That the US dollar has not collapsed, that US interest rates remain low, that foreigners continue to pour money into investments in the US and our economy continues to grow at a moderate pace has, to say the least, posed a problem for those who hold the consensus view. Various counter-theories have been put forth - including one with the amusing name of "dark matter" - in an attempt to reconcile a glaring economic paradox.

Mandel is the first to propose an alternative explanation to the conventional wisdom with any serious grasp of economic data. The consequences of his theory, if he is correct - that current measurements of investment and GDP are antiquated and ill-equipped for an "information-based" economy - are profound. Perhaps Wall Street economists (Stephen Roach, are you listening?) have been wrongly crying wolf all these years...