The Power of Networks: Integration and Financial Cooperative Performance

The purpose of this paper is to perform a cross-country survey of the level of integration of systems of financial cooperatives (FC) and its effect on measures of performance. We develop a classification scheme based on a theoretical framework that builds on published work using transaction cost economics (TCE) to explain integration of large numbers of financial cooperatives into networks. We identify three critical level of increasing integration we call respectively atomized systems, consensual networks and strategic networks. Further, we test some of the propositions that result from the theoretical framework on an international sample of financial cooperative systems. Based on this analysis we can conclude that: i) Integration is less (more) important is developing (more developed) countries and for very small (large) financial cooperatives as a determinant of efficiency. However, integration tends to reduce volatility of efficiency and performance regardless of development. ii) Integration appears to help control measure of managers' expense preferences that tend to affect performance of FC. iii) Despite high costs of running hub-like organizations in highly integrated system, these systems economize in bounded rationality and operate at lower costs that less integrated systems.Transaction cost economics, financial cooperatives, credit unions, networks, corporate governance, technical efficiency, x-efficiency

Theory and Test on the Corporate Governance of Financial Cooperative Systems: Merger vs. Networks

This paper presents a study of the economic organization of systems of financial cooperatives (FC). The first part presents a theoretical framework rooted in principles of transaction cost economics (TCE) that seeks to explain empirical regularities observable in systems of FC worldwide. The second part is an empirical study that compares X-efficiency between members of the Quebec Desjardins movement (DM) and the United States Credit Union system (USCU), the first organized as a tight network of institutions and the second composed largely by independent institutions with few ties. The fundamental proposition is that networks, are a superior form of governance mechanism (over markets and mergers) for relatively wide and relevant ranges of contractual hazard and size of the institutions. Further, that networks provide substitute, hierarchy based, control mechanisms when size of the institution dilutes internal governance mechanisms, discouraging subgoal pursuits and expense preferences by agents, both occurring in large FC. The theory allows us to generate a set of testable hypothesis of which we highlight three: i) For small FC, differences in efficiency will be relatively small, if any. ii) Large institutions should display systematically lower efficiency than similar sized FC members of strategic networks. iii) Networks should display lower variance in the size as well as in performance indicators. Throughout, empirical results are consistent with our central theoretical proposition.Transaction cost economics, financial cooperatives, credit unions, networks, corporate governance, technical efficiency, X-efficiency

Silent Spring at 50

This introduction from the book Silent Spring at 50 describes the various contributors’ insights into Rachel Carson’s landmark work. The authors come from a variety of disciplines, including conservation biology, English, law, and economics, and offer critical assessments of Silent Spring and its legacy. The first part has three chapters that put the book into the context of its time, examining it in light of Carson’s previous books on the sea (Wallace Kaufman); the larger tradition of authors warning against human hubris in environmental matters (Pierre Desrochers & Hiroko Shimizu); and the contest between “environmental religion” and “economic religion” that shaped American political discourse in the 20th century (Robert Nelson). The second part examines Silent Spring in the context of the science of its time examining: evidence on bird populations (Desrochers and Shimizu); cancer (Roger Meiners); ecological science (Nathan Gregory); and the political struggles between USDA and FDA (Roger Meiners and Andrew Morriss). The third part examines the legacy in the policy arena on federalism (Jonathan Adler); the precautionary principle (Larry Katzenstein); and risk (Gary Marchant)

Infants’ intentionally communicative vocalisations elicit responses from caregivers and are the best predictors of the transition to language: a longitudinal investigation of infants’ vocalisations, gestures, and word production

What aspects of infants’ prelinguistic communication are most valuable for learning to speak, and why? We test whether early vocalisations and gestures drive the transition to word use because, in addition to indicating motoric readiness, they 1) are early instances of intentional communication and 2) elicit verbal responses from caregivers. In study 1, 11-month-olds (N = 134) were observed to coordinate vocalisations and gestures with gaze to their caregiver’s face at above chance rates, indicating that they are plausibly intentionally communicative. Study 2 tested whether those infant communicative acts that were gaze-coordinated best predicted later expressive vocabulary. We report a novel procedure for predicting vocabulary via multi-model inference over a comprehensive set of infant behaviours produced at 11- and 12-months (n = 58). This makes it possible to establish the relative predictive value of different behaviours that are hierarchically organised by level of granularity. Gaze-coordinated vocalisations were the most valuable predictors of expressive vocabulary size up to 24 months. Study 3 established that caregivers were more likely to respond to gaze-coordinated behaviours. Moreover, the dyadic combination of infant gaze-coordinated vocalisation and caregiver response was by far the best predictor of later vocabulary size. We conclude that practice with prelinguistic intentional communication facilitates the leap to symbol use. Learning is optimised when caregivers respond to intentional vocalisations with appropriate language

Prenatal, concurrent, and sex-specific associations between blood lead concentrations and IQ in preschool Canadian children

Background: Lead exposure predicts altered neurodevelopment and lower intelligence quotient (IQ) in children, but few studies have examined this association in children who have relatively low blood lead concentrations. Objectives: To test the associations between blood lead concentrations and cognitive function in Canadian preschoolers, with a possible moderation by sex. Methods: The data were gathered from 609 mother-child pairs from the Maternal–Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals (MIREC) Study. Lead was measured in umbilical and maternal blood, and in children's venous blood at age 3–4 years. Cognitive function was measured with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI-III) at 3–4 years. We tested the relationship between WPPSI-III scores and blood lead concentrations with multiple linear regression, adding child sex as a moderator. Results: Median blood lead concentrations for the mother at 1st trimester and 3rd trimester of pregnancy, and for cord and child blood were 0.60 μg/dL, 0.58 μg/dL, 0.79 μg/dL and 0.67 μg/dL, respectively. We found no association between cord blood lead concentrations and WPPSI-III scores in multivariable analyses. However, cord blood lead concentrations showed a negative association with Performance IQ in boys but not in girls (B = 3.44; SE = 1.62; 95% CI: 0.82, 5.98). No associations were found between WPPSI-III scores and prenatal maternal blood or concurrent child blood lead concentrations. Conclusions: Prenatal blood lead concentrations below 5 μg/dL were still associated with a decline in cognitive function in this Canadian cohort, but only for boys

The neonatal sepsis is diminished by cervical vagus nerve stimulation and tracked non-invasively by ECG: a preliminary report in the piglet model

In adults, vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) reduces inflammation. In neonates, the effects of VNS are not known. An electrocardiogram (ECG)-derived heart rate variability (HRV) index reliably tracks the inflammatory response induced by low-dose lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in near-term sheep fetuses. We evaluated the VNS effect on the systemic inflammatory response induced by a high dose of LPS in neonatal piglets to mimic late-onset neonatal sepsis. Next, we tested if our HRV inflammatory index tracks inflammation in piglets. Following anesthesia, electrodes were attached to the left vagal nerve; ECG and blood pressure (BP) were recorded throughout the experiment. Following baseline, the piglets were administered LPS as 2mg/kg IV bolus. In the VNS treated piglet, the vagus nerve was stimulated for 10 minutes prior to and 10 min after the injection of LPS. In both groups, every 15 min post LPS, the arterial blood sample was drawn for blood gas, metabolites, and inflammatory cytokines. At the end of the experiment, the piglets were euthanized. BP and HRV measures were calculated. The piglets developed a potent inflammatory response to the LPS injection with TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6 and IL-8 peaking between 45 and 90 min post-injection. VNS diminished the LPS-induced systemic inflammatory response varying across the measured cytokines from two to ten-fold. The HRV index tracked accurately the cytokines' temporal profile. This novel model allows manipulating and tracking neonatal sepsis: The HRV inflammatory index 1) applies across species pre- and postnatally and 2) performs well at different degrees of sepsis (i.e., nanogram and milligram doses of LPS); 3) the present VNS paradigm effectively suppresses LPS-induced inflammation, even at high doses of LPS. The potential of early postnatal VNS to counteract sepsis and of HRV monitoring to early detect and track it deserve further study

Mapping the Growth and Demographics of Managerial and Professional Staff in Higher Education

This chapter presents a descriptive analysis of the growth of managerial and professional staff from Fall 1993 to Fall 2011 across institution types and sectors, and a detailed snapshot of the demographic composition of these staff in Fall 2016. Our results indicate tremendous growth in the population of non‐faculty staff over time, and reveal key patterns in staff employment by gender and race/ethnicity.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154664/1/he20352.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154664/2/he20352_am.pd

Paper Session II-B - High Efficiency Hyperspectral Imager for the Terrestrial and Atmospheric Multispectral Explorer

The Terrestrial and Atmospheric MultiSpectral Explorer1 (TAMSE) is a Space Shuttle Small Self- Contained Payload “Get-Away Special” (GAS) project, led by Principal Investigator Rolando Branly, and including remote sensing and microgravity experiments from Florida Space Institute member schools. One of these experiments is the High-Efficiency HyperSpectral Imager (HEHSI). The HEHSI project will provide a low-cost spaceflight demonstration of a novel type of imaging spectrometer with exceptional light gathering ability. HEHSI is also a demonstration of what can be achieved in space with a modest budget: $15K from the Florida Space Grant Consortium (FSGC) and$ 10K from the Florida Space Institute (FSI). Education and workforce development are important goals of the project, with all of the mechanical, electronics, and software design and testing being carried out by an interdisciplinary team of FSI students. These six students, who are about to graduate with bachelor’s degrees in engineering (three computer, one electrical, and two aerospace), have worked on the project and received course credit for two semesters. The matching funds from FSI support the involvement of the mentor for the HEHSI experiment, Glenn Sellar, who is also responsible for the optical design. Environmental testing (thermal and vibration) will be carried out by the students at KSC’s Physical Testing Laboratory, under a cooperative Space Act Agreement. As this instrument is the first remote sensing payload constructed in Florida (to the authors knowledge), it also serves as a seed for diversification of the space industry in Florida. An overview of the project is presented in this paper, including the science objectives, and the optical, mechanical, electrical, and software designs