Conventional economists told us an incomplete story about Economics, one leaning on the comfortable precision of mathematical abstraction and ignoring the messy complexity of the real world, with all of its uncertainties, unknowns, and evolution. This book tells a story about huge differences in the standard of living across time and borders.
Conventional economists lean on the comfortable precision of mathematical abstraction and ignore the messy complexity of the real world. This work tells a big-picture story about the differences in the standard of living across time and across borders.
"Over the past decades, many economists have sought to define the differences between the physical goods economy and the modern protocol economy. In 2000, Larry Summers, then the Treasury secretary, gave a speech called “The New Wealth of Nations,” laying out some principles. Leading work has been done by Douglass North of Washington University, Robert Fogel of the University of Chicago, Joel Mokyr of Northwestern and Paul Romer of Stanford.
Their research is the subject of an important new book called “From Poverty to Prosperity,” by Arnold Kling and Nick Schulz."
&mdash David Brooks in the New York Times, Dec 22 2009
&mdash Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, author of Real Change
"A fascinating blend of interviews and perspectives on where economics –and the economy—is heading. A must read for anyone who thinks economists are out of touch with today's reality or don't have competing compelling visions for the future."
&mdash Simon Johnson, Ronald Kurtz Professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, former chief economist at the IMF
