[We] propose that the evolution of the trade regime and even the norms within it – we traced environmental norms – can be usefully understood as a complex adaptive system. Our analysis suggests that both exploratory and exploitative processes are at work over time.

 I got particularly interested in empirical research when more data became available in the fields I was working on (trade, investment) and machines could collect the data and give insights into them. [...] Law professors actually do not traditionally do this.