A Human Capital-Based Theory of Post-Marital Residence Rules

In pre-modern societies the residence of a newly-wedded couple is often decided by custom. While researchers have analyzed factors leading to particular post-marital residence patterns, no one has explained why a society should have a customary rule in the first place. Our theory stems from contracting problems created by the nature of pre-marriage human capital investments. We argue that a fixed post-marital residence rule may solve a hold-up problem by specifying marriage terms and limiting possibilities for renegotiation; the trade-off is the rule may prohibit beneficial renegotiation of post-marital location. We compare alternative residence rules (or lack thereof) under different degrees of location specificity of human capital and environmental uncertainty. We apply our theoretical results to Murdock's (1967) 862-society data set, augmented with climate data. We find some predictive ability in variables related to outside options, control over the environment, and potential degree of social control.

Does residence time affect responses of alien species richness to environmental and spatial processes?

One of the most robust emerging generalisations in invasion biology is that the probability of invasion increases with the time since introduction (residence time). We analysed the spatial distribution of alien vascular plant species in a region of north-eastern Italy to understand the influence of residence time on patterns of alien species richness. Neophytes were grouped according to three periods of arrival in the study region (1500–1800, 1800–1900, and > 1900). We applied multiple regression (spatial and nonspatial) with hierarchical partitioning to determine the influence of climate and human pressure on species richness within the groups. We also applied variation partitioning to evaluate the relative importance of environmental and spatial processes. Temperature mainly influenced groups with species having a longer residence time, while human pressure influenced the more recently introduced species, although its influence remained significant in all groups. Partial regression analyses showed that most of the variation explained by the models is attributable to spatially structured environmental variation, while environment and space had small independent effects. However, effects independent of environment decreased, and spatially independent effects increased, from older to the more recent neophytes. Our data illustrate that the distribution of alien species richness for species that arrived recently is related to propagule pressure, availability of novel niches created by human activity, and neutral-based (dispersal limitation) processes, while climate filtering plays a key role in the distribution of species that arrived earlier. This study highlights the importance of residence time, spatial structure, and environmental conditions in the patterns of alien species richness and for a better understanding of its geographical variation

Source versus Residence Based Taxation with International Mergers and Acquisitions

This paper analyses tax competition and tax coordination in a model where capital flows occur in the form of mergers and acquisitions, rather than greenfield investment. In this framework, we show that differences in residence based taxes do not necessarily distort international ownership patterns. Moreover, tax competition yields globally efficient levels of source based corporate income taxes if residence based taxes on capital income are absent. In contrast, in the presence of residence based taxes on dividends, source based corporate income taxes are inefficiently high. The widespread view that tax coordination is less urgent if residence based taxes are available may therefore be misguided.corporate taxation, tax competition, mergers and acquisitions

Population trends, convictions and imprisonment: Demographic divergence, dichotomy and diversity

The links between population patterns and trends, and policy and planning for the justice system is important. The trends in the number of convictions and imprisonments by regional councils are investigated for the period 1986 to 2001. This does not just focus on Custodial sentences but also looks at other types of sentences such as monetary and community sentences. Additionally, a regional estimate of the muster in prison is derived to give “normal” place of residence of those in prison. The relationship of imprisonment to other factors such as income, unemployment, sickness/invalid benefit rates, labour force participation rates and ethnicity is investigated. Some policy implications of these findings are presented

Incomes and inequality in the long run: the case of German elderly

We employ German Sample Survey Income data to examine income inequality and the financial situation of elderly citizens for the period from 1978 to 2003, focussing on differences between retired and non-retired elderly and between elderly with residence in the Old and the New German Laender. Inter-temporal changes in income inequality are also decomposed by income sources. To our knowledge, this is the first study that provides comparable and detailed longitudinal income statistics for the German elderly. We find some remarkable inter-temporal patterns. First, the financial situation of the elderly has improved substantially over time. This is true especially for the New Laender, although elderly with residence in the Old Laender remain financially privileged. Within the same age cohort, we also find that non-retired, on average, are financially better-off compared to retired elderly. For reunified Germany, inequality is astonishingly stable over time, but rises significantly since 1993 in the New German Laender. --Pensioner,Inequality,Inequality Decomposition,German Sample Survey Income data

Source versus residence based taxation with international mergers and acquisitions

This paper analyses tax competition and tax coordination in a model where capital flows occur in the form of mergers and acquisitions, rather than greenfield investment. In this framework, we show that differences in residence based taxes do not necessarily distort international ownership patterns. Moreover, tax competition yields globally efficient levels of source based corporate income taxes if residence based taxes on capital income are absent. In contrast, in the presence of residence based taxes on dividends, source based corporate income taxes are inefficiently high. The widespread view that tax coordination is less urgent if residence based taxes are available may therefore be misguided

Geo-located Twitter as the proxy for global mobility patterns

In the advent of a pervasive presence of location sharing services researchers gained an unprecedented access to the direct records of human activity in space and time. This paper analyses geo-located Twitter messages in order to uncover global patterns of human mobility. Based on a dataset of almost a billion tweets recorded in 2012 we estimate volumes of international travelers in respect to their country of residence. We examine mobility profiles of different nations looking at the characteristics such as mobility rate, radius of gyration, diversity of destinations and a balance of the inflows and outflows. The temporal patterns disclose the universal seasons of increased international mobility and the peculiar national nature of overseen travels. Our analysis of the community structure of the Twitter mobility network, obtained with the iterative network partitioning, reveals spatially cohesive regions that follow the regional division of the world. Finally, we validate our result with the global tourism statistics and mobility models provided by other authors, and argue that Twitter is a viable source to understand and quantify global mobility patterns.Comment: 17 pages, 13 figure

Sustainability and change in the institutionalized commute in Belgium: exploring regional differences

This paper examines regional differences in commute-energy performance in Belgium, and explores their relationships with spatial characteristics such as the distribution of population and housing, the metropolitan influence of the Brussels agglomeration, and the compactness of cities and towns. We also investigate contradictions between Belgian state-wide commute policy and regional differences in average commuting distance and mode choice. Against a background of long-term federal measures that traditionally encourage long-distance commuting in Belgium, we find striking discrepancies between the structure and the development of commuting patterns in the three administrative regions of Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels. Residents of Brussels show the most sustainable commuting patterns, due to the metropolitan spatial structure. Residents of Wallonia represent the least sustainable commute. Given the rather weak regional economy of Wallonia compared with Flanders, commuters must frequently seek employment far from their residence. Population changes and consequent developments in the housing market seem to exacerbate this competitive disadvantage, since most growth occurs in relatively remote rural areas that are nevertheless within reach of the main employment centres

Investigation by laser doppler velocimetry of the effects of liquid flow rates and feed positions on the flow patterns induced in a stirred tank by an axial-flow impeller

The (ow patterns established in a continuously-fed stirred tank, equipped with a Mixel TT axial-(ow impeller, have been investigated bylaser Doppler velocimetry, for a high and a low value of mean residence time—mixing time ratio. The pseudo-two-dimensional axial– radial-velocityvector plots, as well as the spatial distributions of the tangential velocitycomponent and the velocitypro;les around the impeller, show that the interaction between the incoming liquid and the liquid entrained bythe agitator rotation cause the (ow pattern in the vessel to become stronglythree-dimensional, especiallyin the region between the plane, where the feeding tube lies, and the 180◦-downstream plane. The increase in the liquid (ow rate and the location of the feed entryboth a$ect the (ow pattern, with the latter having a more pronounced e$ect. The overall process, in this mode of operation, depends upon the appropriate con;guration and choice of parameters: for conditions corresponding to high liquid (ow rates, the (ow patterns indicate the possibilityof short-circuiting, when the liquid is fed into the stream being drawn bythe agitator and when the outlet is located at the bottom of the vessel