Last weekend as I was pulling out weeds and being bitten repeatedly by mosquitoes, I contemplated on the possible externalities of free trade. Ignoring the problems with defining what is invasive and just accepting that soemthing is invasive if we start investing or spending dollars to get rid of it, the question then is whether the benefits of free trade outweigh these costs.
1. Undoubtedly some mosquito species are a direct result of trade e.g. tires:
Prior to 1985, the distribution of Aedes albopictus, the Asian tiger mosquito, was confined to Asia and many islands in the Pacific Ocean, including some of the Hawaiian Islands. Yet, in recent years the range of this mosquito has greatly expanded to include North and South America, Africa and Europe....The Asian tiger mosquito (ATM) was most likely introduced into North America through the importation of used tires from Japan or Taiwan.
2. Invasive plants as a direct result of trade, see here and here for instance. From the first link,
"... costs associated with a wider group of IS [invasive species] to be in the region of $143 billion per year." (for Oregon)
3. Some reallocation of labor to industries that deal with invasive species. This can either be a benefit (job creation) or a cost (job reallocation) if it hollows out other industries.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Things I found surprising about Berlin
From reading Tyler Cowen's posts on Berlin:
1. Vegetables are superb. Sometimes you can't tell which national cuisine the Asian restaurants are serving and I don't mean that as a compliment. Sri Lankan food is one of the best respites from the oppression of food preparation in Deutschland. If there is one overriding principle of German food, it is to avoid anything in a sauce.
2. ... in Germany privacy norms and laws are quite strong and virtually everyone will grant you the right to assert privacy. If you are waiting at an ATM, you had better stand very far back, behind the person at the machine, otherwise you will hear about it. Everyone at the university keeps their office doors closed, although not for the American reason of avoiding students. The goal is to have a closed door and a private space between you and the rest of the world. German blog readers who see you in public will talk less to you than would American blog readers. "Direct mail" is considered not only a nuisance, but also a privacy violation. People work next to each other for twenty years, and it's still just "Frau Mueller," etc.
3. ... there are many outrageous bargains in Berlin, not just my apartment? For five or six euros, you can buy an excellent spaghetti bolognese, better than almost anything in WDC or Virginia. Apartments are cheaper, you don't need a car, mineral water and good bread is cheaper, gelato is cheaper, and in most social circles you're not expected to dress extraordinarily well. I'm not sure books are cheaper but they're not outrageously priced either, even many English-language editions. It's a strange feeling to come to Europe and have most things be cheaper, which still is not the case in Paris.
4. The buildings don't have nearly the charm of what you would find in Paris, Rome, or much of London. There are some nice residential areas, some pretty tree-lined boulevards, some occasional 19th century (or earlier) masterworks, and scattered sleek contemporary successes, such as by Potsdamer Platz. There is lots of 1950s through 1980s mediocrity. There are nice river settings, but for the most part the city doesn't use its waterfront especially well. It's nice enough that you can tell yourself it's not ugly, which perhaps is a sign of its ugliness.
I like that it's ugly, because it keeps the city empty and cheap and it keeps away the non-serious.
Do these observations apply to Munich or Hamburg?
1. Vegetables are superb. Sometimes you can't tell which national cuisine the Asian restaurants are serving and I don't mean that as a compliment. Sri Lankan food is one of the best respites from the oppression of food preparation in Deutschland. If there is one overriding principle of German food, it is to avoid anything in a sauce.
2. ... in Germany privacy norms and laws are quite strong and virtually everyone will grant you the right to assert privacy. If you are waiting at an ATM, you had better stand very far back, behind the person at the machine, otherwise you will hear about it. Everyone at the university keeps their office doors closed, although not for the American reason of avoiding students. The goal is to have a closed door and a private space between you and the rest of the world. German blog readers who see you in public will talk less to you than would American blog readers. "Direct mail" is considered not only a nuisance, but also a privacy violation. People work next to each other for twenty years, and it's still just "Frau Mueller," etc.
3. ... there are many outrageous bargains in Berlin, not just my apartment? For five or six euros, you can buy an excellent spaghetti bolognese, better than almost anything in WDC or Virginia. Apartments are cheaper, you don't need a car, mineral water and good bread is cheaper, gelato is cheaper, and in most social circles you're not expected to dress extraordinarily well. I'm not sure books are cheaper but they're not outrageously priced either, even many English-language editions. It's a strange feeling to come to Europe and have most things be cheaper, which still is not the case in Paris.
4. The buildings don't have nearly the charm of what you would find in Paris, Rome, or much of London. There are some nice residential areas, some pretty tree-lined boulevards, some occasional 19th century (or earlier) masterworks, and scattered sleek contemporary successes, such as by Potsdamer Platz. There is lots of 1950s through 1980s mediocrity. There are nice river settings, but for the most part the city doesn't use its waterfront especially well. It's nice enough that you can tell yourself it's not ugly, which perhaps is a sign of its ugliness.
I like that it's ugly, because it keeps the city empty and cheap and it keeps away the non-serious.
Do these observations apply to Munich or Hamburg?
Friday, June 18, 2010
The advantages of working remotely
I asked someone to create a plain text file. The question came back:
What kind of 'text' file? Notepad? Textpad?
At this point, I counted my blessings that I was not face to face with this person.
What kind of 'text' file? Notepad? Textpad?
At this point, I counted my blessings that I was not face to face with this person.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
What I've been reading
1. Anita Shreve's Light on Snow. I enjoyed this one perhaps because I was starting to get tired of the theme of adultery and betrayal which I think she has exhausted. This and Eden Close are a good antidote to those themes and still able to enjoy her writing.
2. A Hole in Texas by Herman Wouk. Not quite as hefty as his books used to be but enjoyable and amusing.
3. Jodi Picoult's Vanishing Act. This was was tedious. There are only that many ways to describe a mother's love for a child before it starts getting old. I think I've O.D.ed on Picoult for the rest of the year.
4. White People by Allan Gurganus. I wasn't sure what to expect so I was surprised that I liked most of the stories in this collection. Some were harder to read than I expected not because of the writing but because of the content - some of it can only be described as raw. One story, "Adult Art" was uncomfortable for me as it describes the attraction an older man felt for a younger man.
2. A Hole in Texas by Herman Wouk. Not quite as hefty as his books used to be but enjoyable and amusing.
3. Jodi Picoult's Vanishing Act. This was was tedious. There are only that many ways to describe a mother's love for a child before it starts getting old. I think I've O.D.ed on Picoult for the rest of the year.
4. White People by Allan Gurganus. I wasn't sure what to expect so I was surprised that I liked most of the stories in this collection. Some were harder to read than I expected not because of the writing but because of the content - some of it can only be described as raw. One story, "Adult Art" was uncomfortable for me as it describes the attraction an older man felt for a younger man.
Piano recital
A couple of weeks ago I watched K1 and K2 in their piano recital. It all went well. I think they were relieved it was over - as was I because now it meant that we didn't have to nag them to practice their piano.
I also saw a lot of kids who no doubt had been directed to other activities by their parents: Art lessons, additional language (Russian/Polish/Hebrew) - mainly due to their ethnic/national origins, gymnastics, swimming, ballet, ice-skating, etc.
I wondered what the kids would think 10 or 15 years from now about being sheperded into all these activities. Do they feel like they're being groomed for something? Will all these lessons increase their awareness of our (high) expectations for them?
I am interested in what the answer to the following will be: The Happiness Project: Did Your Parents Make You Take Piano Lessons? If So, Have They Made You Happier?
I did not have piano lessons so I cannot know if it would have made me happier. This calls for a randomized trial!
I also saw a lot of kids who no doubt had been directed to other activities by their parents: Art lessons, additional language (Russian/Polish/Hebrew) - mainly due to their ethnic/national origins, gymnastics, swimming, ballet, ice-skating, etc.
I wondered what the kids would think 10 or 15 years from now about being sheperded into all these activities. Do they feel like they're being groomed for something? Will all these lessons increase their awareness of our (high) expectations for them?
I am interested in what the answer to the following will be: The Happiness Project: Did Your Parents Make You Take Piano Lessons? If So, Have They Made You Happier?
I did not have piano lessons so I cannot know if it would have made me happier. This calls for a randomized trial!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Words that I rarely encounter
But seemed more common when I was growing up:
1. Fag: I'm fagged out from running all those errands.
2. Queer: The queerest thing happened to me this afternoon.
3. Gay: I woke up and was greeted by a gay morning.
4. Whinge: After all those errands, I started whinging about how tired I was.
Most of these words are mainly British use. Perhaps they are still common on the Continent.
1. Fag: I'm fagged out from running all those errands.
2. Queer: The queerest thing happened to me this afternoon.
3. Gay: I woke up and was greeted by a gay morning.
4. Whinge: After all those errands, I started whinging about how tired I was.
Most of these words are mainly British use. Perhaps they are still common on the Continent.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
How others drive
Will we ever drive this way?
We taxi back to the airport in a 1956 Oldsmobile driven by a cheerful fellow named Jorge. ... Jorge grins happily the whole way, proudly declaring that his old Olds gets twenty miles to the gallon—to which end he constantly eases the stick shift into neutral along anything resembling a flat stretch of tarmac so he can save petrol.
From CNTraveler.
We taxi back to the airport in a 1956 Oldsmobile driven by a cheerful fellow named Jorge. ... Jorge grins happily the whole way, proudly declaring that his old Olds gets twenty miles to the gallon—to which end he constantly eases the stick shift into neutral along anything resembling a flat stretch of tarmac so he can save petrol.
From CNTraveler.
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