The ICT conference at the ZEW has been quite good. It has been better in past years but I still learned a lot here. Even better, I got some good comments on my paper that could help solve a problem I was stuck on. I think I was able to provide useful comments on a number of papers, which helps assuage my conscience that it was worth their inviting me. No presentation that I saw was just aweful and no one presented a pure policy polemic (though one came close).
A highlight of the conference was the conference dinner last night. This was in a small winery in the small town of Deidesheim nearby. The winery was in operation 800 years ago, owned by the bishop, but was bought and rebuilt by the current family after it was destroyed by Napoleon's army in 1804. The owner, along with his ~10 year old son, gave us lessons on wines and we tasted six different wines they produce. Dinner was actually served in the wine cellar. In true European fashion, we returned back to Mannheim from this dinner at about 11:30pm.
After the last session and lunch, we all said our goodbyes. It is a beautiful afternoon and I don't think anyone was much in a hurry to do anything but sip cofffee on the terrace. Irene and the ICT folks were each individually very gracious in their good byes. Collectively, they gave me some Mannheimer Dreck, a local dessert, and a ZEW teeshirt to take home which I will wear with pride. I offered room and board if any of them come through the Dallas area (and two or three moved to pull out their calendars). Honestly, we have an extra room and it would be no problem. Two weeks ago I was homesick, but now I am not - go figure. Since I will be back in Arlington, this is the last entry until Monday.
About Me
- Michael Ward
- Short Bio - Michael R. Ward earned his bachelors degree is in Economics and Mathematics from UCLA and he earned his masters and doctorate degrees in Economics from the University of Chicago. He has held economics positions in the academic, government and private sectors. He is currently an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Texas at Arlington. He previously held Assistant and Associate Professor positions at the University of Illinois and has served as a staff economist at the Federal Trade Commission. Prof. Ward’s research interests are in competition and productivity in research intensive industries, especially telecommunications, E-commerce and pharmaceuticals. Of particular interest are: market regulation and policy and institutions to facilitate information transfer. His research has been published in a number of economics journals, edited volumes, and government reports. He has made research presentations at numerous government agencies and scholarly conferences. He has taught a variety of microeconomic topics at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels.
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