home > seminars 2010 > yakovenko
Dr. Victor M. Yakovenko
Department of Physics
University of Maryland, College Park
Wed. March 31, 3:30 PM
Thirkield Hall (Physics), room 103
Statistical Mechanics of Money, Income, and Wealth
By
analogy with the probability distribution of energy in physics, I argue
that the probability distribution of money in a closed economic system
should also follow the exponential Boltzmann-Gibbs law. Analysis of the
empirical data shows that income distribution in the USA has a
well-defined two-class structure. The majority of the population (about
97%) belongs to the lower class characterized by the exponential
("thermal") distribution. The upper class (about 3% of the population)
is characterized by the Pareto power-law ("superthermal") distribution,
and its share of the total income expands and contracts dramatically
during bubbles and busts in financial markets. I show that the
probability distribution of energy consumption per capita around the
world also follows the exponential Boltzmann-Gibbs law. References are
available at http://www2.physics.umd.edu/~yakovenk/econophysics/.
Refreshments will be served at 3:40pm