MacroScribbles
Cross-dataset research and explainers -- narrative-first, with receipts when making factual claims.
Featured Research
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Carbon Inequality
The countries drowning in rising seas didn't cause the flood. We mapped who emitted what, when — and the per-capita gap is staggering.
The China Dependency Index
When did China become your country's most important trade partner? For half the world, it already has. We mapped the dependency — and the risks.
The Debt-Trade Spiral
Persistent trade deficits and fiscal deficits compound into a debt spiral visible across decades. The data shows which countries are trapped — and which broke free.
The Energy-Prosperity Ladder
There is a clear energy consumption threshold countries must cross for human development. Below ~4,000 kWh per capita, every additional kilowatt-hour transforms lives. Above 10,000, you're just heating empty rooms.
The Health-Wealth Gradient
America spends more on healthcare than anyone and lives shorter. Cuba spends almost nothing and outlives most of its neighbors. The data reveals a brutal curve of diminishing returns.
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Aging Economies
Japan is the future — and most countries aren't ready. Population aging will break budgets, shrink workforces, and reshape economies. The timeline is visible in the data.
Brain Drain Tracker
Nigeria trains doctors. Britain employs them. We tracked the global brain drain — who loses talent, who gains it, and whether remittances make up the difference.
Carbon Cost of Growth
Can a country get richer without cooking the planet? Some have. Most haven't. We tracked GDP growth against CO2 emissions for 30 years — the decoupling story is real, but incomplete.
Child Survival & National Income
If you could know only one number about a country, it should be under-5 mortality. It captures income, health, education, water, and women's empowerment in a single statistic.
Climate Vulnerability vs Emissions
Chad emits less CO2 in a year than a US state does in a day. Chad is also one of the most climate-vulnerable countries on Earth. The injustice is measurable.
Concentration Risk
Some countries are one product away from crisis. We computed export concentration for every economy — the results are a map of global economic fragility.
Corruption Tax
Corruption isn't a moral issue — it's a tax, and we can estimate the rate. Countries with worse governance attract less investment, grow slower, and develop less. The data quantifies the cost.
Who Funds Their Own Defense
Who's actually paying for Western security? We mapped NATO defense spending against the 2% target. The free-riding is measurable — and the dollar gap is enormous.
Does Democracy Pay?
Democracies are richer — but did democracy make them rich? The relationship between governance and growth is more complicated than any slogan. We let the data speak.