Economic Science Institute Hosts 2015 IFREE Summer Scholars
The Economic Science Institute (ESI) hosted eight undergraduate and graduate students to participate as IFREE Summer Scholars, according to a press release. The ESI is part of Chapman University, home of the Argyros School of Business. The program, which lasted for five weeks, was sponsored by the International Foundation for Research in Experimental Economics (IFREE) and the Thomas W. Smith Foundation. The selected students gained firsthand experience to explore and advance their knowledge and understanding of economics research, history, and philosophy.
The Economic Science Institute has its roots in a 1956 experiment conducted by Professor Vernon L. Smith in an introductory economics class. He had a vision of a better way to research and teach economics. This experiment led to the creation of the field of Experimental Economics. Smith’s contribution earned him a share of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Economic Science. In 2008 Argyros announced the creation of the Economic Science Institute, led by Smith and professors John Dickhaut, David Porter, Stephen Rassenti, and Bart Wilson.
Students were selected based on their success in the Vernon L. Smith High School Workshop in Experimental Economics or undergraduate coursework in the ESI facility as well as their desire to build upon what they learned in these workshops and courses and study more advanced work. Students regularly met with mentors Andrew Smyth, Jan Osborn, and Bart Wilson to explore and discuss books like Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Thomas Dixon’s From Passions to Emotions, John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, and R.L. Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, along with various economic research papers.
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Ben Smolin
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