European Union state aid, public subsidies and analogue switch-off/digital switchover

This article considers the European Union’s (EU) role in the media and communications field concerning analogue switch-off/digital switchover. It focuses on the EU Competition Directorate’s approach concerning the application of the State Aid mechanism with regard to those Member States who have used public subsidies for digital switchover. Therefore, this analysis considers how the Directorate has sought to balance its market-driven set of rules with the need to be adaptable to the Member States’ specific requirements. In turn, this account will discuss how the demand to achieve the 2012 completion deadline, alongside the requirement to release analogue spectrum to realize a digital dividend, impacted upon the EU’s principles of competition. Finally, this analysis will reflect on how the employment of State Aid in relation to digital switchover relates to a wider debate concerning the EU’s neo-liberal agendas against Member States’ interests to promote their national cultures

The Impact of Output and Exchange Rate Volatility on Fixed Private Investment: Evidence from Selected G7 Countries

This study examines the impact of shocks to exchange rate and output uncertainty (volatility) on real private fixed investment (FI) in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. The analysis is conducted using vector autoregressive models that contain the price level, real output, the volatility of real output, the real exchange rate, the volatility of the real exchange rate, an interest rate and FI. The results yield important public policy implications with regard to the impact of output volatility of FI. Our analysis indicates that volatility shocks, measured as output volatility or exchange rate volatility, do not have a significant impact on FI for any country in our study

(WP 2013-06) The Impact of Output and Exchange Rate Volatility on Fixed Private Investment: Evidence from Selected G7 Countries

This study examines the impact of shocks to exchange rate and output uncertainty (volatility) on real private fixed investment (FI) in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The analysis is conducted using vector autoregressive models that contain the price level, real output, the volatility of real output, the real exchange rate, the volatility of the real exchange rate, an interest rate, and FI. The results yield important public policy implications with regard to the impact of output volatility of FI. Our analysis indicates that volatility shocks, measured as output volatility or exchange rate volatility, do not have a significant impact on FI for any country in our study

Does Real Exchange Rate Volatility Affect Foreign Direct Investment? Evidence from Four Developed Economies

This study examines the impact of shocks to exchange rate uncertainty (volatility) on foreign direct investment (FDI) in Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The analysis is conducted using vector autoregressive models that contain the price level, real output, the real exchange rate, the volatility of the real exchange rate, the interest rate, and FDI. The results from variance decompositions yield public policy implications. In Canada, Japan, and the United States, innovations to exchange rate uncertainty explain significant portions of the forecast error variance in FDI at longer time horizons. The impulse response functions indicate that, to the extent that shocks to exchange rate volatility have an impact on FDI, the impact is positive and takes place with a lag

‘The Wire’ reflects a declining American cityscape where people’s lives have become more dangerous and less comprehensible

The concept that dramatic fiction should be a form of truth, and not just entertainment is not a new one, and much of contemporary cultural production now aims to hold a mirror up to society. Mark Wheeler takes a close look at how television series The Wire has provided telling insights into contemporary urban American life. He writes that the series reflects the rise of free-market neoliberalism in US cities, which has led to the collapse of the social justice system. He argues that through its characters and stories, The Wire reflects the current conflicts between individual activism, in its portrayal of gangs and drug dealers, and the institutional stasis of law enforcement and city officials

The Economics of the Great Depression

This book contributes to our understanding of the Great Depression\u27s immediate and long-term impacts on the American economy. Editor Mark Wheeler has gathered six scholars from a range of subdisciplines within economics who, together, offer a diverse look at the Depression\u27s effects on the nation\u27s GDP, workers and labor markets, and monetary policy.https://research.upjohn.org/up_press/1192/thumbnail.jp

Primary Concerns: an investigation into the reduction in impact of the televised debate in U.S presidential primary campaigns

An MA submitted in part-fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of MA in US Politics and Contemporary History, Institute for the Study of the Americas, 2007-8

30 WS North Base Wind Study

The 30 Weather Squadron (30 WS) is concerned about strong winds observed at their northern towers without advance warning. They state that terrain influences along the extreme northern fringes of Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) make it difficult for forecasters to issue timely and accurate high wind warnings for northeasterly wind events. These events tend to occur during the winter or early spring when they are under the influence of the Great Basin high pressure weather regime. The Launch Weather Officers (LWOs) have seen these rapid wind increases in the current northern Towers 60, 70 and 71 in excess of their 35 kt operational warning threshold. For this task, the 30 WS requested the Applied Meteorology Unit (AMU) analyze data from days when these towers reported winds in excess of 35 kt and determine if there were any precursors in the observations that would allow the LWOs to better forecast and warn their operational customers for these wind events. The 30 WS provided wind tower data for the cool season (October - March) from the period January 2004-March 20 IO. The AMU decoded and evaluated the wind tower data for 66 days identified by the 30 WS as having high-wind events. Out of the 66 event days, only 30 had wind speed observations of > or =35 kt from at least one of the three northern towers. The AMU analyzed surface and upper air charts to determine the synoptic conditions for each event day along with tower peak wind speed and direction time series and wind rose charts for all 30 event days. The analysis revealed a trend on all event days in which the tower winds shifted to the northeast for a period of time before the first recorded > or =35 kt wind speed. The time periods for the 30 event days ranged from 20 minutes to several hours, with a median value of 110 minutes. This trend, if monitored, could give the 30 WS forecasters a precursor to assist in issuing an operational warning before a high wind event occurs. The AMU recommends developing a high-wind alert capability for VAFB using a local mesoscale model to forecast these wind events. The model should incorporate all of the VAFB local data sets and have a forecast capability of between 2 to 24 hours. Such a model would allow the meteorologists at VAFB to alert the operational customers of high wind events in a timely manner so protective action could be taken

The introduction of ICT in fieldwork to enhance student learning

Report of a CELT project on supporting students through innovation and researchThe aim of the project was to introduce a dedicated ICT package into the fieldwork experience in order to enhance student learning in the field at a range of levels and in a number of subject areas. The field kit consists of a laptop computer, digital camera with multi-card reader, global positioning system (GPS), video camera, portable scanner and printer. The kit is kept in a waterproof portable case specifically for student fieldwork use (Plate 1). A digital microscope and video camera is also separately available. The students have been able to use the equipment in the field in order to produce supporting materials to enhance their fieldwork. For example the IT package has been used in conjunction with a data-logger on mapping equipment allowing maps to be printed in the field for detailed recording of field sites. Also the use of digital and video cameras has allowed students to take responsibility for identifying and recording aspects of fieldwork for their reports