September 2023 MBR The Economic Studies Shelf

The Economic Studies Shelf

An Updated Measure of Poverty: (Re)Drawing the Line
Medicine National Academies of Sciences, Engineering
The National Academies Press
500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001
www.nap.edu
9780309697392, $25.00, PB, 150pp

https://www.amazon.com/Updated-Measure-Poverty-Drawing-Line/dp/0309697395

Synopsis: An accurate measure of poverty is necessary to fully understand how the economy is performing across all segments of the population and to assess the effects of government policies on communities and families. In addition, poverty statistics are essential in determining the size and composition of the population whose basic needs are going unmet and to help society target resources to address those needs.

"An Updated Measure of Poverty: (Re)Drawing the Line" from The National Academies Press recommends updating the methodology used by the Census Bureau to calculate the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) to reflect household basic needs. This report recommends that the more comprehensive SPM replace the current Official Poverty Measure as the primary statistical measure of poverty the Census Bureau uses.

The report also assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the SPM and provides needed recommendations for updating its methodology and expanding its use in recognition of the needs of most American families such as medical care, childcare, and housing costs.

Critique: Timely, informative, and reliable, "An Updated Measure of Poverty: (Re)Drawing the Line" is a very strongly recommended and core addition to personal, professional, community, academic, and governmental library Contemporary Economics & Policy Planning collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.

Editorial Note: The National Academies Press (https://nap.nationalacademies.org) publishes the publications of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. It publishes more than 200 publications per year on a wide range of topics in science, engineering, and medicine, providing authoritative, independently researched information on important matters in science and health policy.

Mighty Microeconomics
Michihiro Kandori
Cambridge University Press
One Liberty Plaza, Fl. 20, New York, NY 10006
www.cambridge.org
9781009161077, $120.00, HC, 500pp

https://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Microeconomics-Guide-Thinking-Economist/dp/1009161075

Synopsis: Economics is a social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics helps us to understand that certain slick mechanisms are operating beyond what we see in our daily economic lives. To fully understand and appreciate these mechanisms, we need to master the core mathematical theories, some of which are highly advanced and typically covered in a graduate course.

An introductory textbook, "Mighty Microeconomics: A Guide to Thinking Like An Economist" presents those theories without compromising rigor, but, at the same time, economics professor Michihiro Kandori offers a number of innovative pedagogical twists that make the difficult materials completely accessible to undergraduate students, and even to general readers.

Written in a conversational, colloquial style, Professor Kandori explains basic messages and core insights that are usually hidden between the lines. The usefulness of these theories is shown through a number of real-life examples, and, in the end, the readers can see that the mathematical models provide deep insights into social justice and philosophy. Simply stated, "Mighty Microeconomics" will help its readers to think like economists.

Critique: Featuring a one page listing of Case Studies, four Appendices, and a six page Index, "Mighty Microeconomics: A Guide to Thinking Like An Economist" is comprehensive as well as thoroughly and impressively 'reader friendly' in both style, organization and presentation. While an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended textbook for supplemental Economics curriculum studies lists, it should be noted for students, academia, economists, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Mighty Microeconomics: A Guide to Thinking Like An Economist" is also available in a paperback edition (9781009161084, $44.99) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $42.74).

Editorial Note: Michihiro Kandori (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michihiro_Kandori) is the Professor of Economics at the University of Tokyo. He was former Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University, and Taussig Visiting Professor at Harvard University. He is the president of the Game Theory Society (2022-2024) and was a former associate editor of Econometrica, and fellow of the Econometric Society. He has published numerous articles in high-impact journals. He received his PhD from Stanford University under the supervision of Nobel laureate, Paul Milgrom. He has consistently received high ratings for his 'Welcome to Game Theory' course on Coursera (more than 85,000 learners since 2015).

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