Music has tremendous cultural and commercial significance for people the world over. It is one of the oldest human inventions and is among the most popular consumption activities on the planet. The music industry is also of great economic importance with 19 billion dollars in revenue worldwide in 2019. Despite music’s importance and significance, little work has been devoted to understanding what makes some types of music more popular than others or on the implications of success on artists’ subsequent productivity. Earlier studies have investigated psychological and economic aspects of music, but marketing as a field has devoted little attention to understanding the drivers of musical success and the dynamics of the music industry. In this dissertation, I leverage modern Bayesian non-parametric approaches, machine learning, and novel data to study the dynamic drivers of musical success and the implications of that success. The dissertation is composed of two essays devoted to investigating these complementary questions. In the first essay, I examine the dynamics of success of albums over the last fifty years. I then leverage the results to construct well-balanced playlists that will appeal to different generations of music listeners. My empirical investigation is based on a novel dataset I collected from diverse online sources. The dataset is comprised of albums' movements up and down Billboard magazine’s annual Top 200 lists of albums, marketing and standard descriptors of the albums such as genre and artist popularity, acoustic descriptors of the albums' tracks such as the songs’ acoustic fingerprints, and user-generated tags describing the albums’ and songs’ consumption context and the experience perceived by listeners. I develop a novel Bayesian non-parametric model that fuses the diverse data modalities and predicts the dynamic patterns of musical success over the years. The model generates results regarding how musical acoustic qualities and genres have waxed and waned in popularity over time. It also uses tags listeners generate online to uncover themes that categorize albums in terms of sub-genres, consumption contexts, emotions, evocation of nostalgia, and other aspects of the musical experience. The model yields insightful results about the evolution of album success in the music industry. These insights are relevant to artists and music professionals who recommend albums, design new releases, and construct well-balanced playlists aimed at various generations of listeners. The second essay is devoted to quantifying the effects of winning the Grammy for Best New Artist on artists’ productivity and musical variety. The causal identification strategy is based on comparing subsequent outcomes in terms of both productivity and diversification of musical styles and elements winners of and contenders for the award. This strategy allows the model to control for ability bias and improves confidence in the estimated causal effects. The study is based on a dataset I collected from diverse online sources that spans the entire history of the Best New Artist award and contains integral album discographies of the nominees, most of their released songs, and their acoustic descriptors. I use a two-way fixed effects approach to measure the causal effect of the award and incorporate heterogeneity in the treatment effects. The results yield interesting insights into positive effects of the award on productivity. Interestingly, my investigation also reveals that the effects of winning the award are heterogeneous in terms of gender and that male solo singers benefit more than female solo singers and groups, male groups, and mixed-gender groups. In contrast, winning the award does not affect artistic variety on average, though winners tend to explore new artistic dimensions that are congruent with their musical specialties than contenders do.

This thesis discusses electronics as an economic resource and the impact of technology on resource theory.

While entrepreneurship is frequently touted as an engine for macroeconomic growth, and there is increasing policy interest in promoting entrepreneurship in lower-income countries, aspiring entrepreneurs in developing regions face unique constraints on their ability to grow successful businesses. This dissertation contains three empirical essays studying the factors that enable and constrain entrepreneurial growth in low-income contexts, drawing on data from a randomized field experiment studying an entrepreneurial training program in Zimbabwe. The first essay examines how entrepreneurial training impacts key hinge decisions on whether to continue pursuing an initial business idea, or to pivot to a new opportunity. The second essay studies how entrepreneurial training impacts subjective well-being, and the reasons why it might not track neatly with economic outcomes. The third essay studies innovation in the context of small informal enterprises, using text-based machine learning methods.

This dissertation consists of three empirical research studies that broadly pertain to the economics of collective bargaining, or the process by which employees act through labor unions to negotiate with employers over compensation, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment; and of labor market power, which refers to the ability of economic actors to set wages and employment at levels different from those that would obtain under a theoretical ideal of perfect competition, wherein both workers and firms are atomized agents with no unilateral ability to influence a market equilibrium. The first chapter, entitled "The Effects of Union Membership on Inequality and Well-Being in Retirement," uses data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and an empirical design based on comparisons of older workers who switch into or out of union employment in the years before retirement with otherwise similar peers to study the effect of union membership on various outcomes in old age, including pension income and income from other sources, wealth, consumption, time use, mortality, morbidity, and inequality. Our notable findings include a pension income premium for workers who retire as union members of approximately 10-20%, similar to estimates of the union wage premium; evidence of larger premia for retirees at lower quantiles of the pension income distribution, which mirrors existing research on how unions exert a compressive effect on the distribution of wages for current workers; and a reduction in the annual mortality rate for union retirees of around 1.25%, comparable to estimates of the mortality differential between the lowest- and highest-income individuals in the same age category. We further attempt to distill the multidimensional effects of union membership in retirement into a single measure of impact on well-being using the concept of "consumption-equivalent welfare," and estimate that the subsequent lifetime welfare of those who retire from nonunion jobs is on the order of 50-60% that of those who retire from union jobs, depending on the precise assumptions and methodology employed. The second chapter, coauthored with Leonard Goff, is entitled "Monopsony in Minnesota: Rent-Sharing and Labor Supply Consequences of a Nursing Home Reimbursement Reform." Models of static labor market monopsony predict that rent-sharing, or pass-through from firm productivity or marginal revenue shocks into workers' wages, is one consequence of labor markets being less than perfectly competitive. In this study we consider a 2016 reform to the state of Minnesota's Medicaid reimbursement scheme for residents of nursing homes that introduced so-called value-based reimbursement, and make use of data on facilities' wages, employee separations, and revenue from various sources to simultaneously estimate both rent-sharing and firm-level labor supply elasticities. In our most-preferred two-stage least squares specifications we find rent-sharing elasticities on the order of 0.10-0.25, suggesting that pass-through is substantially greater than indicated by naive OLS estimates of the same, and we confirm these results through an alternative methodology based on "seemingly unrelated regressions." With the same approach we also obtain an estimate of the average labor supply elasticity facing nursing homes of around 5, corresponding to an optimal wage markdown below marginal revenue product of roughly 15%. Furthermore, subgroup analyses by occupation, union status, and local labor market concentration show little evidence of an effect of collective bargaining on rent-sharing but more convincing indications that rent-sharing is greater in occupations or commuting zones that are characterized by lower labor supply elasticity - a fact that we show can be rationalized with a model of monopsony in which firms have isoelastic production functions. The third and final chapter, coauthored with Brendan Moore and Suresh Naidu, is entitled "Right-to-Work and Union Decline in the United States: Evidence from a Novel Dataset on County-Level Union Membership." Labor union membership and union density in the United States have fallen substantially in recent decades, in particular in the private sector. The causal contribution of state-level "right-to-work" (RTW) laws, which prohibit collective bargaining agreements from requiring union membership as a condition of employment, has been heavily debated. However, research on the role of RTW in accounting for these trends has been stymied by a paucity of data on union membership at a fine geographic level. Using a LASSO selection model and data from several different administrative and survey-based sources, we construct a novel dataset on county-level membership and density and use it to reexamine the consequences of RTW. We show that RTW has a highly significant negative effect in this regard, and we establish that the impact of these laws is felt most strongly in those counties that are the most highly-unionized at the start of our sample period. On average we find that density is reduced by about an additional 0.4 percentage points for every one percentage point increase in its initial value in 1991. However, counties at or below the median initial density see little to no change, while density declines by about 7 percentage points following the passage of RTW for those in the uppermost decile. We also present evidence from an event-study analysis which shows that the effect of RTW grows over time, with the full impact only being felt about a decade after enactment. Taken both individually and collectively, these three essays serve to advance an understanding of the determinants and consequences of union membership and monopsony power. In addition to making original contributions to the fields of applied labor economics and labor studies, it is our hope that they also offer frameworks upon which future research in these areas can build.

Despite its significance and frequent mentioning in the literature, the relationship between road investment and economic development has never been clearly understood. A significant number of scholars in this field have always emphasized the need for further research to examine this complex and dynamic relationship. Historically, investment in transportation networks has played a great role in the development of cities, regions, and nations. This positive view is attributed to the indispensable role that water transportation, and then rail transport, played in the early development of Europe and the United States. In recent years, many scholars, as well as policy makers, have disputed that investment in transportation, and in particular roads, in the regions of a highly developed country like the United States will have a great impact on economic development. This disagreement and speculation about the role of transportation investment, especially roads which constitute a large portion of the transportation network, on economic development has made justification for roads funding difficult. This is coupled with the recent decline in federal funding for many civilian programs, and in particular, regional economic development program, that include investment in road systems. Furthermore, rising construction and maintenance costs for major highway systems have substantially out-paced the current funding levels. As a result of the shortage of roads funding and the lack of federal support, individual states have started to take on more responsibility for keeping their road network intact. In almost all the states in the nation, and Oregon is no exception, the state Departments of Transportation have started to use economic development as a criterion for roads funding. Therefore, it is the objective of this dissertation to examine the longitudinal impact of the various types of roads investments on economic development in Oregon in order to better understand this dynamic relationship. Total road expenditures, capital expenditures in the three types of roads (primary, secondary, and local), total maintenance expenditures, and maintenance expenditures in the three types of roads are used as a measure of road investments. Total employment to growth and employment to growth in manufacturing and service sectors are used as a measure of economic development. In order to achieve the above objective, the Granger Causality test at different level of aggregation is used to examine this relationship. First, the state as a single aggregate unit is used to examine the effect of the various road investments on the three employment to growth sectors. Second, different spatial groupings, such as Portland Metropolitan Counties vs. the rest of the state Counties, Urban Counties, vs. Rural Counties, Interstate Counties vs. Non-Interstate Counties, Coastal Counties vs. Non-Coastal Counties, and the Department of Transportation's five designated regions are used to examine this relationship. Finally, the county level as a single disaggregate unit is also used. The results highlighted the complexity of the relationship between road investments and economic development. The nature of this relationship varies from one region to another, and mainly depends on the level of aggregation in determining the direction of this relationship. At the aggregate level, the state as one geographic unit, the various road investments have a positive impact on the employment to growth in this region. In particular, total road expenditure and capital expenditure on primary and secondary roads have a one-way directional relationship runs from the various road expenditures to employment to growth, and the effect of this investment is long-term. This analysis also indicates that the different spatial groupings have demonstrated different relationships. Nevertheless, the general pattern for most spatial groupings tends to suggest either a one-way directional relationship runs from the various road expenditures to employment to growth or a bi-directional relationship. No findings support the hypothesis that employment to growth in the three economic sectors causes road expenditures, with the exception of very few cases, especially at the lower end of the analysis at the county level, where the results are highly discrepant and mixed. In addition, this research indicates that the time-lag effect measured by lag-length and accumulative lag effect changes as the level of aggregation changes. However, the general pattern seems to indicate that total road expenditures and capital expenditures for the three types of roads, particularly primary and secondary roads, have a long-term effect on employment to growth. Also, the relative magnitude effect of total road expenditures and capital expenditures on primary and secondary roads is greater on the employment to growth than is the comparable effect of maintenance expenditures in most spatial groupings. Furthermore, the effect of the various road expenditures on the type of employment (manufacturing and service) depends greatly on the level of aggregation and the type of road Investment Finally, this study provides public policy makers, transportation planners, and regional economic developers a better understanding of the complex relationship between road investment and economic development. A better understanding of this highly complex and dynamic relationship can guide decision makers to best utilize their limited resources. In addition, this research offers insight into the theories and works in the field of transportation and economic development.

A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Johannesburg March 2018 / Poverty and environmental degradation are two serious challenges facing developing countries. The poor are often blamed for causing degradation, and degradation is assumed to worsen poverty. This relationship between the two has been referred to as the Poverty Environment Nexus (PEN). The PEN is known to be complex and multidimensional, and is surrounded by a number of theories and controversies. Although the co-occurrence of poverty and degradation has been well explored across the developing world, it has received modest attention in the literature especially on how wealth differentiation within these communities shapes the way in which local people conceptualise, experience, and cope with degradation. The intersection between the PEN and local environmental governance is also under-studied. This study addresses these knowledge gaps by investigating how household wealth status influences 1) local perceptions about woodland degradation, 2) household vulnerability to degradation, and 3) awareness and attitudes about local environmental governance, in three rural villages in Limpopo Province, South Africa. A mixed-methods approach was used, combining focus groups, a household survey (n=213), an individual survey (n=213) and key informant interviews. The influence of household wealth status score (derived from assets and income sources using Principal Component Analysis (PCA)) on individual perceptions, awareness, and attitudes, and household vulnerability to degradation, after controlling for confounding factors, was analysed statistically using multivariate logistic regression models. Focus groups and key informant interviews were useful for identifying themes and adding qualitative insights to the quantitative results. Perceptions: Woodland degradation was perceived both in terms of physical aspects, such as reduction in large trees, and experiential aspects, namely having to travel further to collect resources. The latter perception was influenced by wealth status. Perceived causes of degradation included environmental, socio-economic, and governance factors, and these perceptions were mostly associated with increasing wealth status. However, poorer respondents were more aware of their own household’s contribution to local degradation. For potential solutions, wealthier respondents focussed on using alternatives to harvested resources (such as other energy sources), while the poorer respondents focussed on reducing daily resource consumption. Vulnerability: Poorer households were more likely to use most of 13 woodland resources. Poorer households were thus more likely to report being impacted by degradation, especially by having to travel further to collect resources. Coping responses of the poor were typically inward-looking, focusing on modifying their natural resource use, such as by reducing quantities used or harvesting around other villages. By contrast, the wealthy were more outward-looking and focused on external coping mechanisms such as seeking employment and buying commercial alternatives from shops. The use of social capital to cope with degradation emerged as an important response strategy cross wealth status. Governance: Traditional authorities were widely recognised as important institutional structures for local woodland management. Awareness of relevant government agencies was relatively low. Poorer respondents were more aware of customary environmental laws and penalties, while wealthier respondents were more aware of those of government agencies. Wealth status also influenced attitudes about the benefits of the various institutions for managing local communal woodlands. It was widely agreed that local woodland governance could be improved by delegating more power to traditional authorities and communities, and improving monitoring by government agencies. These views were not influenced by wealth status Key insights from this study include: Even within poor communities, there is wealth differentiation in environmental perceptions that has consequences for addressing the poverty-environment nexus. The poor are hit by a “double whammy” when it comes to vulnerability to degradation – first, they are more at risk to impacts because they are more dependent on natural resources, and secondly, they are less able to adapt in ways which do not undermine human wellbeing or environmental sustainability. Despite their weaknesses, traditional governance structures and institutions have an important role to play in managing the poverty-environment nexus in common property systems, but they need support from government. / MT 2019

A project report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Engineering. Johannesburg, 1997. / Due to the extreme costs of establishing new shaft systems in Witwatersrand gold mines it is essential that the resource estimation is optimised, The result of poor Of sub-optimal estimation could be catastrophic even.to the largest of mining companies. This project examines the application of Compound Lognormal Distribution theory and shows the advantages of this distribution model over more traditional models, for the Carbon Leader Reef. The incorporation of information from mined out areas of a deposit in resource estimation is demonstrated. The critical role played by accurate geological modelling is highlighted. The process of Macro Co-Kriging in conjunction with Compound Lognormal Theory is discussed in detail and is shown to be a more accurate estimation technique than traditional techniques using Lognormal theory. Finally the use of the Macro Co-kriged limits are shown to be useful in the classification of Mineral Resources. / AC2017

This thesis is presented in the partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts [International Relations] 02-06-2015 / Due to the need to gain global political legitimacy after the 1994 democratic dispensation, the South African government embarked on a neoliberal political trajectory. This became evident because of the ways in which the South African state was integrated back into the international economy through adopting neoliberal economic policies. This included a free-market economy with no state intervention, trade liberalisation through the lowering of barriers for foreign investment, and liberalisation of the media complex which was tightly controlled by the state. These were prescribed as an effective way of consolidating the new fragile democratic South Africa thereby seeing the new government accepting a neoliberal policy path. This was part of the embrace of the new won democracy and relationship with the international community after many years of economic sanctioning, political isolation and pariah status. The aim of this study is to examine the ways in which South African print media reproduce the dominance of neo-liberal discourses by globalising South Africa from outside and within. In addition, this study specifically seeks to look at how South Africa’s print media legitimises and authorises macro-economic policy. Thus, entrenching the ideas of a neo-liberal stance as well as analysing the perceptions of the print media’s class orientation in relation to the ruling historic bloc. The historic bloc is all levels of society [political, social, civil] coming together to form a dominant social class. This study will make use of interviews transcripts from 7 audio recorded and one email interview as well as the Business Day and Mail & Guardian’s reports on the Budget Speech from 2011-2014. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Country Reports on South Africa were also used as data, and also analysed during the same period. These will be used to analyse how these newspapers report on macro-economic issues through the abovementioned case studies. This study employed the mixed research method which uses quantitative and qualitative tools to analyse the data which is a convergent design also known as triangulation. The quantitative tool used was content analysis for its numerical value and the qualitative tool used was the thematic analysis which is an inductive reading of the reports and transcripts. These tools exposed interesting results which echoed historical trends of ownership, values and norms illustrating an important but narrow function of the selected newspapers.

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