Why Is There So Much Esoteric Math in Economics Grad Programs?
Why Is There So Much Esoteric Math in Economics Grad Programs? Friday January 29, 2010#spacer{clear:left}#abc #sidebar{margin-top:1.5em}zSB(3,3) Stephen Gordon asks a question I continually asked myself as a Ph.D. student at the University of Rochester: Why does anyone care about the distinction between convergence in probability and almost sure convergence? I’m teaching two econometrics classes this term (master’s and PhD), and I just covered the parts on asymptotic theory. In both lectures, I stumbled badly at explaining the difference between these two forms of convergence: my heart simply isn’t in it… I’ve never heard of empirical study where the distinction between the two forms of convergence made a difference… Why do we force our students to learn these things? As an aside, undergradua
