Maori and epilepsy: Personal perceptions of the cause, treatment and consequences of epilepsy by Maori in the Bay of Plenty

This paper discusses the perceptions of epilepsy held by Maori in the Bay of Plenty. The paper begins by introducing the purpose and rationale of the research. It then moves on to describe the aims and qualitative research methods that were used to collect the data. Finally the paper discusses the findings of the research, this includes: a close look at the unique perceptions of epilepsy that were reported by Maori in the Bay of Plenty; the lack of resources and services available in a small rural town of the Bay of Plenty; the services desired by Maori; attitudes towards medication and the inappropriate behaviour many of the participants experienced by the medical profession

Optimal Investment Horizons for Stocks and Markets

The inverse statistics is the distribution of waiting times needed to achieve a predefined level of return obtained from (detrended) historic asset prices \cite{optihori,gainloss}. Such a distribution typically goes through a maximum at a time coined the {\em optimal investment horizon}, $\tau^*_\rho$, which defines the most likely waiting time for obtaining a given return $\rho$. By considering equal positive and negative levels of return, we reported in \cite{gainloss} on a quantitative gain/loss asymmetry most pronounced for short horizons. In the present paper, the inverse statistics for 2/3 of the individual stocks presently in the DJIA is investigated. We show that this gain/loss asymmetry established for the DJIA surprisingly is {\em not} present in the time series of the individual stocks nor their average. This observation points towards some kind of collective movement of the stocks of the index (synchronization).Comment: Subm. to Physica A as Conference Proceedings of Econophysics Colloquium, ANU Canberra, 13-17 Nov. 2005. 6 pages including figure

This valley of perpetual dream : a close commentary on Shelley's The triumph of life : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English at Massey University

The Triumph of Life" is a cryptic final work for Shelley to leave to posterity. It is both unlike and yet like his previous work. It is unlike in that it addresses itself to the non-ideal, to a cruel and devastating present existence.¹ Perhaps only The Cenci approaches the same degree of disillusionment. It is like in that it displays that "tough-minded" Shelleyan scepticism that C. E. Pulos has elucidated so well.² C. E. Pulos, The Deep Truth: A Study of Shelley's Scepticism (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1954). The Shelley who wrote the final line of "Mont Blanc", who included the famous last speech of Demogorgon in Prometheus Unbound, is in this poem given full rein. The debate still rages as to whether he allows any idealism into "The Triumph of Life" at all. This closely structured poem, full of gripping images that remain with one long after the poem has been read, is Shelley at his best. In it, the poet who wrote the "Ode to the West Wind" brings his deep concern with the nature of life to fruition. The issues that emerge from an analysis of the text reflect this concern with the fundamentals of existence. For this reason, I believe it to be - despite its fragmentary nature - a great document on modern life. [From Foreword

Measuring Anti-Correlations in the Nordic Electricity Spot Market by Wavelets

We consider the Nordic electricity spot market from mid 1992 to the end of year 2000. This market is found to be well approximated by an anti-persistent self-affine (mean-reverting) walk. It is characterized by a Hurst exponent of $H\simeq 0.41$ over three orders of magnitude in time ranging from days to years. We argue that in order to see such a good scaling behavior, and to locate cross-overs, it is crucial that an analyzing technique is used that {\em decouples} scales. This is in our case achieved by utilizing a (multi-scale) wavelet approach. The shortcomings of methods that do not decouple scales are illustrated by applying, to the same dat a set, the classic $R/S$- and Fourier techniques, for which scaling regimes and/or positions of cross-overs are hard to define.Comment: Latex, 11 pages including 4 figures. To appear Physica

An Empirical Model for Durations in Stocks

This paper considers an extension of the univariate autoregressive conditional duration model to which durations from a second stock are added. The model is empirically used to study durations in two traded stocks, Ericsson B and AstraZeneca, on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. It is found that including durations from a second stock may add explanatory power to the univariate model. Ericsson B is Granger causing durations in AstraZeneca, while AstraZeneca is not Granger causing durations in Ericsson B. Volume, spread and trade intensity changes have significant effects for both series.multivariate; duration; transaction data; market microstructure

The Impact of News Releases on Trade Durations in Stocks -Empirical Evidence from Sweden

This paper studies the impact of news announcements on trade durations in stocks on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. The news are categorized into four groups and the impact on the time between transactions is studied. Times before, during and after the news release are considered. Econometrically, the impact is studied within an autoregressive conditional duration model using intradaily data for six stocks.The empirical results reveal that news reduces the duration lengths before, during and after news releases as expected by the theoretical litterature on durations and information flow.Finance; transaction data; intraday; market microstructure; ACD

Observations: death of the payphone?

Many payphones are being put out to pasture, but some are being reinvented.Public telephones

Infinitary Combinatory Reduction Systems: Normalising Reduction Strategies

We study normalising reduction strategies for infinitary Combinatory Reduction Systems (iCRSs). We prove that all fair, outermost-fair, and needed-fair strategies are normalising for orthogonal, fully-extended iCRSs. These facts properly generalise a number of results on normalising strategies in first-order infinitary rewriting and provide the first examples of normalising strategies for infinitary lambda calculus