837 research outputs found
Anticompetitive Contracts in the U.K. Pay-TV Market
No full textcontracts, raising rivals costs, pay TV
Response to the comments by J. Larsen and L. K. Hansen for : Rivals I. & Personnaz L. (2000), Construction of confidence intervals for neural networks based on least squares estimation (Neural Networks 13)
No full textInternational audienceWe answer several comments made by Hansen and Larsen (2001) about our paper (Rivals & Personnaz, 2000). In this paper, we dealt with the construction of confidence intervals (CIs) for neural networks based on least squares (LS) estimation and using the linear Taylor expansion of the network output. We also suggested a method for the detection of the possible overfitting of a trained neural network, and an estimate of its leave-one-out (LOO) score that does not necessitate additional trainings. Finally, we showed that the frequentist approach we adopt compares favourably with other analytic approaches such as the conceptually very different Bayesian approach
The Impact of Horizontal Mergers on Rivals: Gains to Being Left Outside a Merger
No full textIt is commonly perceived that firms do not want to be outsiders to a merger between competitor firms. We instead argue that it is beneficial to be a non-merging rival firm to a large horizontal merger. Using a sample of mergers with expert-identification of relevant rivals and the event-study methodology, we find rivals generally experience positive abnormal returns at the merger announcement date. Further, we find that the stock reaction of rivals to merger events is not sensitive to merger waves; hence, ‘future acquisition probability’ does not drive the positive abnormal returns of rivals. We then build a conceptual framework that encompasses the impact of merger events on both merging and rival firms in order to provide a schematic to elicit more information on merger type. ZUSAMMENFASSUNG - (Die Wirkung von horizontalen Zusammenschlüssen auf Wettbewerber: Der Nutzen einer Außenseiterposition bei Fusionen) Es ist gemeinhin bekannt, dass Unternehmen nicht Außenseiter einer Fusion zwischen eigenen Wettbewerbern sein wollen. In dieser Arbeit zeigen wir, dass es für Unternehmen durchaus vorteilhaft sein kann, sich an einem großen horizontalen Zusammenschluss nicht zu beteiligen. Anhand einer Datenbank von großen Fusionen, in denen die relevanten Wettbewerber der fusionierenden Unternehmen von Experten der Europäischen Kommission identifiziert worden sind, und Mithilfe einer Ereignisstudienmethode, bestätigen wir empirisch, dass Wettbewerber durchschnittlich positive abnormale Gewinne bei der Ankündigung eines Zusammenschlusses erzielen. Darüber hinaus stellen wir fest, dass die Reaktion der Aktienkurse von Konkurrenten bei der Ankündigung eines Zusammenschlusses nicht anfällig für Fusionswellen ist, und dass die abnormalen Gewinne nicht von der "künftigen Firmenübernahmewahrscheinlichkeit" getrieben sind. Schließlich wird in der Studie ein konzeptioneller Rahmen entwickelt, der die Auswirkungen der Fusion sowohl auf die fusionierenden Unternehmen und als auch auf die Wettbewerber zusammenfasst, um die Art des Zusammenschlusses besser identifizieren zu können.Rivals, Mergers, Acquisitions, Event-Study
Jacobian Conditioning Analysis for Model Validation. Neural Computation, this issue
No full textOur aim is to stress the importance of Jacobian matrix conditioning for model validation. We also comment (Monari and Dreyfus, 2002) where, following (Rivals and Personnaz, 2000), it is proposed to discard neural candidates which are likely to overfit, and/or for which quantities of interest such as confidence intervals cannot be computed accurately. In (Rivals and Personnaz, 2000), we argued that such models are to be discarded on the basis of the condition number of their Jacobian matrix. But (Monari and Dreyfus, 2002) suggest to take the decision on the basis of the computed values of the leverages, the diagonal elements of the projection matrix on the range of the Jacobian, or “hat ” matrix: they propose to discard a model if computed leverages are outside some theoretical bounds, pretending that it is the symptom of the Jacobian rank deficiency. We question this proposition because, theoretically, the hat matrix is defined whatever the rank of the Jacobian, and because, in practice, the computed leverages of very ill-conditioned networks may respect their theoretical bounds while confidence intervals cannot be estimated accurately enough, two facts that have escaped Monari and Dreyfus's attention. We also recall the most accurate way to estimate the leverages and the properties of these estimations. Finally, we make an additional comment concerning the performance estimation in (Monari and Dreyfus, 2002)
The Rivals study guide, 1983
No full texthttps://rdc.reed.edu/v1/resources/7c911b60-56c0-43c9-85e2-bd38dd164640/thumb/128.jpgStudy guide for the Reed Theatre presentation of Richard Brinsley Sheridan's The Rivals in November of 1983. Included is the story of the play, a biography of the author, the director's notes, the characters, the scenery, the costumes, the locale, and the audience
A Rebellion Rabbit Rivals a Mighty Lion
No full textHere is a 23-page booklet telling the classic Panchatantra story of "regulated sacrifice": a clever and courageous act removes a tyrant. The art is simple. There is a standard frame around text pages. The story reaches its climax, I believe, about two-thirds of the way through. As we look at a right-hand page showing the same illustration used on the front cover -- the rabbit in the midst of many animals -- we read "It's not about the size of the body. What the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve!" That statement from the rabbit captures the heart of his ploy. This is a print-upon-demand booklet. Some of us would have titled the booklet rather "A Rebellious Rabbit Rivals a Mighty Lion."No Autho
Extreme Intentionalism and its Rivals
No full textThe defence of extreme intentionalism is concluded by attacking its main rivals in the analytic tradition: ‘modest’ intentionalism, hypothetical intentionalism, and value-maximizing theory. First a source of apparent support for all three is addressed: the thought that extreme intentionalism takes an implausible stance towards unsuccessful authorial intentions that a fiction should have specific content. The author argues that in fact, extreme intentionalism is better positioned to accommodate unsuccessful intentions than its rivals. This is followed by general criticisms of hypothetical intentionalism and value-maximizing theory, with a particular focus on the extent to which each can accommodate the plausible thought that fictions often contain reliable testimony, and can act as a respectable source of belief. Also in this chapter the issue of ‘post hoc’ meanings is discussed; and how extreme intentionalism, though a monistic position, is compatible with many of the critical judgements which have tempted some towards critical pluralism.</p
Euclid and His Modern Rivals
No full textEuclid and His Modern Rivals is a deeply convincing testament to the Greek mathematician's teachings of elementary geometry. Published in 1879, it is humorously constructed and written by Charles Dodgson (better known outside the mathematical world as Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland) in the form of an intentionally unscientific dramatic comedy. Dodgson, mathematical lecturer at Christ Church, Oxford, sets out to provide evidentiary support for the claim that The Manual of Euclid is essentially the defining and exclusive textbook to be used for teaching elementary geometry. Euclid's sequence and numbering of propositions and his treatment of parallels, states Dodgson, make convincing arguments that the Greek scholar's text stands alone in the field of mathematics. The author pointedly recognises the abundance of significant work in the field, but maintains that none of the subsequent manuals can effectively serve as substitutes to Euclid's early teachings of elementary geometry. </jats:p
Northern Elephant Seals Memorize the Rhythm and Timbre of Their Rivals’ Voices
No full textInternational audienceThe evolutionary origin of rhythm perception, a cognitive ability essential to musicality, remains unresolved [1-5]. The ability to perceive and memorize rhythmic sounds is widely shared among humans [6] but seems rare among other mammals [7, 8]. Although the perception of temporal metrical patterns has been found in a few species, this ability has only been demonstrated through behavioral training [9] (but see [10] for an example of spontaneous tempo coordination in a bonobo), and there is no experimental evidence to indicate its biological function. Furthermore, there is no example of a non-human mammal able to remember and recognize auditory rhythmic patterns among a wide range of tempi. In the northern elephant seal Mirounga angustirostris, the calls of mature males comprise a rhythmic series of pulses, with the call of each individual characterized by its tempo and timbre; these individual vocal signatures are stable over years and across contexts [11]. Here, we report that northern elephant seal males routinely memorize and recognize the unique tempo and timbre of their rivals' voices and use this rhythmic information to individually identify competitors, which facilitates navigation within the social network of the rookery. By performing playbacks with natural and modified vocalizations, we show that males are sensitive to call rhythm disruption independently of modification of spectral features and that they use both temporal and spectral cues to identify familiar rivals. While spectral features of calls typically encode individual identity in mammalian vocalizations [12], this is the first example of this phenomenon involving sound rhythm
Facial femininity of potential rivals predicts jealousy in both heterosexual and lesbian women
No full textIndividuals displaying cues of higher mate value (e.g., attractive characteristics) are thought to represent a greater threat to pair bonds and, consequently, elicit greater jealousy. Previous studies reporting that more feminine potential rivals elicit greater jealousy in women used stimuli in which feminine characteristics were experimentally manipulated and assessed jealousy using forced-choice methods. However, this method for assessing perceptions has recently been criticised for lacking ecological validity. Consequently, in the current study, women rated how jealous they would feel if rivals depicted in natural (i.e., unmanipulated) face photographs were flirting with their romantic partner. Facial femininity was assessed using objective analyses of shape and via third-party ratings of facial femininity. For heterosexual participants, women reported significantly greater jealousy when imagining more feminine women flirting with their romantic partner. This pattern of results was also seen for lesbian participants, although the correlation between rival femininity and jealousy was significantly weaker for lesbian participants than it was for heterosexual participants. Collectively, these results present further evidence that facial femininity of potential rivals influences women’s reported jealousy, particularly in heterosexual women, and is further evidence for the proposal that putative markers of the mate value of rivals play a role in women’s jealousy. This research was supported by ESRC grant ES/X000249/1 awarded to BCJ and a University of Strathclyde Global Research Award to JD. For the purpose of Open Access, the authors have applied a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) to any Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM) version arising from this submission
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