Regulation of securities markets : some recent trends and their implications for emerging markets

Recent rapid changes in the world economy, particularly the transformation of command economies into free market economies in many places around the world, can be expected to lead to an increase in the number of newly created securities markets through the 1990s. This follows a decade of unprecedented change in the world's securities markets. In the 1990s, it is expected that increased attention will be given to newly established and emerging securities markets as a result of the historic movement toward free market economies in central Europe and the Soviet Union and the need for more efficient capital markets to support the expanding role of the private sector in many developing countries around the world. Given the importance of the regulatory environment to capital market development, this paper focuses on the regulatory issues. It examines the interplay between regulation and market efficiency and reviews recent development in regulation, paying particular attention to the experience in the Korean market in the 1980s.Environmental Economics&Policies,Insurance&Risk Mitigation,Insurance Law,Markets and Market Access,Financial Intermediation

Decision-making and ante-natal screening for sickle cell and thalassaemia disorders : To what extent do faith and religious identity mediate choice?

When making decisions about prenatal diagnosis, couples not only draw on their understanding of the condition but also broader aspects of their cultural identity. This article looks at how faith and religion mediate attitudes towards screening, prenatal diagnosis and termination of pregnancy for sickle cell and thalassaemia disorders. The article specifically reports on a qualitative study, which used focus groups from a variety of faith communities (Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and Christian), at risk of haemoglobin disorders, living in England. Our findings suggest that the decision about whether or not to have diagnostic testing generally related to attitudes towards the termination of pregnancy. The consequences of the condition were as important as religious beliefs to most people. More generally, faith beliefs emerged as negotiable and contingent: realized within a broader moral framework. Religion was felt not to be prescriptive and reproductive decisions were seen as personal. When making decisions, people utilize faith within a broader context of individual, family and social relationships

'A light in a very dark place' : The role of a voluntary organisation providing support for those affected by encephalitis

Voluntary organisations are seen as contributing to the ‘democratisation’ of health and social care. Little, however, is written about their role and this paper, by focusing on the work of The Encephalitis Society, provides insights into the challenges facing voluntary organisations as they manage twin roles as service providers and advocates, of people with neurological disorders. Two studies are presented: a review conducted by the Society, focusing on patient’s experiences of neurological services; and an external evaluation of the Society’s current provision. The first, based on a postal survey of its members affected by encephalitis (n = 339), illustrates the Society’s advocacy role. The survey provided support for the Association of British Neurologists’ recommendation for nationally agreed standards of care. The second study, a postal survey of recent contacts (n = 76) and in-depth telephone interviews (n = 22), illustrates the Society’s value role as a service provider and supports its role in helping rehabilitate affected individuals and their families. These studies provided the Society with information for policy and service development. Importantly, providing the basis of informed action and partnership with stakeholders and informing the organisation’s sense of purpose, in the changing context of welfare provision in the UK

Development of a Ripple Rejection Controller for DC Commutated Motors

The requirement of modern systems to be quiet and run smoothly increases production costs. The manufacture and purchase of high quality motors that meet these demands becomes increasingly costly. By using the ever increasing computer power available in micro-controllers, at the same costs, it is possible to use current sensing to develop control adjustments which decrease power ripples caused by the commutators of basic DC commutated motors. These ripples if left unmitigated propagate through to torque ripples which then increase the acoustic noise level present

Representation of South Asian people in randomised clinical trials: analysis of trials' data

Excluding patients of ethnic minority groups from clinical trials is unethical, introduces substantial bias, and means that findings are based on unrepresentative populations. The National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act 1993 requires that all minority groups be represented in the sample in research projects supported by the National Institutes of Health, unless there is a clear and compelling justification not to do so. In the United Kingdom no such legislation exists

Endocannabinoid receptor blockade increases hepatocyte growth factor and reduces insulin levels in obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome

There is evidence from animal and in-vitro studies that activation of the endocannabinoid system (EC) through cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB-1) is associated with liver injury, inflammation and hepatocellular carcinoma.1 Data suggests endogenous cannabinoids (EC) are related to fatty liver metabolism with a role in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) through modulating lipid metabolism that may be ameliorated by CB1 receptor antagonism with rimonabant.2 This is of particular importance as NAFLD is the most common cause of chronic liver disease with liver dysfunction leading liver cirrhosis. The diagnosis of NAFLD can only be confirmed by a liver biopsy, as liver enzymes such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT) used, as a serum marker may not be elevated

A simplified mathematical model for thrombin generation

A new phenomenological mathematical model based directly on laboratory data for thrombin generation and having a patient-specific character is described. A set of the solved equations for cell-based models of blood coagulation that can reproduce the temporal evolution of thrombin generation is proposed; such equations are appropriate for use in computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations. The initial values for the reaction rates are either taken from already existing model or experimental data, or they can obtained from simple reasoning under certain assumptions; it is shown that coefficients can be adjusted in order to fit a range of different thrombin generation curves as derived from thrombin generation assays. The behaviour of the model for different platelet concentration seems to be in good agreement with reported experimental data. It is shown that the reduced set of equations used represents to a good approximation a low-order model of the detailed mechanism and thus it can represent a cost-effective and-case specific mathematical model of coagulation reactions up to thrombin generation