ABSTRACT
The coauthors of this fascinating, entertaining, and pioneering volume deserve a vote of thanks from the economics profession, for several reasons. The first, and potentially most important, is that in its original published form — as an article in the Journal of Economic Perspectives (1987) — their research provoked the American Economic Association (AEA) to undertake a systematic review of graduate education in economics in the United States, with the aid of a substantial grant from the National Science Foundation. The full results of that investigation, the first of its kind since the Bowen Report in the 1950s (Bowen, 1953) 1 , are not yet available, and whether they will lead to any significant changes in the aims and content of that education remains to be seen. Nevertheless, even at this early stage, the preliminary findings and report of the AEA's Commission on Graduate Education in Economics (Cogee) suggest that its work will, at the least, provide ample fuel for discussion and food for thought for years to come. 2
