Economic Mysteries
Many a biologist got their start by carefully observing the
odd details of "ordinary" life. Such observations allowed scientists
like Charles Darwin to generate key theories about the world in which
we live (that had, as Darwin said, ``grandeur in this view of life'').
Your assignment is to use a similarly discerning eye and uncover some
oddities that occur in social life.
For example (thanks to Robert Frank and his students):
- Why is airline food so bad? (Robert Frank)
- Why do the keypad buttons on drive-up automatic teller machines have
Braille dots? (Bill Tjoa)
- Why do brides spend so much money on wedding dresses while grooms
often rent cheap tuxedos, even though tuxedos could be worn on other
occasions and wedding dresses are worn only once?
(Jennifer Dulski)
- Why do top female models earn so much more money than top male
models? (Fran Adams)
- Why do many people buy larger houses when they retire and their own
children leave home? (Tobin Schilke)
To complete your assignment, please submit a single, type-written page with
two (or preferably more) oddities.
Important Note:
Your mysteries need to be original thoughts---there are a number of
web-based sites that have various one liners (e.g., Why do we drive
on parkways and park on driveways, How do they get Teflon to stick
to pans, Why do they sterilize needles for lethal injections, etc.,
etc., that are NOT acceptable).
John H. Miller, miller@santafe.edu