Rediscovering the Economics of Keynes in an Agent-Based Computational Setting

The aim of this paper is to use agent-based computational economics to explore the economic thinking of Keynes. Taking his starting point at the macroeconomic level, Keynes argued that economic systems are characterized by fundamental uncertainty- an uncertainty that makes rule-based behaviour and reliance on monetary magnitudes more optimal to the economic agent than profit- and utility optimization in the tradi-tional sense. Unfortunately more systematic studies of the properties of such a system was not possible at the time of Keynes. The system envi-sioned by Keynes holds a lot of properties in commen with what we today call complex dynamic systems, and today we may apply the method of agent-based computational economics to the ideas of Keynes. The pre-sented agent-based Keynesian model demonstrate, as argued by Keynes, that the economy can selforganize without relying on price movement as an equilibrating factor.In our implementation selforganization does, how-ever, not mean a steady long run equilibrium, but a tendency to generate cycles.

Low Incidence of Atrial Fibrillation in Patients with Transient Ischemic Attack

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a major cause of stroke. Therefore, all patients with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) should be examined with 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) and continuous monitoring to detect AF. Current guidelines recommend at least 24 h continuous ECG monitoring, which is primarily based on studies investigating patients with ischemic stroke. The aim of our study was to investigate the diagnostic yield of 12-lead ECG and Holter monitoring in patients with TIA. Methods: We retrospectively investigated all patients diagnosed with TIA at Odense University Hospital, Denmark, from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. TIA was a clinical diagnosis according to the WHO definition. Patients received admission ECG and 72-hour Holter monitoring after discharge. Results: 171 patients without known AF were diagnosed with TIA. Four (2.3%) were diagnosed with AF on admission ECG. Another 2 (1.2%) were diagnosed with AF on Holter monitoring. In total, 6 patients (3.5%) were diagnosed with AF. Patients with AF were significantly older (mean age 79.4 [95% CI 65.1-93.6] years) than patients without AF (mean age 67.6 [95% CI 65.6-69.5] years) but otherwise showed no difference in baseline characteristics. Conclusion: In this retrospective study, patients with TIA had a low incidence of AF detected with ECG and 72-hour Holter monitoring. Prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings