Economic evaluation of bank exit regimes in US, EU and Japanese financial centres

This paper evaluates bank exit regimes in selected financial centres using econometric methods. The focus is on bank exit regimes applicable to commercial banks in New York, London, Frankfurt, Helsinki and Tokyo in 1998–2002. Bank exit regimes are studied from the perspective of bank creditors and bank shareholders. In order to apply econometric methods, the exit regimes are indexed and then evaluated by comparing them with market indicators that reflect the interests of bank creditors and shareholders. These market indicators comprise bank refinancing costs and bank growth rates. In other words, two specific questions are addressed: (1) Do differences in bank exit regimes of significance to bank creditors explain differences in bank refinancing costs? (2) Do differences in bank exit regimes significant to bank shareholders explain differences in bank growth? The study shows that in those financial centres where the probability of bailout is higher, refinancing costs for banks are lower.evaluation; bank; regulation; supervision; reorganisation; liquidation

Regulatory choices in global financial markets – restoring the role of aggregate utility in the shaping of market supervision

In financial market studies, public supervision has rarely been found to have any effects on financial market development. This is true, even though the primary objective of supervisory legislation is the limitation of market failures and externalities. Studies conducted by eg the World Bank and La Porta & al imply that whereas private enforcement contributes to financial market development, there is limited evidence that public supervision does the same. The objective of the paper is to empirically investigate the relation between public supervision and financial market development. This is done by focusing on major legislative features directing the supervisor and hence affecting market participant activities. The markets investigated comprise banks, investment firms, investment fund companies and listed companies in the United States, United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, Poland and Estonia for the years 1996 to 2005. The results suggest that certain features of public supervision correlate with financial market development. Strong legal obligations for the supervisor to develop legislation correlate significantly with higher company market values. Emphasizing economic aspects in the formulation of supervisory objectives corresponds with higher market profitability. Furthermore, severe monetary sanctions applicable to company directors correlate negatively with market growth. Unexpectedly, the same is true for a high degree of supervisory independence. The results imply links between public supervision and financial market development in a manner not always in line with previous research. Why this is the case, requires further investigation. One possible explanation may be methodological, based on the fact that in the present study legislative features are perceived in a conceptual rather than a technical manner.financial institution; regulation; supervision; utility

Prospects for a Nuclear Optical Frequency Standard based on Thorium-229

The 7.6-eV-isomer of Thorium-229 offers the opportunity to perform high resolution laser spectroscopy of a nuclear transition. We give a brief review of the investigations of this isomer. The nuclear resonance connecting ground state and isomer may be used as the reference of an optical clock of very high accuracy using trapped and laser-cooled thorium ions, or in a compact solid-state optical frequency standard of high stability.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure; Proceedings of the 7th Symposium on Frequency Standards and Metrology, 5-11 October 2008; reference added for section

A New Three-Dimensional Rockfall Trajectory Simulator for Open-Pit Mines

Background. Rockfall hazards on open-pit highwalls are composed of two major associated risks, the chance of the rockfall itself and the area impacted by falling rock blocks or the runout zone. Rockfall trajectory assessment is essential for estimating consequences of such incidents. Several simulation techniques in the form of computer programs have been developed for this purpose. They are used to obtain the required basis for protection designs and safety considerations in rockfall prone areas.Innovations. In this thesis, a new three-dimensional analytical program was developed for rockfall trajectory simulation and estimating runout zones. This program is designed to effectively read and visualize topographies composed of large numbers of mesh elements. It utilizes special algorithms to enable fast and effective simulations of high-resolution terrain models. The output generated by this program includes rockfall trajectories providing bounce heights, rockfall velocities and impact locations for safety designs and rock trace maps that identify hazardous zones. Both may be used by operations management to designate safe working stations in open-pit mines.Results. The developed program was calibrated using small-scale bounce tests where a detailed study was conducted on the efficiency of the program to accurately simulate bounce heights and lengths. Moreover, the performance of the program was examined in an actual open-pit mine to highlight specific capabilities of incorporated algorithms for trajectory modeling and processing high-resolution terrain models. Based on results from the case study, the program’s modeling showed acceptable correspondence to experimental results as well as reliable performance in trajectory simulation of rockfalls in terms of time-effective analysis and reasonable outcome given assumptions and input parameters

Hur man skiljer på typ 1 och typ 2 diabetes vid diagnos hos patienter över 16 år

Mål: Diabetes är en sjukdom som uppstår då bukspottkörteln inte kan producera tillräckliga mängder av insulin för att upprätthålla en fysiologisk nivå på blodsockret. Olika patofyisologiska mekanismer ligger bakom detta tillstånd och är beroende på typen av diabetes. För optimal vård av diabetes, är det viktigt att vid ett tidigt skede kunna utgöra vilken typ av diabetes en patient har insjuknat i. Metod: I denna studie undersökte vi vilka kliniska variabler är mest betydande för att skilja mellan typ 1 och typ 2 diabetes, vid tidpunkten av diagnos. Vi använder dessa variabler för att träna och validerar en CART maskininlärnigsmodell för att kunna skilja på typ 1 och typ 2 diabetes, speciellt i fall där det är oklart vilken subtyp patenten hör till. Resultat: Blodsockernivå, C-peptidnivå samt deras förhållande och BMI samt ålder vid insjunkning i diabetes visade sig vara de mest signifikanta kliniska variablerna. Vår modell klarade av att skilja på typ 1 och typ 2 diabetes med 91,8 % noggrannhet av testdatat som bestod av 1175 patienter. CART modellen är således en användbar modell för att differentiera diabetes typer vid tidpunkten av diagnos hos patienter över 16 år. (190 ord

Bio-social aspects of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Neurophysiology, maturity, motor function and how symptoms relate to family interaction

The purpose of this thesis has been to study biological and social factors of importance for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Thirty children (age 6-11) with ADHD were examined with parent ratings, neurological examination, cognitive testing, cerebral blood-flow, and EEG. These children together with 14 other children the same age with ADHD, were video-taped during family-tasks before and after three months of treatment with amphetamine. Parents answered questionnaires concerning family functioning and parental well-being. Two-hundred and fifty-one children (age 6-9) were examined with skeletal bone-age, motor examination by the physical education teacher, and parent and teacher questionnaires concerning ADHD-symptoms. Thirty-five children were video-taped during neurological examination. Twenty children were examined on two occasions with four weeks between the examinations. Eighty-nine children age 5½, and 23 children age 7-9 underwent neurological examination and parents were interviewed concerning their child’s motor development. The results from the examination of cerebral blood-flow suggest that there may be at least two functional disturbances in children with ADHD, one involving the frontal lobes, especially on the right side, related to behavioural deviance, and another disturbance of the integration of the temporal lobes, the cerebellum and subcortical structures related to motor planning and aspects of cognition. The study of family function gives support to the notion that some aspects of family dysfunction may be related to the child’s ADHD behaviour. Variables related to general biological maturity did not correlate with ADHD-symptoms. The neurological “soft-signs” examination studied, was found to have good reliability and validity as a measure of motor function and can be recommended for clinical practice and research