In the Winter 2008 edition of CentrePiece:

In this edition:

School Segregation and its Consequences

The average ability of children going into the best comprehensive schools in England is way above the average ability in the worst, according to a study of the extent to which high- and low-achieving pupils are separated... Read more...

Is Distance Dying at Last?

Economists have long been sceptical of claims about the 'death of distance' - the idea that new technology has diminished the significance of geography for economic outcomes. Research by Sokbae Lee, Rachel Griffith and J... Read more...

In brief... Smoking during pregnancy

Women who smoke in early pregnancy should not be written off as 'too late' to help, according to research by Emma Tominey. Harm to the baby is essentially reduced to zero if the mother quits by month five of the pregnanc... Read more...

In brief... Freedom fries: When international relations damage international trade

International trade flows may be sensitive to large changes in international relations and public attitudes, according to research by Guy Michaels and Xiaojia Zhi. Their study finds that US imports from France declined s... Read more...

The Psychology of Savings and Investment

The pensions world of 2010 is going to look a lot more useful to unsophisticated investors than the pensions world of 2000, thanks to policy recommendations emerging from the new field of 'behavioural economics'. That is... Read more...

Inequality of Individual Wages and the Dispersion of Firm Productivity

Many blame globalisation for growing wage inequality in the UK. But according to research by Giulia Faggio, Kjell Salvanes and John Van Reenen, the rise in inequality is better explained by increasing dispersion in the p... Read more...

The Labour Market Effects of Immigration

What are the effects of increased immigration on the wages and employment of people who are already here, whether they are native-born or earlier immigrants? Research by Marco Manacorda, Alan Manning and Jonathan Wadswor... Read more...

What's in a Name? Information on Intergenerational Mobility

It is very difficult to measure changes in economic and social mobility across generations and to make comparisons across societies. Research by Maia Guell, Jose V. Rodriguez Mora and Chris Telmer finds that surnames can... Read more...

Do Computers Help Police Fight Crime?

Increased computerisation results in more effective crime-fighting - but only if police work is reorganised to take advantage of the presence of computers. That is the central conclusion of a study of the impact of infor... Read more...