OLDER WORKERS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00530R000300600002-6
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 10, 2012
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: October 1, 1988
• Content Type: MISC

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Summary indicators on working women-Continued
(Date are seasonally adjusted unless otherwise indicated. numbers are in thousands.)
Average (mean) number of weeks unemployed
women have been looking for work ............
Married women, husband present:
Civilian noninstitutional population ............
51,318
51,690
51,986
51,442
51,594
Civilian labor force participation rate ..........
53.0
52.8
52.9
53.7
53
6
Unemployment rate ........................
5.8
5.8
5.5
5.7
.
5.8
Women who maintain families:
Civilian noninstitutional population ............
10,175
10,005
9,910
10,281
10
298
Civilian labor force participation rate ..........
60.9
61.3
60.6
60.6
,
61.5
Unemployment rate ........................
10.1
10.1
10.3
10.4
10.5
NOTE: Due to rounding, and independent seasonal adjustment, some components may not add to totals.
Unemployment rates for midlife and older
women are typically well below the rates for
other women. Once unemployed, however,
women 45 and older have a somewhat harder
time finding a job. In the second quarter of 1985,
they had been looking for work an average of
17.8 weeks compared with 13.8 weeks for those
20 to 44 years of age.
Employed women, in general, are predomi-
nantly in "white-collar jobs," but the oldest
women are less likely to be in these occupations-
59 percent of those 65 and older, compared with
about 65 percent below age 55. A smaller propor-
tion of older women hold clerical/administrative
support jobs, while a larger proportion are sales-
women, reflecting the greater availability of part-
time hours in the retail trade. Another notable
difference is the substantially higher proportion
of older women than younger women in service
jobs, a difference due largely to the greater con-
centration of the older women in private house-
hold and personal service work.
OLDER WORKERS
Older Workers and Their Work
Patterns*
This section provides an overview of the status
of older workers. The characteristics of the older
worker population are described-how many
there are, their unemployment levels, patterns
of employment, and prospects for future employ-
ment. The section also discusses the decision to
retire or keep working-incentives, disincentives,
and optional work roles, such as volunteerism.
The discussion then turns to special older worker
populations-displaced workers, women, minori-
ties, and the handicapped-and their problems.
This section concludes with a statement of the
four issues that have emerged as a focus for devel-
oping actions by employers, government, and the
community to address older worker needs.
Older Workers: Who They Are
Older workers encompass a wide age group-
40 years and older according to the Age Discrim-
ination in Employment Act, 45 years and older
according to the Department of Labor defini-
tions, and 55 years and older (the age group most
likely to leave the labor force). Older workers
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LJ ~
Labor
are not homogeneous; they include several special
populations facing different problems. There are
displaced older workers, who have lost their jobs
and have no prospects of returning to them; dis-
advantaged workers (such as minorities, women,
and those with health impairments); older work-
ers facing retirement pressures due to. skills obso-
lescence, pension incentives, and work force re-
duction plans; and retirees seeking to reenter the
work force. The status of older workers in gen-
eral, and the employment problems faced by spe-
cial groups, can be important to employers, poli-
cymakers, and community groups seeking to
address older worker needs, since these needs
will be different for each population.
Millions of Workers
1980
Age (years)
Men
Women
45-54
55-64
65 plus
9.91
7.16
1.88
7.07
4.59
1.14
Labor Force
Participation, 1980
Age (years)
Men
Women
45-54
91.2%
60.9%
55-64
72.3
41.5
65 plus
19.1
8.1
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
In 1980, over 18.9 million men and 12.8 mil-
lion women were older workers according to the
U.S. Department of Labor definition, which in-
cludes all those over 45 years of age who are
employed., self-employed, or looking for work.
In general, older workers are considered in three
groups: those aged 45-54, who are still high on
their earnings curve; those aged 55-64, who are
beginning to drop out of the labor force (most
for early retirement-planned or as a result of
layoff-but some because of ill health); and those
aged 65 and over (a much smaller number).
The 32 million older workers in 1980 are ex-
pected to rise to 38 million in 1995, with the
greatest growth being in the age range 45-54.
The Department of Labor expects the number
aged 45-54 years to grow from 17 million in
1979 to 24 million in 1995 as the "war baby"
generation ages. At the same time, the percentage
of older men who remain in the labor force is
expected to continue its 30-year decline and the
percentage of older women who remain is ex-
pected to continue its increase. (More than half
of all women are now in the labor force, and
the percentage will continue to increase, but the
major part of the increase is in younger age
groups, according to Sandell, 1983a.)
Unemployment
Until 1981, unemployment rates for older
workers had remained fairly low; in 1980, the
rate was 4%, in contrast to 7% overall. In addi-
tion, although special populations within the
older worker group suffered from underemploy-
ment (worked part time or worked for only part
of the year), almost all men aged 45-64 who
were employed in 1981 worked full time, as did
almost three-quarters of employed women in that
age group.
This overall pattern of full-time work and
lower unemployment, however, does not mean
an absence of problems. The unemployment rate
does not include those who drop out of the labor
force, and the dropout rate is high for older work-
ers, for whom layoff tends to become unplanned
retirement (Rupp, Bryant, and Mantovani,
1983). For those older workers who stay in the
labor force, a spell of unemployment typically
lasts longer than it does for younger workers.
For example, half of the men aged 55-64 who
were unemployed in late 1982 were out of work
for more than 13 weeks (Department of Labor,
1983).
Some unemployed older workers have ex-
hausted both unemployment benefits and per-
sonal savings but are not eligible for any federally
funded benefit except Food Stamps. These work-
ers are of great concern, not only because of their
need for financial support, but also because of
their higher rate of emotional and medical prob-
Percent Unemployed
1982
Age (years)
Men
Women
55-64
65 plus
6.5
5.3
5.1
3.9
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Percent of All
Those Working, 1981
Age (years)
Men
Women
Working full time
Age 45-64 years
94.5
74.6
Age 65 years plus
52.3
40.4
Working part time
Age 45-64 years
5.5
25.4
Age 65 years plus
47.7
59.6
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
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7.58
lems. Disadvantaged workers, particularly those
with little education, may be unable to find work
unless they can get training in marketable skills.
Displaced workers may be limited in their ability
to move to areas that have employment opportu-
nities for their existing skills because they have
exhausted all assets except their home, for which
no buyer can be found.
Employment
When laid-off older workers get new jobs, they
tend to get a lower wage than they received in
the previous job (Shapiro and Sandell, 1983).
This is ascribed less to age discrimination than
to the fact that they tend to have company-spe-
cific experience, not all of which is relevant to
the new firm, rather than recent training in the
latest techniques. In addition, older workers who
keep their jobs face the problem that employers
see their skills as obsolete because so much time
has passed since they were trained (Andrisani
and Daymont, 1983). Employers also tend to of-
fer older workers fewer opportunities for train-
ing, at least in part because most older workers
get higher wages than younger ones, and the time
taken for training thus costs the employers more
(Andrisani and Daymont, 1983).
When retired workers seek to reenter the work
force, whether because inflation has eroded their
income or for other reasons, they often do not
find full-time work at desirable wages. Because
of pension restrictions, the Tax Equity and Fiscal
Responsibility Act (TEFRA), Employees Retire-
ment Income Security Act (ERISA) provisions,
and Social Security earnings limitations, most
post-retirement workers are limited to part-time
work, usually less than 1,000 hours per year.
Although there are no exact figures on how many
post-retirement workers are self-employed, ob-
servers generally perceive that the number is ris-
ing.
Improving Prospects for Employment
There is no systematic range of opportunities
that would allow those older workers who are
out of work, working for wages too low to live
on, or working only part time, to improve their
lot. The Comprehensive Employment Training
Act (CETA) and the Senior Community Service
Employment Program (SCSEP) were underused
by older adults, although participation in either
one had the effect of increasing the number of
weeks worked (Rupp, Bryant, and Mantovani,
Labor
Average Duration of
Unemployment, 1980
(weeks)
Age (years)
Men
Women
55-64
65 plus
21.6
16.9
19.9
13.1
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Percent of Unemployed
Receiving Training
Age (years)
Men
Women
Displaced workers
Age 25-44
3.8%
7.2%
Age 45 plus
3.5
1
7
Other
Age 25-44
4.4
.
5.5
Age 45 plus
2.3
1.8
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
1983b). Training slots in CETA programs were
often seen-by program operators and the com-
munity-as being aimed primarily at the young
(Reesman, Rupp, and Mantovani, 1983). Ac-
cording to Rupp et al. (1983), fewer than 1%
of those over 45 who met CETA eligibility re-
quirements received CETA training. An even
smaller percentage of those eligible for the
SCSEP participated.
Finally, the Age Discrimination in Employ-
ment Act, although it has changed corporate
practices in dealing with men and women aged
40-70, has not eliminated age discrimination.
The number of grievances filed with the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
charging age discrimination has risen 75% over
the last 3 years, to 10,000. (The number of griev-
ances filed is not a clear reflection of the incidence
of age discrimination, but it is some indication
that age discrimination continues to be per-
ceived.)
The Decision to Retire or Keep
Working
The decisions of individuals to keep working
past 65, to retire at 65, or to retire early have
a very large aggregate effect 'on the Social Secu-
rity system and on public and private pension
funds. For that reason, considerable attention has
been paid to the factors that influence these deci-
sions' that appear to have such influence
include size of current wage, the ownership of
assets or a vested pension of significant size, ex-
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Labor
pectations about inflation, availability of suitable
work arrangements, and availability of desirable
alternatives, such as volunteer work.
The Department of Labor expects older men
to continue their pattern of early retirement and
declining participation in the work force, and
expects a decline for women over 65 as well,
but at a slower rate. At the same time, the declin-
ing rate of participation by men over 65 is some-
what deceptive, since the number of men alive
beyond 65 increased from 7.6 million in 1960
to 10.1 million in 1981, so that a decline in the
participation rate is not necessarily a decline in
actual numbers. Furthermore, the decline is not
constant across all occupations or all wage levels.
Low-wage laborers show a greater decline in la-
bor force participation with age that is partly
accounted for by the increase in the number re-
ceiving disability benefits (Sandell, 1983b).
Working beyond 65 is most frequent in wholesale
and retail trade and in services and least frequent
in mining and transportation, according to Mor-
rison (1983).
Other factors may influence the labor partici-
pation decision. For example, older workers who
are laid off, particularly because of the decline
of an industry or a plant closing, tend to retire
Percent of Sample Working
Stated Hours per
Week, 1978
0-15
0.8%
4.1%
15-25
1.6
6.9
25-35
3.4
9.4
35-41
51.1
63.5
41-46
13.6
5.8
46-56
19.0
6.7
56 plus
10.5
3.7
Source: Jondrow, Brechling, & Marcus (1983)
early, not because they planned to but because
retirement is preferable to the kinds of jobs avail-
able to them (Johnson et al., 1983). Also, Sandell
points out that, for many older married women,
continuing in the labor force will not give them
a Social Security retirement benefit above what
they would receive as the spouse of a worker
covered by Social Security (Sandell, 1983a).
Therefore, older wives may have little incentive
to continue working if their husbands retire.
Polls indicate that many workers would like
to stay on at their same job and wage if they
could work fewer hours-an option not generally
available. Jondrow, Brechling, and Marcus
(1983) concluded that employers find part-time
workers to be more costly per hour and less pro-
ductive than full-time workers. The most com-
mon kind of part-time work is self-employment;
part-time work for others is most common in
agriculture, finance, insurance, real estate, and
in personal service.
In a study of volunteerism among older adults,
Jusenius (1983) found that the rate of volunteer-
ing among older adults was about one in five
and that it did not differ by income level, race,
or ethnicity, but that it did increase among men
with level of education and level of income-pro-
ducing assets, and among women with level of
education and previous level of volunteer work.
It appears that early retirement does not benefit
society by resulting in increased volunteer work.
In addition to personal incentives and disin-
centives that affect the decision to retire or to
continue working (dislike of the job, for exam-
ple), there are a variety of laws and regulations
that affect individual situations. For lower in-
come workers, the ability to receive at least some
income at age 62 is an incentive to retire. For
higher income workers, there may be mandatory
retirement at 65 or a pension system that encour-
ages early retirement.
Eligibility for and Participation in CETA 11-B
Percent of U.S. Population
Age Range
Eligible
Participating
14-21
17.6
1.20
22-44
14.1
0.58
45-54
9.7
0.17
55-61
10.8
0.10
62-64
8.9
0.05
65-70
9.6
0.03
71 plus
12.0
0.01
Source: Rupp et al. (1983).
Median Time to Next
Job (weeks)
Age (years)
Men
Women
Displaced worker
Age 25-44
13
16
Age 45 plus
20
21
Other -
Age 25-44
9
11
Age 45 plus
13
19
Source: Johnson, Dickinson, & West (1983)
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Incentives for continued work include the ab-
sence of any other source of income or possible.
source of support. For example, Rupp, Bryant,
and Mantovani (1983b) found that unemployed
eligible adults over 45 tended not to participate
in CETA (or SCSEP) if they lived in larger fami-
lies, but did if they were single or widowed, living
alone or in a small family.
Disincentives to continued work include the
Social Security earnings test, the ability'of com-
panies to deny accrual of pension after age 65,
and the legislation that requires employers to
provide private health-care coverage for workers
aged 65-69 if they provide health-care coverage
for any workers. The extra cost of health insur-
ance is not expected to lower the number of jobs
available to older workers by more than 1% (An-
derson, Kennell, and Sheils, 1983), because em-
ployers will compensate for the added cost (13%
of compensation) by wage or benefit reductions.
However, the reduction in wages or benefits re-
duces the reward for continuing to work. (Those
persons who are still working at and beyond 65
are not, in general, those who are in ill health
and heavy consumers of Medicare, so that the
employer's health-care plan may not be as impor-
tant to them as it would be to young workers
with minor children, who often reject a job with-
out health care benefits.)
In a study of the way employers view older
workers, Paul (1983) found that employers per-
ceived the Social Security earnings test to be a
significant disadvantage in employing post-retire-
ment workers on a temporary or part-time basis
since workers would stop working when they
had reached the annual limit. In addition, work-
ers under age 65 who work part time- are often
precluded by their employers from working more
than 1,000 hours in a year so that they need
not be included in pension coverage under the
ERISA.
All these factors that seem to push and pull
older workers into early retirement, however,
may be less important then expectations of lon-
gevity and expectations of inflation. On the aver-
age, the 65-year-old white male in 1979 could
expect to live to be 79 and the 65-year-old whit
female could expect to live to be 83; blacks could
expect to live to be 77 and 82, respectively. Be-
cause of these increases in longevity and because
of expectations of the future rate of inflation,
there was a tendency in 1980 for fewer workers
to indicate that they planned to retire early
(Meier, 1980). In particular, those with fixed pen-
sions see inflation as a severe threat.
Labor
Nobody should be forced to retire if he/she
wants to work and can still do a good job 90%
Most employers discriminate against older peo-
ple and make it hard for them to find work 78%
Would prefer to retire at or after age 65 (asked
of those 55-64)
Would prefer working part time instead of retiring
completely
Younger adults 75%
Adults 55-64 79
Adults 65+ still at work 73
Source: Louis Harris and Associates (1981)
If labor force participation rates increase
among older workers, the overall immediate ef-
fect on the labor force would not be great. Simu-
lations by Storey (1982) suggest that if the man-
datory retirement age had been raised from 65
to 70 in 1973, the size of the labor force would
have increased very little. According to Fields
and Mitchell, staying in the labor force would
be encouraged most by policies that lowered So-
cial Security benefits for early retirement and in-
creased the gain from deferred retirement (Fields
and Mitchell, 1983), but these measures would
induce the average worker to delay retirement
by no more than 3 months. In addition, such
measures would penalize those older workers
with a lower life expectancy and a concomitant
need to retire early. It appears that measures
that change the corporate culture (Paul, 1983)
might be more effective in raising the number
of individual decisions to keep working.
Displaced Workers
Recent research suggests that displaced work-
ers do face more severe problems as they become
older (Shapiro and Sandell, 1983). Displaced
workers of all ages are more likely to engage
in job search than workers laid off for cause or
those who quit a job. Managers and clerical per-
sonnel generally can shift to different industries,
or even different occupations; craftsmen are more
likely to find new jobs in the same industry; and
even-with laborers, there is some indication that
those who are 45-54 years old are as likely to
find new jobs as those at the youngest end of
the labor force. There is some wage reduction
in the new job, but it appears to be related more
to the discount applied to their company-specific
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Labor
experience rather than being a matter of age dis-
crimination. Men over 65, however, do experi-
ence a decline in wages in the new job that is
not accounted for by the discounting of their
company-specific experience (Shapiro and San-
dell, 1983).
Women
The evidence is less clear for women (Kohen,
1983; Clark, 1983). Women's earnings on the
average never rise as high as men's earnings; the
earnings curve is flatter throughout their working
life. However, it peaks later than the curve for
men (age 55 rather than age 50) and declines
more slowly. There is disagreement over whether
this pattern results from a combination of age
discrimination and discrimination against
women, or whether it results from the cumulative
effect that women's historical lack of access to
training opportunities on the job has over a work-
ing life. However, working women may also have
:.iifferent work patterns; in a population of Michi-
gan workers, 43% of the men but only 16% of
the women worked more than 40 hours a week
(Jondrow, Brechling, and Marcus, 1983).
Minorities
Earnings curves for minority men appear to
have the same shape as those for white men,
but appear to be lower at all points along the
curve. This trend is ascribed to the initial effects
of racism on education and on early experience
on the job. There is some evidence that the dis-
parity between the earnings of minority men and
those of white men decreases slightly for older
workers. What appears to happen is that valued
minority men are kept on and treated in ways
that are statistically similar to the ways white
men are treated, while the less valued minority
workers either drop out altogether or find them-
selves in a succession of low-wage jobs. The ef-
fect, then, is not one of a combination of age
discrimination and racism, but of racism primar-
ily.
Handicapped
The evidence for the handicapped is scant, but
it does tend to confirm an increasing penalty
(lower wages, decreased employability) with age
(Kohen, 1983). The reason for this effect is not
clear. However, Clark (1983) finds that the earn-
ings of those with health limitations peak sooner
and decline more with age than the average. In
addition, although being physically handicapped
is positively associated with CETA eligibility, it
is negatively associated with CETA participation
among those over 45 (Rupp, Bryant, and Manto-
vani, 1983b).
The Future
The labor force is witnessing a slow change
in the number of older participants. Few workers
over the age of 65 are deciding to remain in the
work force at present, because of incentives to
retire, as well as industrial change that makes
continued employment or adaptation difficult.
However, both the increase in the number of
aged and shifting business and government con-
cerns about pension costs and labor supply sug-
gest that changes may occur in employer views
toward encouraging retirement and in older
workers' desire to remain on the job. Neverthe-
less, as this discussion shows, there are many
worker groups whose special employment prob-
lems need to be systematically examined in devel-
oping new older worker employment policies and
practices.
Four basic issue areas emerge as a focus for
developing actions to address older worker needs,
whether the population of concern is displaced,
disadvantaged, in the work force, or trying to
reenter after retirement, as Section III will show.
The following table summarizes issues in these
four areas. New views of benefits and compensa-
tion policies and practices, work arrangements,
education and retraining opportunities, and mar-
keting and placement assistance can help expand
older worker employment options.
How Many Will Want Jobs?
The number of adults over ~5 who were em-
ployed rose from 14.1 million in 1970 to 14.5
million in 1980. Another half-million adults over
55 were unemployed in 1980, not counting those
classified as "discouraged workers."
Percentage Out of the
Labor Force in 6 Months
After Applying for
Employment Services
Age (years)
Displaced workers
Age 25-44
3.8
10.4
Age 45 plus
17.4
16.4
Other
Age 25-44
7.7
13.2
Age 45 plus
15.3
19.0
Source: Johnson, Dickinson, & West (1983)
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Summary of Older Worker Populations and Employment Issues
Benefits and
Compensation
Work
Arrangements
Education/
Retraining
Workers at or near re-
Companies rarely offer
Part-time work is most
Rarely offered by em-
tirement
incentives to stay on. ,
common option, but
ployers; adult ed. only
rarely at same job
public sector pro-
and wage.
gram for those em-
ployed.
Displaced workers
Loss of seniority affects
No special work ar-
Needed, but should
wages in new job.
rangements needed
build on existing ex-
or available.
pertise.
Disadvantaged workers
May not be adequate to
Underemployment
Needed, but not often
allow for retirement
(part-time work) is
taken advantage of;
planning; no incen-
common.
rarely offered by em-
tive to keep working
ployers.
if any alternative
available.
Retirees seeking to Pension, TEFRA, and Part-time work most
reenter labor force Social Security earn- common option; self-
ings limits are disin- employment increas-
centives. ing.
Between 1980 and June of 1982, the purchas-
ing power of the consumer's dollar dropped by
14%. As the country recovers from its most re-
cent recession, many older adults may find that
pension amounts earned before the years of high
inflation are no longer enough to support early
retirement, and may stay on the job. Discouraged
older workers and retirees may also decide to
reenter the labor force in considerable numbers.
But that will be only a small change compared
with the change that will occur as the "baby
boom" generation ages.
Labor Statistics
The following tables have been carefully se-
lected from The Handbook of Labor Statistics
specifically for human resource managers. Each
table begins with the earliest reliable data and
ends with 1983. The information and tables in-
cluded in this section are:
Labor Force and Employment Status:
2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitu-
tional population by sex, 1970-83 ................
4. Civilian labor force by sex, race, and age,
1970-83 ..........................................................
5. Civilian labor force participation rates by
sex, race, and age, 1970-83 ..........................
Employment:
15. Employed civilians by sex, race, and age,
1970-83 ..........................................................
Labor
Marketing and
Placement
Marketing to change
employer attitudes
could help.
Active job seekers,
need real supper
Few programs availa- Utility demonstrated.
ble. but demands knows,
edge of employee
needs and business
conditions.
17. Employed civilians by occupation, sex, race,
and Hispanic origin, 1983 .............................
19. Employed civilians by industry and occupa-
tion, 1982-83 .................................................
23. Employed civilians with a job but not at
work by reason for not working, 1970-83
Unemployment:
25. Major unemployment indicators, 1970-83
26. Unemployed persons by sex, race, and age,
1970-83 ............ y ............................................
27. Unemployment rates by sex, race, Hispanic
origin, and age, 1970-83 ...............................
28. Unemployment rates by sex and marital sta-
tus, 1970-83.......7 ...........................................
29. Unemployed persons and unemployment
rates by occupation, 1982-83 .......................
30. Unemployed persons and unemployment
rates by industry, 1970-83 ......... :..................
35. Unemployed jobseekers by sex, age, race,
and jobsearch methods used, 1976-83.........
Family Relationship and Weekly Earnings
Data:
36. Unemployment in families by type of family,
race, Hispanic origin, and presence of em-
ployed family members, 1982-83 .................
39. -Median weekly earnings of families by type
of family, number of earners, race, and His-
panic origin, 1979-83 ....................................
41. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage
and salary workers by selected characteris-
tics, 1979-83 ..................................................
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/10/10: CIA-RDP90-0053OR000300600002-6
 Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/10/10: CIA-RDP90-0053OR000300600002-6
Tomorrow in Brief
Video Phones: Popular
Gift in 1990?
A new video telephone, transmit-
ting full-color images over con-
ventional phone lines, may sub-
stantially reduce businesses'
teleconferencing costs. A
simplified version for use at
home will probably soon follow,
says the manufacturer, UVC
Corp of Irvine, California. Mean-
while, The Futures Group of
Glastonbury, Connecticut, fore-
casts that prices of slow-scan
picture phones will drop to under
$200, making them a popular gift
item in 1990. Printed books will
be sent via phone, using high-
speed laser printers (250 pages
in 6-8 minutes) and easy-to-use
binding systems.
For Movie Buffs
Movie fans now have a
for their vacations. Ins
just touring studios, th
their performance. U
Studios has introduc
ite Enterprise crewm
perform in a seven-mi
from a Star Trek scri
Shatner and Leonard
ers to "experience" such
special effects as earthq
explosions, collapsing br
-and floods.
"Sources, Tomorrow in Brief" on
page 55 of this issue.
Global-Food Stamps
An international food-stamp pro-
gram could be a less-costly alter-
native to traditional food relief
and farm programs, according to
University of Minnesota econ-
omist Willis L. Peterson. Under
his plan, the poor in developing
countries would receive free
food stamps, funded by the
world's richest nations. The
stamps would be used to pur-
chase food from local vendors,
who could then exchange the
stamps for hard currency to buy
food stocks from either local
markets or the world market.
This scheme could improve
world food prices and would
likely cost less than current farm-
income support and food-aid
programs, Peterson claims.
common-cold virus is fight-
tiviral drugs from in-
to prevent the virus
CONVERSE. INC.
New materials in shoe return up to
50% of athlete's expended energy.
mean a 3- to 5-minute reduction
in a marathon runner's time or a
1-inch increase in a basketball
player's vertical leap. Athletes
may also experience fewer in-
juries and less fatigue, allowing
them to work out longer and
more safely.
Natural Sources
For Safe Chemicals
Researchers believe safe ag-
ricultural chemicals will be de-
rived from plants and animals.
Chemicals made from fungi, for
instance, have the "potential to
repel disease-causing organ-
isms, regulate plant growth, and
serve as human drugs similar to
penicillin," says plant physiol-
ogist Hank Cutler of the U.S. De-
partment of Agriculture. A new
generation of natural agricultural
chemicals holds great promise,
says Cutler, because "they work
against specific targets, are ex-
tremely potent, and, because
they're biodegradable, don't
pose environmental hazards."
Cold
adapts, blocking the ability of
drugs to bind. "It's as if the cold
virus sticks out its arm - like a
running back fending off a tack-
ler," says one researcher. The
team hopes that further research
into the atomic structure of vi-
ruses can bring modern
medicine closer to curing the
common cold.
rsity researcher Michael Rossman works on a model of a
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/10/10: CIA-RDP90-0053OR000300600002-6
The latest advance in shoe
engineering is "energy return"-
that is, the ability of an athletic
shoe to return the wearer's ex-
pended energy. Energy return is
measured by how much pres-
sure a material pushes back,
rather than absorbing, when it is
pressed. For instance, Con-
verse, Inc., claims its new "En-
ergy Wave" shoe returns 50% of
an athlete's expended energy.
Such "spring" in the step could
Soybean Fuel for Buses
Soybean oil-based alcohol fuel
is a possible substitute for diesel
fuels both in the city and in the
country. City buses that run on
diesel are a major contributor to
air pollution; get rid of diesel, and
you get rid of smoke, says Carroll
E. Goering, a University of Illinois
agricultural engineer. Goering
estimates that the use of alterna-
tive fuels could cut diesel-fuel
use in half on farms, reducing
reliance on imported oil as well
as cutting pollution. Soybean oil
reacts with ethanol to form ester,
which burns like diesel, only
more cleanly. However, there
e currently no ester plants in
d virus-rhinovirus 14
and that the virus
A