Homer and Marge head to the Frying Dutchman for the all-you-can-eat buffet. Heading late into the night, Homer doesn’t seem to be experiencing any diminishing returns even after eating all of the shrimp and two plastic lobsters. Even though he isn’t experiencing diminishing returns, Homer appears to be optimizing his utility since the marginal cost of each plate (and each plastic lobster) is $0.
Real Husbands of Hollywood — Kevin Needs His Sneakers
Kevin needs to get a pair of sneakers for his son, but only Nick has any around. Even though he hates Nick, he feels like he needs to pay big money in order to secure a pair for his son. By choosing to limit the number of shoes available, a shortage exists for the sneakers. Only toward the end do we learn that a black market dealer may have access to another pair of shoes.
Thanks to Ryan Welch for the clip!
The Man Show — Toilet Money (NSFW)
In this clip from the Man Show, Adam and Jimmy prank bathroom visitors by pouring a beer in a toilet along with fake feces and a $20 bill. The hosts try to guess whether the visitors are willing to put their hand in the toilet for $20.
Thanks Matt Rousu for this clip!
Narcos — We Have Miami
The group originally agreed to have sole control over Miami and New York and share Los Angeles among the two separate gangs, but it appears that independent members have been poaching areas from one another. The strength of a cartel is in their ability to self-regulate and to not over produce. Cartels have the ability to operate like a monopoly, but only if they’re stable.
Rick and Morty — Devaluing the Intergalactic Currency
One of the main characters just changed the value of the international currency to be zero which has the effect of causing all money to be worthless. The clip focuses on the president of the galactic federation and his aides discussing what to do about the sudden lack of money when the aides realize that without any money they won’t get paid and that they refuse to work for nothing. The president comes up with a solution that involves blowing his brains out with a handy space pistol.
Thanks for the summary and clip Ben Kupp!
The Simpsons — Pay What You Want
Homer and Lisa go to the Springfield Museum, but Homer isn’t sure he understands the entrance policy. He checks with the attendant, but doesn’t know why anyone would want to pay the suggested donation when they could go in without paying anything. Because the museum is available to everyone, regardless of whether they pay, it operates similar to a public good. The problem? Public goods are subject to free riders, like Homer.
Asrar Chowdhury has a great summary of this episode on The Daily Star as well.
Family Guy — Velocity of Money
Chris’s grandfather gives him a rare dollar bill for his birthday, but Chris doesn’t know about it at the time. The entire episode follows this dollar bill through the city of Quahog and shows the variety of people that interact with the same dollar. The concept of the velocity of money focuses on how many times a single bill can circulate throughout the economy. When a dollar is creator, assuming it isn’t leaked through the money system, it’s value is much more than the actual dollar amount at which it’s printed.
This clip is 10 minutes long (out of a 20-minute episode). There are some parts that may not be suitable for the classroom, so please watch in its entirety before showing in class.
Thanks to Michael Coon for the submission! Check him out on Twitter!
Friends — The Job is in Paris
In the beginning of the clip Rachel tells Ross that she got her old job back at Ralph Lauren. Ross asks if she is still going to take the job in Paris (which she was offered in the previous episode) since she was hired back at her old job. Rachel says she still wants to go to Paris because when the people at Loui Vuitton found out Ralph Lauren wanted her back they decided to offer her more money. This clip is a good example of opportunity cost, which is the loss of potential gain from other alternatives when one alternative is chosen. If Rachel wouldn’t have chosen, the job in Paris she would have been missing out on more money than if she would have stayed. Since she is taking the job in Paris her opportunity cost is that she will have to leave her friends and family.
Thanks Kailey Werkheiser for the clip and the summary!
Vox — Homer Simpson: An Economic Analysis
Homer has had about 100 jobs during his many years on television and Vox writers have analyzed his work life. If you plan on using a lot of Simpsons clips throughout your course, they may be a good introduction for students unfamiliar with the show.
How I Met Your Mother — Track & Field Robots
In this clip, Tracy has a small debate with her roommate about going out to a party on St. Patrick’s day. While her roommate tries to convince her to go out, claiming that she is doing nothing with her time, Tracy rebuttals and says how she is “about to enter my robots doing track and field events period” as she looks over at her painting she has been working on. This clip displays the concept of opportunity cost. If Tracy decides to go out she could potentially be finding a new possible soulmate but she would be giving up time to work on her painting. If she decided to stay home, she could improve and progress the work on her painting but she would be giving up her potential love she could be finding.
Thank you for the clip and summary James Hetherington!