33,089 research outputs found
Is there discrimination in mortgage pricing? the case of overages
We conduct an empirical investigation to explain observed differentials in mortgage overage pricing. Our analysis makes several contributions. First, we study an area of mortgage pricing that is little understood by consumers and has received little scrutiny in the literature. Second, we consider the impact of the market power of individual loan officers on overages paid by borrowers, particularly minorities. Third, we include a number of borrower and lender characteristics not available in previous analysis. ; Importantly, we introduce a new direct measure of the market power of individual loan officers. We also incorporate the interactive effects of loan officer market power and the race of the borrower in determining the rate of the mortgage loan. Through the use of these new variables and employing proprietary data from different branches of a nationwide mortgage lending institution, we conclude that the market power of the lender and the bargaining or negotiating ability of the borrower are important determinants of overages. We find that overages paid by minorities who purchase homes are larger than those paid by whites. Our evidence suggests that this is due to differences in the pools of borrowers rather than to racial discrimination. Indeed, tests show that the pool of refinancings is more homogeneous across races than the pool for purchases, and we find no differences by race for refinancings. We conclude that a more effective way to eliminate racial differences in overages is to pursue policies designed to increase the ability of minorities to bargain more effectively rather than to enact additional antidiscrimination laws.Discrimination in mortgage loans ; Mortgages
Variable pitch fan system for NASA/Navy research and technology aircraft
Preliminary design of a shaft driven, variable-pitch lift fan and lift-cruise fan was conducted for a V/STOL Research and Technology Aircraft. The lift fan and lift-cruise fan employed a common rotor of 157.5 cm diameter, 1.18 pressure ratio variable-pitch fan designed to operate at a rotor-tip speed of 284 mps. Fan performance maps were prepared and detailed aerodynamic characteristics were established. Cost/weight/risk trade studies were conducted for the blade and fan case. Structural sizing was conducted for major components and weights determined for both the lift and lift-cruise fans
Advancing the circular economy through dynamic capabilities and extended customer engagement: insights from small sustainable fashion enterprises in the UK
The circular economy holds the potential to significantly reduce resource use. However, attempts to fully utilize its potential have fallen short so far. Based on a longitudinal interview-based study, we examine how micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the UK fashion industry advance the circular economy (CE). Whereas the dynamic capabilities framework is mostly used for medium and large businesses, our findings advance the current literature, demonstrating how the distinctive development and use of dynamic capabilities enable MSMEs to act in agile ways, allowing them to introduce, test and advance CE solutions, while providing them with more resilience during times of crises. Our study further shows that fashion MSMEs adopt circular economy business models (CEBMs) by going beyond conventional, technology-focused approaches currently dominating business thinking. The research highlights MSMEs' ability to engage in circular practices through an extension of existing business models in the form of close interactions with their customers demonstrating the importance and potential of extended business-customer engagement in businesses' attempts to adopt CE practices
Apparatus for measuring thermal conductivity Patent
Development of apparatus for measuring thermal conductivit
X-ray polarimetry with an active-matrix pixel proportional counter
We report the first results from an X-ray polarimeter with a micropattern gas
proportional counter using an amorphous silicon active matrix readout. With
100% polarized X-rays at 4.5 keV, we obtain a modulation factor of 0.33 +/-
0.03, confirming previous reports of the high polarization sensitivity of a
finely segmented pixel proportional counter. The detector described here has a
geometry suitable for the focal plane of an astronomical X-ray telescope.
Amorphous silicon readout technology will enable additional extensions and
improvements.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl
Study of the constituents of the brown marine algae
Although in the last 250 years seaweeds have been used on
an industrial scale, first as a source of alkali for the soap and
glass industries, then as a source of iodine, and latterly for the
production of alginic acid, practically nothing was known of their
chemical composition and the effect of season and other influencing
factors on their composition.In 1944 the Scottish Seaweed Research Association was formed
with the object of surveying the coast of Scotland to ascertain
if there was sufficient seaweed to justify the setting up of a large scale industry, studying the factors which influenced
composition and devising economical means of harvesting seaweed.The surveys showed that only the brown seaweeds (Phaeophyceae)
occurred in sufficient quantity to warrant further investigation.
Consequently, a study was commenced on the factors likely to influence
their chemical composition.FACTORS AFFECTING THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION The effect of season and degree of exposure was first examined
for the three most commonly occurring sublittoral species. For a period of two years monthly samples of the Laminariaceae, Laminaria
cloustoni, L. digitata and L. saccharina, were collected, with the
L. digitata and the L. saccharina samples taken from two different
habitats to examine the effect of degree of exposure on chemical
composition. The samples were first analysed for moisture, total ash,
iodine, Kjeldahl nitrogen, mannitol, laminarin and alginic acid
and later for cellulose and combined L- fucose. This work was
continued for a further two years and, in addition, the seasonal
variation in the wet weight of the plants was studied. At the same
time samples of seawater were taken from above the weed beds and the
chemical composition of the seaweeds correlated with that of the
seawater in which they were growing.The effect of depth of immersion on the chemical composition
of the Laminariaceae was also studied.Monthly samples of the common littoral seaweeds, Fucus serratus,
F. vesiculosus, F. spiralis, Pelvetia canaliculata and Ascophyllum
nodosum were also taken, with A. nodostun collected from three different
habitats to determine the effect of degree of exposure on chemical
composition.A study was carried out on the concentration gradients in
Laminaria saccharina fronds and it was shown that they do exist at
certain times of the year, contrary to the belief that such gradients
are not required in seaweeds of this type for the translocation of matter.ISOLATION OF CHEMICALS FROM THE BROWN MAXINE ALGAE
As the seaweed industry in Britain is based solely on the
extraction of alginic acid, methods were worked out for the isolation
of the other constituents as by- products of the alginate process.
Employing these methods, quantities of mannitol, laminarin and fucoidin
were isolated and purified for studies which were being carried out by
collaborative investigators at a number of universities.Laminarin and fucoidin were also considered as sources of
D- glucose and L- fucose respectively, and the optimum conditions for
the isolation of these sugars worked out. In view of an
increasing demand for the sugar D-galactose, different species of
red seaweeds were examined as possible sources, as well as indigenous
plant material such as bracken, heather, Sphagnum moss and peat.In view of the commercial importance of alginic acid and the
belief that it could only be satisfactorily obtained from Laminaria
cloustoni stipes, an investigation was carried out to prove that it
can be isolated from any of the common brown seaweeds; variations
did occur, however, in the degree of polymerisation of the acids
isolated from different species.As a result of the success of initial trials with sodium
laminarin sulphate as a blood anticoagulant, its preparation and that
of other possibly useful derivatives of laminarin were studied.The use of charcoal columns in separating mixtures of salts,
mannitol, D-glucose and L-fucose, such as are obtained in seaweed
hydrolysates, was examined. The disaccharide, laminaribiose, was
isolated from a partial hydrolysate of laminarin on charcoal.The possibility of preparing sex hormones from fucosterol,
which occurs in the brown seaweeds, was considered and a method for
its determination worked out and applied to samples of seaweed.THE PRESERVATION OF SEAWEEDS
As the chemicals already discussed could probably be isolated
more cheaply from fresh seaweed, without the additional cost of drying,
methods of preserving fresh samples were studied and the chemical
changes which occur on ensiling were investigated
Structure, bonding and morphology of hydrothermally synthesised xonotlite
The authors have systematically investigated the role of synthesis conditions upon the structure and morphology of xonotlite. Starting with a mechanochemically prepared, semicrystalline phase with Ca/Si=1, the authors have prepared a series of xonotlite samples hydrothermally, at temperatures between 200 and 250 degrees C. Analysis in each case was by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, environmental scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The authorsâ use of a much lower water/solid ratio has indirectly confirmed the âthrough solutionâ mechanism of xonotlite formation, where silicate dissolution is a key precursor of xonotlite formation. Concerning the role of temperature, too low a temperature (~200 degrees C) fails to yield xonotlite or leads to increased number of structural defects in the silicate chains of xonotlite and too high a temperature (>250 degrees C) leads to degradation of the xonotlite structure, through leaching of interchain calcium. Synthesis duration meanwhile leads to increased silicate polymerisation due to diminishing of the defects in the silicate chains and more perfect crystal morphologies
Effectiveness of Weight Control through Weight Watch Programs
Linear probability estimation and survey data are employed to quantify the influence of the lifestyles of individuals on the change in their body mass index (BMI). The analysis also explores the effects of demographic characteristics (age, gender, and ethnicity) in weight management. Results suggest evidence of association between changes in lifestyle and changes in the BMI of individuals
Spinor Dynamics in an Antiferromagnetic Spin-1 Condensate
We observe coherent spin oscillations in an antiferromagnetic spin-1
Bose-Einstein condensate of sodium. The variation of the spin oscillations with
magnetic field shows a clear signature of nonlinearity, in agreement with
theory, which also predicts anharmonic oscillations near a critical magnetic
field. Measurements of the magnetic phase diagram agree with predictions made
in the approximation of a single spatial mode. The oscillation period yields
the best measurement to date of the sodium spin-dependent interaction
coefficient, determining that the difference between the sodium spin-dependent
s-wave scattering lengths is Bohr radii.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures. Changes: added reference, minor correction
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