Economics with scenarios

Author: Zhu Xiqing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: This is a collection of economic essays with a distinct personal style, documenting Professor Zhu Xiqing's observations and reflections on everyday life scenes as he stepped out of academia. Professor Zhu excels at deriving economic insights from stories, and his analysis of the unintended byproducts of goal-oriented activities is highly original. For example, a child made a significant improvement to a steam engine out of playfulness, an anesthesiologist discovered that electrical stimulation could induce sexual climax in women by accidentally placing electrodes in the wrong position, and a rice dealer inadvertently learned how the brightness of light affects the color of rice while being late. These insights were not the result of deliberate intent but rather unconscious byproducts of people engaging in goal-oriented activities. People do not treat such byproducts like monkeys picking corn—discarding one and picking another. Instead, the knowledge gained accumulates into experience, which quietly influences future activities. A significant portion of existing institutional arrangements are byproducts of human actions. The author claims that his writing stems from personal interest, not for material gain. To this, Professor Zhang Wuchen expressed great admiration. This unconventional economist wrote a preface for the collection, stating: "Zhu Xiqing is a highly talented economist. If many young Chinese followed Professor Zhu's path, the economics of the vast land of China would become truly exciting."