tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822805028291837738.post4528346328629878648..comments2023-12-09T03:51:33.158-05:00Comments on Various Consequences: Zen UncertaintyJoshua Stultshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03506970399027046387noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822805028291837738.post-46288965318999809702010-03-19T11:28:37.575-04:002010-03-19T11:28:37.575-04:00Thanks, I read through the paper. It started out ...Thanks, I read through the paper. It started out kind of weak, but got better when they started discussing Bayesian degrees of belief on page 12. I still am not sure if their distinction between "risk" and "uncertainty" mirrors the distinction between "frequentists" and "Bayesians". <br /><br />I think some of the real physics envy is in people looking for critical phenomena and new states of matter or behavior as opposed to seeking more ordinary explanations to what they observe, like entropic disorder.<br /><br />Which reminds me -- I saw no mention of entropy at all. <br /><br />Also only a slight nod to John Maynard Keynes, who did much on probability theory, and had to influence Samuelson. And then Boltzmann and his contemporaries were the original econophycists as they suggested applying statistical mechanics arguments to the social sciences first. <br /><br />The inconsistent part of their presentation is their discussion of irreducible uncertainty combined with their frequent insistence that they could explain certain parts of the economy.@whuthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18297101284358849575noreply@blogger.com