Financial development, remittances, and real exchange rate appreciation

For developing countries, remittances are an important and expanding source of capital, equivalent to two-thirds of overall foreign direct investment and nearly 2 percent of gross domestic product. ; This article examines the relationship between remittance inflows, financial sector development, and the real exchange rate. The authors test whether financial sector development can prevent appreciation of the real exchange rate. In particular, they show that well-developed financial sectors can more effectively channel remittances into investment opportunities. ; Using panel data for 109 developing and transition countries for 1990–2003, the authors find that remittances by themselves tend to put upward pressure on the real exchange rate. But this effect is weaker in countries with deeper and more sophisticated financial markets, which seem to retain trade competitiveness.Emigrant remittances ; Foreign exchange rates

The Eurotower Strikes Back

The 2008 global financial crisis came with fears—and, for some, hopes—that a new wave of public mobilization would emerge in industrialized countries. Especially throughout the European Union (EU), the epicenter of the crisis, large protests were expected. Yet, the energy with which social groups mobilized against the proposed austerity measures quickly fizzled. This article provides new evidence for why this was the case. In line with Neo-Keynesian theory, we argue that the interest rate adjustments and political announcements of the European Central Bank (ECB) limited the potential for mass unrest in the member states of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) affected by the crisis. We provide evidence for our argument with yearly panel data and a new original data set of monthly political protests between 2001 and 2013. Our analyses support the hypothesis that the ECB was able to successfully assuage dissatisfaction with the limited reform options of the Eurozone member states in the wake of the Eurocrisis

The cosmopolitan-parochial divide: changing patterns of party and electoral competition in the Netherlands and beyond

Recent election outcomes in Europe and beyond reflect a growing scepticism of open borders among the public. From the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom to the election of Donald Trump in the United States, rhetoric that is critical of the organizations facilitating policy co-operation and learning across borders as well as international trade and migration is popular among a growing segment of the electorate. Are these recent developments part of a larger trend of party and electoral change? By focusing on changing patterns in party and electoral competition in the Netherlands, this article suggests that they are. Relying on expert and voter data, it argues that party and electoral politics in the Netherlands are increasingly characterized by both an economic left–right as well as a cosmopolitan–parochial divide. While the former relates to issues of state intervention into the economy, the second refers to stances on European integration, migration and national control in international affairs. This cosmopolitan–parochial divide has become largely independent of the economic left–right dimension, and influences people’s voting decisions independently of their left–right views. Interestingly, the cosmopolitan–parochial divide in the Netherlands should not necessarily be understood as a cultural backlash, but rather seems a reflection of increased economic insecurity. Although the evidence stems from the Dutch case, I suggest that the cosmopolitan–parochial divide is a useful lens through which we can understand political change in Europe more generally

Precision Newborn Screening for Lysosomal Disorders

Purpose: The implementation of newborn screening for lysosomal disorders has uncovered overall poor specificity, psychosocial harm experienced by caregivers, and costly follow-up testing of false-positive cases. We report an informatics solution proven to minimize these issues. Methods: The Kentucky Department for Public Health outsourced testing for mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS I) and Pompe disease, conditions recently added to the recommended uniform screening panel, plus Krabbe disease, which was added by legislative mandate. A total of 55,161 specimens were collected from infants born over 1 year starting from February 2016. Testing by tandem mass spectrometry was integrated with multivariate pattern recognition software (Collaborative Laboratory Integrated Reports), which is freely available to newborn screening programs for selection of cases for which a biochemical second-tier test is needed. Results: Of five presumptive positive cases, one was affected with infantile Krabbe disease, two with Pompe disease, and one with MPS I. The remaining case was a heterozygote for the latter condition. The false-positive rate was 0.0018% and the positive predictive value was 80%. Conclusion: Postanalytical interpretive tools can drastically reduce false-positive outcomes, with preliminary evidence of no greater risk of false-negative events, still to be verified by long-term surveillance

Is it in the Game? Reconsidering play spaces, game definitions, theming and sports videogames

From the very first days of digital gaming, sport-themed videogames have been a constant and ever-popular presence. However, compared with many other genres of games, sports-themed videogames have remained relatively under-research. Using the case of ‘sports videogames’ this paper advocates a critical and located approach to understanding videogames and gameplay. Unlike many existing theorisations of gameplay, such as the ‘magic circle’ (Huizinga 1949 [1938]), which theorise play as a break from ordinary life, this paper argues for a consideration of play as a continuation of ‘the control of the established order’ (Lefebvre (1991 [1974]: 383). It argues that many videogames, and in particular sports videogames, can be understood as ‘themed’ spaces; which share similarities to other themed locations, such as fast-food restaurants and theme parks. These are ‘non-places’ (Augé 1995) themed to provide a sense of individuality, control and escape in a society that increasingly offers none

Extension of the efficiency tracing method for the calibration of pure [beta]-emitters

NRC publication: Ye