JOSEPH STIGLITZ, 73

CURRENT JOB: Professor of economics, Columbia Business School.

FAMILY: Wife Anya Schiffrin, a reporter, journalism academic and editor of Stiglitz’s books. Four children from a previous marriage, one of whom is an academic doing pioneering work in mathematical political science. EDUCATION: A degree from Amherst College in Massachusetts; MA from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, and PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Professor of economics at Yale, chairman of President Clinton’s council of economic advisers 1995-97, chief economist at the World Bank 1997-2000. Won the Nobel prize for economics in 2001 and author of countless books on economics, including a standard undergraduate textbook, Economics, published in 1993.

BIGGEST INFLUENCES: ‘I was lucky enough to have at least four Nobel prize winners among my teachers at MIT, including Paul Samuelson, the first American to win the prize for economics. At Cambridge, I had a another group of very good teachers including Nicky Kaldor, an adviser to Harold Wilson, and Joan Robinson, the leading British economist.’

DAILY ROUTINE: Rises at 6.30am and spends an hour and a half writing in his pyjamas. Stops to have coffee and high-fibre cereal topped with fruit with Anya. Together they read the print versions of the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times. During term, he teaches full time at Columbia.

FAVOURITE VIEWING: ‘The Scandinavian political drama Borgen. I think it gives a positive view of government, a woman leader making hard decisions and trade-offs. Very different from House Of Cards.’