Solow, Robert Merton

Solow, Robert Merton (1924–  ) economist; born in New York City. He is best known for his path-breaking work on capital and growth. His theory of capital concentrates not on the measurement of capital but on how the rate of return on capital is determined. His theory of growth fine-tuned so-called "sources-of-growth accounting" to include estimates of aggregate production functions and technological advances. He taught exclusively at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1950) except for one year at Oxford University (1968–69), and he served as chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston (1975–80). Awarded the Nobel Prize in economics (1987), he was cited for his study of the factors that permit production growth and increased welfare.