May 2009 - Posts - An Awkward Corner

May 2009 - Posts

An Idea For Lalit Modi: Dynamic Pricing

Posted by Niranjan Rajadhyaksha at 
I remember that many years ago one of the major soft drinks multinationals was test marketing a new dispensing machine that would charge according to the weather --- more for a can on a hot day and less on a cold day. This machine reportedly had an inbuilt system to measure the outside temperature. In theory, prices could fluctuate every minute and...

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Bharat and India: A Lesson From Economic History

Posted by Niranjan Rajadhyaksha at 
As the new UPA government prepares to start work, we can expect a fresh round of debates on urban versus rural growth. This paragraph from a recent essay by Robert C Allen, professor of economic history at Oxford University, provides food for thought. He is writing about the Industrial Revolution in Europe. "... the growth of cities and the high...

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The attributes of the next PM

Posted by Niranjan Rajadhyaksha at 
Who will lead India? Two days before the actual results of the Lok Sabha elections are made public, it is clear that the race is going to be a very close one. The numbers will decide who will be the next PM. But who should be the next PM? That is an entirely different question and depends on what each Indian seeks in his new national leader. One way...

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Green shoots and differential calculus (Warning: more maths than horticulture involved)

Posted by Niranjan Rajadhyaksha at 
What exactly did Europe's top central banker mean when he said this? "We are, as far as growth is concerned, around the inflection point in the cycle," European Central Bank president Jean Clause Trichet told journalists on Monday after a meeting of central bankers in Basel. The world's top two financial newspapers have interpreted...

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Dating, Marrying, Spending

Posted by Niranjan Rajadhyaksha at 
A colleague walked up to me yesterday and asked: "What is the secret of a successful marriage?" This was not the begining of some existential discussion on the battle of the sexes but rather some very primary research for something she was working on. I gave a typically facetious answer: "The secret to a successful marriage is a patient...

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