Countries that look like their Phillips curve

November 4, 2007 10:50 AM

Some countries are shaped like their economic Phillips curve. Japan bears a strong resemblance to its Phillips curve. The Czech Republic does too, a little. And Canada’s similarity to its Phillips curve it less obvious, but it’s still there.
posted by tepidmonkey (21 comments total)

Surely in the long run only Chile should look like its Philips curve?
posted by Aloysius Bear at 10:55 AM on November 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

I don't get it.
posted by oddman at 11:10 AM on November 4, 2007

When Phillips curves are plotted from census data, the results can physically resemble populated clusters. The most obvious examples could be found, say, in tracing subprime loan activity, or bat populations in the West Indies. Nonetheless, it can be a neat effect.
posted by Smart Dalek at 11:36 AM on November 4, 2007

Let me guess...they're right about Micronesia too.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 11:38 AM on November 4, 2007

A Philips curve is the path connecting time-series data in inflation-unemployment space. I have no idea what Smart Dalek's comment means.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 11:46 AM on November 4, 2007

This is what happens to people that spend too much time looking at charts and graphs.
posted by empath at 11:53 AM on November 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

It's amazing someone noticed Japan's curve, since it had to be plotted backwards.
posted by MtDewd at 12:06 PM on November 4, 2007

man sees pattern in chaos. film graphical proof at 11.
posted by Busithoth at 12:26 PM on November 4, 2007

I hear a plate o' beans resembles its Phillips curve, too.
posted by katillathehun at 12:38 PM on November 4, 2007

The Czech Republic resembles its Phillips curve in the sense that the country is roughly oval, and the Phillips "curve" is a collection of uncorrelated data points. Canada's Phillips curve is pretty much uncorrelated too.

Japan's is more interesting, with a vertical component and a horizontal component, but not much in the way of a diagonal line, which is what theory predicts.

The whole Phillips curve idea was pretty much discredited by the stagflation of the 70s. Looking at these graphs -- yup, still bogus.
posted by anewc2 at 12:38 PM on November 4, 2007

What the hell is a "natural rate of unemployment"?
posted by edgeways at 1:04 PM on November 4, 2007

Correlation, meet causation.
posted by deadmessenger at 1:30 PM on November 4, 2007

Man, that's a cool bat populations in the West Indies link.
posted by Balisong at 2:37 PM on November 4, 2007

Natural Rate of (un)employment
posted by blue_beetle at 2:40 PM on November 4, 2007

This is the pointlessest.
posted by kittyprecious at 3:08 PM on November 4, 2007

This is like when dogs look like their owners, innint?
posted by DenOfSizer at 3:28 PM on November 4, 2007

Aloysius Bear: Phillips curves are quantitative graphs. Substitute "residual population" for "unemployment", and "rate of consumption" for "inflation" and you'll still end up with a head count to correspond to its respective geographic area.
posted by Smart Dalek at 4:00 PM on November 4, 2007

The Phillips curve is specifically the correlation over time between inflation and unemployment. It was discovered by William Phillips in the late 50s. A graph of anything other than inflation and unemployment isn't a Phillips curve. Of course, outside of economics, there may be other Mr or Mrs Phillips who have invented or discovered curves, but they're nothing to do with William Phillips and his curve.
posted by Aloysius Bear at 4:28 PM on November 4, 2007

Canada’s similarity to its Phillips curve it less obvious, but it’s still there.

Maybe, if you use your imagination a little. It looks like Vancouver is the place everyone wants to be. There's high unemployment in the maritimes, a few isolated dots in the north, not much going on in Ontario, and a big spike of inflation somewhere in the vicinity of northern Alberta.
posted by sfenders at 5:20 PM on November 4, 2007

I have some birth marks on my back that are totally in the shape of the big dipper!
posted by SassHat at 5:25 PM on November 4, 2007

anewc2 writes "Canada's Phillips curve is pretty much uncorrelated too."

My take is no one would think the graph looks like Canada if it wasn't for the big fat 0 line doing double duty as the 49th.
posted by Mitheral at 9:47 AM on November 5, 2007