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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Atlas Of Maine: Piping Plover And Least Tern Habitat, Jeffrey Vaz
Atlas Of Maine: Piping Plover And Least Tern Habitat, Jeffrey Vaz
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
This map highlights the locations of essential habitat for Piping Plovers and Least Terns, both of which are endangered in the state of Maine. Essential habitat is defined as areas that both species use for nesting, feeding, and brood-rearing. Conserved areas in Maine are also highlighted on the map.
Innovation And Productivity: Evidence From China, Jingying Xu
Innovation And Productivity: Evidence From China, Jingying Xu
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
This paper investigates a lesser-known effect of innovation on the productivity of manufacturing firms in China. Innovation is a powerful vehicle for new firms to enter the market and compete with established firms. Innovation plays a key role in the productivity of firms and it matters for all types of firms, new as well as established. The ratio of new product output to the firms total outputs is used to measure innovation ability in this paper. A higher ratio is expected to have a positive impact on a firms productivity since new products are likely to be more differentiated than …
Optimal Land Conservation By State In Terms Of Gdp, Carolyn Fuwa, Robert Mccormick
Optimal Land Conservation By State In Terms Of Gdp, Carolyn Fuwa, Robert Mccormick
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Our research analyzes and compares the different levels of conservation in terms of acres and invested dollars between states and how these different approaches to conservation effects each states production over time.
Competitive Balance And Attendance In Major League Baseball, Gary Koplik, Christopher Kennedy, Ryan Jann, Daniel Meyer
Competitive Balance And Attendance In Major League Baseball, Gary Koplik, Christopher Kennedy, Ryan Jann, Daniel Meyer
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Competitive balance is an important issue for Major League Baseball (MLB). If there is too much separation between the best and worst teams it is believed that games become uninteresting because the season-end result is predictable. If there is too little separation fans may be uninterested because the regular season result appears to be simply luck based. The MLB offices have made strides to increase competitive balance by implementing a revenue sharing system and by adding additional playoff spots. The goal of this paper is to examine the effects of competitive balance in baseball on league wide attendance. Previous papers …
The Ecological And Economic Value Of Maine Golf Courses, Gregory Ladd, Jason Buco
The Ecological And Economic Value Of Maine Golf Courses, Gregory Ladd, Jason Buco
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
What is the housing premium and induced impacts of tourism attributed from Maine Golf Course?
Controls On Farmland Prices In The Midwestern United States, A Time-Series Econometric Analysis From 1970-2014, William Kearney, Paco Defrancis
Controls On Farmland Prices In The Midwestern United States, A Time-Series Econometric Analysis From 1970-2014, William Kearney, Paco Defrancis
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Farmland prices in the American Midwest are finally starting to come off of a historic bull-market run that is seen in many counties that make up District 7 of the Federal Reserves Bank (the Chicago Fed) skyrocket to well in excess of ,000 per acre. In our analysis we look at how much control different variables had on the sharp uptick in farmland prices that was experience in the late-2000's. We have compiled data from 1970 through Q4 of 2014 that came from the Chicago Fed (county-level and regional average farmland prices and agricultural loan interest rates), the USDA (figures …
Effects Of War-Time Escalation On Immigration Attitudes In The United States, Dylan Smith, Anthony Ramirez
Effects Of War-Time Escalation On Immigration Attitudes In The United States, Dylan Smith, Anthony Ramirez
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Immigration Policy is a highly divisive issue in the United States, most notably recently with the Obama Administrations executive order on immigration reform and subsequent injunction by Texas Judge Andrew S. Hansen. Major influences on immigration opinion and policy include international political conflict. For example, surrounding the tragic events of 9/11 there was a large increase in xenophobic attitudes according to polls taken in the beginning of 2001 and 2002: a Gallup poll demonstrated that those wanting less immigration increased from 36% in 2001 to 52% in the following year. The goal of this paper is to observe the effect …
Equity Returns: Low-Cost Vs. Full-Service Airline Carriers, Austin Murphy, Mitchell Maffeo, William Kunin
Equity Returns: Low-Cost Vs. Full-Service Airline Carriers, Austin Murphy, Mitchell Maffeo, William Kunin
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The purpose of this study is to examine how fluctuations in the price of NYMEX WTI light-sweet crude oil futures, the Consumer Confidence Index, and the S&P GSCI Aluminum TR index, as well as changes in the seasons, predict variation in airline carrier equity and airfare prices. We will run six regressions in order to distinguish the different effects of these explanatory variable on low-cost and full-service airline equity. Serving as a proxy for low-cost airlines, we use the three largest carriers in the United States: Southwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways, and Spirit Airlines. We then compare these results to those …
Predicting Need-Based Financial Aid, Connor Whitley, Camden Regan, Daniel Hyszczak
Predicting Need-Based Financial Aid, Connor Whitley, Camden Regan, Daniel Hyszczak
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
to be added later.
The Value Of Dune Width In Avalon, New Jersey: A Hedonic Pricing Analysis, Matthew Mignon
The Value Of Dune Width In Avalon, New Jersey: A Hedonic Pricing Analysis, Matthew Mignon
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Previous research on the economics of coastal housing markets has proven that housing values along the east coast of the United States capitalize on the attributes of local beaches. These recent studies document two important findings: i) that beach width positively affects coastal property values; ii) and that there is a proximity effect, in which distance from the beach plays a significant role in the capitalization of local beach attributes. This paper builds upon these findings to explore the influence that dune width has on coastal property values in Avalon, New Jersey. I hypothesize that homebuyers in a beach town …
The Economics Of The Audubon Society Sanctuary Program For Golf Courses, Daniel Hyszczak
The Economics Of The Audubon Society Sanctuary Program For Golf Courses, Daniel Hyszczak
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
To be added later.
Preferences For Coral Reef And Fishery Management In Okinawa, Nils Carlson
Preferences For Coral Reef And Fishery Management In Okinawa, Nils Carlson
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The valuation and estimation of key characteristics of a coral reef are of importance to policy makers in order to secure the capacity of coral reefs to supply humanity with ecological goods and services. This study sets out to estimate the willingness-to-pay for certain attributes of a coral reef and to elicit preferences for individuals regarding the key characteristics provided by the marine environment in Okinawa, Japan.
Preferences For Eco-Labels In Seafood And Underutilized Fish, Xiaojie Chen
Preferences For Eco-Labels In Seafood And Underutilized Fish, Xiaojie Chen
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The alarming decline of the global fishing economy has led to an increased recognition for the need to relieve pressure from the few commercially marketed and heavily overfished stocks, while regaining economic stability for struggling fishing communities. We can improve the longevity and well-being of both the fish stocks and the coastal communities by shifting consumer demand toward seafood that is more sustainably harvested or locally supplied. Currently, however, lack of transparency in the seafood supply chain is a severe impediment to consumer-driven solutions. In response, ecologically aware organizations have begun distributing a variety of eco-labels that help describe the …
Efficient Market Hypothesis And Environmental Stocks: Market Reactions To Capital Investment In Renewable Energy Projects And The Pricing Of Environmental Securities, John Crampton
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The focus of this paper is on the efficient market hypothesis which states that securities are all efficiently priced based on all available information. Furthermore, once an announcement is made or there is new information available, the market reacts and adjusts prices. I hope to analyze this theory and test it against environmental stocks focused on renewable energy generation (solar fields, wind turbine fields, etc.). Then, the analysis of what characteristics of a security make up the pricing of that stock, such as the price of oil, dividend yield, time of the year (cyclical factors), types of capital investments (solar …
Cost Benefit Of Cafe Standards, Brian Levinson
Cost Benefit Of Cafe Standards, Brian Levinson
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Cost and benefit analysis of Cafe (MPG) standards and ways to improve current techniques
The Value And Preferences For Improved Cook Stoves: A Choice Experiment In Ethiopia, Gilbert Kiggundu
The Value And Preferences For Improved Cook Stoves: A Choice Experiment In Ethiopia, Gilbert Kiggundu
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
This paper investigates preferences and the willingness to pay for improved cook stoves using a choice experiment administered in Ethiopia. Previous research indicates that traditional cooking methods are harmful to human health as well as the environment, as people need to cut down trees or collect other biomass sources for fuel. However, clean stoves can solve both these environmental and health problems, as well as provide a sustainable method for cooking and heating in developing countries. In this study, we use a choice experiment survey to understand Ethiopian households valuations of different characteristics of stoves, including their durability, fuel reduction, …
Rethinking How To Efficiently Fund Public Goods: An Agent-Based Modelling Of A Group Funding System Accommodating Different Human Behaviors And Influences Affecting Decision-Making, Shama Ramos
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
In neoclassical economics, we assume individuals generally based their decisions on their own welfare maximizing their utility. Due to this assumption, we created a tax system in order to provide public goods so that no one will act as a free-rider. Nonetheless, this system only provides general optimal utility instead of optimal utility for each individual. Because of the set assumption that humans only seek self-interest, economists overlooked other significant factors affecting peoples decision-making processes. In this research, I applied an agent-based model in order to take in consideration other factors affecting human decision-making and propose a new system in …
Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Through Grassland Restoration In The Upper Midwest, United States: A Spatially-Controlled Cost-Benefit Analysis, Paco Defrancis
Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Through Grassland Restoration In The Upper Midwest, United States: A Spatially-Controlled Cost-Benefit Analysis, Paco Defrancis
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The global agriculture sector is responsible for close 20% of gross anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions emitted since the start of the industrial age. Much of these emissions are attributed to the degradation of soils due to land use change when native ecosystems were converted to agricultural fields. Soil organic carbon (SOC) has been found to decrease in temperate soils when the native (such as a forest or grassland) ecosystem is replace by croplands. The aggregate amount of organic carbon stored in soils globally is estimated be 3.3x the size of the atmospheric carbon pool. Further soil degradation and reduction …
Analyzing Climate Change Awareness And Responsibility Effects, Connor Clancy, Sarah Beth Solomon
Analyzing Climate Change Awareness And Responsibility Effects, Connor Clancy, Sarah Beth Solomon
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
No abstract provided.
Wins And Revenues, Kenny Jacobson, Thomas Brewster, Grace Mcvey, Peter Mcauliffe
Wins And Revenues, Kenny Jacobson, Thomas Brewster, Grace Mcvey, Peter Mcauliffe
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
No abstract provided.
Municipal Recycling In Waterville: A Choice Experiment, Alexander Finigan, Katharine Eddy
Municipal Recycling In Waterville: A Choice Experiment, Alexander Finigan, Katharine Eddy
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The Waterville, Maine community has experienced many struggles with establishing an economically and socially beneficial method for collecting recyclables from residents. In 2006, the town made the choice to terminate its curbside recycling pickup and open the Skills facility, where residents were able to transport there recyclables and dispose of them at the facility. This proved to also not be economically beneficial and the town ended this option for residents in 2012. The motivation behind establishing a new recycling program in Waterville is making Waterville more environmentally friendly, the creation of jobs for residents in the trash collecting business, moral …
Pseudoephedrine Scheduling And Violent Crime, Alexander Morris, Quinn Ziegler, Lily Tilton
Pseudoephedrine Scheduling And Violent Crime, Alexander Morris, Quinn Ziegler, Lily Tilton
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
In this paper we seek to explore the relationship between methamphetamine usage and violent crime in the United States. As a drug produced from readily available ingredients, methamphetamines presence is felt across the country, and it is often anecdotally linked with both violent crime and property crime. Through the analysis of state-level data, we hope to determine whether or not methamphetamine availability is a useful predictor of crime. Methamphetamine usage is difficult to measure, as its production and consumption is not reliably tracked by virtue of its illicit nature. However, we can approximate methamphetamine usage by state using other metrics, …
The Color And Value Of Art, Leilani S C Pao
The Color And Value Of Art, Leilani S C Pao
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
There has been research in psychology, marketing and economics about the impact of color on peoples behavior, in particular peoples consumer behavior. My project examines the relationship between the value of art and color. I am interested to find out whether the solid background a painting is placed on, its environmental color, has an influence on the amount a person values the painting. My experimental survey to the Colby College community and visitors of the Colby College Museum of Art consists of two parts. In the first part of the survey, I ask the participants to come up with the …
Individuals Willingness To Pay For Health And Wellness Improvements Within The Built Environment, Max Pollinger
Individuals Willingness To Pay For Health And Wellness Improvements Within The Built Environment, Max Pollinger
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Improving biological sustainability through health and wellness improvements in the built environment is currently being applied to high-end real estate development in both the residential and commercial environment in the United States. However, the market for health and wellness extends well beyond the top income bracket. This study adopts a choice experiment (CE) approach to investigate individuals willingness to pay for health and wellness improvements within their homes. The results suggest that individuals value health as an inelastic good independent of income, and they are willing to pay significant premiums to ensure biological sustainability within their homes. In addition, individuals …
Financial Crisis And Its Impact On Institutional College Financial Aid, Salome Giorgadze, Lillian Liang
Financial Crisis And Its Impact On Institutional College Financial Aid, Salome Giorgadze, Lillian Liang
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The 2008 financial crisis impacted almost everyone in the world, particularly US households that have lost on average in income. A common problem that currently plagues the minds of college students is the cost of education. Households are still recovering from the monetary impacts of the financial crisis. We recognize that college grants and scholarships are important to students who wish to pursue higher education, and so do the colleges. Majority of the colleges have carefully designed institutional financial aid options, which usually consist of institutional grants, scholarships, work studies, and loans. Around 75% of full-time undergraduate students in the …
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats: Grade Inflation V. Grade Compression At Colby College, Emma Murphy, Ilanna Fricks, Yana Mayayeva
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats: Grade Inflation V. Grade Compression At Colby College, Emma Murphy, Ilanna Fricks, Yana Mayayeva
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Grade point averages are supposed markers of our collegiate intellectual ability and drive for success. But as an "A" increasingly becomes a stand-in for "average," the credibility of our GPAs may be in question in the professional world. The goal of this paper is to assess whether grading at Colby College has fallen in line with the national trend toward inflation. Our regression analyses examine whether GPAs have risen at Colby over the past 15 years across a variety of disciplines and indicators such as gender, athlete status, and international student status. This study also considers whether grade compression, rather …
The Effects Of Marijuana Decriminalization On Alcohol Consumption: Compliments Or Substitutes?, Alex Sisto, Hib Schenck, Fabrice Charles, Zach Padula
The Effects Of Marijuana Decriminalization On Alcohol Consumption: Compliments Or Substitutes?, Alex Sisto, Hib Schenck, Fabrice Charles, Zach Padula
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
What is the effect of decriminalization of marijuana on alcohol consumption in the United States? We hypothesize that consumption of alcohol and marijuana are substitute goods. More specifically, we hypothesize that decriminalization will be negatively correlated with alcohol consumption, meaning that demand for alcohol will fall in the years following decriminalization.
Do Public Libraries Reduce Crime Rate Among Juveniles?, Chen Li, Jingyan Guo, Jozef Moffat
Do Public Libraries Reduce Crime Rate Among Juveniles?, Chen Li, Jingyan Guo, Jozef Moffat
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Juvenile arrest rates have been at their lowest since 1980 in the United States after peaking around 1994. There are many factors that affect the juvenile crime rate and our aim is to determine the impact of those factors on the crime rate. For example, the environment that the juveniles live in and the income of their parents could influence their behavioral patterns. Cities build libraries to provide recreational services to the public, especially the youth, where they can spend their spare time usefully, in hope that they could avoid delinquent activities.
Economic Analysis: Sustainable Seafood Choice Experiment, Dylan Cowley, Jesse Coulon
Economic Analysis: Sustainable Seafood Choice Experiment, Dylan Cowley, Jesse Coulon
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
The sustainable seafood choice experiment is a co-discipline study run by Tierney Dodge (Environmental Studies), along with Jesse Coulon and Dylan Cowly (Economics). The purpose of the study is to better understand how sustainable seafood labeling is correlated with accepting higher prices at restaurants. Specifically, we are looking at how much people are willing to pay for dishes that have certified seafood labeling, such as Marine Stewardship Counsel Certified, compared to the simple label of sustainable seafood, which is a more arbitrary term with no outside body of regulation. We will then focus our study to see how these results …
Wind Energy Choice Experiment, William Scott, Carlton Reed
Wind Energy Choice Experiment, William Scott, Carlton Reed
CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium
Many surveys have shown that public acceptance of wind energy is high in general; however there always seems to be concerns at the local level during the siting and permitting process. This shows that people understand that clean wind energy is an essential need, however people do not normally want to have turbines in their own community. The goal of this choice experiment is to see which benefits people prefer and which trade-offs people are willing to make in order to host a wind farm in their community.We will analyze the effectiveness of several attributes, and their ability to rid …