Among the most important issues in economics are how to measure the wealth and health of an economy and the factors that contribute to economic growth. The rigorous study of these topics traces its roots back to Simon Kuznets who pioneered the development of national accounts, such as Gross...

This chapter describes the evolution of thought on, and knowledge of, the secular decline in mortality; provides new evidence and new analytical techniques that have made it possible to switch attention from famines to chronic malnutrition as the principal link between the food supply and...

This collection of twelve essays is based on the premise that a better understanding of the economic development process can be gained by studying the history of those countries that have experienced long-term economic success, in this case the United States during the nineteenth century - that...