Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner is one book that tries to explain modern real-world issues using conventional economic (or econometric) analysis. I'm sorry, no need to stifle a nosebleed here, as topics range from what sumo wrestlers and school teachers have in common, how real estate agents are like the Ku Klux Klan, why drug dealers still live with their moms, and the more controversial of all, how abortion keeps the crime rate down.
Mostly light and downright funny, reading the book is like sitting through an Econometrics class, except that you're having loads of fun. I remember one undergraduate thesis which investigated Filipino employers' propensity to hire good-looking candidates. It won the Best Thesis award.
Economic articles can send one into an instant coma: inflation, GDP, development-- these abstract concepts are the equivalent of swatting flies in the middle of a dusty street on a hot, searing afternoon. Yes. It's boring.
I used to have a colleague who liked to send me articles on international trade during his spare time. He is the rare type who buys The Economist magazine and consults Damodaran's valuation books on Saturday afternoons.
So when I saw this book I immediately grabbed it.
The section on on-line dating sites is extremely hilarious, because it's sooo true. For instance, people tend to exaggerate on-line profiles to increase their chances of getting that date: Both male and female users claimed to be an inch taller than the national average; men weighed just in line with the national average while women claimed they weighed 20 pounds less than the national average!
Also 72% of women and 68% or men claimed "above average" looks, including 24% and 19% claiming "very good looks", respectively, which means the average online dater must be: (1) drop-dead gorgeous; (2) a narcissist; (3)still in denial-mode or (4) simply blind!
Mostly light and downright funny, reading the book is like sitting through an Econometrics class, except that you're having loads of fun. I remember one undergraduate thesis which investigated Filipino employers' propensity to hire good-looking candidates. It won the Best Thesis award.
Economic articles can send one into an instant coma: inflation, GDP, development-- these abstract concepts are the equivalent of swatting flies in the middle of a dusty street on a hot, searing afternoon. Yes. It's boring.
I used to have a colleague who liked to send me articles on international trade during his spare time. He is the rare type who buys The Economist magazine and consults Damodaran's valuation books on Saturday afternoons.
So when I saw this book I immediately grabbed it.
The section on on-line dating sites is extremely hilarious, because it's sooo true. For instance, people tend to exaggerate on-line profiles to increase their chances of getting that date: Both male and female users claimed to be an inch taller than the national average; men weighed just in line with the national average while women claimed they weighed 20 pounds less than the national average!
Also 72% of women and 68% or men claimed "above average" looks, including 24% and 19% claiming "very good looks", respectively, which means the average online dater must be: (1) drop-dead gorgeous; (2) a narcissist; (3)still in denial-mode or (4) simply blind!
Highly recommended. Although you may find yourself disagreeing with the authors on some issues.
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