This paper examines whether PageRank algorithms are a valid instrument for the analysis of technical progress in specific technological fields by means of patent citation data. It provides evidence for patent data in biotechnology. Recent literature has been critical with regard to the use of...

The Austrian business R&D intensity has experienced a very rapid rise over the past decade. We compare this development to trends in other countries in the OECD area by using a structural decomposition method that allows splitting business R&D intensity into a structural component reflecting the...

This paper advances a decision theoretical foundation for pricing scripts in the primary art market. We argue that while sociological factors play an important role, pricing scripts may well have economic determinants. We use a simple model of product differentiation implementing the undercut...

This paper presents a simple evolutionary model to study the diffusion patterns of product innovations for consumer goods. Following a Veblenian theme, we interpretconsumption as a social activity constrained by social norms and equality of opportunity. Societies that allow for more behavioral...

Technological search is often depicted to be random. This paper takes a different view and analyses how innovative recombinant search is triggered, how it is done and what initial conditions influence the final design of technological artefacts. We argue that complementarities...

This paper presents a qualitative study on the adoption of early information technologies, such as typewriters, calculators or Hollerith machines in US manufacturing in the period between 1870 and 1930, which was by all means a true systemic innovation. Our empirical work is guided by a...