The Leading Indicators by Zachary Karabell

5 out of 10

Metrics such as GDP, unemployment and inflation were invented in the 20th century as a way to measure an economy; thus, they define "the economy". The definitions are tricky and collecting quality data is quite quixotic. Yet--politicians, bureaucrats, media as well as common citizens confidently associate them with economic strength. Karabell rightfully points out how little these metrics measure and assures us that new technologically-aided metrics will help paint a superior picture.