SOCIO-ECONOMIC HISTORY

This invited lecture utilizes various ways of measuring the efficiency of institutions regulating market exchange, such as interest rates, the skill premium, and the level of market integration, to try to answer the question about the quality of institutions in the different parts of Eurasia, in the centuries before the 'Great Divergence'. It appears that western Europe, already from the late mediaeval period, had a relatively well-developed set of institutions. By contrast, South and Southeast Asian institutions were much less geared towards well-functioning markets. However, Japan and China in the 17th and 18th centuries developed institutions that were relatively efficient, and resulted in relatively high levels of commercial exchange. A number of hypotheses are then reviewed, which may help to explain a European head start dating from the late Middle Ages.

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This paper is an analysis of the sake transactions in tun units (oke-torihiki) among brewers in prewar Nada. By investigating the sales process of sake by the middle-scale brewer Matsuo Nihei Shoten, the following points were clarified. For Matsuo, rather than selling under his own brand name, selling in tun units had the advantages of being able to predict volume of guaranteed sales and being less responsible for the taste and quality of the sake. The transactions were equally important for the large-scale brewers who were the buyers. They could predict quantities for reserve, and continued transactions ensured stability in sake quality, although this did not necessarily increase their own brewery production for sale under their own brand names. Interdependence marked the relationship between the multiple sellers and buyers. Therefore, the middle-scale brewer in Nada was not at a disadvantage by delays in payment and by no means content with the unfavorable conditions of monopsony. That is, the relationship was not necessarily exclusive or subordinate. The state of this dual structure brought stability to Nada as a sake-producing center in prewar days.

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This article explores the role of collaborative research in the development of semiconductor technology in Japan. Many writers have published success stories about the semiconductor industry, but I think that there are two problems with them. The first is that they do not examine the relationship among scientists and engineers and their backgrounds, but rather pay attention to the endeavors of the individuals or human dramas. The second is that because the transistor appeared in 1947, they focus on post-World War II history and neglect the prewar and wartime histories. This article demonstrates that scientists and engineers studying Solid state physics or solid state electronics increased from the prewar to the postwar period. They were active in organizing colloquiums or research groups and collaborative research during the war. In addition, from the wartime to the postwar period, learned societies were reorganized and government research policies were established. They provided support for research activities. A community or network of scientists and engineers was thus formed, providing a secure basis for the successful development of semiconductor technology in postwar Japan.

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