tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post5475186578951618481..comments2024-03-28T03:16:14.104-04:00Comments on Noahpinion: Economists, release your inner nerd!Noah Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09093917601641588575noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-72244931549745870882012-03-05T07:02:40.476-05:002012-03-05T07:02:40.476-05:00Your description of our view of technology extends...Your description of our view of technology extends to business in general: only viewed from on high. Economists are proud about how little they know -- or want to know -- about the specifics of business. In any university, we economists are hated by the liberal arts profs and the engineers but positively despised by the business profs for our arrogance! <br /><br />Economists are the proverbial smartest and wisest guys (still very, very few women economists!) in the room and we know it. Unfortunately, the profession attracts misanthropes -- think "House" (our favorite show!) -- who too seldom deign to provide the "obvious" policy solutions to intractable problems unless it "interests" us. Or it meets the Spock standard of "fascinating."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-19102708724817866962012-02-26T13:47:00.473-05:002012-02-26T13:47:00.473-05:00Hahaha. This post had me laughing out loud.
Nerd...Hahaha. This post had me laughing out loud. <br /><br />Nerdy IS Sexy. But it's true, none of my professors have ever been traditionally nerdy. Strange! <br /><br />great post.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07866914138492351808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-12790197107856430602012-02-25T15:02:25.388-05:002012-02-25T15:02:25.388-05:00That's the problem, Noah. There's nothing ...That's the problem, Noah. There's nothing accessible for economists besides political debates. That's why we are the way we are. <br /><br />Take Isaac Asimov's "The Gods Themselves." It's a story about how mankind connects with beings from a different dimension and we trade seemingly stable elements in this realm, which are highly reactive in the other. Result: infinite energy. If that wasn't nerdy enough, the people in the other dimension had three genders, were made of gas, and could form together to make solid people that live thousands of years.<br /><br />Now, obviously, bio and physics nerds would go to town on that. However, what can economists like about that? Not much, really. If you're into the economics of energy, then perhaps it'll have some redeeming qualities, but otherwise no.<br /><br />Long story short, you need to make nerdiness more accessible to economists. However, I think your quest will be hopeless.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-51599019595593946502012-02-25T04:17:48.970-05:002012-02-25T04:17:48.970-05:00I totally agree. Economists are some of the most b...I totally agree. Economists are some of the most boring academics I have ever met, which is not really too much of an insult given that academics are typically pretty cool. I think a lot of it is due to the fact that economics is something a lot of the people who are not intellectual and just want to major in something you make a lot of money in major in. They then discover that it is pretty cool, but that effect is still there. The same effect can be seen in law, some of biology, etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-76915829584902943252012-02-25T02:30:45.503-05:002012-02-25T02:30:45.503-05:00FOR GOD SAKE'S PLEASE WATCH FRINGE!!!FOR GOD SAKE'S PLEASE WATCH FRINGE!!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05755491969441126742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-7883560956125782062012-02-24T12:16:45.862-05:002012-02-24T12:16:45.862-05:00Yes! I think culture is important. I, like you, wa...Yes! I think culture is important. I, like you, was a physics major turned economist. But having finished a master's in econ, I decided to go back to physics for the PhD. I had many reasons for doing this, but one part I can't deny was that I definitely felt more at home in the nerdy physics crowd. <br /><br />My recommendation for econ nerdiness: make bad puns by applying econ jargon to totally unrelated topics and situations. I remember in my intermediate macro class in college, we had to one day move the tables around in the classroom. When I and another student had to pull a long table backward, I said "Looks like we need to take on a contractionary policy." The other kids in the class thought I was being ridiculous. But this kind of thing is standard fare in the physics department.Andrea Clelandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06912447719993017509noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-32395129800976006592012-02-24T11:35:11.261-05:002012-02-24T11:35:11.261-05:00that was meant to say "congrats", but pe...that was meant to say "congrats", but perhaps "contracts" could be interpreted as some kind of inside joke for the nerdy.jacknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-35981935518083019732012-02-24T11:33:51.321-05:002012-02-24T11:33:51.321-05:00fantastic post, noah. i love reading your stuff t...fantastic post, noah. i love reading your stuff these days, and this made for a fun morning.<br /><br />hope you're doing well and contracts! may you help user in the new era.jacknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-81714622540522511332012-02-24T10:27:53.057-05:002012-02-24T10:27:53.057-05:00I think you miss a key part of being a nerd: you c...I think you miss a key part of being a nerd: you care a whole lot more about your interests than you do about the opinions of the 'danes. If you conceal your passions or hide behind professional jargon you aren't going to make the cut.<br />On the other hand, if your absolute first thought on hearing "there will be a measurable amount of precipitation" is 'Measureable? With respect to what sigma algebra?" you've got it made.Larry Headlundnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-47902682336659176892012-02-24T10:08:57.368-05:002012-02-24T10:08:57.368-05:00Honestly, you might be hanging around the wrong ec...Honestly, you might be hanging around the wrong economists. I gave a member of my dissertation committee a guide to the flora and fauna of the Star Wars universe as a parting gift (I knew it would be appreciated). I may be the only person under 40 who has read the entire "Foundation" series. I can cite entire episodes of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" from memory. I work with economists who rush home the night "Vampire Diaries" is on and aren't ashamed to admit it.<br /><br />Now, are economists the kind of nerds you can find in other departments, with noticeable nose hair, strange body odor, who dress like they were forced to choose their outfits blindfolded from a Sears rack? No, and I'm etermally grateful.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-87371000437286492132012-02-24T08:57:34.767-05:002012-02-24T08:57:34.767-05:00Krugman got into economics through sci fi - I'...Krugman got into economics through sci fi - I've certinly never been under the impression that econonomists didn't read it! http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/economic-science-fiction/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-44021788432370158742012-02-24T03:52:32.616-05:002012-02-24T03:52:32.616-05:00But economists read sci-fi all the time!
-Atlas Sc...But economists read sci-fi all the time!<br />-Atlas Schrgged (Remenber the joke from Krugman)<br />-All the Neo-Classical Sysntheses...<br /><br />Mainstream Economics is mainly sci-fiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-32084526238429868052012-02-24T01:07:26.882-05:002012-02-24T01:07:26.882-05:00Hysteresis? Remind me, is that more like hysteria...Hysteresis? Remind me, is that more like hysteria or a hysterectomy?Luke Leahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11290760894780619646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-10871506991172342852012-02-23T23:39:00.250-05:002012-02-23T23:39:00.250-05:00Hahha this is pretty true! One day I asked 3 or 4...Hahha this is pretty true! One day I asked 3 or 4 of my classmates if they thought our metrics TA looked a little bit like a Romulan and they had no idea what I was talking about... :/Amyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11573392015410961658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-64168598926134210342012-02-23T20:02:33.526-05:002012-02-23T20:02:33.526-05:00In reply to Julian Jansen
If it were a matter of ...In reply to Julian Jansen<br /><br />If it were a matter of general conversation, you would be correct, but I was interested in a specific issue in economics concerning assessing the long term value of government investment in supporting future growth. vs. 'crowding out' of private investment capital. e.g. Shouldn't a project be evaluated on its ability to repay its costs, plus the probable future value of markets it creates to absorb private capital in productive ventures? <br />Examples: <br />Interstate Highway System/dispersed manufacturing/efficient distribution<br /> Rural Electrification Administration/increased farm productivity, market for appliances.<br />Hoover Dam/production and jobs created from additional irrigated farm land, power and water to allow further development of Los Angeles and WWII aircraft industry. etc etc.<br /><br />Seemed like an interesting economics question to me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-65536035590411564522012-02-23T18:14:52.205-05:002012-02-23T18:14:52.205-05:00This is great. I wish undergrads did this too. (Wh...This is great. I wish undergrads did this too. (Which is where I am right now.) Maybe applying seemingly dull micro material to "cool kid situations" (sports, working out, girls, etc.), would make young people more interested in basic econ ideas.Frank Muracahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09781090407256574433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-35558775849772000692012-02-23T18:14:01.338-05:002012-02-23T18:14:01.338-05:00@Anonymous:
I think that's a bad comparison. ...@Anonymous:<br /><br />I think that's a bad comparison. I believe that nerds (like myself, at times), you probably have strong opinions about areas of interest, like individuals characters in Star Wars or Star Trek, which will cause intense frictions when there are disagreements within those areas. I think that's pretty much how economists of different schools are. They disagree strongly, maybe even passionately. Don't get me started about Jar-Jar...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14235846531323511190noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-34971543469647987322012-02-23T17:50:04.688-05:002012-02-23T17:50:04.688-05:00If you're nerd, (used to free-ranging discussi...If you're nerd, (used to free-ranging discussions of interesting questions with colleagues from different fields) just try and get an economist to even consider discussing an idea even slightly different from the orthodoxy of whichever school to which he belongs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-47517022664185625462012-02-23T16:36:04.979-05:002012-02-23T16:36:04.979-05:00Economists may wear sports coats and khakis, but t...Economists may wear sports coats and khakis, but the garb is typically ill-fitting and paired with sartorially misinformed shoes, e.g., Krugman.<br /><br />I believe you meant to describe <i>financial</i> economists - just compare the respective lobbies at AEA and AFA.Qiyu Liuhttp://qiyuliu.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-44444451202619883192012-02-23T16:27:44.829-05:002012-02-23T16:27:44.829-05:00Oh man...I embrace this fully. I'm finishing m...Oh man...I embrace this fully. I'm finishing my masters in economics and I definitely talk more about Stata and derivations than other things of normal conversation. My sister even caught me giving her advice in econospeak; after she complained about a rough day at work I offered the encouragement, "It's not like one data point is a trend."Danielnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-12014548607128029342012-02-23T16:09:22.017-05:002012-02-23T16:09:22.017-05:00If you think economists are in denial about their ...If you think economists are in denial about their nerdiness, you should see lawyers!rosebriarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02229537505859471832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-14524117865736622422012-02-23T15:41:04.548-05:002012-02-23T15:41:04.548-05:00I was just about to say, being an economist sounds...I was just about to say, being an economist sounds a lot like being a consultant, in any field. Better read the sports page the night before your meeting, so you'll have something to talk about.Jolly Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09631364433925344569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17232051.post-1430397420142995792012-02-23T15:26:38.721-05:002012-02-23T15:26:38.721-05:00Great post! Now if I could only encourage consult...Great post! Now if I could only encourage consultants to do the same thing...A.K. Anselhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14849329951808383265noreply@blogger.com