An Empirical Study of the Dynamics of International Stock Markets Interdependence

This paper examines the interaction between international national stock markets using daily data and a VAR model. The results indicate that the speed of adjustment to equilibrium after a shock is about two days, indicating that markets are highly efficient at processing international information. Moreover, the US market appears to be the most important in the system, while Japan is very independent and does not have much effect on the other markets in the sample. Finally, the recent Asian financial crisis appears to have amplified the importance of the Asian markets to the rest of the global exchanges

Enumeration of octagonal tilings

Random tilings are interesting as idealizations of atomistic models of quasicrystals and for their connection to problems in combinatorics and algorithms. Of particular interest is the tiling entropy density, which measures the relation of the number of distinct tilings to the number of constituent tiles. Tilings by squares and 45 degree rhombi receive special attention as presumably the simplest model that has not yet been solved exactly in the thermodynamic limit. However, an exact enumeration formula can be evaluated for tilings in finite regions with fixed boundaries. We implement this algorithm in an efficient manner, enabling the investigation of larger regions of parameter space than previously were possible. Our new results appear to yield monotone increasing and decreasing lower and upper bounds on the fixed boundary entropy density that converge toward S = 0.36021(3)

The Utilization of Core Values as an Avenue for Promotion in Sport: Faith based Activations as the Moral Face of Sport Organization Brands

The administration of and participation in present-day sport is inundated with situations requiring individuals with varying moral paradigms to determine appropriate action. The marketing discipline has drawn considerable attention from ethical decision makers, as marketing practitioners are responsible for satisfying both active and inactive consumer ‘needs.’ Traditional forms of promotion within the sport setting have focused on targeting fans through financial value, cost minimization, or product giveaways (e.g., Friday night fireworks, $1 hot dog night, bobble-head night). However, professional sport organizations have recently extended marketing endeavors to include faith based activations as a form of promotional strategy, accessing fans by means of their individual core values. The purpose of this paper is to propose a set of considerations for the proper utilization of fans’ core values and subsequently present a decision making model for application prior to implementing such a promotional strategy. There is relative paucity of original research examining sport marketers’ attempt to access fans core values via promotion in the sport setting. This paper will place particular emphasis on the considerations necessary for proper application of promotional campaigns targeting fans core values, via faith based activations, as the primary component for accessing target market segments. Acknowledgement of appropriate factors for consideration in application of a faith based promotional strategy and development of a related model for organizational application will be presented

Popular Methods of Biological Control and the Future of Baculoviruses

Biological control is a pest management strategy with the goal of reducing pest populations through human collaboration. Methods of biological control used to combat pests involve the physical removal of organisms and the application of predators, parasitoids, chemical insecticides, microbes, and viruses. However, many methods of biocontrol have proven to become ineffective overtime due to target organism adaptability taking place as a part of the natural process of evolution. As a result of previously failed attempts of utilizing different forms of biocontrol, the application of viruses as an alternative is in consideration by scientists to control pest populations. Application of viruses is a method of biocontrol that involves the use of modified or existent virus strands being released to infect targeted organisms. One of the more common and effective viruses used in biocontrol are Baculoviruses. Baculoviruses are pathogens that infect and kill insects as well as other arthropods. With high host specificities, these viruses have shown to have no pathogenic effects on humans, plants, mammals, or even non-targeted insects. In the form of biopesticides, they are also seen as safer alternatives to synthetic chemical insecticides which present risks with long-term environmental impacts. Although, due to the shortcomings of baculoviruses, they are currently restricted to high value crops or crops and insects that have become resistant to chemical insecticides. These shortcomings include speed of kill, high-host specificity, potential host development of resistance, and cost. Fortunately, unlike other biological control agents, baculoviruses can be genetically modified to improve these aspects. Continued development of these viruses through genetic engineering will likely provide safer long-term ecological impacts and more efficient pest control. This article is a product of a semester-long research project in BIOL342 Viruses and Technology course aimed to explore beneficial applications of viruses while honing skills for processing primary research literature

The Analysis of Superintendents’ Perspectives on the Role and Function of Secondary Band Programs in Coastal Georgia

Although some administrative roles in music education provide research literature, the superintendent’s role and performance expectations concerning the sixth through the twelfth-grade bands have yet to be examined in rural, urban, and coastal Georgia. Superintendent leadership of administrative staff decisions and policy creation influence the role of the school band; therefore, this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological study illustrates that when superintendents set ambitious goals and standards for learners, children develop mounting, robust expectations in school band performance. The qualitative research hermeneutic phenomenological method analyzed the superintendent’s role and performance expectations of sixth through twelfth-grade bands in rural, urban, and coastal Georgia, which provides a unique opportunity for this study. Superintendents and their management teams are responsible for the activities and guidelines of the school system and accountable to school boards, the civic community, parents, and students. In assessments of the six counties in the coastal Georgia area, superintendents provide awareness of leadership decision-making and philosophy concerning the sixth through twelfth-grade band role and expectations. Analysis of the researched literature and completed surveys demonstrated the superintendent’s importance in the sixth through twelfth-grade band role and expectations. The superintendent’s philosophy of music education, leadership, and policy creation proves pathways for band performance, expectations, and styles. In addition, further research is needed to identify other factors influencing sixth through twelfth-grade band performance roles and expectations in rural areas, urban, and coastal Georgia areas from Chatham to Camden County school districts