Mark Olson, an administrative governor of the Federal Reserve Board, spoke last night to about 40 people in the Kern Auditorium about his responsibilities, the United States economy and the global market.

Olson, who was invited by the Economics Association to speak, gave a brief history of the Federal Reserve.

Olson said the Federal Reserve was a young, central bank by global standards. The Federal Reserve is 93 years old, compared to the 250-year-old Bank of England, he said.

"We have a very strong aversion to centralized authority," Olson said.

Congress has given the bank two mandates: that the Federal Reserve should achieve price stability and that it should maximize economic performance over time, Olson said.

"The Federal Reserve is also the fiscal agent of the federal government," he added.

Olson said that $700 billion is in circulation, with 60 percent of that circulation outside the U.S. He emphasized the importance of the dollar internationally.

"Today, in Iraq, 40 percent of all commerce is conducted in [American] dollars," Olson said.

Olson delineated three crucial factors to the economy: technology, globalization and absence of worldwide inflation.

Olson talked about the growing importance of inflation."When I was your age, I heard very little concern about inflation, but a lot about the Depression. Public policy was to ensure that we'd never have another depression," he said. But in the '70s, Olson said, "we saw the ravages of inflation."

"The factors that cause inflation are increasingly well understood," Olson said.

Olson also talked about the role of young people in the economy and their ability to adapt to changing economic conditions and new technology.

"I will tell you that it's a great time to be young," Olson said. "We have recognized that when we hire people and give them training, in four to five years, we have to fight to keep you."

Olson was questioned about the role of illegal immigrants in the country.

"I would say it's an issue we are concerned about," Olson said. "Our economy is dependent on both legal and illegal immigrants. We're anxious to see Congress resolve it one way or another."

He added that a flow of people into a country spurs economic activity, while countries that discourage immigration tend to flounder economically.

Vicki Korchagin, a member of the Economics Association, said that Olson was "very informative" and reinforced the concepts she had learned in class.

Eric Wilhelm (freshman-finance) said he also enjoyed Olson's speech.

"I thought he provided a lot of good info on what the Fed does. He actually gave a lot of info on what the future holds for the U.S. economy," Wilhelm said.