Tim Worstall

A university maths tutor has discovered the science behind singledom, finding that our chances of finding the perfect partner are just 1 in 285,000. Well, yes. The paper is here. Slightly dubious assumptions made, it has to be said. For example, his paramater fb. He says he might find 5% of university educated women, aged [...]

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James Cameron, the director of the 3D blockbuster Avatar, has been accused of ripping off ideas from two popular Soviet Union science fiction writers. Well, yes, there do seem to be similarities. But then he’s also ripped off Dances with Wolves, Pocahontas and any number of other trite fables.

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Minimum prices for alcoholic drinks would be set by the Government under radical plans being drawn up to cut Britain’s growing binge-drinking problem. OK, well, we’ve been told that this is illegal under EU laws for a start. Greece tried the same thing with tobacco and got slapped down. But given a minimum price then [...]

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The other blog, the Typepad one. Traffic was running along at 2-3,000 page views a day. Then a week ago is dropped sharply to 200-300 a day. Given that almost all of the traffic was coming from old posts it’s not because I’ve not put much up there recently. I have a feeling that it [...]

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It might sound a little strange to recommend that you travel north in the middle of a cold snap (erm, adjust that to the sort of warmer winter that climate change is bringing us) but there is a logic to it. For those places further north are always colder and so life and buildings have [...]

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A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the majority discovers it can vote itself largess out of the public treasury. After that, the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits with the result the democracy collapses because of the loose fiscal policy ensuing, always [...]

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MOTORISTS desperate for sand to spread over icy and snow-covered roads have been raiding beaches. You know, make do and mend, get on with things without waiting for the government to “help”.

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How wonderful it is, what a joyous and irreversible thing. What grates though is that he doesn’t even mention the most important point. A single currency requires a single interest rate. And a large number of the problems places are facing at the moment have been caused by that very single interest rate.

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Yes, I know, the law is the law: The former Royal Marine, who became notorious for his naked hike from Land’s End to John O’Groats in 2003, has spent much of the past seven years in prison for repeatedly appearing nude in public. He was yesterday found guilty of breaching the peace when he walked [...]

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Marvels: This, I stress is not a minor difference. This is the two bodies being fundamentally at odds with each other and with the IASB being absolutely in the wrong. The IASB promotes the mark to market model. This is the absolute reverse of what accounting used to be when it came to bad debts. Accountants always used to anticipate losses on debts and make provision for them. This was prudent. But [...]

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To watch the new Peugeot campaign. You lucky, lucky, people you.

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Baroness Ashton to call on CND experience in EU role. Phone call for Mr. Putin, phone call for Mr. Putin. Some bird on the line asking about whether there’s any more of that Moscow gold?

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David Cameron says that the life chances of children depend more upon the quality of parenting than upon the money available to the parents. Polly tells him off. Then Polly rolls out all the evidence that quality of parenting matters more than the money available to the parents and thus we must redistribute more. She [...]

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At the ASI. The more restrictive the planning permission regime the greater the recent housing bubble. Thus to avoid bubbles in the future we should lighten the planning restrictions.

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Newsweek recently noted that worldwide, women’s income is expected to grow by more than $5 trillion by 2013, thanks to rising female employment and a narrowing pay gap: most household spend is already controlled by women, Interesting point all too often overlooked. Women do indeed, on average, earn less than men. Yet they control the [...]

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To an extent he’s right, he over eggs it more than a tad but yes, the near genocide of the Native Americans was indeed an appalling chapter in history. But to see it purely as a crime that “we”, the white folks, committed upon “they” the brown folks, is hugely too simplistic. Or at least, [...]

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Lordy this man has some interesting ideas. Similarly, Britain’s ability to feed itself has been in long-term decline, and food prices are reportedly rising in the cold spell. It was only two years ago that droughts in Australia caused a crisis in world grain supplies; in April 2008 food crises affected at least 37 countries [...]

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This one for example: In the most direct sign yet that his administration will penalise the world’s biggest banks, officials close to President Barack Obama are understood to be drawing up plans that would likely levy a one-off tax on bank’s profits. At a time when we’re all hoping that the banks will increase their [...]

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Lordy: Parents are giving children unhealthy packed lunches as research has found that only one per cent meet nutritional standards set for schools. My word. So, umm, who sponsored this research? Judy Hargadon, Chief Executive of the School Food Trust, said: “Once again, this research highlights why buying a well-balanced school lunch is now the [...]

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Agencies responsible for the supply and distribution of grit were due to hold another salt summit on Tuesday as forecasters warned of more snow on the way. That’s the way to do it! Have a meeting! Make a plan! FFS, it would deliver more salt more quickly if these people were simply sent with a [...]

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