Limit distributions of unbiased estimators in natural exponential families

We obtain the possible limit distributions of unbiased estimators of functions of the parameter of a natural exponential family. The limit distribution depends on <$>j<$>, the order of the first non-zero derivative at the true (but usually unknown) value of the parameter. We show that if <$>j \geq 2<$> then the umvu and the maximum likelihood estimators are not asymptotically equivalent.     

A New Survival Model for the Diffusion Pattern of TV Programs

The study of television audience viewing behavior is very important. The results can provide broadcasters and advertisers useful information to increase the effectiveness of television programming and advertising. Based on hazard rate analysis for survival model, this research develops a new statistical model to fit the diffusion pattern of TV programs, which is a measure of the overall popularity of the program and is used as a criterion to sell the television time. The model helps the decision makers at the networks better understand the acceptance of the show and the underlying behavioral patterns of the viewers. It fits the empirical data in Hong Kong very well and outperforms the existing models. This basic model is then extended to the proportional hazard model to study the covariate effects on the likelihood of an individual watching the program at an earlier stage. Advertisers can benefit from these results in targeting their desired customers.     

D s -Optimal Designs for Quadratic Log Contrast Model for Experiments with Mixtures

The approximate D _s -optimal design for discriminating between linear and quadratic log contrast models for experiments with mixtures suggested by Aitchison and Bacon-Shone (1984 Aitchison , J. , Bacon-Shone , J. ( 1984 ). Log contrast models for experiments with mixtures . Biometrika 71 : 323 – 330 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) is investigated, where the experimental domain is restricted further as in Chan (1992 Chan , L. Y. ( 1992 ). D-Optimal design for a quadratic log contrast model for experiments with mixtures . Commun. Statist. Theor. Meth. 21 ( 10 ): 2909 – 2930 .[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). It is found that for a symmetric subspace of the finite dimensional simplex, there is a D _s -optimal design with the nice structure that puts a weight 1/2 ^k?1 on the centroid of this subspace and the remaining weight is uniformly distributed on the vertices of the experimental domain. Finally, the D _s -efficiency of the D-optimal design for quadratic model and the design given by Aitchison and Bacon-Shone (1984 Aitchison , J. , Bacon-Shone , J. ( 1984 ). Log contrast models for experiments with mixtures . Biometrika 71 : 323 – 330 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) are also discussed.     

We have our dignity,yeah? Scrutiny under suspicion: Experiences of welfare conditionality in the Irish social protection system

Conditionality has arguably always been part of welfare and poor relief regimes dating at least as far back as the poor laws and the condition of less eligibility. Nevertheless, there has arguably been a more pronounced turn towards welfare conditionality in the latter part of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries and this appears to be continuing across jurisdictions largely unabated and despite the fact that large amounts of evidence continue to suggest the ineffectiveness of welfare conditionality as means of promoting re‐ entry to the workforce for those experiencing unemployment. Alongside this, much evidence also points to the ultimately deleterious effects of welfare conditionality on those at whom it is targeted. This is an area which has seen an abundance of recent contributions in the context of the UK and further afield but that has arguably suffered from a lack of cognate data that sheds light on the Irish example. In attempting to begin to remedy this, this article presents data from a series of interviews carried out with welfare recipients in Ireland in 2018. The purpose of this article is to shed light on experiences of conditionality in the contemporary Irish welfare state and to attempt to nuance further what conditionality can mean. In doing so, this article takes the approach of allowing the data to “speak for itself” in order to best showcase the experiences of those most affected by welfare conditionality.     

Prometheus by the Bay: Hollywood and tech capitalism in Silicon Valley

A sequence of recent science-fiction films set in the San Francisco Bay Area suggests that Silicon Valley corporations have become a major concern for Hollywood. These films present Silicon Valley capitalism in thrall to a technological experimentation that prompts disastrous outcomes, which the films collectively argue emerges from the corporations' drive for profit and ignorance of the precautionary principle. Yet Hollywood's response to Silicon Valley involves the valorizing of a kinder, less rapacious capitalism than that of Silicon Valley, a position that prevents a thorough critique of a major challenger to its position within our culture.     

Objective indicators,personal characteristics,and satisfaction with safety from crime and violence: An interaction model

An interaction model is presented which allows crime rates, personal characteristics, or both to determine satisfaction with safety from crime and violence. The model is tested with data from recent migrants from California to southern Oregon. Those households which are most vulnerable, particularly those with young children, older people, females, and those with more wealth, would derive the highest levels of satisfaction from reductions in crime rates.     

Motives,Timing, and Targets of Corporate Philanthropy: A Tripartite Classification Scheme of Charitable Giving

Although corporate philanthropy has been an important part of American business for more than a century, the motives and consequences of corporate philanthropy are not well understood. This paper develops a richer classification scheme of philanthropic activity, to aid in theory development and management. Examining simultaneously the domains of why firms give (motive), when they give (timing) and to whom they give (target), a conceptual model identifying distinct categories of philanthropic activity is developed and its implications to present and future research discussed.     

Identifying Synergies and Complementarities Between MDGs: Results from Cluster Analysis

The MDGs are interlinked: acceleration in one goal is likely to speed up progress in others. Nevertheless, these synergies are not always visible, and may differ across countries. Using bivariate cluster analysis, this paper investigates whether distinct groups of developing countries can be identified, using statistical methods, on the basis of the correlation of changes in main MDG indicators over the 1990–2008 period. Identified groups include: (1) “good performers”, characterized by strong positive synergies in MDGs indicators; (2) “poor performers”, where there are synergies in poor progress towards the MDGs and (3) “partial performers” countries where progress in one MDG went along with regress or stagnation in another. We then study the determinants of cluster membership. While growth in GDP per capita is, unsurprisingly, best able to distinguish between “good” and “poor” performers, a poor institutional framework and deteriorations in the income distribution is a notable correlate of partial progress, thus apparently undermining synergies in reaching the MDGs. In light of the current discussions about the post-MDG system, our results suggest that synergies between MDG progress can be achieved but they cannot be taken for granted. Improving institutional performance and reducing inequality appear particularly important drivers of promoting such synergies.     

Colonialism as a continuing project: The portuguese experience

The end of the American Civil War began a lengthy period of Southern inferiority vis-?-vis the North-a period so lengthy that some Southerners argue that it lasts to this day. Not until Woodrow Wilson's election in 1913 did the United States have a Southern-born president after the Civil War. Southerners sought novel means to assert some degree of superiority over their Northern neighbors. College football became a primary means of reasserting a Southern sense of identity and superiority. In inter-regional games in the 1920s and 1930s, the martial spirit of college football allowed Southerners to reassert their sense of honor, which had been maligned since defeat in the Civil War. As Bertram Wyatt-Brown (1982) has shown, the concept of honor defined Southern males' outlook; secession from the Union and civil war occurred when Southerners perceived Abraham Lincoln's election to the Presidency as the culmination of anti-slavery assaults upon their honor. Such racial definitions of Southern identity became problematic as the civil rights movement gained impetus in the 1950s and 1960s. To remain competitive with teams from other regions, Southern football teams began to recruit black players; The University of Alabama fielded its first black football player in 1971. However, transition from segregation to inclusion has not been easy. Symbols of white Southern pride highlight lingering racial difficulties, as a 1997 controversy over use of the "Rebels" nickname and fans' waving of the Confederate battle flag at The University of Mississippi illustrates. Controversies like this raise troubling questions about Southern identity, namely "Whose South is it?" and "Can expressions of Southern nationalist feelings possibly escape racial implications?"     

Does Listening to Mozart Affect Listening Ability?

Considerable research has been conducted testing Rauscher, Shaw, and Ky's (1993) Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L and Ky, K. N. 1993. Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 365: 611[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] Mozart Effect (ME). This study attempts to replicate, in part, research that tested the ME on listening comprehension abilities. Also included in this study is an examination of control group issues in current day research. We hypothesized that students who listen to Mozart would demonstrate greater listening comprehension than students involved in one of four control groups. Students were exposed to one of five treatments and then completed a listening comprehension test about a videotaped lecture they viewed. Ultimately, results uncovered a ME when comparing the Mozart A (alpha) group with the alternative treatment control groups (Mozart B [beta] music and Rock and Roll music), but no ME when comparing the Mozart A group and the non-music control groups (sitting in silence or working on a crossword puzzle). Discussion focused on the ME and listening comprehension as well as on the nature of control groups in experimental research.