Predicting the Rational
Musings of a grad student interested in behavioral econ; learning to master what the field excels at before trying to predict the irrational.
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For a long time, the dominant economic models operated under the assumption of Homo Economicus – that perfectly rational, self-interested agent whose sole motivation is maximizing their own utility, usually through consumption. Reciprocity? Fairness? In-group loyalty? These weren’t really part of the core model. It was a clean, elegant framework, great for certain predictions, but…
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Guest Post: This is a post by Mansi Sood, a grad student at CMU and an avid painter. Please check out more of her stuff here. Two years ago, while writing my grad school applications, I realized how profoundly a passion for painting has shaped me as a person and informed my choices. As I moved…
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I went to Japan with my sister nearly an year ago. It was a 15 day trip and we left in the first week of June. The 15 days spanned the tropical island paradise of Okinawa, quaint towns and villages in the Hida mountains, the mega-city thrills of Tokyo and a bunch of other places…
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Yesterday’s weather was uncharacteristically pleasant for the month of May in Delhi. I was lying in my room after dinner and listening to Ruskin Bond narrate his “The Eyes Have it” on the radio. I had switched off the lights in my room. I had my window open because it had been a rainy day…
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I don’t know if we are living in the best of times or the worst of times. It’s likely worse for most people compared to what they were living in a few months back. At the same time, it’s definitely the best of times for Jeff Bezos who saw his fortune increase by 40% in…
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Death and the Penguin is a Russian novel set in 90s Ukraine by Andrey Kurkov. It is a dark, satirical, and strangely surreal look at the adventures of a down on his luck every-man, living in Kyiv, with his pet penguin. The bond shared by the man and his penguin is deeply emotional and has…
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I bought a new domain! I plan to shift my blogging and and non-academic writing here. My academic writing that is too far ahead of its time to be appreciated by editorial committees, i.e., nonpunishable will also go here. I am excited about the possibilities of experimenting with different things related to website design. I…
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Hey everyone, and welcome back to Predicting the Rational, the blog where I bravely attempt to apply structured thinking to the glorious chaos that is human behavior. Today, we’re talking about April. Ah, lovely, sunny April. Birds are singing, flowers are blooming, taxes are due… and according to T.S. Eliot, it’s the cruellest darn month…