David Ricardo
Political economist and unbounded innovator
Introduction
While Adam Smith is regarded as the father of classical economics, the science of economics would not have developed as it did without the contributions of David Ricardo. Fittingly, it was a chance reading of Smith’s magnum opus, Wealth of Nations (1776), that inspired Ricardo to pursue the study of economics.1 From there, Ricardo began to make waves in the British political economics sphere. He tackled controversial topics, from the Bank Restriction Act to the Corn Laws, and played a key role in the development of theories pertaining to rent, wages, and profits.
The ideas put forth by Ricardo shaped the discipline of classical economics and have been highly influential to the thinkers who came after him – both those who agreed and disagreed with him. While many of his innovations have been adapted or replaced by other models, there is no doubt that Ricardo’s work was foundational.
It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always in mind the immediate and temporary effects of particular changes, whereas I put these effects quite aside, and fix my whole attention on the long-term effects that will result from them.
– David Ricardo
About the Authors
Dan Pilat
Dan is a Co-Founder and Managing Director at The Decision Lab. He is a bestselling author of Intention - a book he wrote with Wiley on the mindful application of behavioral science in organizations. Dan has a background in organizational decision making, with a BComm in Decision & Information Systems from McGill University. He has worked on enterprise-level behavioral architecture at TD Securities and BMO Capital Markets, where he advised management on the implementation of systems processing billions of dollars per week. Driven by an appetite for the latest in technology, Dan created a course on business intelligence and lectured at McGill University, and has applied behavioral science to topics such as augmented and virtual reality.
Dr. Sekoul Krastev
Sekoul is a Co-Founder and Managing Director at The Decision Lab. He is a bestselling author of Intention - a book he wrote with Wiley on the mindful application of behavioral science in organizations. A decision scientist with a PhD in Decision Neuroscience from McGill University, Sekoul's work has been featured in peer-reviewed journals and has been presented at conferences around the world. Sekoul previously advised management on innovation and engagement strategy at The Boston Consulting Group as well as on online media strategy at Google. He has a deep interest in the applications of behavioral science to new technology and has published on these topics in places such as the Huffington Post and Strategy & Business.
