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Daily Archives: August 4, 2014

ILO says global number of child labourers down by a third since 2000

“A new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO), Marking progress against child labour, says that the global number of child labourers has declined by one third since 2000, from 246 million to 168 million. But even the latest improved rate of decline is not enough to achieve the goal of eliminating the worst forms of child labour by 2016 – agreed by the international community through the ILO. The latest ILO estimates, published in the lead-up to the Global Conference on Child Labour, which takes place in Brasilia next month, show that most of the progress was made between 2008 and 2012, when the global number fell from 215 to 168 million. More than half of the 168 million child labourers worldwide are involved in hazardous work. This is work that directly endangers their health, safety and moral development. The current number of children in hazardous work stands at 85 million, down from 171 million in 2000. Hazardous work is often treated as a proxy for the Worst Forms of Child Labour, since children in hazardous work account for the overwhelming majority of those in the worst forms.”

The Value of Cash Trapped Overseas: Evidence from U.S. Multinational Corporations

Harford, Jarrad and Wang, Cong and Zhang, Kuo, The Value of Cash Trapped Overseas: Evidence from U.S. Multinational Corporations (August 3, 2014). Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2475562 “U.S. multinational corporations (MNCs) hold significant amounts of cash abroad. Using a hand-collected sample of large U.S. MNCs, we find that the percentage of cash trapped overseas has… Continue Reading

Why Is the Economy Still Weak? Blame These Five Sectors – NYT

Neil Irwin: “The economy keeps underperforming. Yes, new G.D.P. data last week were better than expected. But the United States is still producing around $800 billion a year less in goods and services than it would if the economy were at full health, and as a result millions of people aren’t working who would be if… Continue Reading

Bee-Killing Pesticides Found in Midwest Rivers – Wired

Brandon Keim: “Pesticides linked to declining bee and bird populations have been found in streams across the upper Midwest, raising yet more concerns about these chemicals’ environmental effects. Researchers from the United States Geological Survey tested waters at nine sites in Iowa and Nebraska. They found neonicotinoids in each, frequently at levels that may harm insects… Continue Reading

Integrating Approaches to Privacy across the Research Lifecycle: Long-term Longitudinal Studies

“The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University is pleased to announce a new publication from its Privacy Tools for Sharing Research Data project team, titled Integrating Approaches to Privacy across the Research Lifecycle: Long-term Longitudinal Studies [available for download at SSRN].  This paper explores interdisciplinary approaches to privacy in long-term longitudinal studies of human subjects.… Continue Reading

James S. Brady, Reagan’s press secretary and survivor of 1981 shooting, dies at 73

Jon Thurber, Washington Post: “James S. Brady, the often-irreverent press secretary to President Ronald Reagan who was shot in the head during an assassination attempt on his boss in 1981 and who became an enduring symbol of the fight against unfettered access to guns in American society, died Aug. 4 at a retirement community in Alexandria,… Continue Reading

DOE Public Access Plan

[Via Tim Byrne – DOE/Office of Scientific and Technical Information] DOE/Office of Scientific and Technical Information] “The U.S. Department of Energy has released its Public Access Plan in response to the OSTP Memorandum of February 22, 2013, “Increasing Access to the Results of Federally Funded Scientific Research.”  The Plan outlines the Department’s approach to implementing the objectives of… Continue Reading