Geography and Growth - some Empirical Evidence

Income in the world does not distribute randomly in space. There are geographic clusters of rich and poor countries. Also growth rates tend to be spatially clustered. Spatial regression analyses indicate that geographical clustering may be an inherent ingredient in growth mechanisms: Growth in one country stimulates growth in surrounding countries. A simple exogenous growth model with technology diffusion through trade in capital goods can account for some, but not all of these empirical patterns of growth and income distribution.

Knowledge Spillovers in Europe and its Consequences for Systems of Innovation

knowledge spillovers; innovation systems

The Spatial Econometrics of Elephant Population Change: A Note

While previous research found no other variable than corruption to have a negative impact on (the growth rate of) the African countries' elephant populations, we show that one further significant impact is exerted by what one might call neighbourhood effects. Elephants travel long distances, often crossing borders. Using spatial econometric tools, we find that elephant population changes in one country have a positive impact on elephants in neighbouring countries. Our results have possible policy implications, as they suggest that the spatial clustering of funds and of conservation efforts makes sense if the endangered species move across borders.Elephants; Spatial econometrics; Corruption and ecology

Regional ICT industries growth: Common prejudices and empirical evidence

Many advocates of an active regional economic policy tend to consider regional sectoral concentration as something which can be created, as a recipe rather than just a development which sometimes occurs and sometimes not. Whether such a policy can be successful implicitly depends on a number of assumptions which are empirically tested in this paper: The first assumption is that regional concentration and regional specialisation foster growth. We test this hypothesis, using data for nine ICT industries in 97 German regions. According to preliminary results, the effect of concentration is positive as expected, but small and its significance depends on specification and industry. Second, the common perception is that East Germany is still a special case. This is clearly supported for the ICT industry, which lacks behind not only with respect to level, but also with respect to growth rates for 1998 to 2002. Third, if regional sectoral agglomeration is an advantage for regions due to technological externalities, for example, then the same reasons might lead to spillover effects between neighbouring regions. With Myrdal we call this a "spread effect". However, the opposite, called "backwash effect" by Myrdal, is also well possible: If a certain sector is growing in region A, that might be due to firms moving in from the neighbouring regions. While the spread effect is the more popular hypothesis, we find evidence for both effects, using standard spatial econometrics techniques. We also discuss the possible reasons why neighbourhood effects are positive in some ICT industries and negative in others. Forth, we investigate whether regional economic policy has a positive impact. Again using spatial econometrics techniques, not so standard in this case, our preliminary results show that the 16 German Laender seem not able to do change the path which is determined for the ICT industries by spatial and other variables.

Knowledge spillovers in Europe and its consequences for systems of innovation

European integration has traditionally been aimed at the reduction of barriers to intra European trade and factor mobility. This has been achieved by the abolition of tariffs and import duties, by liberalisation of capital movements and reduced barriers to foreign direct investments, by legislation facilitating mobility of people across the European Union, and by the abolition of various so-called non-tariff barriers to trade under the 1992 programme

Radhouane Briki, L’Analogie chez Diderot

Il est vrai, comme le constate l’auteur de ce livre, que l’analogie chez Diderot est « très peu étudiée » (p. 327). C’est avec d’autant plus d’intérêt que nous avons lu cet ouvrage de Radhouane Briki qui enseigne la littérature française en Tunisie, et qui a déjà publié sa thèse sur le dialogue romanesque au xviiie siècle en 2007 et une dizaine d’articles dans son pays. Le projet de Radhouane Briki consiste justement à étudier le statut et la fonction de l’analogie dans l’œuvre diderotienne. ..

Implementation and exploration of relative biological effectiveness in proton arc therapy

Masteroppgave i fysikkPHYS399MAMN-PHY

False and true philosophers: Holberg and a European debate in the 18th century

Opplysningstiden har blitt kalt filosofenes århundre. Men var en filosof på 1700-tallet noe annet enn tidligere? Siden antikken har filosofen vært en omstridt skikkelse i litterære og kunstneriske fremstillinger, så vel som i moralske, politiske og filosofiske diskusjoner. Også Ludvig Holberg (1684–1754) var opptatt av hva en filosof var og burde være. Selv om han nok ikke var så radikal som de berømte franske opplysningstenkerne, har hans iscenesettelser og refleksjoner overraskende mange berøringspunkter med deres ideer.publishedVersio

Les Bijoux indiscrets un roman de divertissement

On se propose de lire ce premier roman allégorique de Diderot comme un roman de divertissement. Un tel point de vue n’implique pas une dépréciation du texte en tant qu’oeuvre littéraire. L’impulsion de la narration des Bijoux indiscrets ne provient-elle pas tout d’abord du désir de s’amuser et le divertissement, conformément à l’étymologie, n’estil pas aussi détournement ? Ne peut-on en outre considérer le divertissement comme le pivot même, à tous les égards, du roman ?Les Bijoux indiscrets, a novel of distraction.This article proposes reading of Diderot’s first allegorical novel as a novel of distraction, a point of view which does not imply a depreciation of it as a literary work. It is clear that the narrative’s thrust comes above all from the desire for amusement (bearing in mind the etymological connexion between divertissement and détournement). Thus we can perhaps consider distraction as the pivot, from all points of view, of the novel