OPTIMAL STEADY STATES AND THE EFFECTS OF DISCOUNTING

A simple expression for finding and characterizing the optimal steady state of a general dynamic optimization problem is derived. This expression is easy to interpret and easy to apply for various purposes as, for example, to analytically investigate the effect of the discount rate upon optimal steady state stock levels. It is shown that an increase in the discount rate may result in higher optimal stock levels even in the one-dimensional (single species) case in nonlinear models. An important result is that if demand is inelastic at the optimal steady state, a higher discount rate will unequivocally imply higher standing stock(s). Increasing marginal cost of harvest will further strengthen this result. In the multidimensional case it is demonstrated that an increased discount rate may result in higher optimal stock levels for all stocks included in the model.Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

The Premium of Marine Protected Areas: A Simple Valuation Model

The article addresses the induced cost, the premium, from establishing a marine protected area in a deterministic model of a fishery. Outside the protected area, the fishery is managed optimally through total allowable catch quotas. The premium is found to be increasing and convex along the protection parameter. Biological measures are introduced to increase the understanding of the mechanisms in the bioeconomic system. Time-series solutions show that the net return per unit of fish increases after the protected area is established.Bioeconomics, dynamic programming, fisheries management, marine protected areas, migration, modeling, optimization, renewable resources., International Development, International Relations/Trade, Political Economy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, C61, Q22, Q57.,

Murnaghan-Nakayama Rule The Explanation and Usage of the Algorithm

Character values are not the easiest to calculate, so it is important to find good algorithms that can help ease these calculations. In the 20th century, the two mathematicians Murnaghan and Nakayama developed a rule that calculates character values for partitions on some computations. This rule has later been given the name The Murnaghan-Nakayama rule, after these two authors. The Murnaghan-Nakayama rule is a combinatorial method for computing character values of irreducible representations of symmetric groups. This makes this rule an important part of representation theory. One of the versions of this rule is stated in the recursive Murnaghan-Nakayama rule. Where, in this version, we can use border strips and diagrams to calculate the character values of representations on a given composition. This algorithm is quite fast in these calculations. The Murnaghan-Nakayama rule can also be considered a central algorithm in representation theory over symmetric groups. It is a fascinating and powerful algorithm that has a strong connection to both combinatorics and representation theory

Stochastic Stackelberg equilibria with applications to time dependent newsvendor models

In this paper we prove a sufficient maximum principle for general stochastic differential Stackelberg games, and apply the theory to continuous time newsvendor problems. In the newsvendor problem a manufacturer sells goods to a retailer, and the objective of both parties is to maximize expected profits under a random demand rate. Our demand rate is an Ito-Levy process, and to increase realism information is delayed, e.g., due to production time. We provide complete existence and uniqueness proofs for a series of special cases, including geometric Brownian motion and the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process, both with time variable coefficients. Moreover, these results are operational because we are able to offer explicit solution formulas. An interesting finding is that more precise information may be a considerable disadvantage for the retailer.Stochastic differential games; newsvendor model; delayed information; Ito-Levy processes

Women Artists from non-Western Backgrounds in the Swedish Context : An Intersectional Perspective to Artistic Resistance

This study explores the topics of equality and inclusion of non-Western immigrant artists into the Western mainstream arts scene. Through an intersectional research focus, it argues that being a woman from a non-Western ethnic background and being an artist create site specific challenges for artists in gaining recognition and success within the industry. The main argument states that the Western art world still carries neocolonial overtones, and that the institutional practices of multiculturalism rely on a problematic manner of tokenism which creates a new stereotype of an exotic non-Western artist with strong roots in their cultural backgrounds. As a case study, this thesis analyzes the topic of equality in the contemporary Swedish art scene, as well as the artistic intervention strategies the artists employ to challenge the hierarchical and exclusive traits in the arts industry. The works of art by two women artists/artist duos practicing in Sweden, namely Roxy Farhat and Mahoyo, are examined through a visual content analysis method to explore art’s function as a means of critical intervention into the systems of oppression and marginalization. Through the critical works of art by the afore-mentioned artists, the study aims to answer the question of how artistic personal narratives of intersectional identities confront and challenge the grand narratives on multiculturalism, anti-racism and gender equality in the Swedish context. It is concluded that artistic narratives of intersectional identities are of great importance since they reclaim the right to define themselves, and to get their own perspectives acknowledged in an industry that still tends rely on stereotypical definitions of the other. By using art as a political and critical tool, these artists demand transformation from the arts scene to do away with privileges and to better accommodate different identities and perspectives

A Survey and Analysis of Outsourcing in East China

The aim of this study is to investigate whether outsourcing activities in east china are associated with a theoretical framework derived from the literature. By the methodology of Statistics Package for the Social Science (SPSS), the results of survey indicate that outsourcing will more extensively practiced in the future, the principal outsourcing motivation are to reduce costs and focus on core businesses. The purchasing outsourcing has the largest correlation coefficients with short-term contract, the total outsourcing has a significant correlation coefficient with long-term contract at the level of =0.05. The findings indicate that high service quality and mutual trust are the main criteria for selecting outsourcing vendors. However, it is found that outsourcing satisfaction is generally low. The main benefits of outsourcing are to reduce cost, concentrate on core businesses and improve the service quality, while the main problems with outsourcing are legal disputes, disclosure of commercial secrets and conflicts with vendors.Outsourcing; strategy; contract; survey

"More is Less": The Tax Effects of Ignoring Flow Externalities

Using a model of nonlinear decay of the stock pollutant, and starting from the same initial conditions, the paper shows that an optimal tax that corrects for both stock and flow externalities may result in a lower tax, fewer cumulative emissions (less decay) and higher output at the steady state than a corrective tax that ignores the flow externality. The "more is less" result emphasises that setting a corrective tax that ignores the flow externality, or imposing a corrective tax at too low a level where there exists only a stock externality, may affect both transitory and steady state output, tax payments and cumulative emissions. The result has important policy implications for decision makers setting optimal corrective taxes and targeted emission limits whenever stock externalities exist.taxes,stock and flow externalities,nonlinear decay,climate change