Economists in the PITS?

Economists in the PITS?

Academic economists today are caught in a ‘‘Publication Impossibility Theorem System’’ or PITS. In order to further their careers, they are required to publish in A-journals, but for the vast majority this is impossible because there are few slots open for them in such journals. Such academic competition maybe useful to generate hard work; however, there may be serious negative consequences: th...

The Methodology of Economists

Thirty-five years ago, E. C. Harwood, AIER's founder, wrote the following about the relation of economic conclusions to the methods of inquiry used by many economists: "That economists frequently do not agree has become so commonplace that some economists no longer seem to be troubled by the suggestion that such a state of affairs is scandalous. That many economists do agree on certain analyses...

The Games Economists Play

It is a source of confusion that economists for decades have worked on ‘game theory’ while studying economic behaviour. However, while not focused on games in the recreational sense this perspective does provide a highly meticulous complementary framework for the understanding of computer game structure and player behaviour. This article attempts to extract useful analytic concepts and insights...

Forthcoming in the Economists ’ Voice

Coccygeal pits.

BACKGROUND Congenital dermal sinuses represent cutaneous depressions or tracts that are lined by stratified squamous epithelium. They communicate between the surface of the skin and deeper structures and may occur anywhere along the craniospinal axis. These sinuses are thought to result from abnormal separation of the cutaneous and neural ectoderm between the third and fifth week of intrauterin...