The housing price boom of the late ’90s: did inflation targeting matter?

The recent boom in housing markets of most developed economies has spurred criticism that inflation targeting central banks may have neglected the build-up of financial imbalances. This paper provides a formal empirical test of such claims, using a standard program evaluation methodology to correct for a possible bias due to self-selection into inflation targeting. We consider 17 industrial economies over 1980-2006, among which nine countries have targeted inflation a some dates. We find robust evidence of a significant positive effect of inflation targeting on real housing price growth and on the housing price to rent ratio.Inflation targeting; Housing prices; Treatment effect; OECD countries.

Bank interest rates pass-through: new evidence from French panel data

This paper investigates the pass-through mechanism from market interest rates to bank interest rates using a panel of French banks based on new interest rates statistics. The data are extracted from new individual contracts, on a monthly basis for the three main sectors of the credit market (consumers loans, mortgage loans and loans to enterprises) from January 2003 to July 2007. The pass-through is estimated using recent econometric methods on non-stationary panel data. In contrast to previous studies, cross-sectional dependence among banks is allowed. Our results confirm that bank rates for loans to enterprises and mortgage loans do not adjust completely to changes in market rates, even in the long run. The model also captures the narrowing of the intermediation margin during the period considered.transmission mechanism of monetary policy, nonstationary panel data, cross-section dependence

La transmission des taux de marché aux taux bancaires : une estimation sur données individuelles françaises.

The present paper investigates the pass-through mechanism between market interest rates and bank interest rates using a panel of French banks based on new ESCB harmonised bank interest rate statistics (MIR: Monetary Interest Rates). The data are extracted from new individual contracts on a monthly basis for the three main segments of the credit market (consumers loans, mortgage loans and loans to non-financial firms) from January 2003 to July 2007. The pass-through is estimated using two approaches: firstly a univariate approach for each bank and secondly a panel data approach. An evaluation of the adjustment lag at which market rates are passed through to retail bank rates is also carried out. Our results confirm an incomplete adjustment of bank rates to changes in market rates in the long-term for loans to non-financial firms and mortgage loans. In addition, our findings suggest significant heterogeneity in the pricing of loans depending on the type of credit, the size and the legal category of banks.Transmission Mechanism of Monetary Policy ; Non-stationary Panel Data ; Cross-section Dependance.

Volumes and bulk densities of forty asteroids from ADAM shape modeling

Disk-integrated photometric data of asteroids do not contain accurate information on shape details or size scale. Additional data such as disk-resolved images or stellar occultation measurements further constrain asteroid shapes and allow size estimates. We aim to use all available disk-resolved images of about forty asteroids obtained by the Near-InfraRed Camera (Nirc2) mounted on the W.M. Keck II telescope together with the disk-integrated photometry and stellar occultation measurements to determine their volumes. We can then use the volume, in combination with the known mass, to derive the bulk density. We download and process all asteroid disk-resolved images obtained by the Nirc2 that are available in the Keck Observatory Archive (KOA). We combine optical disk-integrated data and stellar occultation profiles with the disk-resolved images and use the All-Data Asteroid Modeling (ADAM) algorithm for the shape and size modeling. Our approach provides constraints on the expected uncertainty in the volume and size as well. We present shape models and volume for 41 asteroids. For 35 asteroids, the knowledge of their mass estimates from the literature allowed us to derive their bulk densities. We clearly see a trend of lower bulk densities for primitive objects (C-complex) than for S-complex asteroids. The range of densities in the X-complex is large, suggesting various compositions. Moreover, we identified a few objects with rather peculiar bulk densities, which is likely a hint of their poor mass estimates. Asteroid masses determined from the Gaia astrometric observations should further refine most of the density estimates.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&

Experimental Investigation of a Device to Restrain the Horizontal Sliding of U-FREIs.

Fiber-reinforced elastomeric isolators (FREIs) are composite devices consisting of an alternation of elastomer layers and fiber reinforcement layers. They have mechanical properties comparable to those of conventional Steel-Reinforced Elastomeric Isolators (SREIs). The mechanical and construction characteristics of FREIs, together with their lower cost, make them potentially usable on a large scale. However, for their actual use, it is necessary to take into account the current regulations regarding seismic isolation. The application of FREIs provides the absence of anchoring to the structure, but the European Technical Standard UNI EN 15129 requires that the isolators are attached to the structure by mechanical fastening only. In this research work, a constraint device that fulfills this requirement but, at the same time, does not significantly alter the mechanical behavior of FREIs is investigated. The properties of the selected device and its installation method are presented. The results of both a simple compression test and a combined compression and shear test performed on two isolators reinforced by quadri-directional carbon fiber fabrics and two isolators reinforced by bi-directional fabrics are presented. The tests were performed in the absence and presence of the constraint device in order to investigate the modifications produced by the device

Study of the plutino object (208996) 2003 AZ84 from stellar occultations: size, shape and topographic features

We present results derived from four stellar occultations by the plutino object (208996) 2003~AZ$_{84}$, detected at January 8, 2011 (single-chord event), February 3, 2012 (multi-chord), December 2, 2013 (single-chord) and November 15, 2014 (multi-chord). Our observations rule out an oblate spheroid solution for 2003~AZ$_{84}$'s shape. Instead, assuming hydrostatic equilibrium, we find that a Jacobi triaxial solution with semi axes $(470 \pm 20) \times (383 \pm 10) \times (245 \pm 8)$~km % axis ratios $b/a= 0.82 \pm 0.05$ and $c/a= 0.52 \pm 0.02$, can better account for all our occultation observations. Combining these dimensions with the rotation period of the body (6.75~h) and the amplitude of its rotation light curve, we derive a density $\rho=0.87 \pm 0.01$~g~cm$^{-3}$ a geometric albedo $p_V= 0.097 \pm 0.009$. A grazing chord observed during the 2014 occultation reveals a topographic feature along 2003~AZ$_{84}$'s limb, that can be interpreted as an abrupt chasm of width $\sim 23$~km and depth $> 8$~km or a smooth depression of width $\sim 80$~km and depth $\sim 13$~km (or an intermediate feature between those two extremes)

Effectiveness of Tuned Mass Damper in Reducing Damage Caused by Strong Earthquake in a Medium-Rise Building

A case study where a tuned mass damper (TMD) was installed at the top of a five-story reinforced concrete (RC) building is presented. The aim of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of the TMD in changing the structural behavior of medium-rise existing buildings from dissipative to non-dissipative in order to eliminate reparation or demolition costs resulting from damages caused by strong earthquakes. The TMD mass is made by a RC slab lying on flat surface sliders. Horizontal stiffness and damping of the TMD are both provided by lead rubber isolators in the first proposed solution and by low-damping rubber isolators and viscous linear dampers, respectively, in the second. The improvement in the building’s structural behavior attained with the installation of the TMD was assessed by considering the flexural demand over capacity ratios of structural elements and the energy dissipated by the TMD. These results are compared with those of the same building retrofitted with a base isolation system. In both of the proposed solutions, TMD remarkably changed the modal behavior of the considered building, improved the flexural verifications, and dissipated most of the input seismic energy. It is therefore demonstrated that a TMD is a valid solution for the retrofit of medium-rise existing buildings

Telehealth and Physical Therapy Clinical Decision Making in a Patient with a Falcine Meningioma

Telehealth utilizes information technologies and communication networks to deliver healthcare and education with lower costs and improved access, quality, and efficiency of healthcare services.  This report describes the application of telehealth for medical screening, clinical decision making, and medical referral in a physical therapy practice. The patient described was a 50-year old man who contacted his physical therapist via telephone for a chief complaint of worsening left sided numbness and tingling that began insidiously 2 days prior.  Further questioning revealed that the patient also complained of left ankle weakness, and slight unsteadiness with walking. He had not been feeling well and had been experiencing increasing bouts of unexplained fatigue over the previous two months that were now interfering with his work and recreational activities. The patient was evaluated by his physician the next day.  Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain revealed a large (4 cm) falcine meningioma in the right parietal region.  The patient was immediately referred to a neurosurgeon and underwent a craniotomy and tumor resection ten days later and subsequent gamma knife radiosurgery of the residual tumor bed two months after craniotomy and tumor resection.  Follow-up imaging one year later revealed no evidence of recurrence or residual tumor.  This patient case underscores the importance of recognizing signs and symptoms of serious disease, and how referral following telehealth via telephone can inform diagnosis

Três Marias: um estudo cênico sobre a construção do papel social feminino

This monograph is the result of research that explores the construction of an authorial monologue that addresses the construction of the female social role from the perspective of three phases of life from the same woman, who tells her story after being murdered. To this end, the text goes through the artist's speech needs and the meaning of art in our society, through the researcher's personal experiences as a woman, using a biographical memorial that reports important moments that were crucial for the creation of this research, and through the methodological process of writing, constructing and transforming a dramaturgical plot that mixes real experiences with fiction, and how the stages of text construction and scenic experiences alter it. In addition to addressing dramaturgical choices and the issues that shape female behavior and decisions in our society. With the aim of causing reflection on the role of women in today's society, both the dramaturgical text resulting from this research and the woman herself are reflections of an oppressive experience in a patriarchal society, and I hope with it to deconstruct for the viewer the conventions we bring about or being a woman.Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso (Graduação)Esta monografia é resultado de uma pesquisa que explora a construção de um monólogo autoral que aborda a construção do papel social feminino a partir da visão de três fases de vida de uma mesma mulher, que conta sua história depois de ser assassinada. Para isso, o texto passa pelas necessidades de fala do artista e o sentido da arte na nossa sociedade, pelas experiências pessoais da pesquisadora enquanto mulher, utilizando-se de um memorial biográfico que relata momentos importantes que foram cruciais para a criação desta pesquisa, e pelo processo metodológico de escrita, construção e transformação de um enredo dramatúrgico que mescla experiências reais com a ficção, e como as etapas de construção do texto e as experiências cênicas alteram o mesmo. Além de abordar sobre as escolhas dramatúrgicas e as questões que moldam o comportamento e as decisões femininas em nossa sociedade. Com o objetivo de causar reflexão sobre o papel da mulher na sociedade atual, tanto o texto dramatúrgico resultante desta pesquisa, quanto ela própria são reflexos de uma vivência opressiva em uma sociedade patriarcal, e espero com ela descontruir para o espectador as convenções que trazemos sobre o ser mulher

Methods to Reproduce In-Plane Deformability of Orthotropic Floors in the Finite Element Models of Buildings

In the modelling of reinforced concrete (RC) buildings, the rigid diaphragm hypothesis to represent the in-plane behavior of floors was and still is very commonly adopted because of its simplicity and computational cheapness. However, since excessive floor in-plane deformability can cause a very different redistribution of lateral forces on vertical resisting elements, it may be necessary to consider floor deformability. This paper investigates the classical yet intriguing question of modeling orthotropic RC floor systems endowed with lightening elements by means of a uniform orthotropic slab in order to describe accurately the building response under seismic loads. The simplified method, commonly adopted by engineers and based on the equivalence between the transverse stiffness of the RC elements of the real floor and those of the orthotropic slab, is presented. A case study in which this simplified method is used is also provided. Then, an advanced finite element (FE)-based method to determine the elastic properties of the equivalent homogenized orthotropic slab is proposed. The novel aspect of this method is that it takes into account the interaction of shell elements with frame elements in the 3D FE model of the building. Based on the results obtained from the application of this method to a case study, a discussion on the adequacy of the simplified method is also provided