An economic analysis of identity and career choice

Standard economic models which focus on pecuniary payoffs cannot explain why there are highly able individuals who choose careers with low pecuniary returns. Therefore, financial incentives are unlikely to be effective in influencing career choices of these individuals. Based on Akerlof and Kranton (2000), we consider a model of career choice and identity where individuals derive non-pecuniary identity payoffs. Using factor analysis on a range of attitude questions, we find two factors related to identity (career orientation and social orientation), which are important for educational choices. The implication is that policymakers and institutions of higher education need to focus on identity related issues rather than just improved financial incentives if they aim at attracting the high ability youth to occupations with excess demand for labor

Late Glacial deglaciation of the Zackenberg area NE Greenland

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is a key component of the global climate system. However, our current understanding of the spatio-temporal oscillations and landscape transformation of the GrIS margins since the last glacial cycle is still incomplete. The objective of this work is to study the deglaciation of the Zackenberg Valley (74°N, 20°E), NE Greenland, and the origin of the derived landforms. Based on extensive fieldwork and high-detail geomorphological mapping we identified the different types of landforms, from which those of glacial and paraglacial origin were used to understand the processes driving regional environmental evolution. We applied cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating to 32 samples taken from erosive and depositional glacial landforms distributed across the valley. Geomorphological evidence shows that >800-m-thick Late Quaternary glacier filled the valleys and fjords and covered mountain summits. In subsequent phases, as ice thickness decreased, the glacier was limited to the interior of the valley, leaving several lateral moraines. The deglaciation of the Zackenberg Valley that started by ~13.7–12.5 ka also accelerated slope paraglacial processes. Many blocks from lateral moraines were remobilized and fell, reaching the valley floor where they covered the thinning glacier tongue; transforming it into a debris-covered glacier that subsequently melted gradually. By ca. 10.5 ka, the last remnants of glacial ice disappeared from the Zackenberg Valley floor, a chronology of deglaciation that is similar to that observed in other sites across NE Greenland. The results of this work must be considered in similar studies, reinforcing the need to support CRE ages of the different geomorphological phases with paleoclimatic data from other sedimentary records

General conclusions regarding the planetary–solar–terrestrial interaction

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Challenges in the Detection and Attribution of Northern Hemisphere Surface Temperature Trends Since 1850

Since 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has heavily relied on the comparison between global climate model hindcasts and global surface temperature (ST) estimates for concluding that post-1950s global warming is mostly human-caused. In Connolly et al., we cautioned that this approach to the detection and attribution of climate change was highly dependent on the choice of Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) and ST data sets. We compiled 16 TSI and five ST data sets and found by altering the choice of TSI or ST, one could (prematurely) conclude anything from the warming being "mostly human-caused" to "mostly natural." Richardson and Benestad suggested our analysis was "erroneous" and "flawed" because we did not use a multilinear regression. They argued that applying a multilinear regression to one of the five ST series re-affirmed the IPCC's attribution statement. They also objected that many of the published TSI data sets were out-of-date. However, here we show that when applying multilinear regression analysis to an expanded and updated data set of 27 TSI series, the original conclusions of Connolly et al. are confirmed for all five ST data sets. Therefore, it is still unclear whether the observed warming is mostly human-caused, mostly natural or some combination of both.Fil: Connolly, Ronan. Center For Environmental Research And Earth Sciences; Estados UnidosFil: Soon, Willie. Center For Environmental Research And Earth Sciences; Estados Unidos. Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science; HungríaFil: Connolly, Michael. Center For Environmental Research And Earth Sciences; Estados UnidosFil: Baliunas, Sallie. Harvard-Smithsonian Center For Astrophysics; Estados UnidosFil: Berglund, Johan. No especifíca;Fil: Butler, C. J.. No especifíca;Fil: Cionco, Rodolfo Gustavo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional San Nicolás. Grupo de Estudios Ambientales; ArgentinaFil: Elias, Ana Georgina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Física del Noroeste Argentino. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet Noa Sur. Instituto de Física del Noroeste Argentino; ArgentinaFil: Fedorov, Valery M.. Universidad Estatal de Moscu Mijail Vasilievich Lomonosov (mgu);Fil: Harde, Hermann. Helmut-Schmidt-University; AlemaniaFil: Henry, Gregory W.. Tennessee State University; Estados UnidosFil: Hoyt, Douglas V.. No especifíca;Fil: Humlum, Ole. University of Oslo; NoruegaFil: Legates, David R.. University of Delaware; Estados UnidosFil: Scafetta, Nicola. Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II; ItaliaFil: Solheim, Jan-Erik. The Arctic University of Norway; NoruegaFil: Szarka, László. Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science; HungríaFil: Velasco Herrera, Víctor M.. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Yan, Hong. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de ChinaFil: Zhang, Weijia. Shaoxing University; Chin

Late Glacial deglaciation of the Zackenberg area, NE Greenland

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is a key component of the global climate system. However, our current understanding of the spatio-temporal oscillations and landscape transformation of the GrIS margins since the last glacial cycle is still incomplete. The objective of this work is to study the deglaciation of the Zackenberg Valley (74°N, 20°E), NE Greenland, and the origin of the derived landforms. Based on extensive fieldwork and high-detail geomorphological mapping we identified the different types of landforms, from which those of glacial and paraglacial origin were used to understand the processes driving regional environmental evolution. We applied cosmic-ray exposure (CRE) dating to 32 samples taken from erosive and depositional glacial landforms distributed across the valley. Geomorphological evidence shows that >800-m-thick Late Quaternary glacier filled the valleys and fjords and covered mountain summits. In subsequent phases, as ice thickness decreased, the glacier was limited to the interior of the valley, leaving several lateral moraines. The deglaciation of the Zackenberg Valley that started by ~13.7–12.5 ka also accelerated slope paraglacial processes. Many blocks from lateral moraines were remobilized and fell, reaching the valley floor where they covered the thinning glacier tongue; transforming it into a debris-covered glacier that subsequently melted gradually. By ca. 10.5 ka, the last remnants of glacial ice disappeared from the Zackenberg Valley floor, a chronology of deglaciation that is similar to that observed in other sites across NE Greenland. The results of this work must be considered in similar studies, reinforcing the need to support CRE ages of the different geomorphological phases with paleoclimatic data from other sedimentary records

Basaltic Dyke with Specific Volcanogenic Structures and its geomorphic evolution: Unique Geoheritage of the Faroe Islands (North Atlantic Ocean)

Volcanic landforms resulting from Cenozoic volcanism represent the most peculiar features of global geodiversity and provide eminent narratives for geoeducation. Among them, however, relict volcanic forms and site-specific landforms in remote areas have received less attention. In this paper, we provide the first description of unique volcanogenic features (hereinafter referred to as pseudo-hieroglyphs) developed on a summit rock wall at the Sandfelli ridge near the village of Gjógv in the N Eysturoy Island (Faroe Islands). The geomorphic evolution of the ridge and rock wall during the Quaternary is described and detailed petrographic analyses of the volcanogenic features are provided. Based on observed petrographical features, we interpret the pseudo-hieroglyphs to probably represent unique examples of chaotic horizontal columnar jointing. Following the geomorphological and petrographic examination of the study site, we analyse current Faroese legislation aiming at nature conservation and use this case to discuss broader implications of geoheritage conservation and geotourism in distant regions.Vulkanická krajina vzniklá kenozoickým vulkanismem představuje nejpodivnější rysy globální geodiversity a poskytuje vynikající příběhy pro geovzdělávání. Méně pozornosti se však dostává reliktním vulkanickým formám a lokálním tvarům reliéfu v odlehlých oblastech. V tomto článku přinášíme první popis unikátních vulkanogenních tvarů (dále jen "pseudo-hieroglyfy"), které se vyvíjely na skalní stěně vrcholu na hřbetě Sandfelli u vesnice Gjógv v severní části ostrova Eysturoy (Faerské ostrovy). Je popsán geomorfologický vývoj hřbetu a skalní stěny během kvartéru a jsou uvedeny podrobné petrografické analýzy vulkanogenních vlastností. Na základě pozorovaných petrografických rysů interpretujeme pseudo-hieroglyfy, které pravděpodobně představují jedinečné příklady chaotické horizontální sloupcovité odlučnosti. Po geomorfologickém a petrografickém studiu zájmové lokality analyzujeme současnou faerskou legislativu zaměřenou na ochranu přírody a užíváme tohoto příkladu k diskusi širších důsledků zachování a geoturistiky geografického dědictví ve vzdálených regionech

A Farewell to Critical Junctures: Sorting Out Long-Run Causality of Income and Democracy

We consider the empirical relevance of two opposing hypotheses on the causality between income and democracy: The Democratic Transition claims that rising incomes cause a transition to democracy, whereas the Critical Junctures hypothesis denies this causal relation. Our empirical strategy is justified by Unified Growth Theory, which hypothesizes that the present international income differences have roots in the prehistoric past. Thus, we use prehistoric measures of biogeography as instruments for modern income levels, and find a large long-run causal effect of income on the degree of democracy. This result rejects the Critical Junctures hypothesis, which is an important part of the Primacy of Institutions view

É atrativo tornar-se professor do Ensino Médio no Brasil?: Evidências com base em decomposições paramétricas e não paramétricas

Neste artigo avalia-se a atratividade da ocupação de professor do Ensino Médio, tal como expressa por diferenciais salariais entre essa categoria de professores e três grupos de comparação. Os dados provêm da PNAD, anos de 2006 e 2009, e as metodologias empregadas são a tradicional decomposição de Oaxaca-Blinder e uma alternativa não paramétrica proposta por Ñopo (2008), que decompõe em quatro termos o diferencial total, destacando o diferencial dentro de um suporte comum de características observáveis. Os resultados indicam que professores do Ensino Médio possuem diferencial de remuneração favorável, porém decrescente, quando comparados a funcionários públicos e empregados do setor privado. Além disso, e de modo mais preocupante, em comparação a profissionais com qualificação semelhante, a situação é desfavorável aos professores, e mostra deterioração de 2006 para 2009. Resultados obtidos utilizando ambas as metodologias indicam que este último diferencial em grande medida não é atribuível às diferenças nas distribuições de características individuais, mas muito mais à parcela não explicada, o que pode representar baixa valorização social de professores ou diferenciais de produtividade pré-escolha ocupacional ou pós-escolha ocupacional. Qualquer que seja a razão, o déficit de remuneração no mercado de trabalho docente pode ser um dos fatores explicativos do baixo interesse de jovens talentosos pelas licenciaturas com potenciais impactos negativos sobre a qualidade do aprendizado dos futuros alunos

Job Security and Fertility: Evidence from German Reunification

This paper uses the special occupational status of German civil servants in combination with the unforeseen event of German reunification to study empirically the relationship between job security and fertility. The civil servant-status provides extreme job security as well as good possibilities to combine work and family lives. The fast introduction of the civil service system after reunification represents an exogenous (re-)assignment of individual employment risks in Eastern Germany, and thus allows one to control for occupational self-selection. While no strong evidence for a link between job security and fertility emerges for men, the paper demonstrates a clear link between labor market and demographic outcomes for women, especially in Western Germany and most pronounced for higher educated females between age 25 and 40. This strong relationship is the result of occupational self-selection coupled with a civil servantspecific birth timing pattern and a small causal impact of job security on fertility. It shows that female civil servants are not primarily a selected group of very family oriented individuals, but rather both family as well as career oriented.In dieser Studie wird der Einfluss von Arbeitsplatzsicherheit auf die Wahrscheinlichkeit einer Elternschaft untersucht. Dafür wird zum einen der spezielle Status von Beamten in Deutschland und zum anderen das natürliche Experiment der deutschen Wiedervereinigung genutzt. Der Beamtenstatus bietet ein sehr hohes Maß an Arbeitsplatzsicherheit sowie -flexibilität im Hinblick auf die Vereinbarkeit von Berufs- und Familienleben. Die schnelle Einführung des westdeutschen Beamtensystems in Ostdeutschland nach der deutschen Wiedervereinigung kann als exogene Variation im Hinblick auf die Arbeitsplatzsicherheit der dort betroffenen Individuen gesehen werden. Während sich für Männer kein signifikanter Zusammenhang zwischen Arbeitsplatzsicherheit und Fertilität findet, zeigt sich ein solcher für Frauen, insbesondere in Westdeutschland und am stärksten ausgeprägt für höher qualifizierte Frauen im Alter von 25 bis 40 Jahren. Die starke Korrelation zwischen dem Beamtenstatus und einer zukünftigen Elternschaft bei Frauen ist das Resultat von beruflicher Selbstselektion, eines Beamten-spezifischen Geburten-Timings und einem kleinen direkten Effekt von Arbeitsplatzsicherheit auf die Fertilitätsentscheidung. Weiterführende Analysen legen nahe, dass verbeamtete Frauen keine selektierte Gruppe von überaus familienorientierten Individuen darstellen, sondern dass sie vielmehr sowohl familien- als auch karriereorientiert sind. Die empirischen Ergebnisse deuten folglich darauf hin, dass die Vereinbarkeit von Familie und Beruf für Frauen eine wichtige Rolle bei der Berufswahl spielt