This video is almost entirely based on a post by Oliver Kim:
I read it and immediately thought it was a wonderful example of using research to unravel a genuine mystery. I then combined it with my love of Police Squad / The Naked Gun, and the accompanying video is the result.
In many ways, this is my ideal Econ Nerds video. It combines economic research, curiosity, and humor. We’ll see how it performs, but I’d love to do more in this style—so let us know if you’d like more.
Recommendations:
If you’re looking for similar humor, I recommend Karate P.I.
For background data, here is Our World in Data on Engel curves:
https://ourworldindata.org/engels-law-food-spending
If you want more economics, I strongly recommend the original Oliver Kim post—and honestly, almost anything he writes.
Works Cited:
Kuznets, Simon. “National Income, 1929-1932.” National Income, 1929-1932. NBER, 1934. 1-12.
Nakamura, Emi, Jón Steinsson, and Miao Liu. “Are Chinese growth and inflation too smooth? Evidence from Engel curves.” American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics 8.3 (2016): 113-144.
Martinez, Luis R. “How much should we trust the dictator’s GDP growth estimates?.” Journal of Political Economy 130.10 (2022): 2731-2769.
