This is a classroom activity using the free ESPN Fantasy Baseball platform to draft players and the Out of the Park software ($40) to simulate a baseball season. The activity enhances learning of economic concepts of marginal product and competitive balance. It also improves the data literacy...

This paper analyzes the impact of exchange rate risk on global food supply chains. Although the theoretical literature suggests ambivalence regarding the sign and magnitude of this effect, most empirical studies indicate a negative association between exchange rate volatility and international...

We study the impact of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine on corn, wheat, and soybean futures prices. The war provides a natural experiment to evaluate whether futures markets are driven by investor herding. Using event study methods, we find that wheat futures prices rose by 30 percent above...

Ambient air pollution is the environmental factor with the greatest impact on human health. Several epidemiological studies provide evidence for an association between ambient air pollution and human health. However, the recent economic literature has challenged the identification strategy used...

Despite the growing skepticism regarding the efficacy of antidepressants, global consumption has increased at an unprecedented rate with unknown implications for society. We estimate the causal effect of this increase on mental health outcomes using an instrumental variable strategy that...

Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) is a neophyte from North America that has spread rapidly throughout Europe. Because the pollen of common ragweed is highly allergic, many countries have adopted containment and mitigation measures. The neophyte has only recently established flowering...

The paper examines trends and drivers for regional specialization of China’s agricultural produc-tion for 2003-2011. We apply the Regional Specialization Index to a data set of commodities that covers 70 percent of China’s crop and livestock production. Actual prices at the provincial level...