Short Biography of Adam Smith



Born: June 1723

Died: 17 July 1790

Birthplace: Kirkcaldy, Scotland

Best known as: The author of An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

 

Scottish philosopher Adam Smith is the author of the book written in 1776 “An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations”, a classic of modern economics beloved especially by free market advocates.

   

He began his academic career as a professor of logic and moral philosophy in Glasgow (1751-64), but after about 1748 he was famously part of the Edinburgh intellectual circle that included David Hume. Smith gained international attention for his examination of societal ethics, “Theory of Moral Sentiments”, in which he argued that people were naturally empathetic to those suffering in their midst. But his “Wealth of Nations” secured Smith's fame -- the book sold out five editions during his lifetime, including revised versions in 1784 and 1789.

He is credited with being the first to examine the importance of the division of labour and worker productivity, and for advancing the idea that free markets thrive on the basis of mutual self-interest. Although Smith warned against monopolies and mercantilism, his notion that markets are driven toward the public good by an "invisible hand" has made him a venerated figure among free market doctrinaires. He spent his last years in Edinburgh as a government official, as the Commissioner of Customs.

I. Translate the text and determine the grammar tense of the predicate in each sentence.

 

II. Express the main idea of the text in five or six sentences.

Text D

Short Biography of John Maynard Keynes

Born: 5 June 1883

Died: 21 April 1946

Birthplace: Cambridge, England

Best known as: The British economist who created macroeconomics

 

John Maynard Keynes was one of the most influential economic thinkers of the 20th century. He was born the son of an economics lecturer at Cambridge University in 1883, the year of Karl Marx's death. After being educated at Eton College he entered King's College and studied economics while president of the Cambridge University Liberal Club. He built up his reputation as a lecturer at Cambridge before working for the Treasury during the First World War on overseas finances.

He became famous after World War I with The Economic Consequences of Peace, his 1919 critique of the Versailles Peace Conference. (He thought the harsh reparations demanded of Germany would lead to economic instability -- and they did.) His 1936 book, General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, made him the most famous and influential economist since Adam Smith. Keynes's notion that governments should intervene in times of market distress eclipsed Smith's theory of capitalism and has influenced Western democracies since the 1930s.

Written during the depths of the Great Depression, his book argued that in order to keep people fully employed, governments have to run deficits when the economy is slowing. In other words the government should spend money it doesn't have to keep the economy afloat. His ideas were adopted in the US by Franklin D Roosevelt. As the Depression deepened following the failure of other economic policies Roosevelt reluctantly embraced Keynes' suggestions. "I came to the conclusion that the present-day problem calls for action both by the Government and by the people, that we suffer primarily from a failure of consumer demand because of lack of buying power. Therefore it is up to us to create an economic upturn," he said in an address to the American public. He would do this by making "additions to the purchasing power of the Nation," he added. The grand experiment worked almost exactly as Keynes had predicted and his idea became the cornerstone of US fiscal policy, with Richard Nixon proclaiming years later: "We are all Keynesians now".

By the close of World War II Keynes had become a key player in the formation of an international banking system. His general theories about managing free markets on a global scale are considered to be the foundation of macroeconomics. Keynes became heavily involved in setting up the Bretton Woods system of monetary management that was established when Allied nations gathered at the Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in the US in 1944. The Bretton Woods agreement led to the establishment of the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). He died of a heart attack in 1946 aged 62.

Exercises

I. Translate the text and determine the grammar tense of the predicate in each sentence.

II. Make up five or six sentences to express in brief the contents of the text.

 

Text E

Additional Samples of Professionals` Bios

(1)

Curtis B. Allen
President
Construction Market Data
30 Technology Parkway South, Suite 100
Norcross, GA 30092
Ph: 770.417.4440
Fax: 770.417.4088
Curtis.allen@reedbusiness.com

Allen joined CMD in March 2001; prior to that he was President and CEO of Medical Economics company, a division of Thomson that provides more than 200 healthcare information products including the Physician’s Desk Reference, the largest annual reference work in the world. CMD is a division of Reed Business Information, which provides critical information and marketing information to a number of industries including aerospace, agriculture, chemicals, construction, electronics, food processing, manufacturing and media. Allen’s 20 years of executive experience in the information and publishing industries also included service as president of Realtron Information Services; he also was vice-president of Real Estate Data, *Inc.

(2)

Phillip G. Bernstein
Vice President, Building Industry Division
Autodesk
100 Commercial Street
Manchester, NH 03101
Ph: 603-202-3600
Fax: 603-206-3520
Phil.Bernstein@autodesk.com

Bernstein joined Autodesk in 2000, following 20 years practice as an architect. He is now responsible for development and delivery of technology solutions and design tools to the architectural, engineering and construction industries. Prior to joining Autodesk, Bernstein was an associate principal at Cesar Pelli & Associates, where he was project manager for projects including the Goldman Sachs corporate headquarters and the New North Terminal at Washington National Airport.

He has served as Lecturer at Yale University School of Architecture since 1988, where he designed the practice curriculum and teaches the required course in professional practice to M.Arch candidates. A frequent speaker at AIA national conventions, he consistently ranks in the top 5 for large presentations. He received his B.Arch and M.Arch from Yale University

(3)

James P. Cramer, Hon. AIA, Hon. IIDA
Chairman/CEO of the Greenway Group, Inc. and editor of Design Intelligence
30 Technology Parkway South, 200
Atlanta, GA 30092
Ph: 770.209.3770
Fax: 770.209.3778
jcramer@greenwayconsulting.com

Cramer is author of the critically acclaimed books including: Design + Enterprise, Seeking a New Reality in Architecture and How Firms Succeed, A Field Guide to Management Solutions. He is the editor of the Almanac of Architecture and Design. Co-Chairman of the Design Futures Council, Cramer lectures at many colleges and universities and is currently Adjunct Professor of Architecture at the University of Hawaii. Cramer served as the CEO for the American Institute of Architects from 1988-1994. He is the former President of the American Architectural Foundation and was publisher of Architecture magazine for seven years. The recipient of over eighty awards and honors, Jim received the University of Minnesota’s Distinguished Service Medal for his work advocating the value of good design into the mainstream of corporate America. He regularly appears in the media to discuss and comment upon real estate, design and business trends and has been interviewed in the media such as in USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CNN, C-Span and other major broadcast networks.

(4)

William De St. Aubin, AIA
Principal, Sizemore Group, LLC
1700 Commerce Drive NW
Atlanta, GA 30318
Ph: 404.605.0690
Fax: 404.605.0890
bill@sizemoregroup.com

De St. Aubin is Partner-in-Charge of business development strategy and an expert on sustainable design. The firm’s Green Teams combines best LEED practices with TND Planning and Market Analysis to create healthier communities from a physical, psychological and fiscal view point.

His work includes the New Town Center in Smyrna, Ga., which was the Urban Land Institute’s national Award of Excellence in 1997. In 1985, he received the Paris Prize International Competition Fellowship Award for a 3,000,000 sf mixed use development in Richmond, Va. He received his M.Arch from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

(5)

Ellen Dunham-Jones, AIA
Associate Professor of Architecture, Director of the Architecture Program
Georgia Institute of Technology
247 4th Street, NW
Atlanta, GA 30332
Ph: 404.894.4885
Fax: 404.894.0572
edj@arch.gatech.edu

Dunham-Jones’ research interests include linking contemporary architectural theory and post-industrial development and the design of infrastructure as public place creating. She is the author of more than 35 articles and a forthcoming book on the impact of digital media and the global economy on contemporary development, especially in relation to urban sprawl. She has also taught at the University of Virginia and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her research has been sponsored by grants from the W. Alton Jones Foundation, Seaside Institute, and MIT’s Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Fund. She is Chair of the Education Task Force of the Congress of the New Urbanism, and serves on the Atlanta chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.

As a former partner in the firm Dunham-Jones and LeBlanc Architects, she received an AIA award for the design of Free Bridge and the Rivanna Riverfront. In collaboration with the Virginia Department of Transportation, the partners designed a seven-lane highway bridge as a gateway to Charlottesville, VA as the centerpiece to a larger redevelopment plan for the city’s riverfront. She received her A.B. and M.A.rch. from Princeton University.

 

Unit 3

Text E

Some More Professionals` Templates

(1)


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