David Cass
David Cass | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 19, 1937 |
| Died | April 15, 2008 (aged 71) |
| Nationality |  American |
| Alma mater | Stanford University (Ph.D.) University of Oregon (A.B.) |
| Known for | General equilibrium theory |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Economics |
| Institutions | University of Pennsylvania Carnegie-Mellon University Yale University |
| Doctoral advisor | Hirofumi Uzawa |
David Cass (January 19, 1937 – April 15, 2008) was a professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania, mostly known for his contributions to general equilibrium theory. His most famous work was on the Ramsey growth model, which is also known as the Ramsey-Cass-Koopmans model.
Biography
David Cass was born in 1937 in Honululu, Hawaii. He earned an A.B. in economics from the University of Oregon in 1958 and started to study law at the Harvard Law School as he thought of becoming a lawyer according to family tradition. As he hated studying law he left the program after one year and served in the army from 1959 to 1960. He then entered the economics Ph.D. program at Stanford University. Here he met Karl Shell, although the two began to work together only after both graduated. His doctoral advisor was Hirofumi Uzawa, who also introduced him to Tjalling Koopmans, who at that time was a professor at Yale University.[1] In 1965 Cass graduated with a Ph.D. in economics and statistics with a dissertation on optimal growth, with parts of the dissertation later published under the title Optimum Growth in an Aggregative Model of Capital Accumulation,[2]
After graduation Cass began to work from 1965 to 1970 as an assistant professor at the economics department of Yale University and as a research associate at the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics in New Haven. During his time at Yale University he collaborated with Menahem Yaari and Joseph Stiglitz and worked mostly on Overlapping generations models. In 1970 he left New Haven for Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where he was a professor of economics until 1974. During his time at Carnegie-Mellon he began to collaborate with Karl Shell, who at this time was a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. One of his doctoral students was Finn E. Kydland, who would later win the Nobel Prize in Economics. In 1974 Cass left for the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a professor of economics until his death.[1] David Cass died in 2008 in Philadelphia after a long illness.[3] He was divorced and the father of two children.[4]
Cass was a Guggenheim Fellow in 1970, was an elected fellow of the Econometric Society since 1972, received a honorary doctorate from the University of Geneva in 1994, was a distinguished fellow of the American Economic Association in 1999 and was an elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 2003.[4]
Research
Cass made important contributions to pure economic theory, mostly in the field of general equilibrium theory. He made major contributions to the theory of optimal growth, the theory of sunspots and the theory of incomplete markets. He is perhaps best known for his article Optimum Growth in an Aggregative Model of Capital Accumulation,[2] which was a part of his dissertation. In this paper he proves a necessary and sufficient condition for efficiency in the neoclassical growth model first introduced by Frank Ramsey. A major difference to the standard Ramsey growth model was that Cass considered the case where consumption in future periods is discounted, thus implicitly assuming that consumers prefer consumption today to consumption tomorrow. This modified version of the Ramsey growth model is also known as the Ramsey-Cass-Koopmans model, named after Frank Ramsey, David Cass and Tjalling Koopmans.[5]
He was also famous for the "Cass criterion" for overlapping generations models and his work, together with Karl Shell, on the influence of extrinsic uncertainty on economic equilibria, also known as the concept of sunspot equilibria or the theory of sunspots. Together with Joseph Stiglitz he proved conditions under which it is possible for an investor to achieve an optimal portfolio under the restriction of being able to buy only two mutual funds. They also showed that generally the demand for money can not be derived from portfolio theory. Cass was also a major contributor to the theory of incomplete markets, the turnpike theory and theory of economies with markets that repeatedly open over time.[5]
References
- ^ a b Spear, Steven E. (December 1998). "Interview with David Cass" (PDF). Macroeconomic Dynamics. 2 (4). Cambridge University Press: 533–558. doi:10.1017/S1365100598009080. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Cass, David (July 1965). "Optimum Growth in an Aggregative Model of Capital Accumulation". Review of Economic Studies. 37 (3). Blackwell Publishing: 233–240. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
{{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Mailath, George J. (April 2008). "In Memory of Dave Cass". Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b Cass, David. "Curriculum Vitae David Cass" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-04-17.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b American Economic Association (June 2000). "David Cass: Distinguished Fellow, 1999". American Economic Review. 90 (3). American Economic Association. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
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