Mind the gap. Inconsistencies between subjective and objective financial risk tolerance

Investors\u2019 financial risk tolerance is crucial in the formulation of suitable financial advice; in the past, assessment efforts relied on multiple approaches and techniques but their consistency is still an issue. We focus on two metrics traditionally proposed (self-assessment and portfolio composition) and we test their mutual consistency with an innovative methodology applied to a sample of 2,374 investors. Our approach innovatively allows us to discriminate between inconsistencies due to wrong portfolio compositions and those arising from wrong self-assessments. We show that low financial literacy, high income, no children and incautious economic behavior are commonly associated with such inconsistencies

How does gender really affect investment behavior?

In this paper we study gender differences in investment behavior. By making use of a dedicated proprietary dataset including 2,374 clients of an Italian bank we show that, after controlling for socio-demographic and economic variables, gender still explains many differences in the investment decision process, risk preferences and portfolio characteristics, thus suggesting a role of gender in the investment behavior. However, no difference is revealed in the portfolio liquidity and diversification, meaning that gender does not affect the quality of portfolios

The effects of affiliations on the initial public offering pricing

This paper studies the impact of affiliations between lead managers, venture capitalists, and institutional investors on the Initial Public Offering (IPO) pricing. Using a sample of 1996 US IPOs issued between 1997 and 2010, we find that affiliations strongly and positively affect the offer price by improving the information production process. We also show that the underpricing is affected by affiliations because of conflicts of interest that exist between the players: when an institutional investor is affiliated with a lead manager or with a venture capitalist we observe nepotistic behavior in hot IPOs and dumping ground behavior in cold IPO

Temperature dependence of yttrium partitioning between garnet and xenotime: an experimental study

Yttrium is a notable trace element particularly compatible with garnet. Lanzirotti (1995) provided evidences that, among major metapelitic minerals, yttrium preferentially partitions into garnet and that the mode of major metapelite phases besides garnet have little effect on its fractionation. On the contrary trace elements are extremely sensitive to changes in accessory mineral assemblage (e.g. Ganguly, 2010). Xenotime (YPO4) is a common accessory mineral in metapelites and arguments for garnet growth in equilibrium with xenotime are presented in several papers (e.g. Martin, 2009). Pyle & Spear (1999) described a relevant temperature control on the solubility of yttrium in garnet in xenotime-bearing metapelites from New England (USA). On the basis of a strong negative correlation between Y concentration and temperature they derived an empirical calibration to be used as geothermometer. However, no experimental studies do exist to date on the temperature dependence of Y partitioning between garnet and xenotime. In order to unravel this relation, high pressure (up to 2.0 GPa) xenotime \u2013 saturated synthesis of garnet have been performed in an end-loaded piston cilynder. The simple model system MgO-FeO-Al2O3-SiO2 has been investigated at temperature between 800 and 1000\ub0C running compositions falling along the join almandine-pyrope + 5 wt% YPO4. Gels have been prepared as starting materials using tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) as silica source, pure Mg-, Al-, Ca-, Y-nitric solutions, ferric benzoate and ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (NH4H2PO4) digested in deionised water. Gels were fired in a gas-mixing furnace at fO2 conditions approaching the IW (iron-wustite) buffer at 1 atm for 3 hours. The powder was tightly packed into a gold capsule with an internal graphite sleeve to keep the oxygen fugacity low. Run products were preliminary identified by X-ray powder diffraction, carefully inspected on back-scattered electron images and by X ray element maps, and analysed by electron microprobe and particle-induced X-ray emission (micro-PIXE). The use of the proton microprobe stems from its higher spatial resolution and lower X-ray background with respect to electron microprobe. This allows to measure trace element concentrations down to levels of ~ 1 ppm on a 1 \uf06dm beam spot (Fraser, 1990). Preliminary results will be discussed. References Biggar, G.M. & O\u2019Hara, M.J. (1969). A comparison of gel and glass starting materials for phase equilibrium studies. Mineralogical Magazine 37, 198-205. Fraser, D.G. (1990). Applications of the high-resolution scanning proton microprobe in the Earth Sience: an overview. Chemical Geology 83, 27-37. Ganguly, J (2010). Cation diffusion kinetics in aluminosilicate garnets and geological applications. Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 72, 559-601. Heald, E.F., Reeher, J.R. & Herrington, D.R. (1969). Gel preparation of starting materials in iron-containing silicate systems. American Mineralogist 54, 317-320. Lanzirotti, A. (1995). Yttrium zoning in metamorphic garnet. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 59, 4105-4110. Martin, A.J. (2009). Sub-millimeter Heterogeneity of Yttrium and Chromium during Growth of Semi-pelitic Garnet Journal of Petrology 50, 1713-1727 Pyle, J.M., & Spear, F.S. (1999). An empirical garnet (YAG)-xenotime thermometer. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology 138, 51-58

Conflicts of interest in IPO pricing

We study how IPO pricing is affected by the conflicts of interest arising from the affiliations between underwriters, venture capitalists, and institutional investors. Using a sample of 2,026 IPOs from the US market between 1997 and 2010, we find that all types of conflicts of interest strongly and positively affect the primary market price, suggesting the engagement of dumping ground behavior. However, by introducing a new method for disentangling the effects of these conflicts on secondary market from those on primary market, we find additional results: when an institutional investor is affiliated with a lead manager or with a venture capitalist, we observe a lower underpricing in cold IPOs but a higher underpricing in hot IPOs. These results confirm the dumping ground behavior in cold IPOs, whereas they suggest the occurrence of nepotistic behavior in hot IPOs in the setting of the offer price. JEL Classification: G24, G31, G2

Geofluids and Energy for the XXI Century

This special issue entitled “Geofluids and Energy for the XXI Century” focuses on cutting edge research findings in the fields of geology, rock physics, petrophysics, geomechanics, and numerical modelling. In particular, specific problems regarding the management of underground resources are tackled in terms of their exploration, production, and environmental vulnerability and sustainability. The present volume contains contributions following the scientific session entitled “Georesources and Energy for the XXI Century” held in 2018 during the annual meeting of the Italian Geological Society, which included 30 oral and poster communications [1]. The main topic covered by the presentations dealt with the great uncertainty associated with the assessment of the effective properties of subsurface reservoirs of geofluids, in particular to the complex distribution of the inner heterogeneities due to depositional [2–4], diagenetic [5, 6], and/or tectonic processes [7–11]. Along these lines, the present volume includes scientific articles dealing with three main topics including conventional hydrocarbons, unconventional hydrocarbons and methane recovery from coal beds, and geothermal systems

Tempering with white marbles: implications on the provenance and production technology of ancient pottery

The addition of temper in the pottery production is attested since prehistoric times and is still a production choice adopted in modern ceramic industry. The type of temper comprises natural lithic materials (such as sand and rock fragments), materials of organic origin (vegetal or animal), as well as artificial products like grog/ chamotte (pottery fragments). When the temper is composed of minerals and rocks available in the area of the production site, they can be considered as useful markers to trace the provenance of pottery. On the contrary, the occurrence of different rock types outcropping in two or more geological areas far away each other, open new questions on the production technology. In fact, such situations can be explained only considering the recycling of imported rocks, including those used for architectonic elements or sculptures, mainly coming from buildings of previous epochs. This study presents the evidence of the deliberate addition of recycled white marbles on a long term production (4th and 14th century AD) of coarse and cooking ware in north-eastern Italy. The petrographic analysis of about 200 potsherds, attested the use of this unusual kind of temper, on about half of the repertoire. The occurrence of different type of marbles, associated to rocks and minerals typical of the alluvial deposits of the eastern Po plain as well to locally available rocks (Euganean Hills trachyte), clearly pointed out the intentional addition of recycled marble fragments, and allow to exclude that the pottery was imported from other regions. Detailed petrographic analysis on the microstructure, maximum grain size (MGS), accessory minerals (when observed) and grain boundary shapes, allowed to constrain to the most important Mediterranean classical sources area Aegean the provenance of the marbles. These data were also partially confirmed by the stable oxygen and carbon isotope analysis on marble fragments mechanically separated from the ceramic paste. Nevertheless, part of the marble fragments were characterised by very negative \u3b413C values, not consistent with any marble variety. A series of firing experiment on two marbles were carried out in the temperature interval between 600\ub0C and 800\ub0C, both reproducing oxidising and reducing conditions, to evaluate whether these anomalous \u3b413C values could be related to the firing process

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