Xavier Sala-i-Martin
Xavier Sala-i-Martin is an economics professor known for his whacky suits and genius with both math and women (two subjects often thought to be polar opposites). One of the most-cited economists on the planet, but you'd never know it from the way he acts. Anyone who has taken a class with him quickly becomes familiar with his crazy website, which has to be seen to be believed.
His name is pronounced Cha-vee-ay, not Ha-vee-air. Not X-A-vier. And especially not "Professor X." Without a doubt, he will tell you this on the first day of class. As well as the fact that he is Catalan and not, he will insist, Spanish.
