
Prof. Maneesh Agrawala is among the 24 new MacArthur "genius" Fellows announced Tuesday, Sept. 22, by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Prof. Agrawala’s research focuses on “developing new tools and algorithms to visualize and efficiently make sense of tremendous volumes of information.” The Xlab is proud to have played a small part in Prof. Agrawala’s research: over the last two years, he and his students conducted five experiments on this subject in the Xlab, involving over 130 subjects. His webpage is a cornucopia of visually-intense links to various aspects of his research. More information on this year’s MacArthur Fellows can be found on the foundation’s website
“Planned versus Actual Betting in Sequential Gambles,” by Haas marketing professors Eduardo Andrade and Ganesh Iyer, finds that in the planning phase, people behave conservatively—they say they will bet less in a following gamble in the event they lose a previous one. However, after experiencing an actual loss, individuals open their pocketbooks wider than planned.
President-elect Barack Obama has announced he will nominate IBER investigator Christina Romer as Chair of his Council of Economic Advisors. Prof. Romer’s current project is funded by the National Science Foundation, “ The Macroeconomic Effects of Tax Cuts: New Estimates Derived from a Narrative Approach.”
Haas School Professor and recent IBER Chair Carl Shapiro, an expert in the economics of antitrust and innovation, has been named Chief Economist in the US Department of Justice's antitrust division. Shapiro, the Transamerica Professor of Business Strategy, previously served as deputy assistant attorney general for economic analysis in the Justice Department from 1995 to 1996. He has been a member of the Haas faculty since 1991.
Read UCB Economic Historian Berry Eichengreen's CNN Commentary, "How Obama Can Fix the Economy".
Rachel Sullivan Robinson has become an Assistant Professor at the School of International Service, American University, Washington, D.C.. Rachel completed her Ph.D. in sociology and demography. Her research focuses on the politics of population and reproductive health in sub-Saharan Africa. Additionally, Chris Rider has accepted a teaching post at Goizueta Business School of Emory University. Zachary Grossman has been offered teaching jobs at UC Santa Barbara and Washington State University.
Alain de Janvry, Professor of Agriculture and Resource Economics, has co-authored the World Bank's World Development Report for 2008.