Tree Shade and Energy Savings: An Empirical Study

Trees cast shade on homes and buildings, lowering the inside temperatures and thus reducing demand for power to cool these buildings during hot times of the year. Drawing from a large sample of residences in Auburn, Alabama, we develop a statistical model that produces specific estimates of the electricity savings generated by shade-producing trees in a suburban environment. This empirical model links residential energy consumption to hedonic characteristics of the structures, characteristics and behaviors of the occupants, and the extent, density, and timing of shade cast on the structures. Our estimates suggest that if an additional 10 percent of the 125 million home owners in America started using tree shade to reduce electricity consumption an average of 10 kwh/day for 100 days per year, the annual amount of electricity conserved would be approximately 12,500 thousand megawatts. At the 2007 average residential price of electricity ($0.1065/kwh), this would save each household an estimated$106/year and $1.3 billion in the aggregate. Moreover, the electricity saved would represent approximately one-third of the electricity produced annually in the U.S. by wind power.Environmental Economics and Policy, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Impacts of Population and Income Growth Rates on Threatened Mammals and Birds

Per capita income and human population levels in a country have direct influences on its environmental outcomes. Countries with same level of income may have different rate of income growth and vice versa, suggesting that the influence of the rate of income growth on environmental outcomes could be different than that of income level. Similarly, the rate of population growth might have different impact in addition to the impacts of sheer number of population. We explore this empirical question using country-level data on threatened species published by IUCN for the year 2007. Controlling for other factors, our model estimates the influences of the rate of population and income growth on threatened mammals and birds across 113 continental countries. The results suggest that, among other factors, the rate of population growth has significant influences on number of threatened mammals and birds.income, population, spatial models, spatial autocorrelation, endemic species, biodiversity, Environmental Economics and Policy, C21, Q57,

The Impact of College Athletics on Employment in the Restaurant and Accommodations Industries

In this paper, we analyze Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)-level data in the U.S. to examine the economic impact of college athletics. Specifically, we examine the relationship between total athletics revenues (aggregated across all colleges in an MSA) and MSA-level employment in the accommodations and food services industries. Controlling for a variety of other factors that might influence hotel/restaurant employment within an MSA, we find that below $40 million (in 2005) in college athletics revenues there is no evidence that college athletics affects MSA employment in the food services and accommodations industries. However, above$40 million we find highly significant impacts on employment in the food services and accommodations industries that climb with college sports revenue generation.sports, college athletics, economic impact, food services and accommodations, tourism

Burying the Union Jack: British Loyalists In Transvaal During The First Anglo-Boer War, 1880-1881

English-speaking South Africans are marked by multiple identities, but until recently they were united by strong feelings of Britishness and loyalty to the Crown, symbolized by the fervent flying of the Union Jack. This study analyzes the nature of the "English" community which settled in the Transvaal after Britain annexed the Boer Republic in 1877, and investigates its response when the British government restored Transvaal independence after the Boer uprising (the First Anglo-Boer War) of 1880-1. Since the security and prosperity of the Transvaal English depended upon maintenance of British rule, the alternative to fashioning a new colonial identity was to assert Britishness through an exaggerated loyalty to Crown and flag. "Loyal" inhabitants either fled the Transvaal during the Boer rebellion or took refuge in beleaguered towns. During the subsequent negotiations, the loyalists concluded that the Gladstone administration was sacrificing their interests, and organized to protest their allegiance and to claim compensation for losses. When the Pretoria Convention was nevertheless signed in August 1881, loyalists publicly buried the Union Jack - the very symbol of their British identity - to express their sense of outraged betrayal

Young Contemporaries 2020

Each spring, current LMU art students are invited to enter the Laband\u27s annual juried student show, Young Contemporaries. In 2020, our show went virtual due to Covid-19 and all artworks were judged remotely by two professionals from Los Angeles\u27s art world. The exhibition featured work from all the disciplines taught in LMU\u27s art program including drawing, printmaking, photography, sculpture, painting, ceramics, graphic design, and new media. This exhibition—the 36th Juried Student Art Exhibition hosted by the Laband—provided an excellent first professional experience for students and celebrated our students\u27 boundless creativity and the mentorship provided by LMU\u27s art faculty.Generous support for the exhibition is provided by The Friedman Family in memory of Andrea Kingaard Friedman \u2766.https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/labandgallery-exhibits/1000/thumbnail.jp

Which Universities Should Provide Extension Services?

Do cost considerations justify the current production of Extension services in which one or more providers exists in virtually all of the contiguous U.S. states? Using 1995-96 data, we estimate a multi-product cost function for 1,450 public institutions of higher education (IHEs) in the United States, including 65 that provide Extension services. We find significant (diseconomies) economies of scale with respect to the provision of Extension services by the (largest) smaller IHEs. We conclude that regionalizing the provision of Extension services and/or shifting the provision of Extension services from the largest 1862 institutions to smaller 1890 institutions would improve cost-effectiveness

Author Order and Research Quality

Southern Economic Journal © 2005 Southern Economic AssociationWe observe a great deal of heterogeneity in the manner in which author orderings are assigned both across and within academic markets. To better understand this phenomenon, we develop and analyze a stochastic model of author orderings. In our model, authors work equally hard to obtain priority in listings but final contributions are stochastic. Further, research outlets differ in their quality hurdles. In this setting, our simulation results are consistent with two empirical regularities. First, we find that the rate of alphabetization increases with the stringency with which papers are accepted for publication. Second, conditional on clearing the publication hurdle, quality increases with alphabetization. These findings arise because increases in the publication hurdle make it more likely that authors will exceed this threshold only when both contribute a high amount. This, in turn, leads to roughly equal contributions (alphabetization) and also generates a positive correlation between alphabetization and quality

Is Peer Review in Decline?

Over the past decade, there has been a decline in the fraction of papers in top economics journals written by economists from the highest-ranked economics departments. This paper documents this fact and uses additional data on publications and citations to assess various potential explanations. Several observations are consistent with the hypothesis that the Internet improves the ability of high-profile authors to disseminate their research without going through the traditional peer-review process. (JEL A14, O30)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (SES-0550897)Toulouse Network for Information TechnologyInstitute for Advanced Study (Princeton, N.J.

Are Economists More Selfish than Other 'Social' Scientists?

There is considerable professional disagreement among economists about whether economists are less cooperative than non-economists. It has been argued that once an individual has been schooled in the self-interest model of individual human behavior (s)he exhibits more selfish behavior than other, ostensibly similar individuals who have not been taught to fully appreciate Homo economicus. Heretofore, the empirical debate has centered around classroom experiments designed to compare the ""honesty"" of undergraduate economics majors versus non economics majors. However, methodological problems have plagued these studies, leaving both sides at an impasse. We offer unique and compelling real-world evidence that suggests economists are no less cooperative than non-economists. Indeed, after comparing the incidence of ""cheating"" on their Association dues, we find that professional economists are more honest/cooperative than professional political scientists, and expecially, professional sociologists.

Do Economics Departments Improve After They Appoint a Top Scholar as Chairperson?

There has been almost no research into what makes an effective chairperson in a university department. This paper constructs a historical longitudinal dataset on economics departments in 58 US research universities. It documents evidence that a department’s research output tends to improve substantially when the incoming department Chair is himself or herself an outstanding scholar (in particular, is highly cited). The analysis adjusts for a set of other possible influences, including the standing of the department, university resources, the previous Chair, the trend in the department’s productivity, and time-lags. Possible interpretations, and implications for future research, are discussed