“The potential for using fusion energy to produce commercial electric power was first explored in the 1950s. Harnessing fusion energy offers the prospect of a nearly carbon-free energy source with a virtually unlimited supply of fuel. Unlike nuclear fission plants, appropriately designed fusion power plants would not produce the large amounts of high-level nuclear waste… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
International debt flows before and after the financial crisis
International debt flows before and after the financial crisis by Evis Rucaj, 02-21-23 “New debt statistics show that the composition of long term debt inflows in 2011 follows pre-crisis patterns. Debt statistics are central to understanding the impact of the financial crisis; the World Bank’s International Debt Statistics provides a detailed picture of debt flows… Continue Reading
The New Microfinance Handbook: A Financial Market System Perspective
World Bank: “The New Microfinance Handbook provides a primer on financial services for the poor. It is written for a wide audience, including practitioners, facilitators, policy makers, regulators, investors, and donors working to improve the financial system, but who are relatively new to the sector. It will also be useful for telecommunication companies and other… Continue Reading
A look behind the scenes at the Google news retrieval algorithm
Frederic Filloux, guardian.co.uk: “Its official blog merely mentions “6 billion visits per month” sent to news sites and Google News claims to connect “1 billion unique users a week to news content” [see The press, Google, its algorithm, their scale]…But how exactly does Google News work? What kind of media does its algorithm favour most?… Continue Reading
USA.gov – What is Sequestration?
“Sequestration, sometimes called the sequester, is a process that automatically cuts the federal budget across most departments and agencies. Congress included the threat of sequestration in the Budget Control Act of 2011 as a way to encourage compromise on deficit reduction efforts. Congress couldnt agree on a budget by the deadline set in the Budget… Continue Reading
BIS – Benign neglect of the long-term interest rate
Benign neglect of the long-term interest rate, by Philip Turner, Working Papers No 403, February 2013 “Large-scale central bank purchases of government bonds have made the long-term interest rate key in the monetary policy debate. How central banks react to bond market movements has varied greatly from one episode to another. Driving the term premium… Continue Reading
NY Fed – The Macroeconomic Effects of Forward Guidance
The Macroeconomic Effects of Forward Guidance – Marco Del Negro, Marc Giannoni, and Christina Patterson: “In this post, we quantify the macroeconomic effects of central bank announcements about future federal funds rates, or forward guidance. We estimate that a commitment to lowering future rates below market expectations can have fairly strong effects on real economic… Continue Reading
New NOAA study estimates future loss of labor capacity as climate warms
News release: “A new NOAA study projects that heat-stress related labor capacity losses will double globally by 2050 with a warming climate. The impact will be felt the most by those who work outside or in hot environments, such as firefighters, bakery workers, farmers, construction workers, factory workers, and others who will be forced to… Continue Reading
New GAO Report: Defense Contracting, Iran's Energy and Communications Sectors, Iran, Water Quality
Defense Contracting – Actions Needed to Explore Additional Opportunities to Gain Efficiencies in Acquiring Foreign Language Support, GAO-13-251R, Feb 25, 2013 Firms Reported to Have Engaged in Activities Related to Iran’s Energy and Communications Sectors While Having Had U.S. Government Contracts, GAO-13-344R, Feb 25, 2013 Iran – U.S. and International Sanctions Have Adversely Affected the… Continue Reading
EPIC – DHS Working Group to Consider Privacy Impact of Drones
“The Department of Homeland Security has released a previously internal memo regarding the establishment of a working group to “Safeguard Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in the Department’s Use and Support of Unmanned Aerial Systems” (drones). The memo states, “[t]he overarching goal of the working group is to determine what policies and procedures are… Continue Reading
FindLaw – 10th Circuit rules that permits allowing people to carry concealed weapons are not protected by Second Amendment
Findlaw: “The Second Amendment and gun control remain controversial issues in the U.S. A federal district court judge tossed out Gray Petersons 2011 lawsuit filed against Denver and Colorados Department of Public Safety. Peterson had claimed that being denied a concealed-weapons permit because he was not a Colorado resident violated his Second Amendment right to… Continue Reading
Book Industry Study Group – Best Practices for Identifying Digital Products
BISG Policy Statement POL-1101. Best Practices for Identifying Digital Products. Revised Publication: February 25, 2013 “This BISG Policy Statement on recommendations for identifying digital products is applicable to content intended for distribution to the general public in North America but could be applied elsewhere as well. The objective of this policy statement is to clarify… Continue Reading
