◆ THE ECONOMY
Global & Applied
Economics in the wild — trade, inequality, and the markets that shape daily life.
37 articles
◆ THE COVER STORYGini Coefficient: The Number That Measures InequalityThe Gini coefficient turns a whole country's income into one number between 0 and 1. Here is what it measures, how to work one out by hand, and what it quietly hides.Read the breakdown →Deep Dives
◆ INCOME & INEQUALITY
Should the Government Redistribute Income? The Economics of Taxes, Transfers, and Trade-Offs
The case for redistribution is real — so are the costs. Here is what the economics actually says about progressive taxes, transfers, the EITC, and the…
◆ INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Tariffs: Winners, Losers, and the Deadweight Loss Nobody Talks About
A tariff helps domestic producers and the Treasury, but it costs consumers more than both gain combined. The gap is deadweight loss — pure value destroyed.
◆ APPLIED ECONOMICS
Platform Economics: Two-Sided Markets, Network Effects, and Why Winner-Takes-Most
Platforms connect two groups and grow more valuable as each grows. Network effects explain why these markets tip toward one giant — and draw antitrust fights.
◆ APPLIED ECONOMICS
Thinking Like an Economist: The Mental Frameworks That Stay With You
You'll forget the equations. What stays is five tools — opportunity cost, marginal thinking, incentives, trade-offs, equilibrium — that improve every decision.
◆ APPLIED ECONOMICS
Housing Markets: What Happens When Supply Can't Keep Up With Where People Want to Live
Home prices have outrun incomes for years. The reason is inelastic supply: housing takes years to build, and zoning caps it where demand is highest.
◆ INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Comparative Advantage: The Principle Behind Every Trade Relationship on Earth
Comparative advantage explains why two parties gain from trade even when one is better at everything. The math is opportunity cost, at every scale.
◆ INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Trade Policy, Jobs, and the Political Economy of Protection
Economists agree free trade grows the pie. Why is protection so popular? Gains are spread thin, losses concentrated, and politics rewards the loud.
◆ APPLIED ECONOMICS
Healthcare as a Market: Why the Economics of Medicine Break Every Standard Model
U.S. health spending hit $5.3 trillion in 2024. Three features break the standard market: asymmetric information, third-party payment, and inelastic demand.
◆ INCOME & INEQUALITY
How Poverty Is Measured — and Why the Method Matters
The U.S. official poverty line was built from a 1963 food-budget formula. Here are the real questions people ask about how poverty is defined, measured, and…
Quick Answers
Protectionism: Shielding Domestic Industries from Foreign Competition
Protectionism is the use of trade barriers — tariffs, quotas, subsidies, and regulations — to shield domestic industries from foreign competition.
Read more →Terms of Trade: The Exchange Rate Between Exports and Imports
Terms of trade is the ratio of export prices to import prices. When it rises, a country can buy more imports per unit of exports — a welfare gain.
Read more →Dumping: When Exporters Price Below Cost to Capture Markets
Dumping occurs when a foreign producer sells goods in an export market at prices below cost or below the home market price.
Read more →Transfer Payment: Income Without a Corresponding Production Requirement
A transfer payment is a government payment to an individual not in exchange for a good or service.
Read more →Income Distribution: How a Country's Income Is Divided
Income distribution describes how total national income is divided among households and individuals.
Read more →Zoning: Land Use Regulation and Its Economic Consequences
Zoning is a government regulation that specifies what types of land use are permitted in specific geographic areas.
Read more →Carbon Tax: Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Directly
A carbon tax is a per-unit charge on greenhouse gas emissions, designed to make the private cost of fossil fuel use reflect its social cost.
Read more →Social Mobility: The Ability to Move Up (or Down) the Economic Ladder
Social mobility measures how much a person's economic position can differ from their parents' — whether birth circumstances determine destiny.
Read more →Equity vs. Efficiency: Two Goals That Often Conflict
Economic equity is the fairness or justice of economic outcomes and processes. Efficiency maximizes total value; equity addresses its distribution.
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