Artificial Economics
Methods, Models, and Interdisciplinary Links

An introductory overview of the methods, models and interdisciplinary links of artificial economics, a new way of doing economics.

Ruben Mercado (Author)

9781009005753, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 4 November 2021

196 pages
23 x 15.2 x 1 cm, 0.3 kg

'Ruben Mercado's Artificial Economics is a readable, stimulating introduction to the modeling principles and to the main techniques used in this field. The book focuses on intuitive and conceptual aspects, and it is easily accessible to readers independently of their background. It presents the different techniques using selected, distilled examples, and it complements each approach with a discussion of its links to other disciplines in the social sciences that approach the same problems from different perspectives.' Segismundo Izquierdo, Universidad de Valladolid

This introductory overview explores the methods, models and interdisciplinary links of artificial economics, a new way of doing economics in which the interactions of artificial economic agents are computationally simulated to study their individual and group behavior patterns. Conceptually and intuitively, and with simple examples, Mercado addresses the differences between the basic assumptions and methods of artificial economics and those of mainstream economics. He goes on to explore various disciplines from which the concepts and methods of artificial economics originate; for example cognitive science, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, evolutionary science and complexity science. Introductory discussions on several controversial issues are offered, such as the application of the concepts of evolution and complexity in economics and the relationship between artificial intelligence and the philosophies of mind. This is one of the first books to fully address artificial economics, emphasizing its interdisciplinary links and presenting in a balanced way its occasionally controversial aspects.

Introduction
Part I. Artificial Economics and Mainstream Economics: 1. The Artificial Agent
2. Artificial Markets
3. Artificial Games
4. Artificial Economics versus Mathematics?
Part II. Complementary Topics and Discussions: 5. Artificial Intelligence
6. Artificial Evolution
7. Artificial Complexity
8. Artificial Economics and the Agent/Structure Problem.

Subject Areas: Artificial intelligence [UYQ], Econometrics [KCH]