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TOWARDS AN ALGORITHMIC REVOLUTION IN ECONOMIC THEORY
Author(s) -
Velupillai K. Vela
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of economic surveys
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.657
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 1467-6419
pISSN - 0950-0804
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6419.2011.00684.x
Subject(s) - undecidable problem , mathematical economics , game theory , algorithmic game theory , subjectivism , economic science , neoclassical economics , economics , epistemology , mathematics , computer science , sociology , social science , decidability , philosophy , repeated game , algorithm
This is an attempt to tell a coherent story of a possible path towards an algorithmic revolution in economic theory, based on foundational debates in mathematics. First, by exposing the non‐computational content of classical mathematics, and its foundations, it is shown that both set theory and the tertium non datur can be dispensed with, as foundational concepts. Next, then, as a natural sequel, it follows that every kind of economic theory that bases its theoretical underpinning on classical mathematics can be freed from these foundations and can be made naturally algorithmic. This will make the subject face, in an all pervasive way, absolutely (algorithmically) undecidable decision problems. The thrust of the path towards an algorithmic revolution in economics lies, then, in pointing out that only a radically new mathematical vision of microeconomics, macroeconomics, behavioural economics, game theory, dynamical systems theory and probability theory can lead us towards making economic theory a meaningfully applied science and free of mysticism and subjectivism.