Tipping in an Uber? It Might Just Happen

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Have you ever felt like you should be tipping your driver, but don’t have any cash? Well, your problem could be solved in the near future (at least in NYC). The Independent Drivers Guild (the group that represents Uber drivers) presented the petition to add a tipping option for Uber customers and received over 11,000 signatures on it. The general argument is that the drivers are losing thousands of dollars because there is not a tipping option that is accessible electronically, only cash. Many passengers do not pay with cash so most drivers don’t receive tips. In contrast, NYC taxi Continue reading Tipping in an Uber? It Might Just Happen→

Costco: When Breaking The Rules Pays Off

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When Costco (“Price Club” at the time) opened over 40 years ago, they were the first of their kind. They bought a warehouse with the idea of creating a store for businesses to shop at. A novel idea. Even further, they required their customers to pay just to shop in their store. At first, the business was a complete disaster. “The small businesses didn’t come. They didn’t spend money and we, after a relatively short time – maybe a few weeks – were basically going bankrupt.” –Founder Robert Price Once the store opened their doors to the public (not just Continue reading Costco: When Breaking The Rules Pays Off→

Cyclical Debt: Agriculture and Interest Rates

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I read this article/ blog post, which touched on the cyclical nature of most agriculture. Basically, most farmers and ranchers get all of their income in a fairly small window of time, then need to use it for the rest of the year. There aren’t a lot of jobs or industries where this is such a common occurrence. Coupled with the fact that many of farmer’s costs are incurred during planting, then again as harvest approaches, this results in cyclical debt for farmers. Add in the long-term loans for land and capital, and it all adds up to significant debt. Continue reading Cyclical Debt: Agriculture and Interest Rates→

Thesis Corner with Quitterie Collignon

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The days are dwindling down for seniors here at Puget Sound. This year seemingly came and went quickly. That’s probably because seniors in the economics department, like other departments, were busy working on their theses. Quitterie Collignon, a graduating senior, took advantage of her accumulated economics foundation and interests and used it to construct a successful empirical thesis about policy effects on the organic farming sector. Inspiration  In the summer of 2016 Quitterie worked for a non-profit, noncertified organic farm in Puyallup WA. Although it was summer, Quitterie’s academic exploration of thought was still on. She says, “I became very Continue reading Thesis Corner with Quitterie Collignon→

For Free-to-Play Games, Balancing Digital Markets Can Prove Challenging

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As so-called “free-to-play” video games continue to gain popularity, the business models funding them are undergoing significant scrutiny. Popular games like Dota 2 and League of Legends have somewhat similar business models, largely centered around the sale of digital cosmetics, sometimes known as “skins”. These items give in-game characters a different look of some sort, and for the most part can only be acquired with “real” money. For Dota 2, the cosmetic market is integral to the game’s existence, essentially keeping the free-to-play model a plausible way for publisher and developer Valve to make money. Artists and 3D modelers design Continue reading For Free-to-Play Games, Balancing Digital Markets Can Prove Challenging→

The Ripple Effect of the US Sugar Quota

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After taking a look at the development of a “soda” tax around the US, it seems relevant to place the magnifying glass over a different side of the market. According to Amy Brittain, investigative reporter for The Washington Post, there are some bitter feelings between sugar producers and candy companies. The US government has imposed a tariff-rate quota on imported sugar since the 1930s. The quota was first implemented to mitigate the effects of the Great Depression on the domestic sugar agriculture. But since then the quota has been in place and has had further effect on the sugar and Continue reading The Ripple Effect of the US Sugar Quota→

Countries’ GDP Visualized

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It can be difficult to visualize how big a country’s economy is. I decided to make an area chart to give us an idea of how much of the world’s output is done by only a small fraction of countries. From this, we can see that first 16 or so capture more 75% of the global GDP. That said, of these countries, some are also the largest population wise; China, India, the United States, Brazil, etc. That is a large reason why they command such large economies, but many of them are smaller, population wise.   I’ve also made a Continue reading Countries’ GDP Visualized→

Scarcity: Focusing and Tunneling

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After a long hiatus, we will be discussing Scarcity by Sendil Mullainthan and Eldar Shafir once again. In this post we will be looking at chapter 1, titled Focusing and Tunneling. This chapter discusses the benefits of scarcity and how much it costs to be in a situation with scarcity. One of the main points made in the chapter is about how people generally become more productive when they face scarcity from a time point of view. One of the examples used in the book is during meetings. Meetings are generally unfocused for the first half or so, and the Continue reading Scarcity: Focusing and Tunneling→

Japan’s Struggling Labor Market

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As with any growing country, the demand for labor in Japan is increasing. The problem in Japan, however, is that the labor force is having a hard time keeping up. Already, unemployment rates are dipped to 2.8% at the beginning of this year- the lowest it’s been in over two decades. On top of this higher participation, elderly people are coming out of retirement to fill the void, not exactly the productive labor force you would wish for in a blossoming economy. Any economist will tell you that this is cause for inflation. The scarcity of workers will demand higher Continue reading Japan’s Struggling Labor Market→

Quinoa: The Dark Side of Demand?

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Quinoa, pronounced keen-wa, has surged in popularity in the last five years. As this shift in Western tastes has occurred, demand began to outpace supply in the traditional quinoa-producing countries of Bolivia and Peru. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) compiles prices received by producers. In Bolivia and Peru, price received per ton increased by about 33 percent and 131 percent, respectively. This also increased the price for consumers, most notably those producers who had traditionally relied on quinoa as a cheap, nutritious staple. As prices skyrocketed, this was no longer a simple matter. This concern prompted Continue reading Quinoa: The Dark Side of Demand?→