Category: Economics
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Best-known Curves in Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
Public finance and the size of the state Inequality, growth and the environment Macroeconomics, labour and money Trade, debt and external balance Innovation, technology and marketing Business operations and product life Psychology, memory and performance Society, crime and population Quantitative linguistics and information Narrative structure and the arts
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Entropy tends to Zero, at the Boundaries
Testing and Evaluation Philosophy Psychology Economics Physics & Engineering Chemistry Biology & Medicine Computer Science and Data Science Statistics and Measurement Theory Linguistics and Semiotics Music and Acoustics Visual and Plastic Arts Law and Ethics Sociology and Survey Design Theology and Liturgical Studies
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The Fox and the Goat
A thirsty fox climbs down into a well to drink, but then cannot climb back out. A passing goat sees the fox down in the well and asks if the water is good. The cunning fox quickly plots escape and replies enthusiastically, “The water is excellent, the best I’ve ever tasted! Come down, friend, and…
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The Belly and the Members
In this fable (which carries a political allegory), the body parts of a human—hands, feet, mouth, teeth, and so on—grow discontented with the stomach (the belly). They feel that they do all the work—collecting food, chewing, transporting—while the lazy belly sits idle in the middle, taking all the nourishment they provide. In their resentment, the…
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The Milkmaid and Her Pail
A milkmaid walking to market balances a pail of fresh milk on her head. As she goes, she indulges in grand daydreams about the chain of success this milk will bring. “With the money I get from this milk,” she thinks, “I’ll buy some hens. They will lay eggs, and soon I’ll have a fine…
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The Lion’s Share
A lion joins a partnership with other animals—often a fox, a wolf, and a smaller beast like a jackal or ass—to hunt. Together, they succeed in bringing down a large prey (such as a stag). When it comes time to divide the meat, the lion arrogantly assigns himself the first portion because he is king;…
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The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs
A poor farmer and his wife possess an extraordinary goose that lays a solid gold egg each day. Initially, this marvel brings them steady wealth. But greed soon overtakes prudence: impatient to have all the treasure at once, the couple decides to kill the goose and cut it open, believing it must contain a great…
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Eponymous Laws describing Bureaucracy
Pournelle’s Iron Law of Bureaucracy – In any large organization, the faction devoted to protecting the bureaucracy itself eventually gains control, sidelining the people focused on the mission. Parkinson’s Law – “Work expands to fill the time (and resources) available.” Bureaucracies therefore grow even when workloads don’t. Parkinson’s Law of Triviality (the “bike-shed effect”) –…
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Significant Paradoxes: Economics and Political Economy
61 Jevons Paradox (Rebound Effect) When James W. Jevons studied Britain’s coal industry (1865) he noticed a counter-intuitive cycle: improvements in steam-engine efficiency lowered the cost of using coal-powered machinery, which in turn raised total coal demand nationwide. Efficiency that should have conserved the resource instead accelerated its depletion. Modern energy economics calls this the…