Economics: Relax, We’ll Be Fine

The United States already measures at the top or close to the top of nearly every global measure of economic competitiveness. A comprehensive 2008 Rand Corporation study found that the U.S. leads the world in scientific and technological development. The U.S. now accounts for a third of the world’s research-and-development spending. Partly as a result, the average American worker is nearly 10 times more productive than the average Chinese worker, a gap that will close but not go away in our lifetimes.

Interesting fact:

For every 10 percent reduction in population density, the odds that people will join a local club rise by 15 percent.

See Relax, We’ll Be Fine by David Brooks, April 5, 2010.