The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
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The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
1–10 of 52 posts
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#2I understand that this paper is sort of a joke (hence references to "the force"), but I don't understand the point of some of these research papers.
> "How should interest charges on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light?"
Perhaps we should do more research on getting the goods to travel close to the speed of light before we start worrying about how to calculate interest charges on them.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#3I understand that this paper is sort of a joke (hence references to "the force"), but I don't understand the point of some of these research papers. > "How should interest charges on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light?" Perhaps we should do more research on getting the goods to travel close to the speed of light before we start worrying about how to calculate interest ch…
The paper was written for fun. It wasn't published in a journal until after the author won the Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#4I understand that this paper is sort of a joke (hence references to "the force"), but I don't understand the point of some of these research papers. > "How should interest charges on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light?" Perhaps we should do more research on getting the goods to travel close to the speed of light before we start worrying about how to calculate interest ch…
The fact that the paper is meant to be taken somewhat facetiously is signaled right there on the title page: "This research was supported by a grant from the Committee to Re-elect William Proxmire."
"Proxmire was was noted for issuing his Golden Fleece Award, which was presented monthly between 1975 and 1988, in order to focus media attention on projects Proxmire viewed as self-serving and wasteful of taxpayer dollars. The first Golden Fleece Award was awarded in 1975 to the National Science Foundation, for funding an $84,000 study on why people fall in love."
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#5I understand that this paper is sort of a joke (hence references to "the force"), but I don't understand the point of some of these research papers. > "How should interest charges on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light?" Perhaps we should do more research on getting the goods to travel close to the speed of light before we start worrying about how to calculate interest ch…
According to Krugman, the paper is "a serious analysis of a ridiculous subject, which is of course the opposite of what is usual in economics."
I think this paper is a great example of the playfulness inherent to an effective "hacker" mindset -- do something fun and interesting, and perhaps useful conclusions will follow. Perhaps they won't, but hey, you still had fun.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#6Krugman? This is the Nobel laureate that said the stock market would NEVER recover from Trump's election.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#7Krugman? This is the Nobel laureate that said the stock market would NEVER recover from Trump's election.
Economists are priests. Sometimes their prophecies don't work out, because the connection to god is not clear.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#8I understand that this paper is sort of a joke (hence references to "the force"), but I don't understand the point of some of these research papers. > "How should interest charges on goods in transit be computed when the goods travel at close to the speed of light?" Perhaps we should do more research on getting the goods to travel close to the speed of light before we start worrying about how to calculate interest ch…
The fact that the paper is meant to be taken somewhat facetiously is signaled right there on the title page: "This research was supported by a grant from the Committee to Re-elect William Proxmire." "Proxmire was was noted for issuing his Golden Fleece Award, which was presented monthly between 1975 and 1988, in order to focus media attention on projects Proxmire viewed as self-serving and wasteful of taxpayer dollar…
When I was a kid, a local radio station would broadcast their summary of his "Golden Fleece Award" on their morning show. It was always a highlight to laugh at the "obvious" foolishness.
As I have gotten older, the tables have turned, and my youthful easy laughs ring hollow. It's very easy to pull research out of context and laugh at it. It's very hard to do impactful research.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#9Krugman? This is the Nobel laureate that said the stock market would NEVER recover from Trump's election.
Trump isn't president yet and hasn't done anything yet. Once that happens we'll find out for sure. Right now we don't know for sure whether Trump will do bad things and so stock markets reflect that.
Re: The Theory of Interstellar Trade (1978)
#10Krugman? This is the Nobel laureate that said the stock market would NEVER recover from Trump's election.
True, but he quickly retracted that comment and admitted that it was something he said in the heat of the moment without thinking things through fully: http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/11/11/the-long-haul/?_...