Political Polarization and Gridlock as the Result of an Institutional Imbroglio in Taiwan

Institutionalist theory argues that fairly permanent economic structures and policy-making arrangements create “institutions” which shape future policy-making and economic performance to a considerable extent (March and Olsen 1989; North 1990; Riker 1982). This perspective suggests that it might be valuable to look for the political institutions that evolved during Taiwan’s development which could have inhibited the country’s adaptability after the mid-1990s. From this perspective, Taiwan’s current institutional imbroglio results from a combination of a complex and somewhat indeterminate constitutional system, a long-time election system that contained some perverse incentives, and its long era of authoritarian rule. This paper, hence, seeks to provide an “institutionalist” explanation for the polarization and gridlock in Taiwan’s politics in the early 21st century.Institucionalna teorija trdi, da razmeroma stabilne ekonomske strukture in politične ureditve tvorijo »institucije«, ki močno oblikujejo prihodnjo politiko in ekonomsko učinkovitost (March and Olsen 1989; North 1990; Riker 1982). Potemtakem bi bilo koristno pogledati politične institucije, ki so nastale med razvojem Tajvana in so morda ovirale njegovo prilagodljivost v drugi polovici 1990ih. Iz tega vidika je tajvanska trenutna institucionalna zapletenost pravzaprav rezultat kombinacije kompleksnega in do neke mere nedoločenega ustavnega sistema, starega volilnega sistema, ki je vseboval sprijene spodbude ter dolge dobe avtoritarnega režima. Pričujoči članek bo zato skušal podati »institucionalno« razlago za polarizacijo in zastoj tajvanske politike v zgodnjem 21. stoletju

Manufacturing Matters: A Case Study of Alabama

Over the last fifty years, the United States has been marked by two important secular trends. One is a continuous increase in income inequality. Second, the nation has transitioned through three periods of manufacturing: (a) “The Industrial Period” during 1945-1979, (b) the “Deindustrialization of America” during 1980-2000, and (c) the “Re-industrialization of America” during 2000-present, as it began to shift to an economy largely dominated by service and knowledge jobs, with a major reduction in labor-intensive manufacturing. This study examines the relationship between manufacturing employment and income inequality in the state of Alabama to test the hypothesis that manufacturing plays a key role in moderating inequality. In particular, we consider whether manufacturing or other economic and demographic factors are determinants of the rising income inequality in Alabama. We control for other factors that are also likely to be related to rising income inequality. We employ empirical techniques that are best suited to address potential econometric problems in the empirical work. In general, our results indicate that manufacturing does indeed play a key role in moderating inequality. Other key findings are that more educated communities have less inequality, that rural areas have especially high inequality, that counties with a high proportion of African Americans face disproportionately high inequality, and that the poorest counties have the highest level of inequality Keywords: Manufacturing, Deindustrialization, Reindustrialization, Income Inequality DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-6-12 Publication date:March 31st 202

Path Integral Discussion of Two and- Three-Dimensional δ\delta-Function Perturbations

The incorporation of two- and three-dimensional $\delta$-function perturbations into the path-integral formalism is discussed. In contrast to the one-dimensional case, a regularization procedure is needed due to the divergence of the Green-function $G^{(V)}(\vec x,\vec y;E)$, (\vec x,\vec y\in\bbbr^2,\bbbr^3) for $\vec x=\vec y$, corresponding to a potential problem $V(\vec x)$. The known procedure to define proper self-adjoint extensions for Hamiltonians with deficiency indices can be used to regularize the path integral, giving a perturbative approach for $\delta$-function perturbations in two and three dimensions in the context of path integrals. Several examples illustrate the formalism.Comment: 32 pages, AmSTe

Real-time Water Quality Monitoring Using Remote Sensing

2010 South Carolina Water Resource Conference. Informing strategic water planning to address natural resource, community and economic challenges

Processing-Induced Disorder in Pharmaceutical Materials

This chapter focuses on the major types of pharmaceutical processing methods that have been widely reported to produce disordered material either intentionally or unintentionally. Milling is one of the most frequently used unit operations used by the pharmaceutical industry for reducing the particle size of solids. Thermal processing techniques are mainly used for controlling or improving the release and the subsequent bioavailability of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API). Techniques such as melt-mixing, spray-congealing, sintering, melt-granulation, and hot-melt extrusion (HME) have developed and evolved rapidly for large-scale pharmaceutical production. Solvent-evaporation-based methods are important processing techniques for both raw materials, such as crystallization of the raw drug, and formulation manufacturing in the pharmaceutical industry. The chapter discusses the processing that can potentially induce the formation of the disordered state during the manufacture of formulations. The widely used solvent-evaporation-based processing techniques in pharmaceutical formulation production include spray-drying, freeze-drying, film casting, and film coating

A new era for studies on cross-Strait relations: introduction

After more than half a century’s separation, interaction between China and Taiwan has increased and has progressively changed from a politico-economic interaction to a more civic interaction. Scholars working on cross-Strait relations have recently begun to pay attention to the civic influence of Taiwanese businesses on the relationship. Some emphasize the importance of sub-governmental interactions in the process of cross-Strait integration. Others assert that Taiwanese businesses can exercise economic leverage to constrain the Chinese government in cross-Strait policymaking. These scholars stress bottom–up processes by observing current phenomena, then deducing the emerging pattern of cross-Strait relations that may be influenced by business activities. Taking account of changing trends in scholarly discussions of the cross-Strait relationship, this special issue of China Information presents current research in this field. Unlike studies on top–down processes that affect political and economic interactions between China and Taiwan, several contributions in the special issue highlight bottom–up mechanisms affecting such interactions by examining the identity of Taiwanese businesspeople and migrants, as well as the activities and implications of Taiwanese charitable organizations operating in China. This issue focuses not only on the impact of China on Taiwan, but also the impact of Taiwanese investments, migrants, and exports on Chinese society

1967: Abilene Christian College Bible Lectures - Full Text

LIFTING UP THE CHRIST” Being the Abilene Christian College Annual Bible Lectures 1967 $3.95 Published by ABILENE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE STUDENTS EXCHANGE ACC Station Abilene, Texa