The expected number of people infected by an atmospheric release of a biological agent depends on the physical and pathogenic properties of the agent, the amount of agent released, the mechanism by which it is dispersed, atmospheric transport processes, environmental degradation of the agent, and the protection afforded by being inside a building, for those who happen to be inside of buildings, when the plume passes by outdoors. Using anthrax as a test case, this research examined each of these factors in detail, determining nominal values for representative parameters and, more importantly, assessed the range of uncertainty or the lack of scientific knowledge regarding these parameters. The dominant factors affecting the outcome of hypothetical bioterror attacks are the weather, the precise urban area in which the release occurs, the exact form of the dose-response relationship for inhalation anthrax in humans, and the magnitude of the source term.

Buffet lunch will be provided to those who RSVP to Okky Choi at okkychoi@stanford.edu by Wednesday, April 7.

Future historians will mark the first national election to be held in Malaysia since the retirement of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad (1981-2003) as a watershed in the country's political history. Among key questions circulating in the run-up to the voting on 21 March 2004 were these: Would the ruling National Front gain or lose votes and seats? (Surprise: gained greatly.) Would the opposition Islamic Party, now in control of two states, improve or worsen its position? (Surprise: worsened sharply.) Would KeADILan, the political party which emerged after the sacking of Anwar Ibrahim, gain or lose? (Surprise: lost badly.) Answers to other questions were still unknown: Would the election benefit Malaysia's current Prime Minister, Abdullah Badawi, at the congress of his political party later this year? What would the ruling coalition's landslide imply for Malaysian democracy, stability, and development? For Malaysia's role in the campaign against terrorism? For the country's relations with its neighbors and with the U.S.? (Surprise: Come hear Elizabeth Wong and find out.)

This is the ninth seminar of the 2003-2004 academic year Southeast Asia Forum.

Mr. Sun will try to establish a new research framework to analyze the monetary policy transmission mechanism. In this field, previous research has usually assumed that the banking sector would completely transmit the purpose of the central bank to the real sector, thus paying attention to the channels from the banking sector to the real sector. Because the transmission of monetary policy in the banking sector is the most important part of deciding the effectiveness of monetary policy, this research focuses on the transmission mechanism of monetary policy from the central bank to the banking sector. The concept of ?cushion storage reserve? was created by Mr. Sun and was introduced to this framework to analyze the comparison of reserve supply and reserve demand. Based on this concept and a related main formula, commercial banks? behaviors were divided into three reactive approaches -- sterilize, forbear, and adjust. According to the different kinds of reactions, monetary policy has different effects. This new analyzing framework makes the analysis of monetary policy operation more concise and effective. At the end of his paper, Mr. Sun will try to use this approach to explain the present monetary situation of China and Japan. Lunch will be provided for those who RSVP by 3/29/04.