Prof. Jessika Trancik speaks with Wall Street Journal reporter Nidhi Subbaraman about the dramatic drops in costs to manufacture and sell renewable technologies. Subbaraman notes that Trancik’s research shows that “the steep drop in solar and lithium-ion battery technology was enabled by market expansion policies as well as investment in research and development by governments and the private sector.”
Prof. Jonathan Gruber speaks with Boston Public Radio hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagan about his latest research on a program designed to increase health care access to immigrants across New York. “We reached out through a variety of mechanisms through non-government organizations through social media and we offered them a program to improve their healthcare. We brought them in and what we did was basically just connect them with doctors,” says Gruber.
Daleep Singh, an MIT alumnus and the United States Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics, speaks with CBS journalist Sharyn Alfonsi about the economic sanctions being used to combat Russia’s attack on Ukraine. “In this century, our view is power is much more closely tied to your economic strength, technological sophistication, and your story,” says Singh.
Prof. Jonathan Gruber speaks with Boston Public Radio about the economics of sanctions and whether they have been an effective tool to deter Russia's invasion of Ukraine. “The integrated world economy has made these sanctions so much more powerful,” says Gruber. “The real test is will they eventually work to bring [Putin] to heel over the longer run.”
Gas prices in Massachusetts have been spiking since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, reports Kristina Rex for CBS Boston. “This is an artificially set price because OPEC controls how much oil they release,” says Prof. Jon Gruber. “[OPEC] like[s] the price going up, but if it goes up too much and people stop driving, it’s bad for them, so at some point they will release more oil and keep the price from going too high.”
In an article for The Los Angeles Times, Prof. Simon Johnson and Oleg Ustenko, an economic advisor to President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, make the case that the U.S. needs to lead the way in cutting off oil and gas sales from Russia. “The financial sanctions already in place are important but, by themselves, they will not degrade Russian fossil fuel production capacity,” they write. “The critical issue now is to save Ukrainian lives by cutting off all possible revenue to the Russian state.”
Writing for Politico, Prof. Simon Johnson makes the case that the “U.S., the EU, the U.K. and others should create a global fund for humanitarian cash support to Ukrainians.” Johnson writes that: “Providing cash to desperate Ukrainians is a feasible form of support that can supplement traditional means of assistance.”
New York Times reporter Daisuke Wakabayashi highlights a paper written by Prof. Glenn Ellison, head of MIT’s Department of Economics, and Senior Lecturer Sarah Fisher Ellison explaining how technology has made it easier to find products, but retailers have retaliated by raising prices. “To the extent that there is more obfuscation going on, consumers pay more for everything,” said Ellison. Wakabayashi also spotlights a study by Prof. Amy Finkelstein that found “when people use cash less, prices go up.”
MSNBC reporter Selena Rezvani spotlights a study by Prof. Danielle Li and her colleagues, which found that women aren’t seen as having as much leadership potential as men despite having higher and more consistent performance ratings. Li and her colleagues found “women are 14 percent less likely to be promoted year after year, compared to men,” writes Rezvani.
New York Times reporter Steve Lohr spotlights how the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Omidyar Network have made a gift to help establish a new program that will analyze forces contributing to the erosion of job quality and labor market opportunity for workers without college degrees. “Markets are terrific, but we have to overcome this notion that ‘markets are autonomous — so just leave it to the market,’” says Prof. David Autor. “That fatalism is a decision.”
A new study by MIT researchers finds that mediation apps may have benefits for users in reducing anxiety and depression, reports The Economist. “Access to the app reduced the share of participants with moderate or severe anxiety by 13 percentage points, or 50%, compared to the control group. The share of participants with moderate or severe depression fell by 14 percentage points, or 47%.”
Bloomberg reporter Ben Holland spotlights “The Work of the Future: Building Better Jobs in an Age of Intelligent Machines” – a new book written by Prof. David Autor, Prof. David Mindell and Elizabeth Reynolds PhD ’10 – about the future of job mobility and social safety nets in the United States.
On Point host Meghna Chakrabarti speaks with Prof. David Autor about his research investigating the success and failures of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). “If there's one thing I would change, is that I would rebuild our unemployment insurance program, so use modern data systems integrated nationally,” says Autor of how he would alter the PPP.
AP reporter Christopher Rugaber writes that Susan M. Collins PhD ’84 will be the next president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. “Dr. Collins brings the technical expertise and insight to contribute to policymaking and the leadership ability to head the organization,” said Christina Paxso and chair of the Boston Fed’s Board of Directors.
Susan M. Collins PhD ’84 has been selected as the next president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, “the first woman of color selected to lead one of the 12 regional Fed branches since the central bank system was created in 1914,” reports Larry Edelman for The Boston Globe. “A common theme throughout my career has been commitment to the mission of public service to improve lives — whether through education, research, or policy,” said Collins.