Networked Financial Simulation Using LambdaMOO Technology Given recent advances in network and MUD (Multi-User Domain) technology, it is now possible to build a networked simulation of the international financial system containing within it several simulated national financial systems. We propose to build that simulation, and to call it Money MOO. Few current financial or economic simulations illustrate interactions inside the financial system as a whole. Fewer still combine national and international financial systems to illustrate their interconnectedness. Although the economic system itself is dependent on interactions among individuals and institutions, currently available simulations do not typically base their outcomes on that reality. Instead, most existing financial simulation software is designed to be used by an individual student working in isolation, not cooperating or interacting with other students. Our proposed simulation, Money MOO, will have the following characteristics: a. The simulation will be interactive and its outcomes will depend on the combined decisions of the student-players. b. The simulation will be made freely available to all educational institutions through the Internet. c. The simulation will be fun to play. It will be a version of the most popular networked interactive game format which exists, the Internet MUD. This networked simulation tool will permit courses such as Introductory Macroeconomics, Money and Banking, and Financial Institutions and Markets to be taught much more effectively than they can be if the only available tools are textbooks and single-user simulations.
