and indirectly raises prices for businesses and residents. What are the costs of this inefficient use of land? Is it possible to live with a "right" price for parking and not have cities turn into chaos?

In a season 9 episode of Seinfeld, George's father Frank resurrects a holiday from George's childhood called Festivus. Among other traditions, Festivus refuses to participate in the commercialization common in other gift-giving holidays this time of year. Although gift-giving generates important revenue to retailers, value can be lost from the imperfect information a gift giver has about its recipient. Could we all learn something from Festivus? Is it really "the thought that counts?" Find out how an economist might find Frank Costanza's sentiment beneficial to society.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), or Obamacare as it's usually known, is the biggest overhaul of the American healthcare system in nearly fifty years. Its potential success or failure is uniquely in the hands of the so-called "Invincibles" - young, healthy individuals that would otherwise not purchase health insurance for various reasons. We discuss the main provisions of the law and their intentions, what effects are speculative and which are more certain, and the different ways a 24 year-old will be affected. Get past the politics and figure out what's really going on with Obamacare.