Agriculture,trade, and macroeconomics: The U.S. case

The persistent appreciation of the U.S. dollar from 1980 through 1984 raise the issue of macroeconomic impacts on trade sectors as a critical policy concern. In this article a six-variable vector autoregressive model is utilized to evaluate the dynamic effects of macroeconomic shocks on U.S. agriculture, a key trade sector. The results suggest that the impacts are substantial. Expansion of the money supply or a decline in the real interest rate or the real value of the dollar has a positive effect on agricultural exports and relative prices, whereas autonomous inflationary shocks have negative effects.     

Trade, education, and innovation: Prospects for the U.S. economy

This paper examines international trade issues as vital indicators of the economic prospects of the United States and other developed economies. In particular, it challenges misuses of the doctrine of mutual gains from trade and instead argues that comparative advantage does not guarantee increases in benefits to both trading partners—especially when one partner seeks to distort the market mechanism in its favor. In the face of such mercantilist or protectionist practices, efforts to advance innovation, without retaining manufacturing jobs, will not ensure continued prosperity, as the number of jobs entailed in the invention process is small compared with the number of jobs associated with manufacturing an innovative product for mass consumption. These matters call for the urgent rethinking of trade policy by the United States and other developed nations, if they are to balance their imports and exports and ensure continued economic growth.     

Elite Interlocks in Three U.S. Sectors: Nonprofit, Corporate, and Government

This study traces elite interlocks between the economic, political, and civil sectors of the United States in the late 1990s. We assess integration and fragmentation through analyzing patterns of overlap and interaction among influential organizations and leaders in these sectors. Network analyses are conducted with UCINET 5 on the Elite Directors Database, a new data set composed of the directors/trustees for the largest organizations in the business and nonprofit sectors in addition to individuals holding positions on federal advisory committees. The complete data set contains individuals holding 3,976 seats from 100 businesses, 109 nonprofit organizations, and 98 government committees. The network structure reveals substantial linkages between organizations and elites within and across the three sectors. Major corporations and their directors are the best integrated in the intersectoral networks. In spite of the tremendous growth of the nonprofit sector, nonprofit organization linkages fail to offer compelling evidence of elite pluralism in the United States.     

美国与印度的反恐合作：内容、问题与前景

九一一事件后美国和印度加强了在反恐方面的合作。双方的合作在一系列机制的基础上取得了进展,充实了美印战略伙伴关系。但是,美印反恐合作仍然存在诸多制约因素,主要表现为：双方在反恐问题上的利益和战略不同;双方对一些安全问题的看法不同以及印度国内反恐体系存在弊端等。2008年11月的孟买恐怖袭击案发生后,虽然美印双方都表示应加强反恐合作,但仍有一些不确定性因素将会影响合作的有效开展。     

S.H.E说,做“女王”就要“有种”

分别代表着温柔、勇气、自信的Selina、Hebe和Ella,依照她们她时代的跳跃式思考模式和无厘头的爆笑逻辑,不论在声音或在个性的表现上都能以最自然的、最纯粹的个人特质来发挥她们的个人魅力,呈现出最S.H.E的一面。当初高唱《不想长大》的三个女孩已经长大成熟,出道九年的S.H.E,第十二张专辑《SHERO》在3月如期跟歌迷见面了,这次不同     

Dramatherapy and Social Theatre: Necessary Dialogues by Jennings,S. (Ed.). Current Approaches in Drama Therapy by Johnson,D. R., & Emunah,R. (Eds.).

Some individuals make limited use of the services offered by treatment programs. Sometimes such individuals group infomally and may be observed congregating in the vicinity of the center they attend. Efforts to engage natural groupings of program members in their natural habitats and to utilize natural groups (as opposed to program organized therapeutic groups) as a vehicle for change is suggested. A pilot venture indicated the feasibility of this approach and helped to identify some of the issues and prohlems encountered in the potentials of undertaking this kind of program.