Proxy of democracy? : metaphors of connection as arguments against representation

This paper aims to assess the arguments that claim representative democracy may be enhanced or replaced by an updated electronic version. Focusing on the dimension of elections and electioneering as the core mechanism of representative democracy I will discuss: (1) the proximity argument used to claim the necessity of filling the gap between decision-makers and stakeholders; (2) the transparency argument, which claims to remove obstacles to the publicity of power; (3) the bottom-up argument, which calls for a new form of legitimacy that goes beyond classical mediation of parties or unions; (4) the public sphere argument, referred to the problem of hierarchical relation between voters and their representatives; (5) the disintermediation argument, used to describe the (supposed) new form of democracy following the massive use of ICTs. The first way of conceptualizing e-democracy as different from mainstream 20th century representative democracy regimes is to imagine it as a new form direct democracy: this conception is often underlying contemporary studies of e-voting. To avoid some of the ingenuousness of this conception of e-democracy, we should take a step back and consider a broader range of issues than mere gerrymandering around the electoral moment. Therefore I shall problematize the abovementioned approach by analyzing a wider range of problems connected to election and electioneering in their relation with ICTs

Tra arbitrarietà e ragionevolezza : riflessioni analitiche di teoria politica e giuridica

Título del seminario: "50º aniversiario de The concept of law"«Ragionevolezza» – sembra superfluo rilevarlo – è un termine usato e abusato del linguaggio giuridico contemporaneo, spesso utilizzato da giudici e giuristi come chiave di volta per comprendere – cito da una monografia sul tema – «la tessitura logica (non deduttiva) e la natura politica del sindacato di legittimità tout court»

U.S. REITs: A Financial Economics Review as of 2018

Abstract The U.S. Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) sector, since its inception in the 1960s, has been witness to continuous evolution. The numerous events that have characterized its growth and its actual structure over time have made this sector an object of interest many researchers and authors, who tried to give answers to several financial questions that are still open to debate. We contend that a global review of financial literature on this specific industry could give good suggestions for further research themes for all those who are interested in studying the U.S. REIT market and its characteristics and for investors at large

Altermagnetic surface states: towards the observation and utilization of altermagnetism in thin films, interfaces and topological materials

The altermagnetism influences the electronic states allowing the presence of non-relativistic spinsplittings. Since altermagnetic spin-splitting is present along specific k-paths of the 3D Brillouin zone, we expect that the altermagnetic surface states will be present on specific surface orientations. We unveil the properties of the altermagnetic surface states considering three representative space groups: tetragonal, orthorhombic and hexagonal. We calculate the 2D projected Brillouin zone from the 3D Brillouin zone. We study the surfaces with their respective 2D Brillouin zones establishing where the spin-splittings with opposite sign merge annihilating the altermagnetic properties and on which surfaces the altermagnetism is preserved. Looking at the three principal surface orientations, we find that for several cases two surfaces are blind to the altermagnetism, while the altermagnetism survives for one surface orientation. Which surface preserves the altermagnetism depends also on the magnetic order. We show that an electric field orthogonal to the blind surface can activate the altermagnetism. Our results predict which surfaces to cleave in order to preserve altermagnetism in surfaces or interfaces and this paves the way to observe non-relativistic altermagnetic spin-splitting in thin films via spin-resolved ARPES and to interface the altermagnetism with other collective modes. We open future perspectives for the study of altermagnetic effects on the trivial and topological surface states.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figure