Economics Commons^™

From Quasi-Private To Quasi-Public: The Development Of Local Libraries In The United States, 1870-1930, Michael Kevane, William A. Sundstrom

Economics

The period 1870-1930 witnessed the emergence of the local public library as a widespread and enduring American institution. During these years, access to free community-based library services spread to a much larger share of the U.S. population, while the institutional structure of local libraries underwent a transition from largely quasi-private, voluntary associations to the tax-supported public institutions familiar today. In this paper we describe this transition, and document the expansion of public libraries and library services in the United States over these years, using data drawn from library surveys conducted by the federal Bureau of Education. We then review some …

Religion And Community: Mexican Americans In South Omaha (1900-1980) - Ollas Report No. 4, Maria S. Arbelaez

Latino/Latin American Studies Reports

Mexicans, like all other ethnic groups that created the United States as a nation of immigrants, were adamant in establishing churches of their own. Ethnic religious affiliations were essentially of Judeo-Christian origin and benefited effectively from the tolerance of worship mandated by the Constitution. Freedom of belief was known, demanded, and exercised by all immigrants. For Mexican and other ethnic communities, religious belief and centers of worship were the very heart of their community and identity bonds, their source of strength and reason to persevere in a new society where multiple nationalities, cultures, languages, and ethnicities converged.

This report provides …

Montana Nonresident Traveler Quarterly Travel Comparison: 2006, Melissa Dubois, Kara Grau

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

This report shows the 2006 quarterly visitation and length of stay data for nonresident travelers to Montana. It also displays average daily spending for various expenditure categories, as well as total expenditures for those categories.

Education Finance In California Part 3: Lessons, John Yinger

Center for Policy Research

It’s Elementary is a series of essays on topics in education and education policy. The main focus is on education finance in New York State, but general research findings in education and education policy issues in several other states are also discussed. John Yinger, Professor of Economics and Public Administration at the Maxwell School, Syracuse University is the author of most of these essays, although a few are written by or co-authored with other scholars.

Better Deals For State And Local Economic Development, Ann R. Markusen

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Nature In Ayn Rand's Fountainhead, Anand Silodia

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

[First paragraph]

Half a century ago the novelist Ayn Rand [1], a Russian refugee who settled in America, gave us one of the most original and influential philosophies of individualism namely objectivism, which she advanced as 'a philosophy for living on earth.' First propounded through her novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand's philosophy of objectivism has surpassed the test of time. In her objectivist philosophy, human-nature relationships are an important (indirect) concern although rarely discussed in an explicit manner in her humongous novels.

Revitalizing Deteriorated Urban Neighborhood Real Estate Markets Through Concentrated Homeownership Development: Determining The Spillover Effects Of New Homes On The Value Of Surrounding Homes, Jerry Michael Hawkins

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management

The promotion of homeownership opportunities represents an important approach used by localities to support the revitalization of deteriorated urban neighborhoods. Homeownership is associated with a variety of social and economic benefits to the homeowner including increased residential stability and equity accumulation. The introduction of new homeownership opportunities into a deteriorated urban neighborhood as part of local public policy is intended to capitalize upon the anticipated positive social and economic outcomes. Such new homeownership development also presents the opportunity to generate positive spillover effects on the adjacent existing properties in the neighborhood which may ultimately result in higher real estate tax …

Markets: Gift Cards, Jennifer Pate Offenberg

Economics Faculty Works

The Mobil Oil Company introduced the first retail gift card that recorded value on a magnetic strip in 1995. In under a decade, such gift cards replaced apparel as the number one item sold during the Christmas season. This study will discuss the reasons for the strong surge in the gift card market. It will then consider the value of gift cards as an intermediate option between two alternatives: purchasing a physical gift, which could possibly be returned or exchanged, versus giving cash. Empirical data on the resale price of gift cards from an Internet auction website provide information on …

Outsourcing, Offshoring, And Productivity Measurement In U.S. Manufacturing, Susan N. Houseman

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

I discuss reasons why manufacturing productivity statistics should be interpreted with caution in light of the recent growth of domestic and foreign outsourcing and offshoring. First, outsourcing and offshoring are poorly measured in U.S. statistics, and poor measurement may impart a significant bias to manufacturing and, where offshoring is involved, aggregate productivity statistics. Second, companies often outsource or offshore work to take advantage of cheap (relative to their output) labor, and such cost savings are counted as productivity gains, even in multifactor productivity calculations. This fact has potentially important implications for the interpretation of productivity statistics. Whether, for instance, productivity …

Understanding Louisiana Patent Production And The Role Of Knowledge Stocks On Economic Growth, Cynthia Ann Dubois

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Banking The Unbanked, Janine Firpo

Journal of Microfinance / ESR Review

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Privatization On Economic Growth And Income Inequality In Developing Countries, Samuel Adams

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

In the 1960s and 1970s academicians, economists and politicians favored state ownership over private ownership in the production and provision of goods and services. By the end of the 1980s, however, there was a reversal of public policy from state domination of the production and provision of goods and services to private ownership and operation. This was due in part to what the World Bank referred to as "state failure”, which was characterized by inefficient service delivery, unprofitable SOEs, high government debt, and stagnant economic growth rates. Accordingly, privatization caught on in many countries as a policy tool to foster …

An Economic Critique Of Birch And Cobb’S The Liberation Of Life, Wei-Erh Chen

Major Themes in Economics

The discussion concerning humans and the environment has intensified in recent years. Now, more than ever, we must ask how we as economists can engage in a conversation regarding environmentalism when the participants come from a myriad of disciplines. I posit that it is only through an understanding of the other disciplines’ ethics and values that the economist can meaningfully engage in the conversation. This paper is an exercise in this interdisciplinary understanding. First, Charles Birch and John B. Cobb Jr.’s ecological viewpoint is presented. This is followed by the economic prescriptions arising from the ecological viewpoint. A subsequent critique …

The Implications Of Eminent Domain In A Post-Kelo World, Brock L. Toll

Major Themes in Economics

Eminent domain has been a government power for centuries. In most cases, eminent domain is used to provide essential public goods. Using it for the advantage of private entities is hotly debated. The 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kelo vs. New London allowed the use of eminent domain for privately driven endeavors. By examining the holdout problem, compensation and the effects of the Kelo case, national reform is determined as the best solution to private/public ventures using eminent domain.

What Determines The Performance Of Graduates? Selection Versus Quality: Evidence From Top Law Schools, Eric Marshall

Major Themes in Economics

Several studies have examined the factors that influence the performance of college graduates. Some studies have found that a student’s inherent academic ability determines the performance of graduates. Others argue that the quality of the education a student receives determines graduate performance. Ability cannot be directly measured; however, the majority opinion is that both student ability and education quality influence graduate ability. I investigate the determinants of law school graduate performance. My law school models offer many advantages over existing research, and my findings support the belief that a student’s academic ability and education quality determine the performance of graduates.

Should The United States Increase The Federal Gasoline Tax?, Jake Ferguson

Major Themes in Economics

Increasing the federal gasoline tax in the United States is highly debated. A higher tax would reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil and have environmental benefits. Downfalls of a higher tax are the regressive nature of the tax and the unfair burden placed on drivers in rural areas. An increased gasoline tax is not popular with the public, so most politicians do not support a higher tax. An increased federal gasoline tax is a good idea if the increase is large and the additional revenue is used to reduce income taxes in a progressive manner.

Wage Differentiation Among University Professors: Evidence From Uni’S College Of Business Administration, Christine Bergeth

Major Themes in Economics

Previous research has found that professor salaries are greatly influenced by the external labor market, but are also affected by the mobility and seniority of the professors. Using data from the College of Business Administration at the University of Northern Iowa, this study tries to determine what factors affect professor salaries, when holding everything else constant. It was found that department, rank, achieving the status of department head, ratings from RateMyProfessor.com, and summer money were significant in trying to explain the wage variation.

(Wp 2007-01) Openness, Income-Tax Progressivity, And Inflation, Joseph P. Daniels, David D. Vanhoose

Economics Working Papers

This paper considers a model of an open economy in which the degree of income-tax progressivity influences the interaction among openness, central bank independence, and the inflation rate. Our model suggests that an increase in the progressivity of the tax system induces a smaller response in real output to a change in the price level. This implies that increased income-tax progressivity reduces the equilibrium inflation rate and that the effect of increased income-tax progressivity on inflation is smaller when the central bank places a higher weight on inflation or when there is greater openness. Examination of cross-country inflation data provides …

The Role Of Industrial And Traditional Fishing In Sustainable Resource Management, Aime Schwartz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For decades, the notion of ‘sustainable development’ has been a source of international contention and debate. While the meanings and implications of sustainable development are widely disputed, it is interpreted by many as an ideal that encompasses social, environmental and economic spheres while promoting the value of human rights in development. Theoretically, this approach allows for the quality of life of current and future generations to be considered in environmental decision-making and formally recognized by national and international standards, dictated primarily by wealthy industrialized governments (Adebowale et al 138). Policy-makers in developing nations continuously face the struggle to balance the …

Montana Nonresident Traveler Expenditure Trends: 1996-2006, Kara Grau

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

This report shows the nonresident traveler expenditure trends for visitors of Montana from 1996-2006. It also displays the total actual expenditures and the total inflation-adjusted expenditures.

Montana Nonresident Traveler Expenditure Profiles: 2006, Kara Grau

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

This report examines spending profiles of nonresident travelers to Montana. It displays the average daily expenditures by purpose of trip for different spending categories during 2006.

Montana Nonresident Traveler Expenditures And Economic Contribution: 2006, Kara Grau

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

This report shows the economic contributions, expenditures, and average daily spending of nonresident visitors to Montana during 2006.

Pay And Performance: Among 100 Best U.S. Companies To Work For, Omair Mahmood Faisal

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

In the 21st century, world is becoming a global village and with increased competition businesses are always looking for regions with the lowest possible production costs. Appropriate compensation of U.S. employees working for major U.S. corporations is a hotly debated topic in political circles. This research focuses on the top 100 companies designated as “the best companies to work for” by Fortune Magazine for the year 2006. Performance of these companies, as measured by their return on equity, return on assets, revenue growth and earnings growth along with their profit margin is used to determine the impact on them as …

Evidence About The Effectiveness Of Public Training Programs For Incumbent Workers, Kevin Hollenbeck, Sarah M. Klerk

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

A Simple Approach To The Parametric Estimation Of Potentially Nonstationary Diffusions, Federico Bandi, Peter C. B. Phillips

Research Collection School Of Economics

A simple and robust approach is proposed for the parametric estimation of scalar homogeneous stochastic differential equations. We specify a parametric class of diffusions and estimate the parameters of interest by minimizing criteria based on the integrated squared difference between kernel estimates of the drift and diffusion functions and their parametric counterparts. The procedure does not require simulations or approximations to the true transition density and has the simplicity of standard nonlinear least-squares methods in discrete time. A complete asymptotic theory for the parametric estimates is developed. The limit theory relies on infill and long span asymptotics and is robust …

Simulation-Based Estimation Of Contingent-Claims Prices, Jun Yu

Research Collection School Of Economics

A new methodology is proposed to estimate theoretical prices of financial contingent-claims whose values are dependent on some other underlying financial assets. In the literature the preferred choice of estimator is usually maximum likelihood (ML). ML has strong asymptotic justification but is not necessarily the best method in finite samples. The present paper proposes instead a simulation-based method that improves the finite sample performance of the ML estimator while maintaining its good asymptotic properties. The methods are implemented and evaluated here in the Black-Scholes option pricing model and in the Vasicek bond pricing model, but have wider applicability. Monte Carlo …

Global And Regional Sources Of Risk In Equity Markets: Evidence From Factor Models With Time-Varying Conditional Skewness, Aamir R. Hashmi, Anthony S. Tay

Research Collection School Of Economics

We examine the influence of global and regional factors on the conditional distribution of stock returns from six Asian markets, using factor models in which unexpected returns comprise global, regional and local shocks. The models allow for conditional heteroskedasticity and time-varying conditional skewness, and are used to measure mean, variance, and skewness spillovers. We find that incorporating time-varying conditional skewness improves the fit of our spillover models, and can alter measurements of variance spillovers. However, time-varying conditional skewness is mostly a local phenomenon; with exceptions, there is little spillover in skewness from global and regional factors.

New Mexico Labor Market Review 03-31-2007, New Mexico Department Of Labor

Historic Publications

The New Mexico Labor Market Review is a monthly publication presenting statistical data and analysis on labor market conditions throughout New Mexico. Issues examine statewide and regional trends in employment, unemployment, labor force estimates, industry activity, wages, occupational demand, and related economic conditions, often accompanied by feature articles on topics affecting the state’s economy. This issue covers February 2007.

New York Camp Econometrics Ii Program, Center For Policy Research

Camp Econometrics-Programs

No abstract provided.

Pakistan’S Economic Future, Ishrat Husain Dr.

Faculty Research - Newspaper and Magazine Articles

Economists have a very poor track record of forecasting the future as the dynamic interactions between complex variables, an imperfect understanding of the non-economic factors and the occurrence of unanticipated exogenous shocks turn their judgements into hit and miss episodes. Despite these weaknesses economic forecasting flourishes as a discipline and the economists show indomitable courage to sketch out their scenarios of an uncertain and unknown future. This article therefore examines the past developments, current trends of Pakistani economy and the future global and regional outlook and builds the most likely scenario for the medium term economic prospects of the country …