This paper proposes an alternative to the classical price-adjustment mechanism (called "t\^{a}tonnement" after Walras) that is second-order in time. The proposed mechanism, an analogue to the damped harmonic oscillator, provides a dynamic equilibration process that depends only on local...

In two previous papers the author developed a second-order price adjustment (t\^atonnement) process. This paper extends the approach to include both quantity and price adjustments. We demonstrate three results: a analogue to physical energy, called "activity" arises naturally in the model, and...

General equilibrium is the dominant theoretical framework for economic policy analysis at the level of the whole economy. In practice, general equilibrium treats economies as being always in equilibrium, albeit in a sequence of equilibria as driven by external changes in parameters. This view is...

Scaling relations, such as the IPAT equation and the Kaya identity, are useful for quickly gauging the scale of economic, technological, and demographic changes required to reduce environmental impacts and pressures; in the case of the Kaya identity, the environmental pressure is greenhouse gas...

Instrumental arguments linking inequality to sustainability often suppose a negative relationship between inequality and social cohesion, and empirical studies of inequality and social trust support the assumption. If true, then redistribution should increase levels of social cohesion and...

The National Bioenergy Investment Model is a scenario model that simulates the decisions of domestic and international investors on whether to invest in biofuel enterprises in a developing country. In the model, investors compare the profitability of different biofuel feedstock and fuel...

A central conclusion of the standard theory of consumption is that consumers' preferences can be taken as theoretical primitives. Special categories of consumption, such as "basic needs", or of goods, such as "subsistence goods" are seen as extra theoretical baggage that add few, if any,...

This paper presents a theory of induced technological change in which firms pursue a random, local, and bounded search for productivity-enhancing innovations. Firms implement profitable innovations at fixed prices, which then spread through the economy. After diffusion, all firms adjust prices...

This paper presents a theory of induced technological change in which firms pursue a random, local, and bounded search for productivity-enhancing innovations. Firms implement profitable innovations at fixed prices, which then spread through the economy. After diffusion, all firms adjust prices...