Exploring the Patent Explosion

This paper looks more closely at the sources of patent growth in the United States since 1984. It confirms that the increase is largely due to U.S. patenters, with an earlier surge in Asia, and some increase in Europe. Growth has taken place in all technologies, but not in all industries, being concentrated in the electrical, electronics, computing, and scientific instruments industries. It then examines whether these patents are valued by the market. We know from survey evidence that patents in these industries are not usually considered important for appropriability, but are sometimes considered necessary to secure financing for entering the industry. I compare the market value of patents held by entrant firms to those held by incumbents (controlling for R&D). Using data on publicly traded firms 1980--1989, I find that in industries based on electrical and mechanical technologies the market value of entrants' patents is positive in the post-1984 period (after the patenting surge), but not before, when patents were relatively unimportant in these industries. Also, the value of patent rights in complex product industries (where each product relies on many patents held by a number of other firms) is much higher for entrants than incumbents in the post-1984 period. For discrete product industries (where each product relies on only a few patents, and where the importance of patents for appropriability has traditionally been higher), there is no difference between incumbents and entrants.     

The impact of plurilateral trade agreements on developing countries – to participate or not to participate?

In the wake of the impasse in the Doha Development Round of multilateral trade talks, sector-specific plurilateral trade agreements (PTAs) have been gaining traction. However, PTAs mostly appeal to developed countries, with the uptake among developing countries (including least-developed countries) being very limited. This article investigates the factors contributing to such a phenomenon, whether there is indeed merit in developing countries playing a more active role in PTAs and how they might be encouraged to do so. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted with specific attention being given to the effects, on a selection of developing countries, of participation in four PTAs: the Trade in Services Agreement, the Government Procurement Agreement, the Environmental Goods Agreement and the Information Technology Agreement II. Among the findings was that although, according to the qualitative analysis, policymakers are generally disinterested in the four PTAs because they are not aligned to the countries’ economic interests or they threaten policy space, the quantitative analysis revealed that gains could often be made from more active participation in these agreements. This clearly points to a research gap and highlights the need for more in-depth analysis of the potential of PTAs in the developing world.     

Propaganda,effect, and the cold war: Gauging the status of america's “war of words”

The article examines the interrelationship among propaganda, effect, and the Cold War during congressional debates over America's first peacetime propaganda program. Although the rise of the communication research paradigm affected the production of statistical evidence to measure the effectiveness of America's Cold War propaganda, this case study argues that the “war of words” metaphor further heightened the need for empirical proof of America's status in that conflict, Just as with any physical battle that relies on body counts and land measurements to determine the success of America's war efforts, the criteria for measuring the status of America's “war of words” were driven by a similar demand for “objective” proof. The longevity of the Cold War helped ensure the institutionalization of the communication research paradigm, which rejected the use of anecdotal evidence as support for the program's impact.     

A Capacity for Central Coordination: The Case of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

For the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) the year 1987 can now be seen as pivotal in marking a clear end to a period of transition in coordinating structures in the Australian Public Service (APS) that had lasted roughly 20 years. The abolition in 1987 of the Public Service Board, formerly a powerful coordinating agency, is the most obvious marker of the change. The PSB's departure left the Secretary of PM&C with a role that is now often described as ‘head of the public service’. More broadly, the 1987 changes to the machinery of government both formalised and enabled a sea‐change in PM&C's role. Before 1987 a large policy initiation and development project would usually have been considered as beyond PM&C's scope. Since then, extensive and direct policy development work by PM&C has become common. The continuing debates have been over whether PM&C actually delivers in these roles (an empirical question) and how far it should play them (a normative issue). In this article we itemise the capacity, both continuing and developing, which PM&C has to support policy development. Traditional coordination mechanisms are an important part of this armoury and PM&C has long experience of most of them. However policy initiation and development calls for other tools which PM&C has had to develop over the past few decades. There is scope for conflict between the coordination and initiation/development roles. Understanding how a central agency like PM&C carries out each of them and balances the two can potentially contribute to debates on organisational design. We also address the normative issue: whether the growth of prime ministerial impact is a result of an increase in public service support or a cause of its increase ( Walter and Strangio 2007 ) and whether it should be restrained. We accept that the new developments give prime ministers the capacity to oversee policy arenas where once they could not, but regard this as a consequence as much of demand from above as of ambition within the department.     

A comparison of respondents in initial and recommitment hearings

Legislators and researchers have focused on one aspect of civil commitment: initial commitments. Many patients, however, remain in the hospital after their initial commitment expires and, thus, must be recommitted if they are to remain in involuntary treatment. Demographic, clinical, and treatment data were collected on 374 adults having initial or recommitment hearings during a 3-month period at a large state hospital in Virginia. Respondents in initial commitment hearings were younger and displayed acute symptoms; recommitment respondents were older with symptoms of chronic psychopathology, especially those associated with schizophrenia and organic brain syndrome. The subject of recommitment patients and hearings needs to be a focus of future research efforts to determine whether these differences are reflected in a greater relative gap between the letter and practice of the law in recommitment hearings.This research was supported by grant No. R03 MH44065-01 from the National Institute of Mental Health. The financial assistance of the Institute for Research Development of the Human Sciences Research Council is also acknowledged. This article was written while the first author was a postdoctoral fellow in Clinical Services Research, NIMH grant No. 5T32MH17184-06.     

The End of the Beginning? The Freedom of Information Bill 1999

With the publication of its plans for a Bill on Freedom of Information, the new Labour government has been accused of abandoning its promise of greater openness in the way government is conducted in this country and its proposals are seen as a departure from the highly applauded contents of the White Paper published in December 1997. The draft Bill has been pilloried by friend and foe alike. It is seen as a litmus test of Blair's government and where it really stands on the citizen/state relationship and how the future balance will lie between the executive and Parliament. The authors examine the events surrounding the publication of the Bill and its scrutiny by the pre-legislative select committees in the Commons and Lords. The Home Secretary has hinted at possible concessions in the light of fierce criticism. Is this a Bill worth saving and how can it be improved to capture a more appropriate balance between confidentiality, secrecy, and openness in the conduct of modern governance?     

The distribution of controlled drugs on banknotes via counting machines

Bundles of paper, similar to sterling banknotes, were counted in banks in England and Wales. Subsequent analysis showed that the counting process, both by machine and by hand, transferred nanogram amounts of cocaine to the paper. Crystalline material, similar to cocaine hydrochloride, could be observed on the surface of the paper following counting. The geographical distribution of contamination broadly followed Government statistics for cocaine usage within the UK. Diacetylmorphine, Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and 3,4-methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA) were not detected during this study.