Neuroeconomics: How Neuroscience Can Inform Economics

Neuroeconomics uses knowledge about brain mechanisms to inform economic analysis, and roots economics in biology. It opens up the "black box" of the brain, much as organizational economics adds detail to the theory of the firm. Neuroscientists use many tools— including brain imaging, behavior of patients with localized brain lesions, animal behavior, and recording single neuron activity. The key insight for economics is that the brain is composed of multiple systems which interact. Controlled systems ("executive function") interrupt automatic ones. Emotions and cognition both guide decisions. Just as prices and allocations emerge from the interaction of two processes—supply and demand— individual decisions can be modeled as the result of two (or more) processes interacting. Indeed, "dual-process" models of this sort are better rooted in neuroscientific fact, and more empirically accurate, than single-process models (such as utility-maximization). We discuss how brain evidence complicates standard assumptions about basic preference, to include homeostasis and other kinds of state-dependence. We also discuss applications to intertemporal choice, risk and decision making, and game theory. Intertemporal choice appears to be domain-specific and heavily influenced by emotion. The simplified ß-d of quasi-hyperbolic discounting is supported by activation in distinct regions of limbic and cortical systems. In risky decision, imaging data tentatively support the idea that gains and losses are coded separately, and that ambiguity is distinct from risk, because it activates fear and discomfort regions. (Ironically, lesion patients who do not receive fear signals in prefrontal cortex are "rationally" neutral toward ambiguity.) Game theory studies show the effect of brain regions implicated in "theory of mind", correlates of strategic skill, and effects of hormones and other biological variables. Finally, economics can contribute to neuroscience because simple rational-choice models are useful for understanding highly-evolved behavior like motor actions that earn rewards, and Bayesian integration of sensorimotor information

Intervju sa Aleksandrom Vučićem: ‘Ne tražimo milostinju, nego želimo reformirati Srbiju’

Popričali smo sa Premijerom Srbije g-dinom Aleksandrom Vučićem posle njegovog predavanja na LSEE 27/10/2014. Urednik LSEE bloga Tena Prelec je postavljala pitanja. Pročitajte englesku verziju

Book review: rival power: Russia in Southeast Europe by Dimitar Bechev

In Rival Power: Russia in Southeast Europe, Dimitar Bechev offers a nuanced and cool-headed account that challenges dominant narratives surrounding Europe, Dimitar Bechev offers a nuanced and cool-headed account that challenges dominant narratives surrounding Russia’s influence in Southeast Europe. With the book emphasising the role of pragmatism over ideology when it comes to understanding relations between Russia and the Balkan states, this meticulously researched study is essential reading, recommends Tena Prelec

Will the ICTY’s acquittal of Vojislav Šešelj heighten tensions in the Balkans?

After the Karadžić verdict, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) delivered another highly anticipated judgment on Thursday, 31 March: after a thirteen year trial, Serbian nationalist politician and self-proclaimed Chetnik leader Vojislav Šešelj was acquitted of all charges, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. Tena Prelec analyses the reactions to the trial and assesses what this may mean for relations in the region

Has the Western Balkans 6 process become a 'surrogate for the real thing'?

On 12 July, EU leaders met with Prime Ministers of Balkan countries in the Italian city of Trieste. Tena Prelec gives a first-hand account, writing that the ‘Western Balkans 6’ (WB6) initiative – or ‘Berlin Process’ – has had the laudable effect of keeping some attention on the Western Balkans in years when the EU enlargement process was paused, but is now at risk of becoming a substitute for enlargement itself, keeping the WB6 countries in limbo. While the jury is still out on the concrete outcomes this process will bring, a particularly bright development is occurring in the field of youth integration, with the establishment of the Regional Youth Cooperation Council (RYCO)

Croatia’s local elections: key takeaways and the duels to watch in the second round

Croatia held a first round of voting in local elections on 21 May, with the second round scheduled for 4 June. Tena Prelec assesses the results of the first round and previews some of the key mayoral races to watch as voters go back to the polls. The elections will be particularly noteworthy as they will give an indication of the trends ahead of expected early parliamentary elections later in the year

Ioni i ionski ubrzivači za liječenje raka

Energetic ions in the mass range up to neon may have important advantages in cancer treatment when compared to other, conventional types of radiation. This review will first consider radiobiological properties of several types of radiation (photons, electrons, protons and ions), pointing out to the relevant characteristics of ions compared to other types. Parameters of ion beams as required for cancer treatment will then be defined, followed by the review of the status of proton and ion therapy and clinical trials, and a description of operating and planned facilities. Finally, on the basis of existing experience and desired future performance, a possible design of such a facility will be suggested.Upotreba iona visoke energije te mase do neona pruža značajne prednosti prema uobičajenim metodama zračenja u liječenju nekih vrsta raka. U ovom preglednom radu izlažu se radiobiološke značajke više vrsta zračenja (fotona, elektrona, protona i iona), s naglaskom na usporedbe učinaka brzih iona i drugih vrsta zračenja. Nadalje, utvrđuju se parametri ionskih snopova za liječenje raka, daje pregled dosadašnjeg rada u ionskoj terapiji i kliničkim ispitivanjima s protonima i brzim ionima, te opisuju sustavi koji su u upotrebi i koji se planiraju. Na kraju, na osnovi poznatih iskustava i budućih potreba, predlaže se najpovoljniji sustav ionskog ubrzivača za liječenje raka

Serbian parliamentary election 2016: a gamble that almost backfired

On 24 April, Serbs were called to the polls only two years after the previous parliamentary contest, half-way through the government’s mandate. Reports in the international press focused on the elections being a test for the ruling party’s ‘pro-European’ positions against the advancement of the nationalist far right. Tena Prelec argues that this is only part of the picture, and far from being the most important matter

Fatmir Besimi: wire-tapping scandal is taking Macedonia ‘in the opposite direction’

Better integration among different communities and more equal spending of funds is key to Macedonia’s future, the country’s Deputy Prime Minister Fatmir Besimi says in an exclusive interview with LSEE’s Tena Prelec. He talks about the recent wire-tapping revelations, the controversial education reform, freedom of the media, the Skopje 2014 project and the naming dispute with Greece