The mysterious overvaluation of KRW in the 1990s†

Existing theories on real exchange rates predict a significant undervaluation of the Korean won (KRW) in the early and mid-1990s. The paper demonstrates why this expectation did not materialize and instead an unprecedentedly large degree of overvaluation took place. Focusing on three variables, namely, financial repression, devaluation pass-through, and policy exhibitionism, the paper examines how the unraveling of the developmental state eventually gave rise to the 1990s’ overvaluation. It argues that the policy exhibitionism of the new civilian government amplified the influence of Chaebol on monetary policies, which in turn created a strong appreciative force to KRW. It also contends that the increasing exchange rate pass-through onto the prices of imported intermediate goods explains why Chaebol did not desire to tame the excessive appreciative trend despite its detrimental effect on their exports. The paper offers policy implications for other state-led, emerging economies.     

Determination and validation of tetrodotoxin in human whole blood using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectroscopy and its application

A sensitive analytical method was developed for the quantitative determination of tetrodotoxin (TTX), a powerful sodium channel blocker, in human postmortem whole blood. The sample mixture was cleaned up using cation exchange SPE catridge after protein precipitation by methanol and then separated on a PC-HILIC (phosphorylcholine hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography) column (150 mm × 2.0mm i.d., 5 μm) using a isocratic elution of 1% acetic acid and acetonitrile. The identification of TTX was performed on tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization interface in positive ion mode. The retention time of voglibose (internal standard) and TTX was 5.1 and 6.0 min, respectively. TTX and internal standard (voglibose) were monitored and quantitated using the ion transitions: the respective precursor to product ion combinations, m/z 320/302 for TTX and m/z 268/92 for voglibose in the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. The recovery of TTX and voglibose was 61.4% and 62.8%, respectively and the good accuracy (97.7-103.9%), linearity (2-1200 ng/mL) and reproducibility were shown in this method. The limit of detection and limit of quantification were 0.32 ng/mL and 1.08 ng/mL, respectively. This method was applied in the case of three fishermen who were poisoned (including one death) by unknown fish on their boat in October 2010. In this case, the levels of TTX were 27.2, 30.0 and 29.7 ng/mL in heart blood, peripheral blood and serum of a victim, were 3.1 and 12.1 ng/mL in peripheral blood and 3.9 and 12.8 ng/mL in serum of two survivors, respectively.     

The Effect of Incentive Reforms Upon Productivity: Evidence from the Vietnamese Rice Industry

In this study we use region-level panel data on rice production in Vietnam to investigate total factor productivity (TFP) growth in the period since reunification in 1975. Two significant reforms were introduced during this period, one in 1981 allowing farmers to keep part of their produce, and another in 1987 providing improved land tenure. We measure TFP growth using two modified forms of the standard Malmquist data envelopment analysis (DEA) method, which we have named the Three-year-window (TYW) and the Full Cumulative (FC) methods. We have developed these methods to deal with degrees of freedom limitations. Our empirical results indicate strong average TFP growth of between 3.3 and 3.5 per cent per annum, with the fastest growth observed in the period following the first reform. Our results support the assertion that incentive related issues have played a large role in the decline and subsequent resurgence of Vietnamese agriculture.     

Korea's technological development

Abstract

Indigenous peoples’ rights, including the right to self-determination, are increasingly codified in international law and policy and disseminated globally by international organizations. These norms mark a profound change in the ideals of citizenship promoted by the international community, away from linguistically and institutionally homogenous citizenship in centralized states to group-differentiated citizenship in decentralized, multi-level and multi-lingual states that use local and regional autonomy for the accommodation of indigenous peoples. Essential to realizing these norms is the devolution of some degree of autonomy to sub-central state units substantially controlled by indigenous communities. Because the transfer of powers to indigenous peoples is crucial to their accommodation, protection and participation in modern states, and because decentralization programs are an important component of reform agendas in most developing countries, it is important to understand how these emerging norms are integrated into real-world decentralization processes.

This article analyzes the application of the World Bank's safeguards policy for indigenous peoples within the institution's support to decentralization reform in Cambodia. The analysis demonstrates that under certain circumstances, the policy not only fails to translate into effective protection but leads to outcomes diametrically opposed to its objectives. In its current design, Bank support to decentralization contributes to the marginalization of indigenous peoples in Cambodia and undermines the institutional, cultural and natural resources upon which their empowerment and participation depends. In environments in which full compliance might be unrealistic to accomplish by individual projects, safeguard obligations lead to a strategy on the part of Bank projects of avoiding geographical and policy areas that are likely to trigger the safeguards policy, in order to reduce projects’ vulnerability to non-compliance claims. The article discusses how more effective application of the safeguards policy might be achieved and how strategies for the empowerment of indigenous peoples can more effectively draw on decentralization frameworks.     

Comparison of Four Saliva Detection Methods to Identify Expectorated Blood Spatter

Blood spatter analysis is an important step for crime scene reconstruction. The presence of saliva in blood spatter could indicate expectorated blood which is difficult to distinguish from impact spatter. In this study, four saliva test methods (SALIgAE^®, Phadebas^® sheet, RSID^™-Saliva kit, and starch gel diffusion) were compared to identify the best method for detecting expectorated blood spatter. The RSID^™-Saliva kit showed the highest sensitivity even when saliva was mixed with blood, and was not inhibited by the presence of blood. The SALIgAE^® test provided easy and rapid results, but the yellow color of a positive reaction was overwhelmed by the red color of the blood. The starch gel diffusion method and the Phadebas^® sheet exhibited relatively low sensitivity and the assay took a long time. When using the RSID^™-Saliva kit for identifying saliva in blood, results should be read within 10 min.     

The effect of social status on women's age at first childbirth in the late seventeenth- to early eighteenth-century Korea

While records on historical population are available and do exist, the fact that they are so limited in nature is a critical problem. We applied the method of family reconstitution to a Korean household register to deal with these limitations. Based on family reconstitution from five successive registers, we calculated women's age at first childbirth for each social status in two ways: “observed woman's age” at first childbirth = woman's current age–age of her first child, and “estimated woman's age” at first childbirth, which uses linear regression analysis on the basis of positive association between women's age and the age of their firstborn. Our results shed light on the effects of social status and cultural factors on the age at which women in pre-industrial Korea bore their first child.     

Rural migration in Korea: a transition to the modern era

Because industrialization and modernization have been stressed as characteristics of an advanced society, pre-industrial and early industrial societies have often been depicted as sedentary and stable in the literature on migration; however, findings have begun to appear that question such depictions. In this paper, we examine the migration patterns of the rural Korean population during Japanese colonial rule (1910–1945), the period immediately preceding full-scale industrialization. In order to determine whether the population can be characterized as mobile or sedentary, we examine patterns of geographic mobility in association with migration distances and in association with migrants' ages. Our results suggest that during this era, as Korea headed down the road to modernity, individual movements followed mixed migration patterns. Specifically, migration in Korea prior to modernization exhibited both a stable-oriented pattern and a life-at-stake-oriented pattern. These findings confirm the context-specific diversity of migration processes across different societies and historical periods.     

Police use of excessive force: Does the race of the suspect influence citizens' perceptions?

Instances of excessive force by police officers, most notably the Rodney King incident in Los Angeles and the Malice Green fatality in Detroit, suggest that the race of the suspect may influence the decision to use excessive force. If police practices are simply a reflection of the expectations of larger society, then it follows that citizens' evaluations of police brutality toward minorities might reflect this sentiment. As part of a larger study focusing on the exploration of police misconduct, a telephone survey containing 16 vignettes was developed, each vignette described a separate type of misconduct in which a hypothetical officer was involved. Of these 16 vignettes, 3 described the misconduct of excessive force and are analyzed for the present study. A random sample of 992 Ohio citizens were surveyed. The hypothesis that citizens in general assign significantly lower seriousness scores to excessive force on African Americans and Hispanics than on whites was tested. Our hypothesis was not supported. Instead, we found evidence to suggest that the behavior of the suspect during the arrest and the behavior of the police officer are much more significant correlates of citizens' perceptions of police use of excessive force than is the race of the suspect.