OPTIMAL JOB DESIGN IN THE PRESENCE OF IMPLICIT CONTRACTS

We characterize the optimal job design in a multitasking environment when the firms rely on implicit incentive contracts (i.e., bonus payments). Two natural forms of job design are compared: (i) individual accountability, where each agent is assigned to a particular job and assumes full responsibility for its outcome; and (ii) team accountability, where a group of agents share responsibility for a job and are jointly accountable for its outcome. The key trade-off is that team accountability mitigates the multitasking problem but may weaken the implicit contracts. The optimal job design follows a cut-off rule: firms with high reputation concerns opt for team accountability, whereas firms with low reputation concerns opt for individual accountability. Team accountability is more likely the more acute the multitasking problem is. However, the cut-off rule need not hold if the firm combines implicit incentives with explicit pay-per-performance contracts. JEL codes:

Marrying Up: The Role of Sex Ratio in Assortative Matching

We investigate the effect of a change in the sex ratio on assortative matching in the marriage market using a large negative exogenous shock to the French male population due to WWI casualties. We analyze a novel data set that links marriage-level data to both French censuses of population and regional data on military mortality. We instrument the potentially endogenous sex ratio with military mortality, which exhibits exogenous geographic variation. We find that men married women of higher social class than themselves (married up) more in regions that experienced a larger decrease in the sex ratio due to higher military mortality. A decrease in the sex ratio from one man for every woman to 0.90 men for every woman increased the probability that men married up by 8.2 percentage points. These findings shed light on individuals’ preferences for spouses. Rather than preferring to marry spouses with similar characteristics, individuals seem to prefer to marry higher-class spouses, but cannot do so when the sex ratio is balanced.Marriage, sex ratio, assortative matching, social classes.

Share the Fame or Share the Blame? The Reputational Implications of Partnerships

We use an adverse selection model to study the dynamics of ?rms?reputations when ?rms implement joint projects. We show that in contrast with projects implemented by a single ?rm, in the case of joint projects a ?rm?s reputation does not necessarily increase following a success and does not necessarily decrease following a failure. We also study how reputation considerations a¤ect ?rms? decisions to participate in joint projects. We show that a high quality partner may not be preferable to a low quality partner, and that a high reputation partner is not necessarily preferable to a low reputation partner. JEL codes: L14, L15, L24, D82, D85

An instance of the MIKADO migration model

In this document, we briefly describe the main contribution to the deliverable on experimenting with the implementation of most of the calculi considered in the project. First, we describe how two well known calculi for mobile processes KLAIM and Dπ have been implemented on the top of IMC. We then describe the implementation of the MiKO programming language, an instance of the parametric calculus introduced in the WP1 with the TyCO calculus as the content of the membrane itself. After this, we outline the description of the implementation of the abstract machine for an instance of the Kell Calculus that dedicates particular attention to the proof of its correctness. Our presentation ends with a discussion of the problem of implementing security membranes on the top of an execution platform

Platform Pricing Structure and Moral Hazard

We study pricing by a monopoly platform that matches buyers and sellers in an environment with cross-market externalities. Said platform has no private information, does not set the commodity's price and can only charge trading parties for the transaction. Our innovation consists in introducing moral hazard on the sellers' side and an equilibrium notion of platform reputation in an infinite horizon model. With linear fees the platform can mitigate, but not eliminate, the loss of reputation induced by moral hazard. If lump-sum fees (registration fees) can be levied, moral hazard can be overcome. The upfront payment determines the participation threshold of sellers and extracts them, while (lower) transactions fees provide incentives for good behavior. This breaks the equivalence of lump-sum payments and linear fees (Rochet and Tirole (2006)). We draw implications for the role of subsidies (Caillaud and Jullien (2003)).Platforms; Two-Sided Markets; Reputation; Moral Hazard

Marrying Up: The Role of Sex Ratio in Assortative Matching

By observing the large negative exogenous shock to the French male population from to WWI casualties, we study the effect of a change in the sex ratio on marital assortative matching by social class. First, we analyzed a novel data set that links marriage-level to French population and military mortality. Then, we calculated the sex ratio in a region with military mortality, which exhibits exogenous geographic variation. Ultiamtely, we found that men married women of higher social class than themselves more often in regions that experienced a larger decrease in the sex ratio. A decrease in the sex ratio of man to woman from 1.00 to 0.90 increased the probability that men married up by 8 percent. These findings provide insight into individuals’ preferences for spouses. Men appear to prefer to marry higher-class spouses, but cannot do so when the sex ratio is balanced.Marriage, sex ratio, assortative matching, social classes

EL SISTEMA DE PRODUCCIÓN DE TLAYUDAS Y LA DINAMICA ECONOMICA EN TLALIXTAC DE CABRERA, OAX.

La concepción tradicional de los territorios rurales como lugares aislados y dedicados básicamente a la producción agrícola ha experimentado grandes cambios en los últimos años. Progresivamente, ha venido emergiendo un punto de vista distinto, que considera los ámbitos rurales como espacios complejos y dinámicos de gran importancia, en los que se conjugan, además de su función productiva, las preocupaciones sobre el medio ambiente, el paisaje, los recursos naturales, el patrimonio cultural, el turismo y la conservación y reproducción de bienes intangibles; es decir, de los bienes relacionados con el saber- hacer de las poblaciones, con la calidad reconocida de los productos o con el aprecio de los consumidores por los servicios que prestan. Desde este enfoque se pretende analizar el proceso productivo de Tlayudas en Tlalixtac de Cabera Oaxaca, actividad que es desarrollada individualmente por pequeñas productoras de familias rurales, y dadas las características de la actividad se supone la conformación de un Sistema Agroalimentario Localizado (SIAL). El objetivo de esta ponencia es presentar los avances de la investigación realizada en torno a la actividad y se busca comprender si realmente se da la conformación de un SIAL, con el fin de explicar los factores que determinan la continuidad de una actividad económica tradicional dentro de un SIAL, en un contexto de crisis de la pequeña producción ante el libre mercado. El caso se ha venido analizando a partir de los cuatro objetivos de investigación propuestos por Muchnik en el 2008, (transferencia de saberes, redes sociales, patrimonialización y calificación del producto) los cuales se tomaron como condiciones necesarias y suficientes para considerar que en el caso de estudio se ha conformado un SIAL

A sectored receiver for infrared wireless networks

This paper presents an experimental sectored receiver for infrared wireless networks. The receiver comprises two sectors, each with a switched gain front-end and a signal-to-noise ratio estimator. These are then interconnected with a best-sector selector unit, able to compensate the gain switching characteristics of the front-ends. The circuit has been designed in a 0.8 μm CMOS technology

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in a domestic cat (Felis catus) associated with acute myocardial infarction

A cardiomiopatia hipertrófica (CMH) é a desordem cardíaca mais comum em gatos, caracterizada por disfunção diastólica e insuficiência cardíaca congestiva. Episódios de tromboembolismo são descritos frequentemente, podendo em alguns casos envolver o miocárdio e resultar em infarto e comprometimento hemodinâmico cardíaco. Relata-se um caso de CMH em gato doméstico (Felis catus) macho adulto que morreu com sinais graves de congestão e baixo débito cardíaco. À histopatologia observaram-se alterações necroinflamatórias envolvendo o átrio direito e as paredes ventriculares esquerda e direita, compatíveis com infarto miocárdico agudo focalmente extenso. No átrio direito identificou-se ainda tromboembolismo coronariano, sendo este, presumivelmente, a causa do infarto em tal paciente. _______________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACTHypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common cardiac disease in cats, characterized by diastolic dysfunction and congestive heart failure. Thromboembolic episodes are frequently described and in some cases it may involve the myocardium and may cause infarction and cardiac hemodynamic compromise. A case of HCM in an adult male domestic cat (Felis catus) that died with signs of serious congestion and low cardiac output is described. Necro-inflammatory alterations were observed at histopathological evaluation involving the right atrium and left and right ventricular walls, compatible with focally extensive acute myocardium infarction. Coronary thromboembolism was yet identified in the right atrium and it was presumably the cause of infarction in this patient

Engineering, a course of men: does the inversion of this trend remain?

Commonly, there are more men than women seeking engineering courses, even though, with some common exclusions as for health related engineering courses.Recently, Higher Education in Portugal has faced deep changes, particularly regarding the number of students, the growth of the educational network and the courses' curricular structure. There is an association with the increase in the number of women attending Portuguese Higher Education Institutions and the vast augmentation in the number of students.To investigate whether these changes have also changed the preferences of women/men in engineering courses, options and admissions, from 2010 to 2014, in fifteen engineering courses of a Portuguese University, were studied and the conclusions of that work published [1].In this paper we revisited that work and extended it with data from 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 and we studied, for each course, the number of applicants and the number of students placed (by gender), the application option and the average grades of the admitted applicants.As a result of this analysis we verify that in courses with male predominance, the female gender increased significantly, unlike what happens in the other two courses (female predominance), where the values remain almost constant.This work has been financed by FEDER funds through the Competitivity Factors Operational Programme - COMPETE: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007136 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007043 and FCT - Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/2013