Christopher Beam

Freelance Reporter

Latest

Homophones, Plurals and Language ‘Rulescucks’ Are Roiling Prediction Markets

Homophones, Plurals and Language ‘Rulescucks’ Are Roiling Prediction Markets

Bets decided on linguistic technicalities are exposing how hard it is to turn language into a binary market with payouts hinging on a single word.

March 27, 2026

March 27, 2026

Homophones, Plurals and Language ‘Rulescucks’ Are Roiling Prediction Markets

Bets decided on linguistic technicalities are exposing how hard it is to turn language into a binary market with payouts hinging on a single word.

Homophones, Plurals and Language ‘Rulescucks’ Are Roiling Prediction Markets

March 18, 2026

March 18, 2026

AI and Power Looms: Stories About Job-Killing Tech Have a Way of Going Viral

Investors can’t resist a good narrative about the futility of human labor.

AI and Power Looms: Stories About Job-Killing Tech Have a Way of Going Viral

March 3, 2026

March 3, 2026

A Darkly Modern Guide to Betting on War

The Iran conflict, and the way Kalshi and Polymarket handled wagers, shows weaknesses in prediction markets.

US-Israel attacks on Iran continue

February 23, 2026

February 23, 2026

How Prediction Markets Polymarket and Kalshi Are Gamifying Truth

Two companies are pioneering a new way of predicting the future. Critics call it unregulated gambling.

How Prediction Markets Polymarket and Kalshi Are Gamifying Truth

January 13, 2026

January 13, 2026

How Maduro’s Removal Could Help China

Beijing has invested in Venezuela and could come out looking like the more reliable partner.

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December 30, 2025

December 30, 2025

How Data Centers Became the Leading Villain of 2025

In Hollywood and real life, the once-unremarkable facilities have taken a leading role.

Next DC Data Center

December 16, 2025

December 16, 2025

America Needs to Come Around to the Idea There’s No ‘Winning’ Against China

As the trade dispute showed, China remains a formidable rival—and is determined to expand its already substantial advantages.

America Needs to Come Around to the Idea There’s No ‘Winning’ Against China

December 2, 2025

December 2, 2025

What Does Bitcoin’s Drop Mean? Depends on Who You Ask

Theories for its slide include hesitation around interest rates and crypto as a proxy for presidential power.

Cryptocurrency Kiosks Ahead of Eagerly Awaited ETF Decision

November 17, 2025

November 17, 2025

Mistrial Shows Difficulty in Applying Law to Crypto

Can trades on the public blockchain be illegal if the computer code allows them?

Traders At The New York Stock Exchange As Wall Street On Hold In Run-Up To Nvidia, Jobs Data

November 5, 2025

November 5, 2025

Trump’s Ballroom and Obama’s Library: Critics Assess Presidential Architecture

An evaluation of Trump’s White House renovation and his predecessor’s “Obamalisk” in Chicago.

Trump’s Ballroom and Obama’s Library: Critics Assess Presidential Architecture

October 31, 2025

October 31, 2025

Cracks in the Credit Market Could Be a Warning for Wall Street

How many cockroaches does it take to sink a ship? We may soon find out.

Cracks in the Credit Market Could Be a Warning for Wall Street

October 16, 2025

October 16, 2025

If This Is an AI Bubble, Where Are the Shorts?

A Q&A with the author of The Bear Cave. Plus: A gut check on how to invest right now.

Markets Open Wednesday After Dow Jumps Over 500 Points

October 9, 2025

October 9, 2025

‘I Believe It’s a Bubble’: What Some Smart People Are Saying About AI

A growing group of critics say we’re in an artificial intelligence bubble. Is it true? If so, how would we know?

‘I Believe It’s a Bubble’: What Some Smart People Are Saying About AI

September 29, 2025

September 29, 2025

CEOs Caught Between Duties to Shareholders and Trump

What does “fiduciary duty” mean now? Plus: It’s a make-or-break autumn for the German chancellor.

ABC Pulls Jimmy Kimmel From Late Show After Comments About Charlie Kirk Shooting

September 22, 2025

September 22, 2025

That’s What Xi Said: How Trump Officials Echo Chinese Jargon

Even ideas like taking a “golden share” of a company come from Beijing. Plus: MrBeast is building an empire.

TikTok Ban Looms On The Eve Of Inauguration

September 17, 2025

September 17, 2025

Crypto Bros Are Trying to Monetize Charlie Kirk’s Death

Every big news event is a memecoin now.

Crypto Bros Are Trying to Monetize Charlie Kirk’s Death

August 15, 2025

August 15, 2025

China Is Run by Engineers, and the US by Too Many Lawyers

In his new book, Dan Wang argues that America is too good at making rules, and could learn from Beijing’s laser focus on technical innovation.

weekend-wang-horizontal

March 15, 2024

March 15, 2024

An Influential Economics Forum Has a Troubling Surplus of Trolls

EJMR, an online discussion board for economists, is rife with misogyny and racism, revealing a very dark side of the profession.

An Influential Economics Forum Has a Troubling Surplus of Trolls

May 12, 2023

May 12, 2023

The Crypto Winter Cost True Believers More Than Their Money

Some acolytes lost faith, others blamed devils—and some went even harder. An essay exploring what happens when the prophecy of blockchain fails.

The Crypto Winter Cost True Believers More Than Their Money

May 19, 2022

May 19, 2022

The Math Prodigy Whose Hack Upended DeFi Won’t Give Back His Millions

An 18-year-old graduate student exploited a weakness in Indexed Finance’s code, tucking racist epithets into his script, and opened a legal conundrum about theft on the blockchain. Then he disappeared.

The Math Prodigy Whose Hack Upended DeFi Won’t Give Back His Millions