Years in Department:
1963-1983
Research Interest:
Resource Economics, Environmental Economics, Population Growth
BIOSKETCH:
Julian Lincoln Simon came to the U of I as an assistant professor in advertising in 1963. From 1966-69 he was an assistant and associate professor of marketing, and from 1969 to 1983 was Professor of Economics and Business Administration. He went from U of I to the University of Maryland in 1983, as a Professor of Business Administration, to be closer to the policy action of the DC area.
He wrote or edited over 30 books, and over 150 articles in professional journals, and another 200 or so newspaper and magazine articles, comments, book reviews, etc.
Among his more public achievements was his idea to have airline overbook seats and have an auction to re-book extra seats.
His well published bet with environmentalist Paul Ehrlich was that the prices of a set of metals would decrease over the next ten years, with Ehrlich betting they would rise. Ehlrich lost the bet to Simon as the prices did in fact fall. Simon also wrote against birth control and in favor of positive population growth. He was a climate change denier, but an additional 20 years of evidence might have changed or confirmed his options on that subject.
A few days shy of his 66th birthday, Julian Simon passed on February 11, 1998.
PHD:
University of Chicago, 1961
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:
- Simon, Julian L. Developing Decision-Making Skills for Business. Armonk, N.Y: M.E. Sharpe, 2001. Internet resource.
- Simon, Julian L. The Ultimate Resource. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 1981. Print.
- Simon, Julian L. The Economic Consequences of Immigration. Oxford, UK: B. Blackwell, 1989. Print.
- Simon, Julian L. Basic Research Methods in Social Science: The Art of Empirical Investigation. New York: Random House, 1969. Print.
- Simon, Julian L. The State of Humanity. Oxford, UK: Blackwell in association with the Cato Institute, 1995. Print.
OTHER LINKS/RESOURCES:
Julian Simon's Personal Webpage