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Author Archives: F. E. Guerra-Pujol
Does the Prisoner’s Dilemma falsify the Coase Theorem?
The Coase Theorem is an idea in law and economics that states that private bargaining will lead to an optimal allocation of resources when two conditions are met: when property rights are well-defined, and when there are no obstacles to voluntary … Continue reading
Should drones be regulated?
Some people say “not yet.” Eli Dourado, for example, argues thus: It’s true that opening up U.S. airspace to commercial drones will have some important privacy implications to consider. But it’s even more important that we consider the effect of too-early, … Continue reading
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Tagged common law, Drones, invasion of privacy, optimal regulation
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Why do jury verdicts have to be unanimous?
And why do verdicts have to be binary–i.e. either “guilty” or “not guilty”? What if jurors were allowed instead to rate or score the plaintiff’s case, just like people rate movies or restaurants. In our most recent working paper, Why … Continue reading
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Tagged holdouts, ignorant jurors, juries, jury accuracy, range verdicts, range voting, strategic jurors
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A history of the Prisoner’s Dilemma
The Prisoner’s Dilemma–or is it Prisoners’ Dilemma?–is not only one of the most famous models in game theory; it has also been described as a “compelling drama,” as “the most famous game of strategy in all of social science,” and … Continue reading
Bad bet?
Did the L.A. Lakers just make a really bad bet? A few days ago, the Lakers and Kobe Bryant agreed to a two-year, $48.5 million contract extension. This is no doubt a great deal for the Black Mamba, but is #24, who … Continue reading
Are babies Bayesians?
At its core, Bayes’ theorem is not just a mathematical equation, a formal method for making predictions; it is also a probabilistic and dynamic way of looking at the world. The essence of this approach is the process of Bayesian … Continue reading
Why Exams Should be Open Book
Originally posted on Cheap Talk:
Writing and studying for an exam is a game played between Professor and student. In this game the Professor has to pick which questions to ask and the student has to pick which topics to…
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How bad is Yahoo Mail?
According the website AllThingsD, executives at Yahoo! recently sent out this nasty and morale-shrinking email taking their underlings to task for not using their own company’s email service “Yahoo! Mail.” According to the internal email, “it’s a matter of principle to use the … Continue reading
The law and economics of Star Trek
Several “Star Trek scholars”–including Matthew Yglesias, Rick Webb, and Joshua Gans–have recently speculated about the economics of Star Trek. How does the economy (and legal system, we would add) work in the world of Star Trek? Does the United Federation of … Continue reading
prior probability 