A topic we hear about in New York City endlessly is the failure of the city to provide affordable ho

A topic we hear about in New York City endlessly is the failure of the city to provide affordable housing for working people. The Economist has a story about some research that suggests the reason working people don't move to cities might have less to do with expense and more to do with opportunity. The urban opportunity premium has vanished for non-college educated workers, according to MIT's David Autour. So it could be that people aren't coming, not because it's too expensive, but because it isn't worth it regardless.

So if his research is right, is there a way to make better observations percolate through the public consciousness more quickly? Or is it okay that it will take a long time to get through because it might still need further testing? (after all, he might have missed something).

Autour's idea might not be good, but let's assume it is. It seems that better observations still have a hard time making it through the public mind and finding their way into policy interventions. Is there a way to test and then propagate good observations that undermine wrong assumptions more quickly so we can make better collective decisions?