THE SENSITIVITY OF INPUT-OUTPUT MULTIPLIERS*

The present paper derives analytical expressions for the sensitivity of input-output multipliers to errors in the data. The effects on the simple output multipliers are investigated for additive errors, multiplicative errors in the columns, multiplicative errors in the rows, error rectangles, the error couple and the single error, and price changes. In contrast to earlier investigations, the results are not obtained from the Leontief inverse. The present approach focusses on the effects of errors on the eigenvector corresponding to the dominant eigenvalue. It is indicated how similar expressions may be derived for several other multipliers.     

EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF OFFICE RENT AND AGGLOMERATION ECONOMIES: A CASE STUDY OF TORONTO*

ABSTRACT. An equilibrium model of office location is applied and tested in the Toronto metropolitan area. The model focuses on the role of communication among firms which is the driving force behind the spatial agglomeration of office firms. The model calculates the equilibrium floor rent in each district, given the existing building stock. The performance of the model is tested in terms of the goodness of fit between observed and estimated office rent in each district. By using the model, we estimate the value of agglomeration economies which is defined as changes in productivities caused by increases in the number of office firms. It is shown that the agglomeration economies in the office sector are much larger than those in manufacturing, and the external effects of agglomeration are considerably large.     

PHYSICOCHEMICAL COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS OF CERAMICS: A CASE STUDY IN KENTING,TAIWAN*

The composition of ceramics does not just reflect the component of some specific, unprocessed, geological, raw material source, but also certain forms of human behaviour involved in its manufacture. The purpose of this research project is to apply the acid‐extraction chemical method, complemented by a thin‐section petrographic study, to the compositional analyses of certain local ceramic collections (mainly from several sites in the southern Taiwan area). The results present the raw materials that the ceramic manufacturers of the two cultural traditions (O‐laun‐pi Phase II and Phase III–IV), which overlapped temporally, used. These materials came from the same sources, but the ceramics were manufactured in different ways. Particularly, the people of O‐laun‐pi Phase III–IV also procured certain materials from either local sources or from somewhere in eastern Taiwan to make their pots. The results also indicate that there might have been a variation in terms of their manufacture among sites of the same cultural tradition.     

WORKING-CLASS WOMEN AND CIVIC ACTION: A CASE STUDY OF AN INNOVATIVE COMMUNITY ROLE*

This paper focuses on working-class women who are assuming public responsibility in voluntary organizations aimed at the maintenance and improvement of their city neighborhoods. Forty women were interviewed in-depth regarding their civic concerns and voluntary activities in a case study of Carondelet, a predominantly white working-class neighborhood of St. Louis. Overall, activism is well-organized and widespread with women playing a major contributing role. If the experience of Carondelet is typical, then future urban policy analysis must seriously take into account extensive female input at the grass-roots level.     

SPATIAL DISPERSION OF TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION: A CASE STUDY FOR THE NETHERLANDS BY MEANS OF PARTIAL LEAST SQUARES*

ABSTRACT. In this paper the impact of spatial and nonspatial variables on the innovation potential and innovativeness of (small) industrial firms in The Netherlands will be analyzed. Innovation potential and innovativeness will be conceived as latent variables which will be measured by a partial least squares approach. The variables reflecting innovation potential are notably input variables such as internal and external R&D, while innovativeness will be based on output indicators such as the number of product and process innovations. The regional dimension enters our analysis essentially at two levels. First, we will investigate whether more innovative firms are to some extent spatially biased (i.e., on the basis of intrafirm characteristics). Secondly, we will analyze the relevance of an indigenous regional impact, per se. In other words, we will examine whether firms with an equal innovation capacity will differ in actual (i.e., realized) innovativeness as a consequence of different regional conditions. For the first issue, our results indicate that not all regions are equally well-endowed with potentially innovative (small) firms. Our analysis even demonstrates that these firms are underrepresented in regions which are generally considered to offer the most favorable production environment. After compensating for these differences in the composition of the regional set of firms, we demonstrate that an indigenous regional impact per se cannot be identified in The Netherlands.     

北京低收入大学毕业生聚居体研究——唐家岭现象及其延续

随着中国城市化进程进入快速增长时期,低收入大学毕业生社会群体在城市的生存状况成为政治家和科学家关注的焦点。本文主要根据现有文献资料,配合笔者实地调研,进行北京低收入大学毕业生聚居体研究,尤其就北京唐家岭现象及其延续效应进行分析,主要涉及北京低收入大学毕业生聚居体现况、社会特征、群体聚居村落和后续空间效应等。文章认为:北京低收入大学毕业生聚居体是2000年以来、继下岗职工、农民工之后,中国城市化进程中形成的第三大社会弱势群体。北京低收入大学毕业生聚居体产生的原因,首先是低工资就业市场,其次是高房租租赁市场。他们是弱势社会群体,需要全社会的关注和帮助,在目前中国发展阶段,彻底改造甚至消灭这样的聚居体是没有必要的。     

旅游解说系统研究——以北京为例

本文介绍了旅游解说系统的基本概念,并以北京为案例,在实证调查的基础上,讨论了北京市面向旅游者的解说系统的类型、各类型的特点和存在问题,为提高城市总体旅游管理和服务水平,提供可操作的依据。     

珠海旅游产业集群的案例研究

在对旅游产业集群理论简要综述的基础上,文章以珠海市为案例,实地调研和深入访谈分析珠海旅游产业集群各要素之间的关系,并构建了珠海旅游产业集群的构成要素示意图,最后利用"钻石模型"评估珠海旅游集群的发展现状。文章充实了国内关于旅游产业集群的实证研究,指出珠海旅游产业集群已经初步形成,并且是一种政府主导型发展模式,但集群要素间进一步的知识和信息联系较少,创新性不足,珠海旅游产业集群属于低端集群,其进一步的完善和升级还需要继续发挥政府的支持和推动作用。     

跨国移民的地方感研究：以在穗非洲移民为例

本文从“地方感”这一核心概念出发，采用问卷调查、参与式观察和访谈等综合研究方法，系统地评估了在穗非洲移民对广州的城市感知特征及其内在机制。基于研究提出的五维地方感评价体系，本文得到主要结论如下：①在穗非洲移民对广州地方感的五个维度的评价中，呈现出“地方满意度>地方依赖>地方信任>地方依恋>地方认同”的总体特征；②在穗非洲移民的积极地方感主要是通过广州的物质和资源环境构建起来的；③在穗非洲移民的消极地方感则主要是通过地方信任、地方认同和地方依恋等精神维度的交流形成的；④在穗非洲移民地方感的形成路径有积极地方感和消极地方感的区别，但是它们之间的边界并不是很明显，有比较强的流变性。本文从研究对象、研究内容和研究方法上对中国的跨国移民及其地方感研究进行了拓展，为我国城市规划和建设提供一定的借鉴价值。