Mind Your Decisions

Would you pay an entrance fee for visiting a physical store?

image by Ina Centaur, CC BY 2.0 Earlier this year, an Australian specialty grocery store started charging a $5 entrance fee. The store, Celiac Supplies, explained that the fee would be…

- 1 week, 4 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

What is infinite risk aversion?

Would you rather have $1,000 for sure, or gamble with a coin flip that you could get $2,000 or $0? This is a classic example in Econ 1. If you were risk neutral, the story goes, you’d…

- 1 week, 5 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

How to have exact change every time

The other day I was going out to the store and needed to pay in cash. I wanted to have exact change, so I instinctively grabbed a handful of coins from my desk. Then, just to be sure, I…

- 1 week, 6 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Are couples happier if they meet online?

Results indicate that more than one-third of marriages in America now begin on-line. In addition, marriages that began online, when compared with those that began through traditional…

- 1 week, 6 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Obama’s parenting game theory: “If you get a tattoo, I will too”

This made headlines about a month ago when President Obama appeared on the Today Show. President Obama was talking about how he invites popular artists to try and pretend he can keep up…

- 2 weeks, 21 hours, 36 minutes ago

Insider Trading and the Prisoner’s Dilemma

Imagine the pressure on Mathew Martoma, the 38-year-old former portfolio manager at SAC Capital Advisors charged with insider trading who may or may not be in a position to…

- 2 weeks, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Monday Puzzle: When did they start?

At exactly sunrise, a delivery truck starts driving from city A to B. At the same time, another delivery truck is going in the opposite direction from city B to A. The two trucks pass each…

- 2 weeks, 1 day, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Good and Bad Decisions 31-May-2013

Bad decisions 1. Is it better to walk or run? This is a very bad frame. There are benefits to each. The better question is “what is the optimal mix of walking and running for…

- 2 weeks, 4 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Game Theory Links 31-May-2013

Burning Money in Pensions at The Economist The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) did change the rules for public pension funds last year. But the revised rules still throw up…

- 2 weeks, 4 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

Why “more likely” can be “more misleading”

A long time ago I explained risk management through an example of forgetting to wash my hands. I distinguished between two questions that sound the same but often have different answers:…

- 2 weeks, 5 days, 21 hours, 37 minutes ago

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