Introduction to Political Science

This introduction to the JET symposium on political science briefly reviews the main results of the papers in this issue and tries to put them in the context of the current research in political theory. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D70, D71, D72, D78.     

Liver biopsy interpretation in chronic hepatitis

Liver biopsy reports are very variable in their terminology. In this article, frequently used terms and 2 common scoring systems are described.     

The pregnant applicant: normal alterations in physiologic parameters and testing

Pregnancy affects virtually every organ system, and "baseline" normal laboratory test levels change throughout gestation.     

Innovation at the speed of information

Conventional project-management tools--PERT charts and Gantt charts, for example--were created to help manage sequences of discrete tasks that make up large construction projects. Yet these tools don't capture clearly the back-and-forth of information that takes place in innovative processes, such as product development. Conventional tools are designed to answer the question, "What other tasks must be completed before I begin this one?" But product development planners, especially in high-tech businesses, need tools that answer a very different question: "What information do I need from other tasks before I can complete this one?" The author describes the Design Structure Matrix (DSM), a project management tool that focuses on representing the information flows of a project rather than its work flows. He explains how the DSM works and how to use it to make development processes more efficient. A project DSM can show which information exchanges involve design iteration and how well a process anticipates the need for rework. In addition, the author suggests four ways to improve a company's information flows: rearranging the sequence of tasks, reconsidering the organization of tasks, reducing the number of information exchanges, and managing unplannable work. By stripping away the mystery around information exchange during innovation, the DSM can give managers far more control over their most risky and expensive projects.     

Doppler echocardiographic changes found in diastolic dysfunction

Diastolic dysfunction may be associated with increased morbidity and mortality. In this article, an overview of the pathophysiology of diastolic dysfunction is discussed and the findings of Doppler echocardiography used to aid in its diagnosis are reviewed.     

REIT Returns and Inflation: Perverse or Reverse Causality Effects?

Contrary to the Fisherian theory of interest, previous studies document a negative relationship between REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) returns and inflation. In this research, we re-examine this perverse inflation behavior by testing for the causal relationships among REIT returns, real activity, monetary policy, and inflation through a vector error correction model. Our results indicate that the observations of REIT returns as perverse inflation hedges are spurious. The observed negative relationship between REIT returns and inflation is in fact a manifestation of the effects of changes in monetary policies. These findings are consistent with Darrat and Glascocks (1989) evidence of monetary effects on REIT returns.     

Cocaine revisited

Insurance companies often test applicants for the presence of cocaine. Because a positive test may automatically preclude further consideration, such cases often never reach the medical director. The negative impact of cocaine use on insurability is reviewed.