Ben Waber

@bwaber@hci.social
1,091 Followers
595 Following
9.1K Posts
MIT Researcher, he/him, Senior Visiting Researcher @ Ritsumeikan, Co-Founder of Humanyze, former Senior Researcher @ HBS, author of People Analytics. Most days I'll also post a list of academic talks on AI, management, law, corporate governance, psychology, anthropology, ethics, and similar topics that I've listened to throughout the day (see #AcademicRunPlaylist for examples)
LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminwaber
Homepagehttps://web.media.mit.edu/~bwaber/
First was day 1 of NBER's corporate finance symposium. I particularly liked the talk by Jin Xu on taxes and private firms' capital structure choices https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdH4nJsLljY&list=WL (2/5) #economics
Corporate Finance, NBER Summer Institute

YouTube

Next was "Period" by @KateClancy, who has penned a masterpiece, examining menstruation from biological, anthropological, and historical perspectives to provide a holistic understanding of this core human function. Highly recommend

Full review: https://bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/review/7896299/s/an-incredible-important-examination-of-menstruation#anchor-7896299 (3/5) #science #biology

Ben Waber's review of Period - BookWyrm

Social Reading and Reviewing

I spotted my first wild koi, and while enjoying the local wildlife and simultaneously trying not to melt in the brutal heat I listened to some talks for my #AcademicRunPlaylist! (1/5)

Last was "Bad Medicine" by Sarah Whitt. Whitt does a service by diving into the sordid, surprisingly recent history of the institutionalization of American Indians, bringing together archival government documents and written accounts to present a shocking and largely unacknowledged stain on US history. This is an extremely tough but important read. Highly recommend

Full review: https://bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/review/7907054/s/a-shocking-devastating-history#anchor-7907054 (5/5) #history #indigenous

Ben Waber's review of Bad Medicine - BookWyrm

Social Reading and Reviewing

Next was "Kentucky Bourbon" by Henry Crowgey. This book is mostly a methodical review of the history of the whiskey economy in the few decades around the American Revolution, but it picks up towards the end with some fascinating analysis of technological changes around production and alcoholic proof measurement. Highly recommend

Full review: https://bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/review/7904030/s/a-mostly-by-the-numbers-historical-review-with-some-excellent-analysis#anchor-7904030 (4/5) #history

Ben Waber's review of Kentucky Bourbon - BookWyrm

Social Reading and Reviewing

The extreme Tokyo heat has necessitated a change in running strategy, but thanks to my lingering jet lag I was still able to get out for a decent amount of time and listen to a book for my #AcademicRunPlaylist! (1/2)

Today I listened to "The Art of Uncertainty" by David Spiegelhalter. The chapters on communicating uncertainty and making decisions/managing risk are close to unmissable. Spiegelhalter illuminates a variety of issues with different probability framing techniques and visualization methods, as well as how decision makers and statisticians can effectively work together

Full review: https://bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/review/7890250/s/a-probability-primer-with-great-chapters-on-probability-communication#anchor-7890250 (2/2) #statistics

Ben Waber's review of The Art of Uncertainty - BookWyrm

Social Reading and Reviewing

I had a great time at the Chiba Institute of Technology's School of Design & Science launch event (videos will be posted soon)! While walking to and from the venue I also enjoyed listening to talks from the Paris School of Economics for my #AcademicRunPlaylist! (1/7)
Last was an intriguing panel with Marianne Bertrand and Stefano Scarpetta on the policy approaches to reducing gender inequality https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQFJCZTmIGM (7/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: Policy conversation with Marianne Bertrand and Stefano Scarpetta

YouTube
Next was an interesting talk by Barbara Petrongolo challenges for the modern labor market https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCw_C0gwZ-0 (3/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: "Questions & challenges for 21st century labor markets" by B. Petrongolo

YouTube
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I had a great time at the Chiba Institute of Technology's School of Design & Science launch event (videos will be posted soon)! While walking to and from the venue I also enjoyed listening to talks from the Paris School of Economics for my #AcademicRunPlaylist! (1/7)
First was an excellent talk by David Autor on the history of the employment effects of technological change. David does a fantastic job situating current technological shifts and why designing technologies for things other than automation leads to much bigger economic effects. Highly recommend https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxOOjazwXC4 (2/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: "Expertise, AI, and the Work of the Future" by David Autor

YouTube
Next was an interesting talk by Barbara Petrongolo challenges for the modern labor market https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCw_C0gwZ-0 (3/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: "Questions & challenges for 21st century labor markets" by B. Petrongolo

YouTube
Next was a thought-provoking talk by Steven J. Davis on remote work trends https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZTBh3okP7U (4/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: "Why Working from Home Will Stick?" by Steven J. Davis

YouTube
Next was an engaging panel on remote work policies with Steven Davis, Michel Houdebine, and Éric Maurin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1PaGE2pT9I (5/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: Policy conversation with Steven J. Davis, Michel Houdebine & Éric Maurin

YouTube
Next was a great talk by Marianne Bertrand with an overview of the recent gender inequality research https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dSh2YjbVoM (6/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: "Gender Inequality: An Overview of the Latest Research" by M. Bertrand

YouTube
Last was an intriguing panel with Marianne Bertrand and Stefano Scarpetta on the policy approaches to reducing gender inequality https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQFJCZTmIGM (7/7)
PSE-CEPR Policy Forum 2025: Policy conversation with Marianne Bertrand and Stefano Scarpetta

YouTube