The Dilemmas of Diffusion: Institutional Transfer & the Remaking of Vocational Training Practices in Eastern Germany, CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, No. 05.10, 1996

Through a case study of the diffusion of the celebrated West Gennan "dual system" of vocational training to the territory of the fonner German Democratic Republic, we develop the argument that local sociopolitical relations matter crucially for the successful transfer and implementation of institutional arrangements. Notwithstanding massive levels of government funding, the presence of complementary supports, and the concerted efforts of Ger­many's social partners, the dual system is experiencing significant difficulties in the new federal states of the East. These difficulties are not due simply to the particular politics of unification (the wholesale transfer of West German institutions whether or not they were appropriate to Eastern Germany) nor even simply to the paucity of dynamic private firms capable of and willing to train new apprentices. The difficulties stem also from the under­ lying weaknesses of the East German sociopolitical infrastructure on which the entire dual system rests. This. hy­ pothesis is elaborated and substantiated through a range of data on training in the East and especially through the use of detailed case studies of Leipzig and Chemrutz

Property Tax Distortions as an Explanation of the Flypaper Effect

This study investigates how local government behaviour is altered when property taxes are permitted to distort both the median voter's housing consumption decision and the spatial location of firms. It is demonstrated that optimizing politicians, in the presence of either or both of these property tax distortions, will, contrary to the predictions of standard median voter models, respond asymmetrically to increases in local resources and increases in intergovernmental lump--sum aid. Moreover, the model predicts that property tax distortions will cause the local politicians to allocate more of an increase in aid to public sector expenditure than it would for an equivalent increase in income. That is, the theoretical model offers an explanation of the so-called "flypaper effect", which is contingent upon neither the coercive power of the bureaucracy nor the mistakes of the pivotal voter. In addition to developing an optimizing model which generates the flypaper effect, the predictions of the model are tested by applying White's (1980) least-squares-covariance-matrix estimator to the per capita expenditure equation derived from the model. Instrumental variable estimation is also utilize to correct for simultaneous equation bias that might result from the property tax distortion variable. The bins is due to the fact that the ax distortion term is a function of the property tax rate which, in turn, is endogenous to the local government's optimization problem. The key finding of the empirical test is that the property tax distortion variable, as predicted by the model, is both negative and significant. This result is particularly encouraging and provides support for the property tax explanation of the flypaper effect.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD

Determining Optimal Levels of Nitrogen Fertilizer Using Random Parameter Models

The parameters of yield response functions can vary by year. Past studies usually assume yield functions are nstochastic ‘‘limited’’ stochastic. In this study, we estimate rye– ryegrass yield functions in which all parameters are random. The three functional forms considered are the linear response plateau, the quadratic, and the Spillman-Mitscherlich. Nonstochastic yield models are rejected in favor of stochastic parameter models. Quadratic functional forms fit the data poorly. Optimal nitrogen application recommendations are calculated for the linear response plateau and Spillman-Mitscherlich. The stochastic models lead to smaller recommended levels of nitrogen, but the economic benefits of using fully stochastic crop yield functions are small because expected profit functions are relatively flat for the stochastic yield functions. Stochastic crop yield functions provide a way of incorporating production, uncertainty into input decisions.cereal rye–ryegrass, Monte Carlo, nitrogen, random parameters, stochastic plateau, Production Economics, Q10, C12, D24,

Determining Optimal Levels of Nitrogen Fertilizer Using Random Parameter Models

The parameters of yield response functions can vary by year. Past studies usually assume yield functions are nonstochastic or ‘limited’ stochastic. In this study, we estimate rye-ryegrass yield functions where all parameters are random. Optimal nitrogen rates are calculated for two yield response functions: linear response plateau and quadratic. Nonstochastic models are rejected in favor of stochastic parameter models. However, the economic benefits of using fully stochastic models are small since optimal nitrogen rates do not differ greatly between stochastic and nonstochastic models.Linear response plateau, Monte Carlo, nitrogen, random parameters, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries, Farm Management, Production Economics,

False claims about false memory research

Pezdek and Lam [Pezdek, K. & Lam, S. (2007). What research paradigms have cognitive psychologists used to study “False memory,” and what are the implications of these choices? Consciousness and Cognition] claim that the majority of research into false memories has been misguided. Specifically, they charge that false memory scientists have been (1) misusing the term “false memory,” (2) relying on the wrong methodologies to study false memories, and (3) misapplying false memory research to real world situations. We review each of these claims and highlight the problems with them. We conclude that several types of false memory research have advanced our knowledge of autobiographical and recovered memories, and that future research will continue to make significant contributions to how we understand memory and memory errors

The variability of the BRITE-est Wolf-Rayet binary, γ2\gamma^2 Velorum I. Photometric and spectroscopic evidence for colliding winds

We report on the first multi-color precision light curve of the bright Wolf-Rayet binary $\gamma^2$ Velorum, obtained over six months with the nanosatellites in the BRITE- Constellation fleet. In parallel, we obtained 488 high-resolution optical spectra of the system. In this first report on the datasets, we revise the spectroscopic orbit and report on the bulk properties of the colliding winds. We find a dependence of both the light curve and excess emission properties that scales with the inverse of the binary separation. When analyzing the spectroscopic properties in combination with the photometry, we find that the phase dependence is caused only by excess emission in the lines, and not from a changing continuum. We also detect a narrow, high-velocity absorption component from the He I $\lambda$5876 transition, which appears twice in the orbit. We calculate smoothed-particle hydrodynamical simulations of the colliding winds and can accurately associate the absorption from He I to the leading and trailing arms of the wind shock cone passing tangentially through our line of sight. The simulations also explain the general strength and kinematics of the emission excess observed in wind lines such as C III $\lambda$5696 of the system. These results represent the first in a series of investigations into the winds and properties of $\gamma^2$ Velorum through multi-technique and multi-wavelength observational campaigns.Comment: 16 pages, 14 figures, additional measurements to be included in online dataset. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Patterns and universals of mate poaching across 53 nations : the effects of sex, culture, and personality on romantically attracting another person’s partner

As part of the International Sexuality Description Project, 16,954 participants from 53 nations were administered an anonymous survey about experiences with romantic attraction. Mate poaching--romantically attracting someone who is already in a relationship--was most common in Southern Europe, South America, Western Europe, and Eastern Europe and was relatively infrequent in Africa, South/Southeast Asia, and East Asia. Evolutionary and social-role hypotheses received empirical support. Men were more likely than women to report having made and succumbed to short-term poaching across all regions, but differences between men and women were often smaller in more gender-egalitarian regions. People who try to steal another's mate possess similar personality traits across all regions, as do those who frequently receive and succumb to the poaching attempts by others. The authors conclude that human mate-poaching experiences are universally linked to sex, culture, and the robust influence of personal dispositions.peer-reviewe