Why behavioural economics will not save the world

Behavioural economics is widely considered to be a signifi cant break from standard economic modelling. What is different about the behavioural economics approach? Is it as revolutionary as we are led to believe? What else does research in this fi eld offer

An Investigation into Mitigating Proteotoxicity In Vitro and In Vivo

Neurodegenerative diseases are often associated with issues in protein degradation brought on by protein aggregates and misfolded proteins that yield proteotoxicity. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) serves as the main focus for our lab, as we perform experiments in vitro and in vivo to try and reduce aggregation of mutant super oxide dismutase 1 (SOD1). Two approaches used for undertaking study of protein degradation: a small molecule SIRT2 inhibitor drug trial in G93A mice to test motor skills and survival, and a series of experiments inducing DNA damage and proteotoxicity to discern fluctuations in UBE4B and LSD1. Through 15-17 weeks of drug injections in both male and female cohorts, there was a small improvement in overall lifespan with the drug that was not statistically significant, and no significant differences between the drug and control groups in motor ability. Following inducing stress through various means, there were consistent patterns of reductions in key ubiquitin ligases and associated proteins across four cell lines: H293T, HCT P53 +/+, HCT P53 -/-, and NSC34. These findings offer affirmation in the potential that these proteins work synergistically in protein quality control pathways

Culture and Colonial Legacy: Evidence from Public Goods Games

We conduct a public goods game in three small towns in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Due to historical military conquest, until 1947 these towns were on (barely) opposite sides of a colonial border separating British India from the Princely States. Our research design offers a treatment comparison between the towns of (British) Kekri and (Princely) Sarwar, and a control comparison between (Princely) Sarwar and (Princely) Shahpura. We find no significant difference in contributions to home town groups, but a significant difference in contributions to mixed town groups. Participants in (British) Kekri are more co-operative (i.e., contribute more) in mixed town groups compared to those in (Princely) Sarwar. We find the differences are driven by individuals with family ties to the towns, and we find no differences in the control comparison. Our results highlight the enduring effects of colonial rule on social norms of co-operation

Religious riots and electoral politics in India

We study the effect of Hindu-Muslim riots on election results in India. We combine data on geo-coded riots with data on state elections and on demographics and public goods provision to construct a unique panel data set for 16 large states in India from 1981-2001. A new instrument is used that draws upon the random variation in the day of the week that Hindu festivals fall on, as set by a lunar calendar. The probability of a riot increases if a Hindu festival falls on a Friday, the holy day for Muslims. This allows us to isolate the causal effect of riots on electoral results.The results are also corrected for under-reporting of riots and their effect on nearby districts. We find that riots occurring in the year preceding an election increase the vote share of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party by at least 5 percentage points

Photo-induced Structural Changes in Polyolefin-nanoclay Composite

The morphology of films prepared by melt-blending polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) withand without nanoclay was investigated after exposure to outdoor solar radiations for 45 days utilising manytechniques. The Raman spectra revealed decreased intensity for all the characteristic Raman bands for PP andPE. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed formation of hydroxyl/hydroperoxy and carbonylgroups in the exposed samples. The weathered films after 45 days of solar exposure became brittle as indicatedby loss in physical properties and the stress-strain curves. The clay-containing films showed higher strengthloss after solar exposure. The fractured ends of the exposed films showed flat, smooth, and sharp surfaces,indicative of brittle fracture, compared to the unexposed sample.Defence Science Journal, 2008, 58(6), pp.778-784, DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.14429/dsj.58.170

Integrating poverty alleviation and environmental protection efforts : A socio-ecological perspective on menstrual health management

Apt menstrual health management is crucial to the livelihood of low-income, bottom of the pyramid (BOP) women as well as to environmental conservation. However, knowledge is still scant about the factors underpinning women's preferences towards menstrual products, and whether and how the environmental impact of different solutions matter to women's choices. We address this gap by proposing a socio-ecological perspective to understand whether a product's low environmental impact enhances low-income women's uptake of sanitary napkins, thereby supporting poverty alleviation objectives but also efforts geared towards environmental protection. Results from a discrete-choice experiment involving 164 women (n = 1148) in two Indian slums in Delhi and Ahmedabad show that sanitary products' biodegradability is the most important attribute affecting women's preferences towards menstrual hygiene management solutions, which also significantly interacts with women's socio-economic and socio-cultural characteristics. Our findings highlight the potential for business models to find positive synergies between environmental protection and poverty alleviation goals and to situate solutions within the larger socio-ecological context of receiving communities

Culture and colonial legacy: Evidence from public goods games

We conduct a public goods game in three small towns in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Due to historical military conquest, until 1947 these towns were on (barely) opposite sides of a colonial border separating British India from the Princely States. Our research design offers a treatment comparison between the towns of (British) Kekri and (Princely) Sarwar, and a control comparison between (Princely) Sarwar and (Princely) Shahpura. We find that participants in (British) Kekri are more co-operative (i.e., contribute more) in both home-town and mixed-town groups compared to those in (Princely) Sarwar. The latter differences are driven by individuals with family ties to the towns, and we find no differences in the control comparison. Our results highlight the enduring effects of colonial rule on social norms of co-operation.This project was funded by a Templeton Foundation grant (#59214) awarded to Rubin. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. This project was approved by the Chapman University IRB, Project #1617H011

Patterns of Anemia in Geriatric Age Group

Background: Anemia is a common concern in geriatric age group (more than 60 years of age)and can have significantly more severe complications than anemia in younger adults. WHO criteria determine anemia when the hemoglobin level is < 13 g/dl in male and < 12 g/dl in female. Aim: To study the proportion and morphological patterns of anemia in geriatric patients. Material and Methods: A hospital based study of patients of geriatric age group who have attended geriatric clinic and clinical OPD from November 2010 to April 2012 were studied.Detailed laboratory studies of diagnostic tests were done. Results: Out of 654 cases, 448 were found to be anemic amounting to 68.5 percentages. Proportion of anemia in males was 67.6%and in females it was 69.8 %. All the patterns of anemia based on peripheral smear were evident. Normocytic anemia was the commonest pattern constituting 79.4%. Conclusion: Con-firming the proportion and patterns of anemia is critical to direct the investigation for profiling the etiology since it is well known that the treatment of anemia goes a long way in improving the overall outcome and quality of life

State of Working India 2021: One Year of Covid-19

This report documents the impact of one year of Covid-19 in India, on jobs, incomes, inequality, and poverty. It also examines the effectiveness of policy measures that have thus far been undertaken to offer relief and support. Finally, it offers some policy suggestions for the near and medium-term future.When the pandemic hit, the Indian economy was already in the most prolonged slowdown in recent decades. On top of this, there were legacy problems such as a slow rate of job creation and lack of political commitment to improving working conditions which trapped a large section of the workforce without access to any employment security or social protection.Our analysis shows that the pandemic has further increased informality and led to a severe decline in earnings for the majority of workers resulting in a sudden increase in poverty. Women and younger workers have been disproportionately affected. Households have coped by reducing food intake, borrowing, and selling assets. Government relief has helped avoid the most severe forms of distress, but the reach of support measures is incomplete, leaving out some of the most vulnerable workers and households. We find that additional government support is urgently needed now for two reasons - compensating for the losses sustained during the first year and anticipating the impact of the second wave