Is Financial Literacy Improved by Participating in a Stock Market Game?

This study investigates the effectiveness of the Stock Market Game (SMG) in improving student scores on a general multiple-choice test covering basic financial concepts. Teachers in the test group used the Stock Market Game and a complementary curriculum in class while teachers in the control group did not. Students in both groups completed the same online pre- and post-tests, demographic surveys, and math aptitude tests. The results of ordinary least squares regression show that playing SMG along with teaching seven general lessons from the Learning from the Market curriculum improves student performance on the financial literacy assessment.Stock Market Game, financial literacy, student assessment

LEARNING ABOUT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF A SPORTS

This paper presents a method of teaching about the economic impact of building a professional sports arena in a metropolitan area. Designed for an upper-division, undergraduate course in Sports Economics, this teaching method is an application of the context-rich teaching strategy. It also uses a jigsaw cooperative learning technique in preparation for an individual assignment actually performing a simple economic analysis in a plausible situation. The students must decide what is and what is not important to consider, what relevant information is missing, and then use that information to advise an elected official on a proposal to use tax money to help build the sports arena

Assessment of fish populations and habitat on Oculina Bank, a deep-sea coral marine protected area off eastern Florida

A portion of the Oculina Bank located off eastern Florida is a marine protected area (MPA) preserved for its dense populations of the ivory tree coral (Oculina varicosa), which provides important habitat for fish. Surveys of fish assemblages and benthic habitat were conducted inside and outside the MPA in 2003 and 2005 by using remotely operated vehicle video transects and digital still imagery. Fish species composition, biodiversity, and grouper densities were used to determine whether O. varicosa forms an essential habitat compared to other structure-forming habitats and to examine the effectiveness of the MPA. Multivariate analyses indicated no differences in fish assemblages or biodiversity among hardbottom habitat types and grouper densities were highest among the most complex habitats; however the higher densities were not exclusive to coral habitat. Therefore, we conclude that O. varicosa was functionally equivalent to other hardbottom habitats. Even though fish assemblages were not different among management areas, biodiversity and grouper densities were higher inside the MPA compared to outside. The percentage of intact coral was also higher inside the MPA. These results provide initial evidence demonstrating effectiveness of the MPA for restoring reef fish and their habitat. This is the first study to compare reef fish populations on O. varicosa with other structure-forming reef habitats and also the first to examine the effectiveness of the MPA for restoring fish populations and live reef cover

Angle-Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy Of Sr1-Xlaxcuo2 Thin Films Grown By Molecular-Beam Epitaxy

Among the multitude of known cuprate material families and associated structures, the archetype is "infinite-layer" ACuO2 , where perfectly square and flat CuO2 planes are separated by layers of alkaline earth atoms. The infinite-layer structure is free of magnetic rare earth ions, oxygen chains, orthorhombic distortions, incommensurate superstructures, ordered vacancies, and other complications that abound among the other material families. Furthermore, it is the only cuprate that can be made superconducting by both electron and hole doping, making it a potential platform for decoding the complex many-body interactions responsible for high-temperature superconductivity. Research on the infinite-layer compound has been severely hindered by the inability to synthesize bulk single crystals, but recent progress has led to high-quality superconducting thin film samples. Here we report in situ angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements of epitaxially-stabilized Sr1[-]x Lax CuO2 thin films grown by molecular-beam epitaxy. At low doping, the material exhibits a dispersive lower Hubbard band typical of other cuprate parent compounds. As carriers are added to the system, a continuous evolution from Mott insulator to superconducting metal is observed as a coherent low-energy band develops on top of a concomitant remnant lower Hubbard band, gradually filling in the Mott gap. For x = 0.10, our results reveal a strong coupling between electrons and ([pi], [pi] ) antiferromagnetism, inducing a Fermi surface reconstruction that pushes the nodal states below the Fermi level and realizing nodeless superconductivity. Electron diffraction mea- surements indicate the presence of a surface reconstruction that is consistent with the polar nature of Sr1[-]x Lax CuO2 . Most knowledge about the electron-doped side of the cuprate phase diagram has been deduced by generalizing from a single material family, Re2[-]x Cex CuO4 , where robust antiferromagnetism has been observed past x [ALMOST EQUAL TO] 0.14. In contrast, in all hole-doped cuprates, N´ el order is rapidly suppressed by x [ALMOST EQUAL TO] 0.03, with superconductivity following at higher e doping levels. Studies of cuprates, however, often yield material-specific features that are idiosyncratic to particular compounds. By studying a completely different electrondoped cuprate, we can for the first time independently confirm that the cuprate phase diagram is fundamentally asymmetric and provide a coherent framework for understanding the generic properties of all electron-doped cuprates

Doping evolution and polar surface reconstruction of the infinite-layer cuprate Sr1−x_{1-x}Lax_{x}CuO2_{2}

We use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to study the doping evolution of infinite-layer Sr$_{1-x}$La$_{x}$CuO$_{2}$ thin films grown by molecular-beam epitaxy. At low doping, the material exhibits a dispersive lower Hubbard band typical of the superconducting cuprate parent compounds. As carriers are added to the system, a continuous evolution from charge-transfer insulator to superconductor is observed, with the initial lower Hubbard band pinned well below the Fermi level and the development of a coherent low-energy band with electron doping. This two-component spectral function emphasizes the important role that strong local correlations play even at relatively high doping levels. Electron diffraction probes reveal a ${p(2\times2)}$ surface reconstruction of the material at low doping levels. Using a number of simple assumptions, we develop a model of this reconstruction based on the polar nature of the infinite-layer structure. Finally, we provide evidence for a thickness-controlled transition in ultrathin films of SrCuO$_2$ grown on nonpolar SrTiO$_3$, highlighting the diverse structural changes that can occur in polar complex oxide thin films

Nodeless superconductivity arising from strong (pi,pi) antiferromagnetism in the infinite-layer electron-doped cuprate Sr1-xLaxCuO2

The asymmetry between electron and hole doping remains one of the central issues in high-temperature cuprate superconductivity, but our understanding of the electron-doped cuprates has been hampered by apparent discrepancies between the only two known families: Re2-xCexCuO4 and A1-xLaxCuO2. Here we report in situ angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements of epitaxially-stabilized films of Sr1-xLaxCuO2 synthesized by oxide molecular-beam epitaxy. Our results reveal a strong coupling between electrons and (pi,pi) antiferromagnetism that induces a Fermi surface reconstruction which pushes the nodal states below the Fermi level. This removes the hole pocket near (pi/2,pi/2), realizing nodeless superconductivity without requiring a change in the symmetry of the order parameter and providing a universal understanding of all electron-doped cuprates

Formation of the coherent heavy fermion liquid at the 'hidden order' transition in URu2Si2

In this article we present high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES) spectra of the heavy-fermion superconductor URu$_2$Si$_2$. Measurements as a function of both excitation energy and temperature allow us to disentangle a variety of spectral features, revealing the evolution of the low energy electronic structure across the hidden order transition. Already above the hidden order transition our measurements reveal the existence of weakly dispersive states below the Fermi level that exhibit a large scattering rate. Upon entering the hidden order phase, these states transform into a coherent heavy fermion liquid that hybridizes with the conduction bands.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure