Framing the Valuation of Ecosystem Services: A Theoretical Discussion of the Challenges and Opportunities Associated with Articulating Values that Reflect the Economic Contributions of Ecological Phenomena

This paper presents a theoretical discussion concerning possibilities for designing environmental value articulation procedures that respect the basic non-economic character of ecological phenomena. The question of how to estimate the economic value of ecosystem services contributions is a particularly important issue for agricultural economics because of the dependence of agricultural production on the life cycles and biological viability of ecosystems (sic Georgescu-Roegen, 1966). Distinguishing between two basic types of ecosystem services values – demand vs supply based – this paper aims to describe a theoretical context within which it may be possible to develop recommendations regarding procedures and associated institutional structures that can support the expression of economically relevant measures of the economic worth of a given ecological phenomena that are also ecologically sound. Finally it is proposed that there are strong synergies between the problem structure of this issue and the theoretical contributions of Herbert Simon, concerning bounded rationality and further work on the details of these links is recommended.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Who are the Self-employed? A New Approach

Whilst the individual supply-side characteristics of the self-employed are well documented, the literature has largely neglected (or mis-specified) demand-side aspects. Our econometric framework, based on the parameterised DOGEV model, allows us to separately, and simultaneously, model supply and demand-side influences. We show that whilst individual characteristics are important determinants of type of employment contract held, there are important contract-specific factors influencing the contract an individual is employed under. Our results suggest that workers may be "captive" to particular types of employment because of the sectors in which they work, the number of hours they prefer to work and their ethnicity.self-employment, captivity

Solcore: A multi-scale, python-based library for modelling solar cells and semiconductor materials

Computational models can provide significant insight into the operation mechanisms and deficiencies of photovoltaic solar cells. Solcore is a modular set of computational tools, written in Python 3, for the design and simulation of photovoltaic solar cells. Calculations can be performed on ideal, thermodynamic limiting behaviour, through to fitting experimentally accessible parameters such as dark and light IV curves and luminescence. Uniquely, it combines a complete semiconductor solver capable of modelling the optical and electrical properties of a wide range of solar cells, from quantum well devices to multi-junction solar cells. The model is a multi-scale simulation accounting for nanoscale phenomena such as the quantum confinement effects of semiconductor nanostructures, to micron level propagation of light through to the overall performance of solar arrays, including the modelling of the spectral irradiance based on atmospheric conditions. In this article we summarize the capabilities in addition to providing the physical insight and mathematical formulation behind the software with the purpose of serving as both a research and teaching tool.Comment: 25 pages, 18 figures, Journal of Computational Electronics (2018

Who are the Self-employed? A New Approach

Modelling the incidence of self-employment has traditionally proved problematic. Whilst the individual supply side characteristics of the self-employed are well documented, the literature has largely neglected (or misspecified) demand side aspects. In this paper we present results from an econometric framework that allows us to separately, and simultaneously, model the supply and demand side characteristics that determine employment outcomes. We show that whilst individual characteristics are important determinants of the type of employment contract that individuals hold, there are also important contract specific factors that influence the nature of the contract an individual is employed under. Our results suggest that workers may be "captive" to a particular type of employment because of the sector in which they work, the number of hours they prefer to work and their ethnicity. The results are based on a new estimator, the parameterised DOGEV model, which allows for ordering and correlation in the observed alternatives, and for captivity within an observed alternative.Self-employment, captivity.

First evidence for spectral state transitions in the ESO243-49 hyper luminous X-ray source HLX-1

The brightest Ultra-Luminous X-ray source (ULX), ESO 243-49 HLX-1, with a 0.2 - 10 keV X-ray luminosity of up to 10^42 erg s^-1, provides the strongest evidence to date for the existence of intermediate mass black holes. Although small scale X-ray spectral variability has already been demonstrated, we have initiated a monitoring campaign with the X-ray Telescope onboard the Swift satellite to search for luminosity-related spectral changes and to compare its behavior with the better studied stellar mass black holes. In this paper, we report a drop in the XRT count rate by a factor of ~8 which occurred simultaneously with a hardening of the X-ray spectrum. A second observation found that the source had re-brightened by a factor of ~21 which occurred simultaneously with a softening of the X-ray spectrum. This may be the first evidence for a transition between the low/hard and high/soft states.Comment: Accepted by ApJ Letter, 2 figure

Why the crime drop? Why crime rates fall and why they don’t

The ‘crime drop’ is the most important criminological phenomenon of modern times. In North America, Europe, and Australasia, many common crimes have fallen by half or more since the early 1990s, albeit with variation in the specifics. Seventeen explanations are examined here including demographics, policing, imprisonment, drug markets and lead poisoning. Some have been falsified, some lack evidence, some are inconsistent with the evidence, and some claim a minor contribution at most. Pioneering research that developed explanations only relevant to the United States now appears, with the benefit of hindsight, somewhat parochial. Sixteen of the seventeen hypotheses fail one or more of four evidence-based standardized tests on which they are assessed. The one that passes is the security hypothesis, underpinned by crime opportunity theories. Here there is strong evidence from four countries that vehicle theft fell due to more and better security, and mounting evidence that improved security was critical in reducing burglary and other acquisitive crime. Many crime types are inter-related, while most criminal careers are dominated by property crime, so removing these volume crimes might be expected to reduce violence. The policy implication of the security hypothesis is that governments should promote regulation and incentives to promote designing-out crime and crime-proofing for the remaining common crimes plus new and emerging crime types

Long-Run Effects of BSE on Meat Consumption

This paper considers the long-run effects of BSE on meat consumption in the United Kingdom using data from the Expenditure and Food Survey. We estimate a dynamic AIDS demand system of household food consumption, with long-run effects captured via an adstock index of adverse media coverage. The results suggest that there are long-run impacts on meat consumption that extend well beyond the period of the scare. In addition, press articles with pictures have a greater, and more long-lasting effect, on long-run consumption than articles with words alone.Food health scares, Adstock, BSE, demand systems, meat demand