Investment behaviors of the key actors in capitalism: when geography matters

The article investigates the geography of finance via an analysis of the investment behavior of large international equity investors. The main argument is based on the importance of financial markets and capital flows and on the central role played in them by institutional investors, the key actors of capitalism. This paper is original because it introduces geographic criteria, and thus institutional and cultural factors, for understanding the behaviour of investors. We present evidence on the diversity of models of capitalism while questioning the convergence of national economies and markets towards a pattern often termed “the Anglo-Saxon model”.institutional investors, geography of finance, models of capitalism, financial markets

Investment behaviors of the key actors in capitalism: when geography matters

The article investigates the geography of finance via an analysis of the investment behavior of large international equity investors. The main argument is based on the importance of financial markets and capital flows and on the central role played in them by institutional investors, the key actors of capitalism. This paper is original because it introduces geographic criteria, and thus institutional and cultural factors, for understanding the behaviour of investors. We present evidence on the diversity of models of capitalism while questioning the convergence of national economies and markets towards a pattern often termed “the Anglo-Saxon model”.institutional investors, geography of finance, models of capitalism, financial markets

Hétérogéneités du manteau et origine des basaltes des Marquises (Polynésie)

Les auteurs discutent les connaissances bibliographiques concernant les hétérogénéités isotopiques du manteau et les processus les engendrant. Par l'étude conjointe des isotopes et des traces ils abordent la genèse des basaltes des Marquises. Leurs caractéristiques géochimiques suggèrent un modèle d'interaction de magmas d'origine profonde avec le manteau supérieur appauvri. Puisqu'elles sont très différentes de celles des basaltes des îles Hawaii, les auteurs supposent que l'on peut proposer plusieurs modèles pour la genèse du volcanisme intraplaque océanique

Clusters et réseaux complexes multi-niveaux : le cas des réseaux mondiaux de capital-risque et d’entreprises de biotechnologies

La connaissance des dynamiques industrielles et financières ainsi que des flux/échanges très rapides d’innovation à travers le monde est essentielle quand on aborde la problématique des clusters. Les clusters sont en effet multi-agents et doivent faire cohabiter des proximités géographiques et organisées alors même que leurs agents sont par ailleurs inscrits dans des sphères économiques et financières mondiales. L’objectif de cette étude est de montrer, en prenant pour exemple l’industrie biopharmaceutique, les structures globales d’interactions de deux des types d’agents impliqués dans les clusters, les entreprises et les firmes de capital-risque, leur imbrication, ainsi que la géographie de ces réseaux complexes multidimensionnels, en analysant plus particulièrement les leaders dans chacun des systèmes et ceux à l’interface des deux systèmes.Understanding financial and industrial dynamics as well as the rapid innovation flows that circulate worldwide, is indispensable when addressing the question of clusters and their relevance. The governance of clusters is indeed complex as it requires that geographical and organizational proximity coexists, even though agents present in clusters are in fact involved in global economic and financial spheres. The objective of the study is to show, taking as example the biopharmaceutical industry, the global network structures and geography of interactions of two categories of agents that participate in clusters, companies in the industry and venture capital firms, and how the different layers interconnect, with a focus on leaders in each system and on those that liaise both systems

Linear Efficient Antialiased Displacement and Reflectance Mapping

International audienceWe present Linear Efficient Antialiased Displacement and Reflectance (LEADR) mapping, a reflectance filtering technique for displacement mapped surfaces. Similarly to LEAN mapping, it employs two mipmapped texture maps, which store the first two moments of the displacement gradients. During rendering, the projection of this data over a pixel is used to compute a noncentered anisotropic Beckmann distribution using only simple, linear filtering operations. The distribution is then injected in a new, physically based, rough surface microfacet BRDF model, that includes masking and shadowing effects for both diffuse and specular reflection under directional, point, and environment lighting. Furthermore, our method is compatible with animation and deformation, making it extremely general and flexible. Combined with an adaptive meshing scheme, LEADR mapping provides the very first seamless and hardware-accelerated multi-resolution representation for surfaces. In order to demonstrate its effectiveness, we render highly detailed production models in real time on a commodity GPU, with quality matching supersampled ground-truth images

Where Do “Impatient” Mutual Funds Invest? A Special Attraction for Large Proximate Markets and Companies with Strategic Investors

Our study examines the investment determinants of worldwide mutual funds from the perspective of economic geography. In particular, we investigate the local preferences of “impatient” mutual funds for specific countries. By analyzing a sample of 22,996 worldwide mutual funds over the period from 2005 to 2009, we demonstrate that impatient mutual funds are favorable to 1) large stock markets, 2) markets with a high level of protection for shareholders, 3) markets with familiar institutional practices, and 4) markets dominated by the presence of “strategic” investors as main shareholders of large listed companies

Chronic dermatomycoses of the foot as risk factors for acute bacterial cellulitis of the leg: A case-control study

Objective: To assess the role of foot dermatomycosis ( tinea pedis and onychomycosis) and other candidate risk factors in the development of acute bacterial cellulitis of the leg. Methods: A case-control study, including 243 patients ( cases) with acute bacterial cellulitis of the leg and 467 controls, 2 per case, individually matched for gender, age (+/-5 years), hospital and admission date (+/-2 months). Results: Overall, mycology-proven foot dermatomycosis was a significant risk factor for acute bacterial cellulitis (odds ratio, OR: 2.4; p < 0.001), as were tinea pedis interdigitalis (OR: 3.2; p < 0.001), tinea pedis plantaris (OR: 1.7; p = 0.005) and onychomycosis (OR: 2.2; p < 0.001) individually. Other risk factors included: disruption of the cutaneous barrier, history of bacterial cellulitis, chronic venous insufficiency and leg oedema. Conclusions: Tinea pedis and onychomycosis were found to be significant risk factors for acute bacterial cellulitis of the leg that are readily amenable to treatment with effective pharmacological therapy. Copyright (C) 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel

Finance and Industrial Dynamics (In French)

The transformations of the finance sector linked to the emergence of new actors (pension funds, mutual funds, hedge funds…) and its globalization have changed the rules of corporate governance and the competitive context of industrial companies. The theme of the influence between finance and industry is not new in the economic literature. The first thesis of the influence of finance on industry born in the United States (with the Veblen thesis) and Europe (Hilferding, 1910) with the development of joint stock companies (corporations in the U.S.) and financial institutions. The recent transformations and crisis of capitalism show the relevance of the old theories of finance. In the first section of the paper we examines how arguments about the domination of finance on industry developed in the early 20th century are still relevant in modern capitalism with the debate of shareholder value. In a second part, we show that globalization is partly a myth because the shareholding structures are localized. Geography and institutions matter in finance for explaining the behaviors.finance, industry, parasitism, shareholder value, geography of finance