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Is there a theory that explains the essence of consciousness? Or is consciousness itself just an illusion? The 'last great mystery of science', consciousness is a topic that was banned from serious research for most of the last century, but is now an area of increasing popular interest, as well as a rapidly expanding area of study for students of psychology, philosophy and neuroscience. This ground-breaking textbook by best-selling author Susan Blackmore was the first of its kind to bring together all the major theories of consciousness studies, from those based on neuroscience to those based on quantum theory or Eastern philosophy. The book examines topics such as how subjective experiences...
Productivity of inputs is an important determinant of the competitiveness of firms in national and international markets. Productivity growth arises from deliberate decisions to innovate but the technological opportunities could be such that different inputs would have different rates of growth. Previous literature has mostly concentrated on labor productivity but empirical studies indicate that productivity of capital is also increasing. One of the objectives of this book is to examine the difference or bias in the productivity growth of the two inputs. In this book, application of this general approach to study of biased technical change is developed and new empirical results presented for both macroeconomies and microeconomic firms.
Communications markets have made much progress towards competition and deregulation in recent years. However, it is increasingly clear, in the age of the Internet and the digital revolution, that much more needs to be done, and that new approaches, both at the Federal Communications Commission and in Congress, will be required to complete the task. In this volume, the Progress and Freedom Foundation presents nine papers by communications policy experts and government policymakers that show how to finish the job of deregulating communications markets and reforming the FCC. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was a landmark piece of legislation for an industry moving from a monopoly orientation...
Currency denomination remains a barrier to full financial integration, however, since both nominal and real returns on financial instruments vary widely by currency, even between currencies tied together by the European Monetary System. This study examines relative returns in the money and bond markets of these countries, investigating whether there are systematic variations in relative returns across currencies.
A Brookings Institution Press and Asian Development Bank Institute publication Meet the next global currency: the Chinese renminbi, or the "redback." Following the global financial crisis of 2008, China's major monetary policy objective is the internationalization of the renminbi, that is, to create an inter-national role for its currency akin to the international role currently played by the U.S. dollar. Renminbi internationalization is a hot topic, for good reason. It is, essentially, a window onto the Chinese government's aspirations and the larger process of economic and financial transformation. Making the renminbi a global currency requires rebalancing the Chinese economy, developing the country's financial markets and opening them to the rest of the world, and moving to a more flexible exchange rate. In other words, the internationalization of the renminbi is a monetary and financial issue with much broader supra-monetary and financial implications. This book offers a new perspective on the larger issues of economic, financial, and institutional change in what will eventually be the world's largest economy.
Developments of International Trade Theory offers the life-long reflections of a distinguished Japanese scholar who pioneered the application of general equilibrium theory to international trade. Written in a style that makes it easily accessible to scholars and students, the book combines standard topics on international trade with a discussion of the evolution of the theory and some recent discussions on topics like immiserizing growth. This book is presented in two parts. Part I examines the historical progression of international trade theory. Part II addresses the modern theory and recent developments of international trade. This book offers a comprehensive evaluation of the non-monetary problems of international economics.
This handbook offers a unique and original collection of analytical studies in Islamic economics and finance, and constitutes a humble addition to the literature on new economic thinking and global finance. The growing risks stemming from higher debt, slower growth, and limited room for policy maneuver raise concerns about the ability and propensity of modern economies to find effective solutions to chronic problems. It is important to understand the structural roots of inherent imbalance, persistence-in-error patterns, policy and governance failures, as well as moral and ethical failures. Admittedly, finance and economics have their own failures, with abstract theory bearing little relation...
Abstract: One of the biggest criticisms leveled at defined contribution individual account (IA) components of social security systems is that they are too expensive. This paper investigates the cost-effectiveness of three options for constructing funded social security pillars: 1) IA's invested in the retail market with relatively open choice, 2) IA's invested in the institutional market with constrained choice among investment companies, and 3) a centralized fund without individual accounts or differentiated investments across individuals. Our questions: What is the most cost-effective way to organize a mandatory IA system, how does the cost of an efficient IA system compare with that of a ...
This book demonstrates that episodes of major financial instability develop when the United States engages in large deficit-financed military buildup.