Dynamic Analysis of the Insurance Linked Securities Index

This paper aims to provide a dynamic analysis of the insurance linked securities index. We are discussing the behaviour of the index for three years and pointing out the consequences of some major events like Katrina or the last and current financial crisis. Some stylized facts of the index, like the non-Gaussianity, the asymmetry or the clusters of volatility, are highlighted. We are using some GARCH-type models and the generalized hyperbolic distributions in order to capture these elements. The GARCH in Mean model with a Normal Inverse Gaussian distribution seems to be very efficient to fit the log-returns of the insurance linked securities index.Insurance Linked Securities, Garch-type models, Normal Inverse Gaussian Distribution

Do women choose to work in the public and nonprofit sectors? Empirical evidence from a French national survey

Women are over-represented in public and nonprofit sector jobs. This article aims to bring to light the reasons behind that phenomenon. In particular, do women choose these sectors because they offer female employees specific advantages that are absent from the private sector? The feminization of the public sector can be explained by the fact that women obtain a higher wage gain from choosing this sector than men do. However, this is not true for the nonprofit sector. Working hours - in the form of part-time work in the nonprofit sector and total hours worked in the public sector - appear to play an important role in the over-representation of women in these two sectors. On the other hand, the idea that women are more attracted to the social objectives pursued by public and nonprofit organizations does not appear to play any part. “Family-friendly” measures - aiming to reconcile the demands of family life and professional life - appear to attract women to the public sector, but it is difficult to interpret their influence, because it is impossible to distinguish between the attractiveness of these measures and the result of professional segregation in the public sector.women’ employment choices; nonprofit sector; public sector; firms family-friendly policies

On the Likelihood of Dummy players in Weighted Majority Games

When the number of players is small in a weighted majority voting game, it can occur that one of the players has no influence on the result of the vote, in spite of a strictly positive weight. Such a player is called a “dummy” player in game theory. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the conditions that give rise to such a phenomenon and to compute its likelihood. It is shown that the probability of having a dummy player is surprisingly high and some paradoxical results are observed.Cooperative game theory, weighted voting games, dummy player, likelihood of voting paradoxes.

Al-Pt MOCVD coatings for the protection of Ti6242 alloy against oxidation at elevated temperature

Results on isothermal oxidation at 873K for 90 h of Al-Pt coatings on Ti6242 coupons are reported. These coatings were obtained by low temperature, low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition using Me3(MeCp)Pt(VI) and dimethylethylamine alane. Three coating architectures were investigated, namely pure Al, Pt and Al sequential sublayers, and co-deposited Al and Pt. Oxidation kinetics revealed a strong transient oxidation regime followed by a diffusion driven parabolic one. Such coatings allow to decrease oxidation kinetics more than one order of magnitude compared with those of the bare Ti6242. Scanning electron microscopy, second ion mass spectrometry, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that these coatings present a rough surface morphology. They are dense, they develop scales composed of γ-Al2O3 and δ-Al2O3 and they prevent titanium diffusion from the alloy to the surface. It is concluded that coatings produced by this process show promise for use as effective protection against oxidation of Ti6242 alloys and consequently they may raise the maximum operating temperature tolerated by corresponding parts in helicopter turboengines

La place des valeurs dans le développement professionnel d'étudiants de Master : point de vue des stagiaires et de leurs référents.

National audienceThe situation of work-based learning lived by the students of a professional Master, taken as object of our research, is the center of identity constructs which take part in their professional development. We tried to show in an exploratory prospect, how the values conflicts sparked off by the situations participated in the expected development, beyond the dimension of identity. A double view is proposed in this article. First of all we shall be interested in the professional referents who were questioned about the professional location of the trainees. In the second part we shall be interested in the student's point of view, by analyzing papers written after clinical sessions during the training. The clear differences are questioned in conclusion and it allows to propose theoretical or methodological perspectives.La situation d'alternance vécue par les étudiants d'un Master Professionnel, pris pour objet d'étude, est au cœur de dynamiques identitaires participant à leur développement professionnel. Nous avons cherché dans une perspective exploratoire à montrer en quoi les conflits de valeurs induits par cette situation participaient, au-delà de la dimension identitaire, au développement escompté. Un double regard sur ce questionnement est proposé dans cet article. Celui des référents professionnels tout d'abord, qui ont été interrogés sur le positionnement professionnel des stagiaires. Celui des étudiants ensuite, à travers l'analyse d'écrits rédigés à l'issue des séances de clinique ayant lieu au cours de la formation. Les divergences dégagées sont articulées en conclusion et permettent de proposer un certain nombre de perspectives théoriques ou méthodologiques

LTR-retrotransposons in R. exoculata and other crustaceans

Transposable elements are major constituents of eukaryote genomes and have a great impact on genome structure and stability. They can contribute to the genetic diversity and evolution of organisms. Knowledge of their distribution among several genomes is an essential condition to study their dynamics and to better understand their role in species evolution. LTR-retrotransposons have been reported in many diverse eukaryote species, describing a ubiquitous distribution. Given their abundance, diversity and their extended ranges in C-values, environment and life styles, crustaceans are a great taxon to investigate the genomic component of adaptation and its possible relationships with TEs. However, crustaceans have been greatly underrepresented in transposable element studies. Using both degenerate PCR and in silico approaches, we have identified 35 Copia and 46 Gypsy families in 15 and 18 crustacean species, respectively. In particular, we characterized several full-length elements from the shrimp Rimicaris exoculata that is listed as a model organism from hydrothermal vents. Phylogenic analyses show that Copia and Gypsy retrotransposons likely present two opposite dynamics within crustaceans. The Gypsy elements appear relatively frequent and diverse whereas Copia are much more homogeneous, as 29 of them belong to the single GalEa clade, and species- or lineage-dependent. Our results also support the hypothesis of the Copia retrotransposon scarcity in metazoans compared to Gypsy elements. In such a context, the GalEa-like elements present an outstanding wide distribution among eukaryotes, from fishes to red algae, and can be even highly predominant within a large taxon, such as Malacostraca. Their distribution among crustaceans suggests a dynamics that follows a "domino days spreading" branching process in which successive amplifications may interact positively

L'EXPERTISE DU GESTIONNAIRE DES RESSOURCES HUMAINES A L'INTERFACE DE MULTIPLES INFLUENCES

L'évolution majeure des attentes à l'égard des gestionnaires des ressources humaines nécessite une réflexion approfondie sur les nouvelles compétences requises et les mécanismes permettant de les construire et de les entretenir. L'objectif de cette recherche est d'analyser les liens entre les principales évolutions organisationnelles et environnementales de la fonction RH, les besoins accrus en compétences d'expertises et d'adaptation qui en découlent et les interfaces que les gestionnaires vont devoir développer, entretenir et mobiliser avec différents partenaires de leurs environnements professionnels afin de les satisfaire. Nous soutenons en effet que, dans un environnement de plus en plus incertain et instable, la création de valeur ajoutée par le gestionnaire des ressources humaines repose sur sa capacité constante à enrichir ses expertises afin d'élaborer les dispositifs adéquat d'innovation sociale. La question que nous posons est alors celle des moyens à la disposition des gestionnaires. Nous analysons, dans cette contribution, les leviers que sont susceptibles de constituer les différentes interfaces que le gestionnaires peut activer

Zoomer n’est pas explorer:Spatialiser les graphes, catégoriser et (dé)construire les réseaux

A partir du cas du web du livre en France, cet article interroge la notion de zoom dans l’exploration visuelle de réseaux. En soumettant un graphe à des questionnements et traitements successifs, il devient possible de comprendre ce qui apparaît comme une anomalie pour le chercheur, un entrelacement sur le plan visuel de deux communautés pourtant distinctes du point de vue des catégories et de l’algorithme de modularité. En appliquant ces différentes épreuves au graphe apparaît la variété des algorithmes de spatialisation et de clusterisation, les limites des notions de zoom, de découpage et d’exploration des réseaux, toutes métaphores spatiales peu pertinentes. Cette démarche plaide pour des conventions d’exploration qui assurent la robustesse de l’exploitation de ce type de données.Zooming is not exploring. Spatializing graphs, categorizing and (de)constructing networks. Based on the case of the web of books in France, this article discusses the notion of zooming in the visual exploration of networks. By subjecting a graph to a series of questions and successive processes, it becomes possible to understand what seems to be an anomaly for the researcher : a visual entanglement of two otherwise distinct communities from the point of view of the categories and algorithm of modularity. By applying these different tests to the graph, the variety of the algorithms of spatialization and clustering emerge, along with the limits of the notions of zooming, partitioning and exploration of networks, all of which are largely irrelevant spatial metaphors. This approach argues for exploratory conventions that guarantee robust exploitation of this type of data