The Effect of Robots on the Economy

Economists use the term “creative destruction” a fair amount, but what does it actually mean? It generally refers to a company going out of business, or sometimes whole sectors of the economy vanishing as disruptive technologies and strategies come into play. It is very easy to see the “destruction” part of creative destruction. We see the empty storefronts and people out of work because the businesses they worked for couldn’t afford to pay them anymore. We point fingers and lament the loss of these former favorites. So where does the “creation” part of all this come in? Join Antony Davies and James Harrigan as they take a close look at this and more on this week’s episode of Words and Numbers.

Show Notes:

Scientists develop a strain of saline-tolerant rice

Discrimination at Harvard

Foolishness of the Week

New York socialist wonders why people are moving to Florida

Topic of the Week: Creative destruction

Good and Bad Destruction: Buggy Whips and Broken Windows

Ten jobs that no longer exist

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Antony Davies on Twitter

James R. Harrigan on Twitter

Words & Numbers Backstage

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