Derivative products and innovation in Islamic finance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the possibility of structuring an Islamic option which includes an element of risk sharing as opposed to risk transfer. Design/methodology/approach – The approach adopted in this research involved a combination of a wa’ad (promise) and murabaha (cost plus sale) and examining if they could form a risk-sharing Islamic option. The payoffs were assumed to be dependent on bi-period outcomes. Findings – The paper attempted to create a hybrid risk-sharing option by combining elements of both wa’ad (promise) and murabaha (cost plus sale). The results yielded are dependent on the eventual direction of the market (in-the-money, at-the-money and out-the-money). While the results are not definitive, they do provide arguments for the adoption of a risk-sharing, as opposed to a risk-transfer, methodology when it comes to structuring risk management instruments. Research limitations/implications – One of the major limitations of this research is the inability to assess the Shariah compliance of the proposed instrument. Shariah compliance is determined by a Shariah Supervisory Board, and every effort has been made to ensure that Shariah financial principles are adhered to in the creation of this structure. Practical implications – The structure provides some interest arguments in the creation of risk management tools under a Shariah financial framework. The structure illustrates the benefits of having a risk-sharing mode over the conventional risk-transfer stances of most risk management tools. Originality/value – The paper offers a new way of structuring a risk management tool in Islamic finance. It explores the highly debated area of derivatives in Islamic finance and proposes a new way of creating a risk management tool that involves some elements of risk sharing

C, S, Zn and Cu abundances in planet-harbouring stars

We present a detailed and uniform study of C, S, Zn and Cu abundances in a large set of planet host stars, as well as in a homogeneous comparison sample of solar-type dwarfs with no known planetary-mass companions. Carbon abundances were derived by {EW} measurement of two C I optical lines, while spectral syntheses were performed for S, Zn and Cu. We investigated possible differences in the behaviours of the volatiles C, S and Zn and in the refractory Cu in targets with and without known planets in order to check possible anomalies due to the presence of planets. We found that the abundance distributions in stars with exoplanets are the high [Fe/H] extensions of the trends traced by the comparison sample. All volatile elements we studied show [X/Fe] trends decreasing with [Fe/H] in the metallicity range -0.8<[Fe/H]<0.5, with significantly negative slopes of -0.39+-0.04 and -0.35+-0.04 for C and S, respectively. A comparison of our abundances with those available in the literature shows good agreement in most cases.Comment: 28 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Blogging in the physics classroom: A research-based approach to shaping students' attitudes towards physics

Even though there has been a tremendous amount of research done in how to help students learn physics, students are still coming away missing a crucial piece of the puzzle: why bother with physics? Students learn fundamental laws and how to calculate, but come out of a general physics course without a deep understanding of how physics has transformed the world around them. In other words, they get the "how" but not the "why". Studies have shown that students leave introductory physics courses almost universally with decreased expectations and with a more negative attitude. This paper will detail an experiment to address this problem: a course weblog or "blog" which discusses real-world applications of physics and engages students in discussion and thinking outside of class. Specifically, students' attitudes towards the value of physics and its applicability to the real-world were probed using a 26-question Likert scale survey over the course of four semesters in an introductory physics course at a comprehensive Jesuit university. We found that students who did not participate in the blog study generally exhibited a deterioration in attitude towards physics as seen previously. However, students who read, commented, and were involved with the blog maintained their initially positive attitudes towards physics. Student response to the blog was overwhelmingly positive, with students claiming that the blog made the things we studied in the classroom come alive for them and seem much more relevant.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure

Concepts of mental disorders in the United Kingdom : Similarities and differences between the lay public and psychiatrists

BACKGROUND: The lay public often conceptualise mental disorders in a different way to mental health professionals, and this can negatively impact on outcomes when in treatment. AIMS: This study explored which disorders the lay public are familiar with, which theoretical models they understand, which they endorse and how they compared to a sample of psychiatrists. METHODS: The Maudsley Attitude Questionnaire (MAQ), typically used to assess mental health professional's concepts of mental disorders, was adapted for use by a lay community sample (N = 160). The results were compared with a sample of psychiatrists (N = 76). RESULTS: The MAQ appeared to be accessible to the lay public, providing some interesting preliminary findings: in order, the lay sample reported having the best understanding of depression followed by generalised anxiety, schizophrenia and finally antisocial personality disorder. They best understood spiritualist, nihilist and social realist theoretical models of these disorders, but were most likely to endorse biological, behavioural and cognitive models. The lay public were significantly more likely to endorse some models for certain disorders suggesting a nuanced understanding of the cause and likely cure, of various disorders. Ratings often differed significantly from the sample of psychiatrists who were relatively steadfast in their endorsement of the biological model. CONCLUSION: The adapted MAQ appeared accessible to the lay sample. Results suggest that the lay public are generally aligned with evidence-driven concepts of common disorders, but may not always understand or agree with how mental health professionals conceptualise them. The possible causes of these differences, future avenues for research and the implications for more collaborative, patient-clinician conceptualisations are discussed.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

A Novel Stochastic Multi-Scale Model of Francisella tularensis Infection to Predict Risk of Infection in a Laboratory

We present a multi-scale model of the within-phagocyte, within-host and population-level infection dynamics of Francisella tularensis, which extends the mechanistic one proposed by Wood et al. (2014). Our multi-scale model incorporates key aspects of the interaction between host phagocytes and extracellular bacteria, accounts for inter-phagocyte variability in the number of bacteria released upon phagocyte rupture, and allows one to compute the probability of response, and mean time until response, of an infected individual as a function of the initial infection dose. A Bayesian approach is applied to parameterize both the within-phagocyte and within-host models using infection data. Finally, we show how dose response probabilities at the individual level can be used to estimate the airborne propagation of Francisella tularensis in indoor settings (such as a microbiology laboratory) at the population level, by means of a deterministic zonal ventilation model

Obesity prevention in early life: An opportunity to better support the role of Maternal and Child Health Nurses in Australia

© 2015 Laws et al.; licensee BioMed Central. Background: Because parents with young children access primary health care services frequently, a key opportunity arises for Maternal and Child Health (MCH) nurses to actively work with families to support healthy infant feeding practices and lifestyle behaviours. However, little is known regarding the extent to which MCH nurses promote obesity prevention practices and how such practices could be better supported. Methods: This mixed methods study involved a survey of 56 MCH nurses (response rate 84.8%), 16 of whom participated in semi-structured qualitative interviews. Both components aimed to examine the extent to which nurses addressed healthy infant feeding practices, healthy eating, active play and limiting sedentary behavior during routine consultations with young children 0-5 years. Key factors influencing such practices and how they could be best supported were also investigated. All data were collected from September to December 2013. Survey data were analysed descriptively and triangulated with qualitative interview findings, the analysis of which was guided by grounded theory principles. Results: Although nurses reported measuring height/length and weight in most consultations, almost one quarter (22.2 %) reported never/rarely using growth charts to identify infants or children at risk of overweight or obesity. This reflected a reluctance to raise the issue of weight with parents and a lack of confidence in how to address it. The majority of nurses reported providing advice on aspects of infant feeding relevant to obesity prevention at most consultations, with around a third (37 %) routinely provided advice on formula preparation. Less than half of nurses routinely promoted active play and only 30 % discussed limiting sedentary behaviour such as TV viewing. Concerns about parental receptiveness and maintaining rapport were key barriers to more effective implementation. Conclusion: While MCH nurses are well placed to address obesity prevention in early life, there is currently a missed public health opportunity. Improving nurse skills in behaviour change counseling will be key to increasing their confidence in raising sensitive lifestyle issues with parents to better integrate obesity prevention practices into normal MCH service delivery

To be or not to be an auctioneer: Some thoughts on the legal nature of online eBay auctions and the protection of consumers

This paper discusses the legal classification of online “eBay” auctions. The discussion has key implications on the scope of consumer protection law as sale by auctions are, for example, excluded from the scope of the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000. The paper uncovers that online “eBay” auctions cannot always be considered as traditional auctions and that eBay, as an intermediary, is not to be considered as an auctioneer. This creates difficulties associated with a distributive application of consumer protection laws such as the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000. Another set of difficulties is associated with a lenient legal regime applicable to the liability of eBay under the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 . The paper concludes that there is an urgent need to clarify the legal classification of online auctions and to rethink the liability of online auction sites to better protect consumers