Economist

A physicist, an architect, and an economist were marooned on a desert island with a can of beans.

They contemplated on how to open the can.

The physicist observed that the can could be placed on their fire and would create so much pressure that the can would explode and the beans could be retrieved.

The architect thought that this would be a rather messy solution to the problem and suggested building a small enclosure around the fire. Then, when the can exploded, the beans would splatter on the walls of the enclosure, from which they could then be scraped.

The economist had a better solution. First, he said, “Assume that we have a can opener …"





An economist is someone who, when he finds something that works in practice, tries to make it work in theory. If you laid all the economists in the world end to end, they still wouldn't reach a conclusion.

Admittedly, that's a somewhat tired old story. I came across some amusing contributions in sci.econ a while back, however, about what might be the parting words of an economist lying on his deathbed. As a variation on the can-opener story, someone suggested that the economist's last words should've been, 

"Assume that everyone on the island will live infinitely ..."

- David Wildasin, Endowed Professorship in Martin School of Public Policy at the University of Kentucky

항시 논리 정연하고 합리적 사고만을 추구, 늘 잠재적 리스크 측정에 목매는 경제학적 마인드. 진짜 뭐든 회의만 하다 날샌다. 주위 사람들에게 민폐만 끼치는 탁상공론(卓上空論), 기우(杞憂)의 대가. 실행이 없는 계획은 없느니 못한.

이거 완전 내 얘기다.