A Matter of Interpretation: Bargaining over Ambiguous Contracts

We present a formal treatment of contracting in the face of ambiguity. The central idea is that boundedly rational individuals will not always interpret the same situation in the same way. More specifically, even with well defined contracts, the precise actions to be taken by each party to the contract might be disputable. Taking this potential for dispute into account, we analyze the effects of ambiguity on contracting. We find that risk averse agents will engage in ambiguous contracts for risk sharing reasons. We provide an application where ambiguity motivates the use of a liquidated damages contract.ambiguity, bounded rationality, expected uncertain utility, incomplete contracts, liquidated damages.

Lost in Translation: Honest Misunderstandings and Ex Post Disputes

We give a formal treatment of optimal risk sharing contracts in the face of ambiguity. The central idea is that boundedly rational individuals do not have access to a language sufficiently rich to describe all possible states of nature. The ambiguity in a contract arises from contractual clauses that are interpreted by the parties in different ways. The cost of ambiguity is represented in terms of dispute costs. Taking the potential for dispute into account, we find that risk averse agents may forgo potential gains from risk sharing and choose incomplete contracts instead.ambiguity, bounded rationality, incomplete contracts

Prescriptive and Performance Analysis of Cold Machine Shop

The purpose of this report is to analyze the fire and life safety aspects of the Cold Machine Shop located on the central coast of California. This report includes both a prescriptive and performance based analysis. The prescriptive analysis will evaluate the building as follows, to ensure compliance with standard codes: 1)Egress analysis and design using NFPA 101, Life Safety Code , 2)Fire detection, alarms, and communication systems using NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code , 3)Water-based fire suppression systems using NFPA 13, Standard for Installation of Sprinkler Systems and NFPA 14, Standard for the Installation of Standpipe and Hose Systems , and 4)Structural fire protection using the International Building Code. Based on the results of the prescriptive based analysis of this building, only one issue was found with the building. The building met all requirements for egress, water based suppression and structural fire protection. However, one inadequacy was found in the volume of the alarm / notification system in the shop area. While it is believed that the alarms would provide sufficient volume for the actual noise conditions in this area, the inadequacy could easily be remedied by installing an additional 2-3 alarm/notification devices. No other changes or improvements would be recommended at this time. The performance based analysis will evaluate the building using an egress modeling program, a fire sprinkler modeling program, and against separate design fires using FDS modeling. During the performance based analysis, it was determined that a fire in the second floor conference room would not inhibit occupants from having the required time exit while tenability conditions are met for two of the four exits from this floor. The analysis of the shop area pallet fire did show that visibility and temperature would become unacceptable at one exit before everyone exited the building, however the remaining six exits were tenable throughout the simulation. Wood pallets could be disallowed in the building, as they have been in other areas on site, to reduce any risk further. They could be replaced with metal pallets and avoid this hazard altogether. Overall the building was found to be in satisfactory condition and designed appropriately. This report fulfills the completion requirement for the Fire Protection Engineering program at Cal Poly for a Master\u27s of Science

Psychophysiological and Personality Correlates of Repression and Sensitization

This study assessed relationships among indices of modulation of stimulus intensity by the autonomic and central nervous systems, perceptual defense, and repressive coping. Subjects were twenty female and nine male paid volunteers between the ages of 19 and 38. Perceptual defense, defined as the difference in recognition thresholds for unpleasant versus pleasant words, was assessed with a tachistoscopic masking paradigm. Auditory evoked potentials (AEPs) were obtained in an augmentation reduction paradigm that evaluated cortical responses to discrete tones of varying intensity. Cardiac responses to these same tones were also obtained. Amplitude/intensity slopes were determined for P2 amplitudes obtained from the CZ electrode site, prestimulus to poststimulus heart rate change was determined for each tone intensity, and change/intensity slopes were calculated. Scores from Neuroticism and Lie Scales of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire were also obtained. Subjects were assigned to four groups of high and low Lie Scale scores and high and low Neuroticism Scale scores. High Lie Scale scores were associated with a reducing pattern of the P2 component of the AEP, and with increased recognition thresholds for unpleasant as compared to pleasant words. This relationship held regardless of scores on the Neuroticism Scale. There was a general trend for subjects to accelerate heart rate at three to four seconds post-stimulus. There were no between group differences with respect to heart rate acceleration. General conclusions about the physiological and perceptual components of coping style are presented and some theoretical implications of these conclusions are discussed

Morphometric Variation in Aphelenchus avenae Bastian, 1865 with Varied Nutrition and Time

The effect of varied time, nutritional media, and species of fungus on taxonomic characters (L, a, b1, c, and V) of Aphelenchus avenae was investigated. The effect of these ecological conditions on morphometrics was variable; however, these characters varied significantly with increased time, decreased nutritional media, and species of fungus. The greatest number of morphometric changes occurred with increased time, and the fewest with species of fungus. With changing environmental conditions, “V” values were the most stable character

Morphometric Variation in Aphelenchus avenae Bastian, 1865 with Varied Nutrition and Time

The effect of varied time, nutritional media, and species of fungus on taxonomic characters (L, a, b1, c, and V) of Aphelenchus avenae was investigated. The effect of these ecological conditions on morphometrics was variable; however, these characters varied significantly with increased time, decreased nutritional media, and species of fungus. The greatest number of morphometric changes occurred with increased time, and the fewest with species of fungus. With changing environmental conditions, “V” values were the most stable character

Slow wave ion heating and parametric instabilities in the HELIX helicon source

The primary focus of the experiments described here is to determine the mechanism responsible for intrinsic ion heating in helicon sources. Two possible mechanisms have been identified: ion Landau damping of the slow wave and parametrically driven instabilities. Consistent with ion Landau damping of the slow wave, the perpendicular ion temperatures 35 cm downstream of the RF antenna are largest when the RF frequency matches the local lower hybrid frequency; the condition at which the slow wave has a maximum in perpendicular wave number (perpendicular with respect to the applied magnetic field) due to a lower hybrid resonance. The ion temperatures also peak at the edge of the plasma where theory predicts the slow wave should have the largest amplitude and perpendicular wave number. Consistent with ion heating due to parametrically driven instabilities, parametrically driven low frequency waves are observed for the same conditions at which the ion temperatures 5 cm downstream of the RF antenna are largest. The measured characteristics of the low frequency wave suggest that the wave is an electrostatic ion acoustic wave. The electrostatic and electromagnetic features of the parametrically driven waves as a function of magnetic field and RF frequency are also presented and discussed

Resonant ion heating in a helicon plasma

A resonant ion heating system has been developed for heating ions and controlling the ion temperature anisotropy in a helicon plasma source. The system uses two rectangular coils placed on either side of the cylindrical pyrex vacuum chamber to create a time dependent magnetic field transverse to the steady state axial field. A 1 kW, 25--125 kHz RF generator powers the coils. The parallel and perpendicular ion temperatures in argon plasmas are measured with a laser induced fluorescence diagnostic tuned to a metastable argon ion transition. Ion heating of over 800% has been measured for the perpendicular ion temperatures with an increase of 70% in the parallel direction. This temperature increase occurs for a specific ratio of heating frequency to ion cyclotron frequency. Evidence suggesting that ion Bernstein waves are responsible for the ion heating is presented

Differential effect of mild and severe pulmonary embolism on the rat lung transcriptome

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) is a common diagnosis and a leading cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. A growing literature has associated PE with systemic inflammation, and global hyper-coagulability, which contribute to lung remodeling and clot recurrence. The source and mechanism of inflammation remains unstudied. In humans, inhibition of cholesterol synthesis with statins decreases biomarkers of inflammation. We test the differential effect of pulmonary vascular occlusion during mild and severe pulmonary embolism on the lung transcriptome. METHODS: Experimental PE was induced in adult male rats by injection of 25 micron polystyrene microspheres into the jugular vein. The effect of Mild PE, (2-h right ventricular systolic pressure [RVSP] normal, 18-h RVSP 44 mmHg) and Severe PE (2-h RVSP > 50 mmHg; 18-h RVSP 44 mmHg) on lungs was assessed by measuring transcriptome-wide changes in gene expression by DNA microarrays. RESULTS: Severe PE was associated with a large change in lung gene expression and in the expression of KEGG pathways and other gene functional annotation groups. Mild PE was also associated with a large number of significant changes in gene expression and in the expression of KEGG pathways and gene functional annotation groups, even after only 2 h of PE. Up-regulated pathways included increased adipocytokine, chemokine and cytokine signaling as well as cholesterol synthesis. CONCLUSIONS: Mild PE without acute pulmonary hypertension (PH) increased lung gene expression of inflammatory pathways, including increased cholesterol synthesis. These data indicate that even mild persistent pulmonary vascular occlusion is capable of inciting an inflammatory response from the lung. These data imply the detrimental effect of unresolved pulmonary obstruction from PE