Comment on William C. Brainard and Herbert E. Scarf's 'How to Compute Equilibrium Prices in 1891'

摘要

In commenting on Brainard and Scarf's essay, the engineer and physicist K. R. Sreenivasan considers why Fisher resorted to hydraulic machines in the first place. A reading of Irving Fisher's thesis shows that mathematical economics was in its infancy at the time, and that skepticism about its value was the norm. Fisher did not seem to have received expert advice on the subject, so it is remarkable that he went as far as he did; equally impressive is his attempt to compute equilibrium prices quantitatively by seeking analogy to hydraulics and building an appropriate apparatus to do so. Brainard and Scarf present a highly readable account of how the apparatus may have worked, and I have little of substance to add. I myself was curious to discover why Fisher resorted to hydraulic machines in the first place, and will make a few remarks in that context. I am afraid that these remarks have not been researched as thoroughly as I would wish.