Epidemiological Characteristics of Schistosoma mansoni Infection in Rural and Urban Endemic Areas of Minas Gerais, Brazil

To compare the epidemiological profile and socioeconomic factors associated to the infection by Schistosoma mansoni in a rural and an urban endemic area a cross-sectional study was performed in ��gua Branca de Minas (rural area) and Bela Fama (urban area), both situated in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Two hundred and eighty eight individuals were surveyed in the rural area and 787 in the urban area. Water contact and socioeconomic questionnaires were used to identify risk factors for the infection. The prevalences of 38.8% and 9.7% and the geometric mean of eggs per gram of faeces of 117.8 and 62.3 were found in the rural and urban areas, respectively. By multivariate statistical analysis age groups over nine years old and previous specific treatment were associated with the infection in rural area. In urban area age over nine years old, low quality housing, weekly fishing and swimming were associated after adjustment by logistic regression

��tica i pol��tica : llums i ombres

Aquest treball vol donar una resposta a preguntes com les seg��ents: Per qu�� la pol��tica no ha tingut (mai?) ni t�� gaire bona fama?; realment ��s incompatible la recerca, la consecuci�� i l'exercici del poder amb els dictats de l'��tica?; qu�� han dit alguns dels pensadors m��s rellevants sobre la presumptament dif��cil relaci�� entre l'��tica i la pol��tica?

Revisitando as estrat��gias de momento: o mercado brasileiro �� realmente uma exce����o?

RESUMONo artigo, reexaminam-se as estrat��gias de momento a fim de verificar se a falta de evid��ncias quanto a sua lucratividade no mercado brasileiro pode estar relacionada ��s quebras que elas experimentam durante as crises, conforme reportado por Daniel e Moskowitz. Para tanto, utilizou-se o teste t-student com o intuito de comparar os retornos m��dios auferidos pela carteira de momento dentro e fora das crises financeiras entre janeiro de 1997 e mar��o de 2014. A partir dos resultados, demonstra-se que, em linha com o reportado para outros mercados, a carteira experimenta quebras durante as crises, ao passo que proporciona retornos positivos e significativos nos demais per��odos, mesmo ap��s o controle para os fatores de risco dos modelos do Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) e de Fama-French. Esses achados indicam que a falta de evid��ncias quanto �� lucratividade dessas estrat��gias n��o implica o entendimento do mercado brasileiro como uma exce����o, mas pode ser explicada pela quebra das carteiras de momento durante as crises, que anulam grande parte dos retornos positivos auferidos por essa estrat��gia em outros per��odos.

Sorte ou habilidade: uma avalia����o dos fundos de investimento no Brasil

RESUMONeste estudo, verifica-se se os retornos dos fundos de investimento no Brasil decorrem da habilidade dos gestores ou apenas do fator sorte. Foi utilizada a metodologia de Fama e French, que concluem pela irrelev��ncia da habilidade nos Estados Unidos da Am��rica. Para estimar a distribui����o de alfas que seriam obtidos por mera sorte, foram gerados dez mil fundos simulados a partir de sorteios dentre os retornos dos fundos reais em cada m��s. Na compara����o dos alfas simulados com os reais, evidenciou-se haver habilidade na gera����o de retornos anormais positivos, especialmente pelos gestores dos fundos grandes.

Els apareguts i el culte de les ��nimes del Purgatori (segles XIV-XVII). Estudi i edici�� de textos catalans

Report for the scientific sojourn carried out at the Institut National d'Histoire de l'Art (INHA), France, from 2010 to 2012. It has focused on the analysis and editing of tales of human apparitions from the other world belonging to the Catalan culture or referring to it. We have studied and edited different versions of the process of Esperan��a Alegre (Lleida, 1500) and the Peregrinaci�� del Ventur��s Pelegr��. These medieval works have been preserved in sources of the late sixteenth century or later. We have located a manuscript of the Esperan��a Alegre's tale, unknown to us at the beginning of this research (Biblioteca Nacional de Espa��a, ms. 1701), which differs from the version of ms. Baluze 238 of the Biblioth��que Nationale de France. The scribe of the ms. 1701 adds several paragraphs where considers the case as a diabolical phantasmagoria. About the Ventur��s Pelegr��, we have tried to establish firm criteria for the classification of many editions from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. We have been looking for printed books in the libr��ries of the world and we have made several requests for photographic reproductions, in order to classify undated editions by comparing woodcuts and other decorative elements. In the legend of Prince Charles of Viana (1421-1461), the appearances of his ghost are accompanied by rumors of his poisoning and of his sanctity. In addition, we have studied the cycles of masses for the souls in Purgatory linked to the hagiographies of St. Amadour and St. Vincent Ferrer, as well as the appearances described in L'��nima d���Oliver of Francesc Moner, in the Carmelite chronicles of Father John of St. Joseph (1642-1718) and in some folktales collected from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. All this have allowed us to verify the evolution of certain cultural paradigms since the Middle Ages to the present.

Financial Markets and Real Ecinomy: Four Essays in International Trade

Financial markets play an important role in an economy performing various functions like mobilizing and pooling savings, producing information about investment opportunities, screening and monitoring investments, implementation of corporate governance, diversification and management of risk. These functions influence saving rates, investment decisions, technological innovation and, therefore, have important implications for welfare. In my PhD dissertation I examine the interplay of financial and product markets by looking at different channels through which financial markets may influence an economy.My dissertation consists of four chapters. The first chapter is a co-authored work with Martin Strieborny, a PhD student from the University of Lausanne. The second chapter is a co-authored work with Melise Jaud, a PhD student from the Paris School of Economics. The third chapter is co-authored with both Melise Jaud and Martin Strieborny. The last chapter of my PhD dissertation is a single author paper.Chapter 1 of my PhD thesis analyzes the effect of financial development on growth of contract intensive industries. These industries intensively use intermediate inputs that neither can be sold on organized exchange, nor are reference-priced (Levchenko, 2007; Nunn, 2007). A typical example of a contract intensive industry would be an industry where an upstream supplier has to make investments in order to customize a product for needs of a downstream buyer. After the investment is made and the product is adjusted, the buyer may refuse to meet a commitment and trigger ex post renegotiation. Since the product is customized to the buyer's needs, the supplier cannot sell the product to a different buyer at the original price. This is referred in the literature as the holdup problem. As a consequence, the individually rational suppliers will underinvest into relationship-specific assets, hurting the downstream firms with negative consequences for aggregate growth. The standard way to mitigate the hold up problem is to write a binding contract and to rely on the legal enforcement by the state. However, even the most effective contract enforcement might fail to protect the supplier in tough times when the buyer lacks a reliable source of external financing. This suggests the potential role of financial intermediaries, banks in particular, in mitigating the incomplete contract problem. First, financial products like letters of credit and letters of guarantee can substantially decrease a risk and transaction costs of parties. Second, a bank loan can serve as a signal about a buyer's true financial situation, an upstream firm will be more willing undertake relationship-specific investment knowing that the business partner is creditworthy and will abstain from myopic behavior (Fama, 1985; von Thadden, 1995). Therefore, a well-developed financial (especially banking) system should disproportionately benefit contract intensive industries.The empirical test confirms this hypothesis. Indeed, contract intensive industries seem to grow faster in countries with a well developed financial system. Furthermore, this effect comes from a more developed banking sector rather than from a deeper stock market. These results are reaffirmed examining the effect of US bank deregulation on the growth of contract intensive industries in different states. Beyond an overall pro-growth effect, the bank deregulation seems to disproportionately benefit the industries requiring relationship-specific investments from their suppliers.Chapter 2 of my PhD focuses on the role of the financial sector in promoting exports of developing countries. In particular, it investigates how credit constraints affect the ability of firms operating in agri-food sectors of developing countries to keep exporting to foreign markets.Trade in high-value agri-food products from developing countries has expanded enormously over the last two decades offering opportunities for development. However, trade in agri-food is governed by a growing array of standards. Sanitary and Phytosanitary standards (SPS) and technical regulations impose additional sunk, fixed and operating costs along the firms' export life. Such costs may be detrimental to firms' survival, "pricing out" producers that cannot comply. The existence of these costs suggests a potential role of credit constraints in shaping the duration of trade relationships on foreign markets. A well-developed financial system provides the funds to exporters necessary to adjust production processes in order to meet quality and quantity requirements in foreign markets and to maintain long-standing trade relationships. The products with higher needs for financing should benefit the most from a well functioning financial system. This differential effect calls for a difference-in-difference approach initially proposed by Rajan and Zingales (1998). As a proxy for demand for financing of agri-food products, the sanitary risk index developed by Jaud et al. (2009) is used. The empirical literature on standards and norms show high costs of compliance, both variable and fixed, for high-value food products (Garcia-Martinez and Poole, 2004; Maskus et al., 2005). The sanitary risk index reflects the propensity of products to fail health and safety controls on the European Union (EU) market. Given the high costs of compliance, the sanitary risk index captures the demand for external financing to comply with such regulations.The prediction is empirically tested examining the export survival of different agri-food products from firms operating in Ghana, Mali, Malawi, Senegal and Tanzania. The results suggest that agri-food products that require more financing to keep up with food safety regulation of the destination market, indeed sustain longer in foreign market, when they are exported from countries with better developed financial markets.Chapter 3 analyzes the link between financial markets and efficiency of resource allocation in an economy. Producing and exporting products inconsistent with a country's factor endowments constitutes a serious misallocation of funds, which undermines competitiveness of the economy and inhibits its long term growth. In this chapter, inefficient exporting patterns are analyzed through the lens of the agency theories from the corporate finance literature. Managers may pursue projects with negative net present values because their perquisites or even their job might depend on them. Exporting activities are particularly prone to this problem. Business related to foreign markets involves both high levels of additional spending and strong incentives for managers to overinvest. Rational managers might have incentives to push for exports that use country's scarce factors which is suboptimal from a social point of view. Export subsidies might further skew the incentives towards inefficient exporting. Management can divert the export subsidies into investments promoting inefficient exporting.Corporate finance literature stresses the disciplining role of outside debt in counteracting the internal pressures to divert such "free cash flow" into unprofitable investments. Managers can lose both their reputation and the control of "their" firm if the unpaid external debt triggers a bankruptcy procedure. The threat of possible failure to satisfy debt service payments pushes the managers toward an efficient use of available resources (Jensen, 1986; Stulz, 1990; Hart and Moore, 1995). The main sources of debt financing in the most countries are banks. The disciplining role of banks might be especially important in the countries suffering from insufficient judicial quality. Banks, in pursuing their rights, rely on comparatively simple legal interventions that can be implemented even by mediocre courts. In addition to their disciplining role, banks can promote efficient exporting patterns in a more direct way by relaxing credit constraints of producers, through screening, identifying and investing in the most profitable investment projects. Therefore, a well-developed domestic financial system, and particular banking system, would help to push a country's exports towards products congruent with its comparative advantage.This prediction is tested looking at the survival of different product categories exported to US market. Products are identified according to the Euclidian distance between their revealed factor intensity and the country's factor endowments. The results suggest that products suffering from a comparative disadvantage (labour-intensive products from capital-abundant countries) survive less on the competitive US market. This pattern is stronger if the exporting country has a well-developed banking system. Thus, a strong banking sector promotes exports consistent with a country comparative advantage.Chapter 4 of my PhD thesis further examines the role of financial markets in fostering efficient resource allocation in an economy. In particular, the allocative efficiency hypothesis is investigated in the context of equity market liberalization.Many empirical studies document a positive and significant effect of financial liberalization on growth (Levchenko et al. 2009; Quinn and Toyoda 2009; Bekaert et al., 2005). However, the decrease in the cost of capital and the associated growth in investment appears rather modest in comparison to the large GDP growth effect (Bekaert and Harvey, 2005; Henry, 2000, 2003). Therefore, financial liberalization may have a positive impact on growth through its effect on the allocation of funds across firms and sectors.Free access to international capital markets allows the largest and most profitable domestic firms to borrow funds in foreign markets (Rajan and Zingales, 2003). As domestic banks loose some of their best clients, they reoptimize their lending practices seeking new clients among small and younger industrial firms. These firms are likely to be more risky than large and established companies. Screening of customers becomes prevalent as the return to screening rises. Banks, ceteris paribus, tend to focus on firms operating in comparative-advantage sectors because they are better risks. Firms in comparative-disadvantage sectors finding it harder to finance their entry into or survival in export markets either exit or refrain from entering export markets. On aggregate, one should therefore expect to see less entry, more exit, and shorter survival on export markets in those sectors after financial liberalization.The paper investigates the effect of financial liberalization on a country's export pattern by comparing the dynamics of entry and exit of different products in a country export portfolio before and after financial liberalization.The results suggest that products that lie far from the country's comparative advantage set tend to disappear relatively faster from the country's export portfolio following the liberalization of financial markets. In other words, financial liberalization tends to rebalance the composition of a country's export portfolio towards the products that intensively use the economy's abundant factors.

Desempenho de Indices Socialmente Responsaveis

Nos ��ltimos anos os investimentos socialmente respons��veis t��m tido um crescimento significativo a n��vel mundial. Neste ��mbito, este estudo pretende analisar se o investimento em ��ndices socialmente respons��veis tem um desempenho superior, inferior ou igual aos ��ndices convencionais. Neste estudo �� analisado o desempenho de 13 ��ndices de ac����es sustent��veis, a n��vel internacional, durante o per��odo de 01 de Janeiro de 2002 a 31 de Dezembro de 2008, com base nas medidas tradicionais de desempenho de Treynor (1965), Sharpe (1966) e Jensen (1968) e nos modelos multi-factores de Fama e French de tr��s factores (1993) e Carhart de quatro factores (1997). Os resultados obtidos sugerem que os investimentos em ��ndices socialmente respons��veis n��o tiveram um desempenho inferior nem superior aos seus pares convencionais. Foi ainda verificado que muitos ��ndices sustent��veis apresentaram um n��vel de risco superior aos dos seus benchmarks.

���DESEMPENHO DE ��NDICES SOCIALMENTE RESPONS��VEIS���

Nos ��ltimos anos os investimentos socialmente respons��veis t��m tido um crescimento significativo a n��vel mundial. Neste ��mbito, este estudo pretende analisar se o investimento em ��ndices socialmente respons��veis tem um desempenho superior, inferior ou igual aos ��ndices convencionais. Neste estudo �� analisado o desempenho de 13 ��ndices de ac����es sustent��veis, a n��vel internacional, durante o per��odo de 01 de Janeiro de 2002 a 31 de Dezembro de 2008, com base nas medidas tradicionais de desempenho de Treynor (1965), Sharpe (1966) e Jensen (1968) e nos modelos multi-factores de Fama e French de tr��s factores (1993) e Carhart de quatro factores (1997). Os resultados obtidos sugerem que os investimentos em ��ndices socialmente respons��veis n��o tiveram um desempenho inferior nem superior aos seus pares convencionais. Foi ainda verificado que muitos ��ndices sustent��veis apresentaram um n��vel de risco superior aos dos seus benchmarks.

Efici��ncia no Mercado Ib��rico de T��tulos: Evid��ncia na Forma Fraca

A forma fraca da Hip��tese de Efici��ncia de Mercado (HEM) �� das tr��s formas de efici��ncia propostas por Fama (1970) aquela que tem sido mais testada ao longo do tempo, em grande parte devido �� disponibilidade de informa����o relativa aos dados hist��ricos dos t��tulos. De acordo com esta hip��tese, �� imposs��vel obter ganhos anormais atrav��s de estrat��gias de investimento com base em padr��es dos pre��os passados. O objectivo deste trabalho �� o de testar a hip��tese de efici��ncia de mercado, na sua forma fraca, tendo por base os dois principais ��ndices de ac����es do mercado de capitais ib��rico ���� o ��ndice de ac����es portugu��s (Portuguese Stock Index, PSI-20) e o ��ndice de ac����es espanhol (Spanish Stock Index, IBEX-35) ���� no per��odo compreendido entre Janeiro de 1997 a Dezembro de 2010. Para tal, recorre-se a uma metodologia baseada em quatro testes para analisar a hip��tese de passeio aleat��rio: teste de correla����o linear, teste de sequ��ncias, teste de raiz unit��ria e teste do r��cio de vari��ncia. Todos estes testes foram realizados atrav��s dos softwares estat��sticos EVIEWS 7.0 e SPSS 17.0. Os testes efectuados reportam resultados emp��ricos mistos. Apesar da hip��tese de passeio aleat��rio ser suportada pelo teste de correla����o linear, para as rendibilidades di��rias dos dois ��ndices de ac����es, e pelo teste de sequ��ncias para as rendibilidades di��rias em rela����o ao IBEX-35, verifica-se que existem fortes evid��ncias que conduzem �� rejei����o desta hip��tese. Por conseguinte, a hip��tese de efici��ncia na forma fraca tamb��m �� rejeitada para os dois mercados bolsistas.

Understanding portfolio efficiency with conditioning information

We show that unconditionally efficient returns do not achieve the maximum unconditionalSharpe ratio, neither display zero unconditional Jensen s alphas, when returns arepredictable. Next, we define a new type of efficient returns that is characterized by thoseunconditional properties. We also study a different type of efficient returns that is rationalizedby standard mean-variance preferences and motivates new Sharpe ratios and Jensen salphas. We revisit the testable implications of asset pricing models from the perspective ofthe three sets of efficient returns. We also revisit the empirical evidence on the conditionalvariants of the CAPM and the Fama-French model from a portfolio perspective.

Keeping up with the Joneses: An international asset pricing model

We derive an international asset pricing model that assumes local investorshave preferences of the type "keeping up with the Joneses." In aninternational setting investors compare their current wealth with that oftheir peers who live in the same country. In the process of inferring thecountry's average wealth, investors incorporate information from the domesticmarket portfolio. In equilibrium, this gives rise to a multifactor CAPMwhere, together with the world market price of risk, there existscountry-speciffic prices of risk associated with deviations from thecountry's average wealth level. The model performs signifficantly better, interms of explaining cross-section of returns, than the international CAPM.Moreover, the results are robust, both for conditional and unconditionaltests, to the inclusion of currency risk, macroeconomic sources of risk andthe Fama and French HML factor.

Testi volgari della seconda met�� del sec. XIV attorno ai Visconti

Oggetto della tesi �� la poesia volgare prodotta nell'orbita della corte viscontea nel corso del Trecento e del primo Quattrocento. La presente ricerca si propone di illustrare il contesto culturale lombardo e correggere alcuni giudizi di colore avanzati dagli studi positivistici di fine Ottocento e inizio Novecento, attraverso un'indagine rigorosa sui testi scritti attorno ai Visconti, dei quali si propone un'edizione filologicamente sorvegliata, accompagnata da uno studio sulla tradizione manoscritta, da cappelli introduttivi, apparati critici e note di commento. Una prima sezione ospita il corpus di rime dell'aretino Braccio Bracci: tre canzoni {Silenzio posto aveva al dire in rima-, O aspettato dalla giusta verga e lo scambio epistolare fittizio Soldan di Bambilonia et ceter��-Illustri e serenissimo, alto e vero) e quindici sonetti (O tesorier, che 7 bel tesor d'Omero-, Antonio mio, tua fama era inmortale; Deh, non guastare il popol cristiano; O santo Pietro, per Dio, non restare; El tempio tuo, che tu edificasti-, Veggio l'antica, dritta e ferma Scala-, Messer Luigi, vostra nobil fama-, Volse Traian, quando la vedovella-, Firenze, or ti rallegra, or ti conforta-, O infamato da ' lucenti raggi-, Sette sorelle sono a mme venute-, Sempre son stato con gran signoria; Se Ile cose terrene al possesore; Sia con voi pace, signor' fiorentini). La seconda sezione accoglie dodici sonetti attribuiti al fiorentino Marchionne di Matteo Arrighi {Deh, quant 'egli �� in villa un bello stare; Om��, e ' mi par che Ila mia rota torca; Acci�� che veggi chiaro il mio sonetto; Tu non potrai pi�� bere alle stagioni; O Iscatizza di vii condizione; Se mille volte il d�� tu m'uccidessi; Io n'�� 'n dispetto il Sole e Ila Luna; Tanto mi piace l'angelico sono; Lasso, tapino a mme, quando riguardo; Era venuta nella mente mia; Io ti ricordo, caro amico fino; Solo soletto ma non di pensieri). Nella terza sezione si propongono due canzoni viscontee del magister Giovanni da Modena, La mia gravosa e disformata vita e Ne l'ora che la caligin nocturna . La quarta e ultima sezione �� dedicata ad alcune poesie anonime viscontee: sei sonetti (Egli �� gran tempo, dolce Signor mio; Quela dolce saeta che nel core; Stan le cita lombarde co le chiave; Cesere in arme fu feroce e franco; l'pensava stancar la destra mano; Poniam silenzio a tutti i gran Signori), due ballate (Chi troppo al fuoco si lassa apressare e Io udii gi�� cantare), due Lamenti di Bernab�� Visconti in ottava rima (Novo lamento con doglioxo pianto e l'prego Idio eh '�� Signore e Padre, quest'ultimo pronunciato da un tal Matteo da Milano) e una canzone in morte del duca Gian Galeazzo {Fortuna c 'ogni ben mundan remuti).

Performance persistence of equity funds in the Russian stock market

This thesis investigates performance persistence among the equity funds investing in Russia during 2003-2007. Fund performance is measured using several methods including the Jensen alpha, the Fama-French 3- factor alpha, the Sharpe ratio and two of its variations. Moreover, we apply the Bayesian shrinkage estimation in performance measurement and evaluate its usefulness compared with the OLS 3-factor alphas. The pattern of performance persistence is analyzed using the Spearman rank correlation test, cross-sectional regression analysis and stacked return time series. Empirical results indicate that the Bayesian shrinkage estimates may provide better and more accurate estimates of fund performance compared with the OLS 3-factor alphas. Secondly, based on the results it seems that the degree of performance persistence is strongly related to length of the observation period. For the full sample period the results show strong signs of performance reversal whereas for the subperiod analysis the results indicate performance persistence during the most recent years.

Kvantitatiivisen osakepisteytysmallin testaaminen Euroopan markkinoilla

Tutkielman tavoitteena on testata kvantitatiivisen osakepisteytysmallin tehokkuutta Euroopan osakemarkkinoilla. Osakepisteytysmalli j��rjest���� osakkeet paremmuusj��rjestykseen yrityskohtaisten tunnuslukujen avulla. Pisteytysmallin suositusten mukaan luodaan testisalkku ajanjaksolta 2002 2007. Testisalkun tuottoa mitataan p����omahy��dykkeiden hinnoittelumallin sek�� Faman ja Frenchin kolmen faktorin mallin avulla. Testisalkkua testataan markkina arvopainoisena sek�� tasapainoisena. Tasapainoisessa salkussa jokaista osaketta painotetaan yht��l��isesti. Testisalkun rinnalle luodaan lis��ksi vertailusalkku satunnaisista osakkeista. Tasapainotettu testisalkku tuotti tarkasteluajanjaksolla tilastollisesti merkitsev���� markkinariskikorjattua ylituottoa 0,7 prosenttia kuukaudessa. Kolmen faktorin mallin avulla laskettu ylituotto ei ollut merkitsev��. Yrityskokofaktori sek�� markkinatuotto n��yttiv��t selitt��v��n vahvasti testisalkun tuottoja. Yrityskoon vaikutus n��kyi my��s markkina arvopainotetussa salkussa, jonka tuotto ei p��ihitt��nyt markkinatuottoa. Vertailusalkku ei tuottanut tilastollisesti merkitsev���� ylituottoa.

Els Hot Five : Louis Armstrong, l'avantguardista

Els objectius d���aquest treball s��n: reivindicar la faceta de Louis Armstrong com a m��sic al capdavant de l���avantguarda musical dels anys vint als Estats Units, analitzar les claus per entendre el seu ascens a la fama a partir dels anys trenta i valorar la seva contribuci�� a la hist��ria de la m��sica afroamericana. El cos del treball consta de dues parts: la primera, una biografia de l���artista per esbossar el seu context hist��ric i el seu perfil psicol��gic; i la segona, que ��s el centre del treball, una an��lisi de les peces Savoy Blues, Cornet Chop Suey i Gully Low Blues, totes elles pertanyents al per��ode dels Hot Five (1925-1929).