Ambulatory e-prescribing, at first glance, appears to be a straightforward automation effort that electronically connects an e-prescriber to an electronic network so an e-script can be sent to a pharmacist. The reality is much more complex. The successful implementation of e-prescribing requires...

In this paper we provide a generalization of the standard models of the diffusion of a new product. Consumers are heterogeneous and risk averse, and the firm is uncertain about the demand curve: both learn from past observations. The attitude towards risk has important effects with regard to the...

General purpose technologies (GPTs) have been important drivers of industrial revolutions and economic development, but their link to standards has not been analyzed systematically. We document that all of the most common examples of GPTs—steam, railway, electricity and information (and...

Increasing participation of Chinese companies in many global Standard Development Organizations (SDO) has fueled global competition for influence over the development of critical Information and Communication Technology (ICT) standards. SDOs face increasing expectations to increase the...

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), or Dow Jones, is a stock market index that measures the stock performance of 30 large companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. Over a period of time, it has become the global standard, a key indicator of the health of the US economy (in...

Patents are legal delinquents. A growing body of empirical evidence demonstrates that patents repeatedly fail to fulfill the responsibilities they have been assigned in fostering innovation. But I argue here that in their moments of misbehavior, we can catch a glimpse of the social roles patents...

We analyze the link between standardization and economic growth by systematically reviewing leading economics journals, leading economic growth researchers’ articles, and economic growth related books. We make the following observations: 1) No article has analyzed the link between...

We first summarize the dominant interpretations of the "frontier" in the United States and predecessor colonies over the past 400 years: agricultural (1610s-1880s), industrial (1890s-1930s), scientific (1940s-1980s), and algorithmic (1990s-present). We describe the difference between the...

We study how government green procurement policies influence private-sector demand for similar products. Specifically, we measure the impact of municipal policies requiring governments to construct green buildings on private-sector adoption of the US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy...

The nature of disruptive innovation, first studied by Joseph Schumpeter, has changed dramatically in the wake of rapidly and predictably deflating costs for embedded digital technology. New disruptors now enter the marker both better and cheaper than existing products. The result is devastating...