Happiness, Economic Well-being, Social Capital and the Quality of Institutions

Since Jeremy Bentham, utilitarians have argued that happiness, not just income or wealth, is the maximand of individual and social welfare. By contrast, Rawls and followers argue that to share a common perception of living in a just society is the “ultimate good” and that individuals have a moral ability to evaluate just institutions. In this paper we argue that just institutions, apart from their intrinsic value, also have an instrumental value, both in economic performance and in happiness. Thus happiness -- or subjective well being -- is analyzed as being a function of economic well-being, the quality of public institutions and social ties. Cross section individual data from citizens in OECD countries show that income, education and the perceived quality of institutions have the highest impact on life satisfaction, followed by social capital. Country analysis shows a non linear but positive influence of per capita GDP on life satisfaction, but also that unemployment and inflation reduce average happiness, the former effect being stronger. Finally, better quality public institutions and having more social capital also bring more happiness. We conclude with some policy implications.Happiness; Democracy; Social Capital; Quality of Institutions

Market reactions to non-financial resource disclosures and reputation effects of geological experts

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Business.Previous studies in the financial economics literature highlight the value of non-financial information to investors for Internet and telephony stocks (Amir and Lev 1996, Trueman, Trueman and Zhang 2001). Other studies consider the financial performance implications of assurance of non-financial information such as ISO 9000 certification (Corbett, Montes-Sancho and Kirsch 2005) and Total Quality Management awards (Hendricks and Singhal 1997). This thesis provides evidence on the value of non-financial disclosure and assurance in a high information asymmetry setting. Specifically I examine market reactions to resource/reserve disclosures by Australian Mining Development Stage Entities (MDSEs) and the reputational effect of geological experts associated with these disclosures. I might expect geological assurers to matter given that the information environment of MDSEs is characterised by high information asymmetry and the reality that non-financial technical information supersedes financial statement information in terms of importance in firm valuation. In contrast however, the litigation risk attached to such disclosures is argued to be very low, given the absence of cases involving geological attesters. This aspect of the setting suggests the absence of any insurance effect, which might suggest geological assurers won’t matter to the market. Public accounting firms audit and review financial figures compiled by a client. Essentially, the role of auditors is to ensure compliance with Generally Agreed Accounting Principles (GAAP). In contrast, geological assurers are unique in that they receive mineral assay data from clients and then compile the resource estimates that are subsequently announced by the client firm to the market. Thus geological assurers have an information generation role along with a compliance role in that they are required to produce estimates in accordance with the Joint Ore Reserve Committee (JORC) code. In this thesis I document a significant, positive market reaction to resource/reserve disclosures by MDSEs. Using size of geological experts as a proxy for their reputation, I find weak evidence of greater abnormal returns when these disclosures are assured by larger geological experts. Further, a measure of expert specialisation based on commodity cluster leadership produces the strongest positive and significant results. In supplementary analysis, I test for the implications of switching geological experts and find that firms experience significant, positive abnormal returns when their successor expert is larger. Overall, the weak evidence I documents in this thesis is consistent with an insurance effect interpretation, in that the reputation of geological assurers doesn’t matter to the market where litigation risk is low

O exercício da atenção no trabalho artístico

Este texto pretende abordar o exercício da atenção nas Artes Plásticas, qual a sua finalidade e como este se pode processar. Importa, todavia, sublinhar que as respostas procuradas neste texto são sobretudo relevantes no contexto da prática artística. Ou seja, a problemática tratada não pode ser separada das condições concretas que ela adquire através da própria prática. São diversos os artistas que referem o exercício da atenção como sendo algo fundamental no seu trabalho. O nosso objetivo é aqui investigar a finalidade desse exercício na prática artística; um exercício que não é tanto uma ‘focagem’ voluntária da atenção em algo, mas um “estar à espreita” de forma a criar as condições necessárias para uma disponibilidade que proporcione efetivamente encontros com os objetos. Esta componente escrita do meu trabalho de dissertação está organizada em três partes, relativamente autónomas, mas interdependentes: a) Um texto inicial que pretende sintetizar os pressupostos teóricos, noções e conceitos que estruturaram a presente investigação. b) O texto principal, redigido sobre e durante a minha própria prática quotidiana da pintura. Com um tom pessoal e consideravelmente subjetivo ele tenta, entre outras coisas, descrever o que são as pausas que faço no decorrer do meu processo de trabalho e o que as distingue das demais. c) Um terceiro texto que é, na verdade, um hipertexto e que tenta, através da introdução de fragmentos e testemunhos, identificar no trabalho e na forma de trabalhar de diversos artistas, as problemáticas abordadas no âmbito dessas “pausas”

Overexpressing BDNF in Neural Stem Cells using non-viral gene delivery strategies

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em BiotecnologiaThe brain derived neurotrophic factor holds neuroprotective and neurogenic roles. The presence of this factor is believed to present highly beneficial effects on injured cells within several neurological disorders, where the levels of this neurotrophin are usually drastically decreased. Neural stem cells are multipotent, self-renewing cells with the ability to differentiate into the three main type of cells within the central nervous system - neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. The combination of gene therapy, through the introduction of therapeutic genes into the desired cells, with cell therapy aiming for the replacement of damaged cells within a given disorder, hold great promise in modern regenerative medicine. The aim of this work was the overexpression of the brain derived neurotrophic factor in neural stem cells. For this, mouse and human neural stem cells were transfected with one of three non-viral techniques - microporation, lipid and cationic-polymer based strategies. Human NSC were efficiently transfected using the commercial lipid-based transfection reagent Lipofectamine 2000 with an efficiency of 35%, maintaining their differentiation potential. Cells within the differentiation process were efficiently transfected with 13% efficiency. Cell viability has always remained above 70% after the lipofection process. The transfection with the BDNF gene resulted in neurons with longer primary neurites, and more secondary neurites than control cells, which hints at the promotion of neurite outgrowth and ramification of neurons by this neurotrophin. Finally, healthy cells were exposed to toxic concentrations of glutamate. Conditioned media containing secreted BDNF from transfected cells was able to protect these cells from glutamate-induced neurotoxicity, as well as reducing the levels of expression of the pro-apoptotic protein caspase7 to near-control levels. Overall, this work provides the first evidences of the successful use of BDNF-overexpressing NSC, based on a non-viral gene delivery approach for decreasing neurotoxicity

Overeducation: dynamics, wounds and scars

The present study investigates the extent to which the e ects of entering the la- bor market in overeducated positions pertrain throughout workers careers. Adopting a time-to-event modeling approach, we analyze overeducation persistency and evaluate the existence of state duration dependence. We further investigate future earnings e ects associated with past overeducation employment. Our results report strong entrapment e ects rising from overeducation and for overeducated workers to yield lower returns for their schooling investment than their equally matched peers. We also conclude the e ects of overeducation to perpetuate to future job allocations, with workers having an overeducation employment background reported as su ering wage losses ranging from 3.5% to 14%

From banal surveillance to function creep: automated license plate recognition (ALPR) in Denmark

This article discusses how Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) has been implemented in Denmark across three different sectors: parking, environmental zoning, and policing. ALPR systems are deployed as a configuration of cameras, servers, and algorithms of computer vision that automatically reads and records license plates of passing cars. Through digital ethnography and interviews with key stakeholders in Denmark, we contribute to the fields of critical algorithm and surveillance studies with a concrete empirical study on how ALPR systems are configured according to user-specific demands. Each case gives nuance to how ALPR systems are implemented: (1) how the seamless charging for a “barrier-free” parking experience poses particular challenges for customers and companies; (2) how environmental zoning enforcement through automated fines avoids dragnet data collection through customized design and regulation; and (3) how the Danish Police has widened its dragnet data collection with little public oversight and questionable efficacy. We argue that ALPR enacts a form of “banal surveillance” because such systems operate inconspicuously under the radar of public attention. As the central analytic perspective, banality highlights how the demand for increasing efficiency in different domains makes surveillance socially and politically acceptable in the long run. Although we find that legal and civic modes of regulation are important for shaping the deployment of ALPR, the potential for function creep is embedded into the very process of infrastructuring due to a lack of public understanding of these technologies. We discuss wider consequences of ALPR as a specific and overlooked instance of algorithmic surveillance, contributing to academic and public debates around the embedding of algorithmic governance and computer vision into everyday life

Descompassos e contrapontos no ensino de sociologia: a canção “de protesto” como recurso pedagógico

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas, Curso de Ciências Sociais.O presente texto reflete brevemente sobre em que sentido a Sociologia – enquanto disciplina escolar – estimula ou promove a capacidade de pensar uma possível “troca cultural” entre os agentes escolares – professores e estudantes – utilizando-se da canção como suporte metodológico. Problematizando esta questão, será apresentado o processo de inclusão da disciplina de Sociologia no currículo da educação nacional, posteriormente discutindo o papel da canção no ensino escolar. Como suporte empírico, será transposto um relato de observação feita em sala de aula numa turma de ensino médio, uma experiência que envolveu o uso de canções “de protesto” em aulas de Sociologia. Para concluir, serão questionadas as vantagens e limitações da canção enquanto ferramenta pedagógica na disciplina de Sociologia.This paper reflects briefly in what sense the Sociology – as a school discipline – encourages or promotes the ability to think about a possible "cultural exchange" between school agents – teachers and students – using songs as methodological support. Discussing this issue, will be presented the inclusion process of Sociology discipline in the curriculum of national education, further discussing the role of music at school education. As empirical support, will be transposed an account of observations made in a class of high school, an experience that involved the use of protest song‟s in Sociology classes. To conclude, will be questioned the advantages and limitations of song as a teaching tool in the discipline of Sociology