The Transmission of Exchange Rate Changes to Agricultural Prices
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service
Movements in countries’ exchange rates can substantially change the prices of goods faced by producers and consumers and thereby affect incentives to produce, consume, and trade goods. Exchange rate changes, however, might not be completely transmitted (passed through) to domestic prices. Empirical evidence shows that price and exchange rate transmission for agricultural products is low in most developing economies, partly because of trade policies but also because of inadequate infrastructure and other market deficiencies. During the last 20 years, developed and developing countries generally have moved away from support policies that impede price and exchange rate transmission toward trade policies that allow transmission, such as tariffs. The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture of 1994 strongly encouraged this development. Despite these policy changes, market deficiencies remain as a cause of incomplete transmission. Incomplete transmission weakens countries’ integration into world agricultural markets and thereby reduces agricultural trade potential. Low transmission in developing countries also decreases their own benefits from trade, including the gains they could realize if there is further global agricultural liberalization.
+ Summary (PDF; 411 KB)
+ Full Report (PDF; 1.1 MB)
The insurance industry and climate change – Contribution to the global debate (PDF; 1.5 MB)
Source: Geneva Association
The insurance industry is forward-looking by nature, and has a long-term comprehensive approach shared by few other economic actors.
The report shows that climate change is about more than just extreme weather events. It analyses what insurance companies are already doing, what they could do in the future and where they need the cooperation of governments and other partners to succeed.
Access to Affordable and Nutritious Food—Measuring and Understanding Food Deserts and Their Consequences: Report to Congress
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service
This report fills a request for a study of food deserts—areas with limited access to affordable and nutritious food—from the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008. The report summarizes findings of a national-level assessment of the extent and characteristics of food deserts, analysis of the consequences of food deserts, lessons learned from related Federal programs, and a discussion of policy options for alleviating the effects of food deserts. Overall, findings show that a small percentage of consumers are constrained in their ability to access affordable nutritious food because they live far from a supermarket or large grocery store and do not have easy access to transportation.
Download in sections (PDFs) or as full report (PDF; 3.5 MB).
Agenda Setting and State Policy Diffusion: The Effects of Media Attention, State Court Decisions, and Policy Learning on Fetal Killing Policy
Source: Social Science Quarterly
The model and results presented in this study contribute to scholarly knowledge of the state policy process by improving our understanding of why states innovate and how policies change as they diffuse through the states. The most significant finding is that legislatures do respond to increased media attention in the case of fetal killing policies by changing to a stricter fetal killing policy. Additionally, state legislators respond to unpopular state court decisions by changing their policies. This study provides evidence that legislators do not innovate in a vacuum, but react to actions of other branches of government. Previous studies of state policy innovation and diffusion have focused on a state’s tendency to innovate, but have not typically incorporated the concepts developed in the agenda-setting literature.
Further evidence for policy learning is also provided. States are more likely to change policies as time goes on and more states have experience with the fetal killing policies. To truly understand the process by which state officials learn about fetal killing policy from one another, further research including case studies would be required. The quantitative variable in this study provides us with the overall pattern, which can be further investigated.
Another interesting finding is that the more liberal a state’s government officials are, the less likely they are to change their fetal killing policy. This makes sense in the context of state adoptions of fetal homicide and other fetal killing policies because no state has ever changed its policy to make it less comprehensive
A U.S. Holy War? The Effects of Religion on Iraq War Policy Attitudes
Source: Social Science Quarterly
Objective. Throughout the course of the Iraq War, the Bush Administration has consistently framed its war policy in religious language. Therefore, we investigate the extent to which public religiosity predicts neoconservative foreign policy attitudes.
Method. We use the 2005 Baylor Religion Survey to estimate OLS models predicting the effects of religious measures on support for a neoconservative Middle East foreign policy.
Findings. We find that support for U.S. Iraq policy is partially an outcome of what we call “sacralization ideology,” as measured by the belief that religious and secular institutions should be more closely in collaboration.
Conclusion. We argue that the religious framing of U.S. foreign policy appeals to a certain religious type who is not fully Republican or conservative evangelical.
Economic Survey of Brazil 2009
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Brazil has not been left unscathed by the unfolding global crisis. But economic fundamentals are strong, and the macroeconomic policy responses have been appropriate. Longer-term challenges remain, including the need for tax reform and to make government operations more cost-effective.
Economic Survey of Russia 2009
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The global crisis put an end to a decade of rapid growth. Russia needs to minimise the downturn and establish a sounder long-term growth model. Growth-friendly product market regulation and a more efficient and resilient banking system will be key.
Musings on privacy issues in health research involving disaggregate geographic data about individuals
Source: International Journal of Health Geographics
This paper offers a state-of-the-art overview of the intertwined privacy, confidentiality, and security issues that are commonly encountered in health research involving disaggregate geographic data about individuals. Key definitions are provided, along with some examples of actual and potential security and confidentiality breaches and related incidents that captured mainstream media and public interest in recent months and years. The paper then goes on to present a brief survey of the research literature on location privacy/confidentiality concerns and on privacy-preserving solutions in conventional health research and beyond, touching on the emerging privacy issues associated with online consumer geoinformatics and location-based services. The ‘missing ring’ (in many treatments of the topic) of data security is also discussed. Personal information and privacy legislations in two countries, Canada and the UK, are covered, as well as some examples of recent research projects and events about the subject. Select highlights from a June 2009 URISA (Urban and Regional Information Systems Association) workshop entitled ‘Protecting Privacy and Confidentiality of Geographic Data in Health Research’ are then presented. The paper concludes by briefly charting the complexity of the domain and the many challenges associated with it, and proposing a novel, ‘one stop shop’ case-based reasoning framework to streamline the provision of clear and individualised guidance for the design and approval of new research projects (involving geographical identifiers about individuals), including crisp recommendations on which specific privacy-preserving solutions and approaches would be suitable in each case.
+ Full Paper (PDF; 174 KB)
Judge Sonia Sotomayor: Analysis of Selected Opinions
Source: Congressional Research Service (via OpenCRS)
In May 2009, Supreme Court Justice David Souter announced his intention to retire from the Supreme Court. Several weeks later, President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor, who currently serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, to fill his seat. To fulfill its constitutional “advice and consent” function, the Senate will consider Judge Sotomayor’s extensive record – compiled from years as a lawyer, prosecutor, district court judge, and appellate court judge – to better understand her legal approaches and judicial philosophy.
This report provides an analysis of selected opinions authored by Judge Sotomayor during her tenure as a judge on the Second Circuit. Discussions of the selected opinions are grouped according to various topics of legal significance.
As a group, the opinions belie easy categorization along any ideological spectrum. However, it is possible to draw some conclusions regarding Judge Sotomayor’s judicial approach, both within some specific issue areas and in general.
Perhaps the most consistent characteristic of Judge Sotomayor’s approach as an appellate judge has been an adherence to the doctrine of stare decisis, i.e., the upholding of past judicial precedents. Other characteristics appear to include what many would describe as a careful application of particular facts at issue in a case and a dislike for situations in which the court might be seen as oversteping its judicial role.
It is difficult to determine the extent to which Judge Sotomayor’s style as a judge on the Second Circuit would predict her style should she become a Supreme Court justice. However, as has been the case historically with other nominees, some of her approaches may be enduring characteristics.
+ Full Report (PDF; 520 KB)
New GAO Reports and Correspondences (PDFs)
Source: Government Accountability Office
20 July 2009
+ Reports
1. Drug Control: U.S. Counternarcotics Cooperation with Venezuela Has Declined
2. Hurricane Katrina: Federal Grants Have Helped Health Care Organizations Provide Primary Care, but Challenges Remain
3. Hurricane Katrina: Barriers to Mental Health Services for Children Persist in Greater New Orleans, Although Federal Grants Are Helping to Address Them
4. Disaster Assistance: Greater Coordination and an Evaluation of Programs’ Outcomes Could Improve Disaster Case Management
5. Gulf Coast Disaster Recovery: Community Development Block Grant Program Guidance to States Needs to Be Improved
6. Food and Drug Administration: FDA Faces Challenges Meeting Its Growing Medical Product Responsibilities and Should Develop Complete Estimates of Its Resource Needs
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+ Correspondences
1. Improper Payments: Responses to Posthearing Questions Related to Eliminating Waste and Fraud in Medicare and Medicaid
2. Defense Critical Infrastructure: Actions Needed to Improve the Consistency, Reliability, and Usefulness of DOD’s Tier 1 Task Critical Asset List
Concealed Handgun Permit Holders Kill 7 Police, 44 Private Citizens Over Two-Year Period
Source: Violence Policy Center
Concealed handgun permit holders killed at least seven police officers and 44 private citizens in 31 incidents during the period May 2007 through April 2009 according to a new study released today by the Violence Policy Center (VPC). The release of the study comes as the U.S. Senate is expected to take up today–Monday, July 20–an amendment to the defense authorization bill (S. 1390) that would create a de facto national concealed carry system, overriding the rights of states with more restrictive laws governing the carrying of concealed handguns. The amendment is sponsored by Senator John Thune (R-SD). Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) has said he will filibuster the amendment.
Because most state systems allowing the carrying of concealed handguns in public by private citizens release little data about crimes committed by permit holders, the VPC reviewed shooting incidents as reported by news outlets. It is likely that the actual number of fatal criminal incidents involving concealed handgun permit holders is far higher.
+ Full Report (PDF; 118 KB)
About 131 million people reported voting in the 2008 U.S. presidential election, an increase of 5 million from 2004, according to a new table package released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. The increase included about 2 million more black voters, 2 million more Hispanic voters and about 600,000 more Asian voters, while the number of non-Hispanic white voters remained statistically unchanged.
Additionally, voters 18 to 24 were the only age group to show a statistically significant increase in turnout, reaching 49 percent in 2008 compared with 47 percent in 2004. Blacks had the highest turnout rate among 18- to 24-year-old voters — 55 percent, an 8 percent increase from 2004. The increased turnout among certain demographic groups was offset by stagnant or decreased turnout among other groups, causing overall 2008 voter turnout to remain statistically unchanged — at 64 percent — from 2004.
Source: U.S. Census
The average age of the world’s population is increasing at an unprecedented rate. The number of people worldwide 65 and older is estimated at 506 million as of midyear 2008; by 2040, that number will hit 1.3 billion. Thus, in just over 30 years, the proportion of older people will double from 7 percent to 14 percent of the total world population, according to a new report, An Aging World: 2008.
An Aging World: 2008 examines nine international population trends identified in 2007 by the NIA and the U.S. Department of State (“Why Population Aging Matters: A Global Perspective”). The report also contains detailed information on life expectancy, health, disability, gender balance, marital status, living arrangements, education and literacy, labor force participation and retirement and pensions among older people around the world.
Direct to Complete Report (204 pages; PDF)
Source: U.S. Census
Five New IES Reports from the National Center for Education Statistics
Source: National Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics within the Institute of Education Sciences has released five Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) reports. SASS is a nationally representative sample survey of public, private, and Bureau of Indian Education-funded (BIE) K-12 schools, principals, and teachers in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. School districts associated with public schools and library media centers in public and BIE schools are also part of SASS.
+ Characteristics of Public School Districts in the United States: Results From the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey
+ Characteristics of Public, Private, and Bureau of Indian Education Elementary and Secondary Schools in the United States: Results From the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey
+ Characteristics of Public and Bureau of Indian Education Elementary and Secondary School Library Media Centers in the United States: Results From the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey
+ Characteristics of Public, Private, and Bureau of Indian Education Elementary and Secondary School Principals in the United States: Results From the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey
+ Characteristics of Public, Private, and Bureau of Indian Education Elementary and Secondary School Teachers in the United States: Results From the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey
Mapping the Arabic Blogosphere: Politics, Culture, and Dissent
Source: Harvard University, Berkman Center for Internet & Society
We conducted a study of the Arabic language blogosphere using link analysis, term frequency analysis, and human coding of individual blogs. We identified a base network of approximately 35,000 active blogs, created a network map of the 6,000 most connected blogs, and with a team of Arabic speakers hand coded 4,000 blogs. The goal for the study was to produce a baseline assessment of the networked public sphere in the Arab Middle East, and its relationship to a range of emergent issues, including politics, media, religion, culture, and international affairs.
A Country-based network: The Arabic blogosphere is organized primarily around countries. We found the primary groupings to be: Egyptian (largest, with distinct sub- and associated clusters, e.g., Muslim Brotherhood bloggers, including some women); Saudi Arabian (second largest and focused comparatively more on technology than politics); Kuwaiti (divided into English and Arabic language sub-clusters); Levantine/English Bridge (bloggers in the Levant and Iraq using English and connected to the US and international blogospheres); Syrian; Maghrebi/French Bridge; and Religion-Focused.
Demographic results indicate that Arabic bloggers are predominately young and male. The highest proportion of female bloggers is found in the Egyptian youth sub-cluster, while the Syrian and Muslim Brotherhood clusters have the highest concentration of males. Arabic media ecosystem: Bloggers link to Web 2.0 sites like YouTube and Wikipedia (English and Arabic versions) more than other sources of information and news available on the Internet. Al-Jazeera is the top mainstream media source, followed by the BBC and Al-Arabiya. Arabic bloggers tend to prefer more politically oriented YouTube videos over cultural ones.
Personal life and local issues are most important: Most bloggers write mainly personal, diary-style observations. But when writing about politics, bloggers tend to focus on issues within their own country, and are more often than not critical of domestic political leaders. Foreign political leaders are discussed less often, but also more in negative than positive terms. Domestic news is more popular than international news among general politics and public life topics. The one political issue that clearly concerns bloggers across the Arab world is Palestine, and in particular the situation in Gaza (Israel’s December 2008/January 2009 military action occurred during the study). Other popular topics include religion (more in personal than political terms) and human rights (more common than criticism of western culture and values). Terrorism and the US are not major topics. When discussing terrorism, Arab bloggers are overwhelmingly critical of terrorists. When the US is discussed, it is nearly always critically.
+ Full Report (PDF; 1.2 MB)
+ Arab Blogosphere Map (.png)
