The Econometricians

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxi

   PDF

2. Mathematicians and Astronomers

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. The Early Life of Carl Friedrich Gauss

      • Colin Read

      Pages 3-10

   3. The Times of Carl Friedrich Gauss

      • Colin Read

      Pages 11-31

   4. Carl Gauss’ Great Idea

      • Colin Read

      Pages 33-56

   5. The Later Years and Legacy of Carl Friedrich Gauss

      • Colin Read

      Pages 57-64

3. From Least Squares to Eugenics

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 65-66

      PDF

   2. The Early Life of Francis Galton

      • Colin Read

      Pages 67-73

   3. The Times of Francis Galton

      • Colin Read

      Pages 75-80

   4. The Later Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Galton

      • Colin Read

      Pages 81-82

   5. The Early Life of Karl Pearson

      • Colin Read

      Pages 83-87

   6. Karl Pearson’s Great Idea

      • Colin Read

      Pages 89-97

   7. The Later Life and Legacy of Karl Pearson

      • Colin Read

      Pages 99-107

4. The Formation of Modern Statistics

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 109-109

      PDF

   2. The Early Life of Ronald Aylmer Fisher

      • Colin Read

      Pages 111-120

   3. The Times of Ronald Aylmer Fisher

      • Colin Read

      Pages 121-128

   4. Ronald Fisher’s Great Idea

      • Colin Read

      Pages 129-137

   5. Later Life and Legacy of Ronald Fisher

      • Colin Read

      Pages 139-148

   6. The Early Life of Harold Hotelling

      • Colin Read

      Pages 149-158

   7. The Times of Harold Hotelling

      • Colin Read

      Pages 159-163

This is the seventh book in a series of discussions about the great minds in the history and theory of finance. While the series addresses the contributions of scholars in our understanding of financial decisions and markets, this seventh book describes how econometrics developed and how its underlying assumptions created the underpinning of much of modern financial theory. The author shows that the theorists of econometrics were a mix of mathematicians and cosmologists, entrepreneurs, economists and financial scholars. The author demonstrates that by laying down the foundation of empirical analysis, they also forever determined the way in which we think about financial returns and the vocabulary we employ to describe them. Through this volume, the reader can discover the life stories, inspirations, and theories of Carl Friedrich Gauss, Francis Galton, Karl Pearson, Ronald Aylmer Fisher, Harold Hotelling, Alfred Cowles III, Ragnar Frisch, and Trygve Haavelmo, specifically. We learn how each theorist made an intellectual leap simply by thinking about a conventional problem in an unconventional way.

• Econometrics
• Statistics
• Economics theory
• Empirical Analysis
• History of Financial Thought
• Financial Returns
• European History

• Professor of Economics and Finance former Dean of the School of Business and Economics, The State University of New York at Plattsburgh (SUNY), USA

  Colin Read

Colin Read is a Professor of Economics and Finance, former Dean of the School of Business and Economics at The State University of New York at Plattsburgh (SUNY), USA, and a columnist for the Plattsburgh New York Press Republican newspaper. He has a PhD in economics, a Juris Doctor (JD) degree in law, a Masters of Business Administration (MBA), a master's degree in taxation, and has taught environmental and energy economics and finance for 25 years. Colin’s recent books include BP and the Macondo Spill: The Complete Story, The Fear Factor, Global Financial Meltdown: How We Can Avoid the Next Economic Crisis, The Rise and Fall of an Economic Empire: With Lessons for Aspiring Nations, Great Minds in Finance: The Life Cyclists, Great Minds in Finance: The Portfolio Theorists, Great Minds in Finance: The Efficient Market Hypothesists, Great Minds in Finance: The Rise of the Quants, Great Minds in Finance: The Corporate Financiers, and Great Minds in Finance: The Public Financiers.

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