Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
Economic Naturalist
Why do the keypads on drive-up cash machines have Braille dots? Why are round-trip fares from Orlando to Kansas City higher than those from Kansas City to Orlando? For decades, Robert Frank has been asking his economics students to pose and answer questions like these as a way of learning how economic principles operate in the real world-which they do everywhere, all the t
...more
Paperback, 240 pages
Published
April 8th 2008
by Basic Books
(first published May 21st 2007)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,804)
I had anticipated enjoying this book, as I am a fan of "popular economics" - especially of stuff like the brilliant "Undercover Economist", or "Freakonomics". I was, hoewever, very disappointed with this book. What seemed an interesting premise, a collection of short answers to everyday economics questions by students, seems to have resulted in a rag-bag collection of "just-so" stories used to explain the various questions. When I say that the most enlightening thing I picked up was why DVD case...more
4 likes · like · see review
view 1 comment
Entertaining but of questionable value
I have read Freakonomics and Naked Economics in the past 6 months and thoroughly enjoyed them. I was hoping to get more of the same with The Economic Naturalist: In Search of Explanations for Everyday Enigmas. It caught my eye because it is nearly the exact same color as Naked Economics (Hmmm, I wonder if the economic naturalists would care to speculate on products that intentionally look similar to better-known products...) and I was hoping to get some more...more
I have read Freakonomics and Naked Economics in the past 6 months and thoroughly enjoyed them. I was hoping to get more of the same with The Economic Naturalist: In Search of Explanations for Everyday Enigmas. It caught my eye because it is nearly the exact same color as Naked Economics (Hmmm, I wonder if the economic naturalists would care to speculate on products that intentionally look similar to better-known products...) and I was hoping to get some more...more
The Economic Naturalist by Robert H. Frank was a fairly easy read and interesting to me from the standpoint of economic ethnography. I don’t know much about economics in an academic sense, but after reading this book and reflecting it is obvious that I use it on a daily basis. In retrospect this makes sense because economics is a method of codifying everyday behavior.
Although the volume is slim it gets repetitive fairly quickly. Everything seems to boil down to opportunity costs, which could ver...more
Although the volume is slim it gets repetitive fairly quickly. Everything seems to boil down to opportunity costs, which could ver...more
Thought the book might be similar to Freakonomics-- it is, but it's more rooted in econ principles. Cost-Benefit analysis, cash on the table, and the dreaded opportunity cost, which apparently something like 75% of those who took economics still don't understand. (Apparently I'm one of them as well.) Book's mostly examples of why certain economics principles work in the real world and it's semi-coherent, though not easily digested. Most of the stories make you go, "Oooooh!" though.
May 19, 2012
Calum
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
economics,
non-fiction
Robert H Frank presents a collection of reworked student essays on economics applied to real life situations. Each is short, perhaps a page or more, with titles such as 'Why do women endure the discomfort of high heels?' or 'Why did kamikaze pilots wear helmets?'
Good introduction to the way that economists think about some problems. Breaks down many issues in an analytical way, outlining the apparent discrepancy and attempting to explain it. I think it falls down in that it gets repetitive very...more
Good introduction to the way that economists think about some problems. Breaks down many issues in an analytical way, outlining the apparent discrepancy and attempting to explain it. I think it falls down in that it gets repetitive very...more
An interesting read for those curious minds who wants to discover the economic angle of how some decisions are perceived and made. It would help if you have some basic understanding of what 'Economics' is and its basic terms. Other than that, this book can be a let down as it is also full of assumptions and guided logical explanations, which are rather 'common sensical'. Some of these stem from rather logical explanation of these assumptions, and are thus, concluded or perceived as the final fac...more
This is a collection of very short essays in which various students apply economic reasoning to a variety of issues. There is no research, no attempt to find out for sure, just what the students think. Which means this has about the same level of academic rigor as the Da Vinci Code.
The only saving grace for this book is the author's introductions to each chapter in which he helps explain economic principles. As a way to imprint economic thought patterns into your way of thinking this is passable...more
The only saving grace for this book is the author's introductions to each chapter in which he helps explain economic principles. As a way to imprint economic thought patterns into your way of thinking this is passable...more
Sep 14, 2011
Matt
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
dead-tree,
borrowed-and-loaned
This is my second popular economics read. An interesting, interconnected collection of "Why do...?" essays offering insight into a naturalistic way of thinking like an economist.
In the introduction, the author notes that many university economics courses are heavy on numbers but don't equip the student for the real world (and later gives possible reasons why economics has become so maths-intensive in the post-WW2 years, recognising that economics is itself part of the world that it seeks to unde...more
In the introduction, the author notes that many university economics courses are heavy on numbers but don't equip the student for the real world (and later gives possible reasons why economics has become so maths-intensive in the post-WW2 years, recognising that economics is itself part of the world that it seeks to unde...more
I really enjoyed reading this book. It as interesting to discover that so many decisions are made based on pure economic reasoning.
As the book cover indicates, there is a reason why milk is sold in rectangular containers, whereas sodas are sold in circular ones. The reason is that milk needs to be refrigerated, which means that grocery stores have to pay extra to store it on shelves, which means that they need to maximize the amount of shelf space available. Also, sodas are meant to be consumed...more
As the book cover indicates, there is a reason why milk is sold in rectangular containers, whereas sodas are sold in circular ones. The reason is that milk needs to be refrigerated, which means that grocery stores have to pay extra to store it on shelves, which means that they need to maximize the amount of shelf space available. Also, sodas are meant to be consumed...more
I was a little disappointed with the book. While the book is subtitled "why economics explains almost everything", too many of the examples provided were things that economics could not explain while other explanations were clearly wrong.
The book is a compilation of short essays from the author's students. Briefly, the author invited his students to think of an interesting question and to then answer it. What appears to have happened is that some of his students chose to ask rather simple questi...more
The book is a compilation of short essays from the author's students. Briefly, the author invited his students to think of an interesting question and to then answer it. What appears to have happened is that some of his students chose to ask rather simple questi...more
Since I enjoyed Freakonomics, I thought I would pick this up too. The British cover, seen above, is way more appealing than the Canadian one. Oh well. Most fantastic fact in the book: Why is milk stored in rectangular containers and pop in cylindrical ones? It all has to do with wasted space between the cans and the price of keeping milk refrigerated. If you have to keep it cold, you may as well minimise the space between cartons to have no wasted space. Clever and ridiculous, eh? The book is fu...more
Good appetizer as to shows that Economic is somewhat blends into our everyday life.
Fascinating approach from the author on how he used questionable factor that relate on each aspect of human live into an answer that have an economic approach
One of the best question is Why is it legal to drive while eating a burger or drinking coffee but not while talking on a mobile phone?
Imagine what could happen to those sales at Drive-Thru Fast Food Restaurant if such law were imposed.
Lots of questions and it...more
Fascinating approach from the author on how he used questionable factor that relate on each aspect of human live into an answer that have an economic approach
One of the best question is Why is it legal to drive while eating a burger or drinking coffee but not while talking on a mobile phone?
Imagine what could happen to those sales at Drive-Thru Fast Food Restaurant if such law were imposed.
Lots of questions and it...more
My friend dropped out of her economics class after saying that economics is just common sense and that the study of it is quite useless to anyone who can think logically. I disagreed with her completely as I had just finished reading "Freakonomics," but after reading (or at least getting a third of the way through) this book I understand what she means. Whereas "Freakonomics" took the laws of economics and applied it to unconventional situations and finding interesting results, this book looks a...more
This is a collection of about 60 short (originally 500 words or less) essays on basic microeconomic questions, things like why do last-minute plane tickets cost more, but last-minute Broadway tickets cost less? and the like. The quality varies a little, and because they're essays about anything that struck the author's students' fancies, they're somewhat random, but overall it's an excellent collection that has some overarching themes about how to look at the world and analyze odd but persistent...more
I'm having trouble deciding whether to give this book two or three stars. It's an easy and fairly interesting read, and communicates some of the key lessons of economics, and how it can be useful. Not in a particularly insightful way, though.
In fact, the reason I'm considering three stars is because the book inadvertently gives some good insights into the problems of economics. One of which is the idea that it can explain almost everything. In fact, many of the "answers" in the book are just hy...more
In fact, the reason I'm considering three stars is because the book inadvertently gives some good insights into the problems of economics. One of which is the idea that it can explain almost everything. In fact, many of the "answers" in the book are just hy...more
I "polli contro balene" del titolo italiano di questo libro si riferiscono a una delle domande a cui viene data risposta nel libro: "perché ci si preoccupa della possibile estinzione delle balene e non di quella dei polli?" Il titolo inglese in effetti è "il naturalista economico", anche se confesso di non averlo capito: Frank dice che noi siamo stati plasmati dall'evoluzione per raccontare e comprendere storie, e quindi è meglio spiegare l'economia per domande e risposte, piuttosto che con form...more
When looking at The Economic Naturalist, many would instantly assume it is a nonfiction business/economics book. It isn’t. Instead, the book acts more like a poetry compilation that contains numerous collections of poems. The book’s format is certainly unique, to say the least. Each chapter begins with a short introduction by the author. These short introductions leave the reader puzzled, often asking the question, “Am I reading an economics textbook?” While this may have something to do with t...more
"I have a theory of economics, and this theory is what I teach, and here are some observations about people's choices that can lead to interpretations that might kinda support it, if they're true. But let's not bother with experiments or with fact-checking or with actually asking the people making these choices."
Sorry, if economics is the 'dismal science' I expect books about it to be at least a bit scientific. No matter how often the author says "may" or "might be part of the reason" or "could...more
Sorry, if economics is the 'dismal science' I expect books about it to be at least a bit scientific. No matter how often the author says "may" or "might be part of the reason" or "could...more
A book akin to freakonomics except that freakonomics is told in lengthy flow akin to a storybook, and slowly unfolding. What's more terrifying is that the facts potrayed in freakonomics are terrifyingly true, such as why drug dealers live with their mother, why crime rate drops in the early 2000, what makes a children intelligent? you want to know the truth - crime rate drops in 90s and 2000 due to legalisation of abortion. Terrifying but true. Unwanted pregnancy is common in the west, but it wa...more
Another simplistic view of economics along the likes of Freakanomics and Naked Economics. Readers who enjoyed either of those, or who are looking for a soft start in the complex, but invigoratingly exciting world of economics should be pleased with this book.
The author is a professor of Economics and as one of his assignments over the years asks his study to pose a question and then offer a naturalistic economic dissection of the possible reason for the aforementioned conundrum.
The book is essen...more
The author is a professor of Economics and as one of his assignments over the years asks his study to pose a question and then offer a naturalistic economic dissection of the possible reason for the aforementioned conundrum.
The book is essen...more
I like the idea of this book--that almost every question can be answered by rationally examining the factors that go into production, human nature, economics, etc. I even like the process. I do not, for the most part, agree with the author's answers, especially since it doesn't seem like he did any research.
IE "Why do women spends thousands of dollars on a wedding dress that they will wear once, while men spend $100 or so to rent a Tuxedo that they will need a number of times." His answer is tha...more
IE "Why do women spends thousands of dollars on a wedding dress that they will wear once, while men spend $100 or so to rent a Tuxedo that they will need a number of times." His answer is tha...more
The Economic Naturalist by Cornell professor Robert H. Frank has an admirable goal: To take economics beyond boring textbooks filled with abstract graphs and equations, and bring it into focus for the everyday world in which we live. He aims to show the world in such a way that will inspire the reader to develop an economic way of thinking. Through a series of one to two page explanations ranging from "Why is milk sold in rectangular containers, while soft drinks are sold in round ones?" to "Why...more
This would be great supplemental reading for anyone taking an intro micro course in college (if I teach someday, it'll definitely be on the syllabus). But as something to pick up and read for fun, it's not the greatest popular econ book to come along. I really like Robert Frank and I have no problem with him capitalizing on the recent interest in economics, but this book would work better as one of those 365 day calendars. Each chapter has a dozen or so 500-800 word answers to questions like "wh...more
Too much a basic introduction to economics that anything else, really. Personally, the slogans on the cover that made it look attractive in a bookstore blew it for me in the end. Nothing against the aim of the book at all - it is mainly a collection of questions posed by students and curious people - it just wasn't for me.
I think most people with previous interest in economics or common sense will find a third of the examples in the book very obvious. Unfortunately, the explanations to a lot of...more
I think most people with previous interest in economics or common sense will find a third of the examples in the book very obvious. Unfortunately, the explanations to a lot of...more
May 14, 2009
Emily Leathers
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
rapleaf-library
Intriguing, but there was just too much that wasn't proven fact. Some of the explanations were good rationalizations based on the theory they were trying to exemplify but seemed unrealistic in general. Some were spot on though. I think I did leave with an overall better understanding of economic theory, but since I do like the numbers and equations I think I'll also have to look for a more standard economics text.
Interesting book that teaches certain basic economics concepts through dozens of 2 page case studies (with zero graphs and equations). Very readable, very reasonable length; the author mercifully didn't try to stretch a 200 page book to 350 pages.
I was of two minds about this book. Sometimes I found it stimulating and insightful. At other times I was annoyed by the author's self-confidence, essentially taking any reasonable explanation based on economic principles as truth, without evidence. The...more
I was of two minds about this book. Sometimes I found it stimulating and insightful. At other times I was annoyed by the author's self-confidence, essentially taking any reasonable explanation based on economic principles as truth, without evidence. The...more
So-so collection of questions and answers, all based on the usual reductionist principles that drive economic theory and many of them so blindingly obvious you'll just skim through. to dip into when you've 5 minutes spare this is okay but then you're faced with the question of whether or not to give this book shelf space. Nah, it's off to the Shelter shop with you.
Aug 27, 2009
Manussawee
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Manussawee by:
Manoshree
Shelves:
ecomics-finance
I thought the book was interesting, though I just wasn't impressed with it. Frank took real essays from students as well as some well-known economists on everyday enigma explaining by economic theories. It was similar to Freakonomics, though not exactly the same. I'm not sure why I can't get into the book. I was hoping for more, instead of short pieces. I still learned something...
Interesting book. Written by an renowned economics professor, the theories are accurate without a doubt. However, some of the observations are out of date or too geographically based that don't concern me. After all, the essays were actually composed of undergraduates. Therefore the insights are rather straightforward. But I learnt some thing from the book too. Thank you Prof Frank.
This book really explains a lot of things in terms of simple principles of cost and gain. The only drawback I would mention is that the examples are mostly drawn from the USA which makes them hard to understand for people who aren't familiar with the American lifestyle (and do believe me, there are lots of them in Europe).
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodreads Librari...: ISBN13: 9780753513385 | 2 | 23 | Jun 07, 2012 02:19am | |
| a thought-provoking book on everyday economics | 2 | 15 | Jan 17, 2009 11:41am |
Robert H. Frank is the Henrietta Johnson Louis Professor of Management and a Professor of Economics at Cornell University's S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management. He contributes to the "Economic View" column, which appears every fifth Sunday in The New York Times.
More about Robert H. Frank...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
