The Use of Simulation Technology in Sport Finance Courses: The Case of the Oakland A’s Baseball Business Simulator

Teaching a graduate level sport finance class can be quite complex. With a variety of concepts, such as pricing, budgeting, and public funding, to convey in a limited amount of time, new forms of pedagogy are necessary to assist instructors as this technologically-advanced generation enters into academia. Subsequently, technology has been created to apply basic concepts related to finance to the complexity of a professional sports organization. One such program is the Oakland A’s Baseball Business Simulator. Through interviews and “emotional recall” (Ellis, 2004), this evaluative case study seeks to determine the effectiveness of this technology within this environment.Business simulation; sports business; sport finance; web-based simulations; business of baseball; case study.

Simulation in Sport Finance

Simulations have long been used in business schools to give students experience making real-world decisions in a relatively low-risk environment. The OAKLAND A’S BASEBALL BUSINESS SIMULATOR takes a traditional business simulation and applies it to the sport industry where sales of tangible products are replaced by sales of an experience provided to fans. The simulator asks students to make decisions about prices for concessions, parking, and merchandise, player payroll expenses, funding for a new stadium, and more. Based on these inputs, the program provides detailed information about the state of the franchise after each simulated year, including attendance, winning percentage, revenues vs. expenses, revenue sharing, and stadium financing. The use of simulations such as this one enhances students’ organizational skills and students’ ability to think critically and imaginatively about the data while applying relevant knowledge and an appropriate strategy to achieve the best possible results. This is particularly important in the field of sport management where few, if any, other simulators exist that are specific to the field.baseball business; computer-based learning; simulation/gaming; stadium/facility financing; sport finance; sport management

Sequence Effects on the Glass Transition Temperature

Lithium ion batteries are widely used for the energy needs of portable electronic devices. Unfortunately, current liquid organic solvents used as the electrolytic portion of the battery have low thermal stability, resulting in batteries that may combust upon failure. This flammability can be attributed to the configurational strain in cyclic organic electrolytes. Due to the lack of configurational strain in a flexible polymer chain, designing polymer electrolytes for use in lithium ion batteries may result in a safer battery due to their lower flammability in comparison to traditional liquid organic electrolytes. From the perspective of an electrolytic polymer, lowering the glass transition temperature has been shown to increase the ionic conductivity, potentially solving what previously has prevented the application of polyelectrolytes in commercial batteries. A lower glass transition temperature is a result of increased chain mobility and therefore charge mobility between adjacent chains. One way of doing this is by changing the composition of the polymer; specifically, by inserting monomers that interact unfavorably with the electrolytic monomer, the resulting sequenced polymer chain should exhibit a lower glass transition temperature due to these unfavorable interactions. By adjoining dissimilar monomers, we can lower the glass transition temperature of a polymer while retaining the bulk behavior of the electrolytic monomer. This work shows the sequence dependence on lowering the glass transition temperature of a polymer by unfavorable interactions in contrasting monomers

Efficacy Of Constructed Wetlands Of Various Depths For Natural Amphibian Community Conservation

Wetlands provide critical habitat for a diverse group of amphibians and provide important ecosystem functions and services to humans. Despite this, most natural wetlands have been lost to land use practices. Consequently, constructing wetlands has become a common practice to mitigate for removed wetlands and to manage for wildlife. There were three primary objectives of this research: 1) to examine whether or not constructed wetlands located on ridge tops in eastern Kentucky in the Daniel Boone National Forest (DBNF) had amphibian communities comparable to natural ephemeral wetlands, 2) to examine amphibian predator-prey relationships within the constructed wetlands, and 3) to determine what wetland characteristics affect species composition. Three types of wetlands were sampled forested natural ephemeral, shallow constructed (\u3c 20 cm minimum depth), and deep constructed wetlands (\u3e 20 cm minimum depth). Within this system, natural wetlands are ephemeral, whereas constructed wetlands typically do not dry. As a result, many species of the natural ridge-top amphibian community were scarce in shallow constructed wetlands and absent in deep constructed wetlands. Additionally, due to constructed wetlands, dominant amphibian predator species, primarily associated with permanent water, Rana catesbeiana (American bullfrog) and Notophthalmus viridescens (eastern newt), were in greater abundances than would occur naturally. Stomach contents of R. catesbeiana contained amphibian remains confirming interspecies predation. Further, in constructed wetlands, water depth, pH, dissolved oxygen, water temperature, and emergent vegetation were greater, whereas canopy closure was lower compared to natural wetlands. These data have influenced DBNF land managers to revise wetland construction methods and renovate older deep constructed wetlands to attempt to replicate the hydrology of natural ridge-top wetlands

This May Not Be for You: Overcoming Self-centered Design

We often unknowingly (or knowingly) build content and interfaces for ourselves, which may not fit the diverse and ever-changing needs of our users. The University of Minnesota Libraries web development team incorporates the universal design principles of inclusivity, accessibility, and awesomeness, and stays accountable with regular usability testing. We\u27ll tell you how we do it, and why you should too. Expect to go away from this session with: * your mind totally blown; * strategies for implementation with access to the Libraries’ templates; * and insight for why donuts need to be in your budget