How polycentric is a monocentric city? The role of agglomeration economies

Can the demise of the monocentric economy across cities during the 20th century be explained by decreasing transport costs to the city center or are other fundamental forces at work? Taking a hybrid perspective of classical bid-rent theory and a world where clustering of economic activity is driven by (knowledge) spillovers, Berlin, Germany, from 1890 to 1936 serves as a case in point. We assess the extent to which firms in an environment of decreasing transport costs and industrial transformation face a trade-off between distance to the CBD and land rents and how agglomeration economies come into play in shaping their location decisions. Our results suggest that an observable flattening of the traditional distance to the CBD gradient may mask the emergence of significant agglomeration economies, especially within predominantly service-based inner city districts.Transport Innovations; Land Values; Location Productivity; Agglomeration Economies; Economic History; Berlin

How Polycentric is a Monocentric City? The Role of Agglomeration Economies

Can the demise of the monocentric economy across cities during the 20th century be explained by decreasing transport costs to the city center or are other fundamental forces at work? Taking a hybrid perspec¬tive of classical bid-rent theory and a world where clustering of economic activity is driven by (knowledge) spillovers, Berlin, Germany, from 1890 to 1936 serves as a case in point. We assess the extent to which firms in an environment of decreasing transport costs and industrial transformation face a trade-off between distance to the CBD and land rents and how agglomeration economies come into play in shaping their location deci¬sions. Our results suggest that an observable flattening of the traditional distance to the CBD gradient may mask the emergence of significant agglomeration economies, especially within predominantly service-based inner city districts.Transport Innovations, Land Values, Location Productivity, Agglomeration Economies, Economic History, Berlin.

Alterations in T1 of normal and reperfused infarcted myocardium after Gd-BOPTA versus GD-DTPA on inversion recovery EPI.

This study tested whether Gd-BOPTA/Dimeg or Gd-DTPA exerts greater relaxation enhancement for blood and reperfused infarcted myocardium. Relaxivity of Gd-BOPTA is increased by weak binding to serum albumin. Thirty-six rats were subjected to reperfused infarction before contrast (doses = 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2 mmol/kg). delta R1 was repeatedly measured over 30 min. Gd-BOPTA caused greater delta R1 for blood and myocardium than did Gd-DTPA; clearance of both agents from normal- and infarcted myocardium was similar to blood clearance; plots of delta R1 myocardium/delta R1 blood showed equilibrium phase contrast distribution. Fractional contrast agent distribution volumes were approximately 0.24 for both agents in normal myocardium, 0.98 and 1.6 for Gd-DTPA and Gd-BOPTA, respectively, in reperfused infarction. The high value for Gd-BOPTPA was ascribed to greater relaxivity in infarction versus blood. It was concluded that Gd-BOPTA/Dimeg causes a greater delta R1 than Gd-DTPA in regions which contain serum albumin

A Duchon framework for the sphere

In his fundamental paper (RAIRO Anal. Numer. 12 (1978) 325) Duchon presented a strategy for analysing the accuracy of surface spline interpolants to sufficiently smooth target functions. In the mid-1990s Duchon's strategy was revisited by Light and Wayne (J. Approx. Theory 92 (1992) 245) and Wendland (in: A. Le Méhauté, C. Rabut, L.L. Schumaker (Eds.), Surface Fitting and Multiresolution Methods, Vanderbilt Univ. Press, Nashville, 1997, pp. 337–344), who successfully used it to provide useful error estimates for radial basis function interpolation in Euclidean space. A relatively new and closely related area of interest is to investigate how well radial basis functions interpolate data which are restricted to the surface of a unit sphere. In this paper we present a modified version Duchon's strategy for the sphere; this is used in our follow up paper (Lp-error estimates for radial basis function interpolation on the sphere, preprint, 2002) to provide new Lp error estimates (p[1,∞]) for radial basis function interpolation on the sphere

The spatial decay in commuting probabilities: employment potential vs. community gravity

We show that an employment potential capitalisation model produces estimates of the spatial decay in employment impact on land prices that are very close to the decay observed in commuting data

Procedural Fairness in Antitrust Enforcement: The U.S. Perspective

Due process and fairness in enforcement procedures represent a critical aspect of the rule of law. Allowing greater participation by the parties and making enforcement procedures more transparent serve several functions, including better decisionmaking, greater respect for government, stronger economic growth, promotion of investment, limits corruption and politically motivated actions, regulation of bureaucratic ambition, and greater control of agency staff whose vision do not align with agency leadership or who are using an enforcement matter to advance their careers. That is why such distinguished actors as the International Competition Network (ICN), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and the American Bar Association (ABA) have all offered frameworks for promoting greater fairness in antitrust enforcement. Because the U.S. was the first country to enact an antitrust law, it has enjoyed the longest opportunity to develop its enforcement practices. As such, after first introducing the key antitrust enforcement institutions, this chapter will explore the manner in which U.S. implements four key procedural protections (legal representation, notice of the legal basis and evidence underlying the alleged violation, engagement between the parties and the investigative staff, and internal checks and balances/judicial review) to provide insights into ways to improve U.S. law and in the hopes that other jurisdictions might benefit from the U.S. experience

A Student Physical Therapist’s Perspective on her Efficacy Providing Culturally Competent Care: A Reflective Case Study

Purpose: Cultural differences and personal biases can affect the way a clinician provides care and the way in which patients receive it. The Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) designates cultural competence as one of the professional practice expectations for physical therapy students, although no standardized blueprint exists for Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs. This case report will illustrate how reflection can be used to facilitate a student’s growth into becoming more prepared to practice in a culturally aware and effective way. In addition, this report seeks to provide a student’s perspective on her efficacy providing culturally competent care, given her training and education through her DPT program. Method: This case report will present the interactions between a student physical therapist (SPT) and a culturally and linguistically diverse patient throughout a physical therapy plan of care. Subsequently, the reflections by the SPT on these interactions will be presented, and themes such as communication barriers, power dynamics, and patient expectations will be explored. Results: Through the student’s self-reflection, she determined both her strengths and areas needing improvement in providing an adequate cross-cultural interaction, in addition to delineating how her preparation in school affected these areas. Her strengths included 1) vulnerability to recognize her own shortcomings, and 2) a desire to create a meaningful connection with the patient. The areas needing improvement included 1) providing an open space for the patient to speak, and 2) setting patient expectations. The student’s DPT program facilitated her preparedness in cultural competence by 1) providing lecture content promoting cultural awareness, 2) encouraging reflection, and 3) hosting an event where the DPT students were able to work with international students of limited-English proficiency. Conversely, barriers to the student’s preparedness included 1) no mandatory community service reaching minority populations, and 2) no opportunity for an abroad immersion experience. Conclusions: Two main themes were drawn from the student’s reflection. First, continual self-evaluation and vulnerability are imperative to the process of becoming a culturally competent provider. Second, clinical experience dedicated to providing care to minority populations appears to be effective in fostering cultural competency in DPT students

Ease vs. noise: long-run changes in the value of transport (dis)amenities

For a complete cost-benefit analysis of durable infrastructures, it is important to understand how the value of non-market goods such as transit time and environmental quality changes as incomes rise in the long-run. We use difference-in-differences and spatial differencing to estimate the land price capitalization effects of metro rail in Berlin, Germany today and a century ago. Over this period, the negative implicit hedonic price of rail noise tripled. Our results imply income elasticities of the value of noise reduction and transport access of 2.2 and 1.4, substantially exceeding cross-sectional contingent valuation estimates

A Statistical Model for Simultaneous Template Estimation, Bias Correction, and Registration of 3D Brain Images

Template estimation plays a crucial role in computational anatomy since it provides reference frames for performing statistical analysis of the underlying anatomical population variability. While building models for template estimation, variability in sites and image acquisition protocols need to be accounted for. To account for such variability, we propose a generative template estimation model that makes simultaneous inference of both bias fields in individual images, deformations for image registration, and variance hyperparameters. In contrast, existing maximum a posterori based methods need to rely on either bias-invariant similarity measures or robust image normalization. Results on synthetic and real brain MRI images demonstrate the capability of the model to capture heterogeneity in intensities and provide a reliable template estimation from registration

Game of zones: the economics of conservation areas

Provided there are positive external benefits attached to the historic character of buildings, owners of properties in designated conservation areas benefit from a reduction in uncertainty regarding the future of their area. At the same time, the restrictions put in place to ensure the preservation of the historic character limit the degree to which properties can be altered and thus impose a cost to their owners. We test a simple theory of the designation process in which we postulate that the optimal level of designation is chosen so as to Pareto-maximize the welfare of local owners. The implication of the model is that a) an increase in preferences for historic character should increase the likelihood of a designation, and b) new designations at the margin should not be associated with significant house price capitalization effects. Our empirical results are in line with these expectations