Business 2.0 magazine publishes an annual cover story called"The 101 Dumbest Moments in Business." Featuring 101 hilariousitems about the year’s most unbelievably stupid business blunders,it’s hugely popular with its more than half a million printsubscribers—and with the two million people who read it on the Webthis year. In The Dumbest Moments in Business History, the editorsof Business 2.0 have compiled the best of their first four annualissues plus great (or not so great, if you happen to beresponsible) moments from the past. From New Coke to the Edsel, from Rosie magazine to Burger King’s"Herb the Nerd," the book’s highlights include: ? a Romanian car plant whose workers banded together to eliminatethe company’s debt by donating sperm and giving the proceeds totheir employer ? the Heidelberg Electric Belt, a sort of low-voltage jockstrapsold in 1900 to cure impotence, kidney disorders, insomnia, andmany other complaints ? the time Beech-Nut sold "100% pure apple

Pomeranz is a history professor at the University of California^-Irvine and the author of The Making of a Hinterland: State, Society, and Economy in Inland North China, 1853^-1937 (1993), an academic study that investigated the role of steam-powered transportation (among other developments) in the growth of China's Shantung Province. He is also the coauthor of the more popularly accessible The World That Trade Created (1999). Now he looks at the question of why sustained industrial growth began in northwestern Europe but not East Asia. To even ask the question can bring charges of Eurocentrism, but Pomeranz acknowledges the role of colonialism in Europe's growth. He emphasizes, though, Europe's access to America's resources as one of two contributing factors to industrial growth, the second being the widespread availability within Europe of coal as a fuel. After challenging the convention that Europe held an edge before 1800, he traces with scholarly diligence the diverging patterns of growth between Europe a

For many, Thomas Carlyle's put-down of economics as "the dismal science" rings true--especially in the aftermath of the crash of 2008. But Diane Coyle argues that economics today is more soulful than dismal, a more practical and human science than ever before. The Soulful Science describes the remarkable creative renaissance in economics, how economic thinking is being applied to the paradoxes of everyday life. This revised edition incorporates the latest developments in the field, including the rise of behavioral finance, the failure of carbon trading, and the growing trend of government bailouts. She also discusses such major debates as the relationship between economic statistics and presidential elections, the boundary between private choice and public action, and who is to blame for today's banking crisis.

Capital, one of Marx's major and most influential works, wasthe product of thirty years close study of the capitalist mode ofproduction in England, the most advanced industrial society of hisday. This new translation of Volume One, the only volume to becompleted and edited by Marx himself, avoids some of the mistakesthat have marred earlier versions and seeks to do justice to theliterary qualities of the work. The introduction is by ErnestMandel, author of Late Capitalism, one of the only comprehensiveattempts to develop the theoretical legacy of Capital. --This textrefers to the Paperback edition.

Unfinished at the time of Marx'sdeath in 1883 and first published with a preface by FrederickEngels in 1894, the third volume of "Das Kapital" strove to combinethe theories and concepts of the two previous volumes in order toprove conclusively that capitalism is inherently unworkable as apermanent system for society. Here, Marx asserts controversiallythat - regardless of the efforts of individual capitalists, publicauthorities or even generous philanthropists - any market economyis inevitably doomed to endure a series of worsening, explosivecrises leading finally to complete collapse. But he also offers aninspirational and compelling prediction: that the end of capitalismwill culminate, ultimately, in the birth of a far greater form ofsociety.

The official guide to making a bundle buying and selling through Alibaba.com, the world′s largest online B2B marketplaceAlibaba.com is the world′s leading global business–to–business online marketplace. People around the world use it every day to import and export products for big profits. But newcomers are often overwhelmed by the sheer number of products and the quantity of information available.The Official Alibaba.com Success Guide shows you how to ramp up your business or build an entirely new business, using the Alibaba.com brand and web site as your supplier. This practical guide provides simple answers for complex questions, from navigating the site, to finding products at the right price, to branding, and much more. Plus, the book includes best practices for importing, locating and vetting suppliers, and protecting yourself against online fraud.??? ? An answer–packed guide? for all your questions about doing business through Alibaba.com??? ? Officially licensed and supported by Aliba

The road to global security," writes Jeremy Rifkin, "lies inlessening our dependence on Middle East oil and making sure thatall people on Earth have access to the energy they need to sustainlife. Weaning the world off oil and turning it toward hydrogen is apromissory note for a safer world." Rifkin's internationalbestseller The Hydrogen Economy presents the clearest, mostcomprehensive case for moving ourselves away from the destructiveand waning years of the oil era toward a new kind of energy regime.Hydrogen-one of the most abundant substances in the universe-holdsthe key, Rifkin argues, to a cleaner, safer, and more sustainableworld.

The truth behind the causes and effects of America's economicdownturn. The Complete Idiot's Guide(r) to the Financial Crisis explainsthe root causes and connects the events and issues with theproblems that have confronted Americans over the course of morethan a year, giving readers an unvarnished, unbiased, and in-depthanalysis of the factors that lead up to the crisis, the majorevents that defined it, and the decisions and ramifications thatresulted from it. ?Interest in the financial crisis continues to build with severalhigh- profile books and an HBO movie due out in 2010, as well asthe success of Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story ?Much of the financial crisis writing to date has been of thebreaking news variety-this book will be one of the first bookspublished after the smoke has cleared to offer a comprehensiveanalysis of what happened and how

Raghuram Rajan was one of the few economists who warned of the global financial crisis before it hit. Now, as the world struggles to recover, it's tempting to blame what happened on just a few greedy bankers who took irrational risks and left the rest of us to foot the bill. In Fault Lines, Rajan argues that serious flaws in the economy are also to blame, and warns that a potentially more devastating crisis awaits us if they aren't fixed. Rajan shows how the individual choices that collectively brought about the economic meltdown--made by bankers, government officials, and ordinary homeowners--were rational responses to a flawed global financial order in which the incentives to take on risk are incredibly out of step with the dangers those risks pose. He traces the deepening fault lines in a world overly dependent on the indebted American consumer to power global economic growth and stave off global downturns. He exposes a system where America's growing inequality and thin social safety net create treme

Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" was the first comprehensivetreatment of political economy. Originally delivered in the form oflectures at Glasgow, the book's publication in 1776 co-incided withAmerica's Declaration of Independence. These volumes includeSmith's assessment of the mercantile system, his advocacy of thefreedom of commerce and industry, and his famous prophecy that"America will be one of the foremost nations of the world".

What have the invention of the wheel, Pompeii, the Wall StreetCrash, Harry Potter and the internet got in common? Why are allforecasters con-artists? What can Catherine the Great’s lovers tellus about probability? Why should you never run for a train or reada newspaper? This book is all about Black Swans: the random eventsthat underlie our lives, from bestsellers to world disasters. Theirimpact is huge; they’re impossible to predict; yet after theyhappen we always try to rationalize them. A rallying cry to ignorethe ‘experts’, The Black Swan shows us how to stop trying topredict everything – and take advantage of uncertainty.

Freakonomics revealed much about our society. Now, one ofAmerica’s most respected economists reveals how individuals canturn economic reasoning to their advantage in their daily life—athome, at work, even on vacation. Tyler Cowen explains howunderstanding the incentives that work best with each individual isthe key to successful and satisfactory daily interactions—fromgetting the kids to do the dishes to having a productive businessmeeting, attracting a mate to finding a good guide in a foreigncountry. Discovering your inner economist, Cowen suggests, can leadto a happier, more satisfying life. What better carrot could youask for?

Malcolm Gladwell is the master of playful yet profound insight. His ability to see underneath the surface of the seemingly mundane taps into a fundamental human impulse: curiosity. From criminology to ketchup, job interviews to dog training, Malcolm Gladwell takes everyday subjects and shows us surprising new ways of looking at them, and the world around us.Are smart people overrated? What can pit bulls teach us about crime? Why are problems like homelessness easier to solve than to manage? How do we hire when we can't tell who's right for the job? Gladwell explores the minor geniuses, the underdogs and the overlooked, and reveals how everyone and rything contains an intriguing story. What the Dog Saw is Gladwell at his very best - asking questions and seeking answers in his inimitable style.

Now in paperback-an inside look at Countrywide HomeLoans and the mortgage crisis, from a former mortgage lenderexecutive. In July 2004, Adam Michaelson attended a high-levelmeeting at Countrywide Financial headquarters about a new loanproduct that would allow borrowers to pay less than theirminimum monthly payment. The "finance jocks" believed that thebooming housing market would only get bigger, supporting homeownersin a cycle of borrowing against their houses and refinancing later.They were wrong. And when the bottom dropped out, Countrywidesuffered the consequences-as did millions of Americans. With an insider's knowledge and thorough reporting on the impact onAmerican families and the ripple effects on the economy, Michaelsonexamines the marketing of a mirage and the bad business decisionsthat destroyed a company, confronts the ethical questions that havearisen in the wake of the foreclosure crisis, and offers creativeproposals to prevent such a meltdown from ever happeningagain.

John C. Bogles The Little Book of燙ommon SenseInvesting爄s a power-packed explanation of why outperforming themarket is an investor illusion. Instead, the man who has beencalled "the conscience of the investment industry" recommends asimple, time-tested investment strategyindexingthat can deliver thegreatest return to the greatest number of investors. Why? Investingis a zero sum game where transaction costs, taxes, poor investmentdiversification, and poor market-timing (an affliction for mostinvestors) hurts your portfolio more than it helps. Indexingeliminates that hurt. Bottom-line, if you cant be an index, why notinvest in one. And youll be all the happier and richer for it.

Ben Bernanke's swearing in as Federal Reserve chairman in 2006marked the end of Alan Greenspan's long, legendary career. To date,the new chair has garnered mixed reviews. Business economists seehim as the best-qualified successor to Greenspan, while manytraders and investors worry that he's too academic for the job.Meanwhile, ordinary Americans do not even know who he is. How will Bernanke's leadership affect the Fed's actions in thecoming years? How will Bernanke build on Greenspan's success, butalso put his own stamp on the Fed? What will all this imply forbusinesses and investors? In Ben Bernanke's Fed, Ethan Harrisprovides exceptional insights into these crucial issues. Engaging and discerning, this book demystifies the man who hasstepped into what many describe as the second most powerful job inAmerica.

You live in this world. You use oil. You must read this book.The situation is alarming and irrefutable: within thirty years,even by conservative estimates, we will have burned our way throughmost of the oil that is readily available to us. Already, thecostly side effects of dependence on fossil fuel are taking theirtoll. Even as oil-related conflict threatens entire nations,individual consumers are suffering from higher prices at the gaspump, rising health problems, and the grim prospect of long-termenvironmental damage. In this frank and balanced investigation,Paul Roberts offers a timely wake-up call. He talks to both oiloptimists and oil pessimists, delves deep into the economics andpolitics of oil, and considers the promises and pitfalls ofalternatives such as wind power, hybrid cars, and hydrogen. A newafterword brings the book up to the minute. Brisk, immediate, andaccessible, this is essential reading for anyone who uses oil,which is to say every one of us.

The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is David S. Landes's acclaimed, best-selling exploration of one of the most contentious and hotly debated questions of our time: Why do some nations achieve economic success while others remain mired in poverty? The answer, as Landes definitively illustrates, is a complex interplay of cultural mores and historical circumstance. Rich with anecdotal evidence, piercing analysis, and a truly astonishing range of erudition, The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is a "picture of enormous sweep and brilliant insight" (Kenneth Arrow) as well as one of the most audaciously ambitious works of history in decades.

In the vein of the bestselling Salt and Cod, a grippingchronicle of the myth, mystery, and uncertain fate of the world’smost popular fruit In this fascinating and surprising exploration of the banana’shistory, cultural significance, and endangered future,award-winning journalist Dan Koeppel gives readers plenty of foodfor thought. Fast-paced and highly entertaining, Banana takes usfrom jungle to supermarket, from corporate boardrooms to kitchentables around the world. We begin in the Garden of Eden—examiningscholars’ belief that Eve’s “apple” was actually a banana— andtravel to early-twentieth-century Central America, where aptlynamed “banana republics” rose and fell over the crop, while thecompanies now known as Chiquita and Dole conquered the marketplace.Koeppel then chronicles the banana’s path to the present,ultimately—and most alarmingly—taking us to banana plantationsacross the globe that are being destroyed by a fast-moving blight,with no cure in sight—and to th

Updated for paperback - an up-to-the-minute look at thechallenges met by Fed chair Ben Bernanke in trying to clean up theproblems affecting the U.S. economy that he inherited from hispredecessor, Alan Greenspan, informed by a historical look at howother central bankers have dealt with similar crises. Thesuccession of crises facing the U.S. economy in 2008 and 2009 havethrown a bright spotlight on Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke.Each of his moves to address the disastrous economic conditions arereported and analyzed at length in the press as he works tomitigate the effects of the sub-prime lending debacle and resultingcredit crisis. Bernanke is undergoing a stern test as America'scentral banker - a test created for him, in large part, by hispredecessor, Alan Greenspan. This new paperback edition of"Bernanke's Test" is completely updated with events through the endof 2009. As such, it's among the most valuable and up-to-the-minuteworks on Bernanke's career as Fed chair published to date, makingit a

Financial reports provide vital information to investors,lenders, and managers. Yet, the financial statements in a financialreport seem to be written in a foreign language that onlyaccountants can understand. This Seventh Edition of How to Read aFinancial Report breaks through the language barrier, clears awaythe fog, and offers a plain-English user's guide to financialreports. The book helps you get a sure-handed grip on the profit,cash flow, and financial condition of any business.