Many things perform effectively but not efficiently. To be efficient means to produce a desired effect with as little waste as possible. How can markets be designed to make them more efficient? This is a question that the three winners of this year's Nobel Prize in economics have tried to answer. They established mechanism design theory.

许多事情都能有效地完成，但效率却不高。效率高是指尽可能少浪费地产生预期效果。怎样筹划市场而让它们更有效率呢？这正是今年诺贝尔经济学奖三位得主努力回答的问题，他们建立了“机制设计理论 ”。

It began with work by (Leonid Hurwicz) of the University of (Minnesota) in 1960. Eric Maskin of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New (Jersey), and (Roger Myerson) of the University of Chicago further developed it. The 3 Americans will stare the award worth about 1.5 million dollars. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the winners this week.

该理论首先于1960年由明尼苏达州大学的Leonid Hurwicz教授提出，并得到新泽西普林斯顿高级研究所Eric Maskin教授和芝加哥大学Roger Myerson的进一步完善。这三位美国人将共同分享150万美元的奖金，瑞典皇家科学院本周宣布了获将者名单。

In everyday life, there are many things that get in the way of efficient markets. There may not be true competition. Buyers and sellers may keep some information private from each other. Also, the production and use of goods may result in outcomes like pollution or social costs.

在日常生活中，许多事情都妨碍了高效率的市场，也有可能根本没有真正的竞争。买、卖双方的信息都对彼此有所保密，同样，产品的生产和使用也可能导致诸如污染或社会成本提高的后果。

Mechanism design theory permits economists to identify situations where markets work well and where they do not. For example, it shows why an auction is generally the most efficient way to sell many kinds of goods.

“机制设计理论 ”为经济学家提供了机会让他们来鉴别市场运行好坏的形势，例如，它可以表明为什么拍卖通常是销售许多种物品最有效率的方式。