Seminar: Topics at the Interface between Computer Science and Economics

• 19.10.2011: Schedule updated. You now have until 5.11.2011 to submit the first 3-5 pages on your reading progress.
• 24.9.2011: Schedule posted.
• 24.9.2011: List of topics posted.
• 24.9.2011: Background reading (if necessary): A brief Introudction to Game Theory and Mechanism Design. If you think you need more background reading for your topic of choice, please contact the instructor.
• 23.9.2011: Introduction to EconCS
• 21.9.2011 Slides for Kick-off Meeting

Schedule

List of Topics for Seminar Papers

In this seminar, we will discuss the interplay between computer science and economics in a variety of fields. We will see the importance of game-theoretic reasoning for the design of online computer systems and electronic market places. Students can choose from a list of topics that will be made available in the kick-off meeting, or are free to propose their own topic. Possible topics include computational mechanism design, electronic currencies, the smart grid market, market design and user interface design, crowdsourcing and human computation, prediction markets, reputation systems, trust mechanisms, and recommender systems

The seminar will be held as a “Block-Seminar”. The kick-off meeting is on Wednesday, 21.09.2011, from 14:00-15:00 in BIN-1.D.06. After that date, students can choose a topic and work on their paper during the semester. We will have one or two longer seminar days at the end of the semester for student presentations (exact date and time tbd).

The successful completion of all classes from the assessment level is required. No special prior knowledge is required. Any background in microeconomics, game theory, multi-agent systems, or artificial intelligence would be helpful. Background readings on various subjects will be made available if necessary.

Recommended for BSc students in the 5th and 6th semester as well as MSc students. Interested BSc students in the 3rd or 4th semester as well as PhD students are also welcome but should talk to the instructor first.

1. Understanding the interplay between computer science and economics in a variety of settings.
2. Conducting a literature review and/or a small research project.
3. Writing a technical paper on a clearly defined subject.
4. Holding an oral presentation about a topic and leading a discussion.

1. Final paper (15 pages, LNCS format). The paper can either be a survey paper or a piece of novel research
2. Oral presentation of the paper (using slides) + leading a discussion
3. Active participation during the seminar

The necessary literature will be made available at the kick-off meeting. Here is a list of papers/books that may serve as an introduction to various topics:

1. Comutational Mechanism Design: A Call to Arms (Rajdeep K Dash, Nicholas R. Jennings, and David C. Parkes)
2. Networks, Crowds, and Markets (David Easley and Jon Kleinberg)
3. Computational Challenges in E-Commerce (Joan Feigenbaum, David C. Parkes, and David M. Pennock)
4. The Economist as Engineer: Game Theory, Experimentation, and Computation as Tools for Design Economics (Alvin E. Roth)
5. Market User Interface Design (Sven Seuken, David C. Parkes, Eric Horvitz, Kamal Jain, Mary Czerwinski, and Desney Tan)
6. Human Computation (Luis van Ahn)
7. The Digitization of Word-of-Mouth: Promise and Challenges of Online Reputation Systems (Chrysanthos Dellarocas)
8. Designing Markets for Prediction (Yiling Chen and David M. Pennock)
9. Recommender Systems (Paul Resnick and Hal Varian)
10. Expressive Commerce and Its Application to Sourcing: How We Conducted $35 Billion of Generalized Combinatorial Auctions (Tuomas Sandholm)