What Affects MFP in the Long-Run? Evidence from Canadian Industries

In this paper we explore variables that may have an impact on multifactor productivity (MFP) in the long-run using the KLEMS database for Canada. We estimate a dynamic heterogeneous panel error-correction model of twelve 2-digit level industries. Variables investigated include ICT capital, outsourcing, competition, trade openness, public infrastructure, and R&D. Results suggest that over the 1976 - 2003 period ICT capital services, outsourcing and trade all had a positive impact on the level of industry MFP. The speed of adjustment varies significantly by industry.Productivity

Real Estate, the External Finance Premium and Business Investment: A Quantitative Dynamic General Equilibrium Analysis

This paper studies the connection between the capital market and the real estate market. Empirically, we find that positive real house price shocks lower the external finance premium and stimulate nonresidential investment and real GDP. Our theoretical framework is able to mimic the volatility of the external finance premium, the relative price of real estate and capital, and the investment in real estate and capital. It also captures the cyclicality of the external finance premium and of real estate prices. The contribution of real estate price fluctuations to the variability of the external finance premium and the GDP is confirmed to be significant.External Finance Premium, Residential and Corporate Real Estate, Capital Market Imperfections, Equilibrium Default, Real Estate Price Volatility.

Ideology Of education : the relationship between cultural capital and academic achievement in liberal studies in Hong Kong secondary schools by

This study is devoted to examine the relationship between cultural capital and the performance in Liberal Studies (LS) of Hong Kong students. It is discovered that the socio- economic status (SES) of the family positively correlates with the accumulation of cultural capital. Using the data from two classes in one local school, it indicates that there is cultural inherence for students from families with higher SES in terms of economic resources, social class values imposed towards their children and the cultivation of learning habits. For those who deprived in cultural capital, they are more disadvantaged in studying LS owning to the limited economic resources for them to develop proficient language skills, lower educational expectation from parents and inadequate cultural activities. Definitely, it is not saying students from lower class have no chance to succeed in LS, it is found that there are external forces, such as personal effort, adoption of online resources and peer discussion. This study can offer insights on the transmission of class advantage across generations and reflection on cultural reproduction and social mobility.published_or_final_versionEducationBachelorBachelor of Education in Liberal Studie

Dynamic Covalent Chemistry for Synthetic Molecular Machines

The first and only exhaustive review of the theory, thermodynamic fundamentals, mechanisms, and design principles of dynamic covalent systems Dynamic Covalent Chemistry: Principles, Reactions, and Applications presents a comprehensive ..

Electromagnetic Radiation from a Spherical Static Current Source Coupled to Harmonic Axion Field

The electromagnetic fields generated from a static current source on a spherical surface are calculated in the framework of axion electrodynamics to first order in the coupling parameter. Comparisons of the results are made with reference to various results obtained in conventional Maxwell electrodynamics, as well as previous results obtained for point magnetic dipole source coupled to harmonic axion fields. Distinct features from the results so obtained are highlighted for possible experimental probing of the axions via electromagnetic interactions. In particular, electromagnetic radiation from sources with strong magnetic field is studied which may enable the detection of a cosmic axion field from its interaction with objects like neutron stars

From Houses to Hillsides: Support for Adaptive Housing on Hong Kong's Slopes

Hong Kong’s urban development is governed by the mountainous terrain of the city. The city is growing, and easily developable low-lying flat land is becoming increasingly scarce. As a result, Hong Kong’s development is conflicted between the hillsides of the landscape and the urban built environment. On one hand, the avoidance of hillsides, characterized as liabilities, has created a hyper-dense environment where real estate economics and speculation separate public and private housing sectors with little opportunity for alternative affordable housing options. On the other hand, as urban expansion encroaches ever closer to the slopes of the city, new strategies for slope stabilization infrastructure are required for improved safety and resilience. With no resolution to this spatial struggle, informal settlements arise to create affordability through the absence of formal regulation, but these structures pose psycho-social and physical risks to their inhabitants. Rather than attempting to provide housing in an all-or-nothing manner, we can think of housing as an incremental process where citizens foster their social and economic capital. By acknowledging informality as a process that functions within the market, we break down the legal apartheid between formal and informal, and begin to design with, rather than against, bottom-up approaches to high-density urban living. Through the redesign of slope infrastructure with architectural foundations, and the integration of services and amenities, we plant the seeds for building to occur on a site that would otherwise be avoided by conventional development. Expanding on existing geotechnical and slope landscaping methods, the man-made slope in the Mei Tung Estate in Kowloon is transformed into a support framework acting as both the stabilization for the slope and the foundation for transformative infill housing. It provides the basic services for occupation where homes can grow with participatory design and collective action. This foundation is not only a spot on which residents can build, but as a component of the three-dimensional public realm of the city, it also offers opportunities to foster social capital within the larger Hong Kong society to improve social cohesion and integration. The focus is on providing the architectural framework in which healthy, safe, and economical inhabitant-driven building can occur. Housing is not a product for the inhabitant, but a process in which families can make a place to call home