The Challenges of the "New Economy" for Monetary Policy

The advent and spread of information and communication technologies (ICTs) increase potential output growth . It is uncertain to what extent and for how long they do so. We use the term "new economy" (NE) to describe the acceleration in potential output growth and the attendant and partly temporary slowdown in inflation. Assessing the NE is however a complicated and delicate task. The impact of the NE on the conduct of monetary policy may differ depending on the time scale. In a long-run perspective, the central bank could capitalise on the NE to set lower inflation targets. In the short to medium term, central banks should be cautious when identifying changing patterns in potential output growth, as temporary errors in appreciation may have an asymmetrical impact on economic stability: the production instability that could result from central banks mistakenly perceiving the advent of a NE would be greater than that generated by the failure to recognise a genuine rise in potential output growth.Monetary policy ; Productivity ; New economy ; Uncertainty ; Measurement issues.

Source integrals of asymptotic multipole moments

We derive source integrals for multipole moments that describe the behaviour of static and axially symmetric spacetimes close to spatial infinity. We assume isolated non-singular sources but will not restrict the matter content otherwise. Some future applications of these source integrals of the asymptotic multipole moments are outlined as well.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figure, contribution to the proceedings of the conference "Relativity and Gravitation - 100 Years after Einstein in Prague", June 25-29, 2012, Pragu

Environmental stress and the effects of mutation

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at http://jbiol.com/content/2/2/12Mutations are the ultimate fuel for evolution, but most mutations have a negative effect on fitness. It has been widely accepted that these deleterious fitness effects are, on average, magnified in stressful environments. Recent results suggest that the effects of deleterious mutations can, instead, sometimes be ameliorated in stressful environments.The Spanish Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) funds S.F.E., and J.A.G.M.dV. is funded by a fellowship from the Netherlands Organization of Scientific Research (NWO).Peer reviewe