The contributors, including ten Nobel Laureates, consider themes as diverse as Smith's use of data, his attitude to human capital and his views on economic policy. Heirs to Smith they also reflect on the current state of economics.

Address at Canongate Kirkyard 1. The Overdue Recovery of Adam Smith's Reputation as an Economic Theorist Paul Samuelson 2. Smith's Use of Data L.R. Klein 3. On the Wealth of Nations Franco Modigliani 4. The Supply of Labour and the Extent of the Market James M. Buchanan 5. The General Theory of Surpluses as a Formulation of the Underlying Theoretical Thought of Adam Smith, his Predecessors and his Contemporaries Maurice Allais 6. Adam Smith and Human Capital Theodore Schultz 7. Public Economic Policy: Adam Smith on What State and other Public Institutions Should and Should Not Do Richard Stone 8. The Invisible Hand in Modern Macro Economics James Tobin 9. The Present State of Economic Science Wassily Leontief 10. Economics: Recent Performance and Future Tasks Jan Tinbergen