Modelling Share Price Behaviour Across Time

The Efficient Markets Hypothesis (EMH) is currently the dominant paradigm in Finance. This paper reviews the theoretical development of the hypothesis and the empirical testing which has occurred to determine its validity. Furthermore, empirical anomalies found by researchers in the Weak Form of the EMH are discussed and their theoretical interpretation critiqued. This paper also provides an overview of the Hamilton (1989) model and its extensions, one of the many econometric models developed in order to model the non-linearity in time-series such as stock prices.

States of Uncertainty: Youth Unemployment in Europe. Report

Youth unemployment is one of the biggest problems facing Europe. It has increased substantially in most countries since the 2008–2009 financial crisis, but has been rising relative to the unemployment rate of older adults for far longer. This report presents new statistical analysis of the problem, and uses the results to assess the different roles that education and training, business behaviour and labour market institutions play in young people’s transition from compulsory schooling to a job suitable to their level of skills and qualifications. It concludes that policymakers need to focus on this transition in its entirety, rather than on narrow labour-market measures, if they are to reduce youth unemployment and improve the prospects of young people across Europe

Assessing the Impact of Caregiver Outcomes on Function and Reintegration of Stroke Survivors Participating in a Community Stroke Rehabilitation Program.

There is a limited amount of literature evaluating the relationship between caregivers, and the stroke survivors’ function and reintegration. The objectives were to evaluate the association between caregivers’ lifestyle changes on function and the role of functioning as a moderator between caregiving and reintegration among stroke survivors receiving community-based rehabilitation. Data were collected from January 2011 to January 2016. A one-way repeated measures analysis of variance and multivariable linear regression were performed on Functional Independence Measure, Bakas Caregiving Outcomes Scale, Reintegration to Normal Living Index across admission, discharge, and follow-up. Mean age was 70.2±13.17 years with 58% males (n=200). A “change for the worst” in caregivers was associated with improvements in functioning between admission and discharge (

PRODUCER SERVICES: AN ENGINE FOR HIGH-WAGE JOB GROWTH

Producer services providers are firms that sell services primarily to the business community rather than to individuals and households. Many producer services businesses are classified in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Service (PSTS) industry. Accounting firms, consultants, and computer design services are prominent examples of PSTS businesses that are worth studying for three reasons: 1. SUPPORT OF OTHER INDUSTRIES: PSTS industries supply the broader business community, making them a critical segment of the economy. 2. RAPID HIGH WAGE JOB GROWTH: Many PSTS industries are rapidly growing and pay high wages. The producer services sector, in fact, is the principal source of high-wage job growth in our evolving service economy. 3. STEM ASSOCIATION: PSTS industries employ high numbers of STEM workers, itself a critical segment of the economy. By2022 over 40% of the jobs in top STEMoccupations are expected to be in producer service industries1. This report highlights the performance of the PSTS sector in the nation and Nebraska over the last decade and explores whether the state of Nebraska has captured a significant share of sector employment. The report updates of 2015, 2017, and 2019 reports on the same topic authored by Brock Thompson, Eric Thompson, Uyen Tran, and Kalana Jayanetti. The current report covers a period before the recession caused by the Covid-19 Pandemic

Sales Capture Patterns among Nebraska Counties

Sales capture, the share of local spending power that is captured by area businesses, is an important measure of economic activity. Greater sales capture, which is typically measured using data on local taxable sales, creates multiple benefits for the economy. 1. EMPLOYMENT: Greater sales capture means more employment in retailers, wholesalers, restaurants, hotels, and other businesses subject to sales tax. 2. TAX REVENUE: Taxable sales are an important part of the tax base of many city governments. 3. QUALITY OF LIFE: Retail and hospitality (restaurants, lodging, amusement, and recreation) businesses account for a significant share of taxable sales. These industries are also crucial to the quality of life. Communities with more hospitality and retail options are more enjoyable places to live, and may be better able to attract or retain the population. This report uses county-level taxable sales data from the Nebraska Department of Revenue to calculate sales capture, using a measure called a “pull factor.” The value of the pull factor is found by dividing county per capita taxable sales by the state average per capita taxable sales. The state average represents the expected taxable sales in a county, given its population. The Taxable Sales Measure This report utilizes 2019 data. This is the most recent data available for a year that was not impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Data for 2019 also more fully captures online retailing. Specifically, the taxation of online retailing changed significantly in Nebraska during 2017 and 2018. Prior to those changes, online retailers were not required to collect Nebraska sales tax if they did not have a physical presence in Nebraska. By June 2018, however, most online retailers were required to collect sales tax for purchases occurring in the state of Nebraska. A final reason to use data for a recent year like 2019 is the rapid growth in online shopping. Taxable sales data from the Nebraska Department of Revenue also provide an appropriate measure of sales. A significant share of taxable sales in Nebraska occurs in industries such as retail stores, restaurants, hotels, and leisure and hospitality industries. These industries primarily reflect the spending patterns of household consumers, and as a result reflect the quality of life. At the same time, the sales of intermediate manufactured goods are excluded from taxable sales in Nebraska. This is appropriate for the current analysis. Manufacturing activity is an important component of the local economy but is not a focus for sales capture analysis

An Improve Naked Mole Rat Trap, Group III

This project attempts to improve on Dr. Stan Braude’s current Naked Mole Rat trap design. Dr. Braude currently uses his trap to catch and tag naked mole rats for his research. While Dr. Braude is happy with his current trap, he designed them himself over twenty years ago, and believes that they can be improved and modernized for increased ease and convenience. The key project goal is to deliver an improved trap to Dr. Braude that will meet his needs. The modifications that this project will attempt to deliver are a repeatable, solar powered trap that is compatible with his current design

4WD Baja Upright and Wheel Hub

The University of Akron Zips Baja Team has switched to a 4-wheel-drive (4WD) vehicle as per the 2023 Baja Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) rules. The 2022 Baja Vehicle was 2WD, thus the upright and wheel hub were designed exclusively for a 2-wheel-drive (2WD) Baja vehicle. This report entails the design process and methods of verification for the design of the 4WD upright and wheel hub

A Matrix Hyperbolic Cosine Algorithm and Applications

In this paper, we generalize Spencer's hyperbolic cosine algorithm to the matrix-valued setting. We apply the proposed algorithm to several problems by analyzing its computational efficiency under two special cases of matrices; one in which the matrices have a group structure and an other in which they have rank-one. As an application of the former case, we present a deterministic algorithm that, given the multiplication table of a finite group of size $n$, it constructs an expanding Cayley graph of logarithmic degree in near-optimal O(n^2 log^3 n) time. For the latter case, we present a fast deterministic algorithm for spectral sparsification of positive semi-definite matrices, which implies an improved deterministic algorithm for spectral graph sparsification of dense graphs. In addition, we give an elementary connection between spectral sparsification of positive semi-definite matrices and element-wise matrix sparsification. As a consequence, we obtain improved element-wise sparsification algorithms for diagonally dominant-like matrices.Comment: 16 pages, simplified proof and corrected acknowledging of prior work in (current) Section

Counterintuitive density-dependent growth in a long-lived vertebrate after removal of nest predators

Examining the phenotypic and genetic underpinnings of life-history variation in long-lived organisms is central to the study of life-history evolution. Juvenile growth and survival are often density dependent in reptiles, and theory predicts the evolution of slow growth in response to low resources (resource-limiting hypothesis), such as under densely populated conditions. However, rapid growth is predicted when exceeding some critical body size reduces the risk of mortality (mortality hypothesis). Here we present results of paired, large-scale, five-year field experiments to identify causes of variation in individual growth and survival rates of an Australian turtle (Emydura macquarii) prior to maturity. To distinguish between these competing hypotheses, we reduced nest predators in two populations and retained a control population to create variation in juvenile density by altering recruitment levels. We also conducted a complementary split-clutch field-transplant experiment to explore the impact of incubation temperature (25° or 30°C), nest predator level (low or high), and clutch size on juvenile growth and survival. Juveniles in high-recruitment (predator removal) populations were not resource limited, growing more rapidly than young turtles in the control populations. Our experiments also revealed a remarkably long-term impact of the thermal conditions experienced during embryonic development on growth of turtles prior to maturity. Moreover, this thermal effect was manifested in turtles approaching maturity, rather than in turtles closer to hatching, and was dependent on population density in the post-hatching rearing environment. This apparent phenotypic plasticity in growth complements our observation of a strong, positive genetic correlation between individual body size in the experimental and control populations over the first five years of life (rG +0.77). Thus, these Australian pleurodiran turtles have the impressive capacity to acclimate plastically to major demographic perturbations and enjoy the longer-term potential to evolve adaptively to maintain viability