Tim Harford
Tim Harford’s long-running column in the Financial Times, “The Undercover Economist,” reveals the economic ideas behind everyday experiences. His first book, The Undercover Economist, was published in 30 languages and sold…
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RECORDED BEFORE AN AUDIENCE AT THE BRISTOL FESTIVAL OF ECONOMICS (11/17/2022)
The Dutch went so potty over tulip bulbs in the 1600s that many were ruined when the inflated prices they were paying for the plants collapsed – that’s the oft-repeated story later promoted by best-selling Scottish writer Charles Mackay. It’s actually a gross exaggeration.
Mackay’s writings about economic bubbles bursting entertained and informed his Victorian readers – and continue to influence us today – but how did Mackey fare when faced with a stock market mania right before his eyes? The railway-building boom of the 1840s showed he wasn’t so insightful after all.
The Host
