The curse of natural resources in the transition economies*

The curse of natural resources is a well‐documented phenomenon for developing countries. Economies that are richly endowed with natural resources tend to grow slowly. Among the transition economies of the former ‘Eastern Bloc’, a similar pattern can be observed. This paper shows that a large part of the variation in growth rates among the transition economies can be attributed to the curse of natural resources. After controlling for numerous other factors, there is still a strong negative correlation between natural resource abundance and economic growth. Among the transition economies the prime reasons for the curse of natural resources were corruption and a neglect of basic education. In order to overcome the curse of natural resources and move to a sustainable path of development, the resource abundant transition countries should fight corruption and ensure that their resource revenues are invested in human capital or the preservation of natural capital.     

网络环境下博物馆信息资源的采集策略

博物馆信息资源建设是博物馆信息化建设的重要组成部分。网络环境下的博物馆信息资源建设除了传统的藏品资源建设以外,还包括文献信息资源建设和网络信息资源建设等。针对不同的信息资源类型,采取不同的采集策略。时博物馆藏品档案信息,输入要完整、处理要规范、输出要主动,充分揭示藏品的文化内涵及实现其科技信息价值;对博物馆文献信息资源要拓宽进书渠道,实行采购方式多样化,重视数据库及灰色文献;充分挖掘网络信息资源,开展共建共享,全面提升文献信息保障能力。     

Assessing the growth-inducing impact of the Appalachian Development Highway System in southern Ohio: Did policy promote change?

The concept of “inducing growth” is typically considered an adverse consequence of a project on the land use system. In certain instances, however, the desire to induce growth and foster land use change is a focus of land use policy. Such is the example of the Appalachian Highway Development System (AHDS) program initiated by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) during the late 1960s. With the goal of providing highway infrastructure to improve assess to a geographically isolated and historically impoverished region, the ADHS has added nearly 3000 miles of highway to the Appalachian landscape. The degree to which highway investment has contributed to regional growth remains a controversial point and tractable methods to quickly assess landscape change given a project of this magnitude are elusive. In this paper a portion of the AHDS trending through southern Ohio is examined using data acquired from the Landsat series of satellites. Beginning with a pre-highway condition in 1976, a 26 year time horizon, concluding in 2002, was analyzed based on a post-classification change detection methodology. Results of this investigation revealed slight, yet significant, levels of urban expansion within a 10 km corridor along the path of AHDS Corridor D/State Route 32. Beyond this buffer zone the land use system evidenced more stability, suggesting that as distance increased from Corridor D/State Route 32, reduced accessibility also reduced the attractiveness of land for urban uses. Relating these results back to the infrastructure investment policies of the ARC demonstrates that growth did result from the construction of Corridor D and supports previous findings that land development based on highway construction is extremely time-sensitive.     

The economics of land transfer and title insurance

In the presence of uncertainty over the title of land (due to fraud or error), a legal system can protect either the current (innocent) owner, or a previous owner who claims title. The predominant system in the United States generally awards title to the latter in the event of legitimate claim. Thus, current owners frequently purchase title insurance to provide indemnification in the event of a loss. In contrast, the Torrens system awards title to the current owner, but provides for indemnification of any legitimate claimants. We evaluate these two systems and argue that if transaction costs are low, both promote efficient assignment of title (according to the Coase Theorem), but if transaction costs are high, the Torrens system is more likely to award title to the party that values it the most (namely, the current possessor).     

Considering Aquacultural Externality in Coastal Land Allocation Decisions in India

Commercial aquaculture in India has come under attack for having caused negative agricultural and environmental impacts. This paper formulates an interactive model of non-renewable and renewable resources to characterize land allocations between aquaculture and agriculture in ecologically and economically sustainable fashion. Through an empirical application, various economic and policy circumstances that affect the optimal land allocation mix are evaluated. The aquaculture industry must address two economic effects: off-site negative effects on renewable food and other coastal resources, and on-site self-pollution of shrimp ponds. Current regulatory and land-use policies are inadequate to address these effects.     

论城镇污水处理BOT项目的法律缺陷问题

城镇污水的资源化处理已成为世界潮流，是人类实现可持续发展的重要途径之一。我国城镇污水处理BOT项目面临的法律缺陷主要包括法律位阶较低，条文内容相当简陋，存在许多立法空白，条文存在诸多法律障碍等，针对污水处理BOT项目的法律缺陷，应由国务院制定BOT行政法规，明确特许协议性质和政府的法律地位，构建完整的、系统的城镇污水处理BOT项目的法律制度。     

新形势下我国耕地保护的长效机制研究

耕地是人类赖以生存的物质基础，是国民经济和社会发展的宝贵资源，耕地数量的多少和质量优劣直接关系到国家粮食安全和社会稳定。因此，在新形势下，如何保护好有限的耕地资源，促进经济社会科学、合理地发展，已成为当今世界的重大课题。本文根据我国耕地减少的现实危机及原因，提出一套科学、合理的耕地保护长效机制，力求为进一步有效地保护耕地资源提供理论基础和现实途径。     

高等职业院校信息化建设的几点思考

通过对高等职业院校信息化建设中存在的一些问题进行分析,提出了职业院校信息化建设过程可能存在的问题、并提出解决方案。     

石灰(石)湿法脱硫副产物综合利用途径

分析了石灰石湿法脱硫副产物的主要成分，探讨了其副产物的综合利用途径，并为废物资源化提供了广泛的空间。     

The role of planning in achieving indigenous land justice and community goals

This paper suggests that the capacity of indigenous groups to engage effectively in a range of planning activities is crucial to achieving land justice and community goals. This argument is relevant in the face of long-standing tensions between indigenous peoples residing in post-settler societies and nation-states such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand over questions of land and natural resource use. The paper argues that effective planning is crucial for (i) protecting indigenous interests by engaging the planning activities of the state, (ii) the successful acquisition of lands through legal land claim processes, and (iii) helping indigenous communities achieve their goals by implementing effective community-based planning processes.