Summary
This volume illuminates and critically assesses Paul A. Samuelson's voluminous and groundbreaking contributions to the field of economics. The volume includes contributions from eminent scholars, including 6 Nobel Laureates, covering the extraordinary depth and breadth of Samuelson's contributions. Samuelson, the first American economist to win the Nobel prize in 1970, was the foremost voice in economics in the latter half of the 20th century. He single-handedly transformed the discipline by creating a new way of presenting economics, making it possible for it to be cast all in mathematical terms. Samuelson developed broad frameworks, such as the neoclassical synthesis, a mixed economy, and the surrogate production function, which provided practitioners with a vision for research. Samuelson's contributions to economics are rich, complex, consequential, and relevant to the ordinary economics of life. The quality of Samuelson's output and methods leave no doubt that his contributions continue to be timely and relevant even in the 21st century. Ideal as a reference or an introduction to Samuelson's work, this is a must-have for students and academics alike.
Author Biography
Michael Szenberg is the Distinguished Professor of Economics and Chair of the Finance and Economics Department at Lubin School of Business, Pace University. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from the City University of New York, a B.A. in Economics from Long Island University, and a Diploma from the Air Force Aeronautics School. Michael is the recipient of many awards, including the Irving Fisher Monograph Award, the Kenan Award for excellence in teaching, and received Pace University's Award for Distinguished Faculty Service. He also serves as editor-in-chief of the American Economist and as consultant to private and governmental agencies. Lall Ramarattan received his Ph.D. from the New School University in 1986. He currently teaches Economics at the University of California, Berkeley Extension. He has published many articles in professional journals on a variety of topics. Currently, his interest is in the application of economic models to industry and country studies. Aron A. Gottesman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Finance and Economics at the Lubin School of Business at Pace University. He has a Ph.D. in Finance, an M.B.A. in Finance, and a B.A. in Psychology, all from York University in Toronto. Gottesman's research interests include financial markets and intermediation, corporate finance, and the history of economic thought. He has published and has forthcoming a number of articles in academic and policy journals, including the Journal of Empirical Finance, the Journal of Banking and Finance, the Journal of Financial Markets, and The National Interest, among others, and is an Associate Editor of The American Economist.
Table of Contents
List of Contributors |
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xxi | |
Ten Ways to Know Paul A. Samuelson |
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xxiii | |
Introduction |
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1 | (32) |
PART I. Analysis of Samuelson's Specific Contributions |
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33 | (268) |
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Overlapping Generation Models |
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1. Overlapping Generations |
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35 | (7) |
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2. Paul Samuelson's Amazing Intergenerational Transfer |
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42 | (12) |
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3. Social Security, the Government Budget, and National Savings |
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54 | (12) |
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Expectation, Uncertainty and Public Goods |
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4. Prospective Shifts, Speculative Swings: "Macro" for the Twenty-First Century in the Tradition Championed by Paul Samuelson |
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66 | (22) |
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5. Paul Samuelson and Global Public Goods |
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88 | (11) |
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Preference and Consumer Behavior |
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99 | (17) |
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7. Samuelson's "Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Jekyll" Problem: A Difficulty in the Concept of the Consumer |
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116 | (11) |
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8. Paul Samuelson on Karl Marx: Were the Sacrificed Games of Tennis Worth It? |
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127 | (15) |
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9. Paul Samuelson and the Stability of General Equilibrium |
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142 | |
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10. Paul Samuelson and Piero Sraffa—Two Prodigious Minds at the Opposite Poles |
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146 | (19) |
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11. Paul Samuelson as a "Keynesian" Economist |
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165 | (13) |
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12. Samuelson and the Keynes/Post Keynesian Revolution |
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178 | (19) |
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International Economics and Finance |
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13. Paul Samuelson and International Trade Theory Over Eight Decades |
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197 | (15) |
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14. Paul Samuelson's Contributions to International Economics |
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212 | (12) |
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15. Protection and Real Wages: The Stolper-Samuelson Theorem |
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224 | (11) |
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Finance and Portfolio Theory |
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16. Samuelson and the Factor Bias of Technological Change: Toward a Unified Theory of Growth and Unemployment |
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235 | (17) |
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17. Samuelson and Investment for the Long Run |
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252 | (10) |
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18 Paul Samuelson and Financial Economics |
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262 | (41) |
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PART II. Samuelson's Relevance |
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301 | (42) |
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Relevance to Mathematical Economics |
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19. Multipliers and the LeChatelier Principle |
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303 | (8) |
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Relevance to the Natural Sciences |
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20. The Surprising Ubiquity of the Samuelson Configuration: Paul Samuelson and the Natural Sciences |
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311 | (19) |
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James B. Cooper and Thomas Russell |
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21. Paul Samuelson's Mach |
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330 | (13) |
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Index |
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343 | |