The Dog ATE my Economics Homework! Estimates of the Average Effect of Treating Hawaii’s Public High School Students with Economics*

Hawaii is one of 27 states that do not require testing of public high school students regarding their understanding of economics. We report results for the first economics test administered to a large sample of students in Hawaii public high schools during the Spring 2004 semester. Our analysis focuses on evaluating the impact of a semester-long course in economics on student scores on a 20-question, multiple-choice economics test. We specify and estimate a regression analysis of exam scores that controls for other factors that could influence student performance on the exam. While student scores on the economics exam are relatively low, completion of an economics course and participation in a stock market simulation game each add about one point to student scores.economic education, high school economics, stock market simulation

Toward a Cognitive Experimental Economics

This paper aims to analyze and exemplify some methodological implications on the way to conduct experiments related to the adoption of a cognitive approach in Economics. Many differences arise in relation to a more traditional way. In fact cognitive economics has strong descriptive attention and aims at beeing closer to reality than the mainstream. Besides the idea of representative agents is questioned. Different kind of experiments, differents analysis and new tools are so required. The paper proposes also some notes on the relation between experimental economics and simulation with artificial agents.cognitive economics, experimental economics, learning

Management of Multipurpose Heterogeneous Fishing Fleets Under Uncertainty

This paper describes an approach to modeling fisheries that can be useful in policy analysis when the population dynamics are not well known and the fleet is composed of a variety of multipurpose vessels. An empirical application of the methodology to the northern California Dungeness crab fishery is discussed. A multivariate time-series model provides the intertemporal (year-to-year) relationships for a simulation model describing both within season and year-to-year fleet behavior. Appropriate modifications of the simulation model parameters reflect alternative policy scenarios. The analysis of the simulation outcomes provide insight into fleet response to several management alternatives that have been considered for the crab fishery.Environmental Economics and Policy, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Risk and Uncertainty,

Exploring a New ExpAce: The Complementarities between Experimental Economics and Agent-based Computational Economics

What is the relationship, if any, between Experimental Economics and Agent-based Computational Economics? Experimental Economics (EXP) investigates individual behaviour (and the emergence of aggregate regularities) by means of human subject experiments. Agent-based Computational Economics (ACE), on the other hand, studies the relationships between the micro and the macro level with the aid of artificial experiments. Note that the way ACE makes use of experiments to formulate theories is indeed similar to the way EXP does. The question we want to address is whether they can complement and integrate with each other. What can Agent-based computational Economics give to, and take from, Experimental Economics? Can they help and sustain each other, and ultimately gain space out of their restricted respective niches of practitioners? We believe that the answer to all these questions is yes: there can be and there should be profitable “contaminations” in both directions, of which we provide a first comprehensive discussion.Experimental Economics, Agent-based Computational Economics, Agent-Based Models, Simulation.

The economics of greenhouse gas accumulation: A simulation approach

This article investigates efficient policies against global warming in the case of multiple greenhouse gases. In a dynamic optimization model conditions for an efficient combination of greenhouse gases are derived. The model is empirically specified and adapted to a simulation approach. By various simulation runs, the economics of greenhouse gas accumulation are illuminated; and in particular, it is shown that a CO2-policy alone would most likely lead to an allocation far from efficiency. These results indicate, that policy measures against global warming should allow for substituting between different greenhouse gases. Such a policy would mainly affect the agricultural sector because livestock and intensive farming techniques contribute significantly to the emission of greenhouse gases.

Simulation in Economics: Evidence on Diffusion and Communication

This paper presents the analysis of a dataset of publications in economics that makes use of simulations. Data areas explored in order to obtain information about diffusion of simulation techniques in time and across sub-disciplines. Moreover, following Robert Axelrod\'s concerns about the difficulties in sharing simulation models and their outputs, some peculiarities in the communication process among \'simulators\' are highlighted.Social Simulation, Economic Theory, User Community

Art or science? The challenges of publishing peer reviewed papers based on linked models

The methodology used in a linked model system is generally too voluminous and of insufficient interest to form the basis of a peer-reviewed journal article. To be readily acceptable to an economics journal, the simulation results should provide economic insight and contribute to the economics literature.quantitative integrated assessment, empirical models, “black boxâ€, Agricultural and Food Policy, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Simulation of Livestock Breeding Economics in Conditions of the EU

In the paper there are described mathematical principles of biological, technological and economic model relations and connections in animal breeding on which the mathematical model AGRO-ZV is based. With the model it is possible to simulate impacts of the agricultural policy on livestock breeding economics and commodity economics in dependence on different agricultural policy variants. In the article there is illustrated a usage of the model for simulation of dairy cattle economics before (2003) and after (2004) the accession of the Czech Republic to the EU.mathematical modeling, livestock breeding, dairy cattle econmics, model AGRO-ZV, Livestock Production/Industries,