Money Does Not Grow on Trees: An Argument for Usury

Usury, charging a higher interest rate than thought by some to be “fair,” has had and still has, a bad press. Historically, it was heavily punished. It was then, and all too often is now, thought to be exploitative. Yet, as even the most economically unsophisticated must realize, both sides of these transactions must necessarily gain at least in the ex ante sense, otherwise one or the other would refuse to enter into the deal in the first place. The present paper is an attempt to justify the practice of charging interest on loans, at any rate agreeable to both borrowers and lenders.     

A Bayesian Bioeconometric Model of Invasive Species Control: The Case of the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid

In this article we evaluate a US Forest Service plan to mitigate damages from an invasive insect on public, forested land. We develop a dynamic model of infestation and control to explicitly account for biological interactions, baseline conditions, and uncertainty, thus creating a more complete picture of policy impacts than a static cost benefit analysis could provide. We combine the results of the dynamic model with an empirical study of nonmarket forest benefits to create a bioeconomic model of ecosystem management. Estimating the empirical model in a Bayesian framework allows us to treat the economic coefficients of the dynamic model as random variables. We specify distributions for the biological parameters and examine the effects of both biological and economic uncertainty on the predictive distribution of net benefits. We find that the net benefits of the program are positive, and that uncertainty in the biological model contributes substantially more to the variance of our estimate than does uncertainty over the valuation of the resource.     

Neues Lernen in der Pflege

Zusammenfasung  Didaktische Konzepte — Vor vier Jahren trat die neue Ausbildungsordnung für die Berufe der Gesundheits- und Krankenpflege in Kraft. Was hat sich seitdem ge?ndert? Wie haben die nach den neuen Richtlinien ausgebildeten Pflegefachkr?fte ihre Ausbildung erlebt? Wie lernen Auszubildende in der Pflege heute? Herausforderungen und Ergebnisse. Literatur finden Sie unter www.heilberufe-online.de     

Will the Internet Bring Electronic Services to the Home?

Few topics have attracted more hype than the Internet. This article provides a rare long-term perspective. It starts with an account of a century of failed visions and applications: the Internet itself operated in obscurity for two decades. However, in the rest of the article, the author documents why he thinks interactive home services may now at last take off, draws some general lessons from past experience and indicates the next areas for growth.     

Ein neuer H?chstsatz der degressiven Abschreibung – ein wirksamer Investitionsanreiz?

Zusammenfassung Mit dem ,,Gesetz zur steuerlichen F?rderung von Wachstum und Besch?ftigung‘‘ wird für bewegliche Wirtschaftsgüter des Anlageverm?gens, die in den Jahren 2006 und 2007 angeschafft werden, der H?chstsatz der degressiven Abschreibung als Buchwertabschreibung wieder auf 30% angehoben. Damit sollen Anreize für verst?rkte Investitionen gesetzt werden. Im Rahmen des Beitrags wird der Zuwachs an Vorteilhaftigkeit, der mit der o.g. ?nderung von x 7 Abs. 2 EStG einhergeht, quantifiziert und die Eignung für den intendierten Zweck beurteilt.

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Summary A modification of the German income tax law (EStG) in 2006 allows an enhanced maximum rate of 30% for the declining balance method of depreciation. It concerns movable assets acquired in 2006 and 2007 only. The modification is intended to provide a fiscal stimulus for investments. This paper quantifies the benefits for investments and asks, whether the increased maximum rate suits the desired purposes.