Information Cascades and Revolutions
http://voxeu.org/article/riots-and-revolutions-digital-age An information cascade occurs when people make decisions based on the decisions of others, rather than use their own observations. In their article, Chris Ellis and John Fender analyze the effect these cascades have on riots and revolutions. They note that workers choose to rebels through observing other workers’ behavior. Each worker has their […]
Minimum Price Legislation and Alcohol Sales: Stability, Instability, and Tipping Points
http://www.harpers.co.uk/news/scottish-minimum-pricing-to-impact-over-half-of-alcohol-sales-while-wine-and-premium-spirits-could-benefit/544869.article Following a recent court ruling, the Scottish government will soon implement a minimum price legislation in the alcohol industry and introduce a minimum price of 50p per unit of alcohol. Pundits predict that the new legislation will have a strong impact on spirits, with over 60% of spirits sold currently priced below the 50p […]
Words that Accidentally Became MLK Jr’s
On May 2, 2011, the founder and head of the Islamist group Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, passed away. The quote, “I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy”, perfectly summed up many individuals feelings about Osama bin Laden’s death. Within […]
Network Effects on Social Media Platforms
The success of a social media platform is largely dependent on network effects and externalities. More recently, Twitter announced that Vine, a platform for video sharing, is shutting down due to its decreasing popularity in comparison to other sites such as Facebook and Instagram. With the introduction of Facebook Live and video stories on Instagram, […]
The Art of Social Media Warfare
When the gushing torrential water tosses stones pushing boulders, it is because of the force of its momentum. When the ferocious strike of an eagle, breaks the body of its prey, it is because of the timing of the strike. Thus the forces and momentum of the adept in warfare are so overwhelming and ferocious […]
Cruddy Content and Cascades
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/15/opinion/mark-zuckerberg-is-in-denial.html http://www.niemanlab.org/2016/11/the-forces-that-drove-this-elections-media-failure-are-likely-to-get-worse/ Pope Francis Shocks World, Endorses Donald Trump for President, Releases Statement Following the 2016 general presidential election, much debate has emerged surrounding the effects of modern media, social networks, and technology on spread of information and disinformation. One specific area of controversy focuses on Facebook, its arguably significant impact on voter behavior, and […]
The Hillsborough Disaster and Information Cascade
Reference: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-19545126 About 30 years ago, the FA Cup Semi-final, one of the most prestigious English soccer football competition, took place in Nottingham on 15 April 1989. Every ticket was sold out, more than 53,000 fans from both Liverpool and Nottingham Forest occupying the Hillsborough football stadium in Sheffield, England. The stadium had overwhelmed with enthusiasm […]
The Difference Between Information Cascades and Herd Behavior
http://eml.berkeley.edu/~kariv/CK_II.pdf. In 2003, Bogachan Celen and Shachar Kariv conducted research into information cascades, and identified clear distinctions between information cascades and herd behavior. As they studied two distinct phenomena – informational cascades and herd behavior – they found that individuals were easily influenced by the decisions of others, especially in social and economic situations. Even […]
Network Effects On Our Elections
When it comes to presidential elections, there is no doubt that social media plays a huge role in the way citizens perceive the candidates up for election. We can imagine every event as having a signal effect for each citizen who witnesses it. So a video of a candidate leaking in which they refer to […]
Liquidity Matters
http://www.morningstar.co.uk/uk/news/154004/is-the-corporate-bond-bubble-about-to-burst.aspx As US Treasury yields are up, there is a fear among investors that bubbles in corporate bonds would burst soon. This could be partly due to a surprise victory of Donald Trump in US President election, which gave investors impressions there will be inflationary effects because of his promise of huge nation-wide infrastructural projects. […]
« go back — keep looking »