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Scientists and philosophers have spent a lot of their time and energy trying to describe what makes humans different from animals. So have economists. Blue-striped cleaner wrasses at work. Photo by Gregory R. Mann But it turns out that animals have economic market behaviors similar to humans, such as customer differentiation (a fish called the cleaner wrasse) and bidding out their labor (the paper wasp). For this blog post I am indebted to Stephen J. Dubner's "The Invisible Paw" podcast. He interviewed a scientist who described how the cleaner wrasse, which removes parasites and dead scales from other fish, treats its "clients" in line with the principles of market economics. (Photo is from the WildCoastBlog ). Read more �

Counterfeit A few years ago - in the early years of the 21st Century - Canada had a problem with forged money. Southern Ontario was hit with a large number of forged $100 bills, bills good enough to pass an inspection by all but the most cautious. Eventually, some of these forged bills made it to many parts of the country. Wesley Weber and a group of teens and young adults had set up a home-based business using computer images and special paper to manufacture counterfeit currency. When they were finally caught, the situation had become so bad that the Canadian bills had to be redesigned with more security features. Wesley Weber, a career criminal, was a self-taught mastermind who had spent years tinkering with banknotes to perfect the simulated images and security features. These skills earned him a conviction for cheque forgery ring in 1997, and another for counterfeiting $10 and $20 bills since 1999. He was arrested in October 2000 for passing a counterfeit $100 at an auto parts supp...

Wesley Weber who was one of the world�s most famous counterfeiters (forging millions of bank notes) is arguably the first image that comes to mind when counterfeiting is being discussed. From the start, Wesley Weber�s goal was to live the good life�fast cars, beautiful women, lavish parties. But that took money, lots of it. He tried financing his dreams with a series of petty thefts, growing marijuana, and forgery until he was busted in 1997 and spent three months in jail. Two years later his marijuana operation netted 18 months of house arrest and 240 hours of community service. Weber needed a better way to subsidize his ambitions. Then it hit him. Why not print his own money? Putting Technology to Work Weber had always been a computer geek. As a kid, he�d tried duplicating Canadian 10s and 20s but decided doing it on a large scale wouldn�t be practical with the equipment he had. After several years of science and engineering classes, he thought it was worth another try. He scanned an...

Wesley Weber who was one of the world�s most famous counterfeiters (forging millions of bank notes) is arguably the first image that comes to mind when counterfeiting is being discussed. However, no matter the product existing in the marketplace, there is every chance that a fraudster is working hard to release a cloned version. Fake goods and the global economy By 2020, counterfeit goods might cost the global economy about half a trillion dollars. Global counterfeiting is on the rise in every industry; from the fashion industry to the retail sector, food industry, and virtually any sector you can think of. It may surprise you to know that counterfeit items cost the fashion industry a whooping sum of �5 billion in annual revenue. Effects of counterfeit goods on the economy The FBI stated in a report that about 7-8% of the world�s trade every year is in forged products. Counterfeit goods have been a nuisance for Alibaba, Taobao, and many top brands. Alibaba said in a statement, �We have...

An ongoing probe in a corruption case has led the Central Bureau of In�ves�ti�ga�tion to stumble upon documents showing many se�nior government officials allegedly transferring money abroad through hawala. The discovery followed the arrest of Neeraj Kochar, the owner of Vi�raj Profiles, from Mumbai. Sources said the role of a few anti-corruption officers is under the scanner. Authorities are ver�i�fy�ing the contents of the seized papers to find if there is any mention of CBI�S antiaircraft officers. The papers were re�cov�ered from the premises of a caterer on Wednesday.