wiegie Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 (edited) http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/10/business/nob....html?hpt=hp_t2 No surprise that these guys would win the prize someday. I use a fair amount of the Sims econometric stuff in my research (as do many many empirical macroeconomists) and Sargent's stuff on rational expectations is at the core of standard modern macroeconomic theory. (The bolded part below though makes you kind of want to go though as it drives home the point that what we are experiencing today is not a normal economic situation that most economists were prepared to deal with.) American economists win Nobel By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney updated 8:47 AM EST, Mon October 10, 2011 (CNNMoney) -- Two American economists won the Nobel Prize for economics on Monday for their work studying how changes in government policies or economic shocks affect a nation's economy. Thomas Sargent, a professor at New York University, and Christopher Sims, a professor at Princeton University, both 68, will share the award and the $1.49 million prize money for the work they do together. While the global economy has been shaken by a series of shocks and policy responses, Sims said the research that won the award doesn't have any direct solutions for what ails various countries. But the methods he and Sargent have developed could be used to help guide policymakers, he said. "I don't think my research and methods have any simple direct implications for the current situation," he said in a telephone press conference with reporters in Sweden. "They point to ways to try to unravel why our current situation developed, and new research may lead us out of it." Asked how he would invest his share of the winnings, Sims said he would keep it in cash while he considers what to do with it. Sims and Sargent have known each other for decades, both receiving their doctorates from Harvard in 1968. While their research was carried out independently, the work of each is considered to be complementary. Sargent was traveling to Princeton Monday morning to appear with his colleague. The Nobel committee's announcement said Sims and Sargent's work studies the two-way relationship between policy and the economy -- how policy affects the economy and vice versa. "The laureates' seminal work during the 1970s and 1980s has been adopted by both researchers and policymakers throughout the world," said the committee's statement. "Today, the methods developed by Sargent and Sims are essential tools in macroeconomic analysis." Among the issues the two studied were the effects of interest rate and inflation target changes by central banks and the impact of economic shocks such as oil price spikes. Edited October 10, 2011 by wiegie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiegie Posted October 10, 2011 Author Share Posted October 10, 2011 One of the co-chairs of my dissertation just posted "Sargent is a deep and thoughtful scholar. He was very attentive and insightful even when you disagreed strongly with him. He was one of the most impressive people I met in the year I spent at (the) Hoover (Institution)." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh 0ne Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Compelling stuff. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiegie Posted October 10, 2011 Author Share Posted October 10, 2011 Compelling stuff. Thanks for sharing. I'm here for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deathpig Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Two American economists won the Nobel Prize for economics on Monday for their work studying how changes in government policies or economic shocks affect a nation's economy. While the global economy has been shaken by a series of shocks and policy responses, Sims said the research that won the award doesn't have any direct solutions for what ails various countries. But the methods he and Sargent have developed could be used to help guide policymakers, he said. We have done research, but it's basically useless and impractical for what is actually happening in the real world. However, being useless and impractical means the main use of this research will be for policymakers! I understand that this is a news blurb and doesn't go into the details that would explain the above fully, but the incredibly poor presentation made me laugh. Asked how he would invest his share of the winnings, Sims said he would keep it in cash while he considers what to do with it. Given all the talk around here about 'hoarding', this also made me laugh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ursa Majoris Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Given all the talk around here about 'hoarding', this also made me laugh. He's keeping it all in cash? That ain't good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muck Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 What's the prize again? $1 million? If so, it's possible that this is an exponential increase in his personal wealth, and he may want to take some time to really think about it. I know if I inherited / won / earned a gigantic sum, I would want to take some time to think about it a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEC=UGA Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 What's the prize again? $1 million? If so, it's possible that this is an exponential increase in his personal wealth, and he may want to take some time to really think about it. I know if I inherited / won / earned a gigantic sum, I would want to take some time to think about it a bit. Hmmm, If I won a million bucks... 35 Ft. cabin cruiser, two Kilos of blow, 3 cases of vodka, 10 cases of champagne, 4 high-end hookers, 1 week vacation. Then I'd head back to the office. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 Hmmm, If I won a million bucks... 35 Ft. cabin cruiser, two Kilos of blow, 3 cases of vodka, 10 cases of champagne, 4 high-end hookers, 1 week vacation. Then I'd head back to the office. But what would you do for the other 6 days you took off of work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEC=UGA Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 But what would you do for the other 6 days you took off of work? Recover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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