The bottom line

Recessions and the gold standard
The U.S. economy was in recession 52 percent of the time from 1874 to 1933, when the U.S. abandoned the gold standard. Since then, the economy has been in recession just 16 percent of the time.
The Atlantic

The cost of fast-fingered employees
Fast-fingered employees were responsible for about 44 percent of the retail merchandise that went missing from retail stores in 2011, costing employers roughly $15 billion. Retailers are now wising up and using databases to track employees who are caught red-handed, excluding them from future employment in the retail sector.
The New York Times

The price of generic drugs
A new survey found that it pays to shop around for generic drugs. The price of the equivalents of five blockbuster medications can vary by more than 400 percent at different stores. Generic versions of cholesterol-lowering Lipitor, for instance, range from $17 to $150.
Consumer Reports

Women and blacks help productivity
Economists at Stanford University and the University of Chicago estimate that, between 1960 and 2008, 15 to 20 percent of the growth in U.S. productivity came from removing the barriers blocking white women and blacks of both genders in the workforce.
The Wall Street Journal

Corporate CEO pay rises
The median overall pay of corporate CEOs rose 8 percent last year to $9.7 million, according to an analysis of information released so far by S&P 500 companies. At least 16 CEOs among those surveyed earned more than $20 million last year.
USA Today