Countdown to Destiny....

As Angus noted, we approach the 2 million visitor level.  You can follow progress down toward the middle-right of the page, on the red "SiteMeter."  That number will be the official number, and we will identify # 2 million soon!

In addition to the REAL book on offer as a prize (with piece of tape, illustrating Angus's lefthanded tearing skills, strategically hiding an offense against nature), there will also be this book delivered to the winner:

That's the powerful Bill Evers holding the book over his head, in triumph.

Grandma got run over... by my final exam?

I have often joked that grandparents should strive to keep low achieving grandkids out of college because it can be very very bad for the grandparents' health, especially around exam times. I guess the poor seniors just can't take the stress of worrying about their progeny's academic progress.

Well, it turns out that the full extent of this insidious problem has been scientifically investigated, in a classic research paper entitled "The Dead Grandmother/Exam Syndrome and the Potential Downfall Of American Society" (ungated version available here).

Here is one of the many "shout it from the rooftops" results:

"The FDR (family death rate) is climbing at an accelerating rate. Extrapolation of this curve suggests that 100 years from now the FDR will stand at 644/100 students/exam. At that rate only the largest families would survive even the first semester of a student's college career."

The OC

The concert idea seems to mess with peoples' heads on Opportunity Cost.

(I managed to get Angus's question right, btw, and am amazed that an economist could get it wrong).

Here is my example of concerts and opportunity cost, from EconLib

(UPDATE: Commenters on post d'Angus below....Good lord, people. If the answer is not ten, then the concept of OC itself has no meaning.)

Oklahoma politics in a nutshell

I am pretty sure this is real. Hat tip to Keith G.

ONE....MORE.....DAY!

One more day until the FAAAAAABULOUS prize is given away.

Duke University Press has donated not one, but TWO copies of Debating Moral Education.

This is the book that garnered mention in the column by David Brooks, in the Times, about the essay by my good friend Michael Gillespie.

You might get one of these copies, but ONLY IF YOU SEND AN EMAIL by tomorrow morning.

The drawing will be held at noon tomorrow, EST. The winners will be announced, and the free books will be sent out. Don't miss your chance!