Annali del Dipartimento di metodi e modelli per l'economia, il territorio e la finanza

Dynamic optimal asset allocation in a multivariate setting

Sara Iannilli — 2024-04-09

This article analyzes a portfolio allocation problem to determine how resources should be allocated among several possible investments. Investors aim to maximize the profit of an investment while also considering the risks arising from infrequent events. The global financial crisis, which began with subprime mortgages in the United States, has fundamentally changed the way we invest. As we know, investors want to maximize returns while controlling the risk associated with a particular investment. This behavior must be modeled mathematically using optimal control theory and expected utility maximization. A continuous-time market is considered in a multivariate context in which there exist risky asset classes and a risk-free asset with a constant interest rate. We deviate from the traditional approach by considering co-precision, the inverse of the covariance matrix, as a measure of risk. The optimal weights obtained are proportional (inversely) to the risk measure (volatility). The model is tested on 11 asset classes used by a large company also carrying out a stress test on the jump component to analyze the allocation of the investors’ portfolio in a real context.

Bespoke Tranche Opportunities: the new era of securitization

Maria Giuseppina Bruno — 2024-05-16

This paper reviews the structure of Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs), finan cial products used in the period of the 2008 sub-prime mortgage crisis, in order to understand the reasons that lead them to be considered the main responsible for it. The legacy of CDOs, which is reflected in Bespoke Tranche Opportunities (BTOs), is then discussed in order to understand whether they are equally ”toxic” products, as CDOs were defined after the outbreak of the crisis, or they are really innovative tool of securitization.

Location models of electric charging stations in the city of Rome

Marisa Cenci — 2024-05-28

The issue of the location of charging stations for electric vehicles is becoming very important due to governmental decisions on electric mobility. Many authors have addressed this problem with the support of graph theory and graph optimization. In dealing with this problem, typical operational research models and approaches used for
facility location, such as p-median, coverage problem and queuing theory, have been resorted to. In this paper we apply these models to the location of charging stations in the city of Rome. In particular, we analyze the suitability of existing charging sites and suggest where to implement new chargers using a p-median-like model. Finally, we study the waiting time distribution when the nearest charging stations are occupied, and we use queuing theory to show how much demand for the service would improve with the implementation of the new charging points.

Does international student mobility lead to more emigration? An empirical study of the expatriation intentions of students at the University of Udine

Gian Pietro Zaccomer — 2024-06-24

The recent increase in emigration of young Italian university graduates represents a significant challenge for the country's economy, reflecting a global phenomenon of academic and professional mobility. This paper focuses on the University of Udine in order to understand the emigration intentions of attending students who were about to complete a Bachelor’s degree. Through analysing a sample of more than ten thousand questionnaires completed between 2018 and 2022 by Bachelor’s degree candidates, we investigated their international mobility intentions and factors contributing to the decision to seek opportunities abroad. Using a logit model, it was possible to highlight the significant impact of previous international mobility experiences during university studies, such as those related to the Erasmus programme. This study confirms that international student mobility may lead to more emigration, bolstering the conclusions of a previous report by AlmaLaurea, an Italian consortium linking universities, graduates and companies.

Educationally heterogamous unions and country level inequalities in Europe before and after 1990

Alessandra Trimarchi — 2024-09-27

Scholars are interested in the association between partnership formation and socioeconomic status due to the link with the reproduction of socioeconomic inequalities. Previous findings showed that highly educated individuals are less likely than low educated to form heterogamous unions, i.e., when partners hold different levels of education. The educational gradient in heterogamy has been linked to the level of societal openness in a country. Still, it is not clear-cut to what extent these findings are generalizable across periods and countries. Using Generations and Gender Surveys (GGS) data of 15 European countries, we analyse the association between the educational gradient in heterogamous union formation and country level indicators of socioeconomic inequalities before and after 1990, applying a two-stage regression approach. We found that people with a low level of education are more prone to form heterogamous unions relatively to the highly educated. The Gini Index mildly explains the variation across countries of the gradient in heterogamy. For unions formed after 1990, we found that an increase in economic inequality is associated with a less steep negative educational gradient in heterogamy. Our study highlights the complexity of studying country level variation in educational assortative mating, all the more that it may entail differences related to the meaning of education in each country.

Settlement in the reclaimed Pontine Marshes during fascism in Italy: evidence form an unexplored archive

Alessandra De Rose — 2024-12-02

An unexplored dataset has been utilized to analyse the colonists who settled in southern Lazio during the Integral Land Reclamation carried out by the fascist regime in the 1930s. The farm records, known as Schede Poderali, encompass the contracts through which selected families were allocated portions of land reclaimed from the marshes. The documents enabled us to delineate the population trends in the decades following marsh reclamation and immigration from other Italian regions. This new piece of information enriches scientific research on the area providing an empirical validation of the interplay between population dynamics and political action.

Dominance and affection: purebred dogs and humans in dog-centric areas

Marco Nocente — 2024-12-30

This article contributes to animal geographies through a specific analysis of human-animal relations. It explores the intricate relationship of dominance and affection between humans and purebred dogs. Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in dog areas, the article examines how humans construct social representations out of their dogs in these restricted, self-regulated spaces. After presenting a critical reading of the production of purebred dogs, I discuss humans’ representations of their dogs, often seen as extensions of their personality. This relationship, within dog areas, manifests itself in the discourses that circulate, where the dog is often anthropomorphised and used to reinforce gender stereotypes rooted in common sense. For example, female dogs are often described as jealous and dogs as “Latin lovers”. In this context, affection makes people desire the dog as a mirror of their personality, a social facilitator, or a protective figure. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the multifaceted nature of the human-animal relationship and the nature-culture dichotomy, with particular attention given to their implications in urban spaces beyond the majority of research conducted in animal geography which usually focuses on case studies located in the UK or US.

Translating employment contracts: insights from corpus linguistics

Vanessa Leonardi — 2024-12-30

This work shows how corpus-based studies can be applied to the field of specialised translation and, more precisely, to the legal translation of employment contracts. Legal language, given its complexity and cultural specificity, presents considerable challenges for translators, and reliance on bilingual dictionaries may not always result in high-quality translations. Corpus methodology applied to translation analysis can offer significant contributions both in terms of advanced linguistic analysis and as a didactic tool for the learning of specialised languages. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to create an ad hoc monolingual corpus of employment contracts to show how corpus analysis is beneficial to legal translation. This paper conducts a corpus-based translation analysis of an employment contract translated from Italian into English. The findings highlight how the use of the corpus helps translate the employment contract in a much more efficient and suitable way, especially in terms of spotting formulaic expressions, finding the correct collocations, and choosing the best translation candidate(s).

Bridging theoretical advancements and empirical practices in environmental justice research: towards a mixed-methods approach

Giorgia Scognamiglio — 2024-11-05

This critical review explores the evolution of environmental justice research, highlighting the transition from a primary focus on the distribution of environmental “goods” and “bads” to a multidimensional approach that includes recognition, participation, and socio-historical analysis. The review evaluates empirical studies, categorizing them into quantitative and qualitative methods, and assesses their strengths and limitations. While quantitative research has been instrumental in mapping spatial inequalities, it often fails to capture the socio-historical and structural processes that shape environmental injustices. On the other hand, while qualitative methods have added depth by capturing lived experiences and complex socio-political dynamics, they often lack the ability to address spatial patterns systematically. The separation of these approaches has limited the field’s ability to fully understand environmental justice. To bridge these gaps, the contribution proposes a framework for a new generation of environmental justice (EJ) scholars, advocating for mixed-methods research and the adoption of a critical geographical perspective. This integrated approach aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of environmental justice, encompassing distribution, recognition, participation, and other possible dimensions, thereby enhancing both academic insight and practical policy impact.

The ecosystem services analytical framework in Italy. A human geography prospect

Valentina Capocefalo — 2024-12-19

This paper examines the ecosystem services (ES) analytical framework from a Human Geography perspective. It firstly aims to describe the development of the ES paradigm within international and Italian scientific debates. Although ES appeared in the international scientific debate in the early 1990s, they gained attention by Italian scholars later around 2011. During this period, the paradigm was harshly criticised and several controversial aspects emerged. Payments for ecosystem services (PES) schemes are one of the most frequently discussed topics. However, the limits highlighted by international literature have been rarely mentioned in the Italian debate. Furthermore, PES schemes were introduced through Law No. 221/2015. This output is the result of a social and cultural process that has shaped a strong utilitarian attitude toward ecosystems. For these reasons the paper focuses on the features of Law No. 221/2015 and on the other existing regulatory instruments, which can counterbalance its criticalities. In conclusion, the paper stresses the elements which should be considered in order to implement an effective ecosystems restoration.

Mobility and innovation: a critical review

Francesco Castellano — 2024-12-30

The increasing attention given to inventors’ mobility and its relationship with regional innovative activity has garnered significant interest among scholars. This review critically examines the key findings in this area, identifying both strengths and limitations in existing research. The discussion is organized into three primary areas: first, the mechanisms by which mobility influences innovation; second, the effects of mobility on the regions involved; and third, the factors that drive inventors’ mobility. The review concludes that while recent studies have made notable contributions to understanding these dynamics, there remains a need for new analytical frameworks. These would be instrumental not only in reconciling divergent perspectives but also in shaping future research directions.

Francesca Sabatini, Geografia delle aree interne, Guerini Scientifica, 2024, pp. 320.

Annalisa Spalazzi — 2024-12-30

Book Review.

Giorgia Bressan (a cura di), Conoscere i Castelli Romani. Risorse, attori e prospettive, Bologna, Pàtron, 2024, pp. 164

Roberta Gemmiti — 2024-12-30

Preface

Immacolata Oliva — 2024-12-30