In Search of a New Model: Library Resource Sharing in China - A Comparative Study

This paper reviews the framework of library resource sharing (LRS) in China and examines, from a comparative perspective, cases of recent development, particularly in the 1990s and early 2000s. Highlights include: (1) historical review of LRS in the U.S. and China, particularly in the areas of print union catalogs and union lists, online bibliographic utilities, and interlibrary loan; (2) literature review of Chinese publications, and LRS issues and challenges in China; (3) Analysis of three LRS models to provide a contextual grasp of a paradigm shift taking place in China; and (4) comparative analysis of LRS objectives, structure, and governance, etc., in the U.S. and China. The study also underscores the imperative for building a national digital library system in China to gain a competitive edge in resource sharing and to support the country’s rapid social and economic growth. At this stage of development, the success of China Academic Library & Information System provides a convincing argument for a national digital library system with its methods of governing, financing, and development

Labor Market Policy Instruments and the Role of Economic Turbulence

Times of high unemployment always inspire debates on the role of labor market policy and its optimal implementation. This paper uses a dynamic model of search unemployment and bilateral wage bargaining to characterize optimal labor market policy in a possibly turbulent environment. A firing externality, generated by the existence of a partial unemployment insurance system, distorts the pre-policy equilibrium along three margins: job creation, job acceptance, and job destruction. Optimal policy is characterized by a payroll tax, a firing tax, and a hiring subsidy. Endogenous job acceptance demands that a firing tax and a hiring subsidy have to be set equal in any case and cannot be used to correct for the possible failure of the Hosios condition. In that case the optimal policy mix has to be extended by either an output or recruitment tax/subsidy. It is further shown that the derived policy mix is robust to the introduction of economic turbulence in form of state-dependent worker transitions between skill classes. This is crucial as widely discussed intergroup redistribution schemes, like in-work benefits targeted at low-skilled workers, are rendered considerably less effective in that case. Instead of redistribution from high- to low-skilled workers or from firing firms to unemployed workers, the paper identifies a scheme involving redistribution from firing to hiring firms to be optimal.Search and matching, employment subsidies, economic turbulence, policy spill-over

The contribution of corporate ventures to radical innovation

Established firms often face significant obstacles to innovation. As a solution, it has been suggested to form corporate ventures. Based on a sample of corporate and independent ventures in German manufacturing, we show that corporate ventures are more innovative than the control group, i.e. the independent ventures. In particular, corporate ventures are more successful at developing radical innovations. This effect, however, decreases with the ventures' degree of ownership concentration. We conclude that corporate ventures with a high ownership concentration are more likely to be controlled and monitored by their corporate sponsors, resulting in less favorable conditions for radical innovation. --corporate entrepreneurship,start-ups,radical innovation

"Liquidation" Cycles: Old-Fashioned Real Business Cycle Theory and the Great Depression

During the 1929-33 slide into the Great Depression, the Federal Reserve took almost no steps to keep the money supply or the price level stable. Instead, the Federal Reserve acted - disastrously - as if the gathering Great Depression could not be avoided, and was best endured. Such a liquidationist' theory of depressions was in fact common before the Keynesian Revolution, and was held and advanced by economists like Kayek and Schumpeter. This paper tries to reconstruct the logic of the liquidationist' view. It argues that the perspective was carefully thought out (although not adequate to the Depression), may hold some truth in other times and places, and could be the core of a more productive research program that currently popular real' business cycle theories.

Corporate governance and performance of UK listed small and medium enterprises

This paper reports the results of an investigation into the effect of corporate governance factors on the performance of listed small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and examines whether this effect differs between the two sizes of business. The paper employs unbalanced panel data regression analysis on a sample of 234 SMEs listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM), for a ten-year period (2004-2013). The panel data analysis results show that for all SMEs, corporate governance factors – board size, chief executive officer (CEO) age and tenure, and directors’ remuneration – are significantly associated with performance of SMEs. The results also suggest that while board size is associated with the performance of both small and medium enterprises, CEO age is significant only for medium firms and directors’ remuneration only for small ones, while CEO tenure and proportion of non-executive directors are not significant for either. Overall, the results imply that corporate governance factors affect the performance of listed SMEs. However, this effect differs significantly between small and medium enterprises. The findings have important implications for policy makers who prescribe corporate governance mechanisms for SMEs. The paper adds to existing literature on corporate governance of SMEs by establishing a relationship between firm performance and board size, CEO age, CEO tenure, directors’ remuneration and proportion of non-executive directors

TWIN DEFICITS HYPOTHESIS AND HORIOKA-FELDSTEIN PUZZLE IN TRANSITION ECONOMIES

The article’s main objective is to investigate the empirical link between the fiscal balance and the current account (i.e. the twin deficits phenomenon). The article focuses on transition economies which are according to their different characteristics divided into three major groups, i.e. Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), Southern and Eastern Europe (SEE) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). In fact, the inconsistency between public sector instability and currency overvaluations which led to current account balance deterioration was denoted as one of the key determinants of the balance of payments (currency) crisis seen in transition economies like Czech Republic (1997) and Russia (1998). Moreover, the importance of the so- called Horioka-Feldstein puzzle in transition economies is examined in order to draw some conclusions about the regions’ integration with international capital markets. For this purpose, pooled cross-sectional and time-series techniques are used to characterize the properties of current account variations across selected groups of transition economies in the 1990-2003 period. The empirical results suggest that high budget deficits in transition countries have signaled relatively low level of substitutability between private and public savings, implying a relatively high correlation between fiscal and external imbalances. Accordingly, special emphasis should be paid to the fiscal policy shift in these economies. Indeed, the main element of the economic policy reversal in transition countries should involve a substantial reduction of fiscal deficits in the future in order to reduce the probability of a balance of payments (currency) crisis. Finally, the article provides some evidence of the existence of the Horioka-Feldstein puzzle in transition economies.

Looking for performance: how innovation and straregy may affect market orientation models

Despite 20 years of research into various aspects of the ‘Market Orientation’ (MO) construct, dubiety persists regarding the existence, nature and significancy of the relationship between market orientation and firm performance. In order to get more evidence some authors suggest including innovation in MO models. Debate also continues to examine whether organizational strategy is an antecedent or a consequence of MO, whilst some argue that strategy moderates the MO-performance relationship. Furthermore, there are sectors of industry and geographies where the phenomenon has received very little investigation, even of an exploratory nature. This study aims to explore the MO-performance relationship and to value the effect of innovation in MO-performance models in a sector where MO was virtually unknown: the Spanish real estate industry. The magnitude of the shifts taking place in this sector enhances its potential as a showcase for processes of anticipation and adaptation to the environment. In addition, the paper aims to shed some light on the question of whether strategy potentially moderates the MO-performance link. Finally, the principal implications of our findings are discussed.Market orientation, innovation, performance, strategy, real estate sector

Investigation On Tribological Properties Of 3D Printed ABS And Molded ABS

Meniscus injury are one of the most common knee injury. Meniscus is a piece of cartilage between a femur and tibia that provides a cushion and stabilize the joint. It also has a function to protect the bones from wear and tear. The meniscus can be torn that caused by direct contact or pressure from a forced twist or rotation. Patient may replace the damage meniscus when injured but, it will cause the changes in the cartilage load distribution which lead to degenerative arthritis. It also can be weaken and wears thin across the time. The meniscus can be replace by using biomaterial such as ABS Polymer. Therefore in this study, 3D printed and molded ABS was used for comparison. The main purpose of this study is to determine the absorption properties and compare the tribological properties between the 3D printed and Molded ABS under a lubricated condition. The printed ABS is fabricated by using FDM technique. Surface roughness and weight gained percentage for both types of ABS also been measured. The tribological testing was conducted by using tribometer according to standard of ASTM G99-95a which is standard test for wear testing with a pin-on-disc apparatus. The test conducted by using different applied load which is between ranges of 20N to 55N with sliding speed of 100 rpm for 1OOOm. To determine the wear track obtained from the tribological test, a 3D non-contact profilometer had been used. The result of coefficient of friction and wear rate was obtained from the tribological testing. From the result, it shows that 3D printed ABS have higher COF but lower wear rate. It have a higher COF because of the rougher surface roughness that increases the real contact area. Besides that, it have lower wear rate because the existance of the porosity that acts as the lubricant reservoir. The absorption rate for 3d printed ABS is higher compare to molded due to pores form during the fabrication. Therefore, 3D printed ABS is suitable to be used as meniscus as it can imitate the natural meniscus