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AbstractThe power of the symbolic mathematics program Maple is demonstrated for teaching topics from microeconomics (the benefits of portfolio diversification) and econometrics (a geometric perspective of multicollinearity). In particular, it appears that the use of symbolic mathematics programs has excellent potential to strengthen the development and integration of graphical and algebraic intuition for a wide variety of economic problems.

We assume state governments are rational in their budgeting behavior. If this is true, then it is intuitive that they would allocate their expenditures so as to receive the maximum possible benefit for the least cost. Within the parameters of this study, we assume state governments work to receive the maximum number of firm births for the least amount of expenditure. Using regression analysis, we attempt to determine common state government expenditures that indirectly promote firm birth. We then employ non-parametric efficiency testing to rank states by their relative efficiency in using the significant expenditures to promote firm births. The regression results reveal three positive and significant expenditures in determining small firm birth, while relative efficiency rankings based on the use of these target expenditures indicate how states compare to their peers in terms of efficient expenditure use.

AbstractCorn that carries a gene from the natural soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki, or Bt, has given farmers a potentially powerful tool to protect against European corn borer (ECB) damage. European corn borers are responsible for losses of $1–$2 billion per year in the United States. This study analyzed the economic value of Bt corn under Indiana conditions. Results suggest that the value of the protection offered by Bt corn is generally lower than the current seed premiums in Indiana. The economic value of Bt corn may exceed the current premiums for farmers with higher‐than‐average yields or who have a 40% or greater probability of an ECB infestation.

Most researchers examining poverty and multilateral trade liberalization have had to examine average, or per capita effects, suggesting that if per capita real income rises, poverty will fall. This inference can be misleading. Combining results from a new international cross-section consumption analysis with earnings data from household surveys, this article analyzes the implications of multilateral trade liberalization for poverty in Indonesia. It finds that the aggregate reduction in Indonesia's national poverty headcount following global trade liberalization masks a more complex set of impacts across groups. In the short run the poverty headcount rises slightly for self-employed agricultural households, as agricultural profits fail to keep up with increases in consumer prices. In the long run the poverty headcount falls for all earnings strata, as increased demand for unskilled workers lifts incomes for the formerly self-employed, some of whom move into the wage labor market. A decomposition of the poverty changes in Indonesia associated with different countries' trade policies finds that reform in other countries leads to a reduction in poverty in Indonesia but that liberalization of Indonesia's trade policies leads to an increase. The method used here can be readily extended to any of the other 13 countries in the sample.