Asset Prices and asset Correlations in Illiquid Markets

We build a new asset pricing framework to study the effects of aggregate illiquidity on asset prices, volatilities and correlations. In our framework the Black-Scholes economy is obtained as the limiting case of perfectly liquid markets. The model is consistent with empirical studies on the effects of illiquidity on asset returns, volatilities and correlations. We present the model, study its qualitative properties and estimate stocks' sensitivities to aggregate liquidity ($\beta$s) using nine years data for 24 randomly sampled stocks traded on the NYSE. These sensitivity parameters ($\beta$s) determine the effect that aggregate illiquidity has on expected returns, volatilities, correlations, CAPM-betas and Sharpe ratios. We find clear capitalization and sector patterns for liquidity $\beta$s.Market Liquidity, Volatilities, Correlations, Asset Pricing, GMM

High School Musicians\u27 and Non-musicians\u27 Listening Preference for Authentic Versus Transcribed Musical Excerpts

The purpose of this study was to (a) determine high school musician’s and non-musician’s preference for authentic and transcribed orchestral and band recordings, and (b) examine participant perceptual responses regarding reasons for preference. Therefore, the following research questions guided this investigation: (a) To what extent do musicians’ and non-musicians’ preference ratings of paired musical selections (one played by band and one played by orchestra) differ when rated on a Likert scale after listening? and (b) What are the reasons for preferring one excerpt type over another? The participants were musicians (n = 40) and non-musicians (n = 40) in grades 9-12. The participants listened to 30-second music excerpts: two authentic works for band, the orchestral transcriptions of those two authentic works for band, two authentic works for orchestra, and the band transcriptions of those two authentic works for orchestra. The participants were given 20 seconds between selections to rate their level of music preference on a Likert-type scale after they listened to each example. At the end of the listening-task, participants completed a short questionnaire designed to determine reasons for preferring certain selections. Results of Mann-Whitney U Test analyses determined no significant differences between high school musicians’ and non-musicians’ musical preference ratings. Participant comments were coded and divided into five themes: (a) Connection to Personal Experience, (b) Specific Musical Aspects, (c) Emotions/Moods/Feelings, (d) Instrumentation Preferences, (e) Nonspecific Preferences. The coded comments were analyzed and the findings revealed that non-musicians had a tendency to connect the excerpts to personal experiences more than musicians, while musicians tended to describe excerpts with more specific musical terms during the listening activity

Hyaluronan and cardiac regeneration

Hyaluronan (HA) is abundantly expressed in several human tissues and a variety of roles for HA has been highlighted. Particularly relevant for tissue repair, HA is actively produced during tissue injury, as widely evidenced in wound healing investigations. In the heart HA is involved in physiological functions, such as cardiac development during embryogenesis, and in pathological conditions including atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction. Moreover, owing to its relevant biological properties, HA has been widely used as a biomaterial for heart regeneration after a myocardial infarction. Indeed, HA and its derivatives are biodegradable and biocompatible, promote faster healing of injured tissues, and support cells in relevant processes including survival, proliferation, and differentiation. Injectable HA-based therapies for cardiovascular disease are gaining growing attention because of the benefits obtained in preclinical models of myocardial infarction. HA-based hydrogels, especially as a vehicle for stem cells, have been demonstrated to improve the process of cardiac repair by stimulating angiogenesis, reducing inflammation, and supporting local and grafted cells in their reparative functions. Solid-state HA-based scaffolds have been also investigated to produce constructs hosting mesenchymal stem cells or endothelial progenitor cells to be transplanted onto the infarcted surface of the heart. Finally, applying an ex-vivo mechanical stretching, stem cells grown in HA-based 3D scaffolds can further increase extracellular matrix production and proneness to differentiate into muscle phenotypes, thus suggesting a potential strategy to create a suitable engineered myocardial tissue for cardiac regeneration