An economist examines three modern forces that have redefined what "money" means, who controls it, and what the future of finance might look like.   Money is increasingly cheap, digital, and mobile. In Money in the Twenty-First Century, economist Richard Holden examines the virtues and risks of low interest rates, mobile money, and cryptocurrencies, and explains how these three elemental forces will continue to play out—in our wallets, on the blockchain, and throughout major economies—in the decades to come.   Holden weaves in the stories of three people who have exerted massive influence over the future of modern money: US treasury secretary Janet Yellen, Ethereum cofounder Vitalik Buterin, and Raghuram Rajan, former governor of the Reserve Bank of India and chief economist at the International Monetary Fund. Moving from micro to macro, Holden investigates the infrastructure that permits digital transactions, the currencies that underpin them, the race for control of those currencies, shifts in policy and the international monetary system, and the impact on our politics of money in the digital age. Ultimately, Money in the Twenty-First Century asks if governments can keep these three tectonic powers of low interest rates, mobile money, and decentralized finance under control.

A vexing problem in contract law is modification. Two parties sign a contract but before they fully perform, they modify the contract. Should courts enforce the modified agreement? A private remedy is for the parties to write a contract that is robust to hold-up or that makes the facts relevant to modification verifiable. Provisions accomplishing these ends are renegotiation-design and revelation mechanisms. But implementing them requires commitment power. Conventional contract technologies to ensure commitment - liquidated damages - are disfavored by courts and themselves subject to renegotiation. Smart contracts written on blockchain ledgers offer a solution. We explain the basic economics and legal relevance of these technologies, and we argue that they can implement liquidated damages without courts. We address the hurdles courts may impose to use of smart contracts on blockchain and show that sophisticated parties' ex ante commitment to them may lead courts to allow their use as pre-commitment devices.

A new vision of liberalism that is fair and capable of responding to the challenges of a post-COVID world Liberalism-and its promise of market-led prosperity-was in crisis well before COVID-19. Recent decades have seen a rise in concentrated unemployment and long-term stagnation in real wages in many of the world's leading economies. At the same time, the world has witnessed a dramatic rise of corporate power, concentration of wealth. and the failure of liberal societies to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. To survive, liberalism will need a radical reboot-to find new ways of tackling the current challenges posed by corporate power, inequality, and climate change. In this book, Rosalind Dixon and Richard Holden argue this reboot means moving beyond recent neo-liberal versions of liberalism toward a more truly democratic form-from the idea of free markets to a vision of fair markets. The book offers a new vision of fair markets as well as the concrete policies and practical steps to make this ideal a reality. It proposes a universal green jobs-guarantee, a significant increase in the minimum wage and government support for wages, universal healthcare based on a two-track model of public and private provision, a new critical infrastructure policy for nation states to sit alongside a commitment to global free trade, and universal pollution taxes, with all proceeds returned directly to citizens by way of a green dividend. All of these policies combine a commitment to markets with democratic commitments to dignity for all citizens, and the regulation of markets in line with majority interests. By addressing underlying systemic problems of liberal societies and simultaneously emphasizing the importance of markets in ensuring the efficiency and sustainability of these policy solutions, Dixon and Holden present a vision of markets that are free, fair, and well-functioning, not simply free. With clear-headed analysis of how to pay for these ideas and the kind of democratic politics needed to make them a reality, From Free to Fair Markets is an accessible articulation of a new economic path for liberal societies coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A new vision of liberalism that is fair and capable of responding to the challenges of a post-COVID world Liberalism—and its promise of market-led prosperity—was in crisis well before COVID-19. Recent decades have seen a rise in concentrated unemployment and long-term stagnation in real wages in many of the world's leading economies. At the same time, the world has witnessed a dramatic rise of corporate power, concentration of wealth. and the failure of liberal societies to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. To survive, liberalism will need a radical reboot-to find new ways of tackling the current challenges posed by corporate power, inequality, and climate change. In this book, Rosalind Dixon and Richard Holden argue this reboot means moving beyond recent neo-liberal versions of liberalism toward a more truly democratic form-from the idea of free markets to a vision of fair markets. The book offers a new vision of fair markets as well as the concrete policies and practical steps to make this ideal a reality. It proposes a universal green jobs-guarantee, a significant increase in the minimum wage and government support for wages, universal healthcare based on a two-track model of public and private provision, a new critical infrastructure policy for nation states to sit alongside a commitment to global free trade, and universal pollution taxes, with all proceeds returned directly to citizens by way of a green dividend. All of these policies combine a commitment to markets with democratic commitments to dignity for all citizens, and the regulation of markets in line with majority interests. By addressing underlying systemic problems of liberal societies and simultaneously emphasizing the importance of markets in ensuring the efficiency and sustainability of these policy solutions, Dixon and Holden present a vision of markets that are free, fair, and well-functioning, not simply free. With clear-headed analysis of how to pay for these ideas and the kind of democratic politics needed to make them a reality, From Free to Fair Markets is an accessible articulation of a new economic path for liberal societies coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The photos in this edition are black and white. Honda and Acura practically invented sport-compact performance, and racers have proven that the popular B-series engines can make huge horsepower numbers both boosted and naturally aspirated - but times are changing. The all-new K-series engines are now found in all Honda and Acura performance models, and are also becoming the engine swap of choice. In Building Honda K-Series Engine Performance, author Richard Holdener gives you a detailed description of the K-series engines, the various kinds of aftermarket performance parts available, and describes how these parts perform on the dyno. Each chapter contains numerous color photos and back-to-back dyno tests run on a variety of different test motors including the K20A3, K20A2, K20Z3, K24AZ, and K24A4. You'll find chapters detailing upgrades to the intake, exhaust, cylinder heads, camshafts, and tuning, plus turbochargers, superchargers, and nitrous oxide. Don't spend your hard-earned cash figuring out what works and what doesn't - pick up Building Honda K-Series Engine Performance and know for sure.

The 4.6- and 5.4-liter modular Ford engines are finally catching up with the legendary 5.0L in terms of aftermarket support and performance parts availability. Having a lot of parts to choose from is great for the enthusiast, but it can also make it harder to figure out what parts and modifications will work best. Building 4.6/5.4L Ford Horsepower on the Dyno takes the guesswork out of modification and parts selection by showing you the types of horsepower and torque gains expected by each modification. Author Richard Holdener uses over 340 photos and 185 back-to-back dyno graphs to show you which parts increase horsepower and torque, and which parts don't deliver on their promises. Unlike sources that only give you peak numbers and gains, Building 4.6/5.4L Ford Horsepower on the Dyno includes complete before-and-after dyno graphs, so you can see where in the RPM range these parts make (or lose) the most horsepower and torque. Holdener covers upgrades for 2-, 3-, and 4-valve modular engines, with chapters on throttle bodies and inlet elbows, intake manifolds, cylinder heads, camshafts, nitrous oxide, supercharging, turbocharging, headers, exhaust systems, and complete engine buildups.

The photos in this edition are black and white. The sport compact performance market is hot and getting hotter - and while the Honda Civic and Acura Integra have long been the dominant players in the market, a newcomer is emerging as a popular car for performance modifications - The Ford Focus. Well-built, inexpensive, good looking, and easy to modify, the Focus is quickly catching the Hondas in terms of market popularity. This book shows Focus owners exactly what it takes to improve their car's performance, from simple modifications like installing a new air intake to radical mods like installing a turbocharger. The author also shows what those modifications can do, with before-and-after dyno tests for each modification. There's also extensive info on suspension and brake modifications for better handling and braking. It's a one-stop shop for those who want a sharper, faster Focus.

The photos in this edition are black and white. Offers complete results from over 2000 dyno pulls, and provides literally tens-of-thousands of dollars worth of dyno test results from all popular Honda performance parts. From air intake systems to exhausts, cams and cylinder heads to nitrous, turbos, and superchargers, it's all in here There's even a chapter on engine build-ups along with the results from the author's tests on nearly every Honda model, from the single-cam DX to the 2.2L Prelude. Acura models are covered as well, from the 1.8L LS through the GSR and type R, all the way up to exotic NSX.