Art is another area where people often say the market is inefficient. Some people say it is inefficient because it produces bad art others say it is inefficient because it does not produce enough art - often the two groups are talking about the same art.
Although nominally about art, the brilliant and ingenious paper by Tyler Cowen and some other guy also applies to the market for economists and other scientists, An Economic Theory of Avant-Garde and Popular Art, or High and Low Culture. Southern Economic Journal (2000) 67(2): 232-253. The paper explains that when production involves self-satisfaction (as in art, research etc) economic growth and increased income can drive produced output away from the desires of consumers thus resulting in a seemingly inefficient market. Alex -- Dr. Alexander Tabarrok Vice President and Director of Research The Independent Institute 100 Swan Way Oakland, CA, 94621-1428 Tel. 510-632-1366, FAX: 510-568-6040 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
