cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Hilbert theorem for vertex algebras

Given a simple vertex algebra \( \mathcal{A} \) and a reductive group G of automorphisms of \( \mathcal{A} \), the invariant subalgebra \( {\mathcal{A}^G} \) is strongly finitely generated in most examples where its structure is known. This phenomenon is subtle, and is generally not true of the classical limit of \( {\mathcal{A}^G} \), which often requires infinitely many generators and infinitely many relations to describe. Using tools from classical invariant theory, together with recent results on the structure of the \( {\mathcal{W}_{{1 + }\infty }} \) algebra, we establish the strong finite generation of a large family of invariant subalgebras of βγ-systems, bc-systems, and bcβγ-systems.
Models of dynamic extraction of lipid tethers from cell membranes

When a ligand that is bound to an integral membrane receptor is pulled, the membrane and the underlying cytoskeleton can deform before either the membrane delaminates from the cytoskeleton or the ligand detaches from the receptor. If the membrane delaminates from the cytoskeleton, it may be further extruded and form a membrane tether. We develop a phenomenological model for this process by assuming that deformations obey Hooke's law up to a critical force at which the cell membrane locally detaches from the cytoskeleton and a membrane tether forms. We compute the probability of tether formation and show that tethers can be extruded only within an intermediate range of force loading rates and pulling velocities. The mean tether length that arises at the moment of ligand detachment is computed as are the force loading rates and pulling velocities that yield the longest tethers.
Sublinear variance in first-passage percolation for general distributions

We prove that the variance of the passage time from the origin to a point \(x\) in first-passage percolation on \(\mathbb {Z}^d\) is sublinear in the distance to \(x\) when \(d\ge 2\), obeying the bound \(C\Vert x\Vert /\log \Vert x\Vert \), under minimal assumptions on the edge-weight distribution. The proof applies equally to absolutely continuous, discrete and singular continuous distributions and mixtures thereof, and requires only \(2+ \log \) moments. The main result extends work of Benjamini–Kalai–Schramm (Ann Prob 31, 2003) and Benaim–Rossignol (Ann Inst Henri Poincare Prob Stat 3, 2008).
Projection Efficient Subgradient Method and Optimal Nonsmooth Frank-Wolfe Method

We consider the classical setting of optimizing a nonsmooth Lipschitz continuous convex function over a convex constraint set, when having access to a (stochastic) first-order oracle (FO) for the function and a projection oracle (PO) for the constraint set. It is well known that to achieve ϵ-suboptimality in high-dimensions, Θ(ϵ−2) FO calls are necessary. This is achieved by the projected subgradient method (PGD). However, PGD also entails O(ϵ−2) PO calls, which may be computationally costlier than FO calls (e.g. nuclear norm constraints). Improving this PO calls complexity of PGD is largely unexplored, despite the fundamental nature of this problem and extensive literature. We present first such improvement. This only requires a mild assumption that the objective function, when extended to a slightly larger neighborhood of the constraint set, still remains Lipschitz and accessible via FO. In particular, we introduce MOPES method, which carefully combines Moreau-Yosida smoothing and accelerated first-order schemes. This is guaranteed to find a feasible ϵ-suboptimal solution using only O(ϵ−1) PO calls and optimal O(ϵ−2) FO calls. Further, instead of a PO if we only have a linear minimization oracle (LMO, a la Frank-Wolfe) to access the constraint set, an extension of our method, MOLES, finds a feasible ϵ-suboptimal solution using O(ϵ−2) LMO calls and FO calls—both match known lower bounds, resolving a question left open since White (1993). Our experiments confirm that these methods achieve significant speedups over the state-of-the-art, for a problem with costly PO and LMO calls.
On the complexity of proper holomorphic mappings between balls

This article contributes to the study of proper holomorphic mappings between balls. Our results include a degree estimate for rational proper maps, a new gap phenomenon for convex families of arbitrary proper maps, and an interesting result about inverse images.
Compact Muon Production and Collection Scheme for High-Energy Physics Experiments

The relative immunity of muons to synchrotron radiation suggests that they might be used in place of electrons as probes in fundamental high-energy physics experiments. Muons are commonly produced indirectly through pion decay by interaction of a charged particle beam with a target. However, the large angle and energy dispersion of the initial beams as well as the short muon lifetime limits many potential applications. Here, we describe a fast method for manipulating the longitudinal and transverse phase-space of a divergent pion–muon beam to enable efficient capture and downstream transport with minimum losses. We also discuss the design of a handling system for the removal of unwanted secondary particles from the target region and thus reduce activation of the machine. The compact muon source we describe can be used for fundamental physics research in neutrino experiments.
THE EVOLUTION OF STELLAR VELOCITY DISPERSION DURING DISSIPATIONLESS GALAXY MERGERS

Using N-body simulations, we studied the detailed evolution of central stellar velocity dispersion, σ*, during dissipationless binary mergers of galaxies. Stellar velocity dispersion was measured using the common mass-weighting method as well as a flux-weighting method designed to simulate the technique used by observers. A toy model for dust attenuation was introduced in order to study the effect of dust attenuation on measurements of σ*. We found that there are three principal stages in the evolution of σ* in such mergers: oscillation, phase mixing, and dynamical equilibrium. During the oscillation stage, σ* undergoes damped oscillations of increasing frequency. The oscillation stage is followed by a phase mixing stage during which the amplitude of the variations in σ* is smaller and more chaotic than in the oscillation stage. Upon reaching dynamical equilibrium, σ* assumes a stable value. We used our data regarding the evolution of σ* during mergers to characterize the scatter inherent in making measurements of σ* in non-quiescent systems. In particular, we found that σ* does not fall below 70% nor exceed 200% of its final, quiescent value during a merger and that a random measurement of σ* in such a system is much more likely to fall near the equilibrium value than near an extremum. Our toy model of dust attenuation suggested that dust can systematically reduce observational measurements of σ* and increase the scatter in σ* measurements.
Scattering for the radial 3D cubic wave equation

Consider the Cauchy problem for the radial cubic wave equation in 1+3 dimensions with either the focusing or defocusing sign. This problem is critical in $\dot{H}^{\frac{1}{2}} \times \dot{H}^{-\frac{1}{2}}$ and subcritical with respect to the conserved energy. Here we prove that if the critical norm of a solution remains bounded on the maximal time-interval of existence, then the solution must in fact be global-in-time and scatter to free waves as $t \to \pm \infty$.
Scalar field confinement as a model for accreting systems

We investigate the possibility of localizing scalar field configurations as a model for black hole accretion. We analyse and resolve difficulties encountered when localizing scalar fields in general relativity. We illustrate this ability with a simple spherically symmetric model which can be used to study features of accreting shells around a black hole. This is accomplished by prescribing a scalar field with a coordinate-dependent potential. Numerical solutions to the Einstein?Klein?Gordon equations are shown, where a scalar field is indeed confined within a region surrounding a black hole. The resulting spacetime can be described in terms of simple harmonic time dependence.
Analysis of a simple equation for the ground state energy of the Bose gas

In 1963 a partial differential equation with a convolution nonlinearity was introduced in connection with a quantum mechanical many-body problem, namely the gas of bosonic particles. This equation is mathematically interesting for several reasons. Although the equation was expected to be valid only for small values of the parameters, further investigation showed that predictions based on the equation agree well over the entire range of parameters with what is expected to be true for the solution of the true many-body problem. Additionally, the novel nonlinearity is easy to state but seems to have almost no literature up to now. Finally, the earlier work did not prove existence and uniqueness of a solution, which we provide here along with properties of the solution such as decay at infinity.
Fundamentals of LHC Experiments

Experiments on the Large Hadron Collider at CERN represent our furthest excursion yet along the energy frontier of particle physics. The goal of probing physical processes at the TeV energy scale puts strict requirements on the performance of accelerator and experiment, dictating the awe-inspiring dimensions of both. These notes, based on a set of ve lectures given at the 2010 Theoretical Advanced Studies Institute in Boulder, Colorado, not only review the physics considered as part of the accelerator and experiment design, but also introduce algorithms and tools used to interpret experimental results in terms of theoretical models. The search for new physics beyond the Standard Model presents many new challenges, a few of which are addressed in specic examples.
Global Existence and Stability of Nearly Aligned Flocks

We study regularity of a hydrodynamic singular model of collective behavior introduced in Shvydkoy and Tadmor (Trans Math Appl 1(1):tnx001, 2017). In this note we address the question of global well-posedness in multi-dimensional settings. It is shown that any initial data $$(u,\rho )$$ with small velocity variations $$|u(x) - u(y)| < \varepsilon $$ relative to its higher order norms, gives rise to a unique global regular solution which aligns and flocks exponentially fast. Moreover, we prove that the limiting flocks are stable.
Adjoint Methods for Guiding Adaptive Mesh Refinement in Tsunami Modeling

One difficulty in developing numerical methods for tsunami modeling is the fact that solutions contain time-varying regions where much higher resolution is required than elsewhere in the domain, particularly when tracking a tsunami propagating across the ocean. The open source GeoClaw software deals with this issue by using block-structured adaptive mesh refinement to selectively refine around propagating waves. For problems where only a target area of the total solution is of interest (e.g., one coastal community), a method that allows identifying and refining the grid only in regions that influence this target area would significantly reduce the computational cost of finding a solution. In this work, we show that solving the time-dependent adjoint equation and using a suitable inner product with the forward solution allows more precise refinement of the relevant waves. We present the adjoint methodology first in one space dimension for illustration and in a broad context since it could also be used in other adaptive software, and potentially for other tsunami applications beyond adaptive refinement. We then show how this adjoint method has been integrated into the adaptive mesh refinement strategy of the open source GeoClaw software and present tsunami modeling results showing that the accuracy of the solution is maintained and the computational time required is significantly reduced through the integration of the adjoint method into adaptive mesh refinement.
Strong optomechanical coupling in a slotted photonic crystal nanobeam cavity with an ultrahigh quality factor-to-mode volume ratio.

We describe the design, fabrication, and characterization of a one-dimensional silicon photonic crystal cavity in which a central slot is used to enhance the overlap between highly localized optical and mechanical modes. The optical mode has an extremely small mode volume of 0.017(λvac / n)3, and an optomechanical vacuum coupling rate of 310 kHz is measured for a mechanical mode at 2.69 GHz. With optical quality factors up to 1.2 × 105, fabricated devices are in the resolved-sideband regime. The electric field has its maximum at the slot wall and couples to the in-plane breathing motion of the slot. The optomechanical coupling is thus dominated by the moving-boundary effect, which we simulate to be six times greater than the photoelastic effect, in contrast to most structures, where the photoelastic effect is often the primary coupling mechanism.
Metals in Star-Forming Galaxies at High Redshift

The chemical composition of high-redshift galaxies is an important property that gives clues to their past history and future evolution. Measuring abundances in distant galaxies with current techniques is often a challenge, and the canonical metallicity indicators can often not be applied. I discuss currently available metallicity indicators based on stellar and interstellar absorption and emission lines, and assess their limitations and systematic uncertainties. Recent studies suggest that star-forming galaxies at redshift around 3 have heavy-element abundances already close to solar, in agreement with predictions from cosmological models.
Strong amenability and the infinite conjugacy class property

A group is said to be strongly amenable if each of its proximal topological actions has a fixed point. We show that a finitely generated group is strongly amenable if and only if it is virtually nilpotent. More generally, a countable discrete group is strongly amenable if and only if none of its quotients have the infinite conjugacy class property.
The Faintest Dwarf Galaxies

The lowest luminosity ( L) Milky Way satellite galaxies represent the extreme lower limit of the galaxy luminosity function. These ultra-faint dwarfs are the oldest, most dark matter–dominated, mos...
Fully Dynamic Algorithm for Constrained Submodular Optimization

The task of maximizing a monotone submodular function under a cardinality constraint is at the core of many machine learning and data mining applications, including data summarization, sparse regression and coverage problems. We study this classic problem in the fully dynamic setting, where elements can be both inserted and removed. Our main result is a randomized algorithm that maintains an efficient data structure with a poly-logarithmic amortized update time and yields a (1/2−ϵ)-approximate solution. We complement our theoretical analysis with an empirical study of the performance of our algorithm.
Directional correlations between UHECRs and neutrinos observed with IceCube

Ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECR) above an energy threshold of tens of EeV might undergo only small deflections due to interstellar magnetic fields. Their arrival directions would then point to regions of possible hadronic acceleration processes, which are likely to be also sources of high energy neutrinos. To search for such cosmic accelera- tors, we present here the first multi-messenger analysis of di- rectional correlations between neutrino candidates from the IceCube Observatory and UHECR events. Data taken with IceCube in a configuration of 22 strings provided the basis for using published events from both the Pierre Auger Ob- servatory and the HiRes experiment as reference directions in a search for coincidences with neutrinos. The analysis was optimized according to strict blindness criteria and showed an excess of neutrino candidates close to UHECR directions with a probability of 1% to occur as a random fluctuation, consistent with a background-only hypothesis. An extension of this analysis to include newer IceCube data, taken with 40 strings and using a likelihood approach, is discussed in the outlook.
Conformal Invariance of the Loop-Erased Percolation Explorer

We consider critical percolation on the triangular lattice in a bounded simply connected domain with boundary conditions that force an interface between two prescribed boundary points. We say the interface forms a “near-loop” when it comes within one lattice spacing of itself. We define a new curve by erasing these near-loops as we traverse the interface. Our Monte Carlo simulations of this model lead us to conclude that the scaling limit of this loop-erased percolation interface is conformally invariant and has fractal dimension 4 / 3. However, it is not $$\hbox {SLE}_{8/3}$$ . We also consider the process in which a near-loop is when the explorer comes within two lattice spacings of itself.
Coordinate Dual Averaging for Decentralized Online Optimization With Nonseparable Global Objectives

We consider a decentralized online convex optimization problem in a network of agents, where each agent controls only a coordinate (or a part) of the global decision vector. For such a problem, we propose two decentralized variants (ODA-C and ODA-PS) of Nesterov's primal-dual algorithm with dual averaging. In ODA-C, to mitigate the disagreements on the primal-vector updates, the agents implement a generalization of the local information-exchange dynamics recently proposed by Li and Marden [1] over a static undirected graph. In ODA-PS, the agents implement the broadcast-based push-sum dynamics [2] over a time-varying sequence of uniformly connected digraphs. We show that the regret bounds in both cases have sublinear growth of $O(\sqrt{T})$ , with the time horizon $T$ , when the stepsize is of the form $1/\sqrt{t}$ and the objective functions are Lipschitz-continuous convex functions with Lipschitz gradients. We also implement the proposed algorithms on a sensor network to complement our theoretical analysis.
A Census of Star Formation in the Outer Galaxy: The SMOG Field

In this paper we undertake a study of the 21 deg2 SMOG field, a Spitzer cryogenic mission Legacy program to map a region of the outer Milky Way toward the Perseus and outer spiral arms with the IRAC and MIPS instruments. We identify 4648 YSOs across the field. Using the DBSCAN method, we identify 68 clusters or aggregations of YSOs in the region, having eight or more members. We identify 1197 Class I objects, 2632 Class II objects, and 819 Class III objects, of which 45 are candidate transition disk objects, utilizing the MIPS 24 photometry. The ratio of YSOs identified as members of clusters was 2872/4648, or 62%. The ratios of Class I to Class II YSOs in the clusters are broadly consistent with those found in the inner Galactic and nearby Gould Belt young star formation regions. The clustering properties indicate that the protostars may be more tightly bound to their natal sites than the Class II YSOs, and the Class III YSOs are generally widely distributed. We further perform an analysis of the WISE data of the SMOG field to determine how the lower resolution and sensitivity of WISE affects the identification of YSOs as compared to Spitzer: we identify 931 YSOs using combined WISE and 2MASS photometry, or 20% (931/4648) of the total number identified with Spitzer. Performing the same clustering analysis finds 31 clusters that reliably trace the larger associations identified with the Spitzer data. Twelve of the clusters identified have previously measured distances from the WISE H II survey. SEDFitter modeling of these YSOs is reported, leading to an estimation of the initial mass function in the aggregate of these clusters that approximates that found in the inner Galaxy, implying that the processes behind stellar mass distribution during star formation are not widely affected by the lower density and metallicity of the outer Galaxy.
Quasi-isometric rigidity for the solvable Baumslag-Solitar groups, II

Let BS(1,n)= . We prove that any finitely-generated group quasi-isometric to BS(1,n) is (up to finite groups) isomorphic to BS(1,n). We also show that any uniform group of quasisimilarities of the real line is bilipschitz conjugate to an affine group.
Darcy's Law with a Source Term

We introduce a novel variant of the JKO scheme to approximate Darcy’s law with a pressure dependent source term. By introducing a new variable that implicitly controls the source term, our scheme is still able to use the standard Wasserstein-2-metric even though the total mass changes over time. Leveraging the dual formulation of our scheme, we show that the discrete-in-time approximations satisfy many useful properties expected for the continuum solutions, such as a comparison principle and uniform $$L^1$$ -equicontinuity. Many of these properties are new, even in the well-understood case where the growth term is absent. Finally, we show that our discrete approximations converge to a solution of the corresponding PDE system, including a tumor growth model with a general nonlinear source term.
advligorts: The Advanced LIGO Real-Time Digital Control and Data Acquisition System

The Advanced LIGO detectors are sophisticated opto-mechanical devices. At the core of their operation is feedback control. The Advanced LIGO project developed a custom digital control and data acquisition system to handle the unique needs of this new breed of astronomical detector. The advligorts is the software component of this system. This highly modular and extensible system has enabled the unprecedented performance of the LIGO instruments, and has been a vital component in the direct detection of gravitational waves.
STATUS OF SPIN PHYSICS: EXPERIMENTAL SUMMARY

The current status of spin physics experiments, based on talks presented at the Third Circum-Pan-Pacific Symposium on High Energy Spin Physics held in Beijing, 2001, is summarized in this article. Highlights of recent experimental results at SLAC, JLab, and DESY, as well as future plans at these facilities and at RHIC-spin are discussed.
This Face Does Not Exist... But It Might Be Yours! Identity Leakage in Generative Models

Generative adversarial networks (GANs) are able to generate high resolution photo-realistic images of objects that "do not exist." These synthetic images are rather difficult to detect as fake. However, the manner in which these generative models are trained hints at a potential for information leakage from the supplied training data, especially in the context of synthetic faces. This paper presents experiments suggesting that identity information in face images can flow from the training corpus into synthetic samples without any adversarial actions when building or using the existing model. This raises privacy-related questions, but also stimulates discussions of (a) the face manifold’s characteristics in the feature space and (b) how to create generative models that do not inadvertently reveal identity information of real subjects whose images were used for training. We used five different face matchers (face_recognition, FaceNet, ArcFace, SphereFace and Neurotechnology MegaMatcher) and the StyleGAN2 synthesis model, and show that this identity leakage does exist for some, but not all methods. So, can we say that these synthetically generated faces truly do not exist? Databases of real and synthetically generated faces are made available with this paper to allow full replicability of the results discussed in this work.
The effect of Audit Committee Industry Expertise on monitoring the financial reporting process.

ABSTRACT: Calls from practice suggest that audit committee members with industry expertise can improve audit committee effectiveness. Nevertheless, regulators and the extant literature have focused...
Nondiscrimination in Insurance: The Next Chapter

For nearly 150 years, American insurance companies have engaged in race and gender pricing practices that would be illegal if followed today by any other major commercial enterprise. The insurance industry has defended its long-standing practices, first for race and now for gender, based on ideas about insurance “equity” developed in the nineteenth century. The continued application of these ideas, and the practices that have resulted from them, conflict with fundamental civil rights principles and should not be tolerated as exceptions to our national civil rights laws. As that history shows, classifications used by insurers to determine rates and benefits raise complex distributional, financial, and political issues that cannot be resolved simply as technical questions of actuarial risk or economics. This Article proposes comprehensive federal civil rights legislation to ban discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, and sex in insurance coverage, rates, and benefits. It explains why previous reform efforts have failed and why recent developments, including the adoption of unisex insurance rates in Europe, could make consideration of such legislation in the United States timely once again.
European Social Models from Crisis to Crisis : Employment and Inequality in the Era of Monetary Integration

1: Jon Erik Dolvik and Andrew Martin: Introduction 2: Andrew Martin: Eurozone Economic Governance: "A Currency Without a Country" 3: Wendy Carlin, Anke Hassel, Andrew Martin and David Soskice: The Transformation of the German Model 4: Jacques le Cacheux and George Ross: France in the Middle 5: Ken Mayhew and Mark Wickham-Jones: The United Kingdom's Social Model: From Labour's New Deal to the Economic Crisis and the Coalition 6: Sofia Perez and Martin Rhodes: The Evolution and Crises of the Social Models in Italy and Spain 7: Alexandre Afonso and Jelle Visser: The Liberal Road to High Employment and Low Inequality? The Dutch and Swiss Social Models in the Crisis 8: Jon Erik Dolvik, Jorgen Goul Andersen, and Juhana Vartiainen: The Nordic Social Models in Turbulent times: Consolidation and Flexible Adaptation 9: Torben Iversen and David Soskice: Redistribution and the Power of the Advanced Nation State: Government Responses to Rising Inequality 10: Erling Barth and Karl Ove Moene: When Institutions Reciprocate: Turning European Social Models Around 11: Jon Erik Dolvik and Andrew Martin: From Crisis to Crisis: European Social Models and Labor Market Outcomes in the Era of Monetary Integration 12: Andrew Martin and Jon Erik Dolvik: Conclusion
A DYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF COOPERATIVE RESEARCH IN THE SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY

In this article I construct a dynamic oligopoly model of research joint ventures (RJVs) where firms, investing to improve product quality, fully share the rewards of research success. RJVs benefit firms by eliminating duplicative research efforts, but firms also give up the possibility of becoming a solo innovator. Consumers benefit from lower prices, but may have to wait longer for new products to arrive. I show that RJVs are welfare enhancing by quantitatively evaluating these trade-offs with data from the semiconductor industry. I also analyze how changes in product market competition affect research cooperation.
Attentive insider trading

Abstract We provide evidence that some profitable insider stock selling is motivated by public information. At firms that disclose having concentrated sales relationships, insiders appear to sell their own stock profitably based on public information about their principal customers. Supplier insiders also sell more stock when public information about their customers׳ recent returns and earnings surprises suggests they will earn larger profits. These results are stronger when outside investor attention could be lower. Outside of this setting, insiders engage in a higher proportion of routine sales and their sales are less profitable. We do not find similar patterns for insider purchases.
Law's Signal: A Cueing Theory of Law in Market Transition

Securities markets are commonly assumed to spring forth at the intersection of an adequate supply of, and a healthy demand for, investment capital. In recent years, however, seemingly failed market transitions—the failure of new markets to emerge and of existing markets to evolve—have called this assumption into question. From the developed economies of Germany and Japan to the developing countries of central and eastern Europe, securities markets have exhibited some inability to take root. The failure of U.S. securities markets, and particularly the New York Stock Exchange, to make greater use of computerized trading, communications, and processing technologies, meanwhile, seems to suggest market resistance to technological modernization. In light of this pattern, one must wonder: How are strong markets created and maintained, and what might be law’s role in this process? This Article attempts to articulate a model for understanding the needs of efficient market transition and the resulting role of law in that process. Specifically, it suggests a “cueing” function for law in market transition. Grounded in largely ignored lessons of game theory and microeconomic analysis of so-called network effects, cueing theory identifies the coordination of market participants’ expectations as law’s central role in market transition. Building on recent legal literature on private regulation, social norms, and the expressive function of law, this theory suggests that in securities market transition—whether it be market creation in central and eastern Europe or market restructuring in the United States—law primarily serves to convene, encourage, inform, and facilitate. A cueing role for law constitutes an important extension of traditional conceptions of what law does, particularly in securities regulation, but in other areas as well. Regulatory cues are neither coercive nor outcome determinative and involve a close intertwining of public and private regulation. The exceptional character of law in this context, and the recent growth in areas where regulatory cues might have fruitful application, may explain why such a role has not previously been analyzed. Yet in securities markets and other industries exhibiting network economies—from electricity transmission and interstate transportation to telecommunications and the Internet—a cueing function for law may be central to efficient transition. It may explain much of why “law matters” in the modern economy. ADIE8.DOC 1/30/2004 12:21 PM
TASI lectures: Cosmology for string theorists

These notes provide a brief introduction to modern cosmology, focusing primarily on theoretical issues. Some attention is paid to aspects of potential interest to students of string theory, on both sides of the two-way street of cosmological constraints on string theory and stringy contributions to cosmology. Slightly updated version of lectures at the 1999 Theoretical Advanced Study Institute at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
The effects of leveraged buyouts on productivity and related aspects of firm behavior

Abstract We investigate the effects of leveraged buyouts on total factor productivity (TFP) and related variables using a longitudinal database including over 12,000 manufacturing plants. LBOs (particularly MBOs) that occured during 1983–1986 had a strong positive effect on TFP in the first three post-buyout years: plant productivity increased from 2.0% above industry mean in the three pre-buyout years to 8.3% above industry mean in the three post-buyout years. However, 1981 and 1982 buyouts had no significant productivity effect. The employment and compensation of white-collar workers decline following buyouts, but those of blue-collar workers are unchanged.
We Lost It at the Movies: The Rule of Law Goes from Washington to Hollywood and Back Again

This essay, written as part of a symposium on popular culture and the civil justice system, examines the vast gap between legal and popular discourse on the judicial role. The legal academy generally regards as uncontroversial the proposition that judicial interpretation cannot be value-free. Yet in popular discourse, the ideal judge is someone who leaves all prior attitudes behind, simply applying the law that is out there and that admits to only one possible outcome. Judges perceived to deviate from this ideal are at risk of being branded activist. Members of the lay public - a majority of them, according to a recent survey - are upset about what they perceive to be activist judges. Perhaps more disheartening, pledging fealty to this unrealistic view of the judicial role remains de rigueur in the halls of Congress. This essay explores the connection between the depiction of the judicial role in popular media such as movies and television and the very similar caricature that still holds sway in more serious non-fiction venues, like Senate confirmation hearings and political campaigns. In popular venues, the judge is generally depicted either as a neutral or invisible placeholder for a fixed and determinate rule of law, or as biased, vulgar, or downright villainous. Drawing from legal theory, narrative theory, psychology, and prior work on popular culture and media studies, I argue that the simplistic notion of judges and judging that currently dominates the discourse is inherently conservative and hegemonic, and suggest that this state of affairs poses dangers for the rule of law and the evolution of the judicial system.
Do groups lie more than individuals? Honesty and deception as a function of strategic self-interest

An experiment tested whether groups lie more than individuals. Groups lied more than individuals when deception was guaranteed to maximize economic outcomes, but lied relatively less than individuals when honesty could be used strategically. These results suggest that groups are more strategic than individuals in that they will adopt whatever course of action best serves their economic interest.
An analysis and critique of the BIS proposal on capital adequacy and ratings

In June 1999, the BIS released its long awaited proposal on reform of the 8% risk-based capital ratio for credit risk that has been in effect since 1993 (see Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, 1999).1 The 8% ratio has been criticized on at least three major grounds. First, it gives an equal risk-weighting to all corporate credits whether of high or low credit quality. Second, it fails to incorporate potential capital savings from credit (loan) portfolio diversification. The latter is a result of its simple additive nature. And third, it has led to extensive regulatory capital arbitrage which adds to the riskiness of bank asset portfolios.
Capitalism and labor shares: A cross-country panel study

Abstract We examine the empirical relationship between the institutions of economic freedom and labor shares in a panel of up to 93 countries covering 1970 through 2009. We find that a standard deviation increase in the Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom of the World (EFW) score is associated with about a 1/3 standard deviation increase in a country's labor share. Starting from the sample mean labor share in our panel, this amounts to about 4.26 percentage points. This relationship is robust to considering OECD and non-OECD samples separately. It is also (both qualitatively and quantitatively) robust to controlling for differences in human capital levels, labor productivity, trade union density, and international economic flows. Breaking the EFW into its individual component areas, the regulation of credit, business and labor appears to be the most important source of the positive EFW–labor share relationship.
Historical cost measurement and the use of DuPont analysis by market participants

We investigate whether historical cost measurement of assets lowers the usefulness of DuPont analysis for investors. Because firms report assets at modified historical cost under US GAAP, accounting ratios can be biased upward when assets have appreciated. Thus, variation in asset turnover, which is the DuPont ratio most affected by asset measurement, can be due to both economic forces and measurement effects. We assess the extent of measurement effects using the average age of a firm’s assets and find that asset turnover ratios are higher and more persistent for firms with older assets. Forecast errors of asset turnover are associated with the change in asset age, and these forecast errors are positively associated with contemporaneous and future returns. Our results are weaker in non-US samples, in part reflecting deflation and upward revaluations, consistent with our US results capturing biased asset turnover ratios due to historical cost measurement.
Preserving the Appointments Safety Valve

In 2007, Senate Democrats blocked President Bush from making recess appointments by conducting thirty-second pro forma sessions over the Senate’s Thanksgiving holiday. Senators deployed the maneuver throughout the remainder of the Bush administration, and again against President Obama. Though these sessions have transformed the appointments landscape, and have already generated severe burdens on effective governance, they have been virtually ignored by constitutional scholars. This Note provides the first sustained analysis of these sessions. The Note begins by revealing a methodological asymmetry in the jurisprudence on presidential personnel decisions. While the Supreme Court has employed a dynamic and creative interpretive method in removal power cases, lower courts adjudicating the boundaries of the Recess Appointments Clause have hewn to a static and deferential method. The Note argues for resolving this asymmetry in favor of the removal case method, and then applies this method to the pro forma sessions. In the contemporary separation of powers, recess appointments function as a constitutional safety valve, preserving the President’s ability to take care that the laws are faithfully executed. By depriving him of this safety valve, pro forma sessions violate the principle of effective governance embedded in the Recess Appointments Clause, and should be rejected.
Michael Sam and the NFL Locker Room: How Masculinities Theory Explains the Way We View Gay Athletes

Using masculinities theory, the article examines last year’s hullabaloo about openly gay football player Michael Sam and his prospects for playing in the National Football League. I first explain masculinities theory, focusing on how masculinity is constructed and maintained. I then explore how masculinities theory applies in sport generally and in football in particular. The article visits the football locker room — a distinct enclave of masculinity — and shows how masculinities theory explains the locker room “bonding.” Once we lay bare the implications of cultural assumptions about masculinity and about physically aggressive sports like football, we can more easily explain why an openly gay football player is a rarity. Knowing that even one openly gay player exists threatens to decimate the cultural icons we use our athletes to create.
Investor recognition and seasoned equity offers

Abstract We find that seasoned equity issuers who pay more in underwriting costs are associated with larger improvements in investor recognition, greater contemporaneous increases in firm value, and larger declines in illiquidity risk. We identify increased analyst following as an important channel through which these effects occur. The results are consistent with the prediction of Merton (1987) and imply that an equity issuing firm can actively manage its degree of investor recognition and thereby influence its valuation. Furthermore, equity issuers associated with greater improvements in investor recognition exhibit significantly more negative multi-factor alphas during the three years after issuance, suggesting that improved investor recognition can partially explain the appearance of post-issue stock underperformance.
Assessment of Relationship Between Growth and Inequality: Micro Evidence from Thailand

This paper shows that growth and income distribution dynamics are closely linked through occupation, financial intermediation, and education. We use micro data from Thailand for 1976–1996. The compositional changes across these characteristics account for half of the Thai inequality increase and 40% of the Thai growth and poverty reduction. Financial deepening and educational expansion contributed to increasing inequality, whereas occupational transformation contributed to poverty alleviation. The changes in income gaps across the income–status groups, that is, divergence and then convergence, give rise to inverted-U inequality dynamics. These two growth-related components of inequality dynamics, composition and income-gap dynamics, explain virtually all the change in overall inequality, except its initial rise. Thus, inequality dynamics can be viewed as an integral part of the wider process of growth, as Kuznets speculated.
The Drug Dealer, the Narc, and the Very Tiny Constable: Reflections on United States v. Jones

This past January, the Supreme Court held unanimously in United States v. Jones that the installation and use of a GPS tracker on a suspected drug dealer’s Jeep constituted a search under the Fourth Amendment. The outcome had been fairly well foreshadowed: at oral argument, the Justices had seemed perturbed by the thought that police could put trackers on cars — even the Justices’s own cars — seemingly at will, and there was a clear thread running through the questions that the practice smacked a little too much of George Orwell’s 1984.But the reasoning of the case was hotly disputed, with Justice Scalia and Justice Alito penning sparring opinions, and Justice Sotomayor contributing a separate concurrence. Justice Scalia’s opinion for the Court held that monitoring a suspect with a GPS device was a search because, by attaching the device to the car in the first place, the government had committed an act that would have constituted a trespass at common law. Justice Alito argued that the four-week monitoring was a search because it went on for too long. Amid this confusion, I wish to advance two critiques: First, that the majority opinion’s reliance on common law trespass norms enabled it to avoid making a reasoned normative pronouncement in the inadequately theorized area of electronic surveillance, and second, that its opinion, though claiming to adhere to precedent, did nothing of the kind.Instead, Justice Scalia formulated a new, trespassory test: a government intrusion constitutes a search under the Fourth Amendment if the intrusion: (a) would have qualified as a trespass at common law, (b) invaded a constitutionally protected area enumerated in the Fourth Amendment, and (c) was committed for the purpose of gathering information. The Katz “reasonable expectation of privacy” inquiry was relegated to back-up status. But by insisting that the Court need look no further than his trespassory test, Justice Scalia avoided the only important question raised in this case — whether, in today's society, the actions of the police in the Jones case would have constituted a search, regardless of whether there was a trespass.
The Tyranny of the Multitude is a Multiplied Tyranny: Is the United States Financial Regulatory Structure Undermining U.S. Competitiveness?

If imitation is the highest form of flattery, the United States may feel very flattered by the fact that other nations have modeled many of their regulations governing financial services (securities, banking, and insurance) on U.S. regulations. In fact, the United States government and the American Bar Association have been encouraging other nations to copy the way that the United States regulates financial services for over two decades. Some nations have not only adopted laws and regulations similar to U.S. financial regulations but have enacted legal reforms to permit lawsuits similar to U.S. class actions. No other nation, however, has sought to copy the federal and state regulatory structure that the United States uses to supervise and regulate financial services. The United States has over 115 federal and state agencies involved in regulating some aspect of financial services and Congress is contemplating adding new agencies to the list. In fact, the rest of the world is moving in the other direction. Over the past decade fifty nations have consolidated their financial services regulators and sixteen nations, including the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan, have created single financial services agencies. When consolidating their regulators, these nations have streamlined the regulatory procedures and eliminated outdated or duplicative regulations. For example, the UK Financial Services Authority reduced the listing rules for new securities by 40 percent. As a result, these streamlined regulatory structures have given these countries a competitive advantage over the United States. This article explores how the United States regulatory structure is undermining U.S. competitiveness in the area of financial services. This article examines why the U.S. regulatory structure hinders U.S. competitiveness more than any particular law, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The article also discusses what actions federal and state regulators could take to minimize the problems created by the current structure and to move towards a more consolidated or integrated regulatory framework.
Privacy, Interests, and Inalienable Rights

In essence, I argue for a middle path between viewing privacy as an inalienable, non-waivable, non-transferrable right and the view of privacy as a mere subjective interest that is largely unrelated to human health and well-being. First, I will sketch a position counter to the view that privacy is, and should be, understood as a mere unimportant preference, interest, or concern. An account of privacy will be offered that hopefully clarifies the concept, but also connects the view to human health and well-being. Against the view that privacy is unimportant and uninteresting, I will argue that we have clear reasons to carve up the privacy space in a particular way, and that once completed, there are compelling health-based or flourishing-based reasons to care about this conception of privacy. Next, after sketching what is known as the 'traditional view' of rights alienation, relinquishing, waiving, forfeit, and abandonment, along with brief remarks about the distinction between specific and general rights, I will present the case for why privacy may be considered an inalienable right. On this line of argument, privacy is essential for human health and well-being and thus, like the right to life, should be viewed as inalienable and non-waivable. Nevertheless, I will argue that this view is mistaken and that individuals may waive privacy rights based on consent. It is also important to note that consent to access information does not entail consent to all downstream uses of this information. We should not view consent to waive privacy rights over some bit of personal information as a forfeiting or abandonment. Moreover, in taking responsibility for waiving, transferring or forfeiting access, individual control of private information should be aided, not undermined, by technology.
Taxable and Tax-Deferred Investing: A Tax-Arbitrage Approach

We analyze an intertemporal portfolio problem with both taxable and tax-deferred retirement accounts. Using a tax-arbitrage argument, we identify conditions under which the optimal location decision (where to place an asset) is separable from the allocation decision (how much to allocate to each asset). Investors place highly taxed assets in the tax-deferred account to maximize the tax benefit and adjust their taxable portfolios to achieve the optimal risk exposure. We show that the two-account problem can be reduced to a taxable-account-only problem. The results are robust to capital gains tax deferrals, consumption and contribution decisions, and stochastic tax rates.