This book contains the complete text of the special Golden Anniversary issue of the flagship journal of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI), Papers in Regional Science (Volume 83, Number 1), as well as the full text of Walter Isard's Presidential Address "The future (near and far) of regional science". Professor Isard originally delivered the speech in a special plenary session of the fiftieth North American Meetings of the Regional Science Association International. The session began with a ceremonial kickoff to the year-long celebration of the multidisciplinary field's first 50 years. At the ceremony, held on the morning of Friday, November 21,2004 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Philadelphia, we presented Walter Isard, the founder of our multidisciplinary field, as well as Antoine Bailly, the President of the Regional Science Association International, and David Boyce, the Association's Archivist, with commemorative first copies of the anniversary issue. This book, entitled Fifty Years of Regional Science, consists of a compendium of "thought" papers authored by a representative sampling of some of the field's leading scholars. For the special journal issue we originally titled the collection: "The Brightest of Dawns".

World-renowned experts in spatial statistics and spatial econometrics present the latest advances in specification and estimation of spatial econometric models. This includes information on the development of tools and software, and various applications. The text introduces new tests and estimators for spatial regression models, including discrete choice and simultaneous equation models. The performance of techniques is demonstrated through simulation results and a wide array of applications related to economic growth, international trade, knowledge externalities, population-employment dynamics, urban crime, land use, and environmental issues. An exciting new text for academics with a theoretical interest in spatial statistics and econometrics, and for practitioners looking for modern and up-to-date techniques.

'Entrepreneurship had been high on the jobs growth and economic development agendas for many years and this edited book makes an important and timely contribution to the debate. . . the book is nicely poised to bring together space, innovation and economic growth linked together with entrepreneurship. . . This book provides an excellent and worthwhile insight into many of the issues with many contributions that significantly add to our understanding of entrepreneurship and regional development.' - Ronald W. McQuaid, Growth & Change

This book brings together a collection of innovative papers on strategies for analyzing the spatial and economic impacts of disasters. Natural and human-induced disasters pose several challenges for conventional modeling. For example, disasters entail complex linkages between the natural, built, and socio-economic environments. They often create chaos and economic disequilibrium, and can also cause unexpected long-term, structural changes. Dynamic interactions among agents and behavioral adjustments in a disaster become complicated. The papers in this volume make notable progress in tackling these challenges through refinements of conventional methods, as well as new modeling frameworks and multidisciplinary, integrative strategies. The papers also provide case study applications that afford new insights on disaster processes and loss reduction strategies.

Ever since Singapore became an independent nation in 1965, its government has been intent on transforming the island’s environment. This has led to a nearly constant overhaul of the landscape, whether still natural or already manmade. Not only are the shape and dimensions of the main island and its subsidiary ones constantly modified so are their relief and hydrology. No stone is left unturned, literally, and, one could add, nor is a single cultural feature, be it a house, a factory, a road or a cemetery. Given one of Singapore’s unique feature, namely that the state is the sole landlord, all types of property in all parts of the island, rural as well as urban, were and remain subject to expropriation, fortunately always with due compensation. This atlas illustrates, essentially through diachronic mapping of the changing distribution of all forms of land use, the universality of what has become a tool of social management. By constantly “replanning” the rules of access to space, the Singaporean State is thus redefining territoriality, even in its minute details. This is one reason it has been able to consolidate its control over civil society, peacefully and to an extent rarely known in history.

A wide-ranging, interdisciplinary look at global changes that may occur over the next fifty years—whether sudden and cataclysmic world-changing events or gradually unfolding trends. Fundamental change occurs most often in one of two ways: as a “fatal discontinuity,” a sudden catastrophic event that is potentially world changing, or as a persistent, gradual trend. Global catastrophes include volcanic eruptions, viral pandemics, wars, and large-scale terrorist attacks; trends are demographic, environmental, economic, and political shifts that unfold over time. In this provocative book, scientist Vaclav Smil takes a wide-ranging, interdisciplinary look at the catastrophes and trends the next fifty years may bring. Smil first looks at rare but cataclysmic events, both natural and human-produced, then at trends of global importance, including the transition from fossil fuels to other energy sources and growing economic and social inequality. He also considers environmental change—in some ways an amalgam of sudden discontinuities and gradual change—and assesses the often misunderstood complexities of global warming. Global Catastrophes and Trends does not come down on the side of either doom-and-gloom scenarios or techno-euphoria. Instead, Smil argues that understanding change will help us reverse negative trends and minimize the risk of catastrophe.

As part of the commemorative book series on Singapore's 50 years of nation-building, this important compendium traces the history and development of the various sectors of Singapore science in the last 50 years or so. The book covers the government agencies responsible for science funding and research policy, the academic institutions and departments who have been in the forefront of the development of the nation's scientific manpower and research, the research centres and institutes which have been breaking new ground in both basic and applied science research, science museums and education, and the academic and professional institutions which the scientific community has set up to enable Singapore scientists to serve the nation more effectively.Each article is chronicled by eminent authors who have played important roles and made significant contributions in shaping today's achievement of science in Singapore.Professionals, academics, students and the general public will find this volume a useful reference material and an inspirational easy read.