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A Conversation with Vernon Smith, 2002 Nobel Laureate

February 22, 2023
Vernon Smith Vernon Smith, at the 2017 dedication ceremony for UAA’s Vernon Smith Economic Science Laboratory. Photo UAA/James Evans.

Friday, March 3, 12-1 pm
Rasmuson Hall Rm 101

Hannah Hennighausen, UAA Assistant Professor of Economics, will lead a conversation with 2002 Nobel laureate Vernon Smith on a range of topics, such as how he got interested in economics, his experiences growing up, his thoughts on Alaska policy issues, receiving the Nobel prize, and whatever else comes to mind.

Early in his career, Dr. Smith recognized and exploited the power of experimental methods to address economic questions. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Science “for having established laboratory experiments as a tool in empirical economic analysis, especially in the study of alternative market mechanisms.”

His work expanded our knowledge of economic behavior and laid the foundation for the new field of experimental economics. As a result, economic experiments are now conducted in labs all over the world - including at UAA!

Dr. Smith is an affiliated faculty member in CBPP’s Department of Economics. He served as the department’s first Rasmuson Chair in economics and spearheaded the development of a new experimental economics program at UAA by encouraging faculty to incorporate experiments into their teaching and research. The Vernon Smith Economic Science Laboratory in the College of Business and Public Policy was dedicated in 2017.

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Smith back to Alaska for an informal, approachable conversation on a wide range of topics. Open to UAA faculty, staff and students.