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Research on Mathematica's History Yields Morgenstern Papers
Collection Donated to Duke University Economic Papers Project
Contact: Amy Berridge, (609) 945-3378
PRINCETON, NJ—April 25, 2013—A project on the history of Mathematica Policy Research recently unearthed a historical treasure—a cache of personal papers, professional files, and correspondence by celebrated economist and mathematician Oskar Morgenstern, a founder of Mathematica. Among his many achievements, Morgenstern’s Theory of Games and Economic Behavior, co-authored with John von Neumann from the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, is a pioneering work on game theory.
The papers are linked to Morgenstern’s long-standing connection to Mathematica. Along with several other Princeton University economists and mathematicians, Morgenstern founded Mathematica; he later served as chairman of the board and maintained an office at the company’s Princeton headquarters until his death in 1977.
“The materials, which we believe are from his Mathematica office, were recently discovered in our archives when we began compiling a history of our firm,” explained Paul Decker, president and chief executive officer of Mathematica, who is also an economist.
The collection comprises 17 boxes of Morgenstern’s correspondence and files dating from 1940 through 1970. The files contain items such as articles, newspaper clippings, and hand-written notes, as well as material relating to his tenure at Princeton University.
The papers will join an existing collection of Morgenstern Papers donated by his widow to Duke University in the late 1980s. Part of the Economists’ Papers Project, they will be housed in the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. The discovery of these new files serendipitously matched family research on Morgenstern’s travels and correspondence conducted by his daughter, Karin Papp.
”I’m delighted to hear about these additional papers of Oskar Morgenstern,” said Will Hansen, assistant curator of collections at the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library. “They will be a welcome and appropriate addition to our existing collection, and will be made available for use by researchers after being prepared by archival staff.”
About Mathematica: Mathematica Policy Research seeks to improve public well-being by conducting studies and assisting clients with program evaluation and policy research, survey design and data collection, research assessment and interpretation and program performance/data management. Its clients include foundations, federal and state governments and private-sector and international organizations. The employee-owned company, with offices in Princeton, NJ; Ann Arbor, MI; Cambridge, MA; Chicago, IL; Oakland, CA; and Washington, DC; has conducted some of the most important studies of early childhood, nutrition, education, international, disability, family support, employment, and health care policies and programs.