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The comparative study of housing decommodification lags behind classical welfare state research, while housing research itself is rich in homeownership studies but lacks comparative accounts of private and social rentals due to missing comparative data. Building on existing works and various primary sources, this study presents a new collection of up to forty-eight countries' social housing shares in stock and new construction since the first housing laws around 1900. The interpolated benchmark time series generally describes the rise and fall of social housing across a residual, a socialist, and a Northern-European housing group. The decline was steeper than for the classical welfare state, but the degree of erosion was surprisingly small in some countries where public housing associations remained resilient. Within the broader housing welfare state, social housing correlates positively with rent regulation and allowances, but negatively with homeownership subsidies and liberal mortgage regulation. A multivariate analysis shows that social housing is rather explained by housing shortages and complementarities with rental and welfare policies than by typical welfare state theories (GDP, political parties). Generally, the paper shows that conventional housing typologies are difficult to defend over time and argues more generally for including housing decommodification in welfare state research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ordoliberalism has been accused of being the ideational blueprint for Germany's fiscal stance during the Eurozone-crisis. While the literature that debates the influence of ordoliberalism on crisis politics is growing, there is a lack of studies tracing the ordoliberal influence within Germany. This study shows that ordoliberalism had very limited influence on the creation of German institutions and its economic knowledge regime. Where ordoliberalism can be found is in the bureaucracy. This influence will come to an end with the last ordoliberals retiring. The article reconstructs how the reorientation of German economics towards the global economics profession crowded out ordoliberalism. Ordoliberalism, publishing mostly in German and not being able to formalize its theory, could not keep up with modern German economics. This will also dry up the supply of ordoliberal staff for the bureaucracy. The article shows also that ordoliberalism lives on as part of the German conservative political tradition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Numerous prospective biomarkers are being studied for their ability to diagnose various stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). High-density electroencephalogram (EEG) methods show promise as an accurate, economical, non-invasive approach to measuring the electrical potentials of brains associated with AD. Event-related potentials (ERPs) may serve as clinically useful biomarkers of AD. Through analysis of secondary data, the present study examined the performance and distribution of N4/P6 ERPs across the frontoparietal network (FPN) using EEG topographic mapping. ERP measures and memory as a function of reaction time (RT) were compared between a group of (n = 63) mild untreated AD patients and a control group of (n = 73) healthy age-matched adults. Based on the literature presented, it was expected that healthy controls would outperform patients in peak amplitude and mean component latency across three parameters of memory when measured at optimal N4 (frontal) and P6 (parietal) locations. It was also predicted that the control group would exhibit neural cohesion through FPN integration during cross-modal tasks, thus demonstrating healthy cognitive functioning consistent with older healthy adults. By targeting select frontal and parietal EEG reference channels based on N4/P6 component time windows and positivity, our findings demonstrated statistically significant group variations between controls and patients in N4/P6 peak amplitudes and latencies during cross-modal testing. Our results also support that the N4 ERP might be stronger than its P6 counterpart as a possible candidate biomarker. We conclude through topographic mapping that FPN integration occurs in healthy controls but is absent in AD patients during cross-modal memory tasks.

Numerous prospective biomarkers are being studied for their ability to diagnose various stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD). High-density electroencephalogram (EEG) methods show promise as an accurate, economical, non-invasive approach to measuring the electrical potentials of brains associated with AD. Event-related potentials (ERPs) may serve as clinically useful biomarkers of AD. Through analysis of secondary data, the present study examined the performance and distribution of N4/P6 ERPs across the frontoparietal network (FPN) using EEG topographic mapping. ERP measures and memory as a function of reaction time (RT) were compared between a group of (n = 63) mild untreated AD patients and a control group of (n = 73) healthy age-matched adults. Based on the literature presented, it was expected that healthy controls would outperform patients in peak amplitude and mean component latency across three parameters of memory when measured at optimal N4 (frontal) and P6 (parietal) locations. It was also predicted that the control group would exhibit neural cohesion through FPN integration during cross-modal tasks, thus demonstrating healthy cognitive functioning consistent with older healthy adults. By targeting select frontal and parietal EEG reference channels based on N4/P6 component time windows and positivity, our findings demonstrated statistically significant group variations between controls and patients in N4/P6 peak amplitudes and latencies during cross-modal testing. Our results also support that the N4 ERP might be stronger than its P6 counterpart as a possible candidate biomarker. We conclude through topographic mapping that FPN integration occurs in healthy controls but is absent in AD patients during cross-modal memory tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This book review focuses mainly on McCloskey's use and advocacy of rhetoric as it applies to liberalism. We summarize McCloskey's understanding of the importance of rhetoric to a proper grasp of the nature and value of liberalism. In the process we also raise questions about the foundations of rhetoric as a tool for substantive persuasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The war between Russia and Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, and it has had a significant influence on the Indian economy. Different foreign companies functioning in Russia have stopped facilities owing to the crisis. Examples include PayPal, McDonald's, and Disney, among many others. Thus, this study looks into the Russia-Ukraine crisis and how it affects India's financial sector. The Objective of this study is to study the impact of the war crisis between Russia and Ukraine, to determine the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war on the financial sector of India and to identify the factor which carries an impact on the financial sector of India. Descriptive in nature, the research relies heavily on government publications and papers from public and private sector organisations in India to gather data for the study. Articles, journals, and the internet were used to acquire data. The findings of this study are explained in terms of the Nifty 50's movements and their link to important events in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Crypto-asset can be traded on many different exchanges worldwide with servers located in countries with different financial characteristics and institutional surroundings. Trading volume on these servers varies considerably regarding the server's location, even though the prices do not differ greatly. Crypto-asset markets are poorly regulated and, as such, may leave a place for potential fraudulent activities and be linked to corruption. This paper aims to examine the role of country's institutions in attracting Bitcoin traders. Design/methodology/approach: Assuming heterogeneity between countries where crypto-asset exchange servers are located, the Pool Mean Group Estimator is used. Findings: Results indicate that, from institutional variables, corruption in the country attracts while internal and external conflicts repel investors. Additionally, the growth of global uncertainty and the decline in the local stock markets motivate investors to trade Bitcoin. Originality/value: Previous research has empirically proved the importance of institutions' quality for financial market development. This paper goes one step further and tries to empirically confirm the theoretical assumptions and investigate in detail the role of institutions in choosing servers in a particular country for Bitcoin trading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a framework for understanding the origin of market-preserving government. The paper shows that when parties in a Hobbesian society end in an arms race rather than war, they can create a market-preserving government to maintain the no-war equilibrium at lower cost. The government can be small yet effective or larger and more efficient. Under certain conditions, the parties are better off completely disarming themselves, paving the road for a modern society with equal rights for all citizens and a government monopoly on violence. The war-economic theory of political development sheds light on historical experiences and contemporary policy issues.

Does democracy cause gender equality? To address this question, I use the unexpected Second Vatican Council (1962–65) as part of a shock-based identification strategy. The Second Vatican Council brought forward in time transitions to democracy that would have happened anyway and triggered transitions to democracy that would not otherwise have occurred. I use this plausibly exogenous variation in democracy to offer a causal estimate. According to my baseline specification, one standard deviation increase in democracy leads to three-fifths of a standard deviation increase in gender equality. I also peruse qualitative evidence to sketch a causal mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green consumption is expected to become a new driving force for sustainable economic growth. The production cost of green products leads to the existence of a green premium, which affects the willingness to pay for green consumption. Moreover, willingness to pay is influenced by the product's own attributes, such as its hedonic and utilitarian attributes. Our study used the event-related potentials (ERPs) technique to investigate how product attributes and premiums affect information processing and subsequent decision-making by comparing consumers' acceptance of hedonic and utilitarian green products with different levels of premiums. Behavioral results indicated that consumers were more willing to pay premiums for utilitarian attributes than for hedonic attributes. ERPs results showed that hedonic attributes induced a greater P2 component, suggesting that price increases for hedonic products elicited more cognitive attention in the early cognitive stage and that the high premium condition did not match the hedonic attributes. In the late cognitive stage, where the utilitarian attribute induced higher N4, the consumers used the green consumption concept as a reason to reduce the negative emotions generated by the hedonic attribute and thus were more willing to accept the green premium for the hedonic product. The findings can be used to explain the psychological and neural activities of consumers at different stages when faced with the degree of product attribute-premium and help companies optimize their pricing strategies by using green products' attributes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russia's invasion of Ukraine presents many challenges to the international order. To understand what is at stake, we argue that the nature of the political regime matters to understand this conflict. We propose a classification of three different types of political regimes (empires, nation states and democracies) and propose a comparative analysis of a number of their institutional and economic dimensions: tendency towards geographical expansionism or fragmentation, cultural heterogeneity, focus of public spending and a number of other variables. We use this setup to analyze the situation in Northeast Asia as well as the consequences of the invasion of Ukraine for that region.

Jun Bian,1– 3 Huijian Fu,4,5 Jia Jin5 1Department of Traffic Information, Zhejiang Expressway Information Engineering Technology CO., LTD, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2ZEIET Research Institute, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Neuromanagement Lab, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Electronic Commerce, School of Management, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 5Academy of Neuroeconomics and Neuromanagement, Ningbo University, Ningbo, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Huijian Fu Email huijian_fu@gdut.edu.cnPurpose: Safety signs are widely used to deliver safety-related information. There are many different types of safety signs. Although previous studies have paid attention to the design and effectiveness of safety signs, little attention has been devoted to investigating how people process the information conveyed by different types of safety signs. Accordingly, the current study is intended to explore the neural mechanisms underlying people’s perception of different types of safety signs.Methods: Three types of safety signs (prohibition, mandatory and warning signs) were used in the study. We employed questionnaire and event-related potentials (ERPs) experiment with an implicit paradigm to probe how people perceive these three types of safety signs.Results: Behaviorally, warning signs induced a higher level of perceived hazard than prohibition signs and mandatory signs, and prohibition signs induced a higher level of perceived hazard than mandatory signs. At the brain level, prohibition signs and warning signs led to reduced P2 amplitudes compared to mandatory signs. In addition, warning signs elicited larger N2 and N4 amplitudes than prohibition signs and mandatory signs, and prohibition signs elicited larger N2 and N4 amplitudes than mandatory signs, coinciding with the behavioral results.Conclusion: Different types of safety signs led to significant differences in individuals’ hazard perception. Based on the neural results, we suggest that the processing of safety signs consists of two stages: the rapid detection of hazard information (indicated by P2) and the conscious integration of hazard information in working memory (indicated by N2 and N4).Keywords: safety sign, hazard perception, event-related potentials, P2, N2, N4

Activation of molecular N 2 and its catalytic ability to form NH 3 using C 17 Si has been already reported. This current study reports the formation of exclusive polynitrogen clusters (N 4 and N 5 ) on the C 17 Si ring. The clusters are generated using N 2 and N 3 respectively. Physical and chemical property analyses of the clusters show that the N 5 cluster exhibits greater stability than N 4 . The former is seen to experience reduced molecular strain compared to the latter owing to its co-planar geometry. The thermodynamic calculations of the systems further show that the formation of the N 5 cluster is spontaneous compared to N 4 on the C 17 Si ring., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Gross margin, as a measure of profitability has been associated with an enterprise and for a single product. The determinants of the gross margin have also been investigated using multiple regression. Whilst attempts have been made to model joint production, this has not been the case for gross margin for joint production. Further, multiple regression analysis is inadequate in modelling the gross margins of joint production. In this paper, we contribute to the literature by estimating gross margin for a joint product, decomposed the gross margin into the respective joint products and investigated the drivers (and constraints) of the joint product gross margins by use of multivariate multiple regression. Using data on smallholder palm fruit processing in Ghana, collected using a pretested questionnaire, we have shown that, attention must not be on the gross margin of the major product alone, in a joint production environment. Gender (being female), number of years of formal education, experience in palm oil processing and credit explained the joint product gross margin. Government, NGOs and other development partners should encourage females to stay longer in the formal school system and enhance credit opportunities to smallholder palm oil processors. The gross margin of the complete set of the joint product must be considered. We showed that failure to account for the minor product would underestimate the gross margin. The outcome is useful for computing profit margins in a joint production environment. Also, it assists the manager in identifying what factors to tweak to increase the profit margin for the joint product.

Background: Resistant growth is recognized as a significant public health hazard to human health worldwide among the most critical bacterial diseases. The evolving multidrug-resistant species are now commonly found in community settings, not just in the hospital area, which means that antibiotic bacteria reservoirs are beyond the hospital. Aim: In this study, we synthesized novel N4, N4'-dibutyl-3,3'-dinitro-[1,1'-biphenyl]-4,4'-diamine from 3,3'-dinitro-[1,1'-biphenyl]-4,4'-diamine and evaluation of its antimicrobial activity against clinical bacteria. Methods: Single-step synthesis of novel N4, N4'-dibutyl-3,3'-dinitro-[1,1'-biphenyl]-4,4'-diamine from 3,3'-dinitro-[1,1'-biphenyl]-4,4'-diamine and well characterized using spectroscopic methods, namely FT-IR, NMR, mass spectrometry, and CHNS. Besides, prepared compound molecular docking investigations, molecular physicochemical, absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) analysis were also carried out. Results and Discussion: Novel Synthesized N4, N4'-dibutyl-3,3'-diaminobenzidine (DAB) was conducted for antibacterial activity against clinical Klebsiella spp. and Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas spp. by the disc-diffusion method and followed by serial dilution method. N4, N4'-dibutyl-3,3'-DAB showed bacteriostatic action of 500 μg/ml, 1000 μg/ml for Klebsiella spp. and Staphylococcus aureus. The molecular physicochemical investigation exhibited that 1 violation and ADME analysis presented a low gastro intestinal effect. Docking investigations disclosed the capability of synthesized molecule potential to dock with beta-lactamase protein through patch dock methodology. Conclusion: N4, N4'-dibutyl-3,3'-DAB is the novel compound that was found to be attractive for the “drug hunters” as a potential agent for the management of infectious diseases against the human pathogens Klebsiella spp. and Staphylococcus aureus.

The Baltic people of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia gained recognition with their successful use of a cultural tool, singing folkloric songs, to protest collectively against their common Soviet oppressor in the summer of 1988, preceding the collapse of the Soviet Union. Rational-choice theorists have argued that large rebellious movements are paradoxical because the larger the number of potential revolutionaries, the greater the leadership, participation, and coordination problems they face (Olson, 1971; Tullock, 1974). This paper investigates Estonia’s Singing Revolution and illustrates how ethnic Estonians used their shared cultural beliefs and singing traditions as a tacit, informal institutional solution to overcome the collective-action problems with organizing and participating in mass singing protests against the Soviet regime. The paper goes further to extend the standard rational-choice framework and to include a more dynamic, entrepreneurial-institutional perspective on socio-cultural change by accounting for the role of cultural leaders as cultural entrepreneurs, a subset of institutional entrepreneurs. The success of Estonia’s Singing Revolution can be ultimately attributed to leadership in the form of cultural entrepreneurship going back to pre-Soviet Estonian times. The revived legacy of ancient shared beliefs, folkloric practices, and singing tradition represented the necessary social capital for the Estonian people to voice collectively shared preferences for political and economic governance during a window of constitutional opportunity. Mikhail Gorbachev’s Glasnost, a policy aimed to improve Soviet formal institutions by fostering freedom of speech and political transparency, also provided a context propitious for the Singing Revolution because it lowered the perceived costs of participation in the rebellious singing and opened a window of opportunity for political change.

This paper deals with the evolution of wages in the construction offices of Segovia, one of the most important Castilian and Spanish manufacturing towns, between 1571 and 1807. Part two deals with the nominal wages earned by the building officials and labourers of the city and part three presents the Segovian prices index between 1571 and 1807. Finally, part four analyses the evolution of the real wages earned in the construction offices of the town. Segovian real wages evolved in line with the local economy; after peaking in the first quarter of the 17th century, they experienced a continuous decline, so in 1807 the real wages of Segovian building officials and labourers were 50 per cent of those of the first quarter of the 17th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of institutional change on market integration. We show that the French Revolution's ideals of freedom and equality that swept through Germany following French rule around the year 1800 significantly reduced city-to-city price gaps in nineteenth century Germany because the ideas led to institutional upgrading in the German states. The economic impact of institutions reduced price gaps by about 25%. Examining a range of indicators of institutional quality, we find that relatively broad indicators affecting multiple elements of commercial activity are most powerful in explaining institutions' effect on the integration between economies. The paper shows that institutional change does not only change a given, individual economy but its impact is multiplied because institutional change affects the relationship between multiple economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This introduction to the special issue in honor of Professor Yoram Barzel provides an overview of his scholarship and a summary of the contributions to this special issue. Each contribution advances or elaborates upon major themes in Barzel's theoretical and applied work on property rights, transaction costs, and political economy. The contributions fall into three categories: an examination of the foundations and implications of the 'Barzelian' method for social scientific analysis; Barzel's economics of property rights and transaction costs to historical case studies; and advances to Barzel's theory of the state, which includes an analysis of the origins of democracy and the rule of law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economists have adopted two broad perspectives on the state: contractual (i.e., provider of public goods and services) and predatory (coercive and extractive). By a predatory state, we mean a state that promotes the private interests of dominant groups within the state (such as politicians, the army and bureaucrats) or influential private groups with strong lobbying powers. Neo-institutional economists support an extended version of the contractual perspective in which the state is not simply a 'benevolent dictator' but may itself be composed of predators. However, it considers predation as only a means to promote protection. By contrast, a predatory vision of the state argues that while protection and predation are two faces of the same coin, a predatory state protects only to promote its predation on the private sector. This symposium explores how a predatory approach to the state can shed light on all types of state, from liberal democratic to authoritarian and failed ones, both in the past and present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments use tax expenditures to boost investment, innovation and employment. However, these schemes are largely opaque, costly and often ineffective in reaching their stated goals. They also frequently trigger unwanted side effects. In order to improve the performance of these tools, the authors present three concrete policy proposals: First, governments should increase transparency on tax benefits. G20 members should take the lead on this with frequent and comprehensive tax expenditure reports. Second, G20 governments should improve the design of tax incentives with the aim of minimizing the generation of windfall profits and negative spillover effects within and across (in particular, on poorer) countries. Third, governments should phase out tax expenditures that are environmentally harmful, including tax incentives for fossil fuels and other schemes that promote an unsustainable use of natural resources.

A well‐established result in the literature is that Social Security reduces steady state welfare in a standard life cycle model. However, less is known about the historical quantitative effects of the program on agents who were alive when the program was adopted. In a computational life cycle model that simulates the Great Depression and the enactment of Social Security, this paper quantifies the welfare effects of the program's enactment on the cohorts of agents who experienced it. In contrast to the standard steady state results, we find that the adoption of the original Social Security generally improved these cohorts' welfare, in part because these cohorts received far more benefits relative to their contributions than they would have received if they lived their entire life in the steady state with Social Security. Moreover, the negative general equilibrium welfare effect of Social Security associated with capital crowd‐out was reduced during the transition, because it took many periods for agents to adjust their savings levels in response to the program's adoption. The positive welfare effect experienced by these transitional agents offers one explanation for why the program that may reduce welfare in the steady state was originally adopted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With regards to the model of the homo oeconomicus this paper argues that incentives for performing liturgies in classical Athens were based on profit-oriented calculation rather than desire to gain support for public offices. In classical Athens democratic measures diminished the power of single-person offices which led to a decrease in the desire to hold such offices by the aristocracy. Simultaneously, recourse to altruistic incentives is incompatible with the costs of liturgies and the effort some members of Athens society made in order to perform them. Careful examination of past research on liturgical spending in classical Athens and an analysis of coeval conditions show the validity of economic instruments that lead to a rational-actor perspective on public spending under the incentive of financial gain rather than non-monetary profit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]