In responding to a request for predictions about the future of economics, I predict that Homo Economicus will evolve into Homo Sapiens, or, more simply put, economics will become more related to human behavior. My specific predictions are that Homo Economicus will start to lose IQ, will become a...

A wine-loving economist we know purchased some nice Bordeaux wines years ago at low prices. The wines have greatly appreciated in value, so that a bottle that cost only $10 when purchased would now fetch $200 at auction. This economist now drinks some of this wine occasionally, but would neither...

The equity premium is the difference in returns between equities and fixed income securities, such as Treasury bills. The puzzle refers to the fact that the premium has historically been very large--about 6 percent per year--too large to be easily explained by risk aversion. The authors document...

Warum fällt es uns so schwer, Geld fürs Alter zurückzulegen, obwohl dies vernünftig wäre? Warum essen wir zu viel fettige Speisen, obwohl wir wissen, dass es uns schadet? Warum sind unsere Neujahrsvorsätze fast immer zum Scheitern verurteilt? Nobelpreisträger Richard Thaler hat als erster...

Rezension: Nudge ist der kleine "Schubser", eine Mischung aus Hilfestellung und Manipulation, mit dem "Entscheidungsarchitekten" in Firmen, Institutionen und Regierungen das Verhalten der Menschen zu deren Nutzen beeinflussen können. Die Autoren (Thaler ist Ökonom, Sunstein Jurist und Berater...