IMT Institutional Repository: No conditions. Results ordered -Date Deposited. 2024-03-28T13:36:05ZEPrintshttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/images/logowhite.pnghttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/2018-03-06T13:40:51Z2018-03-06T13:40:51Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3966This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/39662018-03-06T13:40:51ZI caratteri distintivi e le possibili classificazioni dei gruppi aziendaliNicola Lattanzinicola.lattanzi@imtlucca.it2018-03-06T13:39:09Z2018-03-06T13:39:09Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3965This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/39652018-03-06T13:39:09ZL'analisi del bilancio consolidato nell'ottica esternaNicola Lattanzinicola.lattanzi@imtlucca.it2018-03-06T13:27:27Z2018-03-06T13:27:27Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3964This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/39642018-03-06T13:27:27ZGli attori aziendaliIl capitolo affronta il tema della "variabile comportamentale" in termini di comportamento e motivazioni all'interno dei sistemi di pianificazione e controllo soffermandosi sopratutto sul ruolo e la funzione del controller e del planner.Nicola Lattanzinicola.lattanzi@imtlucca.it2018-01-24T12:15:04Z2018-01-24T12:15:04Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3886This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/38862018-01-24T12:15:04ZSingle-valuedness of the demand correspondence and strict convexity of preferences: An equivalence resultIf preferences are rational and continuous, then strict convexity implies that the demand correspondence is single-valued (e.g. Barten and Böhm, 1982, lemma 7.3). We show that if, in addition, preferences are strictly monotone then the converse is also true, namely single-valuedness of the demand correspondence implies strict convexity of preferences.Ennio Bilanciniennio.bilancini@imtlucca.itLeonardo Boncinelli2018-01-24T12:12:28Z2018-01-24T12:12:28Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3885This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/38852018-01-24T12:12:28ZIf not only GDP, what else? Using relational goods to predict the trends of subjective well-beingIn the last decade, a lively interdisciplinary discussion has grown around the evidence that, in the long-run, people’s subjective well-being is not significantly correlated with income growth. In other words, GDP growth does not predict the long run growth of subjective well-being. In this paper, we argue that there exists a different predictor of subjective well-being that works pretty well: sociability, i.e. the quality and quantity of social relationships (also referred to as relational goods). More precisely, we illustrate the role of sociability as a predictor of well-being, presenting the available evidence at both the within-country and the worldwide level. In particular, we discuss recent evidence from US cross-sectional data (General Social Survey, 1975–2004), cross-country time series (World Value Survey 1980–2005), and German panel data (German Socio-Economic Panel, 1996–2007). We conclude by indicating the most relevant open issues and suggesting future lines of research.Stefano BartoliniEnnio Bilanciniennio.bilancini@imtlucca.it2018-01-24T12:09:40Z2018-01-24T12:09:40Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3884This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/38842018-01-24T12:09:40ZPreferences and normal goods: An easy-to-check necessary and sufficient conditionWe provide a necessary and sufficient condition for goods to be normal when utility functions are differentiable and strongly quasi-concave. Our condition is equivalent to the condition proposed by Alarie et al. (1990), but it is easier to check: it only requires to compute the minors associated with the border column (or row) of the bordered Hessian matrix of the utility function.Ennio Bilanciniennio.bilancini@imtlucca.itLeonardo Boncinelli2016-03-08T08:55:40Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3183This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/31832016-03-08T08:55:40ZIntroduzione. I beni culturali e la globalizzazioneLorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2016-01-15T10:33:58Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3012This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/30122016-01-15T10:33:58Z«Italian Hours»: the globalization of cultural property lawCultural property offers a significant yet ambiguous example of the development of global regulatory regimes beyond the State. On the one hand, traditional international law instruments do not seem to ensure an adequate level of protection for cultural heritage; securing such protection requires procedures, norms and standards produced by global institutions, both public (such as UNESCO) and private (such as the International Council of Museums (ICOM)). On the other hand, a comprehensive global regulatory regime to complement the law of cultural property is still to be achieved. Instead, more regimes are being established, depending on the kind of properties and on the public interest at stake, although the complex of cultural property regimes appears to operate largely in isolation. Moreover, the huge cultural bias which dominates the debate about cultural property can accentuate the «clash of civilizations» and the cultural bias that already underlie the debate about global governance.
The analysis of the relationship between globalization and cultural property allows us to shed light on broader global governance trends affecting areas such as the role of States in global regimes, the development of public-private partnerships, and the proliferation of global norms and procedures. Cultural property, however, keeps its specificity and peculiarities, and this helps highlight the points of weakness and of strength in the adoption of administrative law techniques at the global level.Lorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2016-01-15T09:52:15Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3010This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/30102016-01-15T09:52:15ZGli istituti di partecipazione in EuropaLorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2016-01-15T09:19:59Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3009This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/30092016-01-15T09:19:59ZThe making of a Lex Sportiva: the court of arbitration for sport “The Provider”The purpose of this paper is to examine the structure and functions of the Court of Arbitration for
Sport (CAS), in order to highlight a number of problems concerning judicial activities at the
global level more generally. Section 1 will outline CAS’ organization and functions, from its
inception to the present date. In particular, this section will show how the history of the CAS is
reminiscent of a famous German novel based on a biblical saga, “Joseph and his brothers” by
Thomas Mann: the CAS was originally the “favorite son” of the Olympic movement’s founding
fathers; it subsequently became the target of its envious “brothers” - i.e. the International
Federations and other sporting arbitration institutions - which viewed the CAS as a dangerous
enemy; ultimately, the CAS defeated its opponents, gained independence and brought normative
harmonization, thereby becoming “the Provider” of global sports law. Section 2 will focus on the
role of CAS in making a lex sportiva, and it will take into account three different functions: the
development of common legal principles; the interpretation of global norms and the influence on
sports law-making; and the harmonization of global sports law. Section 3 will consider the
relationships between the CAS and public authorities (both public administrations and domestic
courts), in order to verify the extent to which the CAS and its judicial system are self-contained
and autonomous from States. Lastly, section 4 will address the importance of creating bodies like
CAS in the global arena, and it will identify the main challenges raised by this form of
transnational judicial activity. The analysis of CAS and its role as “law-maker”, in fact, allows us
to shed light on broader global governance trends affecting areas such as the institutional design
of global regimes, with specific regard to the separation of powers and the emergence of judicial activities.Lorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2016-01-15T09:04:58Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/3008This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/30082016-01-15T09:04:58ZIl mito di Sisifo ovvero la quarta riorganizzazione del Ministero per i beni e le attività culturaliLorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2016-01-13T12:08:39Z2016-09-14T10:21:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2983This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/29832016-01-13T12:08:39ZIl diritto globale dello sportLa dimensione globale dello sport è divenuta ormai dominante: vi sono norme e procedure sopranazionali, un'organizzazione mondiale, nuove forme di cooperazione tra Stati e organismi privati, giudici internazionali. Quali sono la natura e i caratteri del nuovo diritto globale dello sport? Quali principi e istituti di diritto pubblico vi trovano applicazione? Quali sono le peculiarità di questo "sistema amministrativo globale" e che cosa lo accomuna ad altri regimi ultrastatali?Lorenzo Casinilorenzo.casini@imtlucca.it2015-11-16T15:47:37Z2015-11-16T15:47:37Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2905This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/29052015-11-16T15:47:37ZNonlinear matter spectra in coupled quintessenceWe consider cosmologies in which a dark-energy scalar field interacts with cold dark matter. The growth of perturbations is followed beyond the linear level by means of the time-renormalization-group method, which is extended to describe a multicomponent matter sector. Even in the absence of the extra interaction, a scale-dependent bias is generated as a consequence of the different initial conditions for baryons and dark matter after decoupling. The effect is enhanced significantly by the extra coupling and can be at the 2%–3% level in the range of scales of baryonic acoustic oscillations. We compare our results with N-body simulations, finding very good agreement.Fabio Saraccofabio.saracco@imtlucca.itM. PietroniN. TetradisV. PettorinoG. Robbers2015-11-05T10:51:18Z2015-11-05T10:51:18Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2808This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/28082015-11-05T10:51:18ZA study on wear resistance and microcrack of the Ti3Al/TiAl + TiC ceramic layer deposited by laser cladding on Ti–6Al–4V alloyLaser cladding of the Al + TiC alloy powder on Ti–6Al–4V alloy can form the Ti3Al/TiAl + TiC ceramic layer. In this study, TiC particle-dispersed Ti3Al/TiAl matrix ceramic layer on the Ti–6Al–4V alloy by laser cladding has been researched by means of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, electron probe micro-analyzer, energy dispersive spectrometer. The main difference from the earlier reports is that Ti3Al/TiAl has been chosen as the matrix of the composite coating. The wear resistance of the Al + 30 wt. TiC and the Al + 40 wt. TiC cladding layer was approximately 2 times greater than that of the Ti–6Al–4V substrate due to the reinforcement of the Ti3Al/TiAl + TiC hard phases. However, when the TiC mass percent was above 40 wt., the thermal stress value was greater than the materials yield strength limit in the ceramic layer, the microcrack was present and its wear resistance decreased.Jianing LiChuanzhong ChenTiziano Squartinitiziano.squartini@imtlucca.itQingshan He2014-12-04T09:41:14Z2014-12-04T09:41:14Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2398This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/23982014-12-04T09:41:14ZStability as a natural selection mechanism on interacting networksBiological networks of interacting agents exhibit similar topological properties for a wide range of scales, from cellular to ecological levels, suggesting the existence of a common evolutionary origin. A general evolutionary mechanism based on global stability has been proposed recently [J I Perotti, et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 108701 (2009)]. This mechanism was incorporated into a model of a growing network of interacting agents in which each new agent's membership in the network is determined by the agent's effect on the network's global stability. In this work, we analyze different quantities that characterize the topology of the emerging networks, such as global connectivity, clustering and average nearest neighbors degree, showing that they reproduce scaling behaviors frequently observed in several biological systems. The influence of the stability selection mechanism on the dynamics associated to the resulting network, as well as the interplay between some topological and functional features are also analyzed.Sergio A. CannasJuan I. Perottijuanignacio.perotti@imtlucca.itOrlando V. BilloniFrancisco A. Tamarit2014-11-10T13:11:37Z2015-03-25T09:16:39Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2360This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/23602014-11-10T13:11:37ZCosmogenic radioisotopes in the Almahata Sitta ureiliteAsteroid 2008 TC3 was predicted to fall in Sudan on October 7, 2008, and 2 months later, 15 meteorite fragments were recovered from the Nubian Desert. Most of these fragments were classified as polymict ureilites. In the largest ureilitic fragment #15, weighing 75 g, we have measured six gamma emitting radionuclides (46Sc, 57Co, 54Mn, 22Na, 60Co, and 26Al) by nondestructive whole rock counting using a sensitive gamma-ray spectrometer. The activities of 60Co, produced mainly by neutron capture in cobalt, and 26Al indicate that fragment #15 was located at a depth of 41 ± 14 cm inside the 1.5–2 m radius asteroid. The activity of other radionuclides is also consistent with this shielding depth within the asteroid. The 22Na/26Al activity ratio is higher than expected for the average cosmic ray flux, probably due to the unusually prolonged solar minimum before the fall.Carla TariccoNarendra BhandariPaolo ColombettiAlberto RomeroGianna Vivaldogianna.vivaldo@imtlucca.itNeeharika SinhaPeter JenniskensMuawia H. ShaddadG. M. Ballabh2014-11-10T13:01:12Z2015-03-25T09:16:39Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2358This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/23582014-11-10T13:01:12ZA multiparametric HPGe-Nal acquisition system for low gamma activity measurements of meteorites The study of long-term solar activity variations in the past requires the use of radioisotopic
data planetary reservoirs. At the Laboratory of Monte dei Cappuccini in Torino
(IFSI-Torino, INAF) for many years we have been studying radioisotopes in meteorites,
because their production, which is related to galactic cosmic ray flux in the heliosphere, is
anticorrelated with the heliospheric magnetic field variations. We have developed very sensitive
gamma detection techniques, in particular to measure 44Ti activity in meteorites; due
to its half-life (t1=2 = 59:2 years), this radioisotope is an ideal index to reveal the imprint of
solar activity variations on the centennial scale. Recently we have improved the spectrometer
by a new multiparametric acquisition system, which allows to extract efficiently the 44Ti
peak from the natural background.Carla TariccoNarendra BhandariPaolo ColombettiI. MarianiNeeharika VermaGianna Vivaldogianna.vivaldo@imtlucca.it2013-12-04T10:23:50Z2013-12-04T10:23:50Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2035This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/20352013-12-04T10:23:50ZJohannes Kepler's 'School of Athens' for AstronomyStefano Gatteistefano.gattei@imtlucca.it2013-12-03T15:47:46Z2013-12-03T15:47:46Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2023This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/20232013-12-03T15:47:46Z"Per desiderio del vero e delle sue cause": Galileo astronomo filosofoThis paper provides the framework for understanding Galileo’s request to the Grand Duke of Tuscany, in 1610, to be appointed in Florence as both Mathematician and Philosopher. By explicitly choosing such a title, he wished to stress the fact that his own work aimed at contributing to the new physical astronomy with which Copernicus inaugurated what is now called the Scientific Revolution. As opposed to Ptolemy, who understood astronomy as a purely mathematical tool in order to “save the phenomena” and allow for accurate predictions, Galileo – very much in line with Copernicus and Kepler, as well as Newton after him – supported the reality of the Copernican system not only against Aristotle and Ptolemy, but also against Tycho Brahe. And, as it turned out after 1616, against the Church itself, which, in full accord with Osiander’s unsigned preface to the De revolutionibus, refused to see in the Copernican theory anything more than a mere working hypothesis to which astronomers were allowed to appeal only for computations.Stefano Gatteistefano.gattei@imtlucca.it2013-12-03T15:43:30Z2013-12-03T15:43:30Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2024This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/20242013-12-03T15:43:30ZCopernicus' Terse Argument: Scientific and Philosophical Foundations of the Heliocentric HypothesisStefano Gatteistefano.gattei@imtlucca.it2013-11-08T10:00:18Z2013-11-08T10:00:18Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1894This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18942013-11-08T10:00:18ZModeling commuting systems through a complex network analysis: a study of the Italian islands of Sardinia and SicilyThis study analyzes the inter-municipal commuting systems of the Italian islands of Sardinia and Sicily, employing weighted network analysis technique. Based on the results obtained for the Sardinian commuting network, the network analysis is used to identify similarities and dissimilarities between the two systems.Andrea De MontisAlessandro Chessaalessandro.chessa@imtlucca.itMichele CampagnaSimone CaschiliGiancarlo Deplano2013-11-08T09:23:45Z2013-11-08T09:23:45Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1893This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18932013-11-08T09:23:45ZUrban management in the face of complexity: commuting networks in insular ItalyComplex networks theory allows researchers to deal with systems characterised by uncertainty and unpredictability. It also enables investigating interactions between transport networks and their topology. Recently it has been used to analyse socio-economic processes in urban, regional, and environmental planning. In the light of these advances, the aim of this paper is to present the results of the application of complex networks theory techniques to the characterisation of topological, traffic and spatial properties of commuters' systems in insular Italy.Andrea De MontisSimone CaschiliAlessandro Chessaalessandro.chessa@imtlucca.itMichele Campagna2013-11-08T09:02:03Z2014-09-02T09:52:15Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1892This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18922013-11-08T09:02:03ZInteraction design e tecniche di sviluppo agileLuca SecchiAlessandro Chessaalessandro.chessa@imtlucca.it2013-11-08T08:53:20Z2014-07-07T10:30:16Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1891This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18912013-11-08T08:53:20ZComplex network analysis on a cloud computing architectureVincenzo De LeoGianni FenuMichelangelo Puligamichelangelo.puliga@imtlucca.itLuca SecchiLorenzo ZolesioAlessandro Chessaalessandro.chessa@imtlucca.it2013-11-05T15:14:26Z2013-11-05T15:14:26Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1864This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18642013-11-05T15:14:26ZAssessing the Competitive Behaviour of Firms in the Single Market: A Micro-based ApproachThis Report analyses and compares a number of indicators related to the evolution of the competitive behaviour of firms in the Single Market, from 1999 to 2007, in a selected number of both manufacturing and services industries and eight EU countries: Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain and Sweden. A novelty of the approach is that the analysis is derived from firm-level observable data, which allow to grasp not only information on the average changes taking place in each industry and across countries, but also the distribution and sources of these changes in terms of individual firms' pricing behaviour and market shares, an information which is impossible to gather in detail from aggregate, traditional sector-level measuresCarlo AltomonteMarcella NicoliniArmando Rungiarmando.rungi@imtlucca.itLaura Ogliari2013-11-05T13:25:52Z2013-11-05T15:01:49Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1858This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18582013-11-05T13:25:52ZFrom Export Dependency to Dynamic Comparative AdvantagesIntroduction: A modern race to resources is underway to assure that present and future generations can benefit from the availability of a stock necessary for the maintenance of an acceptable level of economic development.
In this brief chapter we collect some economic literature that could be of help in understanding the conflict of interest between export and import dependent countries, which are often also polarized between developing and developed countries. We don’t pretend to be exhaustive of all the literature that in the last decades has coped with the issues. Instead we suggest only a few tools to interpret an ever-changing reality that we consider useful for future progress of our research.
Given the geographical dispersion of natural resources, we have countries that specializes in trade of natural resources and countries that exchange manufacturing and services for them. A better knowledge of the reciprocal weaknesses of these two groups of countries can avoid the emergence of future conflicts. In particular we have adopted the side of export dependent countries, that are often also underdeveloped, in order to understand the problems that can hinder a worldwide stable and secure supply of natural resourcesArmando Rungiarmando.rungi@imtlucca.it2013-11-05T12:08:17Z2013-11-07T13:32:52Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1857This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18572013-11-05T12:08:17ZAbbondanza di risorse naturali e mancate opportunità di sviluppoIn the worldwide race to resources to ensure an acceptable level of economic development for present and future generations, the African continent assumes a central role for its abundant natural capital. Notwithstanding the renewed interest of advanced economies, and more recently of the emerging Asian economies, Africa is a continent rich in resources but poorly integrated within the new global economic system. Armando Rungiarmando.rungi@imtlucca.itSilvia Merler2013-10-04T10:11:06Z2013-11-21T12:19:48Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1823This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/18232013-10-04T10:11:06ZTheoretical Perspectives on Protein FoldingUnderstanding how monomeric proteins fold under in vitro conditions is crucial to describing their functions in the cellular context. Significant advances in theory and experiments have resulted in a conceptual framework for describing the folding mechanisms of globular proteins. The sizes of proteins in the denatured and folded states, cooperativity of the folding transition, dispersions in the melting temperatures at the residue level, and timescales of folding are, to a large extent, determined by N, the number of residues. The intricate details of folding as a function of denaturant concentration can be predicted by using a novel coarse-grained molecular transfer model. By watching one molecule fold at a time, using single-molecule methods, investigators have established the validity of the theoretically anticipated heterogeneity in the folding routes and the N-dependent timescales for the three stages in the approach to the native state. Despite the successes of theory, of which only a few examples are documented here, we conclude that much remains to be done to solve the protein folding problem in the broadest sense.D. ThirumalaiEdward P. O'BrienGreg Morrisongreg.morrison@imtlucca.itChangbong Hyeon2013-07-09T14:50:01Z2013-07-09T14:50:01Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1637This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16372013-07-09T14:50:01ZApplication of logit model and self-organizing maps (SOMs) for the prediction of financial crisis periods in US economyPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine two different approaches in the prediction of the economic recession periods in the US economy.
Design/methodology/approach – A logit regression was applied and the prediction performance in two out-of-sample periods, 2007-2009 and 2010 was examined. On the other hand, feed-forwards neural networks with Levenberg-Marquardt error backpropagation algorithm were applied and then neural networks self-organizing map (SOM) on the training outputs was estimated.
Findings – The paper presents the cluster results from SOM training in order to find the patterns of economic recessions and expansions. It is concluded that logit model forecasts the current financial crisis period at 75 percent accuracy, but logit model is useful as it provides a warning signal three quarters before the current financial crisis started officially. Also, it is estimated that the financial crisis, even if it reached its peak in 2009, the economic recession will be continued in 2010 too. Furthermore, the patterns generated by SOM neural networks show various possible versions with one common characteristic, that financial crisis is not over in 2009 and the economic recession will be continued in the USA even up to 2011-2012, if government does not apply direct drastic measures.
Originality/value – Both logistic regression (logit) and SOMs procedures are useful. The first one is useful to examine the significance and the magnitude of each variable, while the second one is useful for clustering and identifying patterns in economic recessions and expansions.Eleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-09T14:46:57Z2013-07-09T14:46:57Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1636This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16362013-07-09T14:46:57ZApplication of Feed-Forward Neural Networks Smoothing Transition Autoregressive Models in Stock Returns Forecasting In this paper we propose and examine new approaches in smoothing transition autoregressive (STAR) models. Firstly, a new STAR function is proposed, which is the hyperbolic tangent sigmoid function. Secondly, we propose Feed-Forward Neural Networks Smoothing Transition Autoregressive (FFNN-STAR) models. We examine the stock returns of US S&P 500, FTSE-100 in UK stock index, DAX index in Germany and CAC-40 in France and we apply bootstrapping ordinary least squares simulated regressions, while also GARCH models with bootstrapping simulations can be applied as well. The results are in favor of neural networks, while in almost all cases the forecasting performance of Feed-Forward Neural Networks STAR models is superior to conventional STAR models. This paper can be a guide and set up the fundamentals for further advanced research in econometrics and time-series analysis. Eleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-09T14:36:19Z2013-07-09T14:36:19Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1635This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16352013-07-09T14:36:19ZA Study of Panel Logit Model and Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System in the Prediction of Financial Distress PeriodsThe purpose of this paper is to present two different
approaches of financial distress pre-warning models appropriate for risk supervisors, investors and policy makers. We examine a sample of the financial institutions and electronic companies of Taiwan Security Exchange (TSE) market from 2002 through 2008. We present a binary logistic regression with paned data analysis. With the pooled binary logistic regression we build a model including more variables in the regression than with random effects, while the in-sample and out-sample forecasting performance is higher in random effects estimation than in pooled regression. On the other hand we estimate an Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) with Gaussian and Generalized Bell (Gbell) functions and we find that ANFIS outperforms significant Logit regressions in both in-sample and out-of-sample periods, indicating that ANFIS is a
more appropriate tool for financial risk managers and for the economic policy makers in central banks and national statistical services.Eleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-09T13:54:08Z2013-07-09T13:54:08Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1634This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16342013-07-09T13:54:08ZA study on the day-of-the-Week Effect in Fifty Five Stock Markets: Evidence from Asymmetric GARCH ModelsEleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-09T13:40:34Z2013-07-09T13:40:34Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1633This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16332013-07-09T13:40:34ZSmoothing Transition Autoregressive (STAR) Models for the Day of the Week Effect : An Application to S&P 500 Stock IndexEleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-08T14:07:40Z2013-07-08T14:07:40Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1632This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16322013-07-08T14:07:40ZApplications of Neural Network Radial Basis Function in Economics and Financial Time SeriesIn this paper we present the Radial Basis Neural Network Function. We examine some simple numerical examples of time-series in economics and finance. The forecasting performance is significant superior, especially in financial time-series, to traditional econometric modeling indicating that artificial intelligence procedure are more appropriate. Some MATLAB routines are presented for further application research. Eleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2013-07-08T14:04:53Z2014-01-24T14:20:52Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1631This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/16312013-07-08T14:04:53ZApplications of Feed-Forward Neural Networks with Error Backpropagation Algorithm and Non-Linear Methods in MATLABIn this paper we examine and present the methodology of feed-forward neural networks with error backpropagation algorithm and non-linear methods. We test some applications of time-series analysis in economics. The first part is consisted by applications following the traditional approach of neural networks. In the second part we propose a weighted input regression. Additionally, we present full programming routines in MATLAB in order to replicate the results and for further research applications, modifications, expansions and improvements. Eleftherios Giovaniseleftherios.giovanis@imtlucca.it2012-11-30T08:34:15Z2012-11-30T08:34:15Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1441This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/14412012-11-30T08:34:15ZSimulation-optimization under uncertainty through metamodeling and bootstrappingMost methods in simulation-optimization assume known environments, whereas this research accounts for uncertain environments combining Taguchi's world view with either regression or Kriging (Gaussian Process) metamodels (response surfaces). These metamodels are combined with Non-Linear Mathematical Programming (NLMP) to find a robust optimal solution. Varying the constraint values in the NLMP model gives an estimated Pareto frontier. To account for the variability of the estimated Pareto frontier, this research uses bootstrapping which gives confidence regions for the robust optimal solution. This methodology is illustrated through the Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) inventory-management model, accounting for the uncertainties in the demand rate and the cost coefficients.Gabriella Dellinogabriella.dellino@imtlucca.itJack P.C. KleijnenCarlo Meloni2012-10-12T10:53:19Z2013-06-11T12:04:11Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1392This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/13922012-10-12T10:53:19ZCyberpunk. Le reti alternative tra Italia e GermaniaStarting from a historiografical critique of the principal studies about the history of the relations between Italy and Germany in the 19. and 20. centuries, that traditionally have ignored the role of the civil society as autonomous instrument for creating network between the Italians and Germans, in this article the Author analyses the network of German and Italian people emerging during the globalisation of the punk and cyberpunk culture in the 70s and 80s.Fiammetta Balestraccifiammetta.balestracci@imtlucca.it2012-07-02T13:25:07Z2013-04-16T14:20:56Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1298This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/12982012-07-02T13:25:07ZPicasso and the Paris avant-gardeSilvia Loretisilvia.loreti@imtlucca.it2012-05-16T10:25:22Z2012-05-17T08:57:16Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1270This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/12702012-05-16T10:25:22ZGeorg SimmelLinda Bertellilinda.bertelli@imtlucca.it2012-02-27T10:32:54Z2012-02-27T10:32:54Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1190This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/11902012-02-27T10:32:54ZNetworks in cell biologyThe science of complex biological networks is transforming research in areas ranging from evolutionary biology to medicine. This is the first book on the subject, providing a comprehensive introduction to complex network science and its biological applications. With contributions from key leaders in both network theory and modern cell biology, this book discusses the network science that is increasingly foundational for systems biology and the quantitative understanding of living systems. It surveys studies in the quantitative structure and dynamics of genetic regulatory networks, molecular networks underlying cellular metabolism, and other fundamental biological processes. The book balances empirical studies and theory to give a unified overview of this interdisciplinary science. It is a key introductory text for graduate students and researchers in physics, biology and biochemistry, and presents ideas and techniques from fields outside the reader's own area of specialization.Mark BuchananGuido Caldarelliguido.caldarelli@imtlucca.itPaolo De Los RiosFrancesco RaoMichele Vendruscolo2012-01-26T10:23:28Z2012-01-26T10:23:28Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1082This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/10822012-01-26T10:23:28ZA Networked WorldJust over a decade ago, in June 1998, a curious three-page paper appeared in Nature. In it, the authors - two applied mathematicians - reported a link between the structure of the US electrical grid and the wiring of a nematode worm's neural system. They also noted that these patterns were strikingly similar in their structure to the social networks of Hollywood actors, one of the few such networks for which the authors could find extensive data. It is hard to imagine a more bizarre melding of topics in one study.Mark BuchananGuido Caldarelliguido.caldarelli@imtlucca.it2012-01-26T10:01:25Z2012-01-26T10:55:18Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1081This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/10812012-01-26T10:01:25ZA PageRank-based preferential attachment model for the evolution of the World Wide WebWe propose a model of network growth aimed at mimicking the evolution of the World Wide Web. To this purpose, we take as a key quantity, in the network evolution, the centrality or importance of a vertex as measured by its PageRank. Using a preferential attachment rule and a rewiring procedure based on this quantity, we can reproduce most of the topological properties of the system.P. GiammatteoDebora DonatoVinko ZlaticGuido Caldarelliguido.caldarelli@imtlucca.it2012-01-26T09:16:41Z2016-04-07T08:03:08Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1080This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/10802012-01-26T09:16:41ZTopologically biased random walk and community finding in networksWe present an approach of topology biased random walks for undirected networks. We focus on a one-parameter family of biases, and by using a formal analogy with perturbation theory in quantum mechanics we investigate the features of biased random walks. This analogy is extended through the use of parametric equations of motion to study the features of random walks vs parameter values. Furthermore, we show an analysis of the spectral gap maximum associated with the value of the second eigenvalue of the transition matrix related to the relaxation rate to the stationary state. Applications of these studies allow ad hoc algorithms for the exploration of complex networks and their communities.Vinko ZlaticAndrea GabrielliGuido Caldarelliguido.caldarelli@imtlucca.it2012-01-19T13:11:43Z2014-01-24T14:23:18Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1069This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/10692012-01-19T13:11:43ZThe structure and growth of international tradeThe paper develops a model of proportionate growth to describe the dynamics of international trade flows. We show that a large number of the empirical regularities characterizing international trade -such as the fraction of zero trade flows across pairs of countries, the positive relationship between intensive and extensive margins, the high concentration of trade with respect to both products and destinations, the core-periphery structure of exchanges- are well explained by this simple stochastic setup. This helps us to distinguish among economically relevant regularities and those simply resulting from the mechanical interactions among agents. Furthermore, our model can be used to describe the process of `self-discovery' that lie at the foundations of suc- cessful export-led growth and is thought to play a crucial role in the process of economic development. Our model correctly predicts that large export flows are rare events, as pointed out in the empirical literature: yet, countries characterized by large `discovery' efforts are much more likely to draw a `big hit' due to the (very skewed) shape of the distribution of bilateral export flows.Massimo Riccabonimassimo.riccaboni@imtlucca.itStefano Schiavo2012-01-18T13:19:30Z2012-01-18T13:19:30Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1063This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/10632012-01-18T13:19:30ZL'illusione del controllo nelle politiche pubblicheIt is quite common that public policies take as benchmark mean values of relevant policy variables (average firm size, average productivity, average income, etc.). In such case the policy maker introduces incentives that should change individual behaviour in order to increase average values of the policy relevant variables. When this kind of policies are unsuccessful it is thought that the incentives are badly designed so that the entire problem is considered a problem of "mechanism design". In this paper the Authors maintain that policy makers should always take into account that incentives have an impact not only on individual behaviour but also on the distribution and law of motion of the aggregate phenomena that may be different from the sum of micro behaviours. Three different cases of proportional growth phenomena (firm's size growth, income distribuition and research production) are analyzed, in the paper, through simulations. Some tentative general principles for public policies are identified. Massimo Riccabonimassimo.riccaboni@imtlucca.itSandro TrentoEnrico Zaninotto2012-01-16T09:44:29Z2013-11-21T11:39:24Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/266This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2662012-01-16T09:44:29ZBankruptcy risk model and empirical testsWe analyze the size dependence and temporal stability of firm bankruptcy risk in the US economy by applying Zipf scaling techniques. We focus on a single risk factor—the debt-to-asset ratio R—in order to study the stability of the Zipf distribution of R over time. We find that the Zipf exponent increases during market crashes, implying that firms go bankrupt with larger values of R. Based on the Zipf analysis, we employ Bayes’s theorem and relate the conditional probability that a bankrupt firm has a ratio R with the conditional probability of bankruptcy for a firm with a given R value. For 2,737 bankrupt firms, we demonstrate size dependence in assets change during the bankruptcy proceedings. Prepetition firm assets and petition firm assets follow Zipf distributions but with different exponents, meaning that firms with smaller assets adjust their assets more than firms with larger assets during the bankruptcy process. We compare bankrupt firms with nonbankrupt firms by analyzing the assets and liabilities of two large subsets of the US economy: 2,545 Nasdaq members and 1,680 New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) members. We find that both assets and liabilities follow a Pareto distribution. The finding is not a trivial consequence of the Zipf scaling relationship of firm size quantified by employees—although the market capitalization of Nasdaq stocks follows a Pareto distribution, the same distribution does not describe NYSE stocks. We propose a coupled Simon model that simultaneously evolves both assets and debt with the possibility of bankruptcy, and we also consider the possibility of firm mergers. Boris PodobnikDavor HorvaticAlexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itBranko UroševićH. Eugene Stanley2011-10-31T12:04:05Z2011-11-03T13:19:36Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/978This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9782011-10-31T12:04:05ZCentral limit theorems for multicolor urns with dominated colorsAn urn contains balls of d≥2 colors. At each time n≥1, a ball is drawn and then replaced together with a random number of balls of the same color. Let A n = diag (An,1,…,An,d) be the n-th reinforce matrix. Assuming that EAn,j=EAn,1 for all n and j, a few central limit theorems (CLTs) are available for such urns. In real problems, however, it is more reasonable to assume that EA n,j = EA n,1 whenever n ≥ 1 and 1 ≤ j ≤ d0 , liminfn EAn,1 > limsupn EAn,j whenever j > d0 for some integer 1≤d0≤d. Under this condition, the usual weak limit theorems may fail, but it is still possible to prove the CLTs for some slightly different random quantities. These random quantities are obtained by neglecting dominated colors, i.e., colors from d0+1 to d, and they allow the same inference on the urn structure. The sequence (An : n ≥ 1) is independent but need not be identically distributed. Some statistical applications are given as well.Patrizia BertiIrene Crimaldiirene.crimaldi@imtlucca.itLuca PratelliPietro Rigo2011-10-31T11:30:01Z2011-11-03T13:19:36Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/976This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9762011-10-31T11:30:01ZConditionally identically distributed species sampling sequencesIn this paper the theory of species sampling sequences is linked to the theory of conditionally identically distributed sequences in order to enlarge the set of species sampling sequences which are mathematically tractable. The conditional identity in distribution (see Berti, Pratelli and Rigo (2004)) is a new type of dependence for random variables, which generalizes the well-known notion of exchangeability. In this paper a class of random sequences, called generalized species sampling sequences, is defined and a condition to have conditional identity in distribution is given. Moreover, two types of generalized species sampling sequence that are conditionally identically distributed are introduced and studied: the generalized Poisson-Dirichlet sequence and the generalized Ottawa sequence. Some examples are discussed. Federico BassettiIrene Crimaldiirene.crimaldi@imtlucca.itFabrizio Leisen2011-10-18T13:24:08Z2011-10-18T13:24:08Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/961This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9612011-10-18T13:24:08ZTra Longhi e Berenson: Ragghianti ‘conoscitore’Emanuele Pellegriniemanuele.pellegrini@imtlucca.it2011-10-18T13:04:11Z2011-10-18T13:04:11Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/958This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9582011-10-18T13:04:11ZLa fine della prima serie de «La Critica d’Arte» : Bianchi Bandinelli, Longhi, RagghiantiEmanuele Pellegriniemanuele.pellegrini@imtlucca.it2011-10-12T13:37:04Z2011-10-12T13:37:04Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/926This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9262011-10-12T13:37:04ZPollaiolo e il berretto degli alpini: cronaca di cent’anni di solitudineEmanuele Pellegriniemanuele.pellegrini@imtlucca.it2011-10-12T13:27:43Z2011-10-13T13:05:10Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/925This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9252011-10-12T13:27:43Z(a cura di) Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti : il valore del patrimonio culturale : scritti dal 1935 al 1987L'impegno di Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti per la salvaguardia, la promozione e per un'adeguata gestione del patrimonio culturale fu costante e generoso snodandosi con continuità e pervicacia dagli anni giovanili fino alla morte nell'agosto del 1987. Gli scritti di Ragghianti qui dentro riportati hanno l'obiettivo di presentare un materiale che tratta di problemi assolutamente attuali: dalla carenza dei finanziamenti alla difficoltà nel far rispettare le disposizioni legislative; passando per la farraginosità legislativa che spesso rallenta o impedisce il funzionamento della macchina della tutelaMonica NaldiEmanuele Pellegriniemanuele.pellegrini@imtlucca.it2011-10-12T13:20:49Z2011-10-12T13:20:49Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/924This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9242011-10-12T13:20:49Z(a cura di) Descrivere Lucca : indici delle fonti manoscritte e a stampaQuesto album di indici costituisce un'appendice al volume Descrivere Lucca. Non contiene però soltanto l'indicizzazione dei nomi dei manoscritti pubblicati in quel libro, bensì li integra con l'indice di una serie di altre guide storiche che compongono il ricco panorama della periegetica lucchese tra Settecento e Ottocento. Il Forestiere informato di Vincenzo Marchiò del 1721, il Diario sacro di Gabriele Grammatica nelle versioni del 1734 e del 1741 - e quindi quella accresciuta da Giovan Domenico Mansi del 1753 -, la Guida di Tommaso Trenta del 1820, poi ampliata e rivista da Antonio Mazzarosa nel 1829, il Diario sacro di Domenico Barsocchini del 1836 e, infine, la Guida dello stesso Mazzarosa del 1843 sono state incluse nell'indicizzazione.
In un unico prospetto è quindi possibile trovare non solo l'indicizzazione completa dei nomi degli artisti presenti in tutte queste guide a stampa, in origine senza indici, ma anche effettuare una collazione con quelle manoscritte. In un'unica tabella le une sono affiancate alle altre secondo l'ordine cronologico di scrittura o pubblicazione. Seguendo il criterio base del nome dell'artista, per ciascuna fonte sono stati indicati pagina, carta, luogo di collocazione dell'opera e altre brevi note esplicative. Un vero e proprio strumento di lavoro che intende facilitare ulteriori ricerche documentarie e favorire al contempo le indagini sul patrimonio artistico lucchese, specialmente per quelle opere oggi disperse o ancora non identificate.Maria Francesca PozziChiara Del PreteEmanuele Pellegriniemanuele.pellegrini@imtlucca.it2011-09-22T13:32:37Z2014-01-24T14:23:59Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/900This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9002011-09-22T13:32:37ZShort-term contracts in Italy: who is the winner?Short-term contracts have been used extensively in the Italian labor market in the last ten years. This article analyzes a new Italian panel data set, WHIP, and the Bank of Italy labor force survey, SHIW, to understand the effects of the introduction of this new typology of contracts. The goal of this paper is to investigate whether the objectives of the reforms have been accomplished and to identify the winners (the people benefiting the most) and the losers (the ones who are carrying the consequences of a less protected labor market) of this pivotal reformCristina Tealdicristina.tealdi@imtlucca.it2011-09-22T13:32:33Z2014-01-24T14:23:35Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/901This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/9012011-09-22T13:32:33ZRegulatory framework regarding short-term contracts in ItalyCristina Tealdicristina.tealdi@imtlucca.it2011-09-13T14:43:04Z2014-12-02T09:51:39Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/872This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/8722011-09-13T14:43:04ZSymposiumMaria Luisa Catonimarialuisa.catoni@imtlucca.it2011-09-13T14:31:06Z2014-12-02T09:54:38Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/871This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/8712011-09-13T14:31:06ZImmagini, parole e canto nell'Atene del VI secolo a.C.: la voce di chi?Maria Luisa Catonimarialuisa.catoni@imtlucca.it2011-09-13T10:35:43Z2014-12-02T09:55:45Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/864This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/8642011-09-13T10:35:43ZBere vino puro : immagini del simposio"In vino veritas": così il lirico Alceo cantava durante una "bevuta insieme" che si svolgeva sull'isola di Lesbo, nel VII secolo avanti Cristo. Questo motto, ancor oggi così popolare, condensa un principio fondamentale del simposio greco: attraverso l'assunzione del pharmakon, cioè del vino che è insieme veleno e medicinale svela la vera natura di un uomo. Ma il simposio non è un'allegra bevuta senza regole: il bere vi è ritualizzato, il grado di ubriachezza che tutti devono raggiungere viene deciso in anticipo, i partecipanti fissano regole per poi sperimentarne la violazione e i modi della violazione. Il simposio è in questo senso un'istituzione politica, religiosa e sociale, attraverso cui i gruppi aristocratici sperimentano, in un luogo protetto, le regole e i comportamenti da tenere nel più ampio contesto della città. Al suo interno si canta e si definisce l'opposizione tra amici e nemici, fra inclusi ed esclusi, fra valenti e uomini dappoco. Al suo interno si godono le gioie dell'eros, si ostenta la propria cultura, si esibisce il privilegio dell'otium, si stringono alleanze. Questo libro guarda alla concretezza della pratica del simposio e rilegge il rapporto tra i canti dei simposiasti e i vasi dipinti in cui bevevano. Maria Luisa Catonimarialuisa.catoni@imtlucca.it2011-08-08T13:55:08Z2011-09-27T13:12:23Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/771This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7712011-08-08T13:55:08ZA theory of military dictatorshipsWe investigate how nondemocratic regimes use the military and how this can lead to the emergence of military dictatorships. The elite may build a strong military and make the concessions necessary for the military to behave as their perfect agent, or they may risk the military turning against them. Once the transition to democracy takes place, a strong military poses a threat against the nascent democratic regime until it is reformed. We study the role of income inequality and natural resources in the emergence of military dictatorships and show how the national defense role of the military may facilitate democratic consolidationDaron AcemogluDavide Ticchidavide.ticchi@imtlucca.itAndrea Vindigniandrea.vindigni@imtlucca.it2011-08-08T13:32:27Z2011-09-27T13:12:23Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/770This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7702011-08-08T13:32:27ZEndogenous constitutionsWe present a theory of the choice of alternative democratic constitutions, a majoritarian or a consensual one, in an unequal society. A majoritarian democracy redistributes resources from the collectivity toward relatively few people, and has a relatively small government and low level of taxation. A consensual democracy redistributes resources toward a broader spectrum of social groups but also has a larger government and a higher level of taxation. We show that a consensual system turns out to be preferred by society when ex ante income inequality is relatively low, while a majoritarian system is chosen when income inequality is relatively high. We also obtain that consensual democracies should be expected to be ruled more often by center-left coalitions while the right should have an advantage in majoritarian constitutions. The implications for the relationship between inequality and redistribution are discussed. Historical evidence and a cross-sectional analysis support our results.Davide Ticchidavide.ticchi@imtlucca.itAndrea Vindigniandrea.vindigni@imtlucca.it2011-08-08T13:04:15Z2011-09-27T13:12:23Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/769This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7692011-08-08T13:04:15ZPersistence of civil warsA notable feature of post-World War II civil wars is their very long average duration. We provide a theory of the persistence of civil wars. The civilian government can successfully defeat rebellious factions only by creating a relatively strong army. In weakly-institutionalized polities this opens the way for excessive influence or coups by the military. Civilian governments whose rents are largely unaffected by civil wars then choose small and weak armies that are incapable of ending insurrections. Our framework also shows that when civilian governments need to take more decisive action against rebels, they may be forced to build over-sized armies, beyond the size necessary for fighting the insurrection, as a commitment to not reforming the military in the future.Daron AcemogluAndrea Vindigniandrea.vindigni@imtlucca.itDavide Ticchidavide.ticchi@imtlucca.it2011-08-01T13:34:28Z2011-08-08T08:38:45Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/755This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7552011-08-01T13:34:28ZA rollout algorithmic approach for complex parallel machine scheduling in healthcare operationsMichele CiavottaGabriella Dellinogabriella.dellino@imtlucca.itCarlo MeloniMarco Pranzo2011-08-01T12:52:38Z2011-08-04T07:30:21Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/753This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7532011-08-01T12:52:38ZParametric and distribution-free bootstrapping in robust simulation-optimizationMost methods in simulation-optimization assume known environments, whereas this research accounts for uncertain environments combining Taguchi's world view with either regression or Kriging (also called Gaussian Process) metamodels (emulators, response surfaces, surrogates). These metamodels are combined with Non-Linear Mathematical Programming (NLMP) to find robust solutions. Varying the constraint values in this NLMP gives an estimated Pareto frontier. To account for the variability of this estimated Pareto frontier, this contribution considers different bootstrap methods to obtain confidence regions for a given solution. This methodology is illustrated through some case studies selected from the literature.Gabriella Dellinogabriella.dellino@imtlucca.itJack P.C. KleijnenCarlo Meloni2011-08-01T10:23:29Z2011-08-04T07:30:21Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/746This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7462011-08-01T10:23:29ZRobust optimization in simulation: Taguchi and response surface methodologyOptimization of simulated systems is tackled by many methods, but most methods assume known environments. This article, however, develops a `robust' methodology for uncertain environments. This methodology uses Taguchi's view of the uncertain world, but replaces his statistical techniques by Response Surface Methodology (RSM). George Box originated RSM, and Douglas Montgomery recently extended RSM to robust optimization of real (non-simulated) systems. We combine Taguchi's view with RSM for simulated systems. We illustrate the resulting methodology through classic Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) inventory models, which demonstrate that robust optimization may require order quantities that differ from the classic EOQ.Gabriella Dellinogabriella.dellino@imtlucca.itJack P.C. KleijnenCarlo Meloni2011-07-06T10:42:15Z2011-07-11T14:37:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/711This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7112011-07-06T10:42:15ZDynamics of Dependence Properties for Lifetimes Influenced by Unobservable Environmental FactorsWe consider non-negative conditionally independent and identically distributed random variables and analyze conditions for monotonicity of survival copulas of residual lifetimes. Concentrating attention on the bivariate copula, we compare its behavior at the instant of default with its evolution between two defaults. The assumptions for our results will be expressed in terms of conditional hazard rates.Rachele Foschirachele.foschi@imtlucca.itFabio Spizzichino2011-07-06T10:28:16Z2011-07-11T14:37:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/709This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7092011-07-06T10:28:16ZDistorted Copulas: Constructions and Tail DependenceGiven a copula C, we examine under which conditions on an order isomorphism ψ of [0, 1] the distortion C ψ: [0, 1]2 → [0, 1], C ψ(x, y) = ψ{C[ψ−1(x), ψ−1(y)]} is again a copula. In particular, when the copula C is totally positive of order 2, we give a sufficient condition on ψ that ensures that any distortion of C by means of ψ is again a copula. The presented results allow us to introduce in a more flexible way families of copulas exhibiting different behavior in the tails.Fabrizio DuranteRachele Foschirachele.foschi@imtlucca.itPeter Sarkoci2011-07-06T09:56:58Z2011-07-11T14:37:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/708This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/7082011-07-06T09:56:58ZAging functions and multivariate notions of NBU and IFRFor d≥2, let X=(X1, …, Xd) be a vector of exchangeable continuous lifetimes with joint survival function $\overline{F}$. For such models, we study some properties of multivariate aging of $\overline{F}$ that are described by means of the multivariate aging function $B_{\overline{F}}$, which is a useful tool for describing the level curves of $\overline{F}$. Specifically, the attention is devoted to notions that generalize the univariate concepts of New Better than Used and Increasing Failure Rate. These multivariate notions are satisfied by random vectors whose components are conditionally independent and identically distributed having univariate conditional survival function that is New Better than Used (respectively, Increasing Failure Rate). Furthermore, they also have an interpretation in terms of comparisons among conditional survival functions of residual lifetimes, given a same history of observed survivals.Fabrizio DuranteRachele Foschirachele.foschi@imtlucca.itFabio Spizzichino2011-07-04T09:39:00Z2013-10-10T08:36:14Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/695This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/6952011-07-04T09:39:00ZBankruptcy risk model and empirical testsWe analyze the size dependence and temporal stability of firm bankruptcy risk in the US economy by applying Zipf scaling techniques. We focus on a single risk factor—the debt-to-asset ratio R—in order to study the stability of the Zipf distribution of R over time. We find that the Zipf exponent increases during market crashes, implying that firms go bankrupt with larger values of R. Based on the Zipf analysis, we employ Bayes’s theorem and relate the conditional probability that a bankrupt firm has a ratio R with the conditional probability of bankruptcy for a firm with a given R value. For 2,737 bankrupt firms, we demonstrate size dependence in assets change during the bankruptcy proceedings. Prepetition firm assets and petition firm assets follow Zipf distributions but with different exponents, meaning that firms with smaller assets adjust their assets more than firms with larger assets during the bankruptcy process. We compare bankrupt firms with nonbankrupt firms by analyzing the assets and liabilities of two large subsets of the US economy: 2,545 Nasdaq members and 1,680 New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) members. We find that both assets and liabilities follow a Pareto distribution. The finding is not a trivial consequence of the Zipf scaling relationship of firm size quantified by employees—although the market capitalization of Nasdaq stocks follows a Pareto distribution, the same distribution does not describe NYSE stocks. We propose a coupled Simon model that simultaneously evolves both assets and debt with the possibility of bankruptcy, and we also consider the possibility of firm mergers. Boris PodobnikDavor HorvaticAlexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itBranko UroševićH. Eugene Stanley2011-07-04T09:21:40Z2016-04-06T08:01:12Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/264This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2642011-07-04T09:21:40ZCommon scaling behavior in finance and macroeconomicsIn order to test whether scaling exists in finance at the world level, we test whether the average growth rates and volatility of market capitalization (MC) depend on the level of MC. We analyze the MC for 54 worldwide stock indices and 48 worldwide bond indices. We find that (i) the average growth rate r of the MC and (ii) the standard deviation (r) of growth rates r decrease both with MC as power laws, with exponents w = 0.28 ± 0.09 and w = 0.12 ± 0.04. We define a stochastic process in order to model the scaling results we find for worldwide stock and bond indices. We establish a power-law relationship between the MC of a country’s financial market and the gross domestic product (GDP) of the same country. Boris PodobnikDavor HorvaticAlexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itM. NjavroH. Eugene Stanley2011-07-04T09:21:21Z2016-04-06T08:01:33Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/268This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2682011-07-04T09:21:21ZScale-invariant properties of public-debt growthPublic debt is one of the important economic variables that quantitatively describes a nation's economy. Because bankruptcy is a risk faced even by institutions as large as governments (e.g., Iceland), national debt should be strictly controlled with respect to national wealth. Also, the problem of eliminating extreme poverty in the world is closely connected to the study of extremely poor debtor nations. We analyze the time evolution of national public debt and find "convergence": initially less-indebted countries increase their debt more quickly than initially more-indebted countries. We also analyze the public debt-to-GDP ratio {\cal R} , a proxy for default risk, and approximate the probability density function P({\cal R}) with a Gamma distribution, which can be used to establish thresholds for sustainable debt. We also observe "convergence" in {\cal R} : countries with initially small {\cal R} increase their {\cal R} more quickly than countries with initially large {\cal R} . The scaling relationships for debt and {\cal R} have practical applications, e.g. the Maastricht Treaty requires members of the European Monetary Union to maintain {\cal R} < 0.6 .Alexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itBoris PodobnikDavor HorvaticH. Eugene Stanley2011-07-04T09:21:07Z2014-12-18T15:24:33Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/270This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2702011-07-04T09:21:07ZQuantitative law describing market dynamics before and after interest-rate changeWe study the behavior of U.S. markets both before and after U.S. Federal Open Market Commission meetings and show that the announcement of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate change causes a financial shock, where the dynamics after the announcement is described by an analog of the Omori earthquake law. We quantify the rate n(t) of aftershocks following an interest-rate change at time T and find power-law decay which scales as n(t−T)∼(t−T)−Ω, with Ω positive. Surprisingly, we find that the same law describes the rate n′(|t−T|) of “preshocks” before the interest-rate change at time T. This study quantitatively relates the size of the market response to the news which caused the shock and uncovers the presence of quantifiable preshocks. We demonstrate that the news associated with interest-rate change is responsible for causing both the anticipation before the announcement and the surprise after the announcement. We estimate the magnitude of financial news using the relative difference between the U.S. Treasury Bill and the Federal Funds effective rate. Our results are consistent with the “sign effect,” in which “bad news” has a larger impact than “good news.” Furthermore, we observe significant volatility aftershocks, confirming a “market under-reaction” that lasts at least one trading day.Alexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itFengzhong WangShlomo HavlinH. Eugene Stanley2011-07-04T09:19:17Z2014-12-18T15:21:18Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/422This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/4222011-07-04T09:19:17ZMarket dynamics immediately before and after financial shocks: Quantifying the Omori, productivity, and Bath lawsWe study the cascading dynamics immediately before and immediately after 219 market shocks. We define the time of a market shock Tc to be the time for which the market volatility V(Tc) has a peak that exceeds a predetermined threshold. The cascade of high volatility “aftershocks” triggered by the “main shock” is quantitatively similar to earthquakes and solar flares, which have been described by three empirical laws—the Omori law, the productivity law, and the Bath law. We analyze the most traded 531 stocks in U.S. markets during the 2 yr period of 2001–2002 at the 1 min time resolution. We find quantitative relations between the main shock magnitude M≡log10 V(Tc) and the parameters quantifying the decay of volatility aftershocks as well as the volatility preshocks. We also find that stocks with larger trading activity react more strongly and more quickly to market shocks than stocks with smaller trading activity. Our findings characterize the typical volatility response conditional on M, both at the market and the individual stock scale. We argue that there is potential utility in these three statistical quantitative relations with applications in option pricing and volatility trading.Alexander M. Petersenalexander.petersen@imtlucca.itFengzhong WangShlomo HavlinH. Eugene Stanley2011-06-30T14:27:43Z2014-12-18T15:28:35Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/634This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/6342011-06-30T14:27:43ZScale-free models for the structure of business firm networksWe study firm collaborations in the life sciences and the information and communication technology sectors. We propose an approach to characterize industrial leadership using k-shell decomposition, with top-ranking firms in terms of market value in higher k-shell layers. We find that the life sciences industry network consists of three distinct components: a “nucleus,” which is a small well-connected subgraph, “tendrils,” which are small subgraphs consisting of small degree nodes connected exclusively to the nucleus, and a “bulk body,” which consists of the majority of nodes. Industrial leaders, i.e., the largest companies in terms of market value, are in the highest k-shells of both networks. The nucleus of the life sciences sector is very stable: once a firm enters the nucleus, it is likely to stay there for a long time. At the same time we do not observe the above three components in the information and communication technology sector. We also conduct a systematic study of these three components in random scale-free networks. Our results suggest that the sizes of the nucleus and the tendrils in scale-free networks decrease as the exponent of the power-law degree distribution λ increases, and disappear for λ≥3. We compare the k-shell structure of random scale-free model networks with two real-world business firm networks in the life sciences and in the information and communication technology sectors. We argue that the observed behavior of the k-shell structure in the two industries is consistent with the coexistence of both preferential and random agreements in the evolution of industrial networks.Maksim KitsakMassimo Riccabonimassimo.riccaboni@imtlucca.itShlomo HavlinFabio Pammollif.pammolli@imtlucca.itH. Eugene Stanley2011-06-30T14:23:17Z2011-08-31T14:40:38Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/674This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/6742011-06-30T14:23:17ZCome velocizzare il passaggio al sistema di calcolo contributivo delle pensioni? Una proposta operativa per rafforzare l'aggancio alla vita attesaFabio Pammollif.pammolli@imtlucca.itNicola C. Salerno2011-06-29T11:11:34Z2011-10-25T12:50:10Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/672This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/6722011-06-29T11:11:34ZLegislative Malapportionment and Institutional PersistenceThis paper argues that legislative malapportionment, denoting a discrepancy between the share of legislative seats and the share of population held by electoral districts, serves as a tool for pre-democratic elites to preserve their political power and economic interests after a transition to democracy. The authors claim that legislative malapportionment enhances the pre-democratic elite's political influence by over-representing areas that are more likely to vote for parties aligned withthe elite. This biased political representation survives in equilibrium as long as it helps democratic consolidation. Using data from Latin America, the authors document empirically that malapportionment increases the probability of transitioning to a democracy. Moreover, the data show that over-represented electoral districts are more likely to vote for parties close to pre-democracy ruling groups. The analysis also finds that overrepresented areas have lower levels of political competition and receive more transfers per capita from the central government, both of which favor the persistence of power of pre-democracy elites. Miriam BruhnFrancisco A. GallegoMassimiliano Gaetano Onoratomassimiliano.onorato@imtlucca.it2011-04-01T09:52:50Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/251This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2512011-04-01T09:52:50ZTranslation: La moderna biblioteca d’Alessandria. Il progetto «Google Books» e il sindacato antitrust, by Rudolph J.R. Peritz, Marc MillerIl contributo ricostruisce la storia di Google relativa al progetto noto come «Google Books», teso a creare una libreria digitale planetaria, per tempo intercettato da azioni collettive intentate dalle associazioni degli autori ed editori nord-americane e poi approdato ad un tentativo di composizione della controversia in base ad un accordo transattivo. Dopo aver illustrato gli ambiti fattuali del progetto e ricostruito la storia processuale relativa alle "class action", gli autori incentrano l'analisi sulle questioni concorrenziali sollevate dall'iniziativa, con una duplice prospettiva: anzitutto per domandarsi se la composizione del contenzioso tra privati nell'ambito di una "class action" rappresenti strumento idoneo di "public policy"; e, ancora, per valutare se la condotta di Google sia nel complesso illecita in base alla normativa nord-americana. Andrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.it2011-03-30T10:17:10Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/221This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2212011-03-30T10:17:10ZSingle entity theory ed immunità antitrust: il caso American NeedleAndrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.it2011-03-30T10:16:58Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/222This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2222011-03-30T10:16:58ZLe linee direttrici sugli accordi di cooperazione orizzontale: quid novi?Il contributo analizza il progetto di riforma relativo delle Linee direttrici sull'applicazione della normativa antitrust agli accordi di cooperazione orizzontale. In particolare, dopo aver ricostruito le ragioni che hanno spinto la Commissione europea ad aggiornare il quadro analitico applicabile alle forme più comuni di accordo, vengono passati in rassegna gli elementi di novità rispetto alle Linee direttrici tuttora in vigore. In tale prospettiva, viene posta enfasi sulle indicazioni fornite relativamente alla valutazione delle pratiche di scambio di informazioni e alle modifiche apportate alla sezione concernente gli accordi di normazione tecnica.
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The paper analyzes the draft Guidelines on the application of competition law to horizontal cooperation agreements. In particular, after shedding light on the reasons that have led the European Commission to update the analytical regime applicable to the most common forms of agreement, it is undertaken a review of the most relevant changes as compared to the guidelines still in force. In this perspective, specific emphasis is devoted to the assessment of information exchange practices, which substantially crystallize existing EU case law, as well as to the revised guidance provided in the section on standardization agreements. Andrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.it2011-03-30T10:16:49Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/223This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2232011-03-30T10:16:49ZIl caso Lega Calcio. Antitrust e vendita collettiva dei diritti TV su manifestazioni sportiveAndrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.it2011-03-30T10:13:47Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/244This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2442011-03-30T10:13:47ZNota a sentenza: Corte d’Appello di Milano; ordinanza 24 febbraio 2010.Andrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.itRoberto Pardolesi2011-03-30T10:13:13Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/247This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2472011-03-30T10:13:13ZNota a sentenza: Tribunale di Milano; ordinanza 24 maggio 2010.Andrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.itRoberto Pardolesi2011-03-30T09:50:53Z2011-07-11T14:21:53Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/243This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/2432011-03-30T09:50:53ZImmunità antitrust e leghe sportive americane: «zeru tituli»Nota a sentenza: Corte Suprema degli Stati Uniti d’America; sentenza 24 maggio 2010.Andrea Giannaccaria.giannaccari@imtlucca.itRoberto Pardolesi2011-03-10T13:24:44Z2011-07-11T13:54:05Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/188This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1882011-03-10T13:24:44ZLa transizione francese del 1958 nella storiografia degli ultimi anni Lucia Bonfreschilucia.bonfreschi@imtlucca.itChristine Vodovar2011-03-10T13:23:14Z2011-07-11T13:54:05Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/189This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1892011-03-10T13:23:14ZRaymond AronLucia Bonfreschilucia.bonfreschi@imtlucca.it2011-02-25T10:47:07Z2013-05-29T12:37:08Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/107This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1072011-02-25T10:47:07ZLa transizione spagnola un processo dalle origini di lungo periodoThis article aim at updating the new field of research in Spain and it provides the new outcomes of the historiographic research. It is divided into four parts. In the first one it recollects the major theories on the Spanish transition to democracy written from the end of the Eighties up to nowadays. In the second part it describes the origin of long run of the transition and it focus basically on domestic actors such as political parties, trade unions, social movements. In the third part it analyses the role of foreign relationship Spain took during the mid Seventies and the strategy adopted to get in touch with international institutions. In the four and latest part it describes the role played by the memory of the Civil War during the process of transition. How it influenced public opinion and government institutions.Maria Elena Cavallarom.cavallaro@imtlucca.it2011-02-25T10:30:10Z2013-05-29T12:29:34Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/105This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1052011-02-25T10:30:10ZLe transizioni mediterranee e il declino del modello continentaleThe article made a distinction between the “continental model” and the “anglosaxon model” in order to understand the different role politics and state institutions played in Europe and in Usa. Afterword it explains how the State gain power during the Twenties and how it tried to maintain the role developed during the First World War and how it expanded its control on the economic field, coping with the raising role of interest groups and how the new trend made parliaments to loose part of its traditional functions obtaining a less important role in comparison with the one acquired during the liberal age. This trend in some state such as Italy and Germany led to dictatorship, whereas in other state even after the Second World War kept alive some “authoritarian relationship” within the industrial economic organization in exchange of a widespread wealth system.
How long did it last? In the article I explain how and why it started to crumble during the Sixties when the model of social integration party went in crisis. In the last part I take into account three national cases – Italy, France and Spain ,and I analyze how they react to the new trend from the Fifties up to the Nineties according to their experience of institutional change.Maria Elena Cavallarom.cavallaro@imtlucca.itGaetano Quagliariello2011-02-25T10:17:27Z2013-05-29T12:30:34Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/106This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1062011-02-25T10:17:27ZEl uso público comparado del antifascismo y del antifranquismo en Italia y en EspañaThis article proposes a comparison between antifascist movement in Italy and the antifrancoist one in Spain and in particular it refers to the heritage both movements left as a legacy in the building of the democratic system in the two countries during their transition to democracy in the late Forties and in the late Seventies. The article came from a round table we held within the activities sponsored by the Escuela de Historia y Arquelogia in Rome and UNED university and with several collegues coming from different Spanish and Italian universities.Maria Elena Cavallarom.cavallaro@imtlucca.itAbdón Mateos López2011-02-25T09:30:03Z2011-07-11T14:00:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/101This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1012011-02-25T09:30:03ZUnderstanding the Doctrine of Patentable Subject
MatterThe doctrine of patentable subject matter precludes basic inventions such as abstract
ideas and laws of nature from patent protection. However, current economic
thinking of the patent systemstresses the necessity of rewarding pioneering inventors
in the cumulative innovation process. In a two-stage innovation modelwhere the first
stage invention (basic invention) has no stand-alone value and the pioneer can also
participate in the second stage, I show that patent protection to the basic invention
may increase rather than hamper the second stage performance. Rejecting patents
on the basic invention can promote technology progress when the pioneer has high
capacity, but the follower has low capacity to engage in the second stage innovation.
Jing-Yuan Chioujy.chiou@imtlucca.it2011-02-25T09:26:20Z2011-07-11T14:00:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/100This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/1002011-02-25T09:26:20ZTechnology Adoption and Fuzzy Patent RightsThis paper considers why a patentee may have little incentives to reduce the uncertainty
of patent boundary. Clearer patent rights, i.e., when patent examination results
better predict subsequent court decisions, provide better guidance to technologyspecific
investment and encourage technology adoption. Undermild conditions, however,
the patentee’s post-adoption payoff decreases in clarity. The patentee prefers to
maintain “fuzzy” patent rights in order to monopolize the use of the technology, or
when promoting technology adoption is not a strong concern. The latter happens
when the patentee, as a pure licensor, has a low (ex ante) quality invention.
Jing-Yuan Chioujy.chiou@imtlucca.it2011-02-25T09:00:22Z2011-07-11T14:00:42Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/97This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/972011-02-25T09:00:22ZRevisiting Antitrust Limits to Probabilistic Patent
Disputes: Strategic Entry and Asymmetric
InformationWe consider separately strategic entry and asymmetric information in the design
of the settlement policy governing patent disputes, with a focus on Shapiro (2003)’s
consumer protection rule. We show that, when a potential entrant strategically incurs
an entry cost before engaging in a patent dispute, a more stringent settlement policy
of deterring costly entry is preferable to the patent-holder and may lead to higher
static efficiency. Concerning asymmetric information, when the disputants, but not
the court, learn the patent validity, we derive an “expectation test,” which requires
that a laxer settlement policy be coupled with higher expected patent validity under
settlement.Jing-Yuan Chioujy.chiou@imtlucca.itRichard Schmidtke2011-02-22T15:56:07Z2011-07-11T14:25:31Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/86This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/862011-02-22T15:56:07ZVoting in the Bicameral Congress: Large Majorities as a Signal of QualityWe estimate a model of voting in Congress that allows for dispersed information
about the quality of proposals in an equilibrium context. The results highlight the
effects of bicameralism on policy outcomes. In equilibrium, the Senate imposes an
endogenous supermajority rule on members of the House. We estimate this super-
majority rule to be about four-fifths on average across policy areas. Moreover, our
results indicate that the value of the information dispersed among legislators is significant, and that in equilibrium a large fraction of House members (40-50 %) vote in
accordance with their private information. Taken together, our results imply a highly
conservative Senate, in the sense that proposals are enacted into law only when it is
extremely likely that their quality is high.Matias IaryczowerGabriel Katzg.katz@imtlucca.itSebastian Saiegh2011-02-22T15:50:30Z2011-07-11T14:25:31Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/83This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/832011-02-22T15:50:30ZCorrecting for Survey Misreports Using Auxiliary Information with an Application to Estimating TurnoutMisreporting is a problem that plagues researchers who use survey data. In this article, we develop a parametric model that corrects for misclassified binary responses using information on the misreporting patterns obtained from auxiliary data sources. The model is implemented within the Bayesian framework via Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods and can be easily extended to address other problems exhibited by survey data, such as missing response and/or covariate values. While the model is fully general, we illustrate its application in the context of estimating models of turnout using data from the American National Elections Studies.Jonathan N. KatzGabriel Katzg.katz@imtlucca.it2011-02-16T11:46:46Z2011-07-11T13:50:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/74This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/742011-02-16T11:46:46ZInvestment Discrimination and the Proliferation of Preferential Trade
AgreementsThe proliferation of bilateral and regional trade agreements has arguably been the main
change to the international trading system since the end of the Uruguay Round in the mid-
1990s. We argue that investment discrimination plays a major role in this development.
Preferential trade agreements can lead to investment discrimination because of tariff
differentials on intermediary products and as result of provisions that relax investment rules
for the parties to the agreement. Excluded countries are sensitive to the costs that this
investment discrimination imposes on domestic firms and react by signing a trade agreement
that aims at leveling the playing field. We test our argument using a spatial econometric
model and a newly compiled dataset that includes 166 countries and covers a period of 18
years (1990-2007). Our findings strongly support the argument that investment discrimination
is a major driver of the proliferation of trade agreements.Leonardo Baccinileonardo.baccini@imtlucca.itAndreas Duer2011-02-16T11:46:25Z2011-07-11T13:50:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/76This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/762011-02-16T11:46:25ZEasing the Pain of Adjustment? Preferential Trading Agreements, Foreign Aid, and Credible Commitment to Economic ReformIn this article, we propose that wealthy donors give foreign aid to developing countries to
facilitate political adjustment, such as compensation for losers and side payments to influential
elite constituencies, towards mutually profitable economic reform. Only democratic developing
countries can credibly commit to using fungible revenue in ways that benefit the donor,
so the adjustment effect only applies to democracies. A quantitative test against data on preferential
trading agreements lends strong support to the theory. Strikingly, fully democratic
developing countries that form a preferential trading agreement obtain a threefold increase in
foreign aid in the short run. Additional tests show that this increase is not driven by macroeconomic
difficulties and that the beneficial effect on foreign aid is temporary. Both findings
are consistent with the theory. An important implication of these results is that if foreign aid
facilitates economic reform through preferential trading agreements, previous research could
have underestimated the benefits thereof.Leonardo Baccinileonardo.baccini@imtlucca.itJohannes Urpelainen2011-02-16T10:46:19Z2011-07-11T13:50:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/75This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/752011-02-16T10:46:19ZWhy Do States Commit to International Labour Standards?
The Importance of “Rivalry” and “Friendship”Ratifying conventions adopted by the International Labour Organization creates legal
obligations to improve labour standards in the domestic economy. Why do states
choose to ratify them? Two influential theoretical approaches offer contrasting
explanations. Rational institutionalist theory expects states to use institutions such as
the ILO to improve or consolidate their preferred standards while reducing the risk of
suffering competitive disadvantages in world markets. In this view, ILO conventions
are devices for the prevention and mitigation of regulatory “races to the bottom”
among trade rivals. By contrast, sociological institutionalism expect states to ratify
ILO conventions if doing so conforms to a norm of appropriate behaviour that is
prevalent in the states’ respective peer groups. The paper develops observable
implications of the two explanations and tests them by applying spatial regression
models to seven core ILO conventions, 187 countries, and 40 years. The paper finds
some evidence in support of both explanations, but sociological institutionalism is
supported more strongly than rational institutionalism.Leonardo Baccinileonardo.baccini@imtlucca.itMathias Koenig-Archibugi2011-02-15T15:32:19Z2011-07-11T14:32:25Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/46This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/462011-02-15T15:32:19ZOn the Interpretability of Law: Lessons from the Decoding of National ConstitutionsA critical component of law is the ease by which experts and lay persons can understand it. If a law is unclear, it is unlikely to generate compliance and enforcement. Using data from a project conceived to understand the content of national constitutions, we assess the effect of contextual, textual, and interpreter characteristics on the interpretability of constitutional documents. We find that constitutions do vary in their degree of clarity. However, contextual barriers do not seem to matter: constitutions written in bygone eras, in different languages, or in far different cultural milieus are no less interpretable by readers than are those written in closer temporal and cultural proximity. On the other hand, several textual characteristics do have a sizable impact on interpretability, a result that emphasizes the important role that constitutional drafters play in the implementation of their product.James Meltonjames.melton@imtlucca.itZachary ElkinsTom Ginsburg2011-02-15T15:31:43Z2011-07-11T14:32:25Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/47This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/472011-02-15T15:31:43ZWhy is Voting Habit-Forming: Evidence from SwedenFor decades, scholars of electoral behavior have noted persistence in individuals' turnout decisions
and hypothesized that such persistence is the result of habit. Recent empirical studies provide
persuasive evidence supporting the habitual voting hypothesis, but we still do not know why
individuals develop habits for voting. One theory is that voting causes individuals' to view
themselves as "voters," increasing their future probabilities of voting. Another theory asserts that
voting may ease institutional barriers, making future voting less costly and changing conative
attitudes towards voting. This study seeks to disentangle these two causal mechanisms by testing
the habitual voting hypothesis in Sweden. Since institutional barriers to voting are minimal in
Sweden, evidence in favor of the habitual voting hypothesis will lend credence to a psychological
mechanism. The opposite result will point to an institutional mechanism. Ultimately, habitual
voting is found in Sweden, which suggests the psychological mechanism is valid.James Meltonjames.melton@imtlucca.it2011-02-15T15:31:05Z2011-07-11T14:32:25Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/45This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/452011-02-15T15:31:05ZCredibly Committing to Property Rights: The Roles of Precedent and the Constitution.In cross-national studies, scholars typically ignore the moderating effect of credibility on the
relationship between property rights protection and economic growth. However, both theory
and case evidence suggest that credibility is necessary for this relationship to exist. Using panel
data spanning more than 100 countries from 1985-2005, this paper investigates if two credibility
mechanisms - precedent and the constitution - moderate the relationship between property rights
protection and economic growth. The findings suggest that a credible commitment to property
rights protection is a necessary condition for such protection to enhance economic performance.
The implications of these findings are twofold: 1) property rights reforms are unlikely to be
successful in countries that cannot credibly commit to those reforms, and 2) unsuccessful property
rights reforms at present may reduce the likelihood that future reforms will be successful.James Meltonjames.melton@imtlucca.it2011-02-15T15:09:44Z2011-07-11T14:32:25Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/41This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/412011-02-15T15:09:44ZDemocratic Compromise: A Latent Variable Analysis of Ten Measures of Regime TypeUsing a Bayesian latent variable approach, we synthesize a new measure of democracy, the Unified Democracy Scores (UDS), from 10 extant scales. Our measure eschews the difficult—and often arbitrary—decision to use one existing democracy scale over another in favor of a cumulative approach that allows us to simultaneously leverage the measurement efforts of numerous scholars. The result of this cumulative approach is a measure of democracy that, for every country-year, is at least as reliable as the most reliable component measure and is accompanied by quantitative estimates of uncertainty in the level of democracy. Moreover, for those who wish to continue using previously existing scales or to evaluate research performed using those scales, we extract information from the new measure to perform heretofore impossible direct comparisons between component scales. Specifically, we estimate the relative reliability of the constituent indicators, compare the specific ordinal levels of each of the existing measures in relationship to one another and assess overall levels of disagreement across raters. We make the UDS and associated parameter estimates freely available online and provide a detailed tutorial that demonstrates how to best use the UDS in applied work. Daniel PemsteinStephen A. Meservejames.melton@imtlucca.itJames Melton2011-02-15T14:50:22Z2011-07-11T13:50:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/38This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/382011-02-15T14:50:22ZGlobalization and Economic Crisis: Does Information Really Matter?Leonardo Baccinileonardo.baccini@imtlucca.itSoo Yeon Kim2011-02-15T14:48:52Z2011-07-11T13:50:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/37This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/372011-02-15T14:48:52ZExplaining Formation and Design of EU Trade Agreements: The Role of Transparency and FlexibilityWhat political factors explain the selection of countries for preferential trade agreements by the European Union? I argue that when forming a trade agreement the EU is more likely to target countries that have a higher degree of political and economic transparency than other developing countries. In highly transparent countries the EU is able to monitor effectively whether or not these countries follow its forms of conditionality, which is the main rationale of EU regionalism. Moreover, economic and political transparency plays a particularly important role in determining the degree of flexibility in trade agreements. Evidence based on data from 138 developing countries supports these arguments.Leonardo Baccinileonardo.baccini@imtlucca.it2011-02-15T10:41:37Z2011-07-11T14:24:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/59This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/592011-02-15T10:41:37ZL’idea di Kuhn: un nuovo ruolo per la storiaStefano Gatteistefano.gattei@imtlucca.it2011-02-15T10:36:17Z2011-07-11T14:24:17Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/60This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/602011-02-15T10:36:17ZImre Lakatos, the Man Who would be Philosopher-KingStefano Gatteistefano.gattei@imtlucca.it2011-02-10T16:01:59Z2011-07-11T13:20:51Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/48This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/482011-02-10T16:01:59ZElectoral participation and communicative voting in Europe This paper provides an empirical investigation of electoral participation and communicative voting in 14 European countries. We estimate a multi-level voting process where individuals face a participation decision (whether to vote or abstain) and a voting decision (whether to vote strategically for a likely winner party or as communicating for a sure loser party). Our main findings can be summarized as follows. First, individuals who are either independent or uninformed are less likely to turnout. However, being both independent and uninformed does not have any statistically significant effect on electoral participation. Thus, our results question the empirical relevance of the swing voter's curse theory in large elections. Second, the probability of voting as communicating is positively related with the level of education and the degree of dissatisfaction with the political system. Finally, political preferences and institutional features characterizing the functioning of the political system and of the media market have a significant effect both on electoral participation and on the voting decision.Francesco Sobbriof.sobbrio@imtlucca.itPietro Navarra2011-02-07T11:25:03Z2011-09-29T13:46:58Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/17This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/172011-02-07T11:25:03ZThe Political Economy of Fiscal Prudence in Historical PerspectiveThis paper uses a new panel dataset to perform a statistical analysis of political regimes and financial rectitude over the long run. Old Regime polities in Europe typically suffered from fiscal fragmentation and absolutist rule. By the start of World War I, however, many such countries had centralized institutions and limited government. Panel regressions indicate that political transformations toward centralized and limited regimes led to significant improvements in fiscal prudence. Dynamic estimations and structural breaks tests reinforce these findings. The results suggest that good financial housekeeping is one mechanism through which political reforms reduce sovereign credit risk.Mark Dinceccom.dincecco@imtlucca.it2011-02-07T11:18:55Z2011-09-29T13:47:07Zhttp://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/15This item is in the repository with the URL: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/id/eprint/152011-02-07T11:18:55ZFragmented Authority from Ancien Régime to Modernity: a Quantitative AnalysisThis paper performs a systematic analysis that examines institutional fragmentation in terms of customs tariffs within states west of the Rhine from 1700 to 1815 and between states east of the Rhine from 1815 to 1871. Internal customs zones are measured in two ways: physical size and urban population. Both methods use 175 sample cities as described by De Vries (1984) in England, France, the Netherlands, and Spain as the basic unit of account. The results indicate that customs zones west of the Rhine were small prior to the French Revolution but grew dramatically from 1789 onwards. They thus provide definitive evidence of divided authority in Ancien Régime Europe. The measurement of external customs zones uses 117 sample cities in the German and Italian territories. The findings indicate a remarkable degree of institutional consolidation between states east of the Rhine over the 1800s. Mark Dinceccom.dincecco@imtlucca.it