#AcademicRunPlaylist - 11/26/25

I took my youngest out for a bike ride through the woods, and earlier in the day I listened to talks and read books for my #AcademicRunPlaylist!

First was an interesting talk by François Pomerleau on autonomous driving on snow and ice at the University of Toronto Robotics Institute https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B7nARLVzzM

Next was “Money Changes Everything” by William N. Goetzmann. This book would more accurately be titled "The History of Finance," since while it goes a bit into the influence of finance outside of that sphere the analysis is limited. That being said, the research going into this book is laudable - Goetzmann synthesizes a huge geographical and temporal range of primary sources and research to track changes in finance across millennia, importantly with a global lens. For background information on the field, as well as a book to refer back to, this is an invaluable resource https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691143781/money-changes-everything

Last was “Conceptualizing Capitalism” by Geoffrey Hodgson. I don't issue this praise lightly: this is the best economics book ever written. The barrier to entry for this book is a bit high, but if you have a grounding in the space already be prepared for a tour de force. Hodgson methodically works through the notion of "capitalism" - its constituent parts, theoretical and empirical underpinnings, and its real world implications - with a depth of research that is awe-inspiring (the citations here are incredible). What emerges is both a rigorous definition and understanding of capitalism, and economics more broadly, with robust skewering of simplistic analyses from the Marxist, neoclassical, and neoliberal traditions - you almost never get all of these in one volume. This is one for the ages. Highly recommend https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo18523749.html