Tuesday's Assorted Links
Social media bans, electric vehicles, buying a home, auto insurance, and declining quality
Hi y’all! Here are five stories from this week that contained some neat applications of economic principles or are related to teaching:
Most Aussie teens still on social media 3 months after under-16 ban began, study finds [The Strait Times]
Something very odd is going on in the market for used electric vehicles [CNBC]
To comfortably afford a home at the US median price, Americans need to earn around $110,000 per year [USA Today]
Auto insurers didn’t pay out on 45% of auto liability and medical claims they resolved last year [The Wall Street Journal]
From backpacks to food, consumer goods are getting worse [The Guardian]
Budget phones and mid-range laptops are quietly disappearing from shelves, but it’s not because of inflation, tariffs, or the usual supply chain culprits. A memory chip shortage tied to the AI boom is reshaping who gets priced out of basic technology. Read the full breakdown to see exactly how a $75 phone lost a bidding war it never knew it was in.
The Middle Class of Tech Is Quietly Vanishing
Go try to find a smartphone for under $100 on Samsung’s website. You won’t. Head over to Best Buy, and you’ll find only two or three options in that price range. A few years ago, that shelf had a lot more on it. The cheapest tier of the market is the one shrinking fastest, and it’s not hard to see why. For these low-end smartphones, the bill of material…
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