David S. Landes

American economic historian — Harvard — author of The Wealth and Poverty of Nations — who argued that culture (specifically the Protestant work ethic and technological curiosity) rather than geography explains economic development differences.

Creates the culture-as-development determinant argument — The Wealth and Poverty of Nations argues (against Diamond's geography thesis) that internal cultural attributes — curiosity, work ethic, respect for property, rule of law — are the decisive factors in development, making it the most prominent cultural explanation for economic inequality.