An examination of the ideological perspectives on the citizen's income debate

Though it is not at the centre of political attention, Citizen's Income (CI) receives the kind of widespread ideological support which most other proposals in the areas of labour market and social security reform do not. Given the breadth of such support, the objective of this research is to improve our understanding of why various ideologies get involved in the CI debate, and of how their differing contributions to that debate produce ideological variants of CI.Chapter 1 introduces us both to the debate and to this thesis, while chapter 2 outlines the principal ideologies with which the thesis deals. Chapters 3 to 5 then address those subjects - citizenship, work, full employment - which are at the heart of disagreements over benefit reform, since it is here that ideological distinctions relevant to the welfare state begin to be made. This approach allows us to formulate those principles which our varying ideologies would have a CI serve. Chapter 6 then examines Negative Income Tax as that form of CI most likely to be supported by economic liberals. Chapter 7 analyses why social democrats are attracted to the principle of social insurance, and why this might lead them to support a combination of CI and insurance benefits, i.e. a Participation Income. Chapter 8 looks at the importance of a social dividend to any market socialist strategy, and chapters 9 and 10 examine, respectively, ecological and feminist justifications for CI.In the concluding chapter, I argue that the widespread ideological support for CI is largely of a negative kind, i.e. a series of distinct but complementary reactions to the failures of non- integrated tax and benefit systems. Should CI enter the mainstream of policy -making debates then this consensus might well break down, since disagreements over the generosity and the (un)conditionality of any CI would inevitably become more important

Multi-regime models involving Markov chains

In this work, we explore the theory and applications of various multi-regime models involving Markov chains. Markov chains are an elegant way to model path-dependent data. We study a series of problems with non-homogeneous data and the various ways that Markov chains come into play. Non-homogeneous data can be modelled using multi-regime models, which apply a distinct set of parameters to distinct population sub-groups, referred to as regimes. Such models essentially allow for a practitioner to understand the nature (and in some cases the existence) of particular regimes within the data without the need to split the population into assumed sub-groups. For example, the problem of modelling business outcomes in different economic states without explicitly using economic variables. Different regimes can apply to an entire population at different times they can apply to different subsections of the population over the whole observed time. Markov chains are involved via the estimation procedure or within models for the observed data. In our first two problems, we utilise the properties of Markov chains to discover and establish efficiencies in the estimation algorithms. In our third problem, we are analysing mixtures of Markov chains. We prove that the log-likelihood ratio test statistic for the test between 1 and 2 mixture components diverges to infinity in probability. In our fourth problem, we look at a simple case, where each Markov chain component has two states, one of which is absorbing, we derive the exact limiting distribution of the log-likelihood ratio test statistic. Although this work is largely focussed on addressing the theoretical issues of each problem, the motivation behind each of the problems studied comes from real datasets, which possess levels of complexity that are insufficiently described through more standard procedures

Injury in Ireland

Injury mortality is the fourth commonest cause of death in Ireland. The treatment of injuries has a major impact on our hospitals and on our budget for health. Long term disability following accidents is a serious problem. The aim of this report is to examine the impact of accidents and injuries on the Irish population by analysing routine mortality and morbidity data, and to identify in turn those areas where preventive measures could have an impact. In Section One the literature review details the advantages and disadvantages of each type of routine data source used in this report. The interpretation of data should take account of the constraints of the available data collected. The usefulness of routine data collection is highlighted, while identifying areas for improvement. In Section Two the methodology employed in the study is detailed. In Section Three data on hospital admissions over a five-year period 1993-1997 are presented. An overview of injury admissions is presented, followed by further analysis of injury data by both cause and by age group. In Section Four data on all accident-related deaths over a 17-year period, 1980-1996, are presented, with overall mortality data and mortality data by age group and by major causes of injury death detailed. In Section Five comparisons are made between the eight health board regions for rates of admissions and deaths due to injury. In presenting the data we use a matrix format devised and recommended by the International Collaborative Effort on Injury Statistics to display injury simultaneously by cause and intent. The use of a common format will also facilitate regional and international comparisons. In Section Six the priority recommendations for injury prevention are outlined. The key findings are then discussed and further recommendations are presented with the aim of injury prevention, reduction of disability and improvement in injury surveillance

A note on bounds for the cop number using tree decompositions

In this short note, we supply a new upper bound on the cop number in terms of tree decompositions. Our results in some cases extend a previously derived bound on the cop number using treewidth

Rater Perceptions of Bias Using the Multiple Mini-interview Format: a Qualitative Study

Introduction The Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) format appears to mitigate individual rater biases. However, the format itself may introduce structural systematic bias, favoring extroverted personality types.  This study aimed to gain a better understanding of these biases from the perspective of the interviewer. Methods A sample of MMI interviewers participated in a series of primary and follow-up one-on-one semi-structured interviews.   Interviews pursued subjects of perception of biases (including norming; applicant personality, appearance and behavior; and interviewer personality) associated with the MMI process.  Emergent qualitative data analysis was performed using the constant-comparative method. Results A number of perceived biases were identified by subjects, sub-grouped into cultural factors, personality factors, perception of prior preparation, concerns with norming, and biases associated with specific applicant characteristics. Discussion While the MMI appears to help mitigate individual rater biases, our analysis suggests that raters perceive structural systematic biases may be introduced by the question type and format of the MMI itself.  Whether rater awareness of these biases mitigates them, and whether these herald other unconscious biases is unknown

Comprehensive Income Options: A Detriment To Transparency

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in 1997 compromised its belief that comprehensive income (CI) should be listed either in a combined statement of net income and CI or in a separate statement of CI and allowed corporations to choose using the statement of changes in stockholders’ equity (SCSE).  Of course, the latter option implies just as Jordan and Clark (2002) suggest, that CI is not a measure of financial performance.  Studies incorporating professional analysts by Hirst and Hopkins (1998) and a study of nonprofessional investors by Maines and McDaniel (2000) both conclude that format presentation matters and behaviors can be affected.  We believe that FASB should revisit the format structure of CI and eliminate the SCSE option, which was their initial intent before they compromised with corporate managers in 1997.  In addition, we believe that all items of other comprehensive income (OCI) – foreign currency translation adjustment, pension value adjustments and adjustment to securities-for-sale should be presented on an after-tax basis only in order to prevent investors from being forced to comb through the footnotes

Exceptional rigidity and biomechanics of amyloid revealed by 4D electron microscopy

Amyloid is an important class of proteinaceous material because of its close association with protein misfolding disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and type II diabetes. Although the degree of stiffness of amyloid is critical to the understanding of its pathological and biological functions, current estimates of the rigidity of these β-sheet–rich protein aggregates range from soft (10^8 Pa) to hard (10^(10) Pa) depending on the method used. Here, we use time-resolved 4D EM to directly and noninvasively measure the oscillatory dynamics of freestanding, self-supporting amyloid beams and their rigidity. The dynamics of a single structure, not an ensemble, were visualized in space and time by imaging in the microscope an amyloid–dye cocrystal that, upon excitation, converts light into mechanical work. From the oscillatory motion, together with tomographic reconstructions of three studied amyloid beams, we determined the Young modulus of these highly ordered, hydrogen-bonded β-sheet structures. We find that amyloid materials are very stiff (10^9 Pa). The potential biological relevance of the deposition of such a highly rigid biomaterial in vivo are discussed

Nanomechanics and intermolecular forces of amyloid revealed by four-dimensional electron microscopy

The amyloid state of polypeptides is a stable, highly organized structural form consisting of laterally associated β-sheet protofilaments that may be adopted as an alternative to the functional, native state. Identifying the balance of forces stabilizing amyloid is fundamental to understanding the wide accessibility of this state to peptides and proteins with unrelated primary sequences, various chain lengths, and widely differing native structures. Here, we use four-dimensional electron microscopy to demonstrate that the forces acting to stabilize amyloid at the atomic level are highly anisotropic, that an optimized interbackbone hydrogen-bonding network within β-sheets confers 20 times more rigidity on the structure than sequence-specific sidechain interactions between sheets, and that electrostatic attraction of protofilaments is only slightly stronger than these weak amphiphilic interactions. The potential biological relevance of the deposition of such a highly anisotropic biomaterial in vivo is discussed

Poster Abstract: Crane Charades: Behavior Identification via Backpack Mounted Sensor Platforms

The Whooping Crane is an endangered species native to North America and there are approximately 575 in existence. There have been recent efforts to provide ecologists with a tool to study the multifaceted behavior of the endangered species. Like many species, cranes display distinctly identifiable movements while being threatened, acting territorial, migrating, or preening. The preliminary experiments described in this poster provide evidence that sensor data presented by a novel sensing platform, the CraneTracker, can be used to identify crane behaviors on-board. With the ability to identify these behaviors, ecologists will have a more granular insight on what occurs during a crane’s life on a daily basis

Poster Abstract: Crane Charades: Behavior Identification via Backpack Mounted Sensor Platforms

The Whooping Crane is an endangered species native to North America and there are approximately 575 in existence. There have been recent efforts to provide ecologists with a tool to study the multifaceted behavior of the endangered species. Like many species, cranes display distinctly identifiable movements while being threatened, acting territorial, migrating, or preening. The preliminary experiments described in this poster provide evidence that sensor data presented by a novel sensing platform, the CraneTracker, can be used to identify crane behaviors on-board. With the ability to identify these behaviors, ecologists will have a more granular insight on what occurs during a crane’s life on a daily basis