Asking for hints

[RWA van der Wyck]

Hello Fabian,

My Paradigm colleague in Bergen dedicated his masters thesis
to a similar subject area namely the pedagogical impact of
System Dynamics modeling. His name is Arne-Helge Byrknes (abyrknes@online.no)
and he studied under Prof. Davidson in Bergen. I will CC this message
to him so that he knows that he might expect an email from you.
He might otherwise help to point you in the right directions.
Hope this is of some help.

Regards,
Rhoderick van der Wyck

Paradigm Business Simulators
Parkweg 2
2585 JJ The Hague
rvdwyck@paradigm.nl
www.paradigm.nl

[Lino Alessandro]

Dear mail list companions,

Im Alessandro Lino, now in the Master of System Dynamics in Bergen, Norway.

Im beginning to think about some research topics for my Master Thesis. Having
a statistical and economic background, my intention is to apply the System
Dynamics approach to problems related to Financial Markets.

"Financial markets are dynamic complex systems characterised by delays,
feedback, and nonlinearity. Many historical events and empirical analysis
show that price unstable behaviour, the main factor influencing investor
decisions, cannot be fully explained by the classic efficient markets
theory. The crucial point appears to be the lack of understanding about some
causes of financial market price dynamics. For example, different trading
strategies, speculative dynamics, imitation process, economic cycles should
be considered within system structure in order to increase our understanding
about the causes of behaviour.
More specifically, in the market there are different actors with different
information and purposes. The CAPM and APT equilibrium models fail to
predict the price behaviour because they are based on elementary hypothesis
like homogeneous expectations. However, the fact that the model is based on
elementary hypothesis doesnt mean the model is a poor representation of the
real system. "The final test of a model is not how reasonable the assumption
behind it appear but how well the model describes reality" ( E. Elton, M.
Gruber : Modern Portfolio Theory and Investment Analysis, Wiley, 1991 ).
Recent results obtained by E. Fama and K. French, for example, show how the
CAPM model failed to predict the effective price behaviour in 1963-1990.
Today more than past years, the financial system is characterised by the
interaction of many factors such as political, economic, social, and
psychological."

My question is if any of you are aware of a similar or related research
which I can take as a point of departure for mine, working on some
interesting possible extensions. It also should be important for me if you
can refer to the proper bibliography that should be used in my research.

Any comments, suggestions and insights will be really appreciated.

Best regards,

Alessandro Lino
allesanl@ifi.uib.no

[Fabian Szulanski]

Dear mail list companions,

Im Fabian Szulanski, now in the Master in System Dynamics in Bergen, Norway.

Im beginning to think about some research topics for my Master Thesis, and
I have thought of trying to figure out how can be Systems Thinking and
System Dynamics be better taught in a multicultural and interdisciplinary
high school teacher training program, and to try to propose a methodology
for homogenize that knowledge transfer; and after that, to measure the
effectiveness of applying that proposed methodology.

My specific question is if any of you are aware of a similar or related
research endeavor which I can take as a point of departure for mine, adding
some fresh perspective to it, and also if you can refer to the proper
support bibliography that should be used in a research like the one I am
thinking to propose. I think that some literature about learning theory
should be included but I dont have access to all the listings at this moment.

If not already done, it would be a real challenge for me to tackle this
research project.

Any comments, insights and suggestions will be really appreciated.

Have a Happy Easter.
Be well...and in touch.
Fabian.
FabianS@ifi.uib.no

[GBHirsch@aol.com]

Dear Fabian,

You should contact Mike Radzicki (mjradz@wpi.edu) and his colleagues at
Worcester Polytechnic Institute who have done work in the area of measuring
the effectiveness of educational interventions using System Dynamics.
Perhaps they can help you.

Gary Hirsch
GBHirsch@aol.com