Tim Harford's writings reveal the economic ideas behind everyday experiences.
Why you should listen
In the Undercover Economist column he writes for the Financial Times, Tim Harford looks at familiar situations in unfamiliar ways and explains the fundamental principles of the modern economy. He illuminates them with clear writing and a variety of examples borrowed from daily life.
His seven books include Messy: The Power of Disorder To Transform Our Lives and Adapt: Why Success Always Starts With Failure. They champion, respectively, the power of improvisation and trial-and-error.
Harford is also a champion of statistics, wisely used. He's the only journalist to have been made an honorary fellow of the Royal Statistical Society. His forthcoming book, How To Make The World Add Up, aims to help us use the numbers around us to shed light rather than spread confusion.
He says: "I'd like to see many more complex problems approached with a willingness to experiment."
Tim Harford’s TED Talks
More news and ideas from Tim Harford
News
The art of possibility: The talks of TED@Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
November 28, 2018
The possibilities life affords us are endless. We can find them everywhere, at the micro and macro levels and across all fields. Do you see them? Look closer: they are there every time we use our curiosity and imagination to explore and try new things. For a second year, TED and Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, […]
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Why barbed wire — yes, barbed wire — was as transformative as the telephone
September 1, 2017
In the settling of the western US, it fenced off farm acreage and kept out grazing cattle -- and made the concept of land ownership in America a physical reality.
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Why every office should scrap its clean desk policy
November 21, 2016
Financial journalist and economist Tim Harford writes about a fascinating experiment to identify the most productive and inspiring office setup.
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