Economist
Adam Smith — Father of economics
The law of the invisible hand
“Wealth of Nations”
Irving Fisher (Stocks, Inflation)
Invested all his money into the stock markets right before the Depression in 1929
Thomas Malthus (Population)
Natural sources and factor are limited to a given population. Population grows exponentially, while natural resources grow arithmetically – Against population growth
“Essays on Principle of Population”
Michael Kremer (Population)
Population advances societies, making them more dynamic and productive. They produce ideas by learning from each other and competing
For population growth
Julian Simon (Population)
Larger population means more people with different skills contributing to economic growth
For population growth
Jerome Kerviel (Gambling & Stocks)
Center of the biggest trading fraud in history, faked all the counter-party trades
Thorstein Veblen (Prices)
Goods are bought for conspicuous consumption. Higher prices in consumer basket is due to labels and brands
“Theory of the Leisure Class”
David Hume (Inflation)
“Classic Dichotomy”—Nominal vs. Real – Changes impact the nominal but not the real
Nothing changes in society because none of the important relationships underlying the economy changed
Simon Kuznets (GDP)
Produced the first calculations of GDP and
Shifted the field of macroeconomics
National income accounting
Arthur Cecil Pigou (Unemployment)
Believed unions and minimum wages were a major reason why unemployment existed
Alfred Marshall (Supply&Demand)
Created the first textbook explaining idea of consumer surplus, price elasticity, etc
First to use graphs to explain supply and demand
John Maynard Keynes (Unemployment)
Argued that the lack of demand for goods and rising unemployment could be countered by increased government expenditure to stimulate the economy
First major economist who promoted an activist role for government, they should not play a passive, limited role because economic downturns get out of control
“The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money”
Paul Samuelson (Social Security)
Transformed economics into a mathematically based system and provided new general theories
F. A. Hayek (Aggregated Supply & Demand)
“The Road to Serfdom”
Distrusted the government and believed that the free-market makes better choices than bureaucrats, politicians and citizen-planners
Believes that central control of the economy eliminates choice and makes government determine what is best for you and your family, just like the old feudal lords
Keynesians believe there is a time and a place for government intervention
Karl Marx (Business Cycle)
Author of “Communist Manifesto”
Biggest capitalist ever
Created communism’s framework
Jean-Baptiste Say (Entrepreneur)
Wrote “Treatise on Political Economy” which articulated the economic idea of laissez-faire
Robert Solow (Productivity & Growth)
Did the first major estimation on U.S. Production Function
Believes savings gives the economy relatively little boost
Huntington Hartford (Money)
Dad died and will gave Huntington 90 million dollars (over $1.4 billion in today’s dollars)
He