Economics in Action

Have you ever wondered what studying Economics at university will be like? If yes, then we have some exciting answers for you. Furthermore, it is not in writing. You probably can read a lot about studying Economics in university guides, but we reckon there is no better way to find out than listen to what students themselves have to say.

We have asked Eoghan, an undergraduate at the University of Bristol, to interview students about their experiences since coming to the university to study Economics. The videos he produced give great insights into the lives of typical Economics undergraduates. Hopefully, they will help you the final decision to apply for Economics at university.

Videos

Finance and Stability talk by Andy Haldane

Warwick Economics Summit is an annual event organised entirely by students from Warwick University. The three-day event sees students from across the world come together to exchange ideas and listen to some of the most prominent modern economists talking about current economic problems in the world. This year’s summit has been attended by students from as far as USA, Brazil and Slovenia.

On behalf of the Economics Network, I attended the event on the second day to promote our Student Challenge as well as the two websites I am working on. Needless to say, I was very impressed with the quality of the student team that organised the event (despite some initial hiccups with booking tickets). Everyone was very friendly and helpful, and I instantly felt welcomed. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a very interesting article on education in America from the NY Times. It questions whether access to higher education can be solved on a meritocratic basis. Perhaps, we could draw analogies with what is happening in the UK.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/why-does-college-cost-so-much/

This post is essentially an extension to my continuing flirtation with game theory and its real-life application.

As our society advances, we have to deal with the consequences of our previous actions. Environmental problems that resulted from unsustainable usage of limited resources on Earth is a prime example of this. Governments and international bodies now put a lot of effort into addressing this issue. The focus has been placed on raising awareness, and it has certainly become somewhat of a social trend (think about the movie Avatar). The question is whether giving people information alone will be enough. Will the knowledge motivate us to act?
Read the rest of this entry »

My colleague Martin sent me a rather interesting link to EDGE World Question Centre 2011. I found two particular articles on Positive-Sum Games and The Law of Comparative Advantage interesting. Below are the links to them:

Stephen Pinker answers “What scientific concept would improve everybody’s cognitive toolkit?” with “positive-sum games”

Dylan Evans answers “What scientific concept would improve everybody’s cognitive toolkit?” with “The Law of Comparative Advantage”

Hope you all enjoy reading this :D

Here is a personal take on the situation in Iceland and the rest of Europe by our new contributor Harry Simmons:

Iceland has been the world’s whipping boy for the last few years.  The collapse of its banking system uncovered huge international systemic failures leading to the economic crisis.  The snowy nation has had a rough time of it.  But as we begin 2011, I ask the question, are they really still in that much trouble?  Figures released by the International Monetary Fund in December 2010 showed that Iceland’s GDP grew by 1.2% in the third quarter, ending the recession caused by the actions of those in its banking sector.  What about those European countries still in economic strife?
Read the rest of this entry »