When I meet people on airplanes and they find out I'm an economist, they usually ask about stock tips.

Economists actually disagree about whether there are significant economic returns from attending an elite college versus a less-selective one.

Talking to women about birth can be polarizing.

The most active period of the witchcraft trials coincides with a period of lower than average temperature known to climatologists as the "little ice age"...In a time period when the reasons for changes in weather were largely a mystery, people would have searched for a scapegoat in the face of deadly changes in weather patterns. 'Witches' became target for blame because there was an existing cultural framework that both allowed their persecution and suggested that they could control the weather.

Adhering to budgeting rules shouldn't trump good decision-making.

Education campaigns ... may not be enough, at least not alone. If people have no incentive to avoid AIDS on their own, even if they know everything about the disease, they still may not change their behavior.

Prenatal testing is a complicated decision for many women, forcing us to confront concerns about a disabled child and risks of miscarriage.