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Tim Harford

Undercover Economist

Tim Harford writes the Undercover Economist column, and was previously an economics leader writer for the FT. He first joined the newspaper as Peter Martin Fellow in 2003.

Tim is the author of seven books, including the million-selling The Undercover Economist and most recently Fifty Things That Made the Modern Economy. He is also a regular presenter for BBC radio.

He was made an OBE in the 2019 new year honours list “for services to improving economic understanding”.

Email Tim Harford @TimHarford (link opens in a new browser window)
Email Tim Harford @TimHarford (link opens in a new browser window)

Add to myFT Digest

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  • Friday, 8 November, 2019
    Undercover EconomistEducation
    Sesame Street’s gold standard for education

    Did the show help children learn? Or was it attractive to children who were already flourishing?

  • Friday, 1 November, 2019
    Undercover EconomistGaming
    The games that smart people play

    Gaming creates moments of enchantment to rival the finest music or theatre

  • Friday, 25 October, 2019
    Undercover EconomistUK business & economy
    How uncertainty hits business investment

    One theory is that there is something deeply unsettling about ambiguity

  • Friday, 18 October, 2019
    Undercover EconomistMichael Kremer
    Weakest link theory provides strong claim to the economics Nobel

    Once you start to think about O-ring problems, you see them everywhere

  • Friday, 11 October, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBrexit
    Hug your enemy rather than wrestle the pig

    Sneering at someone’s ignorance is a missed opportunity to discuss an issue together

  • Friday, 4 October, 2019
    Undercover EconomistMinimum-Living wage
    The triple risk of raising the US and UK minimum wage

    Politicians are blundering into territory that has proved best left to the technocrats

  • Friday, 27 September, 2019
    Undercover EconomistUK politics & policy
    Beware of simple ideas that become serious pains

    Politicians should remember that a £2tn economy is not a toy

  • Friday, 20 September, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    We need to be better at predicting bad outcomes

    If we changed the way risks are calculated then worst case scenarios could be avoided

  • Friday, 13 September, 2019
    Undercover EconomistClimate change
    Why this climate change economist rocked my world

    Martin Weitzman’s powerful logic showed that we must take action now

  • Promoted Content
  • Friday, 6 September, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    Productivity hacks: are you an Arnie or an Elon?

    Some believe every minute must be planned, others prefer to keep commitments minimal

  • Friday, 30 August, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    Why hidden holiday charges make us so angry

    Whether it’s extra car hire fees or hotel WiFi, we’re often left feeling ripped off

  • Friday, 16 August, 2019
    Undercover EconomistTravel & leisure industry
    Reasons to take a holiday — especially a short one

    There’s something fractal about rest: we need it daily, weekly and yearly

  • Friday, 2 August, 2019
    Lunch with the FT
    Richard Thaler: ‘If you want people to do something, make it easy’

    The master of behavioural economics on the power of the nudge — and why Remain was destined to lose

  • Friday, 26 July, 2019
    Undercover EconomistOffice life
    Learn to love meetings by making them better

    Everyone should arrive with a brisk update and leave with a crisp to-do list

  • Friday, 19 July, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    We are all potential victims of the con artist

    Like magic tricks, scams exploit common human traits

  • Friday, 12 July, 2019
    Undercover EconomistUS healthcare reform
    US healthcare is literally killing people

    It is an exaggeration, but not a gross one, to blame the system entirely for mortality rates

  • Friday, 5 July, 2019
    Undercover EconomistEconomic statistics
    Being average is not the same as being perfect

    The idea of the mean has a strange power over the way we think

  • Friday, 28 June, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    How economics can raise its game

    The split between ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ approaches limits its ability to answer key questions

  • Friday, 21 June, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBrexit
    How the Brexit debate was flushed down the drain

    We want plumbers to know how a lavatory works, but our standards for politicians seem far lower

  • Friday, 14 June, 2019
    Undercover EconomistUS foreign policy
    How the US is weaponising the world economy

    Donald Trump likes to use commerce for coercion, but the tactic could backfire

  • Friday, 7 June, 2019
    Undercover EconomistSocial affairs
    Count your blessings — even when they come well disguised

    A little adversity can concentrate the mind and force creativity

  • Friday, 31 May, 2019
    Undercover EconomistAudio articles
    Compromise dies in the age of outrage

    Hardening political positions are the sclerosis that may lead to a heart attack for democracies

  • Friday, 24 May, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    It can be hard to distinguish luck from judgment

    Randomness often explains the difference between triumph and failure

  • Friday, 17 May, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    The obstacles that speed and slow our path

    Sometimes when we are forced to rethink we discover a better course of action

  • Friday, 10 May, 2019
    Undercover EconomistBehavioural economics
    Our first instinct is far too often wrong

    In exams, as in life, we should be willing to rethink

Previous You are on page 1 Next

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