Robustness of adaptive expectations as an equilibrium selection device

Equilibrium Theory;Rational Expectations

Bias dependent specic contact resistance of phase change material to metal contacts

Knowledge of contact resistance of phase change materials (PCM) to metal electrodes is important for scaling, device modeling and optimization of phase change random access memory (PCRAM) cells. In this article, we report the systematic determination of the speci_c contact resistance (_c) with voltage bias for doped Sb2Te to TiW metal electrodes. These data are reported for both the amorphous and the crystalline state of the PCM

Impact of sidewalls on electrical characterization

In this article the impact of sidewalls, formed during reactive ion etching, on the electrical behavior of thin film structures is presented. The presence of sidewalls was experimentally characterized by sheet resistance measurements on Van der Pauw structures. The effect of these sidewalls on the extraction of specific contact resistance from Cross Bridge Kelvin Resistance (CBKR) structures is discussed

Supporting the American Dream of Homeownership: An Assessment of Neighborhood Reinvestment's Home Ownership Pilot Program

Based on recommendations from a group of NeighborWorks organization (NWO) directors, Neighborhood Reinvestment initiated the Campaign for Home Ownership in 1993. That campaign provided NWOs with both funding and technical assistance to expand homeownership opportunities in the communities they serve. Based on the experiences of organizations involved with that campaign, Neighborhood Reinvestment staff distilled a model homeownership assistance strategy they call Full-Cycle Lending. This model includes six components: partnership building, pre-purchase home-buyer education, flexible loan products, property services, post-purchase counseling and neighborhood impact. Based on the success of this first five-year Campaign, Neighborhood Reinvestment supported a second five-year campaign called the Campaign for Home Ownership 2002.In 1998 Congress authorized $25 million for a NeighborWorks Home Ownership Pilot program designed to leverage additional local support and test new strategies for assisting first-time home buyers. In less than four months, the Neighborhood Reinvestment Home Ownership Campaign staff developed and implemented specific program guidelines for the distribution of funds to local NWOs. These guidelines allowed NWOs great flexibility in the use of Pilot funds including using the funds for upgrading computers, hiring staff, developing marketing plans and programs, capitalizing loan funds, providing down payment assistance as well as other uses.Campaign staff developed guidelines for three funding categories, A, B, and C, designed to respond to the different needs of NWOs. Category A grants (up to$500,000) were to assist NWOs that were already assisting 30 or more home buyers a year increase the number of home buyers assisted. Category B grants (up to $500,000) were to assist NWOs that were already assisting a large number of new home buyers enhance the positive impacts of home ownership on their target areas by undertaking other neighborhood improvement activities as well as increasing the number of home buyers assisted. Category C grants (up to$50,000) were to assist NWOs that were assisting a relatively low number of new home buyers build their capacities to do so. A total of 35 Category A grants were made, nine Category B grants and 40 Category C grants.To assist Campaign and Pilot sites in achieving their goals, Neighborhood Reinvestment provides several types of technical assistance. The semi-annual Neighborhood Reinvestment Training Institute offers a variety of courses on developing homeownership promotion programs and home-owner education methods. Neighborhood Reinvestment has also developed an extensive array of marketing materials that can be used by Campaign and Pilot organizations. Finally, Neighborhood Reinvestment Campaign and field staff assist participating organizations with special challenges as they arise.This report is the second of three reports evaluating the outcomes, implementation process and impacts of the Pilot. The outcome evaluation was designed to document the results of the Pilot including the number of persons trained and/or counseled, the number of new home owners assisted, and the value of housing units purchased, built or rehabilitated with the assistance of the Pilot organizations. This evaluation is based on information provided to Neighborhood Reinvestment by participating NWOs. The process evaluation was designed to document and evaluate the efforts of Neighborhood Reinvestment and participating NWOs in planning and implementing the Pilot programs. This part of the evaluation is based on interviews conducted in two rounds of site visits to eight Category A and B Pilot programs -- once in the fall of 1999 and once in the spring and summer of 2001. Finally, the impact evaluation was designed to assess the influence of the Pilot on the participating NWOs and their clients. The evaluation is based on interviews with NWO staff and focus groups of new home owners assisted in the eight sites visited

Berges Maximum Theorem With Two Topologies On The Action Set (Now published in Economics Letters, vol.61 (1999), pp.285-291.)

We give variants on Berge's Maximum Theorem in which the lower and the upper semicontinuities of the preference relation are assumed for two different topologies on the action set, i.e., the set of actions availabe a priori to the decision-maker (e.g. a household with its consumption set). Two new uses are pointed to. One result, stated here without a detailed proof, is the norm-to-weak* continuity of consumer demand as a function of prices (a property pointed to in existing literature but without proof or precise formulation). This improves significantly upon an earlier demand continuity result which, with the extremally strong 'finite' topology on the price space, is of limited interest other than as a vehicle for an equilibrium existence proof. With the norm topology on the price space, our demand continuity result acquires an independent significance - particularly for practical implementations of the equilibrium solution. The second application referred to establishes the continuity of the optimal plan as a function of the decision-maker's information (represented by a field of events in a probability spcace of states).Berge’s Maximum Theorem, demand continuity

Competition Law and Policy in Flux: The Developing Country Experience Symposium on Competition Law and Policy in Developing Countries: Introduction

This issue sheds light on the meaningful themes which are the driving forces in the global sphere of competition law and policy. It is also pertinent to note that the timing of this symposium is unique and coincides with the annual conference of the International Competition Network (ICN) to be held in South Africa in May 2006. The ICN is the only international body devoted exclusively to competition law enforcement and it consists of some ninety-four competition authorities from eighty-three countries. It has also become the premier international discussion forum on competition issues. With great pride, I invite you to be part of this symposium issue. Northwestern University\u27s Journal of International Law and Business has always strived to keep abreast the foremost issues that fall within the nexus of international, legal and business issues. This special symposium issue continues to uphold this tradition while serving as a forum that has gathered different perspectives on the topic of competition law and policy in developing countries-a forum that will hopefully educate its audiences, as well as generate responses and discussion amongst its readers

Development in International Energy Law

International energy law embodies a matter of keen interest that affects the daily lives of citizens in developing and developed countries worldwide. Among numerous other effects, international energy law influences gas prices, wages, employment rates and domestic market regulations. The weight of these direct consequences of international energy law and policy led to the creation of this year\u27s symposium topic. The goal of this year\u27s symposium is to identify issues arising from various international energy laws as well as to understand the effects that recent international events, including the fall of Enron, the creation of NAFTA and the political unrest in the Middle East, have had on the formulation and implementation of international energy law. The papers in this issue examine the corporate, political, social, legal and other factors impacted by energy law and policy across the globe. Each article in the symposium issue addresses cross-cutting issues relating to the field of international energy law, in the hopes that every country may draw lessons from successful laws or policies as well as mistakes made

Introduction: Symposium on the Globalization of Private Equity: Changes in the International market and the Impact on Private Equity Investments

The title of this year\u27s symposium is Globalization of Private Equity: Changes in the International Market and the Impact on Private Equity Investments. As reflected by the title, the goal of this year\u27s symposium is to explore the changes in the private equity industry after the financial crisis. The papers in this issue examine topics such as the future of convergence between hedge funds and private equity, the legal and ethical implications of vulture funds in developing countries, and the legal, ethical, and financial implications surrounding valuation and disclosure. Additionally, this issue will explore the contentious legal and political debate over the proper taxation of the carried interest. Each article in this symposium issue addresses important topics currently being debated in the field of private equity, with the hope that this discourse will enhance the discussions currently occurring throughout the private equity industry