Is the Nobel Prize for Economics the forgotten middle child of the Nobels? Following the announcements of this year’s literary laureate and the youngest-ever winner of the Peace Prize, as well as recognitions earlier in the week for Physics and Chemistry, the Economics Prize comes almost like an afterthought. The winner of “The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel” will not be named until Monday.
As with the other prizes, there is immense speculation around who will win. Frontrunners this year, according to Sciencewatch.com, are Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt for their research on Creative Destruction, Mark Granovetter for his work in economic sociology, and William Baumol and Israel Kirzner for their study of entrepreneurism as a driving force in society. Forbes contributor Art Carden feels that Baumol and Kirzner deserve it because of how they have explained the importance of entrepreneurship to the market. “Though there is vigorous debate about how well they do it and the extent to which government correction is needed, economists left, right, and center know that at the end of the day, markets coordinate action and generate order. Baumol and Kirzner deserve the Nobel Prize for helping us understand how.” The middle children will finally get noticed after the weekend.
