Wassily Leontief

Wassily Leontief (1905-1999) was a Russian-American economist who won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1973 for his development of input-output analysis. Leontief was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and studied economics at the University of Leningrad. In 1925, he moved to the United States to study at Harvard University, where he received his Ph.D. in 1931.

After graduating from Harvard, Leontief worked as an economist for the U.S. Department of Commerce. In 1939, he founded the Harvard Economic Research Project, which later became the Center for International Studies. Leontief is best known for his development of input-output analysis, a method for analyzing the interdependencies between different sectors of the economy. Input-output analysis has been used to study a wide variety of economic problems, including the effects of economic growth, changes in technology, and government policies.

Leontief was also a pioneer in the use of computers for economic analysis. In 1954, he founded the Harvard Economic Model, which was one of the first large-scale computer models of the U.S. economy. Leontief's work has had a profound impact on the field of economics. He is considered one of the most important economists of the 20th century.

In addition to his work in economics, Leontief was also active in public affairs. He was a member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers from 1946 to 1949, and he served as a consultant to the United Nations on several occasions. Leontief was also a strong advocate for peace and disarmament. He was a member of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, and he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his work on the economics of peace.

Leontief was a brilliant economist and a tireless advocate for peace. His work has had a lasting impact on the field of economics and on the world.