The media and advertising : a table of two-sided markets

Media industries are important drivers of popular culture. A large fraction of leisure time is devoted to radio, magazines, newspapers, the Internet, and television (the illustrative example henceforth). Most advertising expenditures are incurred for these media. They are also mainly supported by advertising revenue. Early work stressed possible market failures in program dupplication and catering to the Lowest Common Denominator, indicating lack of cultual diversisty and quality. The business model for most media industries is underscored by advertisers’ demand to reach prospectie customers. This business model has important impllications for performance in the market since viewer sovereignty is indirect. Viewers are attracted by programming, though they dislike the ads it carries, and advertisers want viewers as potential consumers. The two sides are coordinated by broadcasters (or “platforms”) that choose ad levels and program types, and advertising finances the programming. Competition for viewers of the demographics most desired by advertisers implies that programming choices will be biased towards the tastes of those with such demographics. The ability to use subscription pricing may help improve performance by catering to the tastes of those otherwise under-represented, though higher full prices tend to favor broadcasters at the expense of viewers and advertisers. If advertising demand is weak, program equilibrium porgram selection may be too extreme as broadcasters strive to avoid ruinous subscription price competition, but strong advertising demand may lead to strong competition for viewers and hence minimum differentiation (“la pensée unique”). Markets (such as newspapers) with a high proportion of ad-lovers may be served only by monopoly due to a circulation spiral : advertisers want to place ads in the paper with most readers, but readers want to buy the paper with more ads.Advertising finance; two-sided markets; platform competition

The Development of a Serum-Free Medium for Use in the Culture of Normal and Malignant Human Melanocytes

This project was initiated to study the use of serum-free medium in the culture of human malignant melanoma cell lines and normal human melanocytes. The development of a. suitable serum-free medium was carried out in two stages using the two melanoma cell lines. Firstly, various supplements were tested for their ability to improve cell growth in the basic culture medium (Ham's F-10) devoid of serum. From this work we established a group of five supplements which we termed the standard supplements and these were added at optimal concentrations to all serum-free media examined by us. This group consisted of human transferrin, bovine serum albumin, Intralipid, insulin and B-mercaptoethanol. Various other supplements also proved stimulatory to melanoma cell growth under serum-free conditions, however even in combination with the standard supplements the level of cell growth achieved was only a fraction of that achieved in medium supplemented with serum. Thus we decided to switch to a richer basic medium and found that our requirements were met by medium MCDB104, a modification of Ham's F-10. The standard supplements were re-optimised in this medium and again various potential supplements were tested. Although cell growth, under serum-free contiitions, was improved it still did not approach the level achieved in serum-containing medium. Thus it was decided that to improve cell growth under serum-free conditions the basic medium would have to bo optimised to suit our requirements. Thus, the second stage in the serum-free medium development was to re-optimise various components of the MCDB104 medium for the two melanoma cell lines. A batch of MCDB104 deficient in 15 components was prepared. Each of the omitted items was then tested over a concentration range and the optimum concentration for each determined for both cell lines. Using the determined concentrations a "new" MCDB104 medium was prepared for each cell line. Again the standard additives were added. Although this optimisation improved cell growth, the level achieved was still lower than that obtained with serum supplementation. To achieve a comparable level of cell growth it was felt that all components of the basic growth medium would require to be optimised for each cell line under study. The development of the serum-free medium was carried out using the two human melanoma cell lines, however it was hoped that any such medium would be useful in the culture of normal human melanocytes. We found that melanocytes would not grow in any of our serum-free media even when supplemented with the routine requirements for melanocyte growth. We also looked at the possibility of improving upon the two methods we elected to use for the culture of melanocytes. This was done by looking at ways in which the problem of fibroblast contamination and overgrowth could be dealt with and also by looking at factors as potential melanocyte stimulants . We found that calmodulin enhanced melanocyte numbers it used in conjunction with the phorbol ester and cholera toxin required routinely for melanocyte growth. Fibroblast contamination was not eliminated by any of our methods. Despite this however we were able to culture normal human melanocytes for periods of up to 6 months

Academic service-learning’s impact on students’ social capital

This study examines whether there is a relationship between social capital and participation in academic service-learning courses within higher education. Through designing, implementing, and analyzing a survey which was given to students enrolled in courses with an academic service-learning component at Eastern Michigan University (n=127), the role between these two variables was tested. Social capital was measured through the total number of relationships formed at participants’ academic service learning site, whether these relationships were strong or weak ties; the frequency of interaction with said ties; and individuals who could be used as a reference. Results suggest the number of individuals with whom participants worked and whether participants were partaking in academic service-learning for the first time positively impacted social capital. Furthermore, the type of service, as well as frequency of interaction between participants and individuals at their site, had an impact on the strength of participants’ ties. Similarly, frequency of interaction with one’s supervisor positively impacted the total number of individuals participants felt comfortable asking for a reference. It was also found that whether participants partook in academic service learning as part of an education course or a non-education course played a role in participants’ social capital

Comparing alternative landscapes: power negotiations in enslaved communities in Louisiana and the Bahamas, an archaeological and historical perspective

textThis dissertation compares the lives of enslaved people of African descent living at Rosedown Plantation in Louisiana with the lives of enslaved people of African descent living at several plantations in the Bahamas. This comparison explores how people living in these oppressive contexts negotiated power over their own lives according to local circumstances and contexts. Archaeological and historical data provide the basis for this study. Through an analysis of material culture recovered from the location of some of the slave quarters at Rosedown, basic assemblage attributes are established for comparison with the published descriptions of material culture recovered from enslaved living contexts at Oakley Plantation in Louisiana and several plantations in the Bahamas. This analysis, complemented by the historical record in both Louisiana and the Bahamas, uncovers several themes occurring throughout the data. These themes include levels of control, levels of surveillance, resistance, medicine, spirituality, and informal law, and are all aspects of the negotiation of power between slaveowners and enslaved people.Anthropolog

Participant perceptions of residential learning.

This paper reviews findings from a study of participant perceptions of residential adult learning. Residential learning programs were defined as programs in which participants live and learn together, full-time, in the same location, for the full duration of their program

Trading Relationships and Technological Change: Electronic Commerce and Trade, the Government\u27s Role--A U.S. Perspective

The Impact of Technological Change in the Canada/U.S. Contex