Sports Sentiment and Energy Consumption

This paper adds to the existing literature on how mood, specifically induced by the outcome of a sporting event, influences other economic variables. Past research on the subject has found that losses tend to have a greater impact than wins. These findings are consistent with the loss aversion property of prospect theory. I look at NFL game outcomes in the Boston area, where a large portion of the population feels extremely passionately about their home team. This study examines how mood induced by NFL game outcomes impacts energy consumption, a dependent variable that has not yet been used in this area of literature. The energy consumption data comes from smart thermostats, which provide information from hundreds of households in the Boston area alone daily. I primarily focus on target temperature and program override decisions. The results indicate that a win is associated with households’ target temperatures being set significantly higher. There is no significant relationship between wins and the probability of an override. The inconsistency in findings between the two dependent variables for wins could be a possible topic for future research to further investigate. Losses are associated with a significant decrease in the probability of an override. Accordingly, there is no significant relationship between losses and target temperature

SOCIOTECHNICAL CONSUMPTION: A DIGITAL STORY OF EMPOWERMENT AND SOCIAL CONSUMER EXPERIENCES

Digital technologies have become a ubiquitous element in contemporary consumption practices. Consumers shop online, take online classes, play fantasy sports, date online, have virtual personal trainers in their phones and even live virtual lives. How do such digital experiences integrate into and reflect upon consumption experiences in the material world? In this dissertation, I propose a theory of sociotechnical consumption that explores this relationship through the digital empowerment (technical) and social interaction (social) elements embedded in consumer products and services in digital spaces. Accordingly, I extend the concept of sociotechnical to the study of consumer behavior, advocating the perspective that studying the technological aspects of entities is incomplete without considering their relationships with the associated social aspects. I develop and investigate this theory through a multi-method approach, which is elaborated via three essays. Essay one applies the grounded theory methodology to explore consuming experiences in digital spaces in the context of online fantasy football. Essay two provides a conceptual inquiry of consumer empowerment from a sociotechnical perspective illustrating an integrative framework that bridges consumer empowerment literature with the social impact theory (Latané 1981) to discuss research gaps and theory development opportunities. In doing so, it also addresses the disarray surrounding the concept with a broader definition and an exhaustive typology. Finally, essay three quantitatively examines the complementary role of digital consumption on consumers’ everyday lives in relation to the sociotechnical elements of complementary products and services. Together, these essays highlight sociotechnical consumption as a theoretical tool to explore the interaction and the optimization of the social and technical elements of consumer offerings. More specifically, it provides a sociotechnical perspective for marketing and consumer research to simultaneously study the digital empowerment of consumers along with the many social interaction opportunities available during digital consumption. In doing so, it illuminates valuable insights for managers who want to optimize the social and technical elements of their digital market offerings in a way that would contribute to more positive consumer responses

Modeling of residential outdoor exposure to traffic air pollution and assessment of associated health effects

Traffic air pollution is known to affect cardiopulmonary health in the population. Children with asthma are amongst the most susceptible groups. Several epidemiological studies linked traffic air pollution with increased reporting of asthmatic symptoms and decreased lung function. New approaches with pulmonary inflammation biomarkers allow assessment of acute effects induced by air pollution. Populations are usually exposed to a mixture of pollutants emitted by various sources. Also, epidemiological studies using central site measurements are not able to capture different spatiotemporal distributions of the pollutants. Therefore different modeling approaches are in use to refine the spatiotemporal and the source component in exposure assessment. The aim of this thesis was to build models for estimating short-term residential outdoor exposure to traffic-related air pollution, to find and apportion source contributions to particulate matter smaller 10µm (PM10) and to examine the relationship between spatially refined exposure estimates and respiratory health effects in children with asthma. Methods This thesis was conducted within the framework of two pediatric asthma panel studies: a Southern California study in the greater Los Angeles area, and the MfM-U (Monitoring flankierende Massnahmen – Umwelt) study in a Swiss Alpine valley. In the Southern California study measurements of personal particulate matter smaller 2.5µm (PM2.5), elemental carbon (EC), and organic carbon (OC) were collected in 63 children living in Riverside (Aug to Dec 2003) and Whittier (July to Nov 2004). Concurrently one home site and a fixed central site were monitored. Home site measurements were used to build city-specific and pooled models for estimating PM2.5, EC, and OC levels at all other participating children’s homes by using land-use regression methods including fixed site measurements and CALINE4 dispersion estimates (local traffic). We compared the home outdoor estimates with the personal measurements. The MfM-U panel study was conducted in Erstfeld located in a highway impacted Swiss Alpine valley. From November 2007 to June 2009, thirteen children with asthma had monthly monitoring of pulmonary inflammation (i.e. fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO)) and oxidative stress markers in exhaled breath condensate (eBC) (i.e. nitrite, pH). Concurrently levels of PM10, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), EC, OC, and particle numbers (PN) were monitored at one background, one highway and seven mobile sites. NO2 measurements were used to build a model estimating outdoor concentrations at the participating children’s homes with a similar approach as in the Southern California study. Chemically speciated data was used in receptor modeling to apportion the source contributions to PM10. NO2 model estimates and source-specific PM10 were then used to investigate associations to pulmonary inflammation and oxidative stress marker levels in the children. Results In the Southern California study, all models could explain a large part of variation for home outdoor PM2.5, OC and EC (adj R2 = 0.75 to 0.97). Important predictors were central site measurement, distance to highway and wind variables. However, only PM2.5 model estimates correlated well with daily personal measurements (R2 = 0.65 to 0.69). In the MfM-U study, traffic-related pollutants NO2, EC and PN showed high concentrations at the highway site decaying some 30-40% to background levels within 150-200m. Weekday patterns of traffic pollutants followed the heavy-duty truck traffic counts on the highway. All pollutants showed higher levels in winter than in summer. The NO2 model explained a large part of variance (adj R2 = 0.91) and estimates matched very well the validation measurements (R2 = 0.74). We identified nine sources contributing to PM10. Traffic (29%) was the main source, including traffic exhaust (18%), road dust (8%), tire & brake wear (1%), and road salt (2%). Other contributions came from secondary particles (27%), biomass burning (18%), railway traffic (11%) and mineral sources from mineral dust (7%) and a tunnel construction site (6%). There were higher contributions from secondary particles (37%) in summer and from biomass burning (26%) and traffic (30%) in winter. Traffic, railway and mineral contributions to PM10 were higher at sites close to the specific source. Biomass burning estimates correlated well (R2 = 0.81) with levoglucosan (wood burning marker), while traffic exhaust estimates were weakly associated (R2=0.13) with 1-nitropyrine (diesel exhaust marker) due to the mixture of diesel and gasoline in the traffic fleet. Mean levels of FeNO, eBC nitrite, and eBC pH measured in the thirteen children were 17.04ppb, 0.82µM, and 7.06, respectively, indicative for mild asthma. For days without report of any cold symptoms, FeNO levels increased by 15%, 13% and 6% if NO2, EC and total PM10 on the prior day of the health measurement were increased by one inter quartile range, respectively. eBC pH levels decreased significantly with increasing PM10, NO2, and EC concentrations measured one, two or three days prior the health monitoring. However, no significant associations were observed between source-specific PM10 concentrations and FeNO, and between eBC nitrite and any of the pollutants. Conclusions We were able to build models to estimate residential outdoor air pollution exposure using only a limited number of spatially distributed monitoring sites. We could identify traffic as the major source contributing to PM10 in Erstfeld and observed a distinct relationship between highway traffic and concentration levels of NO2, EC and PN. Despite relatively low air pollution levels in Switzerland, we still detected associations between traffic-related air pollution and pulmonary inflammation markers in children with asthma

Swipe Right into a Disciplinary Hearing: How The Use of Dating Apps Could Earn an Attorney More Than a Bad First Date

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct seek to police the conduct of attorneys. Each jurisdiction adopts its own rules of professional conduct to apply to the attorneys licensed within it. Notably, the model rules prohibit any sexual relationship between the attorney and client unless that relationship precedes the attorney-client relationship. Traditionally, defining a sexual relationship was simple, particularly if the attorney and client engaged in sexual intercourse. The introduction of dating apps, however, has blurred the line. This article outlines the inherent risks of attorneys using dating apps at a time when most newly-licensed attorneys make up the majority of dating app users by drawing similarities between real world sexual relationships and those that can be found alone. This article seeks to warn new attorneys of these risks, as well as offer a basic policy outline for law firms and other employers of attorneys to implement until the model rules can catch up to this new reality

Proposition and Exploration of a Complete Model of Strategic Resource Utility

The focus of strategy research in recent years has moved beyond examining resources as the building blocks of competitive advantage and has instead proposed more complex, esoteric theories to explain firms’ performance. While each of these theories is valuable independently, none offer a ‘root-cause’ analysis of competitive advantage. To provide this, strategy scholars should consider revisiting the importance of individual firm-level resources. The purpose of this document is to more thoroughly map out the resource space using several prominent strategy perspectives as a guide and to test the competitive potential of multiple resource typologies. This document is organized into five Chapters. In Chapter I, a conceptual argument is developed that outlines a complete model of strategic resource utility. The complete model is designed to help managers and scholars identify which resources are most likely to generate competitive advantage for a firm, and to propose several ways to move forward empirically. Chapter II is an investigation of the relationships between resource in/tangibility and firm performance. Chapters III and IV test the utility of two sub-typologies of intangible resources. Together, the results from Chapters I-IV indicate that intangible resources—especially those that are easily communicable—are indicative of competitive advantage. Last, Chapter V outlines an agenda for future research based on these results

Amiloride, fluoxetine or riluzole to reduce brain volume loss in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis: the MS-SMART four-arm RCT

Background: Neuroprotective drugs are needed to slow or prevent neurodegeneration and disability accrual in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. Amiloride, fluoxetine and riluzole are repurposed drugs with potential neuroprotective effects. Objectives: To assess whether or not amiloride, fluoxetine and riluzole can reduce the rate of brain volume loss in people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis over 96 weeks. The secondary objectives that were assessed were feasibility of a multiarm trial design approach, evaluation of anti-inflammatory effects, clinician- and patient-reported efficacy and three mechanistic substudies. Design: A multicentre, multiarm, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group Phase IIb trial with follow-up at 4, 8, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72 and 96 weeks. Patients, investigators (including magnetic resonance imaging analysts), and treating and independent assessing neurologists were blinded to the treatment allocation. The target sample size was 440 patients. Setting: Thirteen UK clinical neuroscience centres. Participants: Participants were aged 25–65 years, had secondary progressive multiple sclerosis with evidence of disease progression independent of relapses in the previous 2 years, and had an Expanded Disability Status Scale score of 4.0–6.5. Patients were ineligible if they could not have a magnetic resonance imaging scan; had a relapse or steroids in the previous 3 months; or had epilepsy, depression, bipolar disorder, glaucoma, bleeding disorders or significant organ comorbidities. Exclusion criteria were concurrent disease-modified treatments, immunosuppressants or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Interventions: Participants received amiloride (5 mg), fluoxetine (20 mg), riluzole (50 mg) or placebo (randomised 1 : 1 : 1 : 1) twice daily. Main outcome measures: The primary end point was magnetic resonance imaging-derived percentage brain volume change at 96 weeks. Secondary end points were new/enlarging T2 lesions, pseudoatrophy, and clinician- and patient-reported measures (including the Expanded Disability Status Scale, Multiple Sclerosis Functional Composite, Symbol Digit Modalities Test, low-contrast letter visual acuity, Multiple Sclerosis Impact Scale 29 items, version 2, Multiple Sclerosis Walking Scale, version 2, and questionnaires addressing pain and fatigue). The exploratory end points included measures of persistent new T1 hypointensities and grey matter volume changes. The substudies were advanced magnetic resonance imaging, optical coherence tomography and cerebrospinal fluid analyses. Results: Between December 2014 and June 2016, 445 patients were randomised (analysed) to amiloride [n = 111 (99)], fluoxetine [n = 111 (96)], riluzole [n = 111 (99)] or placebo [n = 112 (99)]. A total of 206 randomised patients consented to the advanced magnetic resonance imaging substudy, 260 consented to the optical coherence tomography substudy and 70 consented to the cerebrospinal fluid substudy. No significant difference was seen between the active drugs and placebo in percentage brain volume change at week 96 as follows (where negative values mean more atrophy than placebo): amiloride minus placebo 0.0% (Dunnett-adjusted 95% confidence interval –0.4% to 0.5%), fluoxetine minus placebo –0.1% (Dunnett-adjusted 95% confidence interval –0.5% to 0.3%); riluzole minus placebo –0.1% (Dunnett-adjusted 95% confidence interval –0.6% to 0.3%). There was good adherence to study drugs. The proportion of patients experiencing adverse events was similar in the treatment and placebo groups. There were no emergent safety issues. Limitations: There was a lower than expected uptake in the cerebrospinal fluid substudy. Conclusions: A multiarm Phase II paradigm is efficient in determining which neuroprotective agents to take through to Phase III trials. Amiloride, fluoxetine and riluzole were not effective in reducing the brain atrophy rate in people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. Mechanistic pathobiological insight was gained. Future work: To use the information gained from the Multiple Sclerosis-Secondary Progressive Multi-Arm Randomisation Trial (MS-SMART) to inform future trial design as new candidate agents are identified. Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN28440672, NCT01910259 and EudraCT 2012-005394-31. Funding: This project was funded by the Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) programme, a Medical Research Council and National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) partnership. This will be published in full in Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation; Vol. 7, No. 3. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information. This trial also received funding from the UK MS Society and the US National Multiple Sclerosis Society

Three Essays on Urban Consumer Service Firms: Evidence from Yelp

This dissertation explores questions related to consumer services using Yelp data from the Phoenix area. Chapter 1 explores competition. Competition is a key feature of the market process assumed to improve market outcomes. But how strong is the relationship between competition and positive consumer experiences, and how does the relationship vary across space? This chapter explores these questions by exploiting Yelp data from thousands of restaurants in the Phoenix area. After controlling for restaurant characteristics, census tract level demographics, census tract fixed effects, and sub-industry fixed effects, the results are consistent with spatial competition positively affecting consumer experiences. Chapter 2 considers where these consumer service firms are located. The chapter analyzes the spatial concentration of a variety of consumer services firms in the Phoenix, AZ area using geo-referenced Yelp data from over 29,000 establishments. Results from a K-density approach indicate substantial localization and service differentiation among localized firms. Firm concentration varies across service cost and quality; higher quality/cost establishments tend to cluster. Chapter 3 explores the influence of emotional cues on consumer behavior. Using nearly 1 million Yelp reviews from the Phoenix area, I empirically test for the presence of loss aversion and reference-dependent preferences in reviewer behavior. Consistent with loss aversion, unexpected losses lead to worse reviews while there is no effect for unexpected wins. The results also reflect reference-dependent preferences since wins and losses in games predicted to be close do not impact reviewer behavior