I am an assistant professor at the Quantitative Economics Department of Maastricht University.
I completed my PhD in game theory at Maastricht University. Then I was a research fellow at the International Laboratory of Game Theory and Decision Making at the Higher School of Economics, Saint Petersburg. Afterwards I was a research fellow at the School of Mathematical Sciences at Tel Aviv University.
This website is devoted to my research and some of my other interests.
Science
„Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think!” Albert Einstein
Research is challenging to do, and it is a way to learn something interesting in depth. It also gives a chance to meet a lot of intelligent people who seem to be genuinely passionate about their work, which makes discussions all the more engaging.
Guidance for young economists
„If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” Albert Einstein
10 Q&A: Experienced Advice for “Lost” Graduate Students in Economics
„Remember that you are one of the most privileged people on earth. Society has given you a wonderful opportunity. You are supposed to do whatever you want, to think about new ideas, to express your views freely, to do things in the way that you choose, and on top of that you will be rewarded nicely for doing so. These privileges should not be taken for granted. We are extremely lucky, and we owe something in return.”
Ariel Rubinstein’s Atlas of Cafes where one can think
The Young Economist’s Guide to Professional Etiquette – Daniel S. Hamermesh
Advice on how to think of building models:
How to Build an Economic Model in Your Spare Time – Hal R. Varian
Cautionary tale about applying models to the real world:
Chameleons: The Misuse of Theoretical Models in Finance and Economics – Paul Pfleiderer
Advice on how to write introductions and economic theory papers
Improv
“…the students completely opened up, came out of their comfort zone and really grew as individuals. The transformation was amazing. And they really enjoyed the experience.” Paul Smeets
Improv gives you the chance to genuinely be in the moment and forget about all your worries. It makes you think in a more positive way, and read body language easier. To sum up, it is a lot of fun with some useful consequences. To know more about these consequences, you can read the opinion of Paul Smeets, a colleague who used to be part of the same improv group as me.
Attention, All Scientists: Do Improv, With Alan Alda’s Help!
Music Festivals
“You can’t buy happiness but you can buy concert tickets. And that’s just as good.”
Music and concerts can give pure joy, but a music festival is something more. It gives the opportunity to not only meet nice new people, but it is often connected to all kinds of art projects presented in a very relaxed way. Sziget festival is the one closest to my heart, which is conveniently located in the middle of Budapest. Each year they create an aftermovie to capture the atmosphere.
A convenient way to find a music festival close to you: festivalsearcher.com
Travelling
“Traveling’s not something you’re good at. It’s something you do. Like breathing.”
Travelling gives you the opportunity to learn about another culture and way of life, often shifting your existing paradigm. You cannot fully understand how you think and live, until you are truly able to see your ways from an outside point of view.
Languages
“A different language is a different vision of life.”
Learning new languages is similar to travelling, since it opens up a whole new world and gives you food for thought. Besides that, knowing a language is a tool to reach out to new people and understand them better. In what language you interact with someone can be relevant, since some might communicate in a different way (or of course, at a different level of ease) depending on the language. Even for a short vacation, it might be useful to know a couple of words in the local language, DuoLingo can readily help you with that.
Native
Native
Fluent
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate