Good schools make good neighbors: Human capital spillovers in early 20th century agriculture:
Formal schooling has a significant impact on modern agricultural productivity but there is little evidence quantifying the historical importance of schools in the early development of the American agricultural sector. I present new data from the Midwest at the start of the twentieth century showing that the emerging public schools were helping farmers successfully adapt to a variety of agricultural innovations. I use a unique dataset of farmers containing detailed geographical information to estimate both the private returns to schooling and human capital spillovers across neighboring farms. The results indicate that public schools contributed substantially to agricultural productivity at the turn of the century and that a large portion of this contribution came through human capital spillovers. These findings offer new insights into why the Midwest was a leader in the expansion of secondary education.
New paper by John Parman at William & Mary. Need to read this.
10,000 Singers - Symphony No. 9, Fourth Movement (“Ode to Joy”) (Osaka-jō Hall, 2011)
What it says on the tin. Ten-thousand (non-professional) Japanese singers, wailing the shit out of some Ludwig Van.
Pretty amazing.
Sanity Break: 10,000 member choir sings Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”
In this video from Osaka, Japan, a 10,000 member amateur choir performs the “Ode to Joy” section of Beethoven’s Symphony Number Nine. The concert is an annual event, but this year’s performance — recorded in late December 2011 — was dedicated to the victims of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Jump straight to 06:40 if you just want the money shot. But, don’t miss out on some of the wide, crowd shots. It’s shivery.
Joy, beautiful spark of the gods
Daughter of Elysium,
We enter, drunk with fire,
Heavenly one, your sanctuary!
@FakeCivilWar is far and away my favorite jokey twitter.
Yeah, buddy
GOOD. FAST. CHEAP. PICK ONE. (WE THINK YOU KNOW WHICH ONE.)
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” —Full Stop — Web design from Pittsburgh, PA
Going pro means having the courage to turn away business.
This guy just donated $40 million to build a velodrome in Brooklyn Bridge Park. I love New York.
(Source: youtube.com)
(via merlin)
