Exam traumas, robot boats and cheaper microwaves

The sun is out over Resolution Foundation towers, and most of Britain appears to be in the park. But we hear a rumour you can multitask – which is good because sunbathing goes very well indeed with reading an economics paper or two… This week’s selection will give you grounds for hope that policy makers could play catch up with superstar firms, and sweaty palm flashbacks to hours spent in school halls doing exams.

And if you’re yet to dig out your sunglasses for reading in this brighter brave new world, we also have you covered. Find a shady spot in the park and listen to the latest RF podcast, where authors James Bloodworth and Jeremias Prassl, plus the TUC’s Kate Bell, join me to talk gig economy. We’re on iTunes too, if you’re that way inclined.

In honour of the sun induced optimism that is sweeping the country, this weeks’ chart reminds us that lots of things do indeed get better – much better. We’re living longer and buying cheaper tellys. Amen to that.

How to regulate superstar firms. Last week the University of Cambridge launched its new Bennett Institute for Public Policy – congratulations to them. In the Institute’s first working paper, the ever brilliant Diane Coyle examines how regulators and policy makers should keep up with the brave new world of winner-takes-all tech markets – from Facebook to Google. The solutions? Be VERY sceptical of takeovers, have a long hard look at whether the big players are investing in real innovations or just in innovative ways to make cash out of their dominance, and keep them on their toes by making sure can all take our data elsewhere.

Self-driving cars? Let’s automate boats first. The debate on self-driving cars is getting more and more bogged down – it’s a legal minefield letting these machines onto our streets. But a blog for Motherboard points out that automated shipping is also a huge growth industry. There’s less people to run over at sea and it could be economically transformative: 90% of global trade travels by sea.

Why Cs matter in GCSEs. Just to make sure 16 year olds are definitely stressed going into their GCSE exams this term, new research looks at the costs of just failing to get a C grade (snazzily rebranded as a grade 4 in the new system). Compared to just scrapping a C grade, narrowly missing out means you’re 9 percentage points less likely to go on to a higher qualification, and you’re 4 percentage points more likely to drop out of education at age 18. Why these big impacts for people with almost identical marks? Because of a slippery slope of who you hang around with – a poor GCSE grades narrow an individual’s choices of where to be educated and work, meaning they are less likely to be surrounded by high-performing peers. The conclusion is we need more lifelong learning – after all, having a bad day at age 16 shouldn’t mean permanent ‘scarring’.

European infrastructure in the wake of the crisis. Private wealth matters – it’s twice as unequally spread as income and it’s grown 2.5 times faster than pay in the last three decades. But what about public wealth, and infrastructure in particular? Investment in infrastructure in the EU is currently running 20% below pre-crisis levels. A new blog for Vox EU looks at the causes of the collapse in infrastructure spending, and pins most of the blame on governments who have shifted resources away from investing in capital and towards day to day spending – not surprising when they’re trying to keep the show on the road when there’s less money around. With private inheritances on the rise it is worth asking ourselves whether we’re happy with the quality of the wider infrastructure we’re leaving future generations – collective inheritances are a real thing too.

Chart of the week: people are living longer and nice stuff is cheaper
As promised, here’s an optimistic chart to match the sunny weather. The kids are going to live ever longer. And we should all relax about the whole not being able to own a home thing  – buying a TV has never been cheaper. Stay perky.