ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Taxes on executive bonuses, financial transactions and excess profits are a few of the taxes proposed or enacted to punish banks for their role in the recent financial crisis, but most of these ideas have shortcomings, says a University of Michigan economist. (more…)
More than 93% of American households experienced “substantial economic shock” in 2008-2009, according to a Rockefeller Foundation-supported study headed by political science professor Jacob Hacker. (more…)
Most Americans receive health insurance coverage through their employer, or through an employed family member’s dependent coverage. Yet having a job is no guarantee of coverage, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.
Using data from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), the brief’s authors found that one-fifth of Californians under age 65 who lived in households with at least one employed family member — or 5.7 million – had no access to job-based health insurance in 2007. (more…)
For the first time since establishing itself as a world super power following World War I, the United States appears like it may be losing its footing. The prosperous nation’s economy is tanking. Thousands of Americans are jobless, with houses being foreclosed left and right. Americans have little confidence in their beleaguered government, which is in serious debt. There is little consensus amongst politicians or citizens regarding important issues, which has led to great party-based divisions in the country. The country is fighting a losing battle in the Middle East, and has been at war continuously since World War II. (more…)
Rotating corn with shrubby legumes holds a key for fueling Africa’s green revolution. Image credit: Michigan State University
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Crop diversification with shrubby legumes mixed with soybean and peanuts could be the key to sustaining the green revolution in Africa, according to a Michigan State University study.
The study, which appears in the Nov. 22 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states that diversifying crops would boost production of nutrient-enriched grain by 12 percent to 23 percent, said Sieglinde Snapp, a crop and soil scientist at Michigan State University’s Kellogg Biological Station who led the study. (more…)
ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Every year about this time, on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving that traditionally begins the holiday shopping season, early-morning consumers stand in long lines eager to purchase some sought after prize. From the outside, it looks as if these holiday shoppers can’t wait to plunk down their cash, but Ross School marketing professor Scott Rick says consumers often behave differently than they would ideally like to behave.
“Some consumers chronically spend more than they would like, and some consumers chronically spend less than they would like,” he said. “Where an individual falls within the range of desiring to spend more or less largely determines whether he or she is a tightwad or a spendthrift, characteristics that determine quite a bit about a person’s spending habits.” (more…)
ANN ARBOR, Mich.—While the nation’s economy will gain some momentum in the second half of next year, it will take until 2012 before unemployment finally begins to subside, say economists at the University of Michigan. (more…)
*Significant Deposits Found in 14 States*
Rare Earth Elements. Image credit: USGS
Approximately 13 million metric tons of rare earth elements (REE) exist within known deposits in the United States, according to the first-ever nationwide estimate of these elements by the U.S. Geological Survey.
This estimate of domestic rare earth deposits is part of a larger report that includes a review of global sources for REE, information on known deposits that might provide domestic sources of REE in the future, and geologic information crucial for studies of the availability of REE to U.S. industry.
The report describes significant deposits of REE in 14 states, with the largest known REE deposits at Mountain Pass, Calif.; Bokan Mountain, Alaska; and the Bear Lodge Mountains, Wyo. The Mountain Pass mine produced REE until it closed in 2002. Additional states with known REE deposits include Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina. (more…)
