Best of BS Opinion: Power of Settings, Safe Landing and More

Illustration: Binay Sinha

This year’s Economics Nobel Prize went to three academics who specialize in asking a very simple question: what makes countries rich? The motivation with which Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James A Robinson began their research was simple: why were some countries rich in the Middle Ages but poor today, while other countries that were poor have become rich? Was there something causal or mechanistic underlying this ‘great turnaround’? Their answer was deceptively simple: “Institutions,” our editor-in-chief notes. Read here

New capabilities from SpaceX will significantly improve space exploration, our second editorial argues. Read here

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In other views

India’s 2047 ambition may seem out of reach, but twenty and a half decades provide plenty of time to prepare – if the country has the right focus, writes economist Laveesh Bhandari. Read here

US trade policy emphasizes that India must follow its own strategic priorities without caving to outside pressure, writes Ajay Srivastava. Read here

Quote

“This year’s laureates in economics – Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson – have demonstrated the importance of social institutions for a country’s prosperity. Societies with poor rule of law and institutions that exploit the population do not generate growth or change for the better.”

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

First publication: October 15, 2024 | 6:30 am IST