K-drama in the time of the pandemic: the production of hope through the subgenre of the K-Dystopia

During the last quarter of 2021, as the world was preparing to exit the COVID-19 pandemic, Netflix released three original dystopian K-drama series: Squid Game (September), Hellbound (November), and The Silent Sea (December). Through textual analysis of these three series, this paper delves into the ways in which the pandemic served to create a sense of hopelessness and helplessness, a social mood which served as a backdrop for the K-dystopia subgenre to thrive. Paradoxically, perhaps, these dystopian narratives found creative ways to re-package and re- present the concept of hope. In this way, the new genre both built on and veered away from the previous success of K-dramas that presented hope through the element of romance. The dystopian trend might also be considered a Netflix counterprogramming strategy. Finally, the paper explores how realism is incorporated into these dystopian storylines, reflecting the gloomy side of Korean society. Here, realism involves the theme of social injustice, which may be contrasted with the brighter side of Korean culture—typically communicated through the K-pop craze that offers (and sells) fun, glitz, and glamour

Endogenous Choice of Price or Quantity Contract with Upstream R&D Investment: Linear Pricing and Two-part Tariff Contract with Bargaining

We investigate the endogenous choice of strategic variable (a price or a quantity) by downstream firms in a two-tier industry in which an upstream firm performs the R&D investment. We show that when the upstream firm offers either linear discriminatory or uniform input price, it is a dominant strategy for each downstream firm to choose Bertrand competition when two products become relatively differentiated. Second, from the viewpoint of downstream firms, we show that Bertrand competition is more efficient than Cournot competition in some boundaries of Cournot equilibrium, which implies that each downstream firm faces a prisoners' dilemma under the Cournot equilibrium. However, when the downstream firms involve in centralized bargaining with an upstream firm to determine the two-part tariff discriminatory (uniform) input pricing contracts, we find that choosing price (quantity) contract is the dominant strategy for downstream firms. In this case, we further show that the level of social welfare is the same regardless of the mode of product market competition (i.e., Bertrand or Cournot)

Endogenous Choice of Price or Quantity Contract with Upstream R&D Investment: Linear Pricing and Two-part Tariff Contract with Bargaining

We investigate the endogenous choice of strategic variable (a price or a quantity) by downstream firms in a two-tier industry in which an upstream firm performs the R&D investment. We show that when the upstream firm offers either linear discriminatory or uniform input price, it is a dominant strategy for each downstream firm to choose Bertrand competition when two products become relatively differentiated. Second, from the viewpoint of downstream firms, we show that Bertrand competition is more efficient than Cournot competition in some boundaries of Cournot equilibrium, which implies that each downstream firm faces a prisoners' dilemma under the Cournot equilibrium. However, when the downstream firms involve in centralized bargaining with an upstream firm to determine the two-part tariff discriminatory (uniform) input pricing contracts, we find that choosing price (quantity) contract is the dominant strategy for downstream firms. In this case, we further show that the level of social welfare is the same regardless of the mode of product market competition (i.e., Bertrand or Cournot)

Doping-dependent superconducting physical quantities of K-doped BaFe2_2As2_2 obtained through infrared spectroscopy

We investigated four single crystals of K-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$ (Ba-122), Ba$_{1-x}$K$_x$Fe$_2$As$_2$ with $x$ = 0.29, 0.36, 0.40, and 0.51, using infrared spectroscopy. We explored a wide variety of doping levels, from under- to overdoped. We obtained the superfluid plasma frequencies ($\Omega_{\mathrm{sp}}$) and corresponding London penetration depths ($\lambda_{\mathrm{L}}$) from the measured optical conductivity spectra. We also extracted the electron-boson spectral density (EBSD) functions using a two-parallel charge transport channel approach in the superconducting (SC) state. From the extracted EBSD functions, the maximum SC transition temperatures ($T_c^{\mathrm{Max}}$) were determined using a generalized McMillan formula and the SC coherence lengths ($\xi_{\mathrm{SC}}$) were calculated using the timescales encoded in the EBSD functions and reported Fermi velocities. We identified some similarities and differences in the doping-dependent SC quantities between the K-doped Ba-122 and the hole-doped cuprates. We expect that the various SC quantities obtained across the wide doping range will provide helpful information for establishing the microscopic pairing mechanism in Fe-pnictide superconductors.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl

Reverse First-mover and Second-mover Advantage in a Vertical Structure

This paper examines the issue of the first-mover and second-mover advantage in a vertical structure in which each manufacturer trades with a separated retailer via two-part tariffs. Compared to the canonical result in one-tier market, we find that the manufacturers' preference orderings over sequential versus simultaneous play are reversed in a vertical structure. We show that the Stackelberg leader (Stackelberg follower) had the first (second)-mover advantage in the downstream Cournot (Bertrand) competition. The first (second)-mover advantage compels its manufacturer to set the wholesale price higher than that of rival. Finally, we show that the manufacturer in which its retailer moves second (first) in a downstream Stackelberg Cournot (Bertrand) competition earns higher profits than the other in which its retailer moves first (second) in a downstream Stackelberg Cournot (Bertrand) competition

Quantitative and qualitative investments in internal control personnel and firm operational efficiency: Evidence from Korea

Although internal control systems in firms aim to provide reasonable assurance regarding objectives related to operations, reporting, and compliance, research focusing on operational efficiency is limited. This study investigates the impact of both quantitative and qualitative investments in internal control personnel on a firm’s operational efficiency. Utilizing a fixed-effect regression model, the Heckman (1979) two-stage model, and a two-stage least squares procedure, this study analyzes 4,471 firm-year observations from Korean listed firms from 2018 to 2020. The findings indicate a positive association between investment in internal control personnel and operational efficiency. This relationship remains robust even under sensitivity tests and concerns of potential endogeneity, as confirmed by the Heckman and two-stage least squares models. Specifically, the Heckman model shows that the ratio of the number of employees (coef = 0.023, t-value = 5.20) and certified public accountants (coef = 0.256, t-value = 5.43) responsible for internal control is positively associated with operational efficiency. Average work experience (coef = 0.002, t-value = 1.84) of internal control personnel is also positively related to operational efficiency. This study provides empirical evidence for the significance of investing in internal control personnel to boost operational efficiency and suggests that firms should consider both quantitative and qualitative aspects of internal control

Linear scaling relationship of N\'{e}el temperature and dominant magnons in pyrochlore ruthenates

We present a systematic Raman spectroscopy study on a series of pyrochlore ruthenates, a system which is not yet clearly settled on its magnetic origin and structure. Apart from the Raman-active phonon modes, new peaks that appear in the energy range of 15 - 35 meV below the N\'{e}el temperature are assigned as one-magnon modes. The temperature evolution of one-magnon modes displays no significant thermal dependence in mode frequencies while the intensities decrease monotonically. Remarkably, one-magnons from all compounds show similar characteristics with a single dominant peak at lower energy and weaker side peaks at a couple of meV higher energy. Most importantly, we uncover a striking proportionality between the dominant magnon mode energies and the N\'{e}el temperatures. Our results suggest the Ru ions may have similar or the same magnetic phase in all pyrochlore ruthenates of our study. We have thus found an avenue for directly tuning the magnetic exchange interaction by the selection of the $A$-site ion