Jeremy Atack - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Jeremy Atack

Explorations in Economic History, 1983

61801. ' It should be noted that our original procedure can be made theoretically valid by a slig... more 61801. ' It should be noted that our original procedure can be made theoretically valid by a slight modification of Harley's approach. Since railroads could apply the scrap value of the original rail to a new purchase, it could be argued that rK in Harley's Eq. (1) should be replaced by r(K-S). When this is done, (1) reduces to our formula (Harley's Eq. (2)) with K replaced by K-S. If the scrap price were the same fraction (Y of the new price for each rail type, then the numerator of (2) would become r(l -a)K, and since the factor (1 -a) would cancel in a comparison of iron and steel, our original results would reemerge. As Harley points out, however, the ratio of new and scrap prices was quite different for iron and steel rails.

Explorations in Economic History, 1982

Economics Letters, Feb 1, 1979

Nber Working Papers, Aug 1, 2003

We use establishment-level data to study capital deepening --increases in the capital-output rati... more We use establishment-level data to study capital deepening --increases in the capital-output ratio --in American manufacturing from 1850 to 1880. In nominal terms, the aggregate capitaloutput ratio in our samples rose by 30 percent from 1850 to 1880. Growth in real terms was considerably greater --70 percent --because prices of capital goods declined relative to output prices. Cross-sectional regressions suggest that capital deepening was especially importnat in the larger firms and was positively associated with the diffusion of steam-powered machinery. However, even after accounting for shifts over time in such factors, much of the capital deepening remains to be explained.

The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Aug 14, 2011

During the 1850s, the amount of farmland in the United States increased by 40 million hectares (1... more During the 1850s, the amount of farmland in the United States increased by 40 million hectares (100 million acres), or more than one-third. Moreover, almost 20 million hectares, an area almost equal to that of the states of Indiana and Ohio combined, were converted from their raw, natural state into productive farmland. e time and expense of transforming this land into a productive agricultural resource represented a signi cant fraction of domestic capital formation at the time and was an important contributor to American economic growth. Even more impressive, however, was the fact that almost half of these total net additions to cropland occurred in just seven Midwestern states, which constituted somewhat less than one-eighth of the land area of the country at that time. Using a new GIS-based transportation database linked to county-level census data, we estimate that at least a quarter (and possibly two-thirds or more) of this increase in cultivable land can be linked directly to the coming of the railroad to the Midwest. Farmers responded to the shrinking transportation wedge, which raised agricultural revenue productivity, by rapidly expanding the area under cultivation and these changes, in turn, drove an increase in farm and land values.

Nber Working Papers, 2006

We use establishment-level data from the 1850-1880 censuses of manufacturing to study the relatio... more We use establishment-level data from the 1850-1880 censuses of manufacturing to study the relationships among establishment size, steam power use, and labor productivity. Large establishments, measured here by employment, were much more likely to use steam power than smaller establishments. By 1880, slightly more than half of all manufacturing workers were employed in establishments using steam power, compared with 17 percent in 1850 and we show that, after controlling for various establishment characteristics, steam-powered establishments had higher labor productivity than establishments using other sources of power. Moreover, this productivity differential was increasing in establishment size.

This preliminary paper develops a strategy for mapping the 19 th century expansion of the transpo... more This preliminary paper develops a strategy for mapping the 19 th century expansion of the transportation network in the United States during the nineteenth century using GIS. It focuses in particular on railroads and takes a critical look at work assessing their importance to American economic growth and development during this crucial period in our history.

Using unpublished manuscript census data for 1869/70 and 1879/80, we estimate that manufacturing ... more Using unpublished manuscript census data for 1869/70 and 1879/80, we estimate that manufacturing establishments in the mid/late nineteenth century averaged about 10 months of fulltime operation per year; somewhat longer in 1880 fractionally less in 1870. Months of operation, however, varied greatly by industry and systematically by region and size of establishment, with establishments in the South working fewer months and larger establishments working more months. This evidence in turn has broad implications for efforts to measure productivity and for our interpretation of levels and trends in manufacturing profitability.

This paper provides a survey on studies that analyze the macroeconomic effects of intellectual pr... more This paper provides a survey on studies that analyze the macroeconomic effects of intellectual property rights (IPR). The first part of this paper introduces different patent policy instruments and reviews their effects on R&D and economic growth. This part also discusses the distortionary effects and distributional consequences of IPR protection as well as empirical evidence on the effects of patent rights. Then, the second part considers the international aspects of IPR protection. In summary, this paper draws the following conclusions from the literature. Firstly, different patent policy instruments have different effects on R&D and growth. Secondly, there is empirical evidence supporting a positive relationship between IPR protection and innovation, but the evidence is stronger for developed countries than for developing countries. Thirdly, the optimal level of IPR protection should tradeoff the social benefits of enhanced innovation against the social costs of multiple distorti...

Historical Statistics of the United States: Millennial Edition Online, 2000

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

Economic Evolution and Revolution in Historical Time, 2011

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was considerable interest among the sc... more In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was considerable interest among the scientific and business communities in the relationship between work, fatigue, health and productivity. Study after study not only documented well-known relationships between occupation and disease such as mercury poisoning among "mad hatters" but also an increasing body of evidence suggested a causal chain between fatigue induced

ICPSR Data Holdings, 2000

Explorations in Economic History, 1983

61801. ' It should be noted that our original procedure can be made theoretically valid by a slig... more 61801. ' It should be noted that our original procedure can be made theoretically valid by a slight modification of Harley's approach. Since railroads could apply the scrap value of the original rail to a new purchase, it could be argued that rK in Harley's Eq. (1) should be replaced by r(K-S). When this is done, (1) reduces to our formula (Harley's Eq. (2)) with K replaced by K-S. If the scrap price were the same fraction (Y of the new price for each rail type, then the numerator of (2) would become r(l -a)K, and since the factor (1 -a) would cancel in a comparison of iron and steel, our original results would reemerge. As Harley points out, however, the ratio of new and scrap prices was quite different for iron and steel rails.

Explorations in Economic History, 1982

Economics Letters, Feb 1, 1979

Nber Working Papers, Aug 1, 2003

We use establishment-level data to study capital deepening --increases in the capital-output rati... more We use establishment-level data to study capital deepening --increases in the capital-output ratio --in American manufacturing from 1850 to 1880. In nominal terms, the aggregate capitaloutput ratio in our samples rose by 30 percent from 1850 to 1880. Growth in real terms was considerably greater --70 percent --because prices of capital goods declined relative to output prices. Cross-sectional regressions suggest that capital deepening was especially importnat in the larger firms and was positively associated with the diffusion of steam-powered machinery. However, even after accounting for shifts over time in such factors, much of the capital deepening remains to be explained.

The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Aug 14, 2011

During the 1850s, the amount of farmland in the United States increased by 40 million hectares (1... more During the 1850s, the amount of farmland in the United States increased by 40 million hectares (100 million acres), or more than one-third. Moreover, almost 20 million hectares, an area almost equal to that of the states of Indiana and Ohio combined, were converted from their raw, natural state into productive farmland. e time and expense of transforming this land into a productive agricultural resource represented a signi cant fraction of domestic capital formation at the time and was an important contributor to American economic growth. Even more impressive, however, was the fact that almost half of these total net additions to cropland occurred in just seven Midwestern states, which constituted somewhat less than one-eighth of the land area of the country at that time. Using a new GIS-based transportation database linked to county-level census data, we estimate that at least a quarter (and possibly two-thirds or more) of this increase in cultivable land can be linked directly to the coming of the railroad to the Midwest. Farmers responded to the shrinking transportation wedge, which raised agricultural revenue productivity, by rapidly expanding the area under cultivation and these changes, in turn, drove an increase in farm and land values.

Nber Working Papers, 2006

We use establishment-level data from the 1850-1880 censuses of manufacturing to study the relatio... more We use establishment-level data from the 1850-1880 censuses of manufacturing to study the relationships among establishment size, steam power use, and labor productivity. Large establishments, measured here by employment, were much more likely to use steam power than smaller establishments. By 1880, slightly more than half of all manufacturing workers were employed in establishments using steam power, compared with 17 percent in 1850 and we show that, after controlling for various establishment characteristics, steam-powered establishments had higher labor productivity than establishments using other sources of power. Moreover, this productivity differential was increasing in establishment size.

This preliminary paper develops a strategy for mapping the 19 th century expansion of the transpo... more This preliminary paper develops a strategy for mapping the 19 th century expansion of the transportation network in the United States during the nineteenth century using GIS. It focuses in particular on railroads and takes a critical look at work assessing their importance to American economic growth and development during this crucial period in our history.

Using unpublished manuscript census data for 1869/70 and 1879/80, we estimate that manufacturing ... more Using unpublished manuscript census data for 1869/70 and 1879/80, we estimate that manufacturing establishments in the mid/late nineteenth century averaged about 10 months of fulltime operation per year; somewhat longer in 1880 fractionally less in 1870. Months of operation, however, varied greatly by industry and systematically by region and size of establishment, with establishments in the South working fewer months and larger establishments working more months. This evidence in turn has broad implications for efforts to measure productivity and for our interpretation of levels and trends in manufacturing profitability.

This paper provides a survey on studies that analyze the macroeconomic effects of intellectual pr... more This paper provides a survey on studies that analyze the macroeconomic effects of intellectual property rights (IPR). The first part of this paper introduces different patent policy instruments and reviews their effects on R&D and economic growth. This part also discusses the distortionary effects and distributional consequences of IPR protection as well as empirical evidence on the effects of patent rights. Then, the second part considers the international aspects of IPR protection. In summary, this paper draws the following conclusions from the literature. Firstly, different patent policy instruments have different effects on R&D and growth. Secondly, there is empirical evidence supporting a positive relationship between IPR protection and innovation, but the evidence is stronger for developed countries than for developing countries. Thirdly, the optimal level of IPR protection should tradeoff the social benefits of enhanced innovation against the social costs of multiple distorti...

Historical Statistics of the United States: Millennial Edition Online, 2000

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

Economic Evolution and Revolution in Historical Time, 2011

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was considerable interest among the sc... more In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was considerable interest among the scientific and business communities in the relationship between work, fatigue, health and productivity. Study after study not only documented well-known relationships between occupation and disease such as mercury poisoning among "mad hatters" but also an increasing body of evidence suggested a causal chain between fatigue induced

ICPSR Data Holdings, 2000