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

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Why good people make bad decisions

Hypocrisy is the wrong diagnosis. The ordinary mind is simply built for a different world.

By Alina Petrova18 Sept 20267 min read

Pale pink blossom on thin branches in front of a raw concrete wall

Envy is a social bet on the future

The mind is built for a different world. It copes remarkably well with this one.

By Alina Petrova16 Jul 202610 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

A short history of the empty diary

What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.

By Alina Petrova28 Jun 20268 min read

People crossing a sunlit concrete hall

What the loyalty card teaches us about boredom

What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.

By Alina Petrova1 Feb 202610 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

Why we keep score

Economists have a model. The rest of us have a Tuesday.

By Alina Petrova29 Dec 202513 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

Fairness is a social bargain

The story we tell afterwards is tidier than the choice we made at the time.

By Alina Petrova11 Dec 20255 min read

People crossing a sunlit concrete hall

Reason is a reasonable kind of courage

The mind is built for a different world. It copes remarkably well with this one.

By Alina Petrova4 Dec 20256 min read

A lone figure climbing a pale stone staircase towards an arched window filled with light

Fairness is a slow bargain

Before we try to fix people, it is worth understanding what they are for.

By Alina Petrova22 Sept 202510 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

A short history of the shortcut

The mind is built for a different world. It copes remarkably well with this one.

By Alina Petrova8 Sept 202513 min read

Pale pink blossom on thin branches in front of a raw concrete wall

In praise of the late fee

The cost is obvious, the benefit is diffuse, and so the benefit loses.

By Alina Petrova22 Jun 202512 min read

A lone figure climbing a pale stone staircase towards an arched window filled with light

What the apology teaches us about hope

Economists have a model. The rest of us have a Tuesday.

By Alina Petrova13 May 202514 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

In praise of the borrowed book

The cost is obvious, the benefit is diffuse, and so the benefit loses.

By Alina Petrova8 Apr 202513 min read

Illustration of a bare tree over a faint grid, overlaid with rust-red, pale blue and black-spotted circles

Ideas worth reading. Every week.

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

No spam. Just thoughtful ideas.