Approximate Kalman-Bucy filter for continuous-time semi-Markov jump linear systems

The aim of this paper is to propose a new numerical approximation of the Kalman-Bucy filter for semi-Markov jump linear systems. This approximation is based on the selection of typical trajectories of the driving semi-Markov chain of the process by using an optimal quantization technique. The main advantage of this approach is that it makes pre-computations possible. We derive a Lipschitz property for the solution of the Riccati equation and a general result on the convergence of perturbed solutions of semi-Markov switching Riccati equations when the perturbation comes from the driving semi-Markov chain. Based on these results, we prove the convergence of our approximation scheme in a general infinite countable state space framework and derive an error bound in terms of the quantization error and time discretization step. We employ the proposed filter in a magnetic levitation example with markovian failures and compare its performance with both the Kalman-Bucy filter and the Markovian linear minimum mean squares estimator

Is the impact of public investment neutral across the regional income distribution? Evidence from Mexico

This paper investigates the contribution of public investment to the reduction of regional inequalities, with a specific application to Mexico. We use quantile regressions to examine the impact of public investment on regional disparities according to the position of each region in the conditional distribution of regional income. Results confirm the hypothesis that regional inequalities can indeed be attributed to the regional distribution of public investment, where the observed pattern shows that public investment mainly helped to reduce regional inequalities between the richest regions.regional development, quantile regression, public investment

Waffen-SS: a tropa de elite de Hitler.

TCC (graduação)- Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas, História.As ações realizadas pelas diferentes divisões do exército alemão durante a Segunda Guerra Mundial, sob a insígnia da SS, são temas recorrentes de debates. Durante a década de 1930, e com o fim da República de Weimar, vemos a ascensão do nazismo e da ideologia ariana, como fatores que moldaram a sociedade alemã da época. Esses fatores ajudaram o partido nazista a fazer as mudanças necessárias para criar uma máquina de guerra poderosa, capaz de varrer toda a Europa, seguindo as ordens de Hitler. O ponto forte deste trabalho refere-se ao relato de ex-combatentes de ambos os lados, contidos em três documentários, tanto do eixo, trazendo relatos de soldados alemães, como dos aliados, com relatos de soldados norte americanos, referentes às campanhas europeias da guerra. A descrição das divisões da Waffen-SS que atuaram nos fronts da Segunda Guerra, tanto oriental como ocidental, além das batalhas travadas e o destino de cada uma delas, mostram o quanto essas unidades atuaram no conflito. Os relatos dos veteranos nos mostram a realidade vivida por muitos soldados, que em certos casos quando não se alistavam voluntariamente, eram obrigados a combater pela pátria mãe, forçados pelo regime nazista, ou sob forte pressão de familiares. Vemos que com a guerra chegando ao seu fim, e com a derrota eminente dos nazistas, a preocupação dos soldados passa a ser a proteção do seu futuro e de suas famílias em casa, frente a avalanche vermelha, do exército russo

Essays on health economics

This thesis provides a set of Health Economics Essays on the efficiency of health care provision and financing, with micro and macroeconomic perspectives. Chapter 1 investigates how hospitals react to a sudden change in their inputs, looking at the specific case of health professionals’ strikes. Chapter 2 investigates pricing decisions of pharmaceutical firms following a change in the reference price system. Chapter 3 provides three macro applications on public health spending efficiency; on the relation between efficiency and HR skill-mix; and on the sustainability of the Portuguese NHS. Chapter 4 introduces a model to analyse public health spending sustainability

From the Unbearable “Resilience” of Coupism to Ethnicisation: a Short Journey for the Armed Forces of Guinea-Bissau

This paper considers the emergence of ethnic ruptures in the Guinea-Bissau Armed Forces. It takes as its starting point the fact that, despite efforts that date back to initiatives implemented by the political wing of the PAIGC (African Party for Independence in Guinea and Cape Verde, Partido Africano para a Independência da Guiné e Cabo Verde in Portuguese) during the war of independence, “ethnic empathy” is rife in the military and, at key moments, overrides the comradeship that is supposed to form the basis of relations between military personnel. In fact, as I aim to demonstrate, not only do personal loyalties to military leaders frequently supersede the chain of command, many higher-ranked officials also frequently use the “weight” of their ethnicity (and a corresponding network of relations inside different military units) as a bargaining chip, as well as a weapon and a shield. This is especially true in regards to the distribution of profits accrued from drug trafficking. The situation is all the more intriguing given that the cohesion of Guinea-Bissau’s social fabric is generally speaking fairly good, despite its huge ethnic diversity. It is therefore important to ascertain the reason(s) why the situation should be so different within the realm of the Armed Forces

Government growth in Latin America

The scope of government spending has gained significant attention in comparative politics. Disaggregate level data has allowed researchers to examine the impact of electoral rules and party fragmentation on the nature of government spending. Findings supported by large-N empirical tests suggest that fragmented polities are more likely to observe a shift in government expenditures: away from expenditures on public goods and in the direction of transfers and subsidies. In this paper, I test the applicability of these findings to Latin America. Using empirical evidence based on 13 Latin American countries over a 17 year period, the findings of this paper suggest that the number of parties does not impact government spending in Latin America, mainly due to an ideological vacuum that is characteristic of most countries in the region