Finite Project Life and Uncertainty Effects on Investment

This paper revisits the important result of the real options approach to investment under uncertainty, which states that increased uncertainty raises the value of waiting and thus decelerates investment.Typically in this literature projects are assumed to be perpetual.However, in today.s economy .rms face a fast-changing technology environment, implying that investment projects are usually considered to have a .nite life.The present paper studies investment projects with .nite project life, and we .nd that, in contrast with the existing theory, investments may be accelerated by increased uncertainty.It is shown that this particularly happens when uncertainty is limited and project life is short.investment;uncertainty;finite project length

Factors affecting university image formation among prospective higher education students: the case of international branch campuses

Previous research has found that the images of universities formed by prospective students greatly influence their choices. With the advent of international branch campuses in several higher education hubs worldwide, many international students now attempt to construct images of these institutions when deciding where to study. The aim of this research is to identify the sources of information and other influences that impact upon the images of international branch campuses formed by prospective undergraduate students. The study involved 407 students studying at nine international schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It was found that recommendations and feedback resulting from personal relationships was by far the most influential factor shaping the images of institutions constructed by students. It was also discovered that elite institutions can benefit from positive home campus images based on heritage and prestige, which positively influence the images constructed of the international branch campuses operated by these institutions. The implications of the findings for higher education institutions are discussed

A bridge between the single-photon and squeezed-vacuum state

The two modes of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen quadrature entangled state generated by parametric down-conversion interfere on a beam splitter of variable splitting ratio. Detection of a photon in one of the beam splitter output channels heralds preparation of a signal state in the other, which is characterized using homodyne tomography. By controlling the beam splitting ratio, the signal state can be chosen anywhere between the single-photon and squeezed state

Stakeholder perspectives on citation and peer-based rankings of higher education journals

The purpose of this article is to identify and discuss the possible uses of higher education journal rankings and the associated advantages and disadvantages of using them. The research involved 40individuals –such as lecturers, university managers, journal editors and publishers – who represented a range of stakeholders involved with the research of higher education. The respondents completed an online questionnaire that consisted mainly of open questions. Although the respondents indicating clear support or opposition to journal rankings were split about equally, over two-thirds of therespondents reported having used or referred to a journal ranking during the previous 12 months. This suggests wide acceptance of the use of journal rankings, despite the fact that the downsides andproblematic nature of these rankings were clearly recognised. It raises the question why the very diverse field of higher education does not show more resistance against the rather homogenising instrument of journal rankings

Institutional and other platforms

This chapters pays attention to the intervention of media art in mass media in the eighties and later on and to the specialist and more traditional art institutions