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Philosophers and practical men: Charles Babbage, Irish merchants and the economics of information

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  • Frank Geary
  • Renee Prendergast

Abstract

Before the emergence of coordination of production by firms, manufacturers and merchants traded in markets with asymmetric information. Evidence suggests that the practical knowledge thus gained by these agents was well in advance of contemporary political economists and anticipates twentieth-century developments in the economics of information. Charles Babbage, who regarded merchants and manufacturers as the chief sources of reliable economic data, drew on this knowledge as revealed in the evidence of manufacturers and merchants presented to House of Commons select committees to make an important pioneering contribution to the theory of production and exchange with information asymmetries.

Suggested Citation

  • Frank Geary & Renee Prendergast, 2008. "Philosophers and practical men: Charles Babbage, Irish merchants and the economics of information," The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(4), pages 571-594.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:eujhet:v:15:y:2008:i:4:p:571-594
    DOI: 10.1080/09672560802480922
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rosenberg,Nathan, 1994. "Exploring the Black Box," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521459556, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Hupfel, Simon, 2022. "The Economists and The Combination Laws: A Reappraisal," SocArXiv uvfqa, Center for Open Science.
    2. Monica Hernandez, 2017. "Inequality as Lack of Co-operation in Economic Thought," Working Papers 1718, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics, revised Aug 2017.

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