Endogenous Lobbying

In this paper we endogenize the number and characteristics of lobbies in a citizen-candidate model of representative democracy where citizens can lobby an elected policy-maker. We find that lobbying always matters. That is, lobbying always affects equilibrium policy outcomes. Moreover, only one policy outcome emerges in equilibrium. An "extremist" candidate is elected and implements a "centrist" policy that differs from the one most preferred by the median voter. These results are in contrast with the ones obtained in the context of a citizen-candidate model where lobbies are exogenous.LOBBYING; ELECTIONS

Time decay of scaling invariant Schroedinger equations on the plane

We prove the sharp L^1-L^{\infty} time-decay estimate for the 2D-Schroedinger equation with a general family of scaling critical electromagnetic potentials.Comment: 26 page

Firm-specific training

© 2018 Elsevier Inc. This paper investigates the market provision of firm-specific training, and identifies the inefficiencies associated with it. Within a general stochastic learning-by-doing model, there is a potential inefficiency in the market provision of firm-specific training. In order to determine whether this inefficiency is in fact present, we analyze two special cases of the model: the accelerated productivity-enhancement model and the accelerated learning model. In both models, the inefficiency is indeed present. However, the nature of the inefficiency depends on the balance between the two key components of training, namely productivity enhancement and employee evaluation. In the accelerated productivity-enhancement model, training results in an increase in productivity enhancement but no change in employee evaluation, and training is overprovided by the market. In the accelerated learning model, training results in a proportionate increase in both productivity enhancement and employee evaluation, and training is underprovided by the market. In both cases, turnover is inefficiently low

Legal efficiency and consistency

© 2019 Elsevier B.V. We analyze the efficiency and consistency of court decisions under common and civil law. As a leading example, we study the enforcement of property rights. Judges are of two types: some are conservative and follow the precedent or the statute, while others maximize social welfare. When courts intervene ex-post, after the relevant economic choices have been made, welfare-maximizing courts face a “commitment problem.” Such an ex-post bias has implications on the relative “consistency” and efficiency of each legal system. Surprisingly, we find that court decisions are more consistent under common law than under civil law. The welfare comparison between the two systems is, instead, ambiguous. However, in changing economic environments, common law is more likely to dominate civil law because of its greater adaptability

A Parallactic Distance of 389 +24/-21 parsecs to the Orion Nebula Cluster from Very Long Baseline Array Observations

We determine the parallax and proper motion of the flaring, non-thermal radio star GMR A, a member of the Orion Nebula Cluster, using Very Long Baseline Array observations. Based on the parallax, we measure a distance of 389 +24/-21 parsecs to the source. Our measurement places the Orion Nebula Cluster considerably closer than the canonical distance of 480 +/- 80 parsecs determined by Genzel et al. (1981). A change of this magnitude in distance lowers the luminosities of the stars in the cluster by a factor of ~ 1.5. We briefly discuss two effects of this change--an increase in the age spread of the pre-main sequence stars and better agreement between the zero-age main-sequence and the temperatures and luminosities of massive stars.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, emulateapj, accepted to Ap

Infrared photometric study of the massive star forming region S235 using Spitzer-IRAC and JHK observations

We present the {\it Spitzer}-IRAC images of the S235 star forming complex that includes the East~1 & 2, Central and S235 A & B regions. In addition, we present the near-infrared images of the S235 A & B regions. The IRAC photometry reveals on-going star formation, with 86 Class 0/I and 144 Class II YSOs in the entire S235 complex. Nearly 73% of these YSOs are present in clusters with a maximum surface density of 120 YSOs/pc$^{2}$ (in the vicinity of S235A & B regions). A few YSOs, possibly in an arc-like formation, are identified towards the south of S235A region, which may be speculated as an evidence for magnetically super-critical collapse. One of the sources in the arc-like formation, namely S235AB-MIR, seems to be a young, massive star that is still accreting matter. SED modeling of some of the newly identified YSOs confirms the classification made on the basis of IRAC colours. The IRAC ratio map of Ch2/Ch4 traces clearly the Br$\alpha$ emission associated with the HII region of S235A within the horse-shoe envelope. Outside the horse-shoe structure, the ratio map indicates shock-excited H$_{2}$ emission. Br$\alpha$ emission is also seen around S235B (from the ratio map). The ratio map of Ch2/Ch4 reveals that the source "e2s3" in the East~2 region may be associated with shock-excited H$_2$ emission outflow or jet. The SED modeling of this new source indicates that it is a very young massive star that is not yet able to drive an HII region.Comment: 19 pages; 13 figures; 8 tables. Accepted in MNRAS, Feb 201

Near-infrared images of star forming regions containing masers. Las Campanas observations of 31 southern sources

We present sensitive high resolution near infrared (NIR) broad band (J, H, and K) observations of a sample of 31 Star Forming Regions (SFRs) which contain H_2O and OH maser sources. The observations are aimed at the detection and characterization of Young Stellar Objects (YSOs) which may be the source of excitation of the maser emission. In spite of the large number of sources detected in the regions, using positional coincidence and NIR colours we are able to reliably identify K-band sources related to the masing gas in a large fraction of the observed regions. The NIR infrared sources selected from close positional coincidence with the maser show strong NIR excesses and most probably represent the YSOs still embedded in their parental cocoon where the maser emission occurs

A Giant Outburst at Millimeter Wavelengths in the Orion Nebula

BIMA observations of the Orion nebula discovered a giant flare from a young star previously undetected at millimeter wavelengths. The star briefly became the brightest compact object in the nebula at 86 GHz. Its flux density increased by more than a factor of 5 on a timescale of hours, to a peak of 160 mJy. This is one of the most luminous stellar radio flares ever observed. Remarkably, the Chandra X-ray observatory was in the midst of a deep integration of the Orion nebula at the time of the BIMA discovery; the source's X-ray flux increased by a factor of 10 approximately 2 days before the radio detection. Follow-up radio observations with the VLA and BIMA showed that the source decayed on a timescale of days, then flared again several times over the next 70 days, although never as brightly as during the discovery. Circular polarization was detected at 15, 22, and 43 GHz, indicating that the emission mechanism was cyclotron. VLBA observations 9 days after the initial flare yield a brightness temperature Tb > 5 x 10^7 K at 15 GHz. Infrared spectroscopy indicates the source is a K5V star with faint Br gamma emission, suggesting that it is a weak-line T Tauri object. Zeeman splitting measurements in the infrared spectrum find B ~ 2.6 +/- 1.0 kG. The flare is an extreme example of magnetic activity associated with a young stellar object. These data suggest that short observations obtained with ALMA will uncover hundreds of flaring young stellar objects in the Orion region.Comment: 29 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Does Competition Solve the Hold-up Problem?

© 2016 The London School of Economics and Political Science. In an environment in which heterogeneous buyers and sellers undertake ex ante investments, the presence of market competition for matches provides incentives for investment but may leave inefficiencies, namely hold-up and coordination problems. This paper shows, using an explicitly non-cooperative model, that when matching is assortative and investments precede market competition, buyers' investments are constrained efficient while sellers marginally underinvest with respect to what would be constrained efficient. However, the overall extent of this inefficiency may be large. Multiple equilibria may arise; one equilibrium is characterized by efficient matches, but there can be additional equilibria with coordination failures. Economic