Johann Heinrich von Thünen

Bio: Johann Heinrich von Thünen is an academic researcher. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 692 citations.

Micro-Foundations of Urban Agglomeration Economies

Abstract: This handbook chapter studies the theoretical micro-foundations of urban agglomeration economies. We distinguish three types of micro-foundations, based on sharing, matching, and learning mechanisms. For each of these three categories, we develop one or more core models in detail and discuss the literature in relation to those models. This allows us to give a precise characterisation of some of the main theoretical underpinnings of urban agglomeration economies, to discuss modelling issues that arise when working with these tools, and to compare different sources of agglomeration economies in terms of the aggregate urban outcomes they produce as well as in terms of their normative implications.

Economics of agglomeration

Abstract: We address the fundamental question arising in geographical economics: why do economic activities agglomerate in a small number of places? The main reasons for the formation of economic clusters involving firms and/or households are analyzed: (i) externalities under perfect competition; (ii) increasing returns under monopolistic competition; and (iii) spatial competition under strategic interaction. We review what has been accomplished in these three domains and identify a few general principles governing the organization of economic space. A few alternative, new approaches are also proposed. J. Japan. Int. Econ., December 1996, 10 (4), pp. 339–378. Kyoto University and University of Pennsylvania; and CORE, Universite Catholique de Louvain and CERAS–ENPC (URA 2036, CNRS).

Urban spatial structure.

Abstract: Author(s): Anas, Alex; Arnott, Richard; Small, Kenneth A. | Abstract: An interview with Chicago's current mayor, Richard M. Daley:'New York is too big this way,' the mayor says, raising a thick hand over his head. Stretching both arms out at his sides, he adds, 'Los Angeles is too big this way. All the other cities are too small. We're just right.' (Bailey and Coleman, 1996, p. 6)Mayor Daley is catering to a widespread fascination with the roles that urban size and structure play in people's lives. Academic as well as other observers have long sought explanations for urban development patterns and criteria by which to judge their desirability. Furthermore, as we shall see, understanding the organization of cities yields insights about economy-wide growth processes and sheds light on economic concepts of long standing interest: returns to scale, monopolistic competition, vertical integration, technological innovation, innovation diffusion, and international specialization. Cities also are prime illustrations of some newer academic interests such as complex structural evolution and self-organization.

A gradient analysis of urban landscape pattern: a case study from the Phoenix metropolitan region, Arizona, USA

Abstract: Urbanization is arguably the most dramatic form of land transformation that profoundly influences biological diversity and human life. Quantifying landscape pattern and its change is essential for the monitoring and assessment of ecological consequences of urbanization. Combining gradient analysis with landscape metrics, we attempted to quantify the spatial pattern of urbanization in the Phoenix metropolitan area, Arizona, USA. Several landscape metrics were computed along a 165 km long and 15 km wide transect with a moving window. The research was designed to address four research questions: How do different land use types change with distance away from the urban center? Do different land use types have their own unique spatial signatures? Can urbanization gradients be detected using landscape pattern analysis? How do the urban gradients differ among landscape metrics? The answers to these questions were generally affirmative and informative. The results showed that the spatial pattern of urbanization could be reliably quantified using landscape metrics with a gradient analysis approach, and the location of the urbanization center could be identified precisely and consistently with multiple indices. Different land use types exhibited distinctive, but not necessarily unique, spatial signatures that were dependent on specific landscape metrics. The changes in landscape pattern along the transect have important ecological implications, and quantifying the urbanization gradient, as illustrated in this paper, is an important first step to linking pattern with processes in urban ecological studies.