Metal price volatility is undesirable for firms that use metals as raw materials, because price volatility can translate into volatility of material costs. Volatile material costs and can erode the profitability of the firm, and limit material selection decisions. The undesirability of...

Large incentive competitions are becoming increasingly popular amongst policymakers and philanthropists as a mission-orientated tool for inducing innovation, particularly in areas of national priority where market incentives and conventional tools such as patents and procurements tend not to be...

Regulation of aviation's contribution to the global problem of climate change is increasingly likely in the near term, but the method agreed upon by most economists-a multi-sectoral market-based approach such as a cap and trade system-is opposed by industry stakeholders. An efficient...

The United States government is committed to promoting a market for electric vehicles. To ensure that this electrification program does not result in the same failure that has come be associated with its predecessor programs, Freedom Car and the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles,...

The historical basis for a link between crude oil and natural gas prices was examined to determine whether one has existed in the past and exists in the present. Physical bases for a price relationship are examined. An econometric modeling exercise seeks to establish whether a stable price...

The Massachusetts life sciences supercluster is a source of tremendous innovation. The Commonwealth's academic and industrial institutions produce a consistent stream of cutting-edge scientific research and the region has a well-developed professional and financial infrastructure to support the...

Over the last two decades the application of real options theory has dramatically altered the way researches model infrastructure investment decisions. Real options are the right, but not obligation to do something for a certain cost within or at a specific period of time. Compared to the rich...

The effects of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) on innovation in the field of biotechnology are considered through assessment of their effects on upstream innovation and downstream development. Two case studies involving research tools representing forms of upstream innovation are analyzed to...