logo
episode-header-image
Jan 2023
24m 29s

To all the econ papers I've loved before

NPR
About this episode
A great economics paper does two things. It takes on a big question, and it finds a smart way to answer that question.

But some papers go even further. The very best papers have the power to change lives.That was the case for three economists we spoke to: Nancy Qian, Belinda Archibong, and Kyle Greenberg.

They all stumbled on important economics papers at crucial moments in their careers, and those papers gave them a new way to see the world. On today's show - how economics papers on the Pentecostal church in Ghana, the Vietnam war draft, and the price of butter in Sweden shaped the courses of three lives.

This episode was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was edited by Keith Romer. Sierra Juarez checked the facts, and it was mastered by Natasha Branch with help from Gilly Moon. Jess Jiang is our acting executive producer.

Subscribe to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Oct 2023
The flight attendants of CHAOS
When contract negotiations between Alaska Airlines and their flight attendants' union broke down in 1993, the union had a choice to make. The union — The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA — knew that if they chose to strike, Alaska Airlines could use a plan. While Alaska Airli ... Show More
28m 51s
May 2023
How you fight a squatting goat
Back in 2005, Burt Banks inherited a plot of old family land in Delaware. But when it came time to sell it, he ran into a problem: his neighbor had a goat pen, and about half of it crossed over onto his property. Burt asked the goats' owner to move the pen, but when neighborly pe ... Show More
28m 53s
Jan 2022
HBO 2.0
What happens when the iconic symbol of your brand no longer makes sense? Today, HBO tries to evolve their sonic brand. This episode was adapted from the podcast Twenty Thousand Hertz. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoi ... Show More
18m 49s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2024
Bidenomics: How the economy may sway the US election
The president has fired “a bazooka” of money into the economy. Will voters reward him? Joe Biden says the economy is doing great thanks to a series of policies he calls Bidenomics. The idea is to jump-start the US following the COVID collapse with massive investments in the indus ... Show More
26m 43s
Jun 2023
Women in Economics: Claudia Goldin on Family Economics
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The history of economics has largely been written by men about men. Even when the economics of family became a burgeoning field of study in the 1970s, the woman's role was hardly talked about. Claudia Goldin is a pioneer in th ... Show More
22m 15s
Aug 2023
In search of a new economic playbook
<p>Chinese corporate earnings reports are forecast to log poor performance and companies are set to downgrade outlooks, and policy makers walked away from Jackson Hole acknowledging they need to adjust to the changing global economy. Plus, the FT’s Jamie Smyth explains why Irelan ... Show More
10m 13s
May 2024
A Guide to the Mad Math and Terrible Terminology of Economics
Watch Carol and Tim LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF. Bloomberg News Contributor Kyla Scanlon discusses her book In This Economy?: How Money & Markets Really Work. Kira Caban, Head of Strategic Communications at Instawork, shares her expertise on finding summer si ... Show More
26m 33s
Aug 2023
Women in Economics: Nina Pavcnik on Trade and Development
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The dramatic opening up of markets to international trade over the past 30 years has been a boon to many developing economies but it has not benefitted everyone. Nina Pavcnik grew up in Yugoslavia and witnessed firsthand the eff ... Show More
21m 35s
Oct 2022
Trying to make sense of the UK economic mess
What's happening in the UK right now has heads spinning around the globe. New Prime Minister Liz Truss is already scrambling to survive. Her new chancellor Jeremy Hunt today brought down the axe on nearly all of her tax-cutting plan after it sent the markets spiraling. To make se ... Show More
56m 25s