Income, Value and Returns in Socially Responsible Office Properties

This paper compares alternative methods for taking spatial dependence into account in house price prediction. We select hedonic methods that have been reported in the literature to perform relatively well in terms of ex-sample prediction accuracy. Because differences in performance may be due to differences in data, we compare the methods using a single data set. The estimation methods include simple OLS, a two-stage process incorporating nearest neighbors’ residuals in the second stage, geostatistical, and trend surface models. These models take into account submarkets by adding dummy variables or by estimating separate equations for each submarket. Based on data for approximately 13,000 transactions from Louisville, Kentucky, we conclude that a geostatistical model with disaggregated submarket variables performs best.

Is the Growth Management Act Working? A Survey of Resource Lands and Critical Areas Development Regulations

Section II of this Article begins with a summary of Washington\u27s statutory requirements for both local resource land and critical area development regulations. Section II then reviews the circumstances under which those regulations have been adopted. Section III describes the methods used by the research team to collect and evaluate those regulations. Section IV examines whether Washington counties and cities have met their adoption deadlines. Section V describes the general approaches being taken for meeting those requirements. Section VI compares the regulations to one another in order to judge their consistency and relative restrictiveness throughout Washington. Section VII looks at whether the regulations conform with model guidelines prepared by Washington State, and Section VIII reports on how the adopted regulations compare with guidelines found in other states and in the professional literature. Finally, Section IX concludes with a summary of the research team\u27s findings and a discussion of their implications, including my recommendations about what should be done to strengthen Washington\u27s growth management system

A Taxonomy of Suburban Office Clusters: The Case of Toronto

Summary. Metropolitan plans are commonly based on a system of suburban office clusters . The large variation among recent plans suggests a poor understanding of their nature and impacts . A taxonomy of office clusters could provide a necessary framework . Six hypotheses on the type, frequency, location, employment base and travel characteristics of suburban clusters were tested in a case-study of the Toronto region. Six physical types were identified and found to be associated with certain locations, employment activities and travel mode characteristics . The Toronto metropolitan plan was found to be successful when it conformed with these findings and unsuccessful when it did not. The results lead to provisional guidelines for future metropolitan plans

Les Jeux de l’amour et du mensonge

Guillaume Cayet est dramaturge ; Samuel Pivo est auteur. Tous deux formés à l’ENSATT, ils ont encadré l’équipe de rédaction de la gazette pour l’édition 2014 du festival Regards croisés. Ivan Viripaev est auteur, comédien et metteur en scène, né à Irkoutsk (Sibérie) en 1974. En 2001, il fonde (avec Elena Gremina notamment) le Teatr.doc à Moscou, lieu alternatif – symbole du renouveau théâtral russe –, « se revendiquant comme le centre de la pièce nouvelle et sociale » en Russie. Depuis sa déc..

Verso modelli predittivi di successo dei nuovi prodotti: un approccio sperimentale sui Social Network

Sommario La crescente competitività e rapidità di cambiamento del mercato sta portando le aziende a chiedere a progettisti e ingegneri di prodotto di creare idee che incontrano al meglio i bisogni del consumatore, rendendo sempre più importante il processo di comprensione di ciò che gli utenti vogliono e desiderano. L'analisi di Big Data estratti da Social Network è ormai una pratica molto comune con un incredibile impatto strategico, che permette di valutare le immediate reazioni del mercato per poter regolare azioni di marketing e di supporto. Le metodologie di analisi viste fino ad adesso si basano su Sentiment Analysis, che mostra le reazioni degli utenti al prodotto, ma non può dire se il prodotto stia rispondendo o meno ai bisogni dell'utente. Questo lavoro di tesi si prospetta di elaborare un metodo di estrazione di contenuti strutturati attraverso un approccio sperimentale, applicando per la prima volta un software che può permettere di individuare all'interno delle conversazioni i vantaggi e gli svantaggi che gli utenti stanno riscontrando nell'utilizzo di un determinato prodotto. Abstract Increasing competition and rapidly changing of market is leading companies to ask designers and product engineers to create ideas that best meet consumer needs, making it increasingly important the process of understanding what users want and desire. The analysis of Big Data extracted from the Social Network is now a very common practice with an incredible strategic impact, which allows to evaluate the immediate reaction of the market to adjust marketing and support actions. The analytical methodologies seen until now are based on Sentiment Analysis, which displays the users' reactions to the product, but we can not say whether or not the product is responding to user needs. The thesis work lies ahead to develop a method of extraction of structured content through an experimental approach, applying for the first time a software that may allow the detection part of the conversations the advantages and disadvantages that users are finding in using a particular product

Impacts of Mixed Use and Density on Utilization of Three Modes of Travel: Single-Occupant Vehicle, Transit, and Walking,"

Findings from an empirical analysis to test the impacts of land-use mix, population density, and employment density on the use of the singleoccupant vehicle (SOV), transit, and walking for both work trips and shopping trips are presented. The hypothetical relationships tested focused on whether there is a relationship between urban form and modal choice, whether this relationship exists when controlling for non-urban form factors, whether this relationship is linear or nonlinear, and whether a stronger relationship exists between modal choice and urban form when they are measured at both trip ends as opposed to either the origin or the destination. A review of the literature and experiences suggested that a fair amount of information is known about the impacts of density on mode choice. However, considerable debate exists over whether density itself is actually the causal stimulus or a surrogate for other factors. To address this issue a data base was developed with a comprehensive set of variables for which density may be a proxy, for example, demographics and level of service. This analysis employed a correlational research design in which mode choice was compared among census tracts with differing levels of density and mix. Findings from this research indicate that density and mix are both related to mode choice, even when controlling for non-urban form factors for both work trips and shopping trips. Furthermore, the relationship between population and employment density and mode choice for SOV, transit, and walking is nonlinear for both work and shopping trips. Transit usage and walking increase as density and land-use mix increase, whereas SOV usage declines. The findings from this research suggest that measuring urban form at both trip ends provides a greater ability to predict travel choices than looking at trip ends separately. The findings also suggest that increasing the level of land-use mix at the trip origins and destinations is also related to a reduction in SOV travel and an increase in transit and walking. This research is important because of recent policy initiatives at the federal, state, and local levels that state that it is no longer feasible to maintain access to opportunities in urban areas by increasing the mobility of SOVs. Among the commonly cited reasons are economics, new environmental legislation (e.g., the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990), public opposition, changing demographics, and political pressure to reduce fuel consumption. Several urbanform strategies have been recommended to reduce dependence on driving alone. These strategies include increasing residential and employment densities and intermixing a variety of land uses (residential, employment, and commercial). Although these strategies would seem to enhance the viabilities of alternatives to SOVs, relatively little work has been conducted to test these relationships empirically. STRUCTURE OF ANALYSIS The findings presented in this paper are based on a three-phase research approach. In Phase I information was gathered from other sources resulting in the identification of hypothetical relationships between urban form and travel behavior on the basis of theory, past research findings, and current policies. In Phase II the project data base was developed to test these hypothetical relationships. Statistical techniques were used to conduct hypothesis testing (e.g., multiple regression or correlation) in Phase III. This project is part of a research agenda developed by the University of Washington for the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). The goal of the agenda is to discover ways to plan and implement urban forms that promote increased accessibility. At the crux of this agenda are the intentions to decrease the need to travel, reduce dependence on the single-occupant vehicle (SOV), and enhance the competitiveness of other travel modes. More specifically, this paper documents empirical relationships between urban form (land-use mix and density) and trip making by individuals who use SOVs, transit, and walking as modes of travel. This analysis focuses on two trip purposes: working and shopping. POLICY PERSPECTIVE Over the past 3 years several policies that are intended to reduce the rate of growth in travel demand through the manipulation of urbanform and a variety of other factors have been enacted at the federal, state, and local levels. These policies are based on a variety of hypotheses that characterize the nature of the relationship between travel demand and both urban-form and non-urban-form factors. Although the intent of this research was to provide insight regarding urban form, it also tested and evaluated the relative impacts of nonurban-form factors. Selected policies that target both urban-form and non-urban-form factors and that affect travel demand include • The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, which provides new funding opportunities for non-SOV improvements

Urban form and sustainability: the case study of Rome

This paper investigates the relation between sustainability and urban form. To this aim a system of Land-Use and Transport Interactions (LUTI) models has been designed and applied to the metropolitan area of Rome, to understand the interdependence of key variables such as travel behavior, transport supply, property values, jobs and residential location. The models represent the behavior of both dwellers and transport users and how they react to changing conditions. A system of assessment indicators has been defined to systematically test and compare alternative scenarios of urban form and to evaluate to what extent different locations and density distributions of activities achieve sustainability in terms of transport performances, social and environmental impacts

Interpretation of androgen and anti-Mullerian hormone profiles in a Hispanic cohort of 5- to 8-year-old girls with premature adrenarche

Purpose Premature adrenarche (PA) often leads to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Higher anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) levels are reported in PCOS. We studied the androgen profile and AMH profiles in Hispanic girls with PA (aged 5–8 years) and age and body mass index (BMI) matched controls. Methods Retrospective review of electronic medical records of girls who met the inclusion criteria for premature adrenarche were done. Results PA girls (n=76) were matched to control girls (n=12) for age (mean±standard deviation) (6.7±1 years vs. 6.2±1.3 years) and BMI (20±10 kg/m2 vs. 17.8±2.7 kg/m2). Dehydroepiandrostenedione sulfate (63.3±51.3 μg/dL vs. 29.8±17.3 μg/dL, P<0.001) and testosterone levels (11.4±4.8 ng/dL vs. 8.2±2.9 ng/dL, P=0.001) were significantly higher in the PA group than controls. AMH values (<14 years: reference range, 0.49–3.15 ng/mL) were 3.2±2.2 ng/mL vs. 4.6± 3.2 ng/mL respectively in the PA and control groups and were not different (P=0.4). AMH did not show a correlation with bone age (P=0.1), and testosterone (P=0.9) in the PA group. 17-hydroxyprogesterone levels (17-OHP ng/dL) were 39.5±30.5 ng/dL vs. 36.8±19.8 ng/dL in PA versus control girls. The concentration of 17-OHP was not statistically different between the control and PA groups. Conclusions Higher AMH was not observed in PA girls and no correlation with BA and androgen levels was observed