Autoverkopen en autopark in Nederland, 1950–1970

Summary  This is a study of the demand for the ownership of new or firsthand cars, i.e. the demand of 'first owners' who habitually buy new cars which are then traded in long before they are obsolescent. Upon combining the evidence of various surveys with time-series for 1950-64 it is found that this ownership has an income elasticity of 2 and a price elasticity of – 1.25 in respect of the constant-quality index of new car prices earlier provided. On the average new cars are traded in after three years so that roughly one third of the existing stock is replaced every year. These values together determine an equation for purchases of new cars which accurately predicts new registrations in 1965 and 1966. Projections for the years 1967-70 are provided.
In the model employed the total number of cars (including used cars) is determined by the active demand exerted by 'first owners' on one hand and by the hitherto fairly constant scrappage rates on the other. Projections of the overall ownership rate can therefore be derived from the forecasts of new registrations. The ownership rate will approach 80% around 1970, and it is likely that at that stage the current scrappage rates will cease to apply in view of the greater predilection for comparatively younger cars.     

Irving Fisher (1867–1947)

A bstract .   This essay is reprinted from Eatwell, J., M. Milgate and P. Newman (eds.) The New Palgrave: A Dictionary of Economics . 1987, 2: 369–376. United Kingdom, London and Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press Limited; New York, N.Y. The Stockton Press and Japan, Maruzen Company Limited. The essay is reproduced with the kind permission of Palgrave Macmillan.     

Leapfrogging, Urban Sprawl, and Growth Management: Phoenix, 1950–2000

Through a case study of Phoenix, Arizona, this paper examines how urban sprawl is linked to opportunities for capital gains. It focuses on leapfrogging, in which developers skip over properties to obtain land at a lower price further out despite the existence of utilities and other infrastructure that could serve the bypassed parcels. The paper examines patterns of growth since 1950 and planners' efforts to structure that growth. It discusses two programs that addressed consequences of leapfrogging: development impact fees to help pay for infrastructure costs of new development and an Infill Housing Program to encourage residential development on vacant land. It concludes with a brief discussion of the future of growth management in Phoenix.     

In memoriam Albert Verbeek (1946–1990)

This In memoriam is divided into three parts. The first part is a tribute to Albert Verbeek as a person and a scientist. In the second part, a short note is reproduced, translated from the Dutch, as an example how he applied himself to all kinds of problems. The final part consists of an overview of his major publications.     

Francisco Pereira de Moura, (1925–1998)

A bstract . The Portuguese economist Francisco Pereira de Moura passed away on April 4, 199B. During the late 1960s and well on into the 1970s, Moura gained international fame when he stood with the students against the repressive fascist regime in Portugal. After the fall of the dictatorship on April 25, 1974, he returned to Portugal's celebrated Superior Institute of Economic and Financial Sciences (ISEG) to carry on the work of curriculum reform. In the essay that follows he is remembered by one of his most distinguished students who now serves as a Professor of Economics at the ISEG.     

Homer Sarasohn and American Involvement in the Evolution of Quality Management in Japan, 1945–1950

The history of Quality Management, and of the role of Statistics in Quality Management, is inextricably bound to the reconstruction of Japan immediately following the Second World War, and then to developments in the United States over three decades later. Even though these periods are, in societal history, just moments ago, yet there is profound lack of agreement about what was actually done, and who should be recognized for their contributions. This paper draws on historical materials recently made publicly available in order to clarify what actually took place between 1946 and 1950, and in particular the contribution of a remarkable engineer, Homer Sarasohn.     

Income Polarization Between the Central Cities and Suburbs of U.S. Metropolises, 1950–1980

Abstract . Through an examination between 1950 and 1980 of household income in central cities and suburbs of the 37 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas of the United States. was found that considerable polarization of household income groups had occurred. By 1980 the median share of the poorest within the total households of the central cities had risen to well over double the share of the group in the total households of the suburbs. The share of the wealthiest households in the total for the suburbs rose to double that of that group's share of the total central cities households. No generalizations could be made which would explain the degree nor the rate of polarization, though a number of socioeconomic variables were tested.     

The Effectiveness of Public Assistance Payments (1970–80) in Reducing Poverty Reconsidered

A bstract . The effectiveness of public assistance in reducing poverty in the U.S.A. is re-examined by estimating the extent of public assistance among all families and of families officially defined in poverty. Also studied is the extent of public assistance among families not defined as in poverty. The findings are further analyzed for their changes during the decade 1970–80. It is found that errors of commission (assisting families not in poverty) and of omission (not assisting families in poverty) were quite widespread in 1980, although significantly reduced from their high prevalence in 1970.