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Econ 20250 Intrermeiate Microeconomics, Ahmed Elkhouly

Open Educational Resources

ECON 20250 Intermediate Microeconomics Syllabus

The Price Of A Vote: Diseconomy In Proportional Elections, Hygor Piaget M. Melo, Saulo D. S. Reis, Andre ́ A. Moreira, Hernan Makse, Jose ́ S. Andrade Jr.

Publications and Research

The increasing cost of electoral campaigns raises the need for effective campaign planning and a precise understanding of the return of such investment. Interestingly, despite the strong impact of elections on our daily lives, how this investment is translated into votes is still unknown. By performing data analysis and modeling, we show that top candidates spend more money per vote than the less successful and poorer candidates, a relation that discloses a diseconomy of scale. We demonstrate that such electoral diseconomy arises from the competition between candidates due to inefficient campaign expenditure. Our approach succeeds in two important tests. First, …

Supermarket Retailers’ Perspectives On Healthy Food Retail Strategies: In-Depth Interviews, Olivia Martinez, Noemi Rodriguez, Allison Mercurio, Marie Bragg, Brian Elbel

Publications and Research

Background

Excess calorie consumption and poor diet are major contributors to the obesity epidemic. Food retailers, in particular at supermarkets, are key shapers of the food environment which influences consumers’ diets. This study seeks to understand the decision-making processes of supermarket retailers—including motivators for and barriers to promoting more healthy products—and to catalogue elements of the complex relationships between customers, suppliers, and, supermarket retailers.

Methods

We recruited 20 supermarket retailers from a convenience sample of full service supermarkets and national supermarket chain headquarters serving low- and high-income consumers in urban and non-urban areas of New York. Individuals responsible for making …

The Connection Between Race And Performance Of Nba Draft Picks, Jeremiah Mitchell

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines the relationship between race and performance in terms of one of the highest forms of efficiency in basketball, field goal percentage, based on college statistics, with regard to draft position, career earnings and NBA win shares.

The Effects Of The Aca’S Medicaid Expansion And Woodwork Effect On Hospital Finances, Azemina Redzematovic

Theses and Dissertations

With many individuals enrolled in Medicaid through the ACA Medicaid expansion and woodwork effect, this paper estimates the effects on utilization of hospital services and hospital finances. Using a difference-in-differences (DD) instrumental variables model, the results that suggest that increased Medicaid demand does not necessarily equate to increased profits.

The Catalyst Effect Of Historic Preservation: A Spatial Analysis Of The Impact Of Historic District Designation On Housing Renovations In New York City, Ali R. Mostafa

Theses and Dissertations

The constraints on property use along with the economic merits of historic districts are critical points in the debate over preservation policies. Improving the existing housing stock is a substantial economic activity and a significant part of the nation’s overall construction industry. The purpose of this study is to present an empirical analysis of the relationship between historic district designation and renovation decisions. The results of the analysis found that historic preservation does not inhibit the renovation activity of single-family homeowners. However, contrary to the claims made by proponents, it does not give a powerful incentive for owners in undesignated …

Puerto Rico: Two Years After Hurricane Maria, Center For Puerto Rican Studies

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

Two years since Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017, between 220,000 to 255,000 residents of the island have relocated to the United States. This exodus represents one of the most significant movements of Puerto Ricans to the U.S. mainland in the island’s history in terms of both volume and duration. Two-years post-Hurricane Maria, we expect that an estimate of 60,000 to as high as 78,751 left the Island in 2019. One year since Hurricane-Maria, emigration estimates — of 159,415, with an upper bound confidence interval of 176,603 — is as high as the net migration …

A Recusa De Marx Da Teoria Do Valor, David Harvey, Carine Botelho Previatti

Publications and Research

Resumo:

Harvey compara a teoria do valor-trabalho de Ricardo e a teoria do valor adotada por Karl Marx, trazendo uma amostra das discussões de seu mais recente livro, Capital e a loucura da razão econômica. O autor discute as diferenças entre essas teorias e seus desdobramentos nos estudos marxistas atuais, concluindo que a forma valor dos estudos de Marx não pode ser considerada um “princípio imóvel e estável no mundo tumultuado do capital, mas uma métrica instável e em constante mudança”, que se expressa nas “novas práticas de reprodução social e massivas transformações nas vontades, necessidades e desejos de toda …

The Housing Crisis In Puerto Rico And The Impact Of Hurricane Maria, Jennifer Hinojosa, Edwin Melendez

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

By all counts, Puerto Rico’s housing market is in a deep and prolonged crisis. At least 18 percent of Puerto Rico’s housing stock is vacant as a result of the island’s prolonged economic recession, which commenced in 2006, and the spike in foreclosures after Hurricane Maria suggests that vacant units are increasing at an accelerated rate. Puerto Rico’s economic recession led to depopulation and the loss of jobs, which induced a decline of home equity values and an increase in foreclosures. More recently, Puerto Rico’s housing stock has been damaged due to Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island on September …

Principles Of Macroeconomics, Prabal K. De

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

Poverty In New York City: Consumption Expenditure As A Poverty Predictor, Michael Lomtevas

Student Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to replicate the findings of a 2012 study published by Meyer and Sullivan in the Journal of Economic Perspectives using data provided by the Columbia University Longitudinal Wellness Survey. That study found that a poverty measure based on consumption predicted material hardship better than both the Official (OPM) and Supplemental Poverty Measures (SPM). This was found to be the case because a well-constructed consumption poverty measure (CPM) captures in-kind benefits that the OPM neglects. Such a measure also avoids issues inherent in the SPM that arise from respondents underreporting their income and includes the ability to consume …

The Effect Of College Degree Attainment On Risky Health Behaviors: Smoking, Obesity, And Vaping., Sal R. Ansari

Theses and Dissertations

This paper tests the hypothesis that completing college results in better health outcomes through the causal pathway of risky health behaviors. The results imply that completing college reduces the likelihood an individual is a smoker or e-smoker. The results do not show any causal relationship between college education and obesity.

Impacts Of Antepartum Health Status And Health Insurance Coverage, Anjelica Gangaram

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines how a woman's antepartum health and health insurance status affect her likelihood of experiencing postpartum maternal morbidity complications.

Proposition 47 And Crime: A Difference In Differences Analysis Of Incarceration Rates And Crime Using Border Counties, Brian J. Fischer

Theses and Dissertations

California passed Proposition 47 by vote and changed the way the state punishes drug and theft. I find an increase in crime using a difference in differences model by computing the change in thefts with the change in inmates. This effect sides with anecdotal claims and disagrees with empirical studies.

Institutional Quality And Illicit Financial Flows In Developing And Developed Countries: An Empirical Assessment, Zin Kyaw Lin

Theses and Dissertations

This paper investigates the direct linkage between institutional quality and illicit financial flows (IFFs) of 47 developing and developed countries from the period of 2005 to 2014. Corruption and political stability are found to be correlated to the IFFs.

The Economics Of Skin Tone In Nineteenth-Century Maryland, Yuree Kim

Theses and Dissertations

I analyze the effect of subtle differences in skin complexion on heights of free blacks in Maryland during the nineteenth century. I propose that lighter-skinned blacks were taller (indicating better nutrition) than their darker counterparts. I find the hypothesis holds - 15.9% taller for males and 16.5% taller for females.

The Effect Of Parental Death On Children’S Wellbeing, Monil S. Shah

Theses and Dissertations

I study the effect of parental death on a child’s wellbeing, including workforce participation, education, marital status and health. Using propensity score matching, I find that parental death leads to worse outcomes for children who lose a parent compared to those with two parents, with negative effects exacerbated for daughters.

A New Keynesian Approach To Estimating Welfare Losses Under Strict And Flexible-Targeting Regimes, Shawn Weber

Theses and Dissertations

How do different inflation-targeting regimes affect the monetary loss-function of a central bank aiming at stabilizing inflation around an inflation target and stabilizing the real economy? Under a basic New-Keynesian framework, this paper examines the effect of inflation-targeting regimes on the monetary loss function of a central bank.

Perceived Corruption In Ukraine: A National Analysis Using Individual Level Data From 2012-2014, Cody X. Weglinski

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the relationship of perceived corruption in Ukraine and the factors that influence that perception. In particular, this paper investigates the idea that an influential Russian presence affects the perception of governmental corruption amongst Ukrainian business owners and managers.

Universal Alienation And The Real Subsumption Of Daily Life Under Capital: A Response To Hardt And Negri, David Harvey

Publications and Research

This contribution is part of a debate between Michael Hardt/Toni Negri and David Harvey on the occasion of Marx’s bicentenary (May 5, 2018). The discussion focuses on the question of what capitalism looks like today and how it can best be challenged. In this article, David Harvey responds to Hardt and Negri’s previous debate-contributions.

Do Homebuyers Care About Good Grades? Evaluating The Effect Of Nyc School Accountability Program On Housing Values, John I. Campagna

Theses and Dissertations

This paper looks at the effect of the New York City school accountability grades on the residential property market. Grades by themselves are found to have some effect on residential property market, but the inclusion of test scores along with grades diminishes the strength of their effect.

Analyzing Housing Demand And Its Role In The U.S. Economy, Irina Ayzenberg

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In the most recent economic downturn, caused by the burst of the housing bubble and the subprime mortgage crisis, the housing market took a direct hit: mortgage default rates were over 10 percent, housing prices fell 35 percent from 2005 to 2009, more than 5 million homes were foreclosed since 2008, and interest rates hit rock-bottom. In response, the U.S. Federal Reserve adopted aggressive expansionary monetary policies to get the economy back on track, some of which are in effect today. In order to really understand the state and direction of the U.S. economy today, we need to better understand …

Dancing, Mindfulness, And Our Emotions: Embracing The Mind, Body, And Sole, Alisha M. Collins

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This capstone project examines dance, as an intervention and mindfulness practice that assists with managing our emotions. There is a need for dance therapy in social institutions such as, healthcare facilities, schools, and community centers. Dance therapy has the potential to reduce negative emotions, create mindfulness, improve self-expression, and promote a healthy well-being. I am proposing that dance therapy is applied as a regular practice in social institutions to develop mindfulness and promote emotional stability.

In this study, I argue that dance therapy can contribute to our well-being long term. In addition to this written thesis, a visual component of …

Race And Gun Violence In The United States: A Case Study Of Policy Reform In Missouri, Morgan C. Williams Jr

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Gun violence remains an important contributor to racial differences in mortality within the United States. Despite the existence of these significant racial disparities in firearm homicide victimization, the relationship between gun control policy and racial disparities in homicide remains largely unexplored within the empirical crime literature. Previous research suggests that access to secondary firearm markets serves as a salient contributor to local gun violence with the regulation of private firearm sales falling exclusively within state-level jurisdiction. The role of state-level background check requirements for private firearm sales in reducing gun violence remains controversial in both the empirical literature and gun …

Essays On The Transmission Of Risk And Volatility Across International Financial Markets, Evan Warshaw

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of three distinct but related chapters studying the behavior of international financial markets. Chapter 1 explores volatility spillovers between European equity and foreign exchange markets from 2009 until 2016. In contrast to traditional empirical methods, this study uses realized volatility estimates to analyze causal linkages across the frequency domain. Volatility spillovers are tested using the CAC 40, DAX, and FTSE 100 equity indices and the USD/GBP, USD/EUR, and GBP/EUR exchange rates. Results show that volatility spillovers are bidirectional and asymmetric across the frequency domain. Daily volatility spillover from equity to foreign exchange markets is significant at high, …

Essays On The Economics Of Health And Human Capital, Paloma Lopez De Mesa Moyano

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation explores dynamics related to the formation of human capital. In the two chapters contained within, my work investigates how human capital is formed and maintained through either individual decisions or historic events. In particular, the first chapter analyzes the long-term health effects of a large-scale bombing campaign on the population of a developing country up to two generations after the event occurred; the second chapter analyzes how attending a public honors college in the U.S. affects the degree completion of students and their college quality choice. In these two different contexts, I approach the common topic of human …

Essays On Banking And Corporate Finance, Alev Isil Yildirim

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of two chapters.

Chapter 1: The Effect of Relationship Banking on Firm Efficiency

This paper analyzes the impact of relationship bank oversight on firm operational efficiency and default risk. I find that a new loan from a relationship bank improves the technical efficiency of inefficient firms that have an elevated probability of default. Moreover, borrowing firms with elevated default risk exposure experience reductions in their probabilities of default in the years following new relationship bank loans, benefiting both banks and borrowers. Thus, the benefits of relationship bank monitoring are most apparent the higher the ex ante default …

Venezuela: Oil And Madness. Politics, Propaganda, And Realities Of The Chavista Era, Alvaro E. De Prat

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis is an interdisciplinary exploration of Venezuela’s political paradoxes and their consequences during the Chavista years. On a concrete level, in this work I propose how the manner in which Hugo Chávez implemented his at first apparently benign redistributive politics in fact precipitated the country's current humanitarian crisis and what I will argue are the times of starkest inequality in modern Venezuelan history. Integral to this, although on a more philosophical level, here I also offer a theory of how and why Chávez’s representations might have been so misinterpreted.

The list of eminent political thinkers who have vouched for …

Out Of The Shadows: Women Of The Fmln Guerrilla Army In El Salvador’S Civil War, 1979–1992, Erica Gonzalez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Over the course of a century, revolutionary movements have emerged every few years across the region of Central America, movements that fought for overturning dictatorships and confronting socio-economic inequalities. Women experience higher levels of poverty, human rights violations and discrimination due to gender inequalities. Representing 30% of the FMLN guerrilla army, women in El Salvador took a quantum leap into one of the most horrific and violent armed conflicts in the history of the country (Montgomery 123). Theorists have sought to explain why women became involved in the war. Experts of insurgent collective action agree that women's participation played a …

The Dictators’ Dilemma: Repression Or Concessions In The Face Of Resistance, Chris Massaro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The Arab Spring revolts of late 2010 and 2011 were a profound moment in the history of a region troubled by decades of authoritarianism. Years of economic mismanagement and security force repression trammeled on the rights and aspirations of people striving for a better life. When social movements and anti-government protests erupted throughout the region, each country responded to the uprisings with different methodologies. This research closely examines why autocratic regimes of the region chose such divergent responses, with some opting to use violent repression, others attempting to make concessions and most combined repression with concessions. I will make the …