Episode 137: Behavioral Economics and Neuroeconomics

Episode 137 originally broadcast on January 19, 2008

The School of Business for January 19, 2008

Russ and John make you "more savvy" as they present useful curriculum without the cost of tuition. "Knowledge is Good." Includes: BusinessMakers Quote of the Week - inspiration from the late author Peter Drucker; This Week in Business History presents "Hope & Change" week; Navigating Business Jargon - buzzwords and technospeak that will make people wonder where you've been hanging out; and Dumbest Moments in Business History - a rapper who diversified into the faux fur business.

Michael Shermer, Ph.D. of Skeptic Magazine

What happens when experimental psychologists get interested in economics? You wouldn't believe it! Russ interviews Dr. Michael Shermer, the founding publisher of Skeptic Magazine and author of The Mind of the Market, a study in behavioral economics and neuroeconomics. Dr. Shermer translates brain research into simple concepts that help explain certain aspects of free market economics. Turns out, a really great transaction - whether you're the buyer OR the seller - can produce the same biochemical rush as sex! And it all relates back to Darwinism, economics and politics!

Flashback - Dr. Alex Khachatryan

Flashback to a BusinessMakers interview from July 2007. It's a classic immigrant success story as Russ visits with Dr. Alex Khachatryan, founder, president and CEO of Reasoning Mind Inc. When Khachatryan and his family immigrated to the US from Russia, they saw gaps within the American educational experience, specifically in the way math and science were being taught. They set out to correct what they saw, in the process creating a new curriculum and a self-paced education system called Reasoning Mind.