Evolutionary selection among utility functions and preferences for fertility
Utility functions that emphasize preferences for grandkids are more consistent with the theory of biological evolution.
Research Notes
Epidemics and economic development, mostly.
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A brief history of the human population on Earth
A story in four parts
Market failure: Externalities
[This essay is intended for students in my law and economics and my microeconomics class (for law students).
Market failures: Public goods
[This essay is intended for students in my law and economics and my microeconomics class (for law students).
Market failures: Price regulations and taxes
[This essay is intended for students in my law and economics and my microeconomics class (for law students).
How to derive a supply curve
Isoquants and isocosts to fixed, marginal and average costs
How do preferences and a budget combine to generate a demand curve?
Using pictures and very little math
A framework for studying law and economics
The market for transactions and the market for dispute resolution
When are markets efficient? And when are they not?
[This essay is intended for students in my law and economics and my microeconomics class (for law students).
Market equilibrium
[This essay is intended for students in my law and economics and my microeconomics class (for law students).
What is supply?
What is a supply curve? What is a price elasticity?
What is demand?
What is a demand curve?
Why should you study law and economics?
[I assign this essay for law students in my law and economics class who might be uncertain about the value of connecting economics to law.
What is economics?
[I assign this essay for law students in my law and economics class who might be unfamiliar with economics.
The market for dispute resolution
An economic framework for understanding the judicial system
Why do urban slums get demolished?
Demolitions are a product of changing land use patterns in cities and the fact that slum residents have no formal rights to their homes
Why are slums *not* dense?
They are on low quality land that is unsuitable for dense apartment buildings
The big puzzles of economic development
Lecture notes, class 1
A political theory on the development of slums
Politicians encourage squatting over initial opposition by city bureaucracies. Slums improve when slums and bureaucracies reconcile.
Why do some countries have lots of slums and others hardly any?
Urbanization and city development are key drivers of slum populations, but ultimately per capita income growth is likely the path to eliminating slums.