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Author Archives: F. E. Guerra-Pujol
“Visualizing Probabilistic Proof”
That is the title of our latest paper on the blue bus problem, a favorite law-school hypothetical of torts and evidence professors. (We wrote up a first draft of our paper in Tarpon Springs, Florida during the summer of 2013 and made some stylistic … Continue reading
What ESPN doesn’t want you to hear
Addendum: By the way, while we’re on the subject of ESPN’s three-week suspension of Bill Simmons, check out this original analysis of the economics of employee suspensions here. (Tyler Cowen offers two possible economic explanations of employee suspensions.) This part of … Continue reading
Posted in Bayesian Reasoning, Deception, Language
Tagged Audio, Bill Simmons, SoundCloud
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Who pays?
Is Wal-Mart legally liable for the wrongful death of John Crawford III? The victim was carrying an air rifle sold at the store.
When are you most productive?
In terms of writing and thinking, we are most productive in the mornings. We are in good company in this regard:
Posted in Art, Questions Rarely Asked, Time
Tagged Austin Frakt, Ernest Hemingway, Tyler Cowen
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In defense of simple models
We just found a 1963 reprint of W.W. Sawyer’s little book Mathematician’s Delight at Mostly Books, a family-owned bookstore on 529 Bainbridge Street in Philadelphia. In chapter 2 of his book, which was first published in 1943, Prof. Sawyer notes “the connexion between reason and imagination,” stating … Continue reading
Posted in Mathematics, Philosophy
Tagged Abstraction, Reduction, Simple Models, W.W. Sawyer
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Tattoos, signals, and property rights
Tattoos have a long history (even Queen Victoria reportedly had a tattoo; see the TED video below), but why do people get tattoos? We see tattoos (or “body art” more generally) as a form of signaling, so what does a tattoo signal, … Continue reading
Constitutional questions
1. Is there a single set of identifiable and determinate principles that animate the U.S. Constitution (or Great Britain’s unwritten constitution, for that matter)? If so, what are they? 2. What is the role of State and federal courts, if any, … Continue reading
Constitutional theory is unfalsifiable
As we noted in our previous post, we are attending a two-day colloquium on Richard A. Epstein’s latest tome The Classical Liberal Constitution. At the end of yesterday’s discussion, one legal scholar (Thomas Merrill) posed the following fundamental question: Do we need a … Continue reading
“The Classical Liberal Constitution”
That is the title of Richard A. Epstein’s latest book. We are attending a two-day colloquium in Philadelphia this week-end to discuss various aspects of Prof. Epstein’s book with a small group of other legal scholars. We will keep you … Continue reading
prior probability 