The potential failure of a large bank presents vexing questions for policymakers. It poses significant risks to other financial institutions, to the financial system as a whole, and possibly to the economic and social order. Because of such fears, policymakers in many countries --developed and less developed, democratic and autocratic --respond by protecting bank creditors from all or some of the losses they otherwise would face. Failing banks are labeled "too big to fail" (or TBTF). This important new book examines the issues surrounding TBTF, explaining why it is a problem and discussing ways of dealing with it more effectively.

Gary Stern and Ron Feldman, officers with the Federal Reserve, warn that not enough has been done to reduce creditors' expectations of TBTF protection. Many of the existing pledges and policies meant to convince creditors that they will bear market losses when large banks fail are not credible, resulting in significant net costs to the economy. The authors recommend that policymakers enact a series of reforms to reduce expectations of bailouts when large banks fail.

This book offers students in the social sciences simply stated, direct guidance in defining problems for research and in organizing and conducting a research program. It addresses basic questions about topic selection, interviewing, surveys, documentation, and other research methods.

This book offers students in the social sciences simply stated, direct guidance in defining problems for research and in organizing and conducting a research program. Confronting philosophical and practical problems, it will serve both graduate and undergraduate students well, providing the former with assistance in preparing their theses and informing the latter on how to develop research papers. Dr. Feldman addresses basic questions about topic selection, interviewing, surveys, documentation, and other research methods. While his emphasis is on comparative research, any student pursuing field research in political science, sociology, anthropology, geography, social psychology, and other branches of the social sciences will find the book helpful. The concentration on data collection, rather than analysis, will make it particularly useful for those undertaking a research project for the first time.

This book is a study of the joint British and French construction of Concorde, and their separate projects to build new international airports in London (the repeatedly abandoned third airport) and Paris (Charles de Gaulle). Conventional explanations of these projects, all of which can be seen as 'failures' in some sense, contrast French professional and rational planning expertise with the amateurishness of the British. Professor Feldman challenges such stereotypes, arguing instead that policy failures in the two countries can be explained in terms of political instability. His book is unique in developing such detailed, controlled case studies for the comparison of political systems, and offers new insights into public policy-making in Britain and France.

Neural networks are a computing paradigm that is finding increasing attention among computer scientists. In this book, theoretical laws and models previously scattered in the literature are brought together into a general theory of artificial neural nets. Always with a view to biology and starting with the simplest nets, it is shown how the properties of models change when more general computing elements and net topologies are introduced. Each chapter contains examples, numerous illustrations, and a bibliography. The book is aimed at readers who seek an overview of the field or who wish to deepen their knowledge. It is suitable as a basis for university courses in neurocomputing.

What were biblical women thinking and doing when the men around them received all the attention and glory? How did Leah, Rachel, and their handmaids negotiate the complicated family dynamics of four women vying for Jacob's affections? What compelled Potiphar's wife to risk her high station to seduce Joseph, an enslaved foreigner? How did the midwives and Pharoah's daughter conspire to rescue baby Moses, right under Pharoah's nose? Biblical Women Speak employs midrash (interpretative techniques) to discover ten biblical women's stories from a female point of view and provide insights beyond how ancient male scholars viewed them. Each chapter brings alive a different biblical woman, including non-Israelite characters and others who are neglected in classical rabbinic texts, such as Keturah (Abraham's last wife), Bat Shuah (Judah's wife), Shelomith (the infamous blasphemer's mother), and Noah (one of Zelophehad's brave daughters who demanded inheritance rights). After each featured text we hear a creative retelling of the woman's story in her own voice, followed by traditional midrash and medieval commentaries and the author's reflections on how these tales and interpretations are relevant for today. Rabbi Marla J. Feldman's book is an engaging invitation to enter biblical narratives, challenge conventional wisdom, and recalibrate the stories and lessons through the lens of our own lives.

This book summarizes findings from the National Health and Nutrition Survey Epidemiologic Follow-up Study (NHEFS) for persons 55 years of age and older at initial examination. This is the first prospective study of health and health-related behaviour in a representative sample of the US population.Included in the follow-up study approximately 10 years later were all 14,407 participants who were examined at baseline in 1971-1974 (National Health and Nutrition Survey I-NHANES I). This book reports on the 5,215 individuals who were 55-74 years of age at baseline and who could be traced for further examination.The prospective nature of this research permits the authors to estimate the incidence of new disease, to examine changes in health related behaviour over time, and to access the probability of subsequent disease, given the presence of risk factors at baseline. Their analyses provide new insights into disease causation and outcome in an aging population in the US.

In the ever present desire to be healthy and nutritionally informed, I've developed these recipes in my effort to lose weight and not deprive myself by doing so. These are foods I eat and recipes I make on a regular basis that help me feel like I'm not on a diet, because really - who wants to live each day of their life feeling like they're missing out? Stephanie Feldman is a graduate of The Institute of Culinary Education, in New York City, NY.

"Mishkin's Paradise," Fred Feldman's play in two acts, is a striking drama of miscarried hope and the extremes of the American dream. It is a universal tale of family conflict and recovery.

There is a little of the fallen hero, Leon Mishkin, in each and every one of us. Mishkin goes through life making hard choices that affect his business, family, and emotional well-being. He is recalled by his only son, Arnie, now a grown man, and the head of the business Leon so painstaking worked to build. Arnie returns to his birth place on the Lower East Side of New York to reconnect with his roots. What he finds is the reality of his difficult childhood experiences with a tough, hard-driving father and deceased mother, Esther.

The lengths to which Leon goes to fulfill his career goals is evidenced by his cousin and building superintendent, Morris Lewis. Morris is the dark side of Leon's moon. He unlocks the secret of Leon Mishkin's questionable deals that doomed his family.

Fred Feldman's first novel, "The Moon Canopy, " is a vivid portrayal of life in SOHO during the early 1970s. An inviting studio apartment on Chrystie Street attracts an offbeat artist named Geronimo Sabat and a middle class Jewish gallery girl.

Sabat, without a penny to his name, declares himself renter of the apartment. Along the way, he begins an off-kilter courtship with Leah, an aspiring artist in her own right. Their love affair blossoms under the weary eye of Saltzman, owner of the building and unwanted father figure to Leah.

As time passes, their love raises many questions about art, life, race, class, and coming of age.

This book is a modern-day fable about Licorice, a house cat who get tired of the same old life of mouse-hunting. He goes off on a quest for adventure. The world Licorice sees is far from perfect, so he tries to change it. Follow along as Licorice makes the Earth a better place to live. In addition to a published novel entitled The Moon Canopy, Fred Feldman is the author of the full-length play Mishkin's Paradise and Five, a collection of one-act plays.