Economics, Bank Runs, Gas Stoves, and Supreme

Friday morning articles

  • The A to Z of economics: Economic terms, from “absolute advantage” to “zero-sum game”, explained to you in plain English. (The Economist)

  • The Incredible Tantrum Venture Capitalists Threw Over Silicon Valley Bank: Remind me why, exactly, these guys have so much control over technological innovation? (Slate)

  • How Not to Cover a Bank Run: When financial panic looms, reporters need to stick to the facts. (The Atlantic)

  • Tech’s very bad year, in numbers: Reduced investment and large-scale layoffs have created dark times for tech globally. (Rest Of World)

  • The Biggest Winner of the Gas Stove Fight Is Induction Ranges: While culture warriors and foodies panic over their favorite kitchen appliance, the induction range is still waiting for America to fall in love. (Businessweek)

  • The Brilliant Inventor Who Made Two of History’s Biggest Mistakes: A century ago, Thomas Midgley Jr. was responsible for two phenomenally destructive innovations. What can we learn from them today? (New York Times Magazine)

  • Behind the Show for Man’s Best Friend Lurks a Ruthless Competition: “You get cliques, you get jealousy, you get arguments. It’s competition, and people do get like that about competition.” (Bloomberg)

  • What Do We Actually Know About Covid-19? Not Enough: Scientists studying the novel coronavirus say it is too early to sound the all clear; ‘Are there other tricks we have yet to see?’ (Wall Street Journal)

  • We’re Distracted. That’s Nothing New. Ever since Thoreau headed to Walden, our attention has been wandering. (Chronicle of Higher Education)

  • What Broken Windows Theory Can Teach Us: Now The discredited policing philosophy got one thing right: It isn’t crime that makes people feel unsafe. (Slate)

  • Not to Be: High Art. Romantic intrigue. Monstrous villainy. The inside story of the original, star-studded—and star-crossed—production of Shakespeare in Love is the stuff of, well, Shakespeare. (Air Mail)

  • Supreme Grows Up As it nears 30, the skate icon that rewrote industry rules is embracing a new normal. (GQ)