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The Unreasonable Human
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Essays

Long reads on how we actually think, decide and live.

AttentionBehaviourDecision-makingDesignEconomicsFairnessHappinessIdeasInstitutionsLoss aversionMarketsNudgesPsychologyRationalityRisk
Series

Regret is a social kind of hope

We are far better at explaining our choices than at making them.

By Alina Petrova26 Jan 20259 min read
Illustration of a head in profile facing two overlapping rust-red circles and a cluster of thin vertical lines
Behaviour

Why we queue without complaint

A small decision, repeated daily, is a life. Nobody designs it that way.

By Alina Petrova14 Jan 202512 min read
People crossing a sunlit concrete hall
Behaviour

In praise of the school run

A small decision, repeated daily, is a life. Nobody designs it that way.

By Alina Petrova3 Dec 20246 min read
A lone figure climbing a pale stone staircase towards an arched window filled with light
Series

The case against the tip jar

It looks like a flaw in the person. Mostly it is a feature of the situation.

By Alina Petrova6 Nov 202410 min read
People crossing a sunlit concrete hall
Essays

In praise of the apology

Most advice assumes a person who never existed.

By Alina Petrova3 Sept 202410 min read
People crossing a sunlit concrete hall

Ideas worth reading. Every week.

Essays, data and ideas on economics, rationality and why we do what we do.

No spam. Just thoughtful ideas.