The impact of heat on mortality and morbidity in the Greater Metropolitan Sydney Region: A case crossover analysis

Background: This study examined the association between unusually high temperature and daily mortality (1997-2007) and hospital admissions (1997-2010) in the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Region (GMR) to assist in the development of targeted health program

Investing in FEMA: A Role for Government in Protecting Opportunity

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) played a central--and often controversial--role in the federal government's response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Subsequent investigations have revealed that the agency made critical missteps during those disasters and was slow to address the basic needs of people in the Gulf Coast region. But the history of FEMA shows that it can be an important and effective component of our country's disaster response and recovery system. The FEMA that responded to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita was weakened by systematic disinvestment over time, which diminished the agency's ability to address national disasters. Unfortunately, FEMA's diminished role is part of a larger pattern of disinvestment in federal agencies responsible for security and opportunity in America. While FEMA is a noteworthy example with dramatic consequences, it is only one of many important federal programs that now lack adequate resources and authority. FEMA's history also shows that reinvesting in our government's capacity to address national problems yields both immediate and long-term benefits for our country. This fact sheet reviews that history and offers recommendations for rebuilding our national infrastructure for safety and opportunity

Extreme Value Theory for Tail-Related Risk Measures

Many fields of modern science and engineering have to deal with events which are rare but have significant consequences. Extreme value theory is considered to provide the basis for the statistical modeling of such extremes. The potential of extreme value theory applied to financial problems has only been recognized recently. This paper aims at introducing the fundamentals of extreme value theory as well as practical aspects for estimating and assessing statistical models for tail-related risk measures.Extreme Value Theory; Generalized Pareto Distribution, Generalized Extreme Value Distribution; Quantile Estimation, Risk Measures; Maximum Likelihood Estimation; Profile Likelihood Confidence Intervals.

Multi-objective integer programming: An improved recursive algorithm

This paper introduces an improved recursive algorithm to generate the set of all nondominated objective vectors for the Multi-Objective Integer Programming (MOIP) problem. We significantly improve the earlier recursive algorithm of \"Ozlen and Azizo\u{g}lu by using the set of already solved subproblems and their solutions to avoid solving a large number of IPs. A numerical example is presented to explain the workings of the algorithm, and we conduct a series of computational experiments to show the savings that can be obtained. As our experiments show, the improvement becomes more significant as the problems grow larger in terms of the number of objectives.Comment: 11 pages, 6 tables; v2: added more details and a computational stud

Looking for Reasons behind Success in Dealing with Requirements Change

During development, requirements of software systems are subject to change. Unfortunately, managing changing requirements can take a lot of time and effort. Yet some companies show a better management of changes in requirements than others. Why? What is it that makes some projects deal with changing requirements better than others? We pursue the long term goal of understanding the mechanisms used to successfully deal with change in requirements. In this paper we gather knowledge about the state-of-the-art and the state-of-practice. We studied eight software development projects in four different companies --large and small, inclined toward structured and toward agile principles of development--, interviewing their project managers and analyzing their answers. Our findings include a list of practical (rather than theoretical) factors affecting the ability to cope with small changes in requirements. Results suggest a central role of size as a factor determining the flexibility showed either by the organization or by the software development team. We report the research method used and validate our results via expert interviews, who could relate to our findings

Econometric guidance for developing UrbanSim models. First lessons from the SustainCity project.

In the context of the SustainCity project (www.sustaincity.eu), three European cities (Brussels, Paris and Zurich) will be modelled using the land use microsimulation platform UrbanSim. This platform relies on various models interacting with each other, to predict long-term urban development. The aim of this paper is to provide some econometric insight into this process. A common set of notation and assumptions are first defined, and the more common model structures (linear regression, multinomial logit, nested logit, mixed MNL and latent variable models) are described in a consistent way. Special treatments and approaches that are required due to the specific nature of the data in this type of applications (i.e. involving very large number of alternatives, and often exhibiting endogeneity, correlation, and (pseudo-)panel data properties) will also be discussed. For example, importance sampling, spatial econometrics, Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) and endogeneity issues will be covered. Applications and specific options of the following models: (i) household location choice model, (ii) jobs location/firmography, (iii) real estate price model, and (iv) land development model, will be demonstrated using examples from the on-going case studies in Brussels, Paris and Zurich. Finally, lessons learnt in relation to the econometric models from these on-going case studies will be summarized.

“ONE MORE WAY TO SELL NEW ORLEANS”: AIRBNB AND THE COMMODIFICATION OF AUTHENTICITY THROUGH LOCAL EMOTIONAL LABOR

Since 2014, Airbnb has been the poster-child for an impassioned debate over how to best regulate short-term home rentals (STR’s) in New Orleans, Louisiana. As critical perspectives toward on-demand economic practice become increasingly common, it is important to understand how the impacts of STR platforms like Airbnb extend beyond the realm of what is traditionally conceptualized as the economic (i.e., pressure on housing markets). In this thesis, I explore the ways in which Airbnb recalibrates the spatial and temporal rhythms of everyday neighborhood life for people external to the formal trappings of an STR contract. Drawing in particular on theories of authenticity and feminist political economy, I argue that locals’ emotional labor of “playing host” is necessarily enrolled into the creation of value for Airbnb, and is essential to the reproduction of the platform’s business model and marketing rhetoric

Health Problems Heat Up: Climate Change and the Public's Health

Examines the health effects of climate change, the needed public health response, concerns for communities at high risk, and state planning and funding for climate change assessments and strategies. Makes federal, state, and local policy recommendations