The Resource Curse and Rentier States in the Caspian Region : A Need for Context Analysis

Although much attention is paid to the Caspian region with regard to energy issues, the domestic consequences of the region’s resource production have so far constituted a neglected field of research. A systematic survey of the latest research trends in the economic and political causalities of the resource curse and of rentier states reveals that there is a need for context analysis. In reference to this, the paper traces any shortcomings and promising approaches in the existent body of literature on the Caspian region. Following on from this, the paper then proposes a new approach; specifically, one in which any differences and similarities in the context conditions are captured. This enables a more precise exploration of the exact ways in which they form contemporary post-Soviet Caspian rentier states.Obwohl der Region am Kaspischen Meer im Zuge von Energiediskursen große Aufmerksamkeit zuteil wird, stellen die innerstaatlichen Folgen der Ressourcenproduktion in der Region ein bislang vernachlässigtes Forschungsfeld dar. Ein systematischer Überblick über die jüngsten Forschungstrends zu wirtschaftlichen und politischen Kausalzusammenhängen des Ressourcenfluchs und zu Rentierstaaten offenbart die Notwendigkeit von Kontextanalysen. Hierauf Bezug nehmend, analysiert der Aufsatz sowohl die Mängel als auch viel versprechende Ansätze in der betreffenden Literatur zur Region am Kaspischen Meer. Der Aufsatz stellt letztendlich einen neuen Ansatz vor, der Unterschiede und Gemeinsamkeiten in den Kontextbedingungen erfasst, um zu erforschen, wie diese die gegenwärtigen post-sowjetischen Rentierstaaten in der Region am Kaspischen Meer tatsächlich prägen

C9orf72-mediated ALS and FTD: multiple pathways to disease

The discovery that repeat expansions in the C9orf72 gene are a frequent cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) has revolutionized our understanding of these diseases. Substantial headway has been made in characterizing C9orf72-mediated disease and unravelling its underlying aetiopathogenesis. Three main disease mechanisms have been proposed: loss of function of the C9orf72 protein and toxic gain of function from C9orf72 repeat RNA or from dipeptide repeat proteins produced by repeat-associated non-ATG translation. Several downstream processes across a range of cellular functions have also been implicated. In this article, we review the pathological and mechanistic features of C9orf72-associated FTD and ALS (collectively termed C9FTD/ALS), the model systems used to study these conditions, and the probable initiators of downstream disease mechanisms. We suggest that a combination of upstream mechanisms involving both loss and gain of function and downstream cellular pathways involving both cell-autonomous and non-cell-autonomous effects contributes to disease progression

Using Modern Multimedia Technologies in Foreign Language Lessons

In modern century, when the role of languages ​​in International communication increases significantly, interest in the English language as one of the important languages ​​of communication is becoming a necessary link in terms of cognition and perception of the world. Fluency in the English language is becoming an objective necessity and a need for modern youth. Deepening the knowledge of young people, improving their theoretical literacy today, is impossible without the activation of the educational process of learning. This article contains types of work using new technologies that contribute to the development of automated speech skills that increase the effectiveness of the process of teaching foreign languages, as well as provide an opportunity to deepen basic knowledge, skills and abilities, provide the necessary knowledge

Russia from Bust to Boom and Back: Oil Price, Dutch Disease and Stabilisation Fund

This paper develops and estimates a small macroeconomic model of the Russian economy. The model is tailored to analyse the impact of the oil price, the exchange rate, private sector confidence and fiscal policy on economic performance. Simulations suggest that the Russian economy is vulnerable to downward oil price shocks. We substantiate two mechanisms that mitigate the economic effects of oil price shocks, namely the stabilisation brought by the Oil Stabilisation Fund and the Dutch disease effect. The fiscal policies of the Putin administration temper economic fluctuations caused by oil price shocks. Comparative Economic Studies (2009) 51, 213–241. doi:10.1057/ces.2009.2

The political economy of oil and gas in Southeast Asia: heading towards the natural resource curse?

The notion of the resource curse suggests that countries with large caches of natural resources often perform worse in terms of economic growth, social development, and good governance than other countries with fewer resources. The theory posits that countries depending on oil or other extractive industries for their livelihood are among the most economically troubled, socially unstable, authoritarian, and conflict-ridden in the world. This article explores whether the resource curse is occurring in relation to oil and gas production in Southeast Asia, where investments in oil and gas infrastructure are expected to increase significantly. The article begins by conceptualizing the resource curse before explaining the factors believed to cause it. It then proposes metrics that can be used to identify the presence of the resource curse before testing these metrics on the five Southeast Asian countries with the largest rates of oil and gas production and reserves – Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand – from 1987 to 2007. The article compares the performance of these Southeast Asian countries with the five largest producers in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries as well as Brazil, China, India, the Russian Federation, and South Africa. The article concludes that the resource curse is not occurring in any of these countries, and that the theory may be too simplistic and deterministic to fully explain why some countries appear to be ‘cursed’ with resources while others are ‘blessed’