Why Is There So Little Money in Politics?

In this paper, we argue that campaign contributions are not a form of policy-buying, but are rather a form of political participation and consumption. We summarize the data on campaign spending, and show through our descriptive statistics and our econometric analysis that individuals, not special interests, are the main source of campaign contributions. Moreover, we demonstrate that campaign giving is a normal good, dependent upon income, and campaign contributions as a percent of GDP have not risen appreciably in over 100 years: if anything, they have probably fallen. We then show that only one in four studies from the previous literature support the popular notion that contributions buy legislators' votes. Finally, we illustrate that when one controls for unobserved constituent and legislator effects, there is little relationship between money and legislator votes. Thus, the question is not why there is so little money politics, but rather why organized interests give at all. We conclude by offering potential answers to this question.

Convex Hulls of Random Walks

Features related to the perimeter of the convex hull C„ of a random walk in R2 are studied, with particular attention given to its length L„. Bounds on the variance of Ln are obtained to show that, for walks with drift, L„ obeys a strong law. Exponential bounds on the tail probabilities of L„ under special conditions are also obtained. We then develop simple expressions for the expected values of other features of Cn, including the number of faces, the sum of the lengths and squared lengths of the faces, and the number of faces of length t or less

Equidistribution of Point Sets for the Traveling Salesman and Related Problems

Given a set S of n points in the unit square [0, 1)2, an optimal traveling salesman tour of S is a tour of S that is of minimum length. A worst-case point set for the Traveling Salesman Problem in the unit square is a point set S(n) whose optimal traveling salesman tour achieves the maximum possible length among all point sets S C [0, 1)2, where JSI = n. An open problem is to determine the structure of S(n). We show that for any rectangle R contained in [0, 1 F, the number of points in S(n) n R is asymptotic to n times the area of R. One corollary of this result is an 0( n log n) approximation algorithm for the worst-case Euclidean TSP. Analogous results are proved for the minimum spanning tree, minimum-weight matching, and rectilinear Steiner minimum tree. These equidistribution theorems are the first results concerning the structure of worst-case point sets like S(n)

Loss of intranetwork and internetwork resting state functional connections with Alzheimer\u27s disease progression

Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. Much is known concerning AD pathophysiology but our understanding of the disease at the systems level remains incomplete. Previous AD research has used resting-state functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fcMRI) to assess the integrity of functional networks within the brain. Most studies have focused on the default-mode network (DMN), a primary locus of AD pathology. However, other brain regions are inevitably affected with disease progression. We studied rs-fcMRI in five functionally defined brain networks within a large cohort of human participants of either gender (n = 510) that ranged in AD severity from unaffected [clinical dementia rating (CDR) 0] to very mild (CDR 0.5) to mild (CDR 1). We observed loss of correlations within not only the DMN but other networks at CDR 0.5. Within the salience network (SAL), increases were seen between CDR 0 and CDR 0.5. However, at CDR 1, all networks, including SAL, exhibited reduced correlations. Specific networks were preferentially affected at certain CDR stages. In addition, cross-network relations were consistently lost with increasing AD severity. Our results demonstrate that AD is associated with widespread loss of both intranetwork and internetwork correlations. These results provide insight into AD pathophysiology and reinforce an integrative view of the brain\u27s functional organization

The Relationship of Residence to Academic Performance in NCAA Division I Freshman Athletes

Numerous studies have been completed examining academic ability of student athletes. Since the mid 1980s, the NCAA has emphasized the importance of academics and mandated more stringent requirements for participation in intercollegiate athletics. These initial-eligibility standards have been successful in increasing overall graduation rates of student-athletes, but a number of concerns remain. The purpose of this study was to determine if a NCAA Division-I freshman student athlete’s place of residence on campus, as opposed to off campus, during his/her freshman year had a statistically significant relationship to academic performance. The participants of this study (N = 205) were surveyed individually to determine their place of residence and preference of residence during their freshman year. Academic performance at the end of the freshman year was obtained via the school’s database of academic records (Access Banner). Based on the results of this study, it was concluded that living in an on campus or off campus environment had no statistical relationship with how the NCAA D-I freshman student athletes performed academically. There were however, significant differences between gender. The findings warrant further discussion and continued research

A comparison of resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging to invasive electrocortical stimulation for sensorimotor mapping in pediatric patients

Localizing neurologic function within the brain remains a significant challenge in clinical neurosurgery. Invasive mapping with direct electrocortical stimulation currently is the clinical gold standard but is impractical in young or cognitively delayed patients who are unable to reliably perform tasks. Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging non-invasively identifies resting state networks without the need for task performance, hence, is well suited to pediatric patients. We compared sensorimotor network localization by resting state fMRI to cortical stimulation sensory and motor mapping in 16 pediatric patients aged 3.1 to 18.6 years. All had medically refractory epilepsy that required invasive electrographic monitoring and stimulation mapping. The resting state fMRI data were analyzed using a previously trained machine learning classifier that has previously been evaluated in adults. We report comparable functional localization by resting state fMRI compared to stimulation mapping. These results provide strong evidence for the utility of resting state functional imaging in the localization of sensorimotor cortex across a wide range of pediatric patients