A look at long-term developments in the distribution of income

Developments in the distribution of income have received much attention over the past decade. Several analysts have argued that income gains have gone almost exclusively to the highest paid 20 percent of the population, leaving no gains to the remaining 80 percent. ; Joseph H. Haslag and Lori L. Taylor examine developments in income inequality over the past forty years and estimate which factors account for these changes over time. While some researchers have found that income distribution became more equal during the 1950s and 1960s and then less equal after the mid-1970s, Haslag and Taylor find evidence that an upward trend in income inequality has been occurring since the early 1950s. They also find that movements in the income inequality measure are mostly determined by persistence; that is, income inequality adjusts gradually. Demographic features account for nearly 25 percent of the variation in income inequality, while policy actions explain less than 15 percent.Income distribution

Trends in income mobility

Income distribution

Non-Competition Agreements and Research Productivity in the Biotechnology Industry

This paper examines the impact of the state-level legal structure, namely the legal support for non-competition agreements, on research productivity. Specifically, we study how California’s unique lack of non-competition agreement laws influences product develop when controlling for local munificence and firm-level technological capability. Our results indicate that California’s unique legal structure is negatively associated with research productivity as measured by the number of products in development at the time a biotechnology firm goes public. Further, firm size moderates this relationship such that the effect is stronger for smaller biotechnology firms

An Assessment of the Appropriateness to the Royal Australian Air Force of a Masters Level Professional Program in Information Systems

This study assessed the appropriateness, to the Royal Australian Air Force RAAF, of a graduate professional program in Information Systems (IS) based on the Association for Computing Machinery’s ACM curriculum model. The ACM curriculum model is an archetype of graduate education in IS. Programs based on this model produce graduates with knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that are required by IS practitioners. The usefulness of twenty KSAs that underlie the ACM curriculum model were evaluated by 33 incumbents of RAAF information Systems Agencies and Directorate of Communications and Information Systems - Air Force. Although uncertain about the educational background suited to their requirements, the respondents found 17 of the KSAs at least somewhat useful, indicating that education based on the ACM curriculum model is appropriate. Recommendations include developing a RAAF IS education strategy based on the KSAs, promoting the benefits of IS education, using graduate diplomas in IS as an effective and efficient means of obtaining the necessary KSAs, and examining RAAF sponsored bachelor degrees in IS to ensure that appropriate KSAs are being provided. Future research should identify graduate diploma programs that provide the relevant KSAs presented

Chronicity and Mental Health Service Utilization for Anxiety, Mood, and Substance Use Disorders among Black Men in the United States; Ethnicity and Nativity Differences.

This study investigated ethnic and nativity differences in the chronicity and treatment of psychiatric disorders of African American and Caribbean Black men in the U.S. Data were analyzed from the National Survey of American Life, a population-based study which included 1859 self-identified Black men (1222 African American, 176 Caribbean Black men born within the U.S., and 461 Caribbean Black men born outside the U.S.). Lifetime and twelve-month prevalence of DSM-IV mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders (including Bipolar I and Dysthmia), disorder chronicity, and rate of mental health services use among those meeting criteria for a lifetime psychiatric disorder were examined. Logistic regression models were employed to determine ethnic differences in chronicity, and treatment utilization for disorders. While rates of DSM-IV disorders were generally low in this community sample of Black men, their disorders were chronic and remained untreated. Caribbean Black men born in the U.S. had higher prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, and Alcohol Abuse Disorder compared with African American men. Foreign born Caribbean Black men experienced greater chronicity in Social Phobia and Generalized Anxiety Disorder compared to other Black Men. Utilization of mental health service was low for all groups of Black Men, but lowest for the foreign born Caribbean Black men. Results underscore the large unmet needs of both African American and Caribbean Black men in the United States. Results also highlight the role of ethnicity and nativity in mental disorder chronicity and mental health service utilization patterns of Black men

Childhood Asthma Utilization Rates in a Nonsmoking Population of Utah Compared to State and National Rates

Risk factors, such as parental smoking, are commonly associated with increased asthma symptoms and hospitalizations of children. Deseret Mutual Benefits Administrators (DMBA) is the health insurer for employees of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and their families. Due to religious proscription, employees abstain from alcohol and tobacco use, creating a cohort of children not exposed to parental smoking. Calculation of hospitalization rates for DMBA, Utah, and the US were made in children to compare rates between a nonsmoking population and general populations. Compared to DMBA, rate ratios for asthma hospitalization and emergency department asthma visits were higher for the US and Utah. The incidence of hospital outpatient department and physician office visits was significantly greater for the US population compared to the DMBA. This study demonstrates a decreased need for health services used by children not exposed to second-hand smoke

The genomic health of ancient hominins

The genomes of ancient humans, Neandertals, and Denisovans contain many alleles that influence disease risks. Using genotypes at 3180 disease-associated loci, we estimated the disease burden of 147 ancient genomes. After correcting for missing data, genetic risk scores were generated for nine disease categories and the set of all combined diseases. These genetic risk scores were used to examine the effects of different types of subsistence, geography, and sample age on the number of risk alleles in each ancient genome. On a broad scale, hereditary disease risks are similar for ancient hominins and modern-day humans, and the GRS percentiles of ancient individuals span the full range of what is observed in present day individuals. In addition, there is evidence that ancient pastoralists may have had healthier genomes than hunter-gatherers and agriculturalists. We also observed a temporal trend whereby genomes from the recent past are more likely to be healthier than genomes from the deep past. This calls into question the idea that modern lifestyles have caused genetic load to increase over time. Focusing on individual genomes, we find that the overall genomic health of the Altai Neandertal is worse than 97% of present day humans and that Ötzi the Tyrolean Iceman had a genetic predisposition to gastrointestinal and cardiovascular diseases. As demonstrated by this work, ancient genomes afford us new opportunities to diagnose past human health, which has previously been limited by the quality and completeness of remain