One of the difficult ideas to explain in economics is how a spontaneously ordered markets result in such a marvelous outcome: the greatest benefit to society from the allocation of resources. Markets, with proper laws and foundational regulations, guide self-interested or greedy agents into creative, innovative actions that are not only good for the involved economic agent, but society as a whole.
It is not easy to convey the efficiency of spontaneously ordered markets to students. They seem to understand how self-interest or greed orders an individual’s activities profitably, but not how this benefit extends to society. Russ Roberts, in his EconTalk interview with Deborah Gordon, "Gordon on Ants, Humans, the Division of Labor and Emergent Order," discovers a brilliant example to describe spontaneous order—ant colonies.
Ant colonies are well ordered and appear to operate under some sort of central command, but it is not so. The colonies have no central planner. Each ant secretes pheromones and hydrocarbons based on conditions surrounding the colony. Other ants smell the pheromones and hydrocarbons, and use these scents to guide their actions into digging, patrolling, and foraging. As the scents change, ants alter their behavior and the colony adapts and prospers.
Imagine the confusion that would result if a queen ant did order activity in the colony. How would the queen know the conditions around the colony? Should the ants dig, and how deep? How many ants should patrol and where? Once patrolling is accomplished, how many ants should forage and in what direction? Each reporting function would be new to the colony, time consuming, contain less information than spontaneously ordered functions, and be totally unnecessary.
Humans behave in a manner similar to ants. Each has an infinitesimal knowledge about the overall functioning of the economy. The best home builder (brightest, hardest working and most honest) probably has no idea how roof tiles are produced, let alone how automobiles are assembled. Each individual collects information provided by prices and profits and directs his or her activities accordingly. As prices and profits change, economic activity through individual action changes. Resources are reallocated, products are innovated, and the economy adapts and prospers.
Collective behavior in a human colony creates confusion based on insufficient information if colony planners attempt to alter the reallocation of resources and innovation within society. Planners just don’t have the information possessed by thousands of economic agents. Diverting resources to information gathering and planning is time consuming and costly; diverted resources cannot be used to produce goods and services.
It is here I believe that the analogy between ants and humans breaks down. Ants follow secreted chemicals that dictate their actions. The human brain allows for a wider range of behavior that may profit the individual but be destructive to others and the entire human colony. Foundational rules such as the prohibition on theft and definition of property rights support the spontaneous ordering of resources and innovation. While there is disagreement among economists just how broad these foundational rules and regulations should extend, it is clear that nearly all economists believe that society should maintain through collective actions the greatest freedom possible on resource allocation and innovation.
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1 year ago
I believe that Ant colony is better operated than the human nation. The human nation economy should be mor efficent like the Ant colony everyting is run by ones colony our society is ran by so many there to many chiefs in not enough indians in this economy.
ReplyDeleteWhile an ant colony may be more efficient, they lack the human side of things. Humans are self serving and that's what make a free market profitable. It takes human character to find a need and to fill it while making a profit, it all comes down to taking care of oneself and their family.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony is more efficient. The ants stick to their own specific jobs and the job gets done in a timely manner. I believe that with humans we do have that part in our brain that makes us want to control the situation. I agree with you on the fact that collective behavior in a human colony creates confusion based on insufficient information if colony planners attempt to alter the reallocation of resources and innovation within society. I also believe this is where the analogy breaks down. Ants don't try to over power one another. Instead they stick to their jobs and can tell by different scents what needs to be done. With humans this is different. We all have our ideas on what we think instead of just being able to tell what really needs to be done and not just what we want to happen. I do believe that society should maintain, through collective actions, the greatest freedom possible on resource allocation and innovation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kaitlyn Wooley. The ant colony is definitely more sufficient. The human society thinks about how to benefit themselves first instead of others. Everyone has options and different ways to go about situations, and ants have their orders and only have one way to do so.
ReplyDeleteLaura Brown
ReplyDeleteI believe that ant analogy is a good way to explain spontaneous markets. The one thing that differs is the ants do not have the greed or self-interest that humans have that drive their creative and innovative actions. Because of this there needs to be foundational rules and regulations for the actions, but too many will kill the creativity and innovation needed to benefit society. I believe the profit motive makes markets strong and with the freedom of resources allocation and innovation the markets grow. This is why I think the government should not get to involved because it would be like the "queen ant" in directing things that it knows nothing about and the benefit from collective efforts would be lost.
I agree with the ant analogy. If one person(or group of people) were to dictate all the happenings of an economy, too much emphasis would be placed upon the likings of the one person/group and not of the economy as a whole. It would also be very likely that the one person/group would become corrupt and do more harm than good, neglecting the essential though troublesome partisan opinions and actions.
ReplyDeleteThe ant colony seems like they have gotten the society issue all figured out. The ants have been doing what they do longer than most societies. I see the ants demonstrating a social class system. If you are born as a digger,then you will always be one. What is the point in even living? I believe that the best human society will allow the lowest member to achieve higher goals by only work and determination, showing a capitalistic way. In some societies, you can see leaders intervening too much in things that they do not know much about. This causes a downfall. The ant colony never seems to get any more profitable. Humans can maintain a competitive market with a motive for profit. Individuals should be responsible for their own means of living.
ReplyDeleteRoberts' ant analogy does a good job explaining spontaneously ordered markets. The ant colony operates in a timely and concise manner. If the queen ant tried to order the colony it would result in unnecessary functions & wasted time consumption. I agree with Laura Brown comparing the government to the queen ant and it getting too involved.
ReplyDeleteI believe that an ant colony operates more efficiently than a human colony. The ants do not conciously decide whether or not they want to work. According to the different smells produced they are compelled to work, therefore cutting out all greed and self-interest. The ants also have no other interests rather than working for the colony, so inefficient labor becomes obsolete. Because humans are not all unified, working towards a common goal, the human colony is not as efficient because of the separation of labor.
ReplyDeleteI believe that an any colony is definitely more efficient than a human colony. There have been plenty of times when I have seen ants working together to bring food back to their colonies. One after another, they work together for the greater good. Humans, unfortunately do not. Humans have the choice to decide whether or not they want to accomplish something, ants on the other hand were born into work. They work in a timely fashion and there is hardly a worker out of line. Unlike the human society where everyone is striving to be different, which in turn could harm us and our economy.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony is more efficient in many different ways. 1st, The ants all work together for the greater good of the colony. Where as humans and our society, most of us work for the well being of our own selves. 2nd, ants all have a certain job. There is the ants that dig, ants that attack invaders, nursery ants, and many more they all have their own job and do it well. In a human colony there is no specific job and people can change as they please for the most part. 3rd, Ants know there place in life. Once your born as a worker ant you stay a worker ant. However human colonies even the lower class can raise up and be something great. SO in this reason i give the advantage to the human colony by making it where there is allways a competative nature and the best will be at that posistion. Overall i say the ants have the more efficient colony/economy than humans just because the simple fact how they all work together and put the colony first. I believe we could learn alot about how to make our economy better if we follow some of the things that ants do.
ReplyDeleteThe whole human race is greedy, some more than others, but nonetheless, greedy. Sure, we are free to do as we please and make our own decisions such as the ants. We both have a driving force. The driving force for the ants in the pheromones, ours are things such as money, success, power, love, ect. Since we have many more factors to this great equation we call live, we have numerous outcomes, both good and bad. Living in an ant colony doesn't sound so bad after all.
ReplyDeleteI think that it would most likely be better if we as humans had fewer factors in life to worry about. The more factors we have, the more likely we are to deviate from our goals. Ants are given a job to do; all they have to worry about is their job and nothing else. Ants have less factors in their equations of life, and there for are able to function more as a whole than humans are. Power, success, and money are all factors that can cause an individual to destroy the whole of the human race.
ReplyDeleteChanel P said....
ReplyDeleteI think that the ant colony sort of operates abit better than us humans these days. If we worked like they did we might become more efficient. But then again ants arent very self sufficient like humans because we have to learn to sometimes just take care of ourselves. We also always have so many things that we think of instead of pinpointing what really should be done.
I agree with Laura Cole. Ants seem to be efficient but lack a quality that makes our human "colony" profitable. They lack self interest.
ReplyDeleteSo our foundational rules and regulations serve as our "pheremones" to guide us and maintain order in the market. And, without them, greed would dominate and everybody would be out for themselves and it would create a VERY unstable market.
ReplyDeleteBut, without a desire to further our own self interests, Capitalism would not exist. And capitalism is what fuels this country. We would be nothing without human innovation and the technology and society we have today would not exist without some kind of individualism. So, I think mankind...Americans especially, have found just the right blend of individuality and socialitc traits to make us the greatest country in the world. We have an instinctual need in our core to preserve mankind and all life, and that is key to our success as a species. But there are seeds of greed and selfishness in us all, and unlike the ants, sometimes that greed consumes us, and we become completely self-serving...which is dangerous. There's nothing wrong with individuals being successful, but there are rules and regulations in place to protect the majority...so, as long as those fundamental rules are followed, Americans are free to be as successful as they wanna be, and that desire for success and financial reward are what drives innovation and the development of everything new. So despite how flawed and imperfect it may seem, our system is the best in the world...all you have to do is look at the countries that aren't allowed the freedom to succeed individually and it's obvious.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony and human's society are similar in some ways, but also very different. In an ant colony things always operate the same way. In a human's society things are constently changing. Why? This is where the economy comes in to place. When you put different cultures, races, religions, etc. together, changes will occur. There are so many more things that the human society deals with on a day to day basis that the ant colonies don't. Ants are made for a certain job to contribute to the colony. Humans are born to choose the life that they want to live and figure out their own purpose for their life. Yes, the ant colony is more efficient only because their is no freedom. If America was not a free country it would be ran the same as an ant colony.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony is more effecient than a human colony. The ants have perfected their methods and roles in the colony, whereas, humans rely more on self gratification and wealth which the competative market thrives on. Ants learn their job and become content in doing it. There is no need to out work or think other as it in the human colony.
ReplyDeleteLaQurinda N Rhymes lr0056786
The ant colony is more effcient, but the human colony would thrive in the long run I believe. I say this because humans unlike ants can choose to change their profession from a home builder to a lawyer unlike the ant who is once a digger always a digger. I think this helps humans in the long run by offering another open door, which ants can't choose. Even now there are accounts of adults going back to college to chose another profession, which would be more economically stable than there previous profession.And since they are now more economically stable than they once were their kids have new, and better oppturnities than their parents had, which could lead to better jobs and better pay. Which could lead to their kids choosing a better job and so on.
ReplyDelete-Grayson Palmer
I agree with the majority that the ant colony is more efficient. Since humans unlike ant have the ability to think and do different jobs it is of course going to make economy more diverse. That is why we have some that have an abundance of wealth and others that have nothing. We will take care of what we believe should be taken care of. Some have high paying jobs and some unemployed which makes our economy as a whold not so great.
ReplyDeleteTammy Mader
ReplyDeleteI also agree that the ant colony is more efficient. They all have a specific job and know that they have to get the job done in order to survive.
I believe that the ant colony is more efficient. This is because ants do not change their minds as often as humans do. Every ant has a specific job that it does throught their entire life. Humans are more indecisive, and don't work as hard on a task if they don't have to. Humans have more options in their lives, but the ants have to stick with the same tasks forever.
ReplyDelete-Shelby Rimlinger
Ants work as one to ensure that their colony is operating cooperatively. While humans, on the other hand, work for themselves and work to ensure they, as an individual, are succeeding and prospering. Humans have the opportunity of free market. We will doing anything to protect ourselves and our family, and to make a profit. Ants do not have the freedom we do, thus making their colony more of an "assembly line." They know which tasks they are supposed to do, and will preform those tasks until the end. Humans can change their task any given day. Therefore, as Grayson said, i believe that the ant colony is more efficient, but the human colony will last longer.
ReplyDeleteI think this analogy is extended to capitalism in general. If the queen ant (the government) were to give out all the marching orders, it would be hard to know what area of the market needed tinkering, and how much. The government doesn't know what's best for a specific market, the specialized producer does. This is how a market innovates and expands: making the economy the people's.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony runs more efficiently than the "human colony". The ants obviously have specific jobs, and they stick to those jobs. Each ant does their own job, and not that of their neighbor. We as humans often get power hungry and want to control each situation that we are involved in. I believe that that is a problem, because we are often unqualified to fix each and every problem or situation.
ReplyDelete-Lindsey L.
The ant colony of course would be more efficiant then then the Human economy. With ants everything happens spontaniously. They are born with a job that they will have for thier entire life. They do not complain about this job. They do not care about getting paid or weather the job is fair or not. They just do the job everyday exactly as they are supposed to. Thats all they know. They have no other purpose in life. With humans its completly different. We select the jobs we want. We make sure we are happy with it and get paid an amount that suits our lifestyle, and we of course want it to be fair. Granted there are some simulaties between us and the ants. We do have specific jobs that are sometimes infulence by the jobs of others. However, we don't have the pheromones and hydrocarbons telling us exactly when and what to do when the need arises. So we do what we think is good and will make us more efficiant, but there is no garentee that it will be. I think that this ant to human comparison to help explain spontaneously ordered markets somewhat, but Russ Roberts only thinks of the simularities between ants and humans. He doesn't take into consideration all the differences we have too.
ReplyDeleteAs a group the ants are more efficient, each individual ant exists for the good of their colony and so everything they do is for their colony which is why they prosper. As individuals though, humans are more efficient, we do everything we can to improve our own life by specializing at a certain task and offering goods and services to other people which in turn gives us a strong economy. What works for the ants wouldnt work for humans since ants exist for the good of the colony and our government and economy exist for the good of us. So the view of which is more efficient is a view of whether you believe in communism or captilism.
ReplyDeleteWhile an ants might run more efficiently as a colony, humans are able to change or improve their life as an individual. Ants simply have one job to do and do not have the opportunity to excel in other areas. If humans could focus on the world as a whole, like ants do, instead of just themselves, I think that humans would be able to succeed as an individual and as a society.
ReplyDeleteHumans us logic and reason to direct their dealings with each other. But reason and logic will not work if the people do not have civil order and respect property rights. Most, if not all of the underdeveloped nations of the world, are ether socialist (do not respect property rights) or are ruled by tyrants who respect neither human or property rights. The first priority for a sound and productive economy is the rule of reason and respect for human rights and responsibility. Intelligent individuals are a great help to this end. Reading some of the answers to this Blog causes one to fear for the sanity of Blog readers.
ReplyDeleteThis is the great thing about the human "colony"...We get to discuss why we like or dislike the Ant colony!
ReplyDeleteOkay, down to business. Ants have it figured out when it comes to efficiency and sacrifices of one for the greater good yada yada yada. But if you take the ants as a whole they dig tunnels, gather food, and rear their young...rinse and repeat. Now as humans dont we do the same thing? We dig tunnels (build houses) gather food (farm, go to the grocery store) and rear our children, but we also make money or want to make money to better our tunnels, food gathering, and to better rear our children. Money is our means to achieving these humanistic goals...but who is controlling us? To an extent we all are (like the ants) we all make decision based on actions of others, and we make these choices with 3 things in mind will this help my tunnel will this help my food gathering, will this help my children?
So keep on digging lil buddies and so shall I...we ...us...you know what I mean.
Ant colonies lack the creativity and innovation of a human economy. Granted an ant colony will lack the darker sides and less desired human features. I doubt the ants have a problem with other ants committing robbery, and theft. I bet Karl Marx looked at an ant colony and thought how nice it would be to have a society like that and called it communism. Let’s face it you can’t have a classless society, just like the ant’s can’t in one way. The only difference is in a any colony there the ant patrolling and the ant forging probably get the same or similar amount of food. Just like in our society should a ditch digger and cardiologist get paid the same? I say no, then what would be the incentive to go through all that schooling and stress of possibly losing a patient to get the same as person who picks up a shovel.
ReplyDeleteTo get to my point, we need some level of government over site and regulation in the economy. Finding that happy medium is the pickle. Too much restrains trade and limits innovation. Too little promotes price fixing and the consumer or little person getting raked over the coals. Humans need rules, even with rules, they will be broken, so over site is needed. But not too much.
Posted by Anton Slavich
The ant analogy was a good comparison to understanding the overall operations of economics in society. Unlike the ants, humans are not genetically programmed to alter and adapt to different economic situations, nor are they efficient. Sometimes when resources are reallocated, the economy does not adapt and prosper. We noticed this with the fall of the housing industry when the resources were reallocated to allow banks to lend to people who could not afford to pay. We had a financial crisis in 1929, and several times since (including now), so I don’t understand why lessons do not appear to be learned from the experiences in the past to prevent future occurrences. Government decisions and allocations play a vital role on prices and profits which trickles down to an individual making a decision that best suits their situation impacting society as a whole.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason ants are more efficient is because they have only one factor to react to, pheromones. Humans on the other hand have many factors they must take into account before making decisions. We must think about greed, power, family, friends, religion, responsibilities, etc. Because we must think of all these things our options are never black and white, but shades of grey. These shades are determined by our individual moralities. As long as a society is allowed the greatest freedom possible on resource allocation and innovation, a society's collective morality will be shown through the accumulation of decided shades, its economy.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe it is effective to compare human efficiency to the efficiency of ants. Fist of all, ants work as a whole to help the survival of the entire colony. Humans work to help the survival of their families. Humans may not always make the right decision, do the right thing, work as hard as they should, but that is what makes us great. We are all different, with different needs and different wants. If everyone was born and told exactly what they are going to do for the rest of their lives, then why would they strive to be excellent at it? What would it get you? If you could never be better then what you are appointed what drive do you have? Humans may not be the most efficient at what they do but if someone wants to do something bad enough or wants to succeed they will work hard for it.
ReplyDeleteOne of the main differences between humans and ants is that humans are a lot more selfish than ants are. Ants work towards the well-being of the entire colony, while humans (usually) work towards the well-being of themselves first. A lot of the time humans are looking out for themselves in some way or another.
ReplyDeleteOur economy is created by humans, which is why it is centered around each country individually and not ALL countries as a whole. The economy of each country can only be as good as the humans running said country make it.
The ant analogy is a good comparison to understanding how our ecomony works, although our economy has many more factors to consider. The ant colony is clearly much more efficient because they are not distracted by the unfortunate selfishness of the human society. I too, agree with Laura Brown in that the government should not get involved thus making them the "queen ant". Ants work together as a "team", where we as humans have choices in our lives. By nature, there are many opinions and we are very competive in our society. We are afforded the opportunities to choose our professions and what we wish to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteSheldon Williams said . . .
ReplyDeleteI agree that an ant colony is much more streamlined and efficient than our economy. The ants have specific jobs and stick to what they do best, which is completely opposite of what humans do. Although we may be skilled in a particular area, society encourages us to be multi-taskers and take on more jobs/tasks than we can do well. This causes so many problems in our economic system.
I believe the ant analogy is efficient. However, the ant analogy is very black and white. Ants have specific jobs and are concerned only of what is assigned to them. Humans on the other hand are more complex. When you add in ambitions, opinions, desires, and emotions, the situation becomes more compound. Our human instincts and abilities make us incapable of sustaining an ant-like economy.
ReplyDelete-Rachel Moore
The way I view the breakdown in the "Ant VS Human" analogy is two-fold.... of course, the ants will always be more productive than us mere humans... we as humans too often spend twice the labor trying to come up with a way to do half the work... ants will simply work! Ants also don't have the self-serving interests that humans have.... however, ants lack the emotional, intellectual, and creative drive that humans have.... an ant colony will always work exactly as it has worked. No less, but no more effeciently or greatly. Given time, humans always prove to find ways to become greater.... from train, to auto, to flying, just as an example. Certainly more effecient!
ReplyDeleteI do believe there does need to be control placed on our practice, though. While our potential for greatness does and will grow, unfortunately it seems so does our desire for personal gain, and our tolerance for less than scrupulous practices. In a utopian society, the human race would work for the good of the "colony", but with the pizzazz of being human, and there would be no need for this regulation....
I agree with M Hardeman, the ants would be more productive and efficient. Ants have a wonderful work ethic and do their job well and right. Ants may do their job right but they will never advance. Humans are constantly advancing in technology and coming up with new ways to better our society. If humans had the efficieny and drive, as well as creativity and ability to constantly improve then we would not need this regulation. Of course that would put everything else into place and our society might be "to good."
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading about this blog. Whoever thought about the economy being like an ant colony was very brilliant. I think we should be a little more like the ants and not travel down the same dead end paths. Also, if people would stop being greedy and want everything for themselves, then perhaps we could help our economy. Every ant is vital in the colony. Thus, it should be in the marketing world.
ReplyDeleteI agre that the ant colony is more efficent. They work as a whole and act off of the others in the colony. If the greed and brains of man where taken away and we could run our society like this we would probably be in a better situation.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony is much more efficent that the human colony. The ant colony has everything in order and has a goal that they seem to be working towards. The human colony seem to have more greed, and not care as much about the work. I agree with some of the other post that humans seem to want to find more ways to do work and get things done. Ways in which technology would be involved and take work of their hands, so that their job would be easier.
ReplyDeleteI agree with most,the ant colony is more efficient because they get one job and do it for the rest of their lives. The "human colony" tends to jump from one job to the next, always trying to help where we can. Sometimes we take on too much and sell ourselves short.
ReplyDelete-Allyssa Welch
The reason the ant colony is more efficiant is because of the ants' willingness to work with eachother and towards a common goal. On the other hand, humans have a list of varried priorities and do not always understand one anothers' duties, therefore, they formulate their own opinions and rules.
ReplyDeleteAnalyn C. Sanders
ReplyDeleteImagine if we lived in a world without rules and regulations that protect each one of us, it would be chaos. That's what goverment is for, protecting its citizens like how goverment through its various agencies protecting the economy and consumers (buyers/sellers). In a bigger picture, goverment agencies protect consumers from monolopy. Competitive market is much better because their are no single buyer or seller that has any influence/advantage over the other.
Lyntoria Davis says...
ReplyDeleteI believe that the ant colony is more efficient. Many of the ants know that they have a certain job and they stick to it and get it done. As human, we want to “out shine” the next person just so we can get the title of “head master”. Even though, the fact that collective behavior in a human colony creates confusion based on insufficient information, I think that is where analogy comes into play. Human want ultimate power, whereas ants don’t because they know if their job isn’t done the survival for them will be jeopardized. With humans we tend to voice our opinions instead of thinking realistically. We want to take care of or set up things for the “now” instead of looking at the future. I feel that society should maintain the greatest freedom possible on resource allocation and innovation.
I believe a reason that ants are so successful is that they are all working towards the same goal and are not working for the good of themselves, but for the good of the colony as a whole. Humans, on the other hand, are often times greedy, and only want what is best for them. Most humans could care less about the good of their community as long as they themselves are well off. As odd as this sounds, if humans would just take a few notes from ants, our economy would be a lot better off. The "me me me" mentality does not work in an overall viewpoint.
ReplyDeletethe ant colony is more efficient than humans, each ant has a job and they do it, there's no ifs ands or buts, they just do it, but humans on the other hand, it's like pulling teeth to get some people to do stuff for the benefit of others
ReplyDeleteI think that an ant colony is more efficient in the fact that they stick to their own specific jobs they are meant to do and do not interfere or try to over power another ant… humans on the other hand we have that part of our brain that tell us how to control the situation, only thing is we try to over power the others when we do it… if we humans did as ants did.. then things would get done more productively and in a timely manner.. ants do not sit and wait to see if someone else will do the job before them. They know the scent of what other ant is doing and they just do what is needed.. where we as human will do little as possible and will let the job go and see if someone else will do it just so we don’t have to…
ReplyDeleteKen Haltom
ReplyDeleteI believe the ant analogy is a good one in a market oriented society. A great example of this is the evolution of the internet in society. There were no "central planners", entrepeurers developed various services that the internet could provide the public. While some were massive successes (Google is the primary example) there were many others that failed during the dot com boom and bust period of the late 1990s and early 2000s. But in the end with was the consumer, not a central planner who decided which services were in demand and which services were not in demand
A great example where "central planning" ruled over the ant colony concept and led to horrible consequences is the federal government role in home financing, primarily the agencies of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. While these agencies were profit based as these are publicly held corporations, a mission of theirs was to make home ownership financially possible to all. This meant loaning to those less than creditworthy at or near the same rate that blue chip companies would be able to borrow, and at very little down. The agencies did not or would not price the interest rate accordingly to the borrower's risk of defaulting on the loan (the higher the risk, the higher the interest rate should have been, as well as the size of the downpayment). It is not surprising the large number of defaults that occurred and the the billions of dollars of bailout funds that Fannie and Freddie required to remain solvent.
ReplyDeleteKen Haltom
The ant colony may be more efficient, but they lack creativity and individualism. We wouldn't have a democracy. I think we need some of both central planning and different options and opinions.
ReplyDeleteFrom the outside looking in it would seem that ant colonies run much more efficient than human colonies. Each ant has his own job to do and does it well for the benefit of the entire colony. Oh how different our world would be if the same were true of the human race! However, ants were created to function that way. Humans were created to be free thinkers. Without this freedom, many of the technological advances that we enjoy today. I believe that there is a need for the government, or the queen bee, to over see the economic activity of this country, with the close council of economist. I also believe that in recent years our government has taken on too much of a role in doing so. The recent bail outs are a great example. The government should not have stepped in on such a large scale. Sometimes it is better to let the chips fall where they may, so to speak.
ReplyDeleteKim Huffman
I once read that no one person knows how all the systems of a Boeing 747 all work. Even the most knowledgeable aero-architect would have a limited understanding of the technical aspects of each individual system. When individual companies design specific parts and systems this allows them to specialize in what they do best while architects integrate systems together. An architect may not know how the tires are made but they know precisely where to put them and what other components are needed for the tire to work properly.
ReplyDeleteThe role of aero-architecture in building of airplanes is much like that of a economist in local, national or global economics. Economist may not know exactly how each market works but have a greater understanding of how it all works together.
I believe that the ant colony is an army within themselves they keep the structure and are working towards helping everyone in thier colony to where as humans are on the look out for themselves we like to do what we want, when we want. Ants stick to gether and become stronger as one. I think humans could try a little of the ant hospitality and we could become a strong army in ourselves. Ants arebasically self starters and humans have to have the jump start to think about others instead of self.
ReplyDeleteAnt colonies do run more efficiently you can tell by watching them one by one and how they follow each other.
ReplyDeleteThe ants secrete pheromones and hydrocarbon which allow them to know exactly what they need to do as a colony to be prosperous, making them very efficient. Their colonies may be very effective, but without our human greed and selfishness our economy would not be able to function properly. Without our self-drive we wouldn't have capitalism which is what keeps our nation going. Our economy has its ups and downs, but as a whole we have just the right amount of rules to follow mixed with our greed to keep everything in balance for the most part.
ReplyDeleteThe ant comparison is interesting. I was not aware about the secretion of hormones. That is a crazy network, much like ours. It is amazing that you take something so similar, and apply it to humans, and we only get in our own way with our greedy nature. Our economy is interesting in that we all effect it with our every day decisions, yet no one wants to hold themselves responsible for anything. The attitude that my mother took in the past was take as much credit people will give you, until you can just file for bankruptcy and all will be forgiven over time. It is a necessary evil though.
ReplyDeleteJack
The ant comparison is very clever and interesting. I wouldn't ever thought to compare humans and ants in that way. It definitely broke it down and made me realize how the economy works within itself. I think that if our economy were to work more like an ant colony, then we'd have less problems and deffiences. If people were just to take responsibilty for their own actions, our economy could be a much better place.
ReplyDeleteI think that the ant colony is more efficient than the "human colony". The ants have jobs that are specific to them, and they do those jobs not that of another ant. Humans get power hungry and greedy and try to control every situation which they are unqualified in doing. Our economy could definitely take pointers from the ant colony.
ReplyDelete-Shelby Crow
The ant colony is much more efficient. The ants work as a team within themselves to do what's best for the group while humans usually only think about how their decision will effect them with no regard for how it will effect the economy.
ReplyDeleteSeth Rogers
I personally think that the ant colony is more efficient. Although they act on "secreted chemicals that dictate their actions", their actions come together and work best for the whole ant community. Even though the human brain has a wider range of behavior, they aren't always thinking of others when they act. They could do something that they think would really benefit them, where as it may hurt someone else and this is when our economy starts to have problems. However, ants can never change their action where as humans can change their profession. So whenever a community is suffering, a human can change their job to adjust where as ants are stuck with their positions. In conclusion, the ant colony is more efficient most of the time but there are some instances when the human colony could potentially be more successful.
ReplyDelete-Caroline Palmer
The ant colony is more efficient than the "human colony." Ants work together for one common goal to better the group. Humans typically work alone and put themselves above everybody else, regardless of the outcome.
ReplyDeleteI also believe the ant colony is more efficient. every ant has a specific job and they all know exactly their own purpose. The human brain isnt worked the same. they think of themselves, not always the group and dont always worry for the general good. They work for the best possible outcome for themselves personally while ants work to better the entire colony.
ReplyDeleteThe ant colony is a great example of a spontaneous ordered market. We as humans have the added bonus of different behaviors, different personalities, and the need to look out for number one. I dont believe that all humans actually work for the greater good of the entire community, just for themselves and their families. This is one reason we have so many different political affiliations because people have different views on how our "colony" should be run.
ReplyDeleteGena Harcrow
I have to agree with Caroline Palmer the ants are working together for the good of the colony and humans tend to lean more towards self preservation. Humans tend to let "evil money" cloud their thinking. Even though having money is a good thing it pays bills and gets you the toys you like having that no one ever seems to get enough of it. Humans respond differently than ants because we do have more choices. Caroline mentions we can change our professions where an ant is stuck with exactly what he is...an ant. If something isn't working for us and we aren't happy we have choices and of course they may not always be the best choice we have the privaledge of making them. Sometimes not all the time our choices are for the good of our personal colony and then again if they are outside our personal colony they could create a problem or solve a problem of the colony on a bigger scale. Ants deal with a tiny colony whereas the human colony can be as small as someones family or as large as the entire world.There are some people that find the only colony they wish to be in is their personal family and then you have people that are totally involved in the colony as a whole and its survival as a whole. Good part of the whole deal is we get a choice because we live in the United States where our freedom is important and a part of our daily lives.
ReplyDeleteI believe the ants' behavior mimics the behavior of the human colonies. Just like the ants, humans respond to their environment.When ants need food, they forage. In the same way the ant forages when it needs, humans base their actions on the fluctuating markets. When it comes down to it, both humans and ants are merely controlled by chemicals whether it be chemicals in our brains or pheromones released by the ants. For that reason alone, I say there is no way ants are more efficient than humans. If they were, the would be the dominant species.
ReplyDelete"Spontaneous order" or a simpler term "self organization" explained by the comparison of the ant colony is a good example for describing a biological spontaneous order, but falls short on explaining spontaneous order in markets. I think San Pedro Prison in downtown La Paz, Bolivia is a much better example.
ReplyDeleteAnt colonies work toward providing for the greater good of the entire colony, humans work is self serving. Ants may be tiny, but when measured pound for pound they are much more efficient creating a working colony with enough resources for all. Would humans be able to accomplish the same thing? I don't believe they would because the human "colony" is not considered when humans are making their decisions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the ant colony theory. As mentioned, if the "queen" were to try and regulate the whole entire "colony," there would most likely be less progress being made than before. Each little ant has their own way, however similar, of completing their job, and some are better at their jobs than others. (This is where specialization, and not to mention a market economy, comes into play.) This spontaneous order is natural, just like the ant colony.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to see a model of ant behavior and make it analogous to human behavior. Ants have no brains, therefore the behavior has to be broken down into an innate intuitive behavior.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if the colony itself is the creature the ants themselves make up the being. They are just different parts of the body with specific purpose they as a whole determine what’s better for itself. Greed like humans drives the colony to become better. If you go back to the ant as an individual its greed to do what the pheromones tell it to do is also greed the difference is clear it is one ambiguous life form that works together as a whole.
ReplyDeleteAn ant colony works very efficiently. However, the way humans work allows for more growth and prosperity.
ReplyDelete