About the Book: The Wisdom of Ants: A Short History ofEconomics As the fable goes, in the summer when the ants werebusygathering food, grasshoppers lived a carefree life. Comewinter, the ants lived off their store, while the grasshoppers wereleftstarving. It appears that this lesson was eventually learntbyhumans, who shifted from hunting and gathering to agriculture.Thewisdom of ants that they borrowed did not end here but helpedtolay the foundation of economics as a distinct discipline. Thisbooktakes the reader through the history of economics through theagesand the four major world civilisations: European, Islamic, Indianand Chinese, pointing out the ways in which we think ofeconomicstoday were formed. In the process, Shankar Jaganathan asksus toquestion our ideas of the importance of these ideas andtheirability to drive the world. Written in a lucid, easy style, withmany historical examples, The Wisdom of Ants views economicideasthrough an ethical, social and political lens, allowingreaders tounderstand the relevance of this history to their owndailylives. About the Author: Shankar Jaganathan Shankar Jaganathan is passionate about economichistory, sustainability practices and corporate governance. Acharteredaccountant and law graduate, he has varied experience incorporate, academic and social sectors in a career spanningtwenty-five years.A select list of the entities and institutions heis/was associatedwith includes Wipro, Azim Premji Foundation, Indian Institute ofScience, Union Bank of India, Oxfam India andNarsee MonjeeInstitute of Management Studies. He currently divideshis timebetween corporate consulting for rapidly growingentities, teaching, research and writing. He is also an independentdirectoron the boards of Indian corporates and NGOs, and teaches atleadingmanagement schools. Shankar is the author of Corporate Disclosures: 1553-2007: TheOrigin of Financial and Business Reports, published by Routledgein2008. This book was selected by the Indian Society