The first two essays of this dissertation use policy experiments to show that low-skilled newly arriving immigrants help keep the economy in geographic equilibrium by differentially selecting destinations that provide better labor market prospects. The first essay finds that immigrants choose...

Neoclassical analysis of the labor market and its institutions. A systematic development of the theory of labor supply, labor demand, and human capital. Topics discussed also include wage and employment determination, turnover, search, immigration, unemployment, equalizing differences, and...

Legalized gambling is being promoted as the economic development tool of the 1990's. All across America, communities are embracing an industry once relegated to the back rooms of seedy establishments run by shady characters of questionable moral standing. This new-found respect for gambling...

The net neutrality debate has brought out economic rationale for andagainst a variety of proposals of the broadband service providers todifferentiate between different classes of users. Broadband users arecharacterized by the differing amounts of content they request online,as well as their...

Peak power demand issues have come to the fore recently because of the California electricity crisis. Uncertainties surrounding the reliability of electric power systems in restructured markets as well as security worries are the latest reasons for such concerns, but the issues surrounding peak...

Few developments are likely to affect human beings more profoundly in the long run than the discoveries resulting from advances in modern genetics. Although the developments in genetic technology promise to provide many additional benefits, their application to genetic screening poses ethical,...

In May 1995, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) released two proposals for restructuring the state`s electric power industry. The two proposals follow more than a year of testimony and public comment after the CPUC issued the ``Blue Book`` (CPUC 1994a) on April 20, 1994, which...

Gasification combined cycle continues to represent an important defining technology area for the forest products industry. The ''Forest Products Gasification Initiative'', organized under the Industry's Agenda 2020 technology vision and supported by the DOE ''Industries of the Future'' program,...

Renewable fuels standard (RFS) policies are becoming a popular public policy mechanism for developing the market for renewable fuels in the transportation sector. During the past decade, U.S. states and several countries began implementing these more market-based (less command and control)...

Following recommendations made in Homeland Security Presidential Directive 7, which established a national policy for the identification and increased protection of critical infrastructure and key resources (CIKR) by Federal departments and agencies, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security...