My proposal that Fed governors should signal their commitment to public service by wearing Hawaiian shirts and Bermuda shorts has so far gone unheeded. Although the dress code continues to be a drawback, I am pleased to be able to report that the intellectual challenges of my new job have been as rewarding as those I encountered as an academic.
Second, the micro-level data provide us with a wealth of distributional information, information that is not available from the macro aggregates and that is valuable to understand the reaction of different groups of households to shocks and the distribution of risks. Third, micro-level household data can give insights into new trends. Reaction functions of agents must be based on micro-data.