Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Ricardian Rent Explains Costs Of Elite Colleges, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

The Wealth Of Nations Updated, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

Proposition 1. If all workers are assigned to food production and none to knowledge production, then food output per capita will decrease over time. Proposition 2. A growing work force and constant ratio of workers in food and knowledge production can maintain constant per capita food output over time if there are increasing returns in the knowledge production sector. Corollary. A growing work force and constant ratio of workers in food and knowledge production can maintain constant per capita food provided knowledge per unit of food output rises over time.

Modern Economics In The Modern World, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

A commodity is a creature of society, its traditions, its experience and, when necessary, its laws. Society defines and controls the legitimate use of commodities almost without exceptions. The three main categories of commodities are private, semi private and non private. An eating apple is a private commodity, an airline seat is a semi private commodity and a computer software program is a non private commodity. This essay describes how modern economics treats these categories.

What Linear Models Of An Economy Can Teach Us, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

What Linear Models of an Economy Can Teach Us The best way to appreciate the importance of convexity in models of the economy is by a careful examination of a linear model. Because a linear model relies on von Neumann's Saddle Value Theorem, this Theorem is the starting point of the model for two reasons. First, it explains its original application to 2-person zero sum games and its use of mixed strategies. Second, it shows why mixed strategies mislead economic analysis of non convexity in production. The linear model of the economy is a valid application of the Saddle Value …

Ii. Safety First, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

Abstract Selecting that portfolio which maximizes the expected return such that the probability of disaster is below a prescribed level furnishes a reasonable criterion for choice among risky alternatives although it expresses preferences only among alternatives that satisfy the constraint. Criteria for Decision Making under Risk and Uncertainty JEL D81

Plain Talk On Preferences, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

Assume the preferences of each individual are transitive but preferences for the same alternatives differ among some individuals. Condorcet (1785) showed that choices made by majority voting are not always transitive. Therefore,the choice among alternatives made by a group will not coincide with the preferences of any individual in the group. This is also Arrow's conclusion. Drop the assumption that all individuals have transitive preferences and the paradox loses much of its force. How groups resolve the perennial conflict between liberty and consensus remains unsolved by majority voting.