Two-Stage Design of Quanta1 Response Studies

In a quantal response study, there may be insufficient knowledge of the response relationship for the stimulus (or dose) levels to be chosen properly. Information from such a study can be scanty or even unreliable. A two-stage design is proposed for such studies, which can determine whether and how a follow-up (i.e., second-stage) study should be conducted to select additional stimulus levels to compensate for the scarcity of information in the initial study. These levels are determined by using optimal design theory and are based on the fitted model from the data in the initial study. Its advantages are demonstrated using a fishery study.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/65175/1/j.0006-341X.1999.00396.x.pd

Re-Politicising Regulation: Politics: Regulatory Variation and Fuzzy Liberalisation in the Single European Energy Market

[From the introduction] The idea that we are living in the age of the regulatory state has dominated the study of public policy in the European Union and its member states in general, and the study of the utilities sectors in particular.1 The European Commission’s continuous drive to expand the Single Market has therefore been a free-market and rule-oriented project, driven by regulatory politics rather than policies that involve direct public expenditure. The dynamics of European integration are rooted in three central concepts: free trade, multilateral rules, and supranational cooperation. During the 1990s EU competition policy took a ‘public turn’ and set its sights on the public sector.2 EU legislation broke up national monopolies in telecommunications, electricity and gas, and set the scene for further extension of the single market into hitherto protected sectors. Both the integration theory literature (intergovernmentalist and institutionalist alike) and literature on the emergence of the EU as a ‘regulatory state’ assumed that this was primarily a matter of policy making: once agreement had been reached to liberalise the utilities markets a relatively homogeneous process would follow. The regulatory state model fit the original common market blueprint better the old industrial policy approaches. On the other hand, sector-specific studies continue to reveal a less than fully homogeneous internal market. The EU has undergone momentous changes in the last two decades, which have rendered the notion of a homogeneous single market somewhat unrealistic

Near-Horizon Virasoro Symmetry and the Entropy of de Sitter Space in Any Dimension

De Sitter spacetime is known to have a cosmological horizon that enjoys thermodynamic-like properties similar to those of a black hole horizon. In this note we show that a universal argument can be given for the entropy of de Sitter spacetime in arbitrary dimensions, by generalizing a recent near horizon symmetry plus conformal field theory argument of Carlip for black hole entropy. The implications of this argument are also discussed.Comment: 13 pages, no figure. Add one reference and correct a minor typo in pp.6, no change was made in tex

Assessing Microfinance: The Bosnia and Herzegovina Case

Microfinance is often hailed both as a tool for fighting poverty and as a tool for post-conflict reconciliation. This paper explores the use of microfinance in post-civil war Bosnia and Herzegovina, assessing its results in terms of both goals. As it combined high unemployment with a highly educated population in an institutionally open context, Bosnia and Herzegovina provides a crucial test of the effect of microfinance. If unambiguous signs of success cannot be found in a case with such favorable conditions, this would raise serious questions about the potential benefits of microfinance. The paper draws together evidence from a series of independent reviews of microfinance in Bosnia and Herzegovina, to assess its impact in terms of economic performance, the economic system, social welfare and post-conflict integration. Based on this case study, microfinance appears a better tool for dealing with poverty than with social integration or institution building.micro finance, post-conflict, poverty alleviation, economic development, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Approximate cost-efficient sequential designs for binary response models with application to switching measurements

The efficiency of an experimental design is ultimately measured in terms of time and resources needed for the experiment. Optimal sequential (multi-stage) design is studied in the situation where each stage involves a fixed cost. The problem is motivated by switching measurements on superconducting Josephson junctions. In this quantum mechanical experiment, the sequences of current pulses are applied to the Josephson junction sample and a binary response indicating the presence or the absence of a voltage response is measured. The binary response can be modeled by a generalized linear model with the complementary log-log link function. The other models considered are the logit model and the probit model. For these three models, the approximately optimal sample size for the next stage as a function of the current Fisher information and the stage cost is determined. The cost-efficiency of the proposed design is demonstrated in simulations based on real data from switching measurements. The results can be directly applied to switching measurements and they may lead to substantial savings in the time needed for the experiment.Comment: revised version, accepted for publicatio

Außerschulische Lernorte im Geometrieunterricht der Grundschule – eine Wirksamkeitsstudie

Im vorliegenden Forschungsprojekt steht die Einbeziehung authentischer Umgebungen im Geometrieunterricht der Grundschule im Zentrum. Schwerpunkt des Forschungsvorhabens ist die Entwicklung von geometrischem Wissen und Können zu Körpern. Durch eine adäquate Vernetzung schulischen und außerschulischen Lernens in Verbindung mit dem Protokollieren soll ein nachhaltiger Erkenntnisgewinn zu geometrischen Körpern bei Viertklässlern erreicht werden

Euro-scepticism as party strategy: persistence and change in party-based opposition to European integration

'Parteien, die eine grundsätzlich oder bedingt ablehnende Haltung der europäischen Integration gegenüber vertreten, sind im gesamten politischen Spektrum zu finden. Ein kursorischer Blick auf die europäische Parteienlandschaft zeigt, dass Mitte-Links- und Mitte-Rechts-Parteien eher nicht zur Übernahme einer grundsätzlich euro-skeptischen Position tendieren, obwohl sie bestimmte Aspekte der europäischen Integration ablehnen mögen, wenn diese programmatischen Zielen zuwiderlaufen. Bis auf einige bedeutende Ausnahmen beschränkt sich die prinzipielle Ablehnung auf Parteien an den Rändern des politischen Spektrums bzw. auf Parteien, die spezifische Interessen und Identitäten repräsentieren. Basierend auf der Annahme, dass die Entscheidung einer Partei für die Annahme einer europa-skeptischen Haltung bzw. deren Modifikation eine strategische ist, untersucht der Beitrag die Wurzeln für den Euroskeptizismus der Partien und die Dynamiken seiner Unveränderlichkeit bzw. seines Wandels. Die Parteistrategie ist untrennbar mit der Position der Partei im jeweiligen Parteiensystem verbunden und wird von der Abwägung der folgenden vier, das Wesen einer politischen Partei bestimmende Ziele bestimmt: dem organisatorischen Überleben, der Umsetzung spezifischer programmatischer Ziele (policies), der Stimmenmaximierung (votes) und der Ausübung von Regierungsgewalt (office). Obwohl viele, wenn nicht sogar fast alle Parteien Strategien der sog. Catch-all-Parteien oder Kartellparteien verfolgen, hat doch eine beachtliche Anzahl an Parteien alternative oder gemischte Strategien gewählt. Die euro-skeptischen Tendenzen der Parteien und die Anreize für eine solche ablehnende Haltung werden mit diesen unterschiedlichen Strategien in Zusammenhang gebracht und analysiert. Folgenden Fragen wird nachgegangen: Warum übernehmen Parteien euro-skeptische Positionen und warum verändern sie diese? Die 'Zähmung der Widerspenstigen' oder die Abschwächung des Euroskeptizismus kann über Veränderungen in der Gewichtung der vier Ziele oder den Rahmenbedingungen erfolgen oder über eine Kombination aus beiden.' (Autorenreferat)'The parties that have adopted principled or contingent positions opposed to participation in European integration span across most of the political spectrum. Yet even a cursory glance at the European scene reveals that the mainstream centre-left and -right parties tend not to adopt principled Euro-scepticism, although they may oppose aspects of European integration when policy preferences clash. With a few significant exceptions, principled opposition has been constrained to parties at the flanks of the system or parties that represent specific interests or identities. Starting from the premise that a party's decision to adopt or modify a Euro-sceptic stance is a strategic decision, the present paper explores the roots of party-based Euro-scepticism and the dynamics of its persistence and change. Party strategy is linked inextricably to the party's position in the party system, and is made up of the party's efforts to reconcile the four main goals that almost define political parties: organisational survival and the pursuit of policy, votes and office. Although many, if not most, parties pursue the kind of strategies that are associated with the catch-all or cartel model of political parties, a significant number of parties have chosen alternative or mixed strategies. Parties' propensities for and incentives regarding Euro-scepticism are explored in relation to these different strategies. The questions are, why do parties adopt Euro-sceptic positions, and why do they change these? The 'taming of the shrew', or softening of Euro-scepticism, may be driven by changes in any of the four goals or the context in which they are pursued, or a combination thereof.' (author's abstract