Econ

In the curious world of TaoBao, China’s e-commerce giant, I stumbled upon what can only be described as a “feature” cleverly masquerading as a bug. Once in a while, TaoBao hosts what’s known as the “cross-seller price-break discount.” In theory, this sounds like a standard promotional sale—spend a certain amount across various sellers, and voila, you snag a discount. For instance, rack up items totaling 300 yuan from participating sellers, and you’re treated to a 40 yuan discount. ...

Today’s blog draws inspiration from Michael D. Smith’s perspective on higher education, as discussed in a recent episode of the podcast People I (Mostly) Admire, titled “Higher Education Is Broken. Can It Be Fixed?” . Btw, the podcast itself is part of the Freakonomics network, the academically inclined perspective is particularly sweetspot for an econ student. This episode elucidates the systemic flaws plaguing the U.S. higher education system. One pov involves diving into the market power of colleges. ...

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