4,726 research outputs found
The relative performance of alternative Taylor rule specifications
Full text linkWe look at how well several alternative Taylor rule specifications describe Federal Reserve policy decisions in real time, using the newly developed Giacomini and Rossi (2007) test for non-nested model selection in the presence of (possible) parameter instability. Further, we isolate those Taylor rule features that are most important for achieving relatively strong real-time performance. A second-order partial adjustment version of the Koenig (2004a) model performs consistently better than alternative specifications. Key features of this rule are the partial adjustment of the federal funds rate toward an equilibrium rate that depends on the unemployment rate and forward-looking inflation measures.Taylor's rule ; Real-time data ; Monetary policy - United States ; Forecasting
Chronicles of the Cariboo: Dunlevy's Discovery of Gold on the Horsefly:
Full text linkwritten by Alex P. McInnes.Being a true story of the first discovery of gold in the Cariboo District on the Horsefly River by Peter C. Dunlevey
Melocactus alex-bragae P. J. Braun & Esteves 2008
No full textMelocactus alex-bragae Melocactus oreas Miquél (1840: 192) subsp. alex-bragae (P.J.Braun & Esteves 2008: 252) Guiggi comb. et stat. nov. ≡ Melocactus alexbragae P.J.Braun & Esteves (2008: 252). Type: ― BRAZIL. Bahia: near the city of Iaçu, 255 m, 21 June 2008, Braga 87 (holotype UFG 40121!, corp, ceph, ar, sp). Etymology: ―Dedicated to its discover Alex Braga Nascimento (Braun & Esteves 2008: 251). Notes on the taxonomy of Melocactus alex-bragae :―Taxon considered here as a southern geographical subspecies of M. oreas (incl. two subspecies) characterized by its more separated areoles (ca. 23 mm vs. 10 – 18 mm apart), more numerous (to 17 vs. 9 – 15 in number) and paler spines (whitish-cream vs. pale brown to reddish-brown), shorter cephalium (2 – 3 cm vs. to 12 cm high) with few (vs. numerous) and paler bristles (rose-cream vs. dark reddish-brown), larger flower (19 – 23 × 15 mm vs. 17 – 22 × 9 – 10 mm), longer fruit (to 31 mm vs. 14 – 28 mm) see Taylor (1991: 24), Braun & Esteves (2008: 252) and Taylor & Zappi (2004: 369, 2018: 15). Chorology: ― Brazil (E Bahia, region of Iaçu). Illustrations examined: ―Braun & Esteves (2008: 251–253). Relevant literature: ―Braun & Esteves (2008), Taylor (1991), Taylor & Zappi (2004, 2018).Published as part of Guiggi, Alessandro & Mariotti, Mauro, 2021, Nomenclatural remarks in the genus Melocactus (Cactaceae, Cereeae) from NE Brazil, pp. 97-100 in Phytotaxa 496 (1) on pages 97-98, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.496.1.7, http://zenodo.org/record/542351
Inflation Persistence and the Taylor Principle
Full text linkAlthough the persistence of inflation is a central concern of macroeconomics, there is no consensus regarding whether or not inflation is stationary or has a unit root. We show that, in the context of a “textbook” macroeconomic model, inflation is stationary if and only if the Taylor rule obeys the Taylor principle, so that the real interest rate is increased when inflation rises above the target inflation rate. We estimate Markov switching models for both inflation and real-time forward looking Taylor rules. Inflation appears to have a unit root for most of the 1967 – 1981 period, and is stationary before 1967 and after 1981. We find that the Fed’s response to inflation is also regime dependent, with both the pre and post-Volcker samples containing monetary regimes where the Fed both did and did not follow the Taylor principle. This contrasts to recent research that suggests the Fed’s response to inflation has been time invariant, and that changes in monetary policy only occurred with respect to the output gap.Taylor rule, real-time data, Great inflation, policy regimes, Markov switching
Ichthyophis singaporensis Taylor 1960
No full text<i>Ichthyophis singaporensis</i> Taylor, 1960 — Native; Indeterminate. <p> <i>Ichthyophis singaporensis</i> Taylor, 1960: 55–58, figs. 5, 6. Holotype: BMNH 1959.1.2.43, by original designation. Type locality: “Singapore”.</p> <p> Singapore Caecilian (Not figured. No photos of a live <i>I. singaporensis</i> exist.)</p> <p> <b>Singapore records.</b></p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis glutinosus</i> Var?— Cantor, 1847c: 1058 (“Montgomerie’s garden”).</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis glutinosus</i> — Hooker, 1854: 26.</p> <p> <i>Epicrium monochroum</i> (non-Bleeker, 1858)— Ģnther, 1864: xxvii, 443.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis monochrous</i> (non-Bleeker, 1858)— Boulenger, 1882a: 91.— Boulenger, 1890a: 517.— Flower, 1896: 914.—A.L. Butler, 1904: 402.— Hanitsch, 1905: 23.—Hanitsch, 1908: 49.— Boulenger, 1912: 286.— Kampen, 1923: 3.— Bourret, 1942: 139.</p> <p> <i>Icthyophis</i> [sic] <i>singaporensis</i> —Ng, Chou & Yang, 1988b: 37.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis singaporensis</i> Taylor, 1960: 55.—Taylor, 1968: 135.—P.K.L. Ng, 1989: 13.—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 56.—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 143.—L.M. Chou <i>et al.</i>, 1994: 93.— K.K.P. Lim, 1994: 209.—P.K.L. Ng <i>et al.</i>, 1995: 111.—Chan-ard <i>et al.</i>, 1999: 20.— Iskandar & Colijn, 2000: 109.—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 143.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 168.— D.C.J. Yeo <i>et al.</i>, 2010: 152.—P.K.L. Ng <i>et al.</i>, 2011: 257.—T.M. Leong, 2011: 20.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 168.—K.Y. Chong <i>et al.</i>, 2013: 289.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis</i> cf. <i>singaporensis</i> —K.K.P. Lim & C.M. Yang, 1991: 218.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis</i> sp. (part)—T.M. Leong, 2000: 4.</p> <p> <b>Remarks.</b> Remarkably, despite being Singapore’s rarest amphibian, being known only from the type-specimen (Table 1), <i>I. singaporensis</i> was also the first amphibian recorded from Singapore. <i>Ichthyophis singaporensis</i> was first described as ‘ <i>I. glutinosus</i> Var?’ by Cantor (1847c) who received the specimen from Montgomerie in 1843 when it was dug up from his garden. Hanitsch (1908) incorrectly listed the collection date as 1863. Cantor (1847c) found the specimen to differ from <i>I. paucisulcus</i>, but did not find conclusive data to designate it as a new species. <i>Ichthyophis singaporensis</i> was later described as a new species by Taylor (1960). Taylor (1968) included three specimens collected from Peninsular Malaysia as part of <i>I. singaporensis</i>. The specimens are from “ Selangor ”, Batu Gajah, and Kuala Kangsi. As of today, <i>I. singaporensis</i> is only known from these four specimens. No live photographs exist of <i>I. singaporensis</i>, but Taylor (1960) provides a radiographic image of the specimen.</p> <p> <b>Occurrence.</b> Only known from type-specimen predating 1847. Likely extirpated.</p> <p> <b>Singapore conservation status.</b> Not Evaluated.</p> <p> <b>Conservation priority.</b> Immediate priority, if rediscovered.</p> <p> <b>IUCN conservation status.</b> Data Deficient [2019].</p> <p> <b>LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality):</b> BMNH 1959.1.2.43 (no date) [holotype].</p> <p> <b>Additional Singapore museum specimens.</b> No specimens.</p> <p> <b>Singapore localities.</b> One unknown location.</p> <p> <b>Order Anura Fitzinger, 1843 (29 species)</b></p> <p>Anura Fitzinger, 1843: 34.</p> <p> <b>Family Bufonidae Gray, 1825 (3 species)</b></p> <p> Bufonina Gray, 1825: 214 (type genus <i>Bufo</i> Laurenti, 1768).</p> <p> <b> Genus <i>Duttaphrynus</i> Frost, Grant, Faivovich, Bain, Haas, Haddad, de Sá, Channing, Wilkinson, Donnellan, Raxworthy, Campbell, Blotto, Moler, Drewes, Nussbaum, Lynch, Green & Wheeler, 2006 (1 species)</b> </p> <p> <i>Duttaphrynus</i> Frost, Grant, Faivovich, Bain, Haas, Haddad, de Sá, Channing, Wilkinson, Donnellan, Raxworthy, Campbell, Blotto, Moler, Drewes, Nussbaum, Lynch, Green & Wheeler, 2006: 219–220 (type species: <i>Bufo melanostictus</i> Schneider, 1799, by original designation; gender masculine).</p>Published as part of <i>Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore's herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, pp. 1-378 in Zootaxa 5287 (1)</i> on pages 23-24, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/7960319">http://zenodo.org/record/7960319</a>
Alex P. Cappon's letter to Professor Garland Ethel concerning the outcome of the hearing held by the University of Washington, January 26, 1949
No full textDocument related to the Canwell Committee hearings.
Alex P. Cappon, Professor of Literature at the University of Kansas City, writes to Professor Garland Ethel commenting on the outcome of the hearing that was to determine the employment of Ethel and five of his colleagues at the University of Washington. Cappon states “I was glad to hear…the Board of Regents at Washington has decided that you and Mr. Eby deserve to remain at the University.” Cappon also states in regard to the members of the faculty that were fired, “I should also be glad to know the fields in which Ralph Gundlach and Joseph Butterworth were teaching. If these men have suffered an injustice – as may well be the case – I should like to inform them of possible positions, if I hear of any.”Garland Ethel was born in Okanogan County, Washington in 1899. He was educated at the University of Washington where he later taught in the English department from 1924-1969. His principle research interest was Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was one of the professors persecuted for his communist affiliations during Washington State’s Joint Legislative Fact-Finding Committee on Un-American Activities. He was brought before the Faculty Tenure Committee at the end of 1948 with charges of neglect of duty, immorality, dishonesty and intellectual incompetence and the demand for his dismissal; he was put on academic probation for two years in 1949. Ethel would later become secretary of the American Federation of Teachers, Local 401. He died in 1980.
Alex P. Cappon, born in 1900, was a Professor of literature at the University of Kansas City. He obtained his BA in philosophy in 1925, as well as his MA (1926) and PhD (1935) in humanities. While his main focus was in 19th century literature he also spent 36 years as editor of the University of Kansas City Review (now known as New Letters). He passed in 1997.
The Interim Committee on Un-American Activities (Canwell Committee) operated from 1947-1949. It was a special exploratory committee of the Washington State Legislature which investigated the influence of the Communist Party in Washington State, most notably at the University of Washington. During the years the committee was active it subpoenaed and took to trial 12 of the University’s professors, three of whom were dismissed from the university for having Communist affiliations and three of whom were put on probation for years after the incident occurred
Does Instrument Independence Matter under the Constrained Discretionof an Inflation Targeting Goal? Lessons from UK Taylor Rule Empirics
Full text linkWe investigate whether increased independence affects central bank behavior when monetary policy is already in an inflation targeting regime. Taking advantage of the recent UK experience to identify such an exogenous change, we estimate Taylor rules via alternative methods, specifications and proxies. Our contribution is to detect two novel results: the Bank of England has responded to the output gap, not growth; and in a stronger way after receiving operational independence. Both findings are consistent with the Bank's mandate and New Keynesian monetary theory. Economic expansion and anchored inflation have thus complemented greater autonomy in influencing the Bank's policy feedbackasymmetry of monetary policy reaction function across the business cycle, response to output gap vs output growth, Taylor rules, operational independence, inflation targeting, United Kingdom
Infrastructure bottlenecks, private provision, and industrial productivity : a study of Indonesian and Thai cities
Full text linkThis research project followed an earlier similar project on Nigeria, applying the same methods. A sample of manufacturers was surveyed to document their responses to infrastructure deficiencies in electricity, water, transport, telecommunications, and waste disposal. They found the manufacturers undertook significant expenditures to offset deficiencies in publicly provided infrastructure services, and that changing public policy toward privately supplied infrastructure and changing the pricing of public infrastructure could yield significant savings in social costs. Thailand and Indonesia have made significant strides in following the policies for private sector participation in infrastructure provision. Nigeria, where public infrastructure monopolies still dominate, lags behind, yet stands to benefit most from such policy reform. Government policy toward the industrial organization and pricing of infrastructure sectors can significantly help a developing economy realize the benefits of private sector participation in the provision of infrastructure services.Banks&Banking Reform,Decentralization,Public Sector Economics&Finance,Environmental Economics&Policies,Municipal Financial Management,Banks&Banking Reform,Municipal Financial Management,Urban Services to the Poor,Urban Services to the Poor,Public Sector Economics&Finance
Ichthyophis paucisulcus Taylor 1960
No full text<i>Ichthyophis paucisulcus</i> Taylor, 1960 — Native. <p> <i>Ichthyophis paucisulcus</i> Taylor, 1960: 103–107, figs. 34, 35. Holotype: USNM 103565, by original designation. Type locality: “Siantar, Sumatra ” (also known as Pematangsiantar), Indonesia.</p> <p>Sumatran Striped Caecilian</p> <p>(Figure 4A)</p> <p> <b>Singapore records.</b></p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis glutinosus</i> (non Linnaeus, 1758)— Hanitsch, 1905: 23 (Impounding [MacRitchie] Reservoir [MR]).—Hanitsch, 1908: 49.— Hanitsch, 1912b: 19.—J. Aw & M.E.Y. Low, 2020: 53.</p> <p> <i>Icthyophis</i> [sic] <i>paucisulcus</i> —P.K.L. Ng <i>et al.</i>, 1988: 36, 37 (Jungle Fall Valley [BTNR]).</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis</i> ? <i>paucisulcus</i> —K. Lim, 1989a: 4.— Chou <i>et al.</i>, 1994: 93.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis paucisulcus</i> —P.K.L. Ng, 1989: 13 (Jungle Fall Valley [BTNR]).—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 19, 143.—K.K.P. Lim, 1994a: 209, 330.—K.K.P. Lim, 1994: 209, 330.—L.M. Chou, 1995: 145.—P.K.L. Ng <i>et al.</i>, 1995: 111.—K.K.P. Lim, 1996: 50.—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 143.— N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 158.—K.K.P. Lim & T.M. Leong, 2008: 156, 264.—D.C.J. Yeo <i>et al.</i>, 2010: 152.—D.C.J. Yeo & K.K.P. Lim, 2011: 55.—P.K.L. Ng <i>et al.</i>, 2011: 257.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 158.—W.H. Lim <i>et al.</i>, 2015: 73 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—T.J. Li <i>et al.</i>, 2019: 568.—R.C.H. Teo & Thomas, 2019: 149, 179.</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis</i> cf. <i>paucisulcus</i> —K. Lim, 1990b: 12 (Nee Soon Swamp Forest).—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 56.—K.K.P. Lim & Yang, 1991: 217, 218. P.K.L. Ng & K.K.P. Lim, 1992: 260 (Nee Soon Swamp Forest).—R.C.H. Teo & Rajathurai, 1997: 394 (Rifle Range Forest).</p> <p> <i>Ichthyophis</i> sp. (part)—T.M. Leong, 2000: 4.</p> <p> <b>Remarks.</b> A consequence of urban development, <i>I. paucisulcus</i> was first discovered in Singapore in 1904 (Hanitsch 1905) when Bell collected one during excavations of the MacRitchie (then known as the Impounding) Reservoir (Hanitsch 1908). <i>Ichthyophis paucisulcus</i> was not recorded again until 80 years later when one was found in mud in a stream at Jungle Fall Valley on 29 March 1984 (Ng <i>et al.</i> 1988). However, CAS 7424 apparently went overlooked as it was collected on 10 October 1940 from an unknown location. The third reported specimen was of a larva seen on a student’s shoe on 14 February 1989, also at Jungle Fall Valley (Ng <i>et al.</i> 1989a). After the fourth specimen was observed at NSSF on 7 September 1990 (Lim 1990b), <i>I. paucisulcus</i> went unreported for another 25 years, until freshwater biodiversity surveys at BTNR detected two individuals. The first was a juvenile found hiding in submerged leaf litter on 23 February 2015 (Fig. 4A) and the second was a smaller individual that was found at the same location on 25 March 2015 (Lim <i>et al.</i> 2015).</p> <p> <b>Occurrence.</b> Restricted, known only from BTNR and NSSF, and the historical record from MR. Rare.</p> <p> <b>Singapore conservation status.</b> Critically Endangered.</p> <p> <b>Conservation priority.</b> Highest.</p> <p> <b>IUCN conservation status.</b> Least Concern [2018].</p> <p> <b>LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Bukit Timah Nature Reserve:</b> ZRC.1.1360 (29-Mar-1984), ZRC.1.1703 (14-Feb-1989).</p> <p> <b>Additional Singapore museum specimens. Singapore (no locality):</b> CAS.</p> <p> <b>Singapore localities.</b> Bukit Timah Nature Reserve—MacRitchie Reservoir—Nee Soon Swamp Forest—Rifle Range Forest.</p>Published as part of <i>Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore's herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, pp. 1-378 in Zootaxa 5287 (1)</i> on page 23, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/7960319">http://zenodo.org/record/7960319</a>
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