A NEW TOOL FOR ANALYZING EMBODIED TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR COMPETITIVENESS, OBSOLESCENCE, EMPLOYMENT, PROFITS AND THE STRUCTURE OF THE U.S. INDUSTRIALBASE.

THE PURPOSE OF THE PROPOSED RESEARCH IS TO FUND THE FIRST PHASE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ANALYTICAL TOOLS TO DETERMINE THE RANGE OF TECHNOLOGIES COEXISTING IN EACH OF THE FOUR-DIGIT U.S. MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES AND THE EFFECT ON PRODUCTION COSTS AS THE LOWER COST TECHNOLOGIES REPLACE THE MORE COSTLY ONES. THE DIFFERENCES IN COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH EACH OF THE TECHNOLOGIES IN AN INDUSTRY, AND THE SENSITIVITY OF EACH TO CHANGES IN INPUT PRICES, ALONG WITH OTHER INFORMATION DEVELOPED IN THIS PROJECT, WILL BE USEFUL PER SE AND IN PREDICTING THE PACE AT WHICH INVESTMENT WILL BE UNDERTAKEN IN EACH INDUSTRY. THE EFFECT OF SUCH INVESTMENT ON U.S. EMPLOYMENT AND THE COMPETITIVENESS OF U.S. FIRMS IN U.S. AND FOREIGN MARKETS CAN ALSO BE EVALUATED. TO ACCOMPLISH THESE ENDS, THE RESEARCH WILL RESULT IN MICRO-ECONOMIC TOOLS APPLICABLE AT THE INDIVIDUAL INDUSTRY LEVEL. IT WILL ALSO RESULT, IN LATER PHASES, IN ECONOMY-WIDE INPUT-OUTPUT TABLES, EACH BASED ON A TECHNOLOGYWITH THE SAME RANK IN THE SPECTRUM OF EACH INDUSTRY'S TECHNOLOGIES.