David Warsh at Economic Principals describes an innovation made decades ago by the (American) National Bureau of Economic Research:
"Economists traveled twice a year or more to conferences, often in Cambridge, where they met their peers in sessions governed by a strict new protocol: twenty minutes (no reading!); a serious discussant to furnish tough-minded criticism; followed by twenty minutes of open discussion. (In contrast, university historians still read their papers at conferences, word for word.)"
Geez, I'm not the only one to notice how stupid and boring history profs in conference can be?
