icture the Pacific Ocean of the 16th century. Spanish Galleons sail the wide open seas, carrying precious cargo like silver, porcelain, and textiles. The waters are dangerous; ship logs show concerns over pirates. But pirates are not to blame for a mysterious event that keeps happening.

For, you see, one in five of the ships leaving from the port of Manila didn't make it to Acapulco. It's a shipwrecking rate much higher than rates for other routes of the time. And the mystery of the serial shipwrecking Spanish ships remains unsolved, until today.

Everyone involved with these Spanish ships were aligned in a goal: Don't wreck the Spanish ships. And yet, wreck they did. Three economists took a look at the incentives for profit and risk at the time, and found the key to unlocking this ancient booty (of knowledge).

Webinar by The University of Chicago with Professor Kenneth Pomeranz about Mexico-China trade in the 16th to 19th century. 

Interview with Tom Phillips at the Center for Economic Policy Research about my research on the Manila Galleons, Spanish Empire's trade policies, and the rent-seeking activities in the enterprise. 

Fifth session of the reading group-directed by Daniel Klein(GMU)-on Larry Siedentop's book "Inventing the Individual, The Origins of Western Liberalism" at the University of Saint Andrews' Institute of Intellectual History.  

Spanish speaking interview in Universidad Francisco Marroquín (Guatemala City) about my research.