In today's complex world, I appreciate that understanding economics is not only vital for making financial or management decisions, but also a lens through which to look the world. What makes economics most interesting to me is the interaction of two seemingly contradictory ideas: logical reasoning and inherent uncertainty. By participating in weekly Meet-the-People sessions, a platform where residents can express their concerns to Members of Parliament, I drafted petition letters to government agencies based on residents' needs and concerns. This opened my eyes to the wealth inequality in Singapore and pushed me to consider the irrationality behind decisions made by the poor, such as choosing to buy cigarettes instead of food. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. These likely prevent them from maximizing their long-term well-being and further entrench them in the cycle of poverty. This prompted me to read “Poor Economics” by Banerjee and Duflo, which posits that the poor are often imperfect decision-making agents for reasons beyond affordability. I realized that poverty is the result not only of multifaceted economic problems, such as different opportunities due to socioeconomic status, but also of innate human behaviors. Such exposure made me question the conventional theory of rational decision making and inspired me to broaden my knowledge by exploring beyond my curriculum. “Animal Spirits” by Akerlof and Shiller introduced me to the field of behavioral economics. They argue that while animal spirits (driven by human psychology) might destabilize markets and cause economic turbulence, such human emotions can and should be exercised by governments to promote entrepreneurship and healthy capitalism. In doing so, governments should play a disciplinary role to stabilize markets through policymaking. However, I believe that this view is overly idealistic. While we understand that such animal spirits matter in markets, governments often find it difficult to translate this knowledge into action precisely because of the unpredictable nature of such human perceptions and emotions. However, this book helped me better appreciate the contrast and the reasons behind it - between purely theoretical models and their real-life applications. I have a strong interest in mathematics and derive satisfaction from solving problems using logical and critical approaches. I am intrigued by how mathematics can be applied in economics, in modeling and quantifying real-life phenomena. Through TED talks, I learned about game theory through the prisoner's dilemma and was intrigued by how relevant it is to real-life situations, such as how oligopolists use it to anticipate competitors' actions and choose strategies of price fixing and non-fixing. I was also fascinated by Elinor Ostrom's "Governing the Commons," which applies game theory to explain the dominant strategy of economic agents and to evaluate how best to manage common pool resources. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay Through this, I have seen how mathematics can be applied in economics such as in Nash equilibrium. I look forward to applying mathematics in more innovative ways in the study of economics. Having.