To establish whether you are in good shape a doctor might take your pulse. In economics, Gross Domestic Product (aka GDP) is the go-to metric for determining economic health. Governments can be toppled off the back of disappointing GDP data - think recessions  (or even worse the dreaded double-dip recession!).  But who was the man behind the creation of this powerful if often misunderstood concept and what might he make of the latter-day uses and abuses of GDP today? In the first episode of our fifth season, your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete and Gav, explore the life and ideas of Simon Kuznets. A man of mystery, they hunt down how he became such a hugely influential figure in the world of economics and how he ended up having at least two curves named after him, the ultimate if unspoken dream of every academic economist. Along the way, you can test your knowledge of Belarus, the birth place of Kuznets and hear us (!) eating some food related to his Jewish background. As always, technical support is provided by a very tired Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com.

Economics In Ten

Season 5 Episode 1 - Simon Kuznets

“A word after a word after a word is power.” – Margaret Atwood. Many of the great economists we have looked at in our past episodes were voracious readers, and whilst we in no way put ourselves in their company we are great believers in reading widely. Simply put we at EconomicsInTen are great believers in the power of reading and the power of words.  Therefore in this sequel to the first Summer Reading special, your friendly neighbourhood economists Pete and Gav answer one simple question 10 times. What book would they recommend and why? All the books are linked to economics in some way and if you read them all, you will become a better economist and who knows, perhaps a better human being too! So while away those long summer days catching up with our podcast and reading these beauties.   As always, this podcast comes with technical support from the great Nic and comes with music from Jukedeck – create your own at jukedeck.com. PS Apologies for the delay in this episodes release; we hoped to get it out at the start of summer but have been hit by "pings", mic problems and various other modern ills. These books will keep you going well into the Autumn! 

Summer Reading Special 2021

Have you heard of the ‘Randomistas’? Seemingly they are taking the economics world by storm and at the heart of this group of research economists is a French-American named Esther Duflo. With her husband Abhijit Banerjee and colleague Michael Kremer, she became only the second woman to win the Nobel Prize for Economics, for her use of Randomised Control Trials, aimed at testing the efficacy of different social policies in combatting poverty and other ills in the developing (and in parts of the developed) world. Lauded by world leaders (and philanthropists with deep pockets) they have put forward a vision of economics unclouded by prejudice and politics.  But in a profession seemingly divided between free marketeers and interventionists, does she successfully cut through the noise by dealing only in the data? In other words is it possible or even desirable to be free of ideology in the pursuit of economic truth and "what works"? This question and many more surrounding the life and ideas of Duflo, are discussed as always by your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete and Gav. Technical support is provided by Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com

Season 4 Episode 5 - Esther Duflo

Quiz Question: Who is the only economist to win the Nobel Peace Prize? Answer: Muhammad Yunus.... and yet strangely he has never been in the running to win the equivalent Economics Prize.  Is there a reason why his ideas,  and those of the institution he founded - The Grameen Bank - have been so welcomed by US Presidents and other dignitaries and yet not been as well received by his peers? It could be the fact that microfinance, his big idea to solve poverty, has proved somewhat controversial in the world of development economics... Whatever you believe we think you will find Yunus's life and thoughts fascinating, particularly if you have ever struggled to get credit or been a member of the Scout Movement. Warming themselves around the podcast campfire as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by "Akela" Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com

Season 4 Episode 4 - Muhammad Yunus

How do you know if a country is "doing well" economically? How can we say that one country is "more developed" than another? For many years incomes (GDP) and other measures of how much "stuff" a country was making were the standard yardstick but then along came Amartya Sen and changed our viewpoint on how development was measured forever. Those ideas, shaped by a childhood that spanned the partition of India, would eventually win him the Economics Nobel Prize but there is so much more to the man, even though he rejected  'The Mother Teresa of Economics' moniker. Guiding you through Sen's life and ideas as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by 'WD40Man' Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com Note - in our India quiz, Pete gets 3 out of 5 correct. In the boardgame question, there are in fact two right answers. Apologies...do not shout at the podcast when the error arises!

Season 4 Episode 3 - Amartya Sen

Are you lucky enough to own your own home or business? But do you ever stop and think about what you would do if someone tried to take it from you, or bulldoze it? Do you ever stop and reflect on the economic power that legally protected property gives you? It's very easy to take property rights for granted but one economist is convinced that they are the key to the success of capitalism and unlocking the entrepreneurial power of the developing world; his name is Hernando de Soto. So if you are interested in the ideas of the man Bill Clinton calls 'the world's greatest living economist' then have a listen and discover the potential power of 'dead capital'! Guiding you through as always is Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by our good friend Nic (or 'The Weaver' as we like to call him) and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com.

Season 4 Episode 2 - Hernando de Soto

Have you ever wanted to know about inequality but didn’t know where to start? In this latest special by Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists, you will be guided through the economics of inequality. Along the way you will come across stocks and flows, a curve that looks like an elephant and a coefficient that has nothing to do with Aladdin but everything to do with an Italian economist. As always, it comes with lots of suggested reading and if you ever end up in government, ideas that might help to reduce inequality. Technical support is provided as always by our good friend Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com.

Inequality Special

Did you hear about the psychologist that won the Nobel Prize for Economics? Sounds like the start of a joke doesn’t it? But in 2002 Daniel Kahneman won the award for the revolutionary work on "prospect theory"  carried out with his colleague and friend Amos Tversky.  Their work changed the course of economics by introducing the world to behavioural economics. So if you’ve ever felt like you have been tricked into buying something at a higher price or have fallen into the trap of just following the crowd, then you could do with knowing some of the behavioural biases that mean you don't quite conform to the model of homo economicus aka rational economic man (or woman).  Guiding you through Kahneman’s life and ideas as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support is provided by our good friend Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at Jukedeck.com

Season 4 Episode 1 - Daniel Kahneman

It’s Christmas!!!! But slightly different in 2020. With the coronavirus still here and a full rollout of a vaccine still distant, there might be many who face Christmas on their own or not seeing many people. Therefore Pete and Gav thought it would be the right thing to do and create another economics of Christmas! So sit down with your drink of choice, get in your favourite chair and listen to your friendly neighbourhood economists as they go through 10 questions that will teach you some economics and provide some festive cheer! You can even have a go at a Christmas quiz - can you recognise ‘Merry Christmas’ in 10 different languages or at least beat Pete’s score?   Technical support (and jingle bells) as always comes from St. Nic. Music comes from Jukedeck and you can create your own at jukedeck.com. Have a merry Christmas everyone!!!

Christmas Special 2020

When Thomas Carlyle famously described Economics as ‘the dismal science’ it was said that it was inspired by the writing of Thomas Malthus. His doom and gloom essay on population was to have a legacy that lasted his lifetime and beyond but were his predictions correct? And if he wasn’t, why do we still talk about ‘Malthusian’ economics now? As always, your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete and Gav will be guiding you through the numerous arguments surrounding Bob’s work and wondering whether he was just a mild-mannered vicar, a headline-grabbing egotist or just a son who wanted to prove his dad wrong. Technical support as always comes from the Drop Down Thread tea maker Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at jukedeck.com. 

Season 3 Episode 5 - Thomas Robert Malthus

Who is the founding father of Economics? Adam Smith you say? Who told you that? We did!?! Well…do you remember that famous quote attributed to Keynes (via Paul Samuelson)?  It was ‘when the facts change I change my mind, what do you do?’ and it seems that the facts may have changed. We say changed but maybe simply forgotten or ignored. Some are now making a case for Ibn Khaldun, an Islamic scholar, as the great-great-grandfather of our beloved discipline. Make up your own mind after hearing more about this fascinating man. As always your friendly neighbourhood economics Pete and Gav will guide you through the arguments and discuss how Ibn Khaldun may have got their first with many of the concepts which are are still central to Economics today. Technical support as always come from Nic and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at jukedeck.com.

Season 3 Episode 4 - Ibn Khaldun

The summer of 2020 was the festival of sport that was never was. Many have tried to fill this gap, some with more success than others…I mean, who hasn’t enjoyed watching Simon Anthony complete a Sudoku puzzle on YouTube? Or been gripped by kitchen darts? But now it’s our turn to step up to the plate! Yes…here it is…the economics of sport. There are 10 thought provoking questions as always and guiding you through are your friendly neighbourhood economists, Pete ‘The Greatest’ and Gav ‘The Golden Boy’. Learn how John Nash might have taken a penalty and why Gav wears lucky socks.   Technical support and sound effects as always comes from ‘Hands of Stone’ Nic and music comes from Jukedeck – you can create your own at jukedeck.com. PS - Gav does know that Brazil is not in Africa!

Sport Special

The chances are you have heard the phrase ‘creative destruction’ but what do you know about the man that coined it? In this podcast you will find out about Joseph Schumpeter, an economist who was hard to categorise but had plenty to say. In a world where ‘secular stagnation’ has arguably become the norm, his work on entrepreneurship and innovation are as important as ever. As well as being an influential economist Schumpeter also lived what might be called a 'colourful life' which may have helped to shape his unique perspective on economics.  Guiding you through as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support as always comes from Nic - ‘The Big Dawg’ and music comes from Jukedeck. You can create your own at jukedeck.com.

Season 3 Episode 3 - Joseph Schumpeter

Demand and Supply – the cornerstone of economics! But how much do you know about Alfred Marshall, the first man to draw the ‘Marshallian Cross’ that we all use today? Some argue his ‘Principles of Economics’ was the most influential book of the 19th Century and set the template for every economics textbook that followed. This episode is jam-packed with economics and guiding you through as always are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support as always comes from b-boy Nic and music comes from Jukedeck and you can create your own at jukedeck.com.

Season 3 Episode 2 - Alfred Marshall

Want to know more about Milton Friedman? The marmite of economics! You may have noticed that people either love him or hate him. Mrs Thatcher lauded him as the quintessential ‘intellectual freedom fighter’ but for others he’s the architect of a damaging neoliberalism ideology,  the so-called "shock doctrine" that has damaged many societies around the world.  Arguably both views are too simplistic in a world that has become increasingly binary in its thinking; perhaps there is a middle ground.  Dubbed the most influential economist of the late 20th Century, there is much to say about Friedman (as you’ll discover) and trying to guide you through as always, in an even handed manner,  are Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists. Technical support as always comes from master mixer Nic and music comes from Jukedeck and you can create your own at jukedeck.com.

Season 3 Episode 1 - Milton Friedman

Economics In Ten is your go-to podcast if you want to learn about the lives, times and ideas of the world's greatest economic thinkers. Each episode is a fun exploration of a famous economist using ten different questions. Presented by Pete and Gav, your friendly neighbourhood economists, with technical support from Nic and music from Jukedeck - create your own at http://jukedeck.com

hubhopper

Economics In Ten

hubhopper