Social security, retirement, and the single-mindedness of the electorate

We propose a positive theory that is consistent with two important featuresof social security programs around the world: (1) they redistributeincome from young to old and (2) they induce retirement. We construct avoting model that includes a political campaign or debate prior to theelection. The model incorporates single-mindedness of the groups that donot work: while the workers divide their political capital between their age concerns and occupational concerns , the retired concentrate alltheir political capital to support their age group. In our model, theelderly end up getting transfers from the government (paid by the young)and distortionary labor income taxes induce the retirement of the elderly.In addition, our model predicts that occupational groups that work morewill tend to have more political power. The opposite is true fornon-occupational groups (such as the elderly). We provide some evidencethat supports these additional predictions.

IκB-ζ controls the constitutive NF-κB target gene network and survival of ABC DLBCL.

Constitutive activation of the nuclear factor-κ B (NF-κB) pathway is a hallmark of the activated B-cell-like (ABC) subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Recurrent mutations of NF-κB regulators that cause constitutive activity of this oncogenic pathway have been identified. However, it remains unclear how specific target genes are regulated. We identified the atypical nuclear IκB protein IκB-ζ to be upregulated in ABC compared with germinal center B-cell-like (GCB) DLBCL primary patient samples. Knockdown of IκB-ζ by RNA interference was toxic to ABC but not to GCB DLBCL cell lines. Gene expression profiling after IκB-ζ knockdown demonstrated a significant downregulation of a large number of known NF-κB target genes, indicating an essential role of IκB-ζ in regulating a specific set of NF-κB target genes. To further investigate how IκB-ζ mediates NF-κB activity, we performed immunoprecipitations and detected a physical interaction of IκB-ζ with both p50 and p52 NF-κB subunits, indicating that IκB-ζ interacts with components of both the canonical and the noncanonical NF-κB pathway in ABC DLBCL. Collectively, our data demonstrate that IκB-ζ is essential for nuclear NF-κB activity in ABC DLBCL, and thus might represent a promising molecular target for future therapies.

Early Stage Primary Bone Lymphoma: A Retrospective, Multicenter Rare Cancer Network Study

Purpose/Objective(s): Primary bone lymphoma (PBL) represents less than 1% of all malignant lymphomas, and 4-5% of all extranodal lymphomas. In this study, we assessed the disease profile, outcome, and prognostic factors in patients with stage I and II PBL.Materials/Methods: Between 1987 and 2008, 116 consecutive patients with PBL treated in 13 RCNinstitutions were included in this study. Inclusion criteriawere: age.17 yrs, PBLin stage I and II, andminimum6months follow-up. The median agewas 51 yrs (range: 17-93).Diagnosticwork-up included plain boneXray (74%of patients), scintigraphy (62%), CT-scan (65%),MRI (58%), PET (18%), and bone-marrow biopsy (84%).All patients had biopsy-proven confirmation of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). The histopathological type was predominantly diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (78%) and follicular lymphoma (6%), according to theWHOclassification. One hundred patients had a high-grade, 7 intermediate and 9 low-gradeNHL. Ninety-three patients had anAnn-Arbor stage I, and 23 had a stage II. Seventy-seven patients underwent chemoradiotherapy (CXRT), 12 radiotherapy (RT) alone, 10 chemotherapy alone (CXT), 9 surgery followed by CXRT, 5 surgery followed by CXT, and 2 surgery followed by RT. One patient died before treatment.Median RT dosewas 40Gy (range: 4-60).Themedian number ofCXTcycleswas 6 (range, : 2-8).Median follow-upwas 41months (range: 6-242).Results: Following treatment, the overall response rate was 91% (CR 74%, PR 17%). Local recurrence was observed in 12 (10%) patients, and systemic recurrence in 17 (15%) patients. Causes of death included disease progression in 16, unrelated disease in 6, CXT-related toxicity in 1, and secondary cancer in 2 patients. The 5-yr overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), lymphoma- specific survival (LSS), and local control (LC) were 76%, 69%, 78%, and 92%, respectively. In univariate analyses (log-rank test), favorable prognostic factors for survival were: age\50 years (p = 0.008), IPI score #1 (p = 0.009), complete response (p\0.001), CXT (p = 0.008), number of CXT cycles $6 (p = 0.007), and RT dose . 40 Gy (p = 0.005). In multivariate analysis age, RT dose, complete response, and absence of B symptoms were independent factors influencing the outcome. There were 3 patients developing grade 3 or more (CTCAE.V3.0) toxicities.Conclusions: This large multicenter study, confirms the relatively good prognosis of early stage PBL, treated with combined CXRT. Local control was excellent, and systemic failure occurred infrequently. A sufficient dose of RT (. 40 Gy) and completeCXT regime (. 6 cycles) were associated with a better outcome. Combined modality appears to be the treatment of choice.Author Disclosure: L. Cai, None; M.C. Stauder, None; Y.J. Zhang, None; P. Poortmans, None; Y.X. Li, None; N. Constantinou, None; J. Thariat, None; S. Kadish, None; M. Ozsahin, None; R.O. Mirimanoff, None.

Social security in theory and practice (II): Efficiency theories, narrative theories and implications for reform

166 countries have some kind of public old age pension. What economic forcescreate and sustain old age Social Security as a public program? Mulligan and Sala-i-Martin (1999b) document several of the internationally and historically common features of social security programs, and explore "political" theories of Social Security. This paper discusses the "efficiency theories", which view creation of the SS program as a full of partial solution to some market failure. Efficiency explanations of social security include the "SS as welfare for the elderly" the "retirement increases productivity to optimally manage human capital externalities", "optimal retirement insurance", the "prodigal father problem", the "misguided Keynesian", the "optimal longevity insurance", the "governmenteconomizing transaction costs", and the "return on human capital investment". We also analyze four "narrative" theories of social security: the "chain letter theory", the "lump of labor theory", the "monopoly capitalism theory", and the "Sub-but-Nearly-Optimal policy response to private pensions theory".The political and efficiency explanations are compared with the international and historical facts and used to derive implications for replacing the typical pay-as-you-go system with a forced savings plan. Most of the explanations suggest that forced savings does not increase welfare, and may decrease it.

An analysis of the accounting principles applied by the European Farm Accountancy Data Network

In spite of its relative importance in the economy of many countriesand its growing interrelationships with other sectors, agriculture has traditionally been excluded from accounting standards. Nevertheless, to support its Common Agricultural Policy, for years the European Commission has been making an effort to obtain standardized information on the financial performance and condition of farms. Through the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN), every year data are gathered from a rotating sample of 60.000 professional farms across all member states. FADN data collection is not structured as an accounting cycle but as an extensive questionnaire. This questionnaire refers to assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and seems to try to obtain a "true and fair view" of the financial performance and condition of the farms it surveys. However, the definitions used in the questionnaire and the way data is aggregated often appear flawed from an accounting perspective. The objective of this paper is to contrast the accounting principles implicit in the FADN questionnaire with generally accepted accounting principles, particularly those found in the IVth Directive of the European Union, on the one hand, and those recently proposed by the International Accounting Standards Committee’s Steering Committeeon Agriculture in its Draft Statement of Principles, on the other hand. There are two reasons why this is useful. First, it allows to make suggestions how the information provided by FADN could be more in accordance with the accepted accounting framework, and become a more valuable tool for policy makers, farmers, and other stakeholders. Second, it helps assessing the suitability of FADN to become the starting point for a European accounting standard on agriculture.

Report of Savings by Using Video Conferencing Through Iowa Communications Network

Iowa Department of Transportation Fiscal Year 2007 Report of Savings by Using Video Conferencing Through Iowa Communications Network to the Iowa General Assembly Pursuant to Chapter II 84 Acts and Joint Resolutions Enacted at the 1994 Regular Session of the 75th General Assembly of the State of Iowa Code section 8D.10 Report of Savings by State Agencies Iowa Code section 8D.10 requires certain state agencies prepare an annual report to the General Assembly certifying the identified savings associated with that state agency’s use of the Iowa Communications Network (ICN). This report covers estimated cost savings related to video conferencing via ICN for the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT). In FY 2007, the DOT conducted two sessions utilizing ICN’s video conferencing system. These two sessions included DOT employees in Ames with non-DOT participants at remote ICN sites. Since the cost savings is calculated based on DOT staff savings, no cost savings from these conferences were gained because the public participants were attending from the ICN sites.

Fracture network characterization using hydrological and geophysical data

Les décisions de gestion des eaux souterraines doivent souvent être justiffées par des modèles quantitatifs d'aquifères qui tiennent compte de l'hétérogénéité des propriétés hydrauliques. Les aquifères fracturés sont parmi les plus hétérogènes et très difficiles à étudier. Dans ceux-ci, les fractures connectées, d'ouverture millimètrique, peuvent agir comme conducteurs hydrauliques et donc créer des écoulements très localisés. Le manque général d'informations sur la distribution spatiale des fractures limite la possibilité de construire des modèles quantitatifs de flux et de transport. Les données qui conditionnent les modèles sont généralement spatialement limitées, bruitées et elles ne représentent que des mesures indirectes de propriétés physiques. Ces limitations aux données peuvent être en partie surmontées en combinant différents types de données, telles que les données hydrologiques et de radar à pénétration de sol plus commun ément appelé géoradar. L'utilisation du géoradar en forage est un outil prometteur pour identiffer les fractures individuelles jusqu'à quelques dizaines de mètres dans la formation. Dans cette thèse, je développe des approches pour combiner le géoradar avec les données hydrologiques affn d'améliorer la caractérisation des aquifères fracturés. Des investigations hydrologiques intensives ont déjà été réalisées à partir de trois forage adjacents dans un aquifère cristallin en Bretagne (France). Néanmoins, la dimension des fractures et la géométrie 3-D des fractures conductives restaient mal connue. Affn d'améliorer la caractérisation du réseau de fractures je propose dans un premier temps un traitement géoradar avancé qui permet l'imagerie des fractures individuellement. Les résultats montrent que les fractures perméables précédemment identiffées dans les forages peuvent être caractérisées géométriquement loin du forage et que les fractures qui ne croisent pas les forages peuvent aussi être identiffées. Les résultats d'une deuxième étude montrent que les données géoradar peuvent suivre le transport d'un traceur salin. Ainsi, les fractures qui font partie du réseau conductif et connecté qui dominent l'écoulement et le transport local sont identiffées. C'est la première fois que le transport d'un traceur salin a pu être imagé sur une dizaines de mètres dans des fractures individuelles. Une troisième étude conffrme ces résultats par des expériences répétées et des essais de traçage supplémentaires dans différentes parties du réseau local. En outre, la combinaison des données de surveillance hydrologique et géoradar fournit la preuve que les variations temporelles d'amplitude des signaux géoradar peuvent nous informer sur les changements relatifs de concentrations de traceurs dans la formation. Par conséquent, les données géoradar et hydrologiques sont complémentaires. Je propose ensuite une approche d'inversion stochastique pour générer des modèles 3-D de fractures discrètes qui sont conditionnés à toutes les données disponibles en respectant leurs incertitudes. La génération stochastique des modèles conditionnés par géoradar est capable de reproduire les connexions hydrauliques observées et leur contribution aux écoulements. L'ensemble des modèles conditionnés fournit des estimations quantitatives des dimensions et de l'organisation spatiale des fractures hydrauliquement importantes. Cette thèse montre clairement que l'imagerie géoradar est un outil utile pour caractériser les fractures. La combinaison de mesures géoradar avec des données hydrologiques permet de conditionner avec succès le réseau de fractures et de fournir des modèles quantitatifs. Les approches présentées peuvent être appliquées dans d'autres types de formations rocheuses fracturées où la roche est électriquement résistive.

A-1a Supplemental Security Income Program, December 2007

A-1a - SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM - December 2007

A-1a Supplemental Security Income Program, November 2007

A-1a - SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM - November 2007

Social security and democracy

Many political economic theories use and emphasize the process of votingin their explanation of the growth of Social Security, governmentspending, and other public policies. But is there an empirical connectionbetween democracy and Social Security program size or design? Using somenew international data sets to produce both country-panel econometricestimates as well as case studies of South American and southern Europeancountries, we find that Social Security policy varies according toeconomic and demographic factors, but that very different politicalhistories can result in the same Social Security policy. We find littlepartial effect of democracy on the size of Social Security budgets, onhow those budgets are allocated, or how economic and demographic factorsaffect Social Security. If there is any observed difference, democraciesspend a little less of their GDP on Social Security, grow their budgetsa bit more slowly, and cap their payroll tax more often, than doeconomically and demographically similar nondemocracies. Democracies andnondemocracies are equally likely to have benefit formulas inducingretirement and, conditional on GDP per capita, equally likely to induceretirement with a retirement test vs. an earnings test.

What social security: Beveridgean or Bismarckian?

Why are Bismarckian social security systems associated with largerpublic pension expenditures, a smaller fraction of private pension andlower income in-equality than Beveridgean systems? These facts arepuzzling for political economy theories of social security whichpredict that Beveridgean systems, involving intra-generationalredistribution, should enjoy larger support among low-income people andthus be larger. This paper explains these features in a bidimensionalpolitical economy model. In an economy with three income groups,low-income support a large, redistributive system; middle-income favoran earning-related system, while high-income oppose any public system,since they have access to a superior saving technology, a privatesystem. We show that, if income inequality is large, the voting majorityof high-income and low-income supports a (small) Beveridgean system,and a large private pillar arises; the opposite occurs with lowinequality. Additionally, when the capital market provides higherreturns, a Beveridgean system is more likely to emerge.

The P-median problem in a changing network: The case of Barcelona

In this paper a p--median--like model is formulated to address theissue of locating new facilities when there is uncertainty. Severalpossible future scenarios with respect to demand and/or the travel times/distanceparameters are presented. The planner will want a strategy of positioning thatwill do as ``well as possible'' over the future scenarios. This paper presents a discrete location model formulation to address this P--Medianproblem under uncertainty. The model is applied to the location of firestations in Barcelona.

ETYK III-vaihe (Tasavallan Presidentin esittämä Suomen puheenvuoro 31.7.1975 = Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe = main speech of Finland delivered by President Urho Kekkonen July 31, 1975)

Puhe

B-1 Monthly Report of Medical Services Provided under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, April 2008

B-1 Medicaid Reports The monthly Medicaid series of eight reports provide summaries of Medicaid eligibles, recipients served, and total payments by county, category of service, and aid category. These reports may also be known as the B-1 Reports. These reports are each available as a PDF for printing or as a CSV file for data analysis. Report name Report number Medically Needy by County - No Spenddown and With Spenddown IAMM1800-R001 Total Medically Needy, All Other Medicaid, and Grand Total by County IAMM1800-R002 Monthly Expenditures by Category of Service IAMM2200-R002 Fiscal YTD Expenditures by Category of Service IAMM2200-R003 ICF & ICF-MR Vendor Payments by County IAMM3800-R001 Monthly Expenditures by Eligibility Program IAMM4400-R001 Monthly Expenditures by Category of Service by Program IAMM4400-R002 Elderly Waiver Summary by County IAMM4600-R002