Some Extensions of Mills's Method for Urban Population Density Gradient Estimation

This paper extends Milk's method for estimating urban population density gradients to general noncircular and asymmetrical urban forms, using Gauss-Legendre quadrature embedded in a Newton-Raphson root finding algorithm. We also examine the sensitivity of the Mills method to measurement errors in the assumptions. Several issues arising from the comparison of analytical, Mills type estimation procedures with statistical procedures are explored, particularly in light of recent work that questions the negative exponential formulation of urban density gradients. We note in particular the influence of secondary population centers as a source of estimation bias.     

CARTER AND HUMAN RIGHTS: ADMINISTRATIVE IMPACT OF A SYMBOLIC POLICY

Analyses of foreign policy impact seldom take into account the domestic and symbolic consequences of implementation. This study begins with the assumption that since President Carter's human rights policy is largely an exercise in symbolic politics, the criteria for understanding its impact have more to do with the impression than with substantive improvement in human rights. Implementation to date has been felt primarily in administrative adjustments and revisions, not on concrete achievements in human rights around the world. While in terms of substantive criteria the impact of the policy has been minimal, in terms of increased bureaucratic visibility and other symbolic responses, the policy's implementation can be considered successful.