The Curious Task

Tyler Cowen — Is Scarborough The Dining Capital of the World?

Tyler Cowen chats with Alex Aragona about all things food — great things to eat, where to find them, and how an economist gets lunch.

References from The Curious Task Episode 100 with Tyler Cowen

• You can purchase An Economist Gets Lunch by Tyler Cowen from Amazon here.
• You can read more from Tyler Cowen at the blog Marginal Revolution here. Find their course materials at Marginal Revolution University here.
• Tyler Cowen also has a food blog here.
• Read more about locavorism in The Locavore's Dilemma by Pierre Desrochers and Hiroko Shimizu, available through Amazon here.

Aeon Skoble — Is Anarchy Relevant For Classical Liberalism?

Alex Aragona peaks with Aeon Skoble as he outlines his ideas on what anarchism is, how we should think on it, and how it overlaps with classical liberal ideas.

References from The Curious Task Episode 99 with Aeon Skoble

• Aeon Skoble is author of Deleting the State and editor of a collection of essays called The Simpsons and Philosophy. He has a chapter titled “What Is the Point of Anarchism” in The Routledge Handbook of Anarchy and Anarchist Thought. Read more from Aeon Skoble on the blog Radical Classical Liberal here.
• Aeon Skoble mentions Robert Nozick, who argues for a minimal state in Anarchy, State, and Utopia available for purchase here. Aeon Skoble further discusses Robert Nozick in this video produced by the Fraser Institute here.
• Learn more about the prisoner’s dilemma here.
• The relationship between anarchism and law is explored by Bruce Benson in his book The Enterprise of Law, available for purchase here.

Janet Bufton and Sarah Skwire — Why Tweet The Wealth of Nations?

Alex Aragona speaks with SmithTweeters Janet Bufton and Sarah Skwire as they describe what drew them to the idea of reading through all of The Wealth of Nations and providing an ongoing commentary on Twitter, and how Adam Smith's ideas remain relevant. 

References from The Curious Task Episode 98 with Janet Bufton and Sarah Skwire

• Janet Bufton previously spoke on The Curious Task, which you can listen to here. Sarah Skwire has also appeared on The Curious Task here.
• You can read the #WealthofTweets here.
• The digression on silver in the Wealth of Nations can be read online here.
• Previous Smith Questionnaires can be watched on YouTube here.
• Learn more about the works of Adam Smith from Adam Smith Works here.
• Sarah and Janet reflect on their experience with the #WealthofTweets here.

Anton Howes — What Powered Innovation In Britain?

Alex Aragona speaks with Anton Howes about when the sparks of innovation started in Britain, and what fanned the flames moving forward.

References from The Curious Task Episode 97 with Anton Howes

• You can read more about the Age of Invention at the substack where Anton Howes writes about his ideas here. You can also find his working paper titled The Spread of Improvement here.
• Deirdre McCloskey details her arguments about ethics and commerce in her series which begins with Bourgeois Virtues, available for purchase from Amazon here.
• The European Guilds by Sheilagh Ogilvie is available for purchase through Princeton Press here.

Bill Easterly — What Is The Tyranny of Experts?

Bill Easterly tours some of the concepts from his book The Tyranny of Experts, and explores why technocrats imposing their own form of economic development on cultures and peoples can produce more harm than good.

References from The Curious Task Episode 96 with Bill Easterly

• You can purchase a copy of The Tyranny of the Experts by Bill Easterly here. 
• The End of Poverty by Jeff Sachs can be found on Amazon here.
• The Road to Serfdom by F.A. Hayek can be purchased here.