Noun
dismal science (plural dismal sciences)
(idiomatic, sometimes derogatory, sometimes humorous, usually with "the") Economics or the field of political economy.
Economics never was a dismal science. It should be a realistic science. Paul Samuelson
Economics has been called the dismal science. Once you get to understand it, you may not find it so dismal, but you don't find it much of a science either. Jean Chrétien
Respectable Professors of the Dismal Science. Thomas Carlyle