The Persistance Of Technological Gaps

This is a jarring thought:

A paper by Diego Comin, Erick Gong, and myself was just published in the American Economic Journal
We collected crude but informative data on the state of technology
various parts of the world in 1000 BC, 0 AD, and 1500 AD.

1500 AD technology is a particularly powerful predictor of percapita income today. 78 percent of the difference in income todaybetween sub-Saharan Africa and Western Europe is explained bytechnology differences that already...