The Decline Of Manufacturing In The United States And Its Impact On Income Inequality

The decline of manufacturing in the United States has been a perceptible trend, starting in the aftermath of World War II when manufacturing represented over one quarter of our Gross Domestic Product, to today, when it is less than 12%. The unemployment of the Great Recession, and the most recent State of the Union Address by President Obama, have now made this front page news. The declining trend has been masked by the facts that the U.S. remains, in total, the world’s largest manufacturer, and, along with China, the top value added producers. A second trend has been the decline of manufacturing employment as a percentage of the total labor force, running from just under one quarter post WWII, to less than 8% today. And finally the third trend has been the premium of manufacturing compensation versus all industries, from 11% in 1950 to 23% in 2010. Together these three trends are the major components of the increasingly palpable trend of income inequality from 1950 to 2010. In 1950 the top 20% had 17.3% of family income, whereas in 2010 it was 20%. The Gini coefficient, another measure of negative income distribution, moved from .379 to .440 over the same time frame

Cool-season grass cultivars for athletic fields (2001)

New 7/93, Revised 12/01/5M

The Labor Force Participation Rate: A Rexamination Of The Determinants Of Its Decline

The U.S. Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) is defined as the number of people in the labor force as a percentage of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over.  In a paper published in November, 2013, we examined the determinants of the decline in the LFPR from a 1998 peak of 67.2% to then, 63.3%.  Consensus of a number of economic studies at that time was that the primary determinant of the decline was cyclical and that an improving economy would stop, if not reverse, the downward trend. Since that time the unemployment rate has declined from 7.2% to 5.3%.  However, the LFPR has continued its decline to 62.6%.  Structural issues in the economy would appear to have far greater effect on LFPR decline than previously believed. In this paper we examine the following classes of structural determinants and their effects on LFPR: demographics, including not only the prime working cohort of ages 25 to 54, but also those of retirement age; the impact of a welfare system that appropriately provides a critical safety net, but one that reduces incentive to work through disability payments, extended unemployment benefits, and other subsidies;  education for both those of a higher level of attainment, as well as an underclass that no longer receives training by business, but must rely on both public and private vocational education; and finally the consequences of globalization on the economy, including the virtual disappearance of semi-skilled industries in the United States that heretofore have provided jobs for high school graduates

Best management practices for biosolids land application (1994)

"Revised 8/94/5M.""Water Quality.""Focus area : nutrients and bacterial wastes.""Published by University Extension, University of Missouri-System.

Tumescent Injections in Subcutaneous Pig Tissue Disperse Fluids Volumetrically and Maintain Elevated Local Concentrations of Additives for Several Hours, Suggesting a Treatment for Drug Resistant Wounds.

PurposeBolus injection of fluid into subcutaneous tissue results in accumulation of fluid at the injection site. The fluid does not form a pool. Rather, the injection pressure forces the interstitial matrix to expand to accommodate the excess fluid in its volume, and the fluid becomes bound similar to that in a hydrogel. We seek to understand the properties and dynamics of externally tumesced (swollen) subcutaneous tissue as a first step in assessing whether tumescent antibiotic injections into wounds may provide a novel method of treatment.MethodsSubcutaneous injections of saline are performed in live and dead pigs and the physical properties (volume, expansion ratio, residence time, apparent diffusion constant) of the resulting fluid deposits are observed with diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, and 3D scanning.ResultsSubcutaneous tissue can expand to a few times its initial volume to accommodate the injected fluid, which is dispersed thoroughly throughout the tumescent volume. The fluid spreads to peripheral unexpanded regions over the course of a few minutes, after which it remains in place for several hours. Eventually the circulation absorbs the excess fluid and the tissue returns to its original state.ConclusionsGiven the evidence for dense fluid dispersal and several-hour residence time, a procedure is proposed whereby tumescent antibiotic injections are used to treat drug-resistant skin infections and chronic wounds that extend into the subcutaneous tissue. The procedure has the potential to effectively treat otherwise untreatable wounds by keeping drug concentrations above minimum inhibitory levels for extended lengths of time

The Labor Force Participation Rate: An Examination Of The Determinants Of Its Recent Precipitous Decline

The Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) is defined as those Americans in the labor force, i.e. above the age of sixteen, below retirement age, who are either actively employed or actively seeking employment.  From 1950 until 1998 it rose from 59.2% to 67.2%.  Given the near doubling of the U.S. population, its impact on our economy was enormous.  However, since 1998 the LFPR has declined steadily to 63.3%.  Parallel to this decline, we have seen a polarization of both wealth and income in the U.S.  Many economists have examined both trends – the decline of LFPR and inequality – and have put forth a variety of determinants.  These include technology and globalization – a decline or “hollowing out” of the middle class, if you will.  Also included are the demographics of an ageing society, and the increased racial and gender participation, but also a workforce that has become only marginally prepared by today’s educational institutions.  Another class of determinants is the welfare “safety net” at both the Federal and state levels, including extended unemployment benefits, disability payments and other subsidies.  The authors examine each class of determinants, including whether their aspects are cyclical, structural or even part of an ominous trend for our economy

Limiting the grain ration for fattening cattle

During the past few years, the Iowa cattle feeder has been confronted with the big problem of determining how much corn grain to feed fattening cattle with corn silage allowed in conjunction with linseed oil meal as the supplement and a leguminous hay, such as alfalfa, as the dry roughage. Should the cattle be full-fed or limited-fed ? How limited should the grain ration be? If full-fed, how should the grain be given the cattle, by hand-fed or self-fed methods? Can all of the silage be replaced, economically, with alfalfa from the roughage standpoint? Should the same methods be employed for feeding from 150 to 160 days as for 120 days

Algorithms for the Numerical Solution of a Finite-Part Integral Equation

The authors investigate a hypersingular integral equation which arises in the study of acoustic wave scattering by moving objects. A Galerkin method and two collocation methods are presented for solving the problem numerically. These numerical techniques are compared and contrasted in three test problems