It's easier than ever to repair or recycle electronic devices. Elisa Schu/picture alliance via Getty Images Electronic gifts are very popular, and in recent years, retailers have been offering significant discounts on smartphones, e-readers and other electronics labeled as “pre-owned.” Research I have co-led finds that these pre-owned options are becoming increasingly viable, thanks in […]
Getty Images The government’s recently released Tertiary Education Strategy 2025–2030 signals a shift towards harnessing the sector to address New Zealand’s long-standing productivity issues. But the strategy and its goals aren’t necessarily aligned. Universities and polytechnics are now expected to promote innovation, accelerate commercialisation and build significantly stronger entrepreneurial capabilities. Measuring those things will be […]
In the late 19th century, Stuttgart was booming. The southern German city was famously the cradle of an emerging automobile sector and had already established itself as an industrial powerhouse and centre for toolmaking, mechanical engineering and textiles. Rail connections in the Baden-Württemberg region accelerated development, transported workers and spread wealth. One might think, then, […]
Tracking graduates’ earnings is just one way to measure the benefit of higher education. iStock/Getty Images Plus Across state legislatures and in Congress, debates are intensifying about the value of funding certain college degree programs – and higher education, more broadly. The growing popularity of professional graduate degrees over the past several decades – including […]
Burst/Unsplash Over the past few years, we have repeatedly been told artificial intelligence (AI) is coming for our jobs. In May last year, the International Monetary Fund warned the technology was hitting labour markets like a “tsunami”. Many of the tech giants behind the technology have been making their own confident predictions about which jobs […]
Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock US president Donald Trump’s 15% baseline tariffs on EU imports may read like a throwback to old-school protectionism, designed to safeguard American jobs and manufacturing. But in today’s globalised and digitally driven economy, the risk isn’t just to steel or car factories, it’s to innovation itself. The world’s most advanced technologies rely on complex, […]
Closely examining the claims companies make about a product can help you separate hype from reality. Flavio Coelho/Moment via Getty Images Technological innovations can seem relentless. In computing, some have proclaimed that “a year in machine learning is a century in any other field.” But how do you know whether those advancements are hype or […]
The prizewinners were announced at a ceremony in Stockholm. EPA/ANDERS WIKLUND SWEDEN OUT What makes some countries rich and others poor? Is there any action a country can take to improve living standards for its citizens? Economists have wondered about this for centuries. If the answer to the second question is yes, then the impact […]
Economists Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion, and Peter Howitt. Ill. Niklas Elmehed © Nobel Prize Outreach Three economists working in the area of “innovation-driven economic growth” have won this year’s Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. Half of the 11 million Swedish kronor (about A$1.8 million) prize was awarded to Joel Mokyr, a Dutch-born economic historian […]
Chris Putnam/Future Publishing via Getty Images Governments of all stripes provide support to small businesses in the form of tax concessions, lighter-touch regulation or government grants. They’re called the “engine room” of the economy. But is small really best? In recent research, my co-authors and I explored this question by looking at the contributions that […]
