When is "Too Much" Inequality Not Enough? The Selection of Israeli Emigrants

This paper examines the effect of inequality on the incentives to emigrate according to a person's education and unobservable skills (residual wage). Borjas (1987) shows that higher skilled individuals are more likely to emigrate than lower skilled individuals when the returns to skill are higher in a potential foreign destination. Using a unique data set on Israeli emigrants, we show that the probability of emigrating indeed increases monotonically with education. However, the relationship between residual wages and emigration rates exhibits an inverse u-shaped pattern. We build a model to explain both of these patterns by incorporating the idea that education is a "general" skill which can be transferred to a foreign country, but residual wages are composed of "general" and "country-specific skills" which are not easily transferable. We test the model's predictions by exploiting variation in the patterns of emigration across industries and occupations. Our findings are consistent with the theory, and therefore, highlight the importance of differentiating between general and "country-specific" skills in order to understand emigrant selection.

Natural Selection and the Origin of Economic Growth

This research develops an evolutionary growth theory that captures the interplay between the evolution of mankind and economic growth since the emergence of the human species. This uni...ted theory encompasses the observed evolution of population, technology and income per capita in the long transition from an epoch of Malthusian stagnation to sustained economic growth. The theory suggests that prolonged economic stagnation prior to the transition to sustained growth stimulated natural selection that shaped the evolution of the human species, whereas the evolution of the human species was the origin of the tak-o from an epoch of stagnation to sustained growth.Growth; Technological Progress; Fertility; Human Capital; Evolution; Natural Selection; Malthusian Stagnation

Natural Selection and the Evolution of Life Expectancy

This research develops an evolutionary growth theory that captures the intricate time path of life expectancy in the process of development, shedding new light on the origin of the remarkable rise in life expectancy since the Agricultural Revolution. The theory argues that social, economic and environmental changes that were associated with the transition from hunter-gatherer tribes to sedentary agricultural communities and ultimately to urban societies affected the nature of the environmental hazards confronted by the human population, triggering an evolutionary process that had a significant impact on the time path of human longevity.Life Expectancy, Growth, Technological Progress, Evolution, Natural Selection, Malthusian Stagnation.

Das Human Kapital: A Theory of the Demise of the Class Structure

This paper hypothesizes that the demise of the 19th century's European class structure reflects a deliberate transformation of society orchestrated by the capitalists. Contrary to conventional wisdom, it argues that the demise of this class structure was an outcome of a cooperative, rather than divisive process. The research suggests that the transition from this class structure may be viewed as the outcome of an optimal reaction by the capitalists to the increasing importance of human capital in sustaining their profit rates. The paper argues that the process of capital accumulation gradually intensified the importance of skilled labor in the production process and generated an incentive for investment in human capital. Due to the complementarity between physical and human capital in production, the capitalists were among the prime beneficiaries of the accumulation of human capital by the masses. They therefore had the incentive to support public education that would sustain their profit rates and would improve their economic well-being, although it would ultimately undermine their dynasty's position in the social ladder. The research suggests that Karl Marx's highly influential prediction about the inevitable class struggle due to declining profit rates stemmed from an under appreciation of the role that human capital would play in the production process. The basic premise of this research, regarding the positive attitude of capitalists towards education reforms, is supported empirically by a newly constructed data set of the voting patterns on England's education reform proposed in the Balfour Act of 1902.Industrial Revolution, Human Capital, Growth, Class Structure, Education Reforms

Natural Selection and the Evolution of Life Expectancy

This research advances an evolutionary growth theory that captures the pattern of life expectancy in the process of development, shedding new light on the sources of the remarkable rise in life expectancy since the Agricultural Revolution. The theory suggests that social, economic and environmental changes that were associated with the transition from hunter-gatherer tribes to sedentary agricultural communities and ultimately to urban societies affected the nature of the environmental hazards confronted by the human population, triggering an evolutionary process that had a significant impact on the time path of human longevity.Life Expectancy, Growth, Technological Progress, Evolution, Natural Selection, Malthusian Stagnation

The Emergence of Human Capital Promoting Institutions in the Process of Development

This research suggests that favorable geographical conditions, that were inherently associated with inequality in the distribution of land ownership, adversely affected the implementation of human capital promoting institutions (e.g., public schooling and child labor regulations), and thus the pace and the nature of the transition from an agricultural to an industrial economy, contributing to the emergence of the Great Divergence in income per capita across countries.\QTR{it}{and Inequality, Institutions, Geography, Human capital accumulation, Growth}\medskip

Land Inequality and the Origin of Divergence and Overtaking in the Growth Process

This research develops a unified growth theory that captures the transition from the domination of geographical factors\ in the determination of productivity in early stages of development to the domination of institutional factors in mature stages of development. It identifies a novel channel through which favorable geographical conditions that were inherently associated with inequality adversely affected the emergence of institutions that promote human capital accumulation. The research suggests that the distribution of land ownership within and across countries affected the nature of the transition from an agrarian to an industrial economy generating diverging growth patterns across countries. Furthermore, the qualitative change in the role of land in the process of industrialization brought about changes in the ranking of countries in the world income distribution. The basic premise of this research, regarding the negative effect of land inequality on public expenditure on education is established empirically based on cross-state data from the High School Movement in the first half of the 20th century in the US.Land Inequality, Institutions, Geography, Human capital accumulation, Growth