bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
MODELING DYNAMIC INTERINDUSTRY REGIONAL GROWTH IN THE PRESENCE OF STRUCTURAL SHIFTS AND OUTLIERS*
Authors: LeSage James P.
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT.Kraybill and Dorfman (1992) propose a model of intermediate and export demand which uses ordinary least‐squares and linear systems techniques to produce a state‐space representation of the time element of output change. Their model produces dynamic multipliers which trace the temporal path of regional growth, and has many advantages over previously employed time series methods. This study extends their methodology to accommodate structural shifts and outliers found in the least‐squares relationship between industry and export output by using a recently‐introduced technique–multiprocess mixture estimation. An application of the Kraybill‐Dorfman method and the extensions proposed here to monthly time series data on Ohio employment is used to illustrate these issues.
TROPICAL DEFORESTATION AND FOREST MANAGEMENT UNDER THE SYSTEM OF CONCESSION LOGGING: A DECISION‐THEORETIC ANALYSIS*
Authors: Walker Robert , Smith Tony E.
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. Deforestation caused by concession logging is often the result of harvest decisions which focus on short‐run profits rather than on long‐run sustainable harvest yields. A sequential‐decision model of this type of behavior is here developed which focuses on a logger's annual decisions of whether or not to remain in compliance with the terms of a concession contract. The contract stipulates harvesting procedures for a sustained forest yield, and noncompliance is taken to result in deforestation. An optimal decision policy for the concession logger is characterized in terms of optimal‐stopping theory, and is employed to construct payoff incentives which encourage compliance. In particular, a forest management problem is formulated which focuses on the effectiveness of partial inspection policies in deterring noncompliant behavior. General necessary and sufficient conditions for the effectiveness of such policies are established, and are given a more operational form for the Markov case. A numerical example based on actual concession‐contract data is also developed which suggests certain policy implications.
THE DETERMINANTS OF RESTRICTIVE RESIDENTIAL ZONING: SOME EMPIRICAL FINDINGS*
Authors: Bates Laurie J. , Santerre Rexford E.
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. This study proposes, and finds evidence supporting, the hypothesis that restrictive residential land‐use and minimum lot‐size zoning are substitute ways of controlling the population intensity of future residential development. In addition, evidence is found linking externality, fiscal and exclusionary objectives to restrictive residential zoning.
THE EFFECTS OF METROPOLITAN JOB GROWTH ON THE SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF FAMILY INCOME*
Authors: Bartik Timothy J.
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. This article examines how a metropolitan area's job growth affects its income distribution, using CPS data from 1979 to 1988. Metropolitan growth increases the poorest quintile's income by a greater percentage than for the average family. Metropolitan growth also increases the value of property owned by the richest quintiles. Economic development programs to increase local growth will have a net progressive effect if the cost per job created is low, and these costs are financed by personal taxes. But programs with a high cost per job, or financed by cutting welfare, will reduce the net income of the poorest quintile.
THE CONCEPTUAL LINKS BETWEEN RECREATION SITE DEVELOPMENT AND REGIONAL ECONOMIC IMPACTS*
Authors: English Donald B. K. , Bergstrom John C.
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. Assessing regional economic impacts of recreation trips is important to public agencies' decisions about using recreation as a rural development tool. Minimizing the total cost of recreation trip production implies that households will spatially distribute their purchases of inputs to trip production, including both trip‐specific inputs and durable recreation equipment. A recreation site contributes to a region's economic growth through household purchases of trip inputs. The site's cost effects, price information effects, and recreation and retail agglomeration effects cause changes in household recreation purchases and ultimately generate regional economic impacts.
THE SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF URBAN AREAS: TESTING FOR THE APPROPRIATENESS OF THE PARETO DISTRIBUTION USING A GENERALIZED BOX‐COX TRANSFORMATION FUNCTION*
Authors: Alperovich Gershon , Deutsch Joseph
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACTA widely held opinion among urban economists and geographers is that the Pareto distribution is an accurate representation of the urban size distribution of many countries around the world. This paper focuses attention on the appropriateness of the procedures used in the literature in arriving at this conclusion. We employed the generalized Box‐Cox transformation function, which permits estimation of many functional forms for testing the Pareto distribution as special cases. The results obtained are illuminating albeit somewhat surprising. Except for one country the Pareto distribution is overwhelmingly rejected in favor of the general Box‐Cox function. In more than 30 percent of all countries this form collapses to a reciprocal function. Moreover, as far as the overall goodness of fit is concerned, our results show that the General Box‐Cox function is superior to the Pareto form.
COMPARATIVE REGIONAL POLICY IMPACT ANALYSIS: EX POST EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF THE EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND*
Authors: Nijkamp Peter , Blaas Eddy
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. This paper addresses the issue of ex post impact analysis of regional policies in the European Community. The analysis is both methodological and applied in nature. After a concise overview of existing impact assessment methods, a two‐step approach by means of an exploratory frequency method and an explanatory rational expectations‐based model is proposed in order to provide an empirical framework for cross‐regional comparative evaluation of the performance of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The seope and applicability of the method is illustrated by means of a case study for Dutch regions.
SCALE ECONOMIES, REGIONAL EXTERNALITIES, AND THE POSSIBILITY OF UNEVEN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT*
Authors: Kubo Yuji
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. This paper presents a model of regional development which attempts to explain differing patterns of growth in two regions. The model is an extension of Krugman's model of uneven development, but it incorporates not only scale economies within each region but also regional externalities across the regions. Depending on relative magnitudes of net scale economies of the two regions, the model entails different regional development patterns: uneven development, stable or joint development, or a mix of the two. The novel feature of the present model is that different regional development patterns can be explained within the same analytical framework.
CONVERGENCE AND THE U.S. STATES: A TIME‐SERIES ANALYSIS*
Authors: Carlino Gerald , Mills Leonard
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. After decades of apparent convergence, state and regional per capita earnings diverged between 1978 and 1988. A central tenet of the convergence hypothesis is that shocks to relative state and regional earnings, such as those of the 1978 to 1988 period, are transitory. We find evidence for convergence for the U.S. states and regions during the 1929 to 1990 period after allowing for a break in the rate at which the various states and regions were converging in 1946. An important finding of this research is that the US. states and regions achieved per capita earnings convergence by 1946.
MODELING SPATIAL STRUCTURES THROUGH EQUILIBRIUM STATES FOR TRANSITION MATRICES*
Authors: Nævdal Geir , Thorsen Inge , Ubøe Jan
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. In this paper we present a model for spatial interaction within a network of towns. This interaction is modeled through equilibrium states for certain Markov chains where, in particular, explicit formulas for these states are given. Our model exploits and intertwines ideas from gravity models, the competing destinations model and the intervening opportunities model. The central idea in the paper is to capture the effect of spatial structure in a framework where interaction is determined by the global network configuration.
ZONE PRICING*
Authors: Peeters Dominique , Thisse Jacques‐François
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT. Our purpose is to study a spatial price policy often encountered in the real world, known as zone pricing. This price policy consists in determining simultaneously several delivered prices together with the geographical zones in which they apply. It is shown that zone pricing approximates perfect spatial price discrimination and that the firm's profit increases with the number of zones. Furthermore, the number of markets supplied by the firm rises with the number of zones. Finally, zone pricing is compared to other standard spatial price policies and possible extensions are discussed.
L'ELASTICITE DE LA DEMANDE DES PRODUITS AGRICOLES AUX DIFFRRENTS STADES DU CIRCUIT COMMERCIAL
Authors: Klatzmann J.
Published: July 2006

Summaire: § 1. Caractères Principaux des marchés agricole. ‐ § 2. L'ékastucuté de la demand aux divers stades du circuit commercial. ‐ § 3. Expression du prix à la production en function du prix de détail. ‐ § 4. Etude du rapport entre les deux élasticités Z et b. ‐ § 5. Rôle des différentes categories des prix. L'effet d'amplification. ‐ § 6. Interprétation des résultats. ‐§ 7. Conclusion.
UNCERTAINTY, THE CAPITALIZATION THEORY, AND INVESTOR BEHAVIOR
Authors: Stockfisch J. A.
Published: July 2006

Summary: § 1. The capitalization theory and its knowledge assumptions. –§ 2. Early capital theorists and the knowledge problem: Irving Fisher and ≪certainty equivalents≫. –§ 3. Fisher's reduction of the future income stream to a ≪riskless≫ flow via the frequency‐ratio probability theory. –§ 4. Fisher's coefficient of caution. –§ 5. Capitalization as a multiple discounting process. –§ 6. Criticism of the frequency ratio probability approach for treating uncertainty. –§7. Aspects of Shackle's ≪potential surprise≫ approach. –§ 8. Implications of the potential surprise concept for asset valuation. –§ 9. Criticism of the coefficient of caution as a discount factor. –§ 10. The coefficient of caution as a source of error in rationalizing investor behavior. –§ 11. How the coefficient of caution undermines the frequency ratio probability approach. –§ 12. A possible alternative to the current capitalization theory. –§ 13. The need to place the capitalization theory in its proper perspective.
ON THE INTERPRETATION OF THEIL'S METHOD OF ESTIMATING ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIPS
Authors: Klein L. R.
Published: July 2006

Summary: § 1. An outline of Theil's theory. –§ 2. An interpretation of Theil's theory – the method of instrumental variables. –§ 3. Comparison of two‐rounds and limited information estimates. –§ 4. Remarks on other methods.
PARAMETER ESTIMATION WITH AUTOCORRELATED DISTURBANCES
Authors: Bennett James T.
Published: July 2006

Abstract

Available methods for dealing with autocorrelated disturbanecs are unsatisfactory. They are computationally cumbersome and lead to estimators that have only weak asymptotic properties. Maximum likelihood estimation of all parameters is theoretically preferable, but has been unpopular due to the practical difficulties of numerical optimization in a multidimensional space. In this paper it is shown that the computational aspect of maximum likelihood estimation can be greatly simplified. The numerical search is confined to the interval (— 1, 1) of the autocorrelation parameter. The method is applicable to a single static equation as well as to autoregressive models with one or more equations. Some sampling experiments demonstrate the superiority of the maximum likelihood estimator over ordinary least squares, generalized least squares, and one other estimator in small samples.
NON‐HOMOTHETIC COMMUNITY PREFERENCES AND THE N‐FACTOR THEORY OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Authors: Horiba Y.
Published: July 2006

Abstract

Horiba, Y.,‘Non‐Homothetic Community Preferences and the N‐Factor Theory of International Trace'.

Andress: Department of Economics, Tulane University, New Orleans, La. 70118 U.S.A.

The Heckscher‐Ohlin theorem is formulated in this paper in terms of the factoral composition of trade under the general structure of demand admitting non‐unitary income elasticities. The relationship that exists among the factor proportions of production, consumption, and trade under non‐homothetic demand is clarified in the two‐factor, many‐commodity context. The analysis is then extended to the many‐factor endowments by means of a set of appropriately transformed production coefficients that are weighted by the proportions of commodity consumption on the demand side. A set of conditions under which the theorem continues to hold in general is investigated.
DISCRETE VARIATIONS ACROSS SUBSETS OF PARAMETERS IN SIMULTANEOUS EQUATIONS MODELS
Authors: Rausser Gordon C. , Johnson S. R.
Published: July 2006

Abstract

Dummy variables have proven to be an analytically convenient and empirically productive means of handling econometric problems relating to seasonality, structural change and time series and cross section data pooling. Despite the advantageous of the approach there are few results regarding its use in simultaneous equation estimation. In this paper the problem of discrete parameter variations in simultaneous equation estimation is systematically investigated. The estimation procedures proposed are based on extensions of existing methods for seemingly unrelated regressions and two and three‐strage least squares. In addition to obtaining the desired estimators and their properties a number of convenient advantages resulting from the use of dummy variables to treat parameter variations across subsets of simultaneous equations are indicated.
REDUCTION TO DATED QUANTITIES OF LABOUR, ROUNDABOUT PROCESSES, AND SWITCHES OF TECHNIQUE IN FIXED CAPITAL SYSTEMS
Authors: Schefold Bertram
Published: July 2006

This paper examines a formal simplification of fixed capital systems of the Sraffa type (1) by means of an extension of the reduction to dated quantities of labour. The reduction will be used to discuss particular types of switches of techniques which arise only in the context of fixed capital systems.
TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE AND AGGREGATE SUPPLY FUNCTION
Authors: Cheng Juei Ming
Published: July 2006

Aggregate economic activity is determined by the point of intersection between the aggregate demand function and the aggregate supply function. Recently, economists pay little attention to the determinants of aggregate supply function. Therefore, a gap remains between the quite well‐advanced theories of the aggregate supply. In this paper I construct a model that describes the supply side of a macroeconomy. Within the framework of the Keynesian system and the classical system, the relationship between technological change and aggregate supply function is examined. It is shown that technological change will shift the aggregate supply function to the right.
AGRLCULTURE VERSUS INDUSTRY IN A DUAL ECONOMY: A FIVE SECTOR ANALYSIS
Authors: Haessel Walter
Published: July 2006

An optimizing model of a dual economy involving five sectors (subsistence or traditional agriculture, commercial agriculture, manufacturing goods, capital goods, and government) is used to investigate three questions. Firstly, under what conditions should LDC's emphasize the development of traditional agriculture rather than commercial agriculture. Secondly, what type of considerations are relevant in the allocation of capital goods among agricultural mechanization, manufacturing, and reinvestment in the capital goods industry. Finally, the interrelationships between industry and agriculture have been explored. This study differs from earlier dual economy studies since the agricultural sectors require manufactured inputs and capital goods from the non‐agricultural sectors.
MONEY, PRODUCTIVITY AND UNCERTAINTY IN CAPITALISM AND SOCIALISM
Authors: Heinsohn Gunnar , Steiger Otto
Published: July 2006

« Hegel's idea, according to which the negation of what has been negated must ipso facto prevail, is probably in itself good old superstition: belief in divine reason—that is, affirmation of the positive. Why should something “prevail” and not simply be forgotten? This presupposes truth, in which is just what cannot be presupposed in philosophy: it is positive theology». (Max Horkheimer [1957], Notizen [Notes] 1950‐1969, Frankfurt am Main, 1974, p. 66.)
A TRANSCENDENTAL LOGARITHMIC COST FUNCTION: AN EMPIRICAL CASE
Authors: Apostolakis Bobby
Published: July 2006

This is a first attempt to study the way imports interact with the primary factors in the Italian technology. We use a two‐output, three‐input transcendental cost function specification and reject the traditional functions as being inappropriate in explaining the production process. We conclude that value‐added is not produced exclusively by capital and labor and, also, that all inputs are substitutes for each other. The model justifies the incorporation of imports as a factor input.
THE TERMS OF TRADE IN THE PRESENCE OF RE‐EXPORT TRADE: SOME FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS(*)
Authors: Opocher A.
Published: July 2006

Abstract. In this paper we examine the measure of terms of trade changes, adjusted to take re‐export trade into account, proposed by Lloyd and Sandilands (1985), and introduce two additional (but very basic) complications: a positive rate of growth and substitutability between imports and the domestic factor(s). We show that in such cases one can no longer establish a precise analogy with the traditional measure, and argue that the very notion of « a terms of trade change » becomes somewhat ambiguous. As an alternative view, we derive a measure of the impact of international price changes on what will be called « trade augmented » productivity; such a measure will be based on the movements of the wage‐rate of profit frontier.
A SIMULTANEOUS EQUATIONS APPROACH TO MODELING INDUSTRY STRUCTURE AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE
Authors: Coate Malcom B. , Uri Noel D.
Published: July 2006

This paper presents a simultaneous equations model of profitability, concentration, advertising expenditures, and research and developed outiays. The data are subjected to regression diagnostics in an effort to ascertain the importance to the estimation of a subset of the data than can have a disproportional influence. The estimation results, especially for the advertising expenditures relationship and the research and development outlays equation, do change when a truncated data sample (based on the omission of the outliers) is used. This serves as a partial explanation of why there is disagreement in the literature on market structure and economic performance.
ASSET DEMANDS AND SLUTSKY EQUATIONS WHEN ALL ASSETS ARE RISKY
Authors: Dalal Ardeshir J.
Published: July 2006

This paper exploits the properties of the indirect expected utility function to explore the testable implications of a portfolio model in which all assets are risky. An uncertainty analogue of Roy's Identity and extremely simple derivations of Slutsky equations for risk and return are used in the analysis. Substitutability/complementarity relations between asset pairs are also explored. The one‐riskless‐asset case emerges as a special case of the present model, and it is shown that (since inflation uncertainty makes all real returns uncertain) the inclusion of a riskless asset would lead to misleading over‐simplifications.
MICROECONOMIC FOUNDATIONS OF MACROECONOMICS IN THE POST‐KEYNESIAN APPROACH
Authors: Agliardi E.
Published: July 2006

The purpose of this paper is to explore further some issues within the ⇐ mark‐up ⇒ models. Among the numerous alternative formulations which have been put forward in the literature, two of them are particularly analysed in this paper. Kalecki's microanalysis, and especially the price determination as from the Theory of Economic Dynamics, is discussed in section II. Eichner's approach to the determination of the ⇐ mark‐up ⇒ in oligopoly is examined in section III. These two different models yield different dynamic implications: section IV and section V contain a comparison between these different approaches in terms of the relation between the mark‐up and the growth rate especially. Finally, in section V, we suggest a direction of research to provide a theoretical justification of price setting according to the ⇐ mark‐up ⇒. Indeed, we show that under certain assumptions, this pricing behaviour can arise from a process of learning.
A MARSHALLIAN PERSPECTIVE OF KEYNES' GENERAL THEORY*
Authors: Caspari Volker
Published: July 2006

This article originates from a perceived contradiction between modern interpretations of Keynes' General Theory and the origin of his theory. There can be no doubt that the discussion of the microeconomic foundations of Keynes' theory is dominated by neo‐Walrasian approaches, while, in the perspective of the history of economic analysis, Keynes' theoretical origin was Marshallian, rather than Walrasian.

Recent contributions on the microfoundations of Keynes' aggregate supply and demand analysis stress the Marshallian prospect by tracing out how Keynes' analytical apparatus can be reconstructed on the basis of Marshall's theory of the competitive firm (cf. C. Casarosa [1981], S. Parrinello [1983], A. Asimakopulos [1984]).

This article will support the Marshallian perspective from a macroeconomic point of view. Instead of a reconstruction, a «backtracking device» will be pursued: How would Marshall have formulated a macroeconomic model which might have been Keynes' referential framework from which he moved away when he realized the restrictions and defects of this model? This backtracking device seems to be suitable because Marshall's writings offer a good deal of theoretical elements which can be used in connection with a general equilibrium perspective, although Marshall himself

« (.) never felt the need to model the workings of the economic system as a whole» (R. Clower [1975], p. 4).

The first part of the article explores Marshall's writings in order to furnish the modelling of the macroeconomic perspective with a conceptual framework. The second part studies the working of the macroeconomic model and in the last part it will be argued that the consumption function, taken by itself, was not an entirely new idea. In addition, it will be substantiated that the consumption function gained conceptual significance in connection with Keynes' changing the theory of profit determination.
LABOR VALUES AND THE IMPUTATION OF LABOR CONTENTS*
Authors: Duménil Gérard , Lévy Dominique
Published: July 2006

In a recent article (Econometrica 1983), Peter Flaschel presented an empirical procedure for the calculation of labor values in joint production. This procedure was based on a disaggregation of production processes. The concept of «market value» (average value) was then used to determine values on the basis of the single technology which resulted from the disaggregation. In the first part, the formalism of market value is directly applied to the case of joint production, and the conditions for the existence of positive solutions are discussed. We demonstrate that these conditions are quite general, and are not related to conditions concerning the existence of any equilibrium. In this analysis, we substitute the concept of « nonreductivity » for the traditional notion of productivity of the technology. The second part of the article considers the problems involved in procedures of disaggregation. In the third part we discuss the main results obtained, stressing the importance of the difference between values and prices.
TECHNICAL CHANGE IN PRODUCTION PROCESSES OF THE SEQUENTIAL INTERINDUSTRY MODEL
Authors: Romanoff Eliahu , Levine Stephen H.
Published: July 2006

Transient processes important to understanding technical change are modeled using a time‐varying version of the Sequential Interindustry Model, SIM. A simple process of technical change is explored, where a new production technique replaces an old one for one of an industry's production processes. Using several measures internal and external to the industry the model can help in understanding the complex processes of technical change, point to difficulties in their analysis, and suggest guidance to further examinations.

An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Eighth International Conference on Input‐Output Techniques, Sapporo, Japan, July 1986.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
Authors: Meissner Werner
Published: July 2006

Environmental policy is now part of the EC. Harmonization is a fine principle but it should not obstruct above‐average environmental ambitions. The environment directorate in Brussels is greener than the Commission, the Commission greener than the Council of Ministers. But it can learn if the voters want it to. It is still a widely accepted idea, une idée recue, that environmental policy runs against growth and employment. But these ideas can change and so can the policy.
TAKING EFFORT SERIOUSLY
Authors: Currie Martin , Steedman Ian
Published: July 2006

This paper examines the typical treatment of “effort” by both efficiency‐wage theorists and principal‐agent theorists. These theorists do not justify regarding effort as a cardinal variable. Yet, if effort is an ordinal variable, certain assumptions which are routinely invoked are literally devoid of meaning.

Indeed, the precise expression of a complicated truth cannot possibly take a simple form, however precise‐looking the simple formula might be. A formal expression can be extremely precise without being at all a precise representation of the underlying concept to be captured.
WICKSELL'S INFLATIONARY CREDIT CYCLE
Authors: Gootzeit Michael J.
Published: July 2006

The credit cycle implicit in Wicksell's upward cumulative process (UCP) is described. UCP may be interpreted as a stable cycle with two phases and an upper turning point corresponding to the maximum 2‐rate‐differential. The volume of credit and the rate of inflation is shown to expand in phase 1 and to contract in phase 2. The role of velocity increasing in causing a higher inflation rate is also described. This cycle has not been noticed in the literature becauseLectures(2)was unclear about how long it would take to reach an upper turning point. But,Interest and Pricesemphasized that the continuous return of the inflation rate to zero equilibrium would begin after a relatively short period.
HOMEOSTATIC VERSUS ACTIVE POLICIES IN A NONLINEAR OPTIMAL CONTROL PROBLEM
Authors: Sacco Pier Luigi
Published: July 2006

Perfect foresight dynamics require local determinateness and, consequently, sensitivity to initial conditions. If such dynamics have to be computable, exact integration is needed. We study a non‐linear optimal control problem which cannot be integrated exactly; we also introduce some simpler, implementable policy rules and compare their relative performance. Our results make out a case against perfect foresight as a positive theory of expectations formation and as a useful modelling tool.
COMPETITIVE MONEY CREATION IN CHINA AND IN THE SOVIET UNION
Authors: Liew Leong H.
Published: July 2006

With economic reforms, the control of financial resources becomes important as a means of securing property rights. Both China and the former Soviet Union, in their transition from a centrally‐planned economy, have faced problems of a weakened center which, either completely or on occasions, has lost control of the money creation process. This paper analyses the attempts of provinces and republics to vary the money supply with the objective of acquiring physical resources at the cost of the other provinces (republics), while balancing the costs of potential inflation. Equilibrium outcomes are found to depend on the provinces' (republics') preferences about the growth in real absorption and the rate of inflation, on the growth of national output, and on the relative size of their economies.
COMPETITION OR CO‐OPERATION: ON THE EVOLUTIONARY ECONOMICS OF TRUST, EXPLOITATION AND MORAL ATTITUDES
Authors: Güth Werner , Kliemt Hartmut
Published: July 2006

”For he that performeth first, has no assurance the other will performe after; because the bonds of words are too weak to bridle men's ambition, avarice, anger, and other Passions, without the feare of some coercive Power; which in the condition of meer Nature, where all men are equall, and judges of the justness of their own fears cannot possibly be supposed. And therefore he which performeth first, does but betray himselfe…” (Hobbes, Leviathan, chap. 14).
ORGANIZATIONS AS COORDINATING DEVICES
Authors: Ménard Claude
Published: July 2006

The purpose of this paper is to offer a complex view of organizations as coordinating devices. In Section I, I briefly discuss the contractual interpretation, and I point out the inadequacy of contracts alone to coordinate organizational activities. In Section II, I explore the nature and characteristics of coordination through command, and I suggest making a distinction between authority and hierarchy. In Section III, I compare these two forms of coordination and show how they both operate. I conclude that it is the capacity of organizations to combine contract and command that determines their efficiency.
INTEREST RATES IN POST‐KEYNESIAN MODELS OF GROWTH AND DISTRIBUTION
Authors: Lavoie Marc
Published: July 2006

The goal of this article is to make a heuristic and comparative presentation of how the major post‐Keynesian models of growth and distribution integrate money, more specifically interest rates, into their framework. Five variants will be considered, all constructed on the basis of the newer Kaleckian model. It will be shown that increases in real interest rates may have surprising effects on effective demand. It will also be shown that accumulation rates and leverage ratios need not move together. The latter finding reinforces a major hypothesis of the analysis, that is, real interest rates are an exogenous distributive variable.
NEGATIVE LABOUR VALUES AND THE PRODUCTION POSSIBILITY FRONTIER
Authors: Cottrell Allin
Published: July 2006

Steedman's theoretical finding of negative labour values associated with positive equilibrium prices has been criticised on the grounds that this situation obtains only in inefficient economies. A recent paper by Hosoda claims that this criticism is valid only in two‐dimensional joint‐product systems. It is argued here that the dimensionality of the system is of no relevance to the “inefficiency critique” of Steedman. Rather, the validity of the critique turns on matters relating to the growth rate and the rate of profit. The argument that processes inefficient in a static context may be viable in the context of von Neumann growth is considered, and the implications for the labour theory of value are assessed. Marx's critique of capitalist economic calculation is supported by reference to the divergence of Sraffian prices and Samuelsonian values when the rate of profit is in excess of the rate of growth.
MISUSE AND OPTIMUM INSPECTING STRATEGY IN AGENCY PROBLEMS
Authors: Barlev Benzion , Levy Haim
Published: July 2006

Assets misuse by an agent and the optimal audit inspecting strategy are analyzed in this paper. The agent and the principal are acting to maximize their expected utility and both are characterized by risk aversion. The agent's decision about a theft takes into account the probability of benefiting from the stolen assets but also the probability of being penalized if caught. The principal's decision about the optimal number of audit teams, hence, the probability of uncovering the theft, takes into account the cost involved, the probability of one team of auditors uncovering the theft and the agent's decision about the theft. We get two response curves which describe the optimal behavior of both the agent and the principal and show that there may be a Nash solution to the problem. Since in real life there are often many principals (shareholders) with different utility functions, a set of efficient strategies is offered using the First and Second degree Stochastic Dominance rules. A numerical illustration which clarifies the methodology and displays the applicability of the model is also provided.
MARKETS AND GAMES: A SIMPLE EQUIVALENCE AMONG THE CORE, EQUILIBRIUM AND LIMITED ARBITRAGE
Authors: Chichilnisky Graciela
Published: July 2006

This note provides simple proofs of the equivalence among the core, equilibrium and limited arbitrage in markets with short sales, and with uniform strictly convex preferences.
REINVESTED EARNINGS ON DIRECT FOREIGN INVESTMENT
Authors: O'Connell Joan
Published: July 2006

Reinvested earnings on direct foreign investment are accounted for differently in A System of National Accounts 1968 and the System of National Accounts 1993. In this paper these treatments are compared in relation to the connection between national income accounting and macroeconomic theory. For this purpose, macroeconomic modelling is represented by an attempt to extend the closed‐economy Cambridge model of growth and distribution to a two‐country trading world.
LABOUR SUBSIDIES: A NEW LOOK
Authors: Artis M. J. , Sinclair P. J. N.
Published: July 2006

This paper reexamines the case for subsidizing employment. One superficially promising approach, based on the idea that government cofinancing of unemployment benefits could induce firms to lay off too many workers in bad times, turns out to be an unsatisfactory argument for employment subsidies when worker‐firm contracts are optimal. But efficiency wage explanations for unemployment offer considerable scope for a revenue‐neutral combination of a specific labour subsidy and ad valorem wage tax. When pitched low enough, unemployment must fall under a wide set of conditions.
Deep fungal infections of concern today
Authors: Jacobs P.H.
Published: July 2006

A wide variety of mycoses afflict patients in the West. Skin lesions are a common manifestation and so the patient may present first to the dermatologist. Over 100,000 new cases of coccidioidomycosis occur in the USA each year. Dissemination occurs in about 0.5% of patients with clinical disease. Skin lesions can take many forms. Samples and cultures should be handled with care because of the risk of spreading the infection. Itraconazole is likely to replace ketoconazole as the treatment of choice. Histoplasmosis is a systemic disease. Skin lesions again take a variety of forms. Mycological diagnosis may be possible without special stains. Itraconazole is the drug of choice and due to its negligible adverse effects can be used prophylactically. North American blastomycotic lesions, and the organisms responsible, both have a characteristic appearance. However, although the organisms are fairly easy to identify in some tissues, special stains may be needed to demonstrate them in the skin. Itraconazole is now the treatment of choice for blastomycosis dermatitidis. Systemic sporotrichosis is extremely rare. Cutaneous sporotrichosis appears both as a localized, and as lymphangitic form. The organism is easy to culture, but histological demonstration may be extremely difficult. Itraconazole is virtually 100% effective and in future will make all other treatments redundant. Almost all cases of disseminated aspergillosis occur in immunocompromised patients, particularly those treated with high‐dose steroids. Itraconazole is the only effective drug and may also be used prophylactically. The dermatologist may be the first physician to see patients with these mycoses and thus needs to be aware of the possible diagnoses and their implications. Itraconazole is now the treatment of choice and at last enables the physician to reduce both morbidity and mortality.
Short oral therapy in difficult‐to‐treat tinea infections
Authors: Dhondt A. , Cauwenbergh G. , De Doncker P.
Published: July 2006

Dermatophyte infections of the skin are common, accounting for as many as 3% of all diagnoses in general practice. During the last 15 years, there has been an increase in the proportion of skin dermatophytoses failing to respond to routine topical therapy. Ketoconazole is more effective than griseofulvin in these difficult‐to‐treat infections but relapses are still a major problem. Early reports suggested that itraconazole, by contrast, has excellent efficacy in such infections and that relatively short courses of treatment are adequate for most patients. The purpose of our study was to review the efficacy and safety of itraconazole in these difficult‐to‐treat dermatophytoses and, in particular, to assess its use in tinea capitis. In a multicentre study, 71 patients with dermatophyte infections of the scalp, with Microsporum canis as the major pathogen, received 50 or 100 mg itraconazole daily for six weeks. Of patients receiving itraconazole 100 mg daily, 93% showed a clinical response at the end of treatment which was maintained at final follow‐up. The mycological cure rate in this group was 89%. Only one side effect was reported. Itraconazole is both effective and safe. Response continues even after the end of treatment. This allows shorter courses of therapy and helps prevent reinfection and relapse. Itraconazole thus offers a new approach to the treatment of difficult‐to‐treat tinea infections.
The cutaneous porphyrias: a review of diagnosis and management
Authors: Murphy Gillian M.
Published: July 2006

Porphyrias arc a fascinating group of disorders, each caused by a specific enzyme defect. Careful analysis of porphyrin profiles enables accurate classification and appropriate patient management. Molecular biological techniques reveal more heterogeneity within the porphyrias than was previously thought.
Serum calcium and phosphorus measurements in patients with psoriasis: a retrospective review
Authors: Cook Joel , Thiers Bruce
Published: July 2006

The recent success of vitamin D and its analogues in the treatment of psoriasis has generated extensive research into the role of vitamin D and calcium in this hyperproliferative skin disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate calcium and phosphorus levels in patients admitted to our dermatology service for treatment of severe psoriasis. The charts of 15 patients from 21 to 80 years of age were reviewed and admission laboratory data values recorded. Retrospective analysis of laboratory data from patients admitted with psoriasis demonstrated no abnormalities of calcium metabolism when assessed by calcium and phosphorus levels. Although vitamin D and its analogues appear to have a role in the treatment of psoriasis, this study suggests that a systemic aberration of calcium metabolism probably does not occur.
Urticaria
Authors: Lawlor Frances
Published: July 2006

The clinical features of acute and chronic urticaria and angio‐oedema are described including the physical urticarias, hereditary angio‐oedema and urticarial vasculitis. An approach to treatment is discussed.
Cell adhesion molecules in inflammatory and neoplastic skin diseases
Authors: Cagnoni Matteo L. , Ghersetich Ilaria , Lotti Torello
Published: July 2006

Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) are cell surface glycoproteins expressed on several different cell lineages and involved in cell‐cell and cell‐matrix interactions in various physiological and pathological conditions.

Numerous studies have shown that CAMs, a very substantial class of molecules subdivided into four families (integrins. the immunoglobulin‐gene family, cudherins and lectin‐like CAMs). are involved in the interaction of lymphocytes with keratinocytes, endothelial ceils and inter‐and perivascular connective cells.

Researchers have found a marked increase in the expression of CAMs with respect to normal skin in a variety of dermatoses, such as cutaneous necrotizing vasculitis. capillarities from unknown origin (purpura pigmentosa chronica). alopecia areata, lichen planus, systemic selerosis, psoriasis, etc. In the inflammatory and neoplastic skin diseases considered in this review, the adhesion molecules found to be chiefly expressed are ELAM‐1, ICAM‐I and LFA‐I. This suggests that, predominantly, these adhesion molecules participate in the complex pathogenetic mechanisms conditioning the onset and development of these diseases. Knowledge of interaction mechanisms has led to identification of the role played by CAMs in the pathogenesis of these diseases and may represent a useful aid in the diagnosis and perhaps treatment of numerous skin pathologies.
Cutaneous borreliosis in Northern Greece
Authors: Lefaki I. , Kalogeropoulou A. , Stefanidou M. , Kapetis E.
Published: July 2006

Our study is the first international report on cutaneous Lyme disease in Greece. Our purpose was, firstly, to assess the advisability of carrying out specific serological testing in the case of skin conditions certainly or possibly related to Borrelia burgadorferi (Bb) and, secondly, to evaluate the necessity and efficacy of treatment. Our research was carried out between 1988 and 1991 on 68 patients suffering from cutaneous diseases generally related to Bb and 57 control subjects. Specific IgM and IgG antibodies were detected by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and titers > 1/256 were considered as positive. All 57 control subjects were negative. Eighteen out of the 68 patients (26.5%) were positive. Five out of the eight patients (62.5%) with cutaneous diseases certainly related to Bb, and 13 out of the 60 patients (21.6%) with skin diseases possibly related to Bb, were positive. The high percentage (26.5%) in skin diseases generally related to Bb suggests that patients with all these diseases should be tested by IFA. Negative results in control patients confirm the specificity of IFA and indicate that it is unnecessary to perform this investigation in the absence of specific clinical manifestations. Even though we regard scleroderma to be a late form of cutaneous borreliosis, it shows a favorable response to therapy, whereas granuloma annulare, even after liter elimination, remains clinically unchanged. Treatment should be administered not only to patients with high titers, but must he regarded as essential in all seropositive cases with dermatoses generally related to borreliosis, in view of the possibility of a late manifestation of the disease
Prophylaxis of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in patients with HIV infection
Authors: Coker Richard J , Mitchell David M
Published: July 2006

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) is a frequent complication of immunosuppression secondary to infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The use of primary and secondary prophylaxis for many of the opportunist infections associated with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) have reduced their incidence and prophylaxis for PCP is no exception. There are, however, still problems associated with the different regimens currently widely used. The efficacy, toxicity and cost of prophylaxis agents are considered.
Comparison between an oral hydrolytic enzyme combination and oral acyclovir in the treatment of acute zoster:a double‐blind, controlled multicentre trial
Authors: Kleine Michael‐W.
Published: July 2006

Background Today's standard treatment of zoster in immunocompetent patients is oral acyclovir. Other therapies are no longer customary because of their insufficient efficacy and frequent side effects. The positive results obtained with an orally administered enzyme combination led to the assumption that this might represent an alternative therapy. The purpose of our study was therefore to determine whether the enzyme combination differs from acyclovir with regard to efficacy and tolerance.

Patients and Methods In a double‐blind, controlled multicenter trial immunocompetent patients with zoster were randomly assigned to receive one of the two test drugs for 7 days. Parameters of pain and skin lesions were measured over 14–21 days. Forty‐four patients were enrolled in the enzyme group (ET) and 46 in the acyclovir group (AT).

Results There were no significant differences with respect to anamnestic and clinical data at entry into the study. Neither were there significant differences regarding the statistically evaluated parameters of efficacy: “segmental pain on day 7” (P= 0.496) and “vesicle duration” (P= 0.803). Paracetamol use and total pain over 14 days also failed to show any notable differences between the two groups. The beginning of crust formation and the duration of skin lesions showed a very similar frequency distribution. Side effects occurred in four patients in the ET group and in three in the AT group.

Conclusions Our trial suggests that the therapy of zoster with an orally applied enzyme combination is a valid alternative to the therapy using acyclovir.
Anticytoskeletal antibodies in systemic autoimmune diseases
Authors: Czirják László , Schlammadinger József , Szegedi Gyula
Published: July 2006

Aim To investiate the presence of antinuclear and anticytoskeletal autoantibodies in patients with systemic autoimmune and connective tissue diseases.

Setting 646 sera of 322 patients with systemic sclerosis, systemic lupus eryhtematosus, mixed connective tissue disease, rheumatoid arthritis with or without secondary Sjögren's syndrome, and localized scleroderma, and 127 healthy controls were tested.

Methods ‘Routine’ indirect immunofluorescence technique on HEp‐2 cells.

Results Antinuclear antibodies were found in 45–91.1% of the sera. Anti‐intermediate filament antibodies were detected in 24 patients. Eight of the 24 cases had another (second) organ‐specific autoimmune disease, mainly chronic active hepatitis or autoimmune thyroid disease.
A high rate of cross‐sensitivity between Parthenium hysterophorus and Xanthium strumarium in Indian patients with contact dermatitis
Authors: Pasricha Jagjit S.
Published: July 2006

Parthenium hysterophorus is well known to produce contact dermatitis in India. Xanthium strumarium is another weed also belonging to the Compositae family present in India since much earlier times, but not recognised among the plants causing contact dermatitis. We have found a very high rate of cross‐sensitivity between the two plants in patients presenting air‐borne contact dermatitis. Of the 28 patients with air‐borne contact dermatitis. 22 revealed positive patch tests with aqueous extracts of both plants, one patient showed a negative patch test with Parthenium hysterophorus and a positive test with Xanthium strumarium, while five patients were negative with both plants. In a control group of 15 patients with contact dermatitis due to other agents, only one patient showed a positive patch test with Xanthium strumarium, while the patch test with Parthenium hysterophorus was negative. Patch tests performed with serial 10‐fold dilutions of standard extracts of both plants to determine the degree (titre) of contact hypersensitivity (TCH) revealed variable litres in different patients. Some patients had a much higher titre with Parthenium hysterophorus while others had a higher titre with Xanthium strumarium. The antigen in Xanthium strumarium, like that of Parthenium hysterophorus, could be extracted with water, acetone, ethanol, chloroform, benzene, ether and carbon tetrachloride. Infra‐red spectrophotometry of extracts in ether revealed similar spectra in the two plants. The antigens in the two plants seem lo be very similar.
Serum β2‐microglobulin levels in psoriatic patients
Authors: Gülekon Ayla , Gökcora Nahide , Gürer M. Ali , Baysal Vahide , Sezgin Pervin , Keskin Nilsel
Published: July 2006

β2‐Microglobulin (β2‐M) is a low molecular weight protein forming the light chain of the class I major histocompatibility complex. It is found on the cell surface of all nucleated cells. Its serum concentration is found to be increased in kidney diseases, neoplasia, AIDS, chronic inflammation and autoimmune diseases. Inflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, especially psoriatic arthritis and immunological upset is one of the most implicated factors in the etiology of the disease. In this study, the sera β2‐M levels were evaluated in cases diagnosed as psoriasis vulgaris and psoriatic arthritis, and a statistically significant increase was found in cases of psoriatic arthritis compared to those of psoriasis vulgaris and the control group.