If you are interested in the oil industry, check out The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power by Daniel Yergin. It was published in the early 1990s, and looks at history through an energy sector lens from 1850 to that point. It was turned into a PBS documentary shortly thereafter. Fascinating stuff.Just finished "Why We Hate the Oil Companies: Straight Talk from an Energy Insider". It's a bit dated, but I know the author.
Just started "The Shield of Achilles - War, Peace and the Course of History" by Phillip Bobbit (a nephew of LBJ)
I've seem some reviews on Ariely. Should be interesting.Payoff: The Hidden Logic That Shapes Our Motivations by Dan Ariely
a study in behavioral economics
His book didn't provide any revelations for me; it just reinforced the case studies I read in business school. Economic policy should take into account more than math; it needs to pay attention to how policy produces incentives or disincentives to behavior. There are countless lessons that should be obvious, but they are often overlooked. How should compensation be structured? How does one properly encourage productivity? What kind of behavior is a government policy trying to encourage? The private sector often gets things wrong, but corrections (if the company wants to stay in business) are usually made. Government does a horrible job of even recognizing the concept of incentives - both in dealing with employees and with the public at large. But, there are no market forces that make government correct misguided policy.I've seem some reviews on Ariely. Should be interesting.