The Human Action Podcast What Makes Economics Scientific?
Nov 17, 2025
Is economics a hard science? The discussion dives into critiques of mainstream economic practice and defends the Mises-Rothbard perspective of economics as praxeology, focusing on human action rather than lab experiments. Bob examines concepts like opportunity cost, unexpected market crashes, and the implications of the Efficient Markets Hypothesis. He argues that while economics cannot predict crises with precision, qualitative warnings about systemic risks are crucial. Ultimately, he likens economic theory to geometry—rigorous and deductive, rather than empirical.
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Twitter Exchange That Sparked The Episode
- Bob Murphy recounts a Twitter exchange about whether economics is as scientific as physics.
- He uses a quip about engineers knowing why planes crash to mock economist defenses and clarify his point.
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