Richard Stone
Encyclopedia
Sir John Richard Nicholas Stone (30 August 1913 6 December 1991) was an eminent British
economist
who in 1984 received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
for developing an accounting model that could be used to track economic activities on a national and, later, an international scale. While he was not the first economist to work in this field, he was the first to do so with double entry accounting. Double entry accounting basically states that every income item on one side of the balance sheet must be met by an expenditure item on the opposite side of the accounting sheet therefore creating a system of balance. This double entry system is the basis of nearly all modern accounting today. This allowed for a reliable way of tracking trade and wealth transfer on a global scale.
He is sometimes known as the 'father of national income accounting', and is the author of studies of consumer demand
statistics and demand modeling, economic growth
, and input-output
. During his acceptance speech Stone mentioned François Quesnay as well as the Tableau économique. Stone stated that it was one of the very first works in economics to examine various sectors on such a global level and how they are all interconnected.
Stone was educated at Westminster School
, Cambridge University
(Caius
and King's
).
he worked at Lloyd's Brokers. During the war, Stone worked with James Meade
as a statistician and economist for the British Government. It was at this time that they developed the early versions of the system of national accounts. After the war, Stone worked at Cambridge as the director of the new Department of Applied Economics (1945– 1955) and as P.D. Leake professor of finance and accounting (emeritus from 1980). Within the Department, he founded the Cambridge Growth Project, which developed the Cambridge Multisectoral Dynamic Model of the British economy (MDM). He was succeeded as leader of the Cambridge Growth Project by Terry Barker
. A company founded by members of the Department and limited by guarantee, Cam bridge Econometrics, was founded in 1978 with Stone as its first honorary president. The company continues to develop MDM and to use the model to make economic forecasts.
In 1936, he got married to Winifred Mary Jenkins who was also from Cambridge. Both of them had a passion for Economics and started a monthly called Trends, which was a supplement to the periodical, Industry Illustrated. It contained articles about the British economic conditions. Soon after, in 1939, he was asked to join the Ministry of Economic Warfare.
In 1960, he was married to Giovanna Saffi, great grandchild of Italian
patriot Aurelio Saffi
, and she was his partner in many of his works.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
economist
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
who in 1984 received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, commonly referred to as the Nobel Prize in Economics, but officially the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel , is an award for outstanding contributions to the field of economics, generally regarded as one of the...
for developing an accounting model that could be used to track economic activities on a national and, later, an international scale. While he was not the first economist to work in this field, he was the first to do so with double entry accounting. Double entry accounting basically states that every income item on one side of the balance sheet must be met by an expenditure item on the opposite side of the accounting sheet therefore creating a system of balance. This double entry system is the basis of nearly all modern accounting today. This allowed for a reliable way of tracking trade and wealth transfer on a global scale.
He is sometimes known as the 'father of national income accounting', and is the author of studies of consumer demand
Demand
- Economics :*Demand , the desire to own something and the ability to pay for it*Demand curve, a graphic representation of a demand schedule*Demand deposit, the money in checking accounts...
statistics and demand modeling, economic growth
Economic growth
In economics, economic growth is defined as the increasing capacity of the economy to satisfy the wants of goods and services of the members of society. Economic growth is enabled by increases in productivity, which lowers the inputs for a given amount of output. Lowered costs increase demand...
, and input-output
Input-output model
In economics, an input-output model is a quantitative economic technique that represents the interdependencies between different branches of national economy or between branches of different, even competing economies. Wassily Leontief developed this type of analysis and took the Nobel Memorial...
. During his acceptance speech Stone mentioned François Quesnay as well as the Tableau économique. Stone stated that it was one of the very first works in economics to examine various sectors on such a global level and how they are all interconnected.
Stone was educated at Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
, Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
(Caius
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
and King's
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
).
Biography
After graduating from Cambridge in 1936 and until World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he worked at Lloyd's Brokers. During the war, Stone worked with James Meade
James Meade
James Edward Meade CB, FBA was a British economist and winner of the 1977 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences jointly with the Swedish economist Bertil Ohlin for their "Pathbreaking contribution to the theory of international trade and international capital movements."Meade was born in...
as a statistician and economist for the British Government. It was at this time that they developed the early versions of the system of national accounts. After the war, Stone worked at Cambridge as the director of the new Department of Applied Economics (1945– 1955) and as P.D. Leake professor of finance and accounting (emeritus from 1980). Within the Department, he founded the Cambridge Growth Project, which developed the Cambridge Multisectoral Dynamic Model of the British economy (MDM). He was succeeded as leader of the Cambridge Growth Project by Terry Barker
Terry Barker
Terry Barker is a British economist and Director of the Cambridge Centre for Climate Change Mitigation Research part of the Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge...
. A company founded by members of the Department and limited by guarantee, Cam bridge Econometrics, was founded in 1978 with Stone as its first honorary president. The company continues to develop MDM and to use the model to make economic forecasts.
In 1936, he got married to Winifred Mary Jenkins who was also from Cambridge. Both of them had a passion for Economics and started a monthly called Trends, which was a supplement to the periodical, Industry Illustrated. It contained articles about the British economic conditions. Soon after, in 1939, he was asked to join the Ministry of Economic Warfare.
In 1960, he was married to Giovanna Saffi, great grandchild of Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
patriot Aurelio Saffi
Aurelio Saffi
Aurelio Saffi was an Italian politician, active during the period of Italian unification...
, and she was his partner in many of his works.
Works
- Richard Stone and Giovanna Saffi Stone, Social Accounting and Economic Models (1959)
- Richard Stone and Giovanna Saffi Stone, National Income and Expenditure (1961).