I like to work on a number of things simultaneously. If you're working on a variety of projects and if you get stuck on one of them, you can move to another without grinding your gears indefinitely.

There are some things that we value as a public good that the markets can't deliver, like clean air.

Devising a mechanism is a lot like solving a puzzle - and gives you the same kind of kick.

Markets work well with goods that economists call private goods.

This may not be the most serious problem in the world, but it is a familiar one: How do you divide a piece of cake equally between two children and also make sure that each of them sees it as a fair division?

Thinking is my hobby. But sometimes you get to where you're stuck and you can't figure it out, so you just go work on another project. I always have multiple projects.