Laser Safety: Practical knowledge and solutions provides an in-depth guide to laser safety for a wide variety of people who work regularly with lasers and similar products. Laser safety basics are discussed, with an explanation of laser safety devices and useful techniques to obtain workable laser safety culture. An expansion of topics not found in typical laser safety texts is also included: ergonomics, mentoring, performance-based learning, on the job training, laser safety tool...

The Gambia, one of the least developed countries in Africa, has been pursuing corrective economic policies since 1985, aimed at restroing financial stability and laying the basis for strong and sustainable economic growth. Supported by IMF policy advice and financing. The Gambia's economic performance has improved considerably since 1985. This study discusses Gambian adjustment policies and their benefits.

Leading economist John B. Taylor’s straightforward plan to rebuild America’s economic future by returning to its founding principles.Mired in a crippling economic slump and hamstrung by partisan political debates, America faces substantial economic challenges, from widespread unemployment to the government’s ballooning debt. These assaults on our prosperity reflect the unintended consequences of more than a decade of government intervention in virtually all areas o...

The wealth derived from natural resources can have a tremendous impact on the economics and politics of producing countries. In the last quarter century, we have seen the surprising and sobering consequences of this wealth, producing what is now known as the "resource curse." Countries with large endowments of natural resources, such as oil and gas, often do worse than their poorer neighbors. Their resource wealth frequently leads to lower growth rates, greater volatility, more corruption,...

In June 2008, Justin Yifu Lin was appointed Chief Economist of the World Bank, right before the eruption of the worst global financial and economic crisis since the Great Depression. Drawing on experience from his privileged position, Lin offers unique reflections on the cause of the crisis, why it was so serious and widespread, and its likely evolution. Arguing that conventional theories provide inadequate solutions, he proposes new initiatives for achieving global stability and avoiding ...

C. Eugene Steuerle, one of the country's most influential economists, offers an insider's look at tax policy based on a quarter century of working with officials of all political stripes. Steuerle outlines the principles of taxation and the early postwar period before proceeding to the tax policy battles that began with the Reagan revolution and continue today. Those expecting a simple story of triumph and defeat may be surprised. Rather than moving toward consensus and progress, tax polic...

The IMF's response to the global crisis of 2008–9 marked a significant change from its past policies. The Fund provided relatively large amounts of credit quickly with limited conditions and accepted the use of capital controls. This book traces the evolution of the IMF's actions to promote international financial stability from the Bretton Woods era through the most recent crisis. The analysis includes an examination of the IMF's crisis management activities during the debt crisis of the ...

How governmental failure led to the 2008 financial crisis—and what needs to be done to avoid another similar eventBehind every financial crisis lurks a "political bubble"—policy biases that foster market behaviors leading to financial instability. Rather than tilting against risky behavior, political bubbles—arising from a potent combination of beliefs, institutions, and interests—aid, abet, and amplify risk. Demonstrating how political bubbles helped create the re...

This book is the result of a workshop on the effects of globalization on Asian and European countries, organized by Marc Uzan and the Austrian Ministry of Finance in April 2006. Bringing together key academics, policy makers and private market participants, these chapters cover the current debate of global imbalances and the way to resolve the disequilibrium in the international monetary system and understand the need for international cooperation among the different monetary areas of the ...

First published in 1962, The Theory of Economic Integration provides an excellent exposition of a complex and far-reaching topic. Professor Balassa has been remarkably successful in covering so much ground with such care and balance, in a treatment which is neither in any way abstruse nor unnecessarily technical. His book will interest economists in Europe by reason of its subject and treatment, but it is also a valuable and reliable textbook for students tackling integration as p...

In 2008, the world was plunged into a financial and economic crash. This book explores the roots of the crash, including the build-up of global economic imbalances, the explosion in the use of novel financial instruments, the mismanagement of risk, and the specific roles played by housing and debt. It reviews the evidence that on the eve of the crash all was not well and that many political and finance industry leaders ignored the dangers. The key events of the crash are described, and the...

Government information systems are big business (costing over 1 per cent of GDP a year). They are critical to all aspects of public policy and governmental operations. Governments spend billions on them - for instance, the UK alone commits £14 billion a year to public sector IT operations. Yet governments do not generally develop or run their own systems, instead relying on private sector computer services providers to run large, long-run contracts to provide IT. Some of the biggest compan...