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Ronald Coase

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Economist

The Resume

    (December 29, 1910-September 2, 2013)
    Born in London, United Kingdom
    Wrote 'The Nature of the Firm' (1937), explaining in economic terms why companies form rather than everyone acting as an independent contractor
    Wrote 'The Problem of Social Cost' (1960) suggesting that well-defined property rights could overcome the problem of external costs without government regulation
    Won the Nobel Prize in Economics (1991)

Why he might be annoying:

    He originally wanted to be a historian but did not know Latin, which was required to major in history at the time.
    His comment on his two key papers: 'I've never done anything that wasn't obvious.'
    He admitted in 'The Problem of Social Cost' that real-world transaction costs in dealing with externalities are rarely low enough to allow for efficient bargaining, so it is usually not applicable in reality.
    Another economist's assessment of 'The Problem of Social Cost': 'It seems to have important political implications, but it is not always clear what those implications are.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    'The Problem of Social Cost' is the most cited article in modern economics.
    A colleague said, 'His insights are simple but at the same time profound. They are accessible to first year students, and their implications continue to produce cutting edge research.'
    At age 101, he co-authored the book 'How China Became Capitalist.' (2012)
    He suggested economists spend too much time studying abstractions and models instead of people and companies.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 87.50% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 15 Votes: 46.67% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 12 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 178 Votes: 66.85% Annoying