J.C. Bradbury (Ph.D., George Mason University), is the
author of The Baseball Economist, a book about how baseball can be
explained using economic principles. He is an Associate Professor of Economics
at Kennesaw State University just north of Atlanta, and runs the blog sabernomics.com,
where he discusses the economics of baseball.
Are there any books
that were important to your development as an economist or that you would
recommend to aspiring economists, or any books you would perhaps warn young
economists about?
I really enjoy The Armchair Economist, by Steven
Landsburg. I actually did not read it until I was in graduate school learning
about economics in a much more complex way. Landsburg asks seemingly simple
questions (e.g., Why is popcorn more expensive at the movies? Why do stores
sell items for 99 cents?) but finding the answers with basic economic theory
was much harder in practice than it looks on the surface. I used to be a part
of a group that focused on asking and answering "Armchair" questions,
and I learned so much economics from this interaction. I also enjoyed The Calculus of Consent, by James
Buchanan and Gordon Tullock. Their application of economics to government
institutions explained so much to me. As for books I would recommend to aspiring
economists, Tim Harford’s The Undercover
Economist is good. Freakonomics is fun, too. Milton Friedman’s Capitalism and Freedom was way ahead of
its time. As for books I would avoid, I tend to forget those rather
quickly.
Do you have any advice to give to students like me?
My advice for
students is to remain skeptical and don't just take what your teacher says as
truth. Always speak up in class and ask why. Have confidence in yourself
and don't be ashamed of admitting your ignorance. I often have students
approach me after class with excellent questions and I say, “why didn't you ask
that in class?” If you have a questions, it's likely that many other
students are thinking the same thing. I love being able to answer such
questions in front of the whole class. Learn to teach yourself by asking
hard questions and seeking out answers on your own. The internet makes this easy.
Dive in and finds books and papers that can help enlighten you.
