Author: EconLearner

Companies often learn by testing different prices over time. Experimenting with prices is like turning a dial. The lower the price, the higher the demand. Make your product more expensive and demand will decrease. Finding the right price is just a matter of setting the dial where that balance is most profitable.But for many companies, the process by which they find the right price matters. Learning the shape of a demand curve is like walking through a bumpy landscape in the dark. If a firm is slow to change its prices, it will pay the cost of setting a suboptimal…

Artificial intelligence (AI) offers many opportunities to reshape healthcare delivery and access. In recent years, leaders across the healthcare industry have welcomed the boom in artificial intelligence and its promise to streamline administrative tasks and create efficiencies in provider workflows – ultimately empowering frontline clinicians to spend more time interacting with patients and delivering timely care. This represents a huge advantage in employer-sponsored health care. Half the US population (160 million people) gets coverage through their workplace – and employers collectively invest $1 trillion in health care offerings to ensure their employees have reliable access to high-quality care. But these…

Aartificial intelligence: burst, bubble or collapse? Probably a mix of all three. Whatever happens, it increases investment risk. It suggests that many retirees and near-retirees need to review their portfolios. The problem isn’t just that much of the stock market’s booming valuation depends on data centers, through companies like Amazon, Meta Platforms and Nvidia. It is that AI may prove so powerful that it destabilizes a large part of the economy. After that: unemployment, recession, market crash. Perhaps.The alleged crash is far from certain. But the mere possibility should influence your thinking.Now look at your retirement portfolio. If it’s in…

The fervor around cute products has spread far beyond plush children’s toys like Labubu and Squishmallow to cell phone cases and even credit card designs. And countless companies are leveraging this cute aesthetic—whether in the product itself or in its packaging—to increase consumer appeal.”In marketing research, we’ve mostly focused on the effects of cute aesthetics”—whether a product design with cute versus plain images will get more people to buy the product, he says Hetana AharKellogg associate professor of marketing.But Achar and her colleague, Carolyn Wells Kellera Kellogg graduate who is now a lecturer at Northwestern’s Medill School, wanted to investigate…

The E-2 work visa is a permanent basis for immigration to the United States.gettyEach year, investors approach E-2 visa approval applications with confidence, but also with some uncertainty.They have identified a business opportunity in the United States.They have committed capital.They are ready to move.However, questions remain.Changes to trade agreements.The political rhetoric is intensifying.Titles suggest volatility.It is natural to wonder whether these forces determine who is approved and who is denied.In practice, they don’t.Across administrations and economic cycles, one authority has consistently shaped E-2 outcomes:Does the business reliably contribute to the US economy?This question—more than politics, guesswork, or timing—is what separates…

How to solve today’s Wordle.SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesFebruary is over and March has begun, the third month of 2026 and the beginning of spring (though not officially until the 20th and the vernal equinox). If you’re looking for something to do after solving today’s Wordle, check out our weekend streaming guide for all the best new TV shows and movies to watch this weekend.Okay, let’s solve the first Wordle of the month!Looking for Saturday’s Wordle? See our guide here.Today’s Bonus Custom WordleNow that we can create our own custom Wordles, I’m including a bonus Wordle with each daily Wordle…

WUHAN, CHINA – OCTOBER 13: (CHINA OUT) A man is seen watering plants in front of a coal-fired power plant on October 13, 2021 in Hanchuan, Hubei Province, China. China’s electricity consumption, a key barometer of economic activity, rose 6.8 percent year-on-year in September as the country’s economy recovers further, official data showed on Wednesday. Total energy use was 694.7 billion kWh last month, according to the National Energy Administration. China’s National Development and Reform Commission announced on Wednesday that it has widened the floating trading price range for coal-fired power generation to 20% up and down. (Photo by Getty…

I’ve been a regular coffee drinker since college (and especially during the tough days of med school.) Last year, I covered a pair of recent research papers indicating a link between regular coffee consumption and reduced mortality from stroke and cardiovascular disease.A new research paper suggests a strong link between regular coffee (or tea) consumption and a reduced risk of dementia. A study of over 130,000 adult men and women between the years 1980-2023 tracked dietary consumption of caffeinated coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea. These data were correlated with the development of dementia as well as with performance on neuropsychological…

Financial data is at the heart of solving financial crimes.gettyWhen it comes to financial crimes investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the agency’s most effective tool may not be what you think. It’s data—specifically Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) data.About the BSA The Bank Secrecy Act was enacted in 1970 amid growing concern that organized crime, tax evaders and others were moving large sums of money through banks – often offshore – without leaving a useful trail of investigation. The statute required financial institutions to keep certain records and report large cash transactions, establishing the $10,000 reporting limit for currency transactions…