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spherical cow economics: Consider A Spherical Cow John Harte, 1988 This book offers a variety of exciting techniques for approaching contemporary environmental problems, such as 'What was the pH of rainfall before the Industrial Revolution?' |
spherical cow economics: Et al. B McGraw, 2023-08-31 Et al. is a satirical academic journal that uses machine learning and scientific principles on absurd studies, from the cat Lord Whiskers' role in the extinction of the dodo bird to the quantum mysteries of untidy toddler rooms. Key Features Conducts satirical research on topics ranging from quantum computing to clingy robot dog algorithms Answers questions like “Can a computer understand a Scotsman?” and “Is Sarah Palin real?” Secures the power grid and your home from the prying eyes of government drones a.k.a. birds Expands science by studying cow-based atmospheres, and the flavortown center of the brain Solves climate change and saves the world by proposing a banana-based fission reactor Nullifies the possibility of getting lost at the fair with a mirror-house escape algorithm Book DescriptionTired of the same old math, science, statistics, and programming memes people post online and want something a little more elaborate? This is the book for you. Tremble as we make up all our own facts and data, hand-draw diagrams in MS Paint, and quote from fictional studies and journals. Cower as authors write in the first person because their study is just a little too personal for them. Recoil from the sheer mass of oversimplified methodology, distilling someone's entire thesis into a paragraph of jokes crude enough to make it into a Mike Myers movie. Over the last few years, we have taken arguments that you would normally have after four Jack and cokes at game night and turned them into properly formatted research papers with a writing tone serious enough to confuse the uninitiated. These papers are high-effort jokes by researchers and scientists for researchers and scientists. They cover a range of topics such as the consequences of re-releasing tourists back into Yellowstone National Park after COVID-19, how to play StarCraft competitively online on a quantum computer, and most importantly, how trees around the globe are becoming increasingly radicalized.What you will learn How to draw a graph using MS Paint, maybe Whether Sarah Palin is a figment of your imagination How one pirate cat brought about the extinction of the beloved dodo Why rabbits used to be jerks back in the day If you actually learn anything from these articles, get your memory erased immediately Who this book is forThis book is for researchers and those who love science mingled with humor. It's for those who are a little too tired of the talking heads and futurists of the science world and would like something more entertaining in the form of absurd speculative studies by researchers as unbelievable as their work. Anyone who has experienced academic writing, or the tribulations of any research institution will enjoy the wide range of bizarre, yet real-world topics compiled in this book. Even if you don't know much about the subject, we usually have a background section. |
spherical cow economics: The Difference Scott E. Page, 2007 In this landmark book, Scott Page redefines the way we understand ourselves in relation to one another. The Difference is about how we think in groups--and how our collective wisdom exceeds the sum of its parts. Why can teams of people find better solutions than brilliant individuals working alone? And why are the best group decisions and predictions those that draw upon the very qualities that make each of us unique? The answers lie in diversity--not what we look like outside, but what we look like within, our distinct tools and abilities. The Difference reveals that progress and innovation may depend less on lone thinkers with enormous IQs than on diverse people working together and capitalizing on their individuality. Page shows how groups that display a range of perspectives outperform groups of like-minded experts. Diversity yields superior outcomes, and Page proves it using his own cutting-edge research. Moving beyond the politics that cloud standard debates about diversity, he explains why difference beats out homogeneity, whether you're talking about citizens in a democracy or scientists in the laboratory. He examines practical ways to apply diversity's logic to a host of problems, and along the way offers fascinating and surprising examples, from the redesign of the Chicago El to the truth about where we store our ketchup. Page changes the way we understand diversity--how to harness its untapped potential, how to understand and avoid its traps, and how we can leverage our differences for the benefit of all. |
spherical cow economics: The Model Thinker Scott E. Page, 2018-11-27 Work with data like a pro using this guide that breaks down how to organize, apply, and most importantly, understand what you are analyzing in order to become a true data ninja. From the stock market to genomics laboratories, census figures to marketing email blasts, we are awash with data. But as anyone who has ever opened up a spreadsheet packed with seemingly infinite lines of data knows, numbers aren't enough: we need to know how to make those numbers talk. In The Model Thinker, social scientist Scott E. Page shows us the mathematical, statistical, and computational models—from linear regression to random walks and far beyond—that can turn anyone into a genius. At the core of the book is Page's many-model paradigm, which shows the reader how to apply multiple models to organize the data, leading to wiser choices, more accurate predictions, and more robust designs. The Model Thinker provides a toolkit for business people, students, scientists, pollsters, and bloggers to make them better, clearer thinkers, able to leverage data and information to their advantage. |
spherical cow economics: Math Without Numbers Milo Beckman, 2021-01-05 An illustrated tour of the structures and patterns we call math The only numbers in this book are the page numbers. Math Without Numbers is a vivid, conversational, and wholly original guide to the three main branches of abstract math—topology, analysis, and algebra—which turn out to be surprisingly easy to grasp. This book upends the conventional approach to math, inviting you to think creatively about shape and dimension, the infinite and infinitesimal, symmetries, proofs, and how these concepts all fit together. What awaits readers is a freewheeling tour of the inimitable joys and unsolved mysteries of this curiously powerful subject. Like the classic math allegory Flatland, first published over a century ago, or Douglas Hofstadter's Godel, Escher, Bach forty years ago, there has never been a math book quite like Math Without Numbers. So many popularizations of math have dwelt on numbers like pi or zero or infinity. This book goes well beyond to questions such as: How many shapes are there? Is anything bigger than infinity? And is math even true? Milo Beckman shows why math is mostly just pattern recognition and how it keeps on surprising us with unexpected, useful connections to the real world. The ambitions of this book take a special kind of author. An inventive, original thinker pursuing his calling with jubilant passion. A prodigy. Milo Beckman completed the graduate-level course sequence in mathematics at age sixteen, when he was a sophomore at Harvard; while writing this book, he was studying the philosophical foundations of physics at Columbia under Brian Greene, among others. |
spherical cow economics: Quantitative Methods for ESG Finance Cyril Shmatov, Cino Robin Castelli, 2022-11-22 A quantitative analyst’s introduction to the theory and practice of ESG finance In Quantitative Methods for ESG Finance, accomplished risk and ESG experts Dr. Cyril Shmatov and Cino Robin Castelli deliver an incisive and essential introduction to the quantitative basis of ESG finance from a quantitative analyst’s perspective. The book combines the theoretical and mathematical bases underlying risk factor investing and risk management with accessible discussions of ESG applications. The authors explore the increasing availability of non-traditional data sources for quantitative analysts and describe the quantitative/statistical techniques they’ll need to make practical use of these data. The book also offers: A particular emphasis on climate change and climate risks, both due to its increasing general importance and accelerating regulatory change in the space Practical code examples in a Python Jupyter notebook that use publicly available data to demonstrate the techniques discussed in the book Expansive discussions of risk factor investing, portfolio construction, ESG scoring, new ESG-driven financial products, and new financial risk management applications, particularly those making use of the proliferation of “alternative data”, both text and images A must-read guide for quantitative analysts, investment managers, financial risk managers, investment bankers, and other finance professionals with an interest in ESG-driven investing, Quantitative Methods for ESG Finance will also earn a place on the bookshelves of graduate students of business and finance. |
spherical cow economics: Science Of The Earth, Climate And Energy Milton W Cole, Angela D Lueking, David L Goodstein, 2018-04-27 Whether on personal health, politics, or climate change, we are constantly bombarded with more numerous 'breaking news' articles than we have time for. In such an environment, how can we tell which to read, or which is even true.Science of the Earth, Climate and Energy helps readers understand major issues that affect us individually and the world as a whole.In language that a non-scientist can follow easily, the book first explains the general principles of science, its nature and how it works, with a certain degree of emphasis on the meaning of the words 'uncertainty' and 'fact, before it goes into the related topics of the earth, its climate and energy sources at a level that does not require a background in science. Finally, the book addresses what individuals and societies can do to mitigate problems associated with both climate change and limited resources.Related Link(s) |
spherical cow economics: The Bet Paul Sabin, 2013-09-03 |
spherical cow economics: Fear of Physics Lawrence M. Krauss, 2007-07-30 Assume the cow is a sphere. So begins this lively, irreverent, and informative look at everything from the physics of boiling water to cutting-edge research at the observable limits of the universe. Rich with anecdotes and accessible examples, Fear of Physics nimbly ranges over the tools and thought behind the world of modern physics, taking the mystery out of what is essentially a very human intellectual endeavour. |
spherical cow economics: Ecological and Social Dimensions of Global Change David D. Caron, 1994 |
spherical cow economics: Physics and the Environment Kyle Forinash, 2017-07-05 Physics and the Environment directly connects the physical world to environmental issues that the world is facing today and will face in the future. It shows how the first and second laws of thermodynamics limit the efficiencies of fossil fuel energy conversions to less than 100%, while also discussing how clever technologies can enhance overall performance. It also extensively discusses renewable forms of energy, their physical constraints and how we must use science and engineering as tools to solve problems instead of opinion and politics. Dr. Kyle Forinash takes you on a journey of understanding our mature and well developed technologies for using fossil fuel resources and how we are unlikely to see huge gains in their efficiency as well as why their role in climate change ought to be an argument for their replacement sooner rather than later. He also discusses the newest technologies in employing renewable resources and how it is important to understand their physical constrains in order to make a smooth transition to them. An entire chapter is dedicated to energy storage, a core question in renewable energy as well as another chapter on the technical issues of nuclear energy. The book ends with a discussion on how no environmental solution, no matter how clever from a technical aspect, will succeed if there are cheaper alternative, even if those alternatives have undesirable features associated with them. |
spherical cow economics: A Scenario of Economic Well-being, Ecological Integrity and Social Equity for the 21st Century Richard Amander Hayes, 2004 |
spherical cow economics: Handbook of Cognitive Science Paco Calvo, Toni Gomila, 2008-11-05 The Handbook of Cognitive Science provides an overview of recent developments in cognition research, relying upon non-classical approaches. Cognition is explained as the continuous interplay between brain, body, and environment, without relying on classical notions of computations and representation to explain cognition. The handbook serves as a valuable companion for readers interested in foundational aspects of cognitive science, and neuroscience and the philosophy of mind. The handbook begins with an introduction to embodied cognitive science, and then breaks up the chapters into separate sections on conceptual issues, formal approaches, embodiment in perception and action, embodiment from an artificial perspective, embodied meaning, and emotion and consciousness. Contributors to the book represent research overviews from around the globe including the US, UK, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, France, Sweden, and the Netherlands. |
spherical cow economics: Environmental Oceanography Tom Beer, 2017-12-14 The second edition of Environmental Oceanography is the first textbook to link the needs of the coastal oceanographer and the environmental practitioner. The ever-increasing human impact on the environment, and particularly on the coastal zone, has led governments to carefully examine the environmental implications of development proposals. This book provides the background needed to undertake coastal oceanographic investigations and sets them in context by incorporating case studies and sample problems based on the author's experience as an environmental consultant. |
spherical cow economics: Global Change and the Terrestrial Biosphere H. H. Shugart, F. I. Woodward, 2011-06-13 Global climate change challenges ecologists to synthesize what we know to solve a problem with deep historical roots in our discipline. In ecology, the question, “How do terrestrial ecosystems interact with the other earth systems to produce planetary change?” has sufficient depth to be the focal challenge. This central question is sharpened further as the changes that we may be manifesting upon our planet’s systems of land, sea, air and ice can have potential consequences for the future of human civilization. This book provides the depth of the history of global ecology and reviews the breadth of the ideas being studied today. Each chapter starts with a brief narrative about a scientist whose work traces forward into today’s issues in global ecosystems. The discussions are framed in a growing realization that we may be altering the way our planet functions almost before we have gained the necessary knowledge of how it works at all. |
spherical cow economics: Living within Limits Garrett Hardin, 1995-04-06 We fail to mandate economic sanity, writes Garrett Hardin, because our brains are addled by...compassion. With such startling assertions, Hardin has cut a swathe through the field of ecology for decades, winning a reputation as a fearless and original thinker. A prominent biologist, ecological philosopher, and keen student of human population control, Hardin now offers the finest summation of his work to date, with an eloquent argument for accepting the limits of the earth's resources--and the hard choices we must make to live within them. In Living Within Limits, Hardin focuses on the neglected problem of overpopulation, making a forceful case for dramatically changing the way we live in and manage our world. Our world itself, he writes, is in the dilemma of the lifeboat: it can only hold a certain number of people before it sinks--not everyone can be saved. The old idea of progress and limitless growth misses the point that the earth (and each part of it) has a limited carrying capacity; sentimentality should not cloud our ability to take necessary steps to limit population. But Hardin refutes the notion that goodwill and voluntary restraints will be enough. Instead, nations where population is growing must suffer the consequences alone. Too often, he writes, we operate on the faulty principle of shared costs matched with private profits. In Hardin's famous essay, The Tragedy of the Commons, he showed how a village common pasture suffers from overgrazing because each villager puts as many cattle on it as possible--since the costs of grazing are shared by everyone, but the profits go to the individual. The metaphor applies to global ecology, he argues, making a powerful case for closed borders and an end to immigration from poor nations to rich ones. The production of human beings is the result of very localized human actions; corrective action must be local....Globalizing the 'population problem' would only ensure that it would never be solved. Hardin does not shrink from the startling implications of his argument, as he criticizes the shipment of food to overpopulated regions and asserts that coercion in population control is inevitable. But he also proposes a free flow of information across boundaries, to allow each state to help itself. The time-honored practice of pollute and move on is no longer acceptable, Hardin tells us. We now fill the globe, and we have no where else to go. In this powerful book, one of our leading ecological philosophers points out the hard choices we must make--and the solutions we have been afraid to consider. |
spherical cow economics: The Biggest Ideas in the Universe Sean Carroll, 2022-09-20 INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “Most appealing... technical accuracy and lightness of tone... Impeccable.”—Wall Street Journal “A porthole into another world.”—Scientific American “Brings science dissemination to a new level.”—Science The most trusted explainer of the most mind-boggling concepts pulls back the veil of mystery that has too long cloaked the most valuable building blocks of modern science. Sean Carroll, with his genius for making complex notions entertaining, presents in his uniquely lucid voice the fundamental ideas informing the modern physics of reality. Physics offers deep insights into the workings of the universe but those insights come in the form of equations that often look like gobbledygook. Sean Carroll shows that they are really like meaningful poems that can help us fly over sierras to discover a miraculous multidimensional landscape alive with radiant giants, warped space-time, and bewilderingly powerful forces. High school calculus is itself a centuries-old marvel as worthy of our gaze as the Mona Lisa. And it may come as a surprise the extent to which all our most cutting-edge ideas about black holes are built on the math calculus enables. No one else could so smoothly guide readers toward grasping the very equation Einstein used to describe his theory of general relativity. In the tradition of the legendary Richard Feynman lectures presented sixty years ago, this book is an inspiring, dazzling introduction to a way of seeing that will resonate across cultural and generational boundaries for many years to come. |
spherical cow economics: Turning Numbers Into Knowledge Jon Koomey, 2008 Mastering the art of problem solving takes more than proficiency with basic calculations; it requires understanding how people use information, recognizing the importance of ideology, learning the art of storytelling, and acknowledging the important distinction between facts and values. Intended for professors, managers, entrepreneurs, and students, this guide addresses these and other essential skills. With clear prose, quotations, and exercises for solving problems in the real world, this book serves as an ideal training manual for those who are new to or intimidated by quantitative analysis and an excellent refresher for those who have more experience but want to improve the quality of their data, the clarity of their graphics, and the cogency of their arguments. -- Publisher's description. |
spherical cow economics: Statistical Rethinking Richard McElreath, 2020-03-13 Statistical Rethinking: A Bayesian Course with Examples in R and Stan builds your knowledge of and confidence in making inferences from data. Reflecting the need for scripting in today's model-based statistics, the book pushes you to perform step-by-step calculations that are usually automated. This unique computational approach ensures that you understand enough of the details to make reasonable choices and interpretations in your own modeling work. The text presents causal inference and generalized linear multilevel models from a simple Bayesian perspective that builds on information theory and maximum entropy. The core material ranges from the basics of regression to advanced multilevel models. It also presents measurement error, missing data, and Gaussian process models for spatial and phylogenetic confounding. The second edition emphasizes the directed acyclic graph (DAG) approach to causal inference, integrating DAGs into many examples. The new edition also contains new material on the design of prior distributions, splines, ordered categorical predictors, social relations models, cross-validation, importance sampling, instrumental variables, and Hamiltonian Monte Carlo. It ends with an entirely new chapter that goes beyond generalized linear modeling, showing how domain-specific scientific models can be built into statistical analyses. Features Integrates working code into the main text Illustrates concepts through worked data analysis examples Emphasizes understanding assumptions and how assumptions are reflected in code Offers more detailed explanations of the mathematics in optional sections Presents examples of using the dagitty R package to analyze causal graphs Provides the rethinking R package on the author's website and on GitHub |
spherical cow economics: The Dominant Animal Paul R. Ehrlich, Anne H. Ehrlich, 2008-06-30 Humans are unquestionably the dominant animal. Why, then, are we creating a world that threatens our own species? Two renowned scientists tackle the fundamental challenge of the human predicament and offer a vivid and unique exploration of humanity's origins, evolution, and its potential future. |
spherical cow economics: Making Sense of Word Problems Eric de Corte, Brian Greer, Lieven Verschaffel, 2000-01-01 Word problems have been a staple of mathematics instruction for centuries, yet the rationale for their use has remained largely unexamined. A range of findings have shown how students consistently answer them in ways that fail to take account of the reality of the situations described. This monograph reports on studies carried out to investigate this suspension of sense-making in answering word problems. In Part One, a wide range of examples documenting the strength of the phenomenon is reviewed. Initial surprise at the findings was replaced by a conviction that the explanation lies in the culture of the mathematics classroom, specifically the rules implicitly governing the nature and interpretation of the word problem genre. This theoretical shift is reflected in Part Two. A detailed analysis of the way in which word problems are currently taught in typical mathematical classrooms is followed by reviews of design experiments illustrating how, by immersing students in a fundamentally changed learning environment, they can acquire what the authors consider to be more appropriate conceptions about, and strategies for doing, word problems. Part Three turns to a wider discussion of theoretical issues, a further analysis of the features of the educational system considered responsible for outcomes detrimental to many students' understanding and conception of mathematics, and suggestions for rethinking the role of word problems within the curriculum. |
spherical cow economics: The Model Thinker Scott E. Page, 2021-03-16 How anyone can become a data whiz From the stock market to COVID-19 charts, census figures to marketing email blasts, we are awash with data. But as anyone who's ever opened up a spreadsheet packed with seemingly infinite lines of data knows, numbers aren't enough: we need to know how to make those numbers talk. In The Model Thinker, social scientist Scott E. Page shows us the mathematical and statistical models-from linear regression to random walks and beyond-that can turn anyone into a data genius. At the core of the book is Page's many-model paradigm, which shows us how to organize data with multiple models, leading to wiser choices, more accurate predictions, and more robust designs. Whether you're a scientist, pollster, blogger, or business person, The Model Thinker offers a toolkit for becoming a better, clearer thinker, able to leverage data and information to your advantage. |
spherical cow economics: Environmental Issues , 1994 |
spherical cow economics: Theory and Practice in Policy Analysis M. Granger Morgan, 2017-10-12 Many books instruct readers on how to use the tools of policy analysis. This book is different. Its primary focus is on helping readers to look critically at the strengths, limitations, and the underlying assumptions analysts make when they use standard tools or problem framings. Using examples, many of which involve issues in science and technology, the book exposes readers to some of the critical issues of taste, professional responsibility, ethics, and values that are associated with policy analysis and research. Topics covered include policy problems formulated in terms of utility maximization such as benefit-cost, decision, and multi-attribute analysis, issues in the valuation of intangibles, uncertainty in policy analysis, selected topics in risk analysis and communication, limitations and alternatives to the paradigm of utility maximization, issues in behavioral decision theory, issues related to organizations and multiple agents, and selected topics in policy advice and policy analysis for government. |
spherical cow economics: Algorithmic Game Theory Dimitris Fotakis, Evangelos Markakis, 2019-09-16 This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Symposium on Algorithmic Game Theory, SAGT 2019, held in Athens, Greece, in September/October 2019. The 25 full papers presented together with 3 invited talks and one abstract paper were carefully reviewed and selected from 55 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections named: Algorithmic Mechanism Design; Auctions and Markets; Computational Aspects of Games; Network Games and Congestion Games; Social Choice; and Matchings and Fair Division. |
spherical cow economics: Encyclopedia of Environmental Change John A Matthews, 2013-12-13 Accessibly written by a team of international authors, the Encyclopedia of Environmental Change provides a gateway to the complex facts, concepts, techniques, methodology and philosophy of environmental change. This three-volume set illustrates and examines topics within this dynamic and rapidly changing interdisciplinary field. The encyclopedia includes all of the following aspects of environmental change: Diverse evidence of environmental change, including climate change and changes on land and in the oceans Underlying natural and anthropogenic causes and mechanisms Wide-ranging local, regional and global impacts from the polar regions to the tropics Responses of geo-ecosystems and human-environmental systems in the face of past, present and future environmental change Approaches, methodologies and techniques used for reconstructing, dating, monitoring, modelling, projecting and predicting change Social, economic and political dimensions of environmental issues, environmental conservation and management and environmental policy Over 4,000 entries explore the following key themes and more: Conservation Demographic change Environmental management Environmental policy Environmental security Food security Glaciation Green Revolution Human impact on environment Industrialization Landuse change Military impacts on environment Mining and mining impacts Nuclear energy Pollution Renewable resources Solar energy Sustainability Tourism Trade Water resources Water security Wildlife conservation The comprehensive coverage of terminology includes layers of entries ranging from one-line definitions to short essays, making this an invaluable companion for any student of physical geography, environmental geography or environmental sciences. |
spherical cow economics: Mathematics for the Environment Martin Walter, 2011-01-18 Mathematics for the Environment shows how to employ simple mathematical tools, such as arithmetic, to uncover fundamental conflicts between the logic of human civilization and the logic of Nature. These tools can then be used to understand and effectively deal with economic, environmental, and social issues. With elementary mathematics, the book se |
spherical cow economics: El Niño and the Peruvian Anchovy Fishery Edward A. Laws, 1997 This module, which examines El Nino and its impact on the Peruvian anchovy fishery, includes study questions and answers, as well as a computer game that allows students to test the impacts of economic and climatic variables on the fish population. |
spherical cow economics: Sustainability Principles and Practice Margaret Robertson, 2017-03-16 This new and expanded edition builds upon the first edition’s accessible and comprehensive overview of the interdisciplinary field of sustainability. The focus is on furnishing solutions and equipping the student with both conceptual understanding and technical skills for the workplace. Each chapter explores one aspect of the field, first introducing concepts and presenting issues, then supplying tools for working toward solutions. Techniques for management and measurement as well as case studies from around the world are provided. The second edition includes a complete update of the text, with increased coverage of major topics including the Anthropocene; complexity; resilience; environmental ethics; governance; the IPCC’s latest findings on climate change; Sustainable Development Goals; and new thinking on native species and novel ecosystems. Chapters include further reading and discussion questions. The book is supported by a companion website with links, detailed reading lists, glossary, and additional case studies, together with projects, research problems, and group activities, all of which focus on real-world problem solving of sustainability issues. The textbook is designed to be used by undergraduate college and university students in sustainability degree programs and other programs in which sustainability is taught. |
spherical cow economics: Beyond the Invisible Hand Kaushik Basu, 2016-08-02 Why economics needs to focus on fairness and not just efficiency One of the central tenets of mainstream economics is Adam Smith's proposition that, given certain conditions, self-interested behavior by individuals leads them to the social good, almost as if orchestrated by an invisible hand. This deep insight has, over the past two centuries, been taken out of context, contorted, and used as the cornerstone of free-market orthodoxy. In Beyond the Invisible Hand, Kaushik Basu argues that mainstream economics and its conservative popularizers have misrepresented Smith's insight and hampered our understanding of how economies function, why some economies fail and some succeed, and what the nature and role of state intervention might be. Comparing this view of the invisible hand with the vision described by Kafka—in which individuals pursuing their atomistic interests, devoid of moral compunction, end up creating a world that is mean and miserable—Basu argues for collective action and the need to shift our focus from the efficient society to one that is also fair. Using analytic tools from mainstream economics, the book challenges some of the precepts and propositions of mainstream economics. It maintains that, by ignoring the role of culture and custom, traditional economics promotes the view that the current system is the only viable one, thereby serving the interests of those who do well by this system. Beyond the Invisible Hand challenges readers to fundamentally rethink the assumptions underlying modern economic thought and proves that a more equitable society is both possible and sustainable, and hence worth striving for. By scrutinizing Adam Smith's theory, this impassioned critique of contemporary mainstream economics debunks traditional beliefs regarding best economic practices, self-interest, and the social good. |
spherical cow economics: Greenhouse Gas Impacts of Declining Hydrocarbon Resource Quality Adam Robert Brandt, 2008 |
spherical cow economics: Within Reason Sandro Galea, 2023-12 The COVID-19 response was a collision of politics and public health-a volatile combination that produced predictably bad results. As public-health expertise became a tool for serving political ends, it did more than just prolong a crisis; it left the public-health establishment, like the country, mired in polarization. It was, Sandro Galea argues, a crisis of liberalism: a retreat from the spirit of enlightenment and its reliance on evidence-informed reason above all else. In Within Reason, Galea offers a critical appraisal of public health's capture by the lesser angels of today's society. Across 50 spirited essays, he shows that this is a story much larger than COVID or Trump. The diminishing of US public health is symptomatic of the same insidious social trends that were accelerated under COVID and now pervade the administration of public good everywhere: an intolerance for incrementalism, an intolerance of tradeoffs, an expectation of absolutism and moral purity. Galea challenges this recent intellectual drift while articulating how it has undermined much of the progress of earlier eras. With his trademark incision, he makes a case for a return to critical, unbeholden inquiry as a guiding principle for the future we want-and will have to work in order to achieve-- |
spherical cow economics: Quantitative Portfolio Management Michael Isichenko, 2021-09-10 Discover foundational and advanced techniques in quantitative equity trading from a veteran insider In Quantitative Portfolio Management: The Art and Science of Statistical Arbitrage, distinguished physicist-turned-quant Dr. Michael Isichenko delivers a systematic review of the quantitative trading of equities, or statistical arbitrage. The book teaches you how to source financial data, learn patterns of asset returns from historical data, generate and combine multiple forecasts, manage risk, build a stock portfolio optimized for risk and trading costs, and execute trades. In this important book, you’ll discover: Machine learning methods of forecasting stock returns in efficient financial markets How to combine multiple forecasts into a single model by using secondary machine learning, dimensionality reduction, and other methods Ways of avoiding the pitfalls of overfitting and the curse of dimensionality, including topics of active research such as “benign overfitting” in machine learning The theoretical and practical aspects of portfolio construction, including multi-factor risk models, multi-period trading costs, and optimal leverage Perfect for investment professionals, like quantitative traders and portfolio managers, Quantitative Portfolio Management will also earn a place in the libraries of data scientists and students in a variety of statistical and quantitative disciplines. It is an indispensable guide for anyone who hopes to improve their understanding of how to apply data science, machine learning, and optimization to the stock market. |
spherical cow economics: Earth Anne H. Ehrlich, Paul R. Ehrlich, 1987 |
spherical cow economics: Mathematics for Sustainability John Roe, Russ deForest, Sara Jamshidi, 2018-04-26 Designed for the 21st century classroom, this textbook poses, refines, and analyzes questions of sustainability in a quantitative environment. Building mathematical knowledge in the context of issues relevant to every global citizen today, this text takes an approach that empowers students of all disciplines to understand and reason with quantitative information. Whatever conclusions may be reached on a given topic, this book will prepare the reader to think critically about their own and other people’s arguments and to support them with careful, mathematical reasoning. Topics are grouped in themes of measurement, flow, connectivity, change, risk, and decision-making. Mathematical thinking is at the fore throughout, as students learn to model sustainability on local, regional, and global scales. Exercises emphasize concepts, while projects build and challenge communication skills. With no prerequisites beyond high school algebra, instructors will find this book a rich resource for engaging all majors in the mathematics classroom. From the Foreword No longer will you be just a spectator when people give you quantitative information—you will become an active participant who can engage and contribute new insights to any discussion.[...] There are many math books that will feed you knowledge, but it is rare to see a book like this one that will help you cultivate wisdom.[...] As the authors illustrate, mathematics that pays attention to human considerations can help you look at the world with a new lens, help you frame important questions, and help you make wise decisions. Francis Edward Su, Harvey Mudd College |
spherical cow economics: Environmental Sustainability for Engineers and Applied Scientists Greg Peters, Magdalena Svanström, 2019-03-14 Connects a qualitative perspective of environmental management with the quantitative skills used by engineering and applied science students. |
spherical cow economics: Ecology Abstracts , 1996 Coverage: 1982- current; updated: monthly. This database covers current ecology research across a wide range of disciplines, reflecting recent advances in light of growing evidence regarding global environmental change and destruction. Major ares of subject coverage include: Algae/lichens, Animals, Annelids, Aquatic ecosystems, Arachnids, Arid zones, Birds, Brackish water, Bryophytes/pteridophytes, Coastal ecosystems, Conifers, Conservation, Control, Crustaceans, Ecosyst em studies, Fungi, Grasses, Grasslands, High altitude environments, Human ecology, Insects, Legumes, Mammals, Management, Microorganisms, Molluscs, Nematodes, Paleo-ecology, Plants, Pollution studies, Reptiles, River basins, Soil, TAiga/tundra, Terrestrial ecosystems, Vertebrates, Wetlands, Woodlands. |
spherical cow economics: Ecological Numeracy Robert A. Herendeen, 1998-04-20 Master the fundamental math skills necessary to quantify andevaluate a broad range of environmental questions. Environmental issues are often quantitative--how much land, howmany people, what amount of pollution. Computer programs areuseful, but there is no substitute for being able to use a simplecalculation to slice through to the crux of the problem. Having agrasp of how the factors interact and whether the results makesense allows one to explain and argue a point of view forcefully todiverse audiences. With an engaging, down-to-earth style and practical problem-solvingapproach, Ecological Numeracy makes it easy to understand andmaster basic mathematical concepts and techniques that areapplicable to life-cycle assessment, energy consumption, land use,pollution generation, and a broad range of other environmentalissues. Robert Herendeen brings the numbers to life with dozens offascinating, often entertaining examples and problems. Requiring only a moderate quantitative background, EcologicalNumeracy is a superb introduction for advanced undergraduatestudents in environmental science, planning, geography, andphysical and natural sciences. It is also a valuable professionalresource for environmental managers, regulators, andadministrators. |
spherical cow economics: Partial Truths and the Politics of Community Robin L. Teske, Mary Ann Tétreault, 2003 Partial Truths and the Politics of Community considers what happens after feminists succeed in achieving social change or in founding organizations dedicated to accomplishing their personal and social goals. This collection of eighteen essays by scholars from the fields of international relations and feminist studies explores the theoretical dilemmas and practical politics of living with raised consciousnesses in worlds of our own making. The contributors explore feminisms as dreams of human rights, as a cluster of ideologies, and as a bounty of social practices set within frameworks for tackling problems in nation-building and global governance. In essays that illustrate the impact of feminist concerns with the quality of education, the contributors offer studies of homeschooling, of the education of impoverished girls in rural Mexico, of sororities and their relation to female autonomy, and of the teaching of prisoners by volunteers in county jails. Other contributors call for a greater attention to the ecology of social life, viewing society as a complex of individuals bound to one another through webs of transactions and obligations. These contributors recount examples from Northern Ireland, Poland, and the United States in which such webs sometimes support and sometimes strangle efforts to achieve human dignity and autonomy. Evaluating progress made in the legal realm, other contributors chart the opportunities and limitations of international and domestic law as tools to advance and protect human rights. They consider gender discrimination in universities and colleges, the United Nations and its mixed record on women's issues, and the effects of adding rape to the list of prosecutable war crimes. The volume concludes with two works on how feminism supports democratic constructions of science and religion, with results that destabilize dominant institutions in both realms. |
spherical cow economics: Physics of Societal Issues David Hafemeister, 2007-08-10 Physics of Societal Issues is a textbook those who seek to understand fundamental issues of energy use, nuclear weapons, and the environment using facts and figures instead of slogans and postures. Taking inspiration from Fermi's famous back of the envelope calculations, author David Hafemeister shows how to capture the essence of a problem with rough estimates of important parameters, and use those estimates to gauge the effects of policy decisions. |
SPHERICAL Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
Something spherical is like a sphere in being round, or more or less round, in three dimensions. Apples and oranges are both spherical, for example, even though they're never perfectly …
SPHERICAL | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
Consider a rotating spherical target, which rolls down along the layering channel. Each sensor is serially displayed between the linear actuator end and the swivel (spherical joint). These …
Sphere - Wikipedia
In solid geometry, a sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance r from a given point in three-dimensional space. [2] . That given point is the center of the sphere, and the …
SPHERICAL definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
4 meanings: 1. shaped like a sphere 2. of or relating to a sphere 3. geometry formed on the surface of or inside a sphere 4. a..... Click for more definitions.
Spherical - definition of spherical by The Free Dictionary
1. having the form of a sphere; globular. 2. formed in or on a sphere, as a figure. 3. pertaining to a sphere or spheres. 4. pertaining to the heavenly bodies regarded astrologically as influencing …
SPHERICAL Definition & Meaning - Dictionary.com
Spherical definition: having the form of a sphere; globular.. See examples of SPHERICAL used in a sentence.
Spherical - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms - Vocabulary.com
Spherical, by contrast, has a much more limited use. It basically is a description of shape: if it's spherical, it simply looks like a ball.
SPHERICAL Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
Something spherical is like a sphere in being round, or more or less round, in three dimensions. Apples and …
SPHERICAL | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
Consider a rotating spherical target, which rolls down along the layering channel. Each sensor is serially …
Sphere - Wikipedia
In solid geometry, a sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance r from a given point in three-dimensional space. [2] . That given …
SPHERICAL definition and meaning | Collins English Dict…
4 meanings: 1. shaped like a sphere 2. of or relating to a sphere 3. geometry formed on the surface of or inside a sphere 4. a..... Click for more …
Spherical - definition of spherical by The Free Diction…
1. having the form of a sphere; globular. 2. formed in or on a sphere, as a figure. 3. pertaining to a sphere or spheres. 4. pertaining to the …