John R. Meyer
Encyclopedia
John R. Meyer was an American economist
. He is credited with creating the field of transportation economics and was one of the pioneers of cliometrics
.
Meyer was a professor at Harvard University
's Department of Economics from 1955 to 1968, at Yale
's Department of Economics from 1968 to 1973, and at the Harvard Business School
from 1973 to 1983. He served and as the president of the National Bureau of Economic Research
(NBER) from 1967 to 1977, before the NBER was moved to Cambridge, MA. Meyer was a consultant to the National Transportation Policy Study Commission from 1977 to 1979. He served as vice chairman and board member of Union Pacific Railroad
. He died on October 20, 2009 after a long period of battling with Parkinson's disease
. At the time of his death he was the James W. Harpel Professor of Capital Formation Emeritus at Harvard Kennedy School.
with economics. In order to understand the cost structure in the transportation industry he had to work together with engineers.
Meyer's second great influential book on transportation economics was The Urban Transportation Problem, co-authored with John Kain and Martin Wohl (an engineer). That book described the process of American suburbanization
and the rapid switch from public transportation to cars.
.
In 1958, together with Alfred Haskell Conrad
, Meyer published The Economics of Slavery in the Antebellum South in 1958. Using rigorous statistics, the authors concluded that the view that slavery would have disappeared without the American Civil War
was "a romantic hypothesis which will not stand against the facts." This anticipated the study by Nobel-laureate Robert Fogel
, who would later conclude the same thing.
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
. He is credited with creating the field of transportation economics and was one of the pioneers of cliometrics
Cliometrics
Cliometrics, sometimes called new economic history, or econometric history, is the systematic application of economic theory, econometric techniques, and other formal or mathematical methods to the study of history . It is a quantitative approach to economic history...
.
Life
Meyer attended Pacific University 1945-1946, after which he served in the USNR 1945-1948. He received his B.A. from the University of Washington in 1950 and his Ph.D (David A. Wells Prize) from Harvard University in 1955. He was a Junior Fellow from 1953-1955. He married Lee Stowell (1928–2003) December 17, 1949 and they had three children, Leslie Karen, Ann Elizabeth and Robert Conrad.Meyer was a professor at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's Department of Economics from 1955 to 1968, at Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
's Department of Economics from 1968 to 1973, and at the Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
from 1973 to 1983. He served and as the president of the National Bureau of Economic Research
National Bureau of Economic Research
The National Bureau of Economic Research is an American private nonprofit research organization "committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic community." The NBER is well known for providing start and end...
(NBER) from 1967 to 1977, before the NBER was moved to Cambridge, MA. Meyer was a consultant to the National Transportation Policy Study Commission from 1977 to 1979. He served as vice chairman and board member of Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
. He died on October 20, 2009 after a long period of battling with Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
. At the time of his death he was the James W. Harpel Professor of Capital Formation Emeritus at Harvard Kennedy School.
Research
Meyer was open to interdisciplinary collaboration in his research. He combined engineeringEngineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
with economics. In order to understand the cost structure in the transportation industry he had to work together with engineers.
Transportation economics
Meyer and three co-authors (Merton Peck, John Stenason and Charles Zwick) published The Economics of Competition in the Transportation Industries in 1959. This book conducted a thorough analysis of costs and demand which enabled the authors to study what the railroad industry might look like if it were better governed. Regulation of railroads had implicitly given incentivizes to passenger over freight trains. This made railroads less efficient and also less profitable because intercity rail’s great comparative advantage was in moving goods over long distances.Meyer's second great influential book on transportation economics was The Urban Transportation Problem, co-authored with John Kain and Martin Wohl (an engineer). That book described the process of American suburbanization
Suburbanization
Suburbanization a term used to describe the growth of areas on the fringes of major cities. It is one of the many causes of the increase in urban sprawl. Many residents of metropolitan regions work within the central urban area, choosing instead to live in satellite communities called suburbs...
and the rapid switch from public transportation to cars.
Cliometrics
Meyer was a pioneer of quantitative economic history, also called cliometricsCliometrics
Cliometrics, sometimes called new economic history, or econometric history, is the systematic application of economic theory, econometric techniques, and other formal or mathematical methods to the study of history . It is a quantitative approach to economic history...
.
In 1958, together with Alfred Haskell Conrad
Alfred Haskell Conrad
Alfred H. Conrad was a distinguished and popular professor of economics at Harvard University and City College of New York. He belonged to the quantitative economic current called New economic history....
, Meyer published The Economics of Slavery in the Antebellum South in 1958. Using rigorous statistics, the authors concluded that the view that slavery would have disappeared without the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
was "a romantic hypothesis which will not stand against the facts." This anticipated the study by Nobel-laureate Robert Fogel
Robert Fogel
Robert William Fogel is an American economic historian and scientist, and winner of the 1993 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. He is now the Charles R. Walgreen Distinguished Service Professor of American Institutions and director of the Center for Population Economics at the...
, who would later conclude the same thing.