Understanding the Economy:

During the 1950s and 1960s it seemed that crude oil was a fixed commodity. The price of crude was as stable as the job returning veterans of World War II had at General Motors. Set for life. People like Milton Friedman thought they had the economy figured out.

Jad Mouawad addresses the volatility in today's oil markets in "Swings in Price of Oil Hobble Forecasting." Mouawad looks closely at the effects on commercial aviation and its inability to forecast prices, as a microcosim of the situation.