Mapowanie teorii. Geobiografia teorii literatury fantastycznej w Polsce — propozycja badawcza i dwa studia przypadku

In the article the project of mapping the theories of fantastic literature in Poland is going to be presented. Methodology proposals have been completed by microanalyses of selected examples. It is of our conviction that the advancement of theoretical studies on the fantastic allows for introducing some arrangements, specifically in terms of reconstructing the mechanisms and conditions for building up the knowledge. We make use of the emergence theory focusing on repeatedness of accidental occurrences in, for instance, transferring and grounding notions or quite opposite in disqualifying particular scientific concepts and aiming at the strength of personal (biographical, geographical) conditions and idiosyncrasy in forming critical discourses on the fantastic phenomenon. The theory frame of the project is set up mainly by the concepts resulted from the spatial turn in the humanities. The arrangements of occurrences and cases made in the Polish theory of the fantastic are in reference to the concept of cultural geography, cultural mobility, migration studies and biographical materialism. It is proposed to benefit from derived therefrom the methods for data development, one of them the map. It is postulated also to identify the, so called, “lineages”, that is the theoretical and literary approaches to the fantastic,viewed in terms of long-term structures [longue durée] (it is mentioned in the article aimed at the study of the case dealing with the reception of literary works and theoretical studies of S. Grabiński via A. Hutnikiewicz). In turn, the study on cultural mobility (adaptation, reinterpretation, transferring, translation of particular approaches and concepts in the fantastic theory) will demonstrate the directions, speed and potentials in spreading the theory, for instance foreign ones in Poland and Polish abroad, respectively (it is emphasized in the study on the case of the reception of the T. Todorov via S. Lem fantastic theory). Finally it is of great interest to look into nomadic biographies (geographically and intellectually) of Polish fantastic literature theorists. It is proposed to reinforce in the studies not only the issue of human factor but also the material (artefacts, places) and the institutional (e.g. journals, universities) ones in determining communicative memory of particular theories of fantastic literature.

Development of an Impairment Point in Time Probability of Default Model for Revolving Retail Credit Products: South African Case Study

A new methodology to derive IFRS 9 PiT PDs is proposed. The methodology first derives a PiT term structure with accompanying segmented term structures. Secondly, the calibration of credit scores using the Lorenz curve approach is used to create account-specific PD term structures. The PiT term structures are derived by using empirical information based on the most recent default information and account risk characteristics prior to default. Different PiT PD term structures are developed to capture the structurally different default risk patterns for different pools of accounts using segmentation. To quantify what a materially different term structure constitutes, three tests are proposed. Account specific PiT PDs are derived through the Lorenz curve calibration using the latest default experience and credit scores. The proposed methodology is illustrated on an actual dataset, using a revolving retail credit portfolio from a South African bank. The main advantages of the proposed methodology include the use of well-understood methods (e.g., Lorenz curve calibration, scorecards, term structure modelling) in the banking industry. Further, the inclusion of re-default events in the proposed IFRS 9 PD methodology will simplify the development of the accompanying IFRS 9 LGD model due to the reduced complexity for the modelling of cure cases. Moreover, attrition effects are naturally included in the PD term structures and no longer require a separate model. Lastly, the PD term structure is based on months since observation, and therefore the arrears cycle could be investigated as a possible segmentation.

Conservation of Contemporary Artworks Made with Soap and Research on the Appropriate Hygrothermal Environment

Various materials, depending on the personality of the artist, are required for contemporary art. Thus, it is necessary to decipher the expressive intentions of the artist and characteristics of the materials required for the conservation of such art. The purpose of this study is to analyze the causes underlying the deterioration of sculptures made from soap and to determine the ideal hygrothermal environment required to stably exhibit and store these artworks. Furthermore, we aim to maintain the long-term structures of the artworks in accordance with the changing expressions and intentions of the artist. Our analysis confirmed that the extracts of the soap sculptures were composed of glycerin and that the sculptures were sensitive to humidity. Moreover, we determined that a relative humidity (RH.) of approximately 60~65% made for an appropriate hygrothermal environment required to preserve the sculptures. We also preserved each work in various ways by applying appropriate preservation treatment, and found that the optimum preservation environment for soap sculptures was a temperature of 20±2°C and a RH. of 60±5%.

How to handle negative interest rates in a CIR framework

In this paper, we propose a new model to address the problem of negative interest rates that preserves the analytical tractability of the original Cox–Ingersoll–Ross (CIR) model without introducing a shift to the market interest rates, because it is defined as the difference of two independent CIR processes. The strength of our model lies within the fact that it is very simple and can be calibrated to the market zero yield curve using an analytical formula. We run several numerical experiments at two different dates, once with a partially sub-zero interest rate and once with a fully negative interest rate. In both cases, we obtain good results in the sense that the model reproduces the market term structures very well. We then simulate the model using the Euler–Maruyama scheme and examine the mean, variance and distribution of the model. The latter agrees with the skewness and fat tail seen in the original CIR model. In addition, we compare the model’s zero coupon prices with market prices at different future points in time. Finally, we test the market consistency of the model by evaluating swaptions with different tenors and maturities.

Functions-as-constructors higher-order unification: extended pattern unification

Unification is a central operation in constructing a range of computational logic systems based on first-order and higher-order logics. First-order unification has several properties that guide its incorporation in such systems. In particular, first-order unification is decidable, unary, and can be performed on untyped term structures. None of these three properties hold for full higher-order unification: unification is undecidable, unifiers can be incomparable, and term-level typing can dominate the search for unifiers. The so-called pattern subset of higher-order unification was designed to be a small extension to first-order unification that respects the laws governing λ-binding (i.e., the equalities for α, β, and η-conversion) but which also satisfied those three properties. While the pattern fragment of higher-order unification has been used in numerous implemented systems and in various theoretical settings, it is too weak for many applications. This paper defines an extension of pattern unification that should make it more generally applicable, especially in proof assistants that allow for higher-order functions. This extension’s main idea is that the arguments to a higher-order, free variable can be more than just distinct bound variables. In particular, such arguments can be terms constructed from (sufficient numbers of) such bound variables using term constructors and where no argument is a subterm of any other argument. We show that this extension to pattern unification satisfies the three properties mentioned above.

OPTION IMPLIED VIX, SKEW AND KURTOSIS TERM STRUCTURES

Comparisons are made of the Chicago Board of Options Exchange (CBOE) skew index with those derived from parametric skews of bilateral gamma models and from the differentiation of option implied characteristic exponents. Discrepancies can be due to strike discretization in evaluating prices of powered returns. The remedy suggested employs a finer and wider set of strikes obtaining additional option prices by interpolation and extrapolation of implied volatilities. Procedures of replicating powered return claims are applied to the fourth power and the derivation of kurtosis term structures. Regressions of log skewness and log excess kurtosis on log maturity confirm the positivity of decay in these higher moments. The decay rates are below those required by processes of independent and identically distributed increments.

Creating Regulatory Harmony: The Participatory Politics of OECD Chemical Testing Standards in the Making

In recent decades, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has become a powerful forum for trade liberalization and regulatory harmonization. OECD members have worked to reconcile divergent national regulatory approaches, applying a single framework across sovereign states, in effect determining whose knowledge-making practices would guide regulatory action throughout the industrialized world. Focusing on US regulators, industry associations, and environmental groups, this article explores the participatory politics of OECD chemical regulation harmonization in the late 1970s to early 1980s. These efforts were conditioned by differential institutional access and resources among stakeholders who sought to shape regulatory knowledge rules. Facing competing European and US approaches to chemical data—a minimum “base set” of test data versus case-by-case determinations—OECD members chose the European approach in 1980. However, US regulatory politics shifted with the election of President Reagan, prompting industry associations to lobby the US government to block the agreement. Examining the micropolitics of these standards in the making, I demonstrate that while long-term structures advantaged industrial actors, ideological alignment with the US government precipitated their decisive influence. The case illustrates the importance of attending to the distinctive politics of international harmonization and the effects on transnational knowledge-making and regulatory intervention.

The impact of the Covid-19 related media coverage upon the five major developing markets

This paper analyses the influence of the Covid-19 coverage by the social media upon the shape of the sovereign yield curves of the five major developing countries, namely Federative Republic of B razil, Russian Federation, Republic of India, People’s Republic of China, and the Republic of South Africa (BRICS). The coherenc e between the level, slope, and the curvature of the sovereign yield term structures and the Covid-19 medi a coverage is found to vary between low and high ranges, depending on the phases of the pandemic. The empirical estimations of the yield-curve factors a re performed by means of the Diebold–Li modified version of the Nelson–Siegel model. The intervals of low coherence reveal the capacity of the two latent factors, level and slope, to be used for creating cross-factor diversification strategies, workable under crisis conditions, as evidenced on the example of the ongoing pandemic. Diverse coherence patterns are reported on a per-country basis, highlighting a promising potential of sovereign debt investments for designing cross-country and cross-factor fixed-income strategies, capable of hedging downside risks.