Listen and learn

After making a solicitation, a lot can be gained by listening to a donor's questions. Do not simply answer the question. Consider why they asked it in the first place.     

An empirical investigation of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures in Austria

This paper presents an econometric investigation of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures in Austria. It tries to add the empirical aspect to the theoretical problem of the relationship between monetary and real sector of an economy.Patinkins theory of the real balance effect provides the link between theoretical and empirical aspects. Taking into consideration further assumptions on aggregation, dynamics and problems of definition of variables, consumption functions of different aggregation levels are specified. Including effects of interest rates and credits one arrives at a first assessment of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures as found from single equation estimates. Significant credit and wealth effects are obtained. Later, systems of equations are estimated and used to investigate real—monetary sector interaction. They allow also a dynamic analysis.In presenting the sequence of microeconomic foundations, further assumptions and macroeconomic functions and systems built upon, it is thought to clarify the connection to traditional theory of real—monetary sectors relationship. It might also give an idea about the resulting problems for meaningful empirical research in this area.

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Zusammenfassung Diese Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der ökonometrischen Untersuchung monetärer Effekte auf private Konsumausgaben in Österreich. Es wird damit versucht, dem theoretischen Problem der Beziehungen zwischen monetärem und realem Sektor der Wirtschaft einen empirischen Aspekt, der die österreichischen Verhältnisse betrifft, zur Seite zu stellen. Das Bindeglied zwischen Theorie und Empirie stelltPatinkins Theorie des Realkasseneffektes dar, die unter Zuhilfenahme weiterer Annahmen über Aggregation, Definitionen und Dynamik zur Spezifikation von aggregierten und disaggregierten Konsumfunktionen führt. Ergänzt durch Zins- und Krediteffekte läßt sich an Hand von Einzelgleichungen eine erste Einschätzung monetärer Wirkungen auf den privaten Konsum und seine Komponenten durchführen. Es können signifikante Kredit- und Vermögenseffekte festgestellt werden. In diesem Zusammenhang wird auch die Hypothese überprüft, ob die Grenzneigungen zum Konsum aus dem verfügbaren Realeinkommen und aus dem Realfinanzvermögen gleich sind, wie dies durch die Annahme eines kurzfristigen Planungshorizontes impliziert wird.Um die Interaktion von realem und monetärem Sektor zu analysieren, wird ein Gleichungs-system formuliert und geschätzt. Daraus lassen sich Unterschiede zu Einzelgleichungsergebnissen aufzeigen. Mittels alternativer Spezifikation der Konsumgleichungen und der Gleichung des monetären Sektors können Vermögens-, Kredit- und Zinseffekte auch im dynamischen Zusammenhang untersucht werden.Die Aufeinanderfolge von mikroökonomischen Grundlagen, weiterer Annahmen, makroökonomischen Funktionen und schließlich Systemen, soll den Zusammenhang zur traditionellen Theorie der Beziehungen zwischen Geld- und Realsektor verdeutlichen und auf die daraus entstehenden Probleme für eine adäquate empirische Untersuchung hinweisen.

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A preliminary version of this paper was presented at the Winter Meeting of the Econometric Society at Sindelfingen (January 9–11, 1978). It constitutes a condensed version of a project on Money and Private Consumption conducted at the Institute of Econometrics, TU—Vienna, under Prof.G. Tintner. The author is indebted to Prof. Tintner for helpful comments and to Dipl. Ing.R. Rieder for assisting in the computations and providing computer programs. The project was supported financially by the Jubiläusmfonds of the Austrian National Bank.     

Putting supplies at the bedside via the Friesen concept

Hospitals designed using the concepts of architect Gordon Friesen are especially conducive to reengineering for patient-focused care. The Nurserver, a closet-like space outside each patient's room, makes it very easy for hospitals to redesign their methods for delivering supplies so that caregivers seldom have to go more than a few feet to get what they need. In this article, staff of Monongalia General Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia, describe how they have used the Friesen design to modify supply distribution processes.     

The market for surrogate motherhood contracts

Surrogate motherhood is a controversial subject, and has not previously been formally modelled by economists. In this paper, a neoclassical model of the market for surrogate motherhood contracts is developed, based on the utility maximizing decisions of potential surrogate mothers and commissioning parties. The presence of both altruistic and self-interested behaviour generates unusual market outcomes.     

Determinants of internal and external R&D: Some Dutch evidence

Summary Innovating firms can choose to engage in either internal or external R&D, or in both. In the current study, we shall examine internal and external R&D separately to determine empirically the market structure characteristics explaining the external R&D share and the differences in market structure determinants between internal and external R&D. Our results indicate that a government policy that aims at stimulating technological progress by offering external research facilities is particularly interesting for smaller, capital-intensive firms operating in less concentrated markets.We would like to thank Alfred Kleinknecht for providing the R&D data and Kees Bakker and Yvonne Prince for providing the market structure data. We thank Alfred Kleinknecht, Bart Nooteboom and an anonymous referee for their comments and suggestions We acknowledge a research grant from the Stichting KMO Fonds.     

Fortress Bethesda

Critics within and outside the National Institutes of Health say that NIH's central administration is hostile and defensive and needs to be shaken up. They hope a new director will do just that.