Below Harvard's Steven Pinker gives an interesting interview on the paradox of why pessimism is so high in a world of increasing abundance. He also talks about the close correlation between peace and capitalism (or democracy and international organisations) as well as the importance of flushed toilets!
My colleague and former PhD student Gareth Campbell has created a website about the British Railway Mania - click here . This episode has been described by the Economist as probably the greatest bubble in human history. Gareth's website provides background on the Mania and posits some explanations for the 'bubble'. In his explanation of why the bubble happened, Gareth places a lot of emphasis on investor myopia regarding future dividends and uncalled capital. His study of investors during the episode does not support the view that this episode was fuelled by naive and irrational investors.