Computer-aided pattern making

This paper outlines a fundamental research project to develop a quick and accurate method of constructing personalized patterns. This arose because the home economist must be concerned with the needs of the individual in relation to clothing as well as food and shelter. The paper explains the development of such a method, using the computer within Home Economics courses and the unexpected benefits from the research.     

Rules and reality: quantifying the practice of apprenticeship in early modern England1

This article uses recently digitized samples of apprentices and masters in London and Bristol to quantify the practice of apprenticeship in the late seventeenth century. Apprenticeship appears much more fluid than is traditionally understood. Many apprentices did not complete their terms of indenture; late arrival and early departure from the master's household were widespread. Other apprentices appear to have been absent temporarily, returning to the master shortly before the end of their indenture. Regression analysis indicates that the patterns of presence and absence broadly reflect the resources and external opportunities available to apprentices.     

Is the Asymptotic Speed of Convergence a Good Proxy for the Transitional Growth Path?

This paper compares transitional dynamics in two alternative R&D non-scale growth models, one with endogenous human capital and the other without. We show that focusing only on the asymptotic speed of convergence to discriminate between the two models' performance can be misleading. Our analysis suggests that a careful study of the entire adjustment paths predicted by alternative growth models starting far away from the balanced-growth path is required in order to successfully discriminate among them.     

Evolution of Bilateral Capital Flows to Developing Countries at Intensive and Extensive Margins

Motivated by the rise in capital flows to low‐income countries (LICs), we examine the nature of these flows and the factors affecting foreign investors' decision. Recognizing the presence of fixed investment costs, we analyze capital flows at both intensive and extensive margins. To fix ideas, we resort to the gravity literature for the estimating relationships which we embed into a two‐tier econometric framework with cross‐sectional dependence. Our main finding is that market entry costs are statistically and economically very detrimental to LICs. We also obtain the gravity‐type relationship for the destination income unconditionally but not after conditioning on relevant variables, as well as establish labor productivity as a robust attractor of capital inflows.