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Reexamines Spiegel's analysis of the Giffen phenomenon, a utility function that yields an inferior good with an upward-sloping demand curve and incorporates Christian Weber's criticism into the model. Disagrees with Weber on some points but agrees that as income decreases the likelihood of the Giffen product decreases. (MJP)

Discusses the objectives of the study of Economics, which include anticipating future events and explaining current developments. The article points out that an acquaintance with past economic developments enhances the ability to predict the future. Research into the reasons for economic events often can uncover the multiple causes of a given situation. (Author/CK)

Recalls the experiences of two North Dakota men who worked in New Deal jobs programs during the depression. Provides a personal look at the achievements and the administration of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Includes classroom suggestions for teachers. (MJP)

Characterizes the New Deal public works program as combining the short-term goal of unemployment relief with the long-term goal of regional economic development. Discusses the planning, implementation, and political opposition of the New Deal's many public works programs including the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Works Progress Administration. (MJP)

Describes an elementary social studies class that studied children of the Great Depression in order to create empathy with people of different eras. The class used journal writing, mural painting, and poetry writing to consider the physical and psychological hardships experienced by Depression-era children. (MJP)

Maintains that most economics textbooks continue to repeat past mistakes concerning returns to scale and economies of scale under assumptions of constant and nonconstant input prices. Provides an adaptation for a calculus-based intermediate microeconomics class that demonstrates the pointwise relationship between returns to scale and economies of scale. (MJP)

Speculates about the consequences of unemployment for families in the 1980s, using data from the 1975 recession and the Great Depression. Found that families with preschoolers as well as Black and single-parent families were most vulnerable to financial loss and that government income transfers were ineffective. (JAC)

Examines changes in employment, unemployment, and hours of work in manufacturing, with particular focus on the five major metal-using and producing industries which are particularly sensitive to economic cycles. (SK)

During the past seven recessions, joblessness lasting more than half a year has outpaced the overall increase in unemployment. (SK)

An analysis of unemployment in four regions of the United States during 1983 showed that unemployment declined most in states that had the largest decreases previously and least in states dependent on the oil market. Most job expansion occurred in the South and West in the services and trade industries. (SK)

Results of the Council for Financial Aid to Education's 1981 survey of 789 companies providing financial support to higher education are summarized. Attention is directed to: national trends in corporate pretax net income and contributions; inflation; corporate support in relation to total voluntary support and institutional expenditures; the distribution and types of corporate contributions; foundation cash flow by industry; changes in market value of corporate foundation assets by industry; comparative ranking of educational support by industry; and total support of education in relation to worldwide pretax net income, assets, and sales. Findings include the following: respondents reported large increases in their gifts to education despite a decline in pretax net income for the manufacturing companies and only a small rise in profits for the nonmanufacturers; in most industries experiencing profit declines, corporate-sponsored foundations were able to maintain giving levels--some by using earnings on invested assets and some by drawing on assets built up in high-profit years; and foundations served as a buffer against cyclical changes in corporate profits. Problems of measuring total corporate contributions nationally are also discussed. (SW)

Describes the methods used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to make occupational and economic projections and presents highlights of the forecast for 1995. (SK)

Both sexes had higher levels of unemployment in 1982 than in 1975, but the difference was far greater for men. Changes in the industrial mix of the labor force were overwhelmed by cyclical increases in unemployment and in the number of new job seekers. (Author/SK)

The impact of selected economic factors on the level of contributions to higher education institutions is analyzed separately for corporate and individual donors, with the finding that alumni are more likely to give when economic conditions are relatively poor, while corporations give more in good economic times. (MJL)

Policy and practice in the employment of college and university graduates in business and industry were investigated in 1982 with a sample of 251 well-known companies. All but a few were national, large or medium-sized corporations representing 29 states and Washington, DC. Almost half of the respondents stated that business was worse in 1982, 25 percent saw improvement, and 20 percent stated it had not changed from 1981. Projections of respondents regarding 1983 business, and external factors that might lead to a better/worse market were cited. Fifty-four percent of the corporations said that they were going to recruit fewer bachelor graduates and 34 percent said cuts would be made in master's recruiting. About 36 percent said they were going to hire more bachelor's graduates and 18 percent will be increasing their master's hiring. The demand for engineers and computer scientists and salaries for different professionals at the bachelor's and master's levels are cited. Views were also expressed regarding: the cutback in federal aid to college students and its effect on their corporation's ability to recruit graduates, the candidate's need for information about the corporation, the company's need to lay off graduates they recently hired, and relationships between companies who are hiring and the college. (SW)