The Impact of 9/11 on Hours of Work in the United States

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether workers’ commitment to the labor force declined after 9/11, as many popular press accounts at the time suggested it would. The results indicate that any measured decline in hours spent working was the result of economic conditions rather than changes in desired hours of work. Controlling for economic conditions, hours of work after 9/11 actually increased on average compared to before 9/11; no significant change in hours spent working occurred among residents of New York City, however

The Optimal Tax Treatment of Housing Capital in the Neoclassical Growth Model

In a dynamic setting, housing is both an asset and a consumption good.But should it be taxed like other forms of consumption or like other forms of saving?We consider the optimal taxation of the imputed rent from owner housing within a version of the neoclassical growth model.We find that the optimal tax rate on the imputed rent is quite sensitive to the constraints imposed on the other available tax rates.In general, it is not optimal to tax the imputed rent at the same rate as the business capital income

Independent and interactive associations of dietary nitrate and salt intake with blood pressure and cognitive function: a cross-sectional analysis in the InCHIANTI study

This is the final version. Available on open access from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this recordData availability statement: The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article [and/or] its supplementary materials. The datasets used and/or analysed during the cur-rent study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.Blood pressure (BP) control is a key target for interventions to reduce cognitive decline. This cross-sectional study explored associations between objective (24-hour urine excretion) and subjective (food frequency questionnaire [FFQ]) measures of dietary sodium and nitrate intakes with cognitive function and resting BP in the InCHIANTI cohort. Baseline data from 989 participants aged >50 years were included. In fully adjusted models, participants with concurrent high nitrate and low sodium (Odds Ratio (OR)=0.49, 95%CI 0.32-0.76, p = 0.001) and high nitrate and high sodium (OR = 0.49, 95%CI 0.32-0.77, p = 0.002) 24-hour urinary concentrations had lower odds of high BP than participants with low nitrate and high sodium concentrations. We found no significant associations between sodium and nitrate intakes (24-hour urinary concentrations and FFQ) and poor cognitive performance. Urinary nitrate excretion was associated with lower BP and results appeared to be independent of sodium intake. Further analyses in longitudinal studies are required to substantiate these findings.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR

Protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial to determine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of independent pharmacist prescribing in care home: the CHIPPS study

Background: Prescribing, monitoring and administration of medicines in care homes could be improved. Research has identified the need for one person to assume overall responsibility for the management of medicines within each care home. and shown that a pharmacist independent prescriber service is feasible in this context. Aims and objectives: To conduct a cluster randomised controlled trial to determine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a pharmacist-independent prescribing service in care homes compared to usual general practitioner (GP)-led care. Objectives: To perform a definitive randomised controlled trial (RCT) with an internal pilot to determine the intervention’s effectiveness and cost-effectiveness and enable modelling beyond the end of the trial. Methods: This protocol is for a cluster RCT with a 3-month internal pilot to confirm that recruitment is achievable, and there are no safety concerns. The unit of randomisation is a triad comprising a pharmacist-independent prescriber (PIP) based in a GP practice with sufficient registered patients resident in one or more care homes to allow recruitment of an average of 20 participants. In the intervention group, the PIP will, in collaboration with the GP: assume responsibility for prescribing and managing residents’ medicines including medication review and pharmaceutical care planning; support systematic ordering and administration in the care home, GP practice and supplying pharmacy; train care home and GP practice staff; communicate with GP practice, care home, supplying community pharmacy and study team. The intervention will last 6 months. The primary outcome will be resident falls at 6 months. Secondary outcomes include resident health-related quality of life, falls at 3 months, medication burden, medication appropriateness, mortality and hospitalisations. A full health economic analysis will be undertaken. The target sample size is 880 residents (440) in each arm) from 44 triads. This number is sufficient to detect a decrease in fall rate from 1.5 per individual to 1.178 (relative reduction of 21%) with 80% power and an ICC of 0.05 or less. Discussion: Recruitment is on-going and the trial should complete in early 2020. The trial results will have implications for the future management of residents in care homes and the ongoing implementation of independent pharmacist prescribing. Trial registration: ISRCTN, ID: 17847169. Registered on 15 December 2017

Pragmatists versus dogmatists: Explaining the failure of power-sharing in Northern Ireland during the 1970s

This article argues that the failure of Northern Ireland’s first power-sharing executive, and subsequent attempts to restore power-sharing during the 1970s, was the result of conflicting attitudes towards devolution among Northern Ireland’s politicians. Traditional ideological divisions between nationalists and unionists were not the primary barrier to creating and sustaining cross-community institutions, as stressed in accounts of this period premised on consociational theory. Drawing extensively from archival sources, it argues that the split between the pragmatists from both communities, who were prepared to compromise their core principles and accept power-sharing devolution within a UK framework, and the dogmatists (both nationalists and unionists) who refused to contemplate any compromise to their core position, prevented a consensual political settlement emerging during the 1970s

Modelling a Historic Oil-Tank Fire Allows an Estimation of the Sensitivity of the Infrared Receptors in Pyrophilous Melanophila Beetles

Pyrophilous jewel beetles of the genus Melanophila approach forest fires and there is considerable evidence that these beetles can detect fires from great distances of more than 60 km. Because Melanophila beetles are equipped with infrared receptors and are also attracted by hot surfaces it can be concluded that these infrared receptors are used for fire detection

Optimal Taxation with Home Production

Optimal taxes for Europe and the U.S. are derived in a realistically calibrated model in which agents buy consumption goods and services and use home capital and labor to produce household services. The optimal tax rate on services is substantially lower than the tax rate on goods. Specifically, the planner cannot tax home production directly and instead lowers the tax rate on market services to increase the relative price of home production. The optimal tax rate on the return to home capital is strictly positive and the welfare gains from switching to optimal taxes are large