There was a strange duo in Princeton.
That was Professor Paul Krugman and Professor Albert Laszlo Barabassi.
The reason why this duo was strange was not because of what happened between the two of them, but because their research topics were difficult for ordinary people to understand. Even the avant-garde Principal Easgruber only gave him an indescribable look and didn't make any comments.
When it came to the story of how the two met, it was full of surprises.
At first, it was because they exchanged business cards at a dinner after an academic conference. Later, when they were discussing the future of mankind, the two's opinions coincided with each other. This led to the idea of "using mathematical models to quantitatively analyze this evolutionary process".
One of them was an economist who was passionate about natural science, and the other was a physicist who was passionate about sociology. They complemented each other in their respective fields of expertise.
Unfortunately, when they were in St. Petersburg, they failed to recruit Lu Zhou to study the mathematical model for predicting the future. But even without the help of the world's best mathematician, the two still didn't give up and continued to work in this direction.
Even though there had been no obvious progress in the related research so far …
In a cafe near the teaching building.
As usual, the two of them sat opposite each other and enjoyed their afternoon tea while chatting about some of the things that had happened recently and some difficult topics.
"For high-speed interstellar travel, the theory of relativity determines the phenomenon of time dilation in different coordinate systems. Let's say there are twin brothers. One day, the older brother takes a spacecraft to the A civilization for a long-distance space trip, while the younger brother stays on Earth. When the older brother returns to Earth, we find that he is younger than the younger brother … Is this a problem? "
Albert listened to Professor Krugman's speech and nodded with interest. He said, "No problem … But what does this mean in economics?"
"If that's all, it doesn't mean anything. But if we replace the twins with two opportunistic businessmen, the result will be completely different. You know, in business, time is a very important cost. If the profit of a trade route is less than the regular interest of the bank on the home planet, then the flight is unprofitable. "
"There is a formula involved here." Krugman scribbled a line of calculations on a piece of paper. He pushed it in front of Professor Albert with his index finger and said, "It is the starting point of everything."
[pe * qepa/pa * ≥ (c + peqe) (1 + r) 2n.]
Albert looked at the formula on the note and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
"… What a strange formula."
"It's quite strange, but it contains a very important theory, which is my first theorem of interstellar trade." Krugman smiled and continued, "When trading between planets in the same inertial coordinate system, the interest should be calculated using the planet's inertial system clock, not the spacecraft system clock. At the same time, let the interest rate of the Earth bank be r. If and only if the inequality is true, then this trip will not be a 'loss'. "
Albert: "Very interesting point … Speaking of which, since there is a first theorem, is there a second theorem?"
"Of course, due to the existence of trade competition, planets in the same inertial coordinate system will gradually tend to the same interest rate. This is the second theorem … However, they are all invalid now." The old man chuckled. Although his words were full of regret, his voice sounded quite happy. He said, "These theories are all based on the absolute correctness of the theory of relativity. That is, we have not found a standard that exceeds the speed of light.
"Although the theory of relativity is still correct, we have found a shortcut to an alien planet … At least a shortcut that exists in theory. When time does not expand and the flight time is shortened, we don't have to worry about the long journey that may eliminate simple arbitrage.
"In fact, what I really want to say is … Haven't you noticed? That hyperspace theory not only affects physics, but also economics. "
Professor Albert fell into deep thought.
After a long time, he sighed softly.
"You're right, the progress of science has brought great uncertainty to mathematical models. Even the most perfect and rigorous calculation is difficult to predict this kind of nonlinear leap. Even if our mathematical model successfully predicts what may happen in the next hundred years, as long as a 'Professor Lu' appears in this hundred years, all our predictions can be overturned. "
Krugman nodded slightly.
"This is what I am worried about. The study of the overall change of civilization must weaken the role of individuals in the process of civilization. But when the role of individuals cannot be ignored, this process will no longer conform to objective laws."
At this moment, a young man quickly walked into the cafe.
He was wearing a gray suit, and his expression was a little unusual, as if he had just seen or heard something unbelievable. The man walked straight to the side of the two professors and spoke in a dreamy tone.
"Professor …"
"Good afternoon, Dr. Milson." Professor Krugman looked up at his assistant and said with a friendly smile, "What makes you look so surprised?"
"You asked me to collect information about the Tau Ceti Galaxy Colonization Fund …"
"Is there any news?"
"Yes." The assistant nodded. The assistant hesitated for a while before saying in a difficult tone, "That fund … seems to be managed by Xiao Tong."
"Xiao Tong?"
Krugman was stunned.
After a while, he came back to his senses and sat up straight in his chair. He looked at his assistant in disbelief and asked, "Wait, you mean … your junior sister? That Xiao Tong? "
The assistant spoke with a bitter smile.
"Yes … This is already an open matter."
Krugman opened his mouth and went silent for a while before speaking.
"I see … That's it for now."
The assistant nodded, turned around, and walked away.
Krugman leaned back in his chair and pinched his eyebrows.
In his original plan, he wanted to find a way to get in touch with this fund manager, who had recently been in the limelight in the economics world. He wanted to have a cup of afternoon tea or something and discuss academic problems with him so that he could complete his research project.
But now …
He really didn't expect this person to be his student.
"I can't believe it …" Albert, who was sitting across from him, opened his mouth and looked at Professor Krugman with a muddled expression. He said, "It's actually … your student who is managing this fund."
That's ten billion yuan!
It's not like it's a graduation thesis!
It wasn't that he doubted Xiao Tong's ability, but would a normal person hand over so much money to a PhD student who hadn't even graduated?
"This does sound a bit weird …" Professor Krugman put down his index finger and thumb and said, "But it does seem like something he would do."
In fact, Xiao Tong was quite capable, and he was quite hardworking.
The only thing he lacked was practical experience.
In fact, according to his mentor's point of view, it might be better for her to start as a small assistant. It was too risky to start such a difficult job directly …
But how to say it?
If he didn't care about the loss of a few hundred million, he could ignore these problems.
Having an older brother who didn't lack money was one of her advantages …
"… She's different from the other students I've taught. She's one of the few people who can achieve a balanced development of theoretical and applied economics. Especially in a place like Princeton, it's not easy to balance both."
Albert took a sip of coffee and asked curiously.
"Is she talented?"
"Not the most talented." Krugman shook his head. "But she's probably the most hardworking."
Moreover, his starting point was much higher than the average person's.
As the sister of a Nobel Prize laureate, even if Lu Zhou didn't do anything, he could rely on his reputation in the academic world and his relationship with many Princeton professors to get the most resources for her.
It was like a recommendation letter from a famous person.
Her surname itself was a very nutty recommendation letter, and it was the kind of recommendation letter that was common in the academic world.
In a situation like this, even if she didn't work hard, she wouldn't be doing badly. Not to mention, she was a girl who was not inferior to her brother in terms of diligence …
"Future economic models have a lot of potential. Compared to other fields, we have very little research in this field. Now that we are in an era of rapid development, it is difficult for old theories to adapt to new changes, even if it seems very advanced at the time … Just like the [Interstellar Trade Theory] I talked about before. "
Professor Krugman paused for a second before he continued.
"I know that the topic of her recent thesis happened to be related to the recently popular 'Interstellar Colonization Fund'. Whether it is applied economics or theoretical economics, this is an opportunity for her. "
Professor Albert: "Opportunity?"
Krugman nodded.
"It's an opportunity to combine theory and application, and find a balance between them."
"The entire economics community is using the 'Tau Ceti Interstellar Colonization Fund' as a sample to study the future social and economic activities of human civilization. I believe that with her insight, it shouldn't be difficult for her to find something … After all, she is the person closest to the 'truth'. Even I don't necessarily know more than her.
"If … I mean if, she can summarize the rules and find something different about human social and economic activities after the hyperspace theory."
Professor Albert's expression gradually turned into one of surprise. Krugman spoke in a serious tone.
"Maybe in her lifetime, she really has a chance to win the Nobel Prize …"
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