Recent Trends in the Distribution of Income: Labor, Wealth and More Complete Measures of Well Being

>The impact of the great recession on inequality is unclear. Because the crises in the housing and stock markets and mass job loss affect incomes from across the entire distribution, the overall impact on inequality is difficult to determine. Early speculation using a variety of narrow measures of earnings, income and consumption yield contradictory results. In this paper, we develop new estimates of income inequality based on ‘more complete income’ (MCI), which augments standard income measures with those that are accrued from the ownership of wealth. We use the 1989-2007 Surveys of Consumer Finances, and also construct MCI measures for 2009 based on projections of assets, income, and earnings. We investigate the level and trend in MCI inequality and compare it to other estimates of overall and ‘high incomes’ in the literature. Compared to standard measures of income, MCI suggests higher levels of inequality and slightly larger increases in inequality over time. Several MCI-based inequality measures peaked in 2007 at their highest levels in twenty years. The combined impact of the “great recession” on the housing, stock, and labor markets after 2007 has reduced some measures of income inequality at the top of the MCI distribution. Despite declining from the 2007 peak, however, inequality remains as high as levels experienced earlier in the decade, and much higher than most points over the last twenty years. In the middle of the income distribution, the declines in income from wealth after 2007 were the result of diminished value of residential real estate; at the top of the distribution declines in the value of business assets had the greatest impact. We also assess the level and trend in the functional distribution of income between capital and labor, and find a rising share of income accruing to real capital or wealth from 1989 to 2007. The recent economic crisis has diminished the capital share back to levels from 2004. Contrary to the findings of other researchers, we find that the labor share of income among high-income groups declined between 1992 and 2007.

Concert recording 2019-03-07b

[Track 1]. Anthropology / Charlie Parker -- [Track 2]. Night song / Traditional melody of the People\u27s Republic of China arranged by He Zong -- [Track 3]. Dawn interlude / Paul Stanhope -- [Track 4]. Tanquito / Dante Yenque -- [Tracks 5-9]. Searching for the light / Timothy Thompson -- [Track 10]. Prism / Daniel Baldwin -- [Track 11]. Just desserts / Lowell Shaw

Suppression of Tumor Suppressors in Prostate Cancer: The Emergence of a Novel Oncogenic Pathway

Elucidating oncogenic pathways in prostate cancer is an arduous task. In this issue of Cancer Cell, Yu and colleagues show that repression of Adrenergic Receptor Beta-2 gene expression by Enhancer of Zeste 2 results in acquisition of transforming activities. It is interesting that these activities point to a role for GTPases as important regulators of transformation in prostate cancer cells. They further implicate epithelial-mesenchymal transition as a biologic end point in this process. Overall, on the basis of their findings, the authors nominate a novel oncogenic pathway for prostate cancer that deserves critical thought and attention

Solid-state NMR studies of absorption onto activated carbon

This is a study of adsorption on three activated carbon substrates using solid- state NMR. The adsorbates used as probe molecules included a range of phosphates, phosphonates and deuterated water. High-resolution (^31)p and (^2)H NMR spectra have been obtained using magic-angle spinning and a single-pulse regime. The deuterium results include the generation of an adsorption isotherm. The traditional gravimetric analysis and NMR experiments were run concurrently. These results showed that the NMR technique was qualitatively and quantitatively accurate, while the proven adsorption isotherm theory could be applied to the NMR results. The additional information given by the (^2)H NMR results showed evidence of two distinct adsorption sites. Initial adsorption in the micropores gives a peak shifted by 6 ppm to low frequency of the liquid (^2)H(_2)O. This peak was broadened due to restricted motion in the micropores. The second peak was observed only at high relative humidities and was attributed to adsorption on the external surface or in macropores. The chemical shift was similar to that of the pure liquid. The (^31)p NMR results were used to directly observe the adsorption of phosphates with a range of molecular sizes. The NMR data were used to calculate the micropore accessibility for each phosphate. Differences in the adsorption mechanism were recorded, and direct comparison for each carbon gave some structural information. It was possible to follow competition reactions over time periods of 1 min to 24 hours. A battlefield simulation was studied, with (^2)H(_2)O and a phosphate competing for the adsorption sites. The NMR results showed that the phosphate was preferentially adsorbed into the micropores, displacing the (^2)H(_2)O However, the addition of (^2)H(_2)O to a carbon saturated with a phosphate enabled more phosphate to be adsorbed into the micropores via a cooperative mechanism. Measurements of the transverse relaxation for adsorbed molecules suggest that the broad micropore signal consists of some overlapping peaks. The peaks width similar chemical shift are attributed to adsorption in pores with differing dimensions. The natural linewidth involves broadening caused by restricted anisotropic motion within the micropores

FROM BOLOGNA TO BERLIN 1999-2003: THE INITIAL STEPS OF THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND CREATION OF THE EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA

The processes of European integration and the forming of the European Union begun at the end of World War II did not include education as part of that agenda. As revealed in a review of the literature, education came into the process through indirect means. The processes of European integration and the forming of the European Union have fostered processes that have influence domestic policies. Characterized as Europeanization, those processes have influenced and are at the root of European nations forming an intergovernmental cross-border agreement in 1999 to change their higher education systems. Known as the Bologna Declaration, the reforms called for focus on six objectives and include a key principle of European integration, mobility. This dissertation focuses on reviewing the antecedents to the Bologna Process, the direct influences of the Bologna Declaration, and the reports prepared for the 2003 Berlin follow-up meeting that are statements of the progress toward the implementation of the six objectives of the Bologna Declaration. This review suggests that the key instruments of change, harmonization of higher education, and the building of the European Higher Education Area are the first four objectives of the Bologna Process: 1) a system of easily readable and comparable degrees; 2) a system based on two main cycles: undergraduate and graduate; 3) a system of credits, and; 4) the promotion of mobility. Further, the Bologna Declaration represents a process of the Europeanization of higher education. The findings suggest that by 2003 while in the majority nations articulate commitments to the Bologna Process and progress toward the implementation of policy changes, what steps were taken to achieve the four main objectives of the Bologna process depend on the degree to which nations carry out the reforms called for in the Bologna Declaration

Recreational Use of Six Prairie Wetlands in Eastern South Dakota

A recreational use survey was conducted at 6 public wetlands in eastern South Dakota from August 9, 1981 through August 8, 1982. Four hundred and fifty-eight postcard questionnaires were placed on vehicles encountered at these marshes during random time periods. Two hundred and thirty-five were voluntarily returned for a response rate of 51.3%. Approximately 10, 020 people made 4,778 trips to these wetlands and spent 63, 093 man-hours. Thirty-one different activities were observed or reported. Hunting accounted for 96.0% of all fall trips and 89.1% of yearly visits. Over 89% of all visits occurred during fall and over 50% of the trips were multiple use. Duck hunting occurred during 83. 8% of all fall trips; goose hunting, 4-g. 5%; and pheasant hunting, 23.0%. Users came from 25 South Dakota counties and several other states. Seventy-two percent of all users lived within an hour drive of the marshes. The average user of the study sites made 19.4 trips for consumptive activities and 4.1 trips for non-consumptive activities per year to South Dakota public marshes. Marsh usage during the opening week of waterfowl season was significantly greater (F = 3. 81, P = 0. 002) than all other weekly totals. Opening weeks for pheasant and trapping seasons also showed peak usage, although trapping accounted for just 2. 7% of all fall trips. It appeared that high goose concentrations also contributed to greater usage by hunters. Both holidays and weekends received more use than weekdays. Fifty-five percent of the total use was in the morning. Most duck hunters used the sunrise to 0900 period and goose hunters the 0900 to noon period. There was no significant difference (F = 0. 28, P =0.885) among time periods used by pheasant hunters. The net present value of these wetland study sites is $653 per hectare for hunting alone when infinitely discounted into the future using the social discount rate of 7. 875$123, 279 for the 198 1 hunting season. In addition, wetlands provide other recreational benefits that cannot be recorded through on-site studies

GGD 27: X-rays from a Massive Protostar with an Outflow

We report the discovery of a cluster of Class I protostars in GGD 27. One of these protostars is the previously known, centrally located, GGD 27-ILL, which powers a massive bipolar outflow. We show that GGD 27-ILL, which is known to be the bright infrared (IR) source, IRAS 18162-2048, and a compact radio continuum source, is also the newly discovered hard X-ray source, GGD 27-X. The observations were made with the ACIS instrument on the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The X-rays from GGD 27-X are variable when compared with 4 years earlier, with an unabsorbed 2-10 keV X-ray luminosity in this observation of 1.5-12 × 10^31 erg s^–1 and a plasma temperature of ≥ 10^7 K. The X-rays are probably associated with the underlying B0 star (rather than outflowing material), providing a rare glimpse in hard X-rays of an optically obscured massive protostar with an outflow. The X-ray luminosity and spectrum appear to be consistent with stars of its type in other star formation regions. Several other variable X-ray sources are also detected in the IR cluster that contains GGD 27-X. We also discuss another nearby cluster. In each of the clusters there is an object that is X-ray hard, highly absorbed at low energies, in a blank optical/IR/radio field, and variable in X-ray intensity by a factor of ≥ 10 on a timescale of 4 years. These latter objects may arise from more recent episodes of star formation or may be "hidden" Class III sources

Fostering Campus Diversity and Advancing the Internationalization of Education on College and University Campuses

This paper discusses the challenges that institutions of higher education face in educating and preparing students to work and live in an increasingly diverse global population. This concept-oriented discussion does not intend to provide detailed theoretical or experimental development and analysis. Instead, this paper presents an innovative paradigm that attempts to embrace many nuances associated with the terms diversity and globalization in the literature. The paper posits the internationalization of education as a strategy that can help universities demonstrate their commitment to educating students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Other strategies include targeted recruiting of highly competent international faculty and students, and focusing on the language skills that international faculty and students bring to U.S. campuses. The paper concludes that institutions of higher education must revise their mission to accommodate new operational methods that will enable students to be effective global citizens