Freakonomics

Anyone who walked into a multiplex this decade has wished they could pick their price for the movie, or perhaps more likely wished they could pay what they thought the movie was worth after the show. But ticket prices are traditionally out of your control. That's what makes the launch of the...

Among today's top online stories for investors are the best dividend stocks for a tough environment, a deep value analysis of Dr Pepper, China's one-child policy, and a somewhat bullish take on yesterday's dismal housing news.

A New York Times blogger argues that wasting food is worse for the environment than a bit of plastic packaging that extends its shelf life, since the methane food produces when it decays. But composting and buying locally would better solve the problem.

If stores seem picked over this year, don't be fooled into thinking you just missed a crazy sale. It's deliberate. Retailers expect growth and profits in 2010 won't come from new stores, but rather from merchandising the existing ones to the hilt -- with less, but more exclusive merchandise.

Michael Milken thinks the next big crisis is in sovereign debt. _________________ Freakonomics is curious why flight attendants don't get tips. _________________ Wow. Amazon (AMZN) is upgraded again. Here's why. _________________

More reasons that the recession is over. _________________ Super Freakonomics denies Global Warming -- or does it? _________________ Six essential elements to buying companies like Warren Buffett. _________________

For anyone who thinks economics is boring, the authors of Super Freakonomics turn that idea on its head. With tales of how people respond to incentives, and digging up various statistics to highlight points you've probably never thought of before, the follow-up book to Freakonomics by Steven D....

Is Dow 10,000 a blessing . . . or a curse? ____________________ Whoah! Elliot Spitzer does it again: Nine questions for Ben Bernanke. (By the way, quick advice for slate.com: it's better for search engine optimization if the URL contains the title of the article.) ____________________ If you had...