The Boy Toy auction gets a little heated as the ladies of One Tree Hill are down to the final boy, Nathan. The auction values start to get high, but they are intent on not letting the other ladies get Nathan. They work together to get the bid up to a point where no one else can participate.
ABC 20/20 — A Test on Looks
A 20/20 investigation into how we subtly discriminate based on looks when it comes to donating to charity. About 1/5 people in total donated money, but requesters who were rated as better looking raised more money than the other requesters. Better looking women were able to raise twice as much money as their counterparts.
The Simpsons — Free Rider
This clip presents a curious problem, class elections take place and one candidate is wildly more popular; however, the election doesn’t turn out the way one would expect. Ask your students what exactly is happening in this clip; and, if they’ve ever experienced it. This clip is good for teaching Free Riding as it pertains to voting and irrational voting.
Luccasen, R. Andrew, and M. Kathleen Thomas. “Simpsonomics: Teaching Economics Using Episodes of The Simpsons.” The Journal of Economic Education 41.2 (2010): 136-49. Print.
Find more at Adrian Fohr’s Critical Common’s page.
Sesame Street — Cookie Monster Wants It
The Cookie Monster is working on self-control, but he may not know about discounting. This clip would be really good to introduce discounting and time preferences even though Cookie Monster isn’t getting anything for waiting.
Outsourced — Made in America
Many people are upset with outsourcing, but they aren’t willing to pay the price difference to ensure their products are made in America. In this scene from Outsourced, Asha walks an angry customer through the process of locating an American-made product only to find that he isn’t interested in paying the higher price.
Frozen — Big Summer Blowout
The local shop owner is having a big summer blowout sale and prices are low! The problem is that in this magical world, summer items aren’t exactly in high demand.
Thanks to Christine Cai for the clip!
Pixar — One Man Band
This clip is a great introduction to monopolistic competition. Each performer provides a similar service, but they are not perfect substitutes for one another. When a new competitor enters a market, the demand for the original firms decreases and profits should fall as well.
ABC News: GW Bridge Painter: Dangerous Jobs
Hanging more than 600 feet above 24 lanes of traffic for these guys is just another day at the office.