Credit conditions and the housing price ratio: evidence from Ireland’s boom and bust

The Great Recession starting in 2007 has refocused attention on the importance of understanding housing market dynamics as contributors to macroeconomic fluctuations. While the sale-to-rent ratio of housing prices is generally regarded as a fundamental barometer of housing market health, the study of its determinants remains in its infancy. This paper examines the housing price ratio in Ireland since 2000, a period including an extreme housing market cycle. Using new data on first-time buyer loan-to-value ratios, a one-step error correction model of the housing price ratio in Ireland is presented for the first time. It finds clear evidence that, alongside user cost, credit conditions were central in determining equilibrium in the housing market. Throughout, and especially earlier in the sample, there is rapid adjustment of the housing price ratio to its implied equilibrium relation. There is evidence that the housing market regime changed during the period, in 2010 and again in 2014/2015. The preferred specifications imply that a ten percentage point increase in the median first-time buyer loan-to-value was associated with a 9% rise in sale prices, holding other factors – including rental prices and the system wide ratio of credit to deposits – constant. In addition to an understanding of the Irish market, the findings contribute to the evidence base for macroprudential policies that focus on mortgage lending and also hint at how housing market history may differ across rising and falling markets in forming expectations of capital gains

3D Monte Carlo radiation transfer modelling of photodynamic therapy

We acknowledge the support of the UK Engineering and Physics Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) for funding through a studentship for C L Campbell as well as the Alfred Stewart Trust.The effects of ageing and skin type on Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) for different treatment methods have been theoretically investigated. A multilayered Monte Carlo Radiation Transfer model is presented where both daylight activated PDT and conventional PDT are compared. It was found that light penetrates deeper through older skin with a lighter complexion, which translates into a deeper effective treatment depth. The effect of ageing was found to be larger for darker skin types. The investigation further strengthens the usage of daylight as a potential light source for PDT where effective treatment depths of about 2 mm can be achieved.Publisher PD

From genes to folds: a review of cortical gyrification theory.

Cortical gyrification is not a random process. Instead, the folds that develop are synonymous with the functional organization of the cortex, and form patterns that are remarkably consistent across individuals and even some species. How this happens is not well understood. Although many developmental features and evolutionary adaptations have been proposed as the primary cause of gyrencephaly, it is not evident that gyrification is reducible in this way. In recent years, we have greatly increased our understanding of the multiple factors that influence cortical folding, from the action of genes in health and disease to evolutionary adaptations that characterize distinctions between gyrencephalic and lissencephalic cortices. Nonetheless it is unclear how these factors which influence events at a small-scale synthesize to form the consistent and biologically meaningful large-scale features of sulci and gyri. In this article, we review the empirical evidence which suggests that gyrification is the product of a generalized mechanism, namely the differential expansion of the cortex. By considering the implications of this model, we demonstrate that it is possible to link the fundamental biological components of the cortex to its large-scale pattern-specific morphology and functional organization.This work was funded by the Bernard Wolfe Health Neuroscience Fund and the Wellcome Trust.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00429-014-0961-

Supporting active database learning and training through interactive multimedia

The learning objectives of a database course include aspects from conceptual and theoretical knowledge to practical development and implementation skills. We present an interactive educational multimedia system based on the virtual apprenticeship model for the knowledge- and skills-oriented Web-based education of database course students. Combining knowledge learning and skills training in an integrated environment is a central aspect of our system. We show that tool-mediated independent learning and training in an authentic setting is an alternative to traditional classroom-based approaches

The impact of employment on housing prices: detailed evidence from FDI in Ireland

Access to employment is one of the most valuable amenities offered by cities. In urban economics, this is the principal driver of the bid-rent gradient and is a key determinant of housing prices and land values. However, little is known about the causal effect of employment on housing prices, due to the problem of identification. This study presents the first causal estimates of employment changes on housing prices, both sales and rental. It does this by using a purpose-built spatially granular dataset of 1.4 million housing prices and FDI employment, covering Ireland 2007–2013. Identification rests on a combination of rich spatio-temporal variation due to the abundance of FDI in Ireland, a rich set of location controls and an inelastic housing supply in the period covered. The main results show that 1–2 years after 1000 extra jobs have been created, monthly rents in nearby properties will be between 0.5% and 1% higher. The effect on prices is at least 2% but less consistent across specifications. On average, net job creation in export-oriented FDI firms 2009–2013 added roughly €48 million to the stock of wealth of owner occupied real estate and €8 million to the stock of wealth of the rental sector. We also estimate that the aggregate effect of the stock of FDI jobs in 2013 on Irish housing prices is €440 million, or just over 1%

The relative importance of avoidance and restoration-oriented stressors for grief and depression in bereaved parents

Previous research has identified a number of individual risk factors for parental bereavement including the sex of the parent, the sex of the child, avoidance-focussed coping style and time since death. These factors emerged from research where variables were tested univariately and their relative importance is currently unknown. The current research, therefore, aims to investigate which risk factors are important, multivariately, for the outcomes of grief and depression in parents following the death of their child. Psychosocial measures were completed by 106 bereaved parents four years post-loss, recruited from death records in Scotland. The cause of the child's death included long-term illness and stillbirths as well as sudden and violent deaths. In multivariate regression analyses, depression was predicted by higher avoidance- focussed coping and higher number of restoration-oriented stressors such as relationship difficulties, problems at work and financial issues. Grief was predicted by higher avoidance, restoration stressors and level of continuing bonds. The present study adds to the knowledge about the phenomenon of parental bereavement with participants recruited directly from death records rather than through support, clinical or obituary sources. Factors previously found to be associated with outcomes when tested univariately such as sudden, violent death or sex of the parent were not significant when tested multivariately. This study highlights that different vulnerability factors exist for grief and depression in bereaved parents

Childhood Obesity, Cortical Structure, and Executive Function in Healthy Children.

The development of executive function is linked to maturation of prefrontal cortex (PFC) in childhood. Childhood obesity has been associated with changes in brain structure, particularly in PFC, as well as deficits in executive functions. We aimed to determine whether differences in cortical structure mediate the relationship between executive function and childhood obesity. We analyzed MR-derived measures of cortical thickness for 2700 children between the ages of 9 and 11 years, recruited as part of the NIH Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. We related our findings to measures of executive function and body mass index (BMI). In our analysis, increased BMI was associated with significantly reduced mean cortical thickness, as well as specific bilateral reduced cortical thickness in prefrontal cortical regions. This relationship remained after accounting for age, sex, race, parental education, household income, birth-weight, and in-scanner motion. Increased BMI was also associated with lower executive function. Reduced thickness in the rostral medial and superior frontal cortex, the inferior frontal gyrus, and the lateral orbitofrontal cortex partially accounted for reductions in executive function. These results suggest that childhood obesity is associated with compromised executive function. This relationship may be partly explained by BMI-associated reduced cortical thickness in the PFC.Wellcome Trust Bernard Wolfe Health Neuroscience Fun