A sociolinguistic approach to applied epistemology: Examining technocratic values in global 'knowledge' policy

This special issue presents an excellent opportunity to study applied epistemology in public policy. This is an important task because the arena of public policy is the social domain in which macro conditions for ‘knowledge work’ and ‘knowledge industries’ are defined and created. We argue that knowledge-related public policy has become overly concerned with creating the politico-economic parameters for the commodification of knowledge. Our policy scope is broader than that of Fuller (1988), who emphasizes the need for a social epistemology of science policy. We extend our focus to a range of policy documents that include communications, science, education and innovation policy (collectively called knowledge-related public policy in acknowledgement of the fact that there is no defined policy silo called ‘knowledge policy’), all of which are central to policy concerned with the ‘knowledge economy’ (Rooney and Mandeville, 1998). However, what we will show here is that, as Fuller (1995) argues, ‘knowledge societies’ are not industrial societies permeated by knowledge, but that knowledge societies are permeated by industrial values. Our analysis is informed by an autopoietic perspective. Methodologically, we approach it from a sociolinguistic position that acknowledges the centrality of language to human societies (Graham, 2000). Here, what we call ‘knowledge’ is posited as a social and cognitive relationship between persons operating on and within multiple social and non-social (or, crudely, ‘physical’) environments. Moreover, knowing, we argue, is a sociolinguistically constituted process. Further, we emphasize that the evaluative dimension of language is most salient for analysing contemporary policy discourses about the commercialization of epistemology (Graham, in press). Finally, we provide a discourse analysis of a sample of exemplary texts drawn from a 1.3 million-word corpus of knowledge-related public policy documents that we compiled from local, state, national and supranational legislatures throughout the industrialized world. Our analysis exemplifies a propensity in policy for resorting to technocratic, instrumentalist and anti-intellectual views of knowledge in policy. We argue that what underpins these patterns is a commodity-based conceptualization of knowledge, which is underpinned by an axiology of narrowly economic imperatives at odds with the very nature of knowledge. The commodity view of knowledge, therefore, is flawed in its ignorance of the social systemic properties of ��knowing’.

A randomized controlled trial assessing the health economics of realtime teledermatology compared with conventional care: an urban versus rural perspective

A randomized controlled trial was carried out to measure the cost-effectiveness of realtime teledermatology compared with conventional outpatient dermatology care for patients from urban and rural areas. One urban and one rural health centre were linked to a regional hospital in Northern Ireland by ISDN at 128 kbit/s. Over two years, 274 patients required a hospital outpatient dermatology referral -126 patients (46%) were randomized to a telemedicine consultation and 148 (54%) to a conventional hospital outpatient consultation. Of those seen by telemedicine, 61% were registered with an urban practice, compared with 71% of those seen conventionally. The clinical outcomes of the two types of consultation were similar - almost half the patients were managed after a single consultation with the dermatologist. The observed marginal cost per patient of the initial realtime teledermatology consultation was f52.85 for those in urban areas and f59.93 per patient for those from rural areas. The observed marginal cost of the initial conventional consultation was f47.13 for urban patients and f48.77 for rural patients. The total observed costs of teledermatology were higher than the costs of conventional care in both urban and rural areas, mainly because of the fixed equipment costs. Sensitivity analysis using a real-world scenario showed that in urban areas the average costs of the telemedicine and conventional consultations were about equal, while in rural areas the average cost of the telemedicine consultation was less than that of the conventional consultation.

Some vocabulary and grammar for the analysis of multi-environment trials, as applied to the analysis of FPB and PPB trials

For the improvement of genetic material suitable for on farm use under low-input conditions, participatory and formal plant breeding strategies are frequently presented as competing options. A common frame of reference to phrase mechanisms and purposes related to breeding strategies will facilitate clearer descriptions of similarities and differences between participatory plant breeding and formal plant breeding. In this paper an attempt is made to develop such a common framework by means of a statistically inspired language that acknowledges the importance of both on farm trials and research centre trials as sources of information for on farm genetic improvement. Key concepts are the genetic correlation between environments, and the heterogeneity of phenotypic and genetic variance over environments. Classic selection response theory is taken as the starting point for the comparison of selection trials (on farm and research centre) with respect to the expected genetic improvement in a target environment (low-input farms). The variance-covariance parameters that form the input for selection response comparisons traditionally come from a mixed model fit to multi-environment trial data. In this paper we propose a recently developed class of mixed models, namely multiplicative mixed models, also called factor-analytic models, for modelling genetic variances and covariances (correlations). Mixed multiplicative models allow genetic variances and covariances to be dependent on quantitative descriptors of the environment, and confer a high flexibility in the choice of variance-covariance structure, without requiring the estimation of a prohibitively high number of parameters. As a result detailed considerations regarding selection response comparisons are facilitated. ne statistical machinery involved is illustrated on an example data set consisting of barley trials from the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA). Analysis of the example data showed that participatory plant breeding and formal plant breeding are better interpreted as providing complementary rather than competing information.

Estimating economic relationships subject to firm- and time-varying equality and inequality constraints

Applied econometricians often fail to impose economic regularity constraints in the exact form economic theory prescribes. We show how the Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) Theorem and Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods can be used to rigorously impose time- and firm-varying equality and inequality constraints. To illustrate the technique we estimate a system of translog input demand functions subject to all the constraints implied by economic theory, including observation-varying symmetry and concavity constraints. Results are presented in the form of characteristics of the estimated posterior distributions of functions of the parameters. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.

Fate of urea nitrogen applied to a banana crop in the wet tropics of Queensland

This paper reports a study in the wet tropics of Queensland on the fate of urea applied to a dry or wet soil surface under banana plants. The transformations of urea were followed in cylindrical microplots (10.3 cm diameter x 23 cm long), a nitrogen (N) balance was conducted in macroplots (3.85 m x 2.0 m) with N-15 labelled urea, and ammonia volatilization was determined with a mass balance micrometeorological method. Most of the urea was hydrolysed within 4 days irrespective of whether the urea was applied onto dry or wet soil. The nitrification rate was slow at the beginning when the soil was dry, but increased greatly after small amounts of rain; in the 9 days after rain 20% of the N applied was converted to nitrate. In the 40 days between urea application and harvesting, the macroplots the banana plants absorbed only 15% of the applied N; at harvest the largest amounts were found in the leaves (3.4%), pseudostem (3.3%) and fruit (2.8%). Only 1% of the applied N was present in the roots. Sixty percent of the applied N was recovered in the soil and 25% was lost from the plant-soil system by either ammonia volatilization, leaching or denitrification. Direct measurements of ammonia volatilization showed that when urea was applied to dry soil, and only small amounts of rain were received, little ammonia was lost (3.2% of applied N). In contrast, when urea was applied onto wet soil, urea hydrolysis occurred immediately, ammonia was volatilized on day zero, and 17.2% of the applied N was lost by the ninth day after that application. In the latter study, although rain fell every day, the extensive canopy of banana plants reduced the rainfall reaching the fertilized area under the bananas to less than half. Thus even though 90 mm of rain fell during the volatilization study, the fertilized area did not receive sufficient water to wash the urea into the soil and prevent ammonia loss. Losses by leaching and denitrification combined amounted to 5% of the applied N.

Cost of malaria control in China: Henan's consolidation programme from community and government perspectives

Objective To assist with strategic planning for the eradication,of malaria in Henan Province, China, which reached the consolidation phase of malaria control in 1992, when only 318 malaria cases were reported, Methods We conducted a prospective two-year study of the costs for Henan's malaria control programme. We used a cost model that could also be applied to other malaria programmes in-mainland China, and analysed the cost of the three components of Henan's malaria programme. suspected malaria case management,, vector surveillance,,and population blood surveys. Primary cost data were collected from the government, and data on suspected malaria patient's were collected in two malaria counties (population 2 093 100). We enlisted the help of 260 village doctors. in six-townships or former communities (population 247 762), and studied all 12 315 reported cases of suspected malaria in catchment areas in 1994 and 1995. Findings The average-annual government investment in malaria control was estimated to be US$ 111 516 (case-management 59%; active blood surveys 25%;vector surveillance 12%; and contingencies and special projects 4%). The average cost (direct and indirect) for-patients seeking-treatment for suspected malaria was US$ 3.48, equivalent,to 10 days' income for rural residents. Each suspected malaria case cost the government an, average of US$ 0.78. Conclusion Further cuts in government funding will increase future costs, when epidemic malaria returns; investment in malaria control should therefore continue at least at current levels,of US$ 0.03 per person a risk.

Economics teaching in Australian universities: Rewards and outcomes

This paper presents evidence from two survey's to help explain the poor ratings consistently given to the teaching of economics at Australian universities. The evidence suggests that the Poor ratings of economics teaching can be attributed to two related factors: inappropriate pedagogical practices and lack of rewards for allocating additional time to teaching. The survey data oil pedagogy, in economics consist of 205 responses from graduates from two Queensland universities. The time elapsed since graduation ranges from 1 to 10 years. The survey data on academics' time allocation consist of 290 responses from academic economists across a wide range of Australian universities.

Asian elephants as agricultural pests: Economics of control and compensation in Sri Lanka

Despite growing attention to crop and property damage caused by the Asian elephant, uncertainty exists about the magnitude of this problem. This article explores the nature and, Magnitude of this problem in Sri Lanka. An economic analysis of individual farmers'. decisions to control elephants is provided. Government policies to assist farmers in coping with the elephant pest problem are assessed. Appropriate compensation schemes for farmers are seen as potentially more effective for conserving elephants in Sri Lanka than legal prohibitions on the killing of elephants. The issues raised here have wider relevance than merely to Sri Lanka or Asian elephants.