The Read Feed: Reviews

Abstract

Michelle DeMars reviews Academic Libraries for Commuter Students: Research-Based Strategies. Hayley Moreno reviews Coding with XML for Efficiencies in Cataloging and Metadata: Practical Applications of XSD, XSLT, and XQuery.     

Behavioral economics and the value of a statistical life

Journal of Risk and Uncertainty - There are many possible connections between the value of statistical life (VSL) and behavioral economics. A list of topics includes endowment effects, risk...     

Sociological Research on Feminism and the Women’s Movement: Ideology,Identity, and Practice

This article provides an overview of sociological research on three aspects of feminism: feminism as an ideology; feminism as an identity; and feminism as a practice. I summarize the main contributions of sociological research in each of these areas, and highlight the overarching contributions for understanding contemporary feminism. Three contributions are key. First, sociological research highlights the existence multiple varieties of feminism –“feminisms” as opposed to a singular “feminism.” Second, this research reveals that feminist ideologies, identities, and movements are each dynamic – they have changed historically, and continue to change in response to shifting socio‐political, economic, and technological landscapes. Third, sociological research demonstrates that feminism is alive and well, and in many senses thriving, in the contemporary United States. Though some aspects of feminism are more widespread than others, sociological research challenges the notion that feminism, on the whole, has declined. As an ideology, an identity, and a practice, feminism remains strong in the contemporary United States.     

Data-driven Kriging models based on FANOVA-decomposition

Kriging models have been widely used in computer experiments for the analysis of time-consuming computer codes. Based on kernels, they are flexible and can be tuned to many situations. In this paper, we construct kernels that reproduce the computer code complexity by mimicking its interaction structure. While the standard tensor-product kernel implicitly assumes that all interactions are active, the new kernels are suited for a general interaction structure, and will take advantage of the absence of interaction between some inputs. The methodology is twofold. First, the interaction structure is estimated from the data, using a first initial standard Kriging model, and represented by a so-called FANOVA graph. New FANOVA-based sensitivity indices are introduced to detect active interactions. Then this graph is used to derive the form of the kernel, and the corresponding Kriging model is estimated by maximum likelihood. The performance of the overall procedure is illustrated by several 3-dimensional and 6-dimensional simulated and real examples. A substantial improvement is observed when the computer code has a relatively high level of complexity.     

Dublin’s Seventeenth Century Parishes and the Quality of Life

Social Indicators Research - The registers of Dublin’s parishes in the seventeenth century provide access to aspects of civic and religious life. In the registers are records of burials,...     

ARE WORKERS WILLING TO PAY TO JOIN A BETTER TEAM?

Using data from the Major League Baseball free‐agent market, this study is the first to show that the productivity expected of the team a worker will join produces a significant, negative compensating wage differential. The younger workers in the sample drive this result, trading 25% of their wages to join teams with an expected productivity one standard deviation higher. This investment can be recouped if a reasonable increase in human capital occurs. These results are robust to contract length‐wage simultaneity and indicate that investment in human capital motivates the observed tradeoff, suggesting a new pathway through which human capital accumulation can affect wages. Reliable measures of workers' own past productivity and the productivity expected of a worker's future team provide key advantages to identifying these effects. (JEL J31, J24, M54)     

Demographic change and shifting views about marine resources and the coastal environment in Downeast Maine

Connections to the sea often define the character of coastal towns. However, as migrants arrive and economic diversification occurs, views about the use of marine resources and the ocean environment can change. Using survey data from Maine, we examined whether shifting demographics affect public perceptions of marine resource uses and coastal environmental concerns. We tested resource use and environmental items against a common set of demographic, background, and place-related variables. Results indicate that the level of education and the county of residence predict Mainers?? views about different marine resource uses and ocean-related environmental issues. Political party affiliation strongly influences environmental concern but not views about the use of marine resources. Migration history, on the other hand, has little effect. Understanding community contexts as well as individual background and ideological orientations will be critical as managers attempt to balance alternative uses of marine resources and resolve coastal environmental problems.