The stratigraphic record of lahars in the Whangaehu River reveals that in the past 180,000 years this route has been one of the main conduits for lahars from Mount Ruapehu, the highest active andesitic stratovolcano in the Central North Island of New Zealand. Both debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows have engulfed surfaces up to 160 km distance from the Volcano. Eight episodes of laharic activity are recognized by the distinctive lithology and similar age of their deposits. The newly defined upper Pleistocene Whangaehu Formation provides evidence for the earliest lahar event in the Valley, c. 180,000- 140,000 years ago. There is only meagre evidence for laharic activity following this event until the Ohakean and Holocene, although two new informally named deposits - the Mangatipona pumice sand (c. 37,000 years B.P.) and Apitian lahars (c. 32,000-25,500 years B.P) - are recognized, of minor extent. The formerly defined late Quaternary Te Heuheu (c. 25,500- 14,700 years B.P.), Tangatu (c. 14,700-5,370 years B.P.), Manutahi (c. 5 ,370-3,4600 years B.P.), Mangaio (c. 4,600 years B.P.) and Onetapu (< c. 1,850 years B.P.) Formations are here described and interpreted. Triggering mechanisms for lahar deposits are distinguished based on lithological criteria. (a) Bouldery deposits in the Whangaehu Formation are interpreted to have been emplaced by a single highly competent debris flow triggered by a southerly-directed flank collapse at Mount Ruapehu. This debris flow was competent enough to transport boulders up to 2 m in diameter over 140 km from the Volcano. Bouldery deposits are also recognized in the Onetapu Formation, but are restricted to higher gradient surfaces on the Mount Ruapehu ring plain. The Onetapu Formation deposits are interpreted to have been emplaced by lahars resulting from catastrophic drainage of Crater Lake, which occupies the active crater on Mount Ruapehu. (b) Pebbly and sandy deposits are interpreted to have been emplaced by low competence debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows. These lahar deposits are recognized in all formations described. The lithology in these deposits is commonly pumice and they are interpreted to have been triggered by eruptions and/or high rainfall events at the Volcano. Formations, and individual members within Formations, were dated by radiocarbon dating of organic material found below, within or above lahar deposits, or by coverbed stratigraphy. Both rhyolitic and andesitic tephras provided recognizable time planes in the late Quaternary coverbeds overlying lahar deposits. In this study quantitative analysis of quartz abundance, which is shown to vary between loesses and palaeosols, is used as an indirect means of establishing a surrogate for past climate changes which have been correlated to the deep sea oxygen isotope curve. A minimum age for the newly defined Whangaehu Formation is established by this method. The accumulation rate for lahars in the Whangaehu River has accelerated from 1 km3 every c. 23,000 years in the past c. 160,000 years to 1 km3 in 589 years in the past c. 2,000 years. This acceleration probably results from the increased frequency of lahars in the River following the development of Crater Lake c. 2,000 years B.P. According to this pattern an estimated 0.17 km3 volume of lahars could be anticipated over the next 100 years. If the 2,000 year accumulation rate were to be met over the next 100 years there would be 170 lahars of l0[superscript]6 m3 in this time interval , or 17 lahars of 10[superscript]7 m3 (or 1.7 lahars of 10[superscript]8 m3). The largest reported volume for an historic lahar is 10[superscript]6 m3 and these have occurred on average once every 30 years. The accumulation rate for historic lahars is 0.0054 km3 in 100 years. Therefore, although the accumulation rate appears to have slowed down, further large lahars with magnitudes 10 or 100 times greater than those witnessed could be expected.

The stratigraphic record of lahars in the Whangaehu River reveals that in the past 180,000 years this route has been one of the main conduits for lahars from Mount Ruapehu, the highest active andesitic stratovolcano in the Central North Island of New Zealand. Both debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows have engulfed surfaces up to 160 km distance from the Volcano. Eight episodes of laharic activity are recognized by the distinctive lithology and similar age of their deposits. The newly defined upper Pleistocene Whangaehu Formation provides evidence for the earliest lahar event in the Valley, c. 180,000- 140,000 years ago. There is only meagre evidence for laharic activity following this event until the Ohakean and Holocene, although two new informally named deposits - the Mangatipona pumice sand (c. 37,000 years B.P.) and Apitian lahars (c. 32,000-25,500 years B.P) - are recognized, of minor extent. The formerly defined late Quaternary Te Heuheu (c. 25,500- 14,700 years B.P.), Tangatu (c. 14,700-5,370 years B.P.), Manutahi (c. 5 ,370-3,4600 years B.P.), Mangaio (c. 4,600 years B.P.) and Onetapu (< c. 1,850 years B.P.) Formations are here described and interpreted. Triggering mechanisms for lahar deposits are distinguished based on lithological criteria. (a) Bouldery deposits in the Whangaehu Formation are interpreted to have been emplaced by a single highly competent debris flow triggered by a southerly-directed flank collapse at Mount Ruapehu. This debris flow was competent enough to transport boulders up to 2 m in diameter over 140 km from the Volcano. Bouldery deposits are also recognized in the Onetapu Formation, but are restricted to higher gradient surfaces on the Mount Ruapehu ring plain. The Onetapu Formation deposits are interpreted to have been emplaced by lahars resulting from catastrophic drainage of Crater Lake, which occupies the active crater on Mount Ruapehu. (b) Pebbly and sandy deposits are interpreted to have been emplaced by low competence debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows. These lahar deposits are recognized in all formations described. The lithology in these deposits is commonly pumice and they are interpreted to have been triggered by eruptions and/or high rainfall events at the Volcano. Formations, and individual members within Formations, were dated by radiocarbon dating of organic material found below, within or above lahar deposits, or by coverbed stratigraphy. Both rhyolitic and andesitic tephras provided recognizable time planes in the late Quaternary coverbeds overlying lahar deposits. In this study quantitative analysis of quartz abundance, which is shown to vary between loesses and palaeosols, is used as an indirect means of establishing a surrogate for past climate changes which have been correlated to the deep sea oxygen isotope curve. A minimum age for the newly defined Whangaehu Formation is established by this method. The accumulation rate for lahars in the Whangaehu River has accelerated from 1 km3 every c. 23,000 years in the past c. 160,000 years to 1 km3 in 589 years in the past c. 2,000 years. This acceleration probably results from the increased frequency of lahars in the River following the development of Crater Lake c. 2,000 years B.P. According to this pattern an estimated 0.17 km3 volume of lahars could be anticipated over the next 100 years. If the 2,000 year accumulation rate were to be met over the next 100 years there would be 170 lahars of l0[superscript]6 m3 in this time interval , or 17 lahars of 10[superscript]7 m3 (or 1.7 lahars of 10[superscript]8 m3). The largest reported volume for an historic lahar is 10[superscript]6 m3 and these have occurred on average once every 30 years. The accumulation rate for historic lahars is 0.0054 km3 in 100 years. Therefore, although the accumulation rate appears to have slowed down, further large lahars with magnitudes 10 or 100 times greater than those witnessed could be expected.

Boundary-layer flows near leading edges of generally curved obstacles have been studied for a long time. Apart from having many practical applications, the theory and approaches prevailing in this area stimulate development of a variety of computational tools and form a ground for testing them. The specific aim of this work is to study two-dimensional laminar boundary layer flows near the leading edges of airfoils and other elongated bodies, and to explore geometries for which boundary layer separation can be avoided. This class of problems is relevant to optimal design of wings, aircraft and projectile noses, laminar flow control methods and adaptive wing technology. One of the findings of this work suggests that local modifications to parabolic wing noses can yield up to 11% increase in the unseparated angle of attack. Another result obtained here is the set of shortest possible generalised elliptic noses of long symmetric bodies which allow unseparated flow. Methods adopted in this work are based on the combined use of numerically solved Prandtl equations written in Gortler variables, and inviscid solutions obtained semi-analytically by the conformal mapping method. The resulting technique being reliable, fast and computationally inexpensive, can complement or test the results obtained using a comprehensive CFD approach. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Mathematical Sciences, 2002.

Linear sandbanks are located globally in areas where there are strong currents and an abundance of sand. In recent years, these sandbanks have become a strategic interest as a potential source of marine aggregates (sand and gravel) and mineral deposits. They also commonly reach the sea surface and thus pose a threat to navigation. Headland-associated linear sandbanks are a specific type of sandbank, which are located in the lee of coastal topographic features such as headlands and islands. Interaction between tidal currents and topographic features generate complex three-dimensional circulation patterns that significantly influence the distribution of sediments in the vicinity of the feature. Field and numerical model investigations of the three-dimensional flow structure have been undertaken on the Levillain Shoal, a headland-associated linear sandbank present in the lee of Cape Levillain (Shark Bay, Western Australia). The field data indicated the presence of secondary flows near the tip of the Cape and around the bank, which were reproduced in the numerical simulations. Sediment transport paths near the Cape and the bank indicate that the sandbank is part of a sand circulation cell where the sand is circulating around the bank with exchanges between the sandbank and the headland. A morphological model (MTM) has been developed to understand processes responsible for the formation of the headland associated linear sandbanks. With an “idealized” Gaussian shaped headland, the formation of two symmetrical sandbanks on each side of the headland is observed. It is shown that sandbanks are formed in regions where there is a net accumulation of sand over a tidal cycle, due to the acceleration/⁄deceleration effects of the flow in the presence of the headland. Initially, sandbanks develop in a circular shape and grow vertically. As the sandbanks interact with the tidal flow, they evolve into elongated linear deposits (as observed in nature). The sandbank growth is dependent on the tidal regime, secondary flow, sand availability, and sediment grain size

Στη διατριβή αυτή θα μελετήσουμε μονότονες ποσότητες στα πλαίσια συνδυασμένων γεωμετρικών ροών. Πιο συγκεκριμμένα, εστιάζοντας την προσοχή μας στη περίπτωση των σολιτονίων Ricci, ως περιβάλλοντες χώρους, θα θεωρήσουμε λύσεις της εξίσωσης θερμότητας ολοκληρωμένες πάνω σε εμβαπτισμένες υποπολλαπλότητες οι οποίες εξελίσσονται χρονικά με τη ροή μέσης καμπυλότητας. Επιπρόσθετα, στη περίπτωση του συνδυασμού αντίστροφης ροής Ricci, ροής μέσης καμπυλότητας, όταν ο περιβάλλων χώρος είναι Kahler, η λύση της αντίστροφης εξίσωσης θερμότητας, ολοκληρωμένη πάνω στην υποπολλαπλότητα αποτελεί μονότονη ποσότητα. / -

Alpine valleys are rarely closed systems, implying that the atmospheric boundary layer of a particular valley section is influenced by the surrounding terrain and large-scale flows. A detailed characterisation and quantification of these effects is required in order to design appropriate parameterisation schemes for complex terrains. The focus of this work is to improve the understanding of the effects of surrounding terrain (plains, valleys or tributaries) on the heat and mass budgets of the stable boundary layer of a valley section, under dry and weak large-scale wind conditions. Numerical simulations using idealised and real frameworks are performed to meet this goal. Several idealised terrains (configurations) were considered: an infinitely long valley (i.e. two-dimensional), and upstream valleys opening either on a plain (valley-plain), on a wider valley (draining) or on a narrower valley (pooling). In three-dimensional valleys, two main regimes can be identified for all configurations: a transient regime, before the down-valley flow develops, followed by a quasi-steady regime, when the down-valley flow is fully developed. The presence of a downstream valley reduces the along-valley temperature difference, therefore leading to weaker down-valley flows. As a result, the duration of the transient regime increases compared to the respective valley-plain configuration. Its duration is longest for the pooling configuration. For strong pooling the along-valley temperature difference can reverse, forcing up-valley flows from the narrower towards the wider valley. In this regime, the average cooling rate at the valley-scale is found to be a maximum and its magnitude is dependent on the configuration considered. Therefore pooling and draining induce colder and deeper boundary layers than the respective valley-plain configurations. In the quasisteady regime the cooling rate is smaller than during the transient regime, and almost independent of the configuration considered. Indeed, as the pooling character is more pronounced, the warming contribution from advection to the heat budget decreases because of weaker down-valley flows, and so does the cooling contribution from the surface sensible heat flux. The mass budget of the valley boundary layer was found to be controlled by a balance between the convergence of downslope flows at the top of the boundary layer and the divergence of the down-valley flow along the valley axis, with negligible contributions of subsidence far from the valley sidewalls. The mass budget highlighted the importance of the return current above the down-valley flow, which may contribute significantly to the inflow of air at the top of the boundary layer. A case-study of a persistent cold-air pool event which occurred in February 2015 in the Arve River Valley during the intensive observation period 1 (IOP1) of the PASSY- 2015 field campaign, allowed us to quantify the effects of neighbouring valleys on the heat and mass budgets of a real valley atmosphere. The cold-air pool persisted as a result of warm air advection at the valley top, associated with the passage of an upper-level ridge over Europe. The contributions from each tributary valley to the mass and heat budgets of the valley atmosphere were found to vary from day to day within the persistent stage of the cold-air pool, depending on the large-scale flow. Tributary flows had significant impact on the height of the inversion layer and the strength of the cold-air pool, transporting a significant amount of mass within the valley atmosphere throughout the night. The strong stratification of the near-surface atmosphere prevented the tributary flows from penetrating down to the valley floor. The evolution of the large-scale flow during the episode had a profound impact on the near-surface circulation of the valley. The channelling of the large-scale flow at night, can lead to the decrease of the horizontal temperature difference driving the near-surface down-valley flow, favouring the stagnation of the air close to the ground.

Cette thèse aborde différents sujets ayant trait aux liens entre l’économie réelle et l’économie financière au sein de l’économie internationale. Trois essais abordent ces liens selon différentes perspectives aussi bien micro que macro-économiques. Le premier chapitre, co-écrit avec Jean-Charles Bricongne et Sebastian Franco-Bedoya, évalue l’arbitrage proximité-concentration avec des entreprises multi-produits afin d’identifier le type de lien (complémentarité ou substituabilité) entre les exportations et les IDE. Tandis que les modèles d’IDE horizontal prédisent qu’IDE et exportations se substituent du fait de l’arbitrage proximité-concentration, une majorité d’études empiriques met en évidence leur complémentarité. [...]Le deuxième chapitre examine empiriquement le rôle du développement financier dans l’évolution du produit marginal du capital (MPK) dans 50 pays et sa relation avec leurs besoins de finance externe, en lien avec leur production manufacturière durant la période 1995-2008. En se fondant sur des données sectorielles au niveau des pays, les résultats de ce chapitre montrent que la spécialisation dans des secteurs intensifs en finance externe contribue de manière positive au MPK des pays développés et de manière négative dans les pays en développement. Cette relation devient légèrement positive uniquement lorsque le système financier est suffisamment développé dans ces derniers ; ces pays étant généralement caractérisés par des systèmes financiers largement moins efficaces en comparaison avec des pays développés. [...] Le troisième chapitre, co-écrit avec Jean-Charles Bricongne et Fabrizio Coricelli étudie la transmission des chocs mondiaux pendant la Grande Récession et son impact sur l’emploi français. En particulier, nous examinons le rôle du crédit commercial (ou inter-entreprises) dans la propagation des chocs transfrontaliers. En se fondant sur un sous-échantillon des entreprises importatrices économiquement actives sur la période 2004-2009, nos résultats suggèrent que des entreprises ayant de forts liens commerciaux avant la crise avec les pays qui ont le mieux résisté aux chocs économiques, ont eu une meilleure performance au niveau de la croissance de l’emploi entre 2008 et 2009. Cet effet varie considérablement en fonction de l’intensité du crédit commercial. Une forte dépendance au crédit commercial avant la crise s’est traduite par une vulnérabilité plus forte aux chocs imprévus pour les entreprises, pour lesquelles l’impact négatif de la crise a été exacerbé. Cet effet a été intensifié pour les entreprises ayant des liens commerciaux importants avec les pays les plus affectés par des chocs. A l’inverse, l’effet négatif de la crise a été atténué lorsque les relations commerciales étaient plus fortes avec des pays où les chocs ont été les moins sévères. Suggérant par conséquent, que le crédit commercial a été une source alternative de financement pour les entreprises françaises importatrices lors de la crise, du moment où leurs fournisseurs internationaux leur ont permis de surmonter les contraintes financières liées aux chocs imprévus en leur accordant un délai de paiement plus important. Les résultats de cette analyse contribuent au débat dans la littérature sur le rôle du financement du commerce international dans le ralentissement de l’activité économique réelle à travers les frontières. / Two particular concerns in international economics motivate this research: I. How are real and financial activities related to each other in a globalized economy? II. What role do financial frictions play in this relationship ? Three essays look at these questions from different perspectives. The first chapter, in collaboration with Jean-Charles Bricongne and SebastianFranco-Bedoya, revises the old question on the relation between FDI and exports on French firms, where theory seems to be at odds with empirical findings. Most FDI and most trade take place between rich markets, where the horizontal investment type is expected to happen. In this sense, empirical studies have almost invariably found a complementarity relation while standard Horizontal FDI models predict substitutability between FDI and exports given the proximity-concentration trade-off. [...]The second chapter empirically examines how external financial needs measured at the sector level- and financial development at the country level interact to shape the aggregate marginal product of capital of a country (MPK) and its foreign direct investment inflows (FDI). First, using new available data we construct annual aggregate MPK for 50 developing and developed countries during 1995-2008; we use industry-level data to construct an annual country-level measure of external financial dependence and assess its effects on MPK conditional on the level of financial development. Our findings imply that financial development seems to be a necessary condition -and certainly not a sufficient one- in order for production in financially dependent sectors to positively affect aggregate MPK in developing countries. Second, using bilateral FDI inflows in developing countries between 2001 and 2010, we analyze how external financial dependence and financial development determine FDI in flows in developing countries. [...]The third chapter, joint research with Jean-Charles Bricongne and Fabrizio Coricelli, studies the transmission of global shocks during the Great Recession and its impact on French employment. Particularly, we explore the role of trade credit in the propagation of cross-border shocks. Using a sub-sample of importing enterprises that were active over 2004-2009,our findings imply that strong pre-crisis sourcing ties with countries that were more resilient to the global crisis, translated into better performance in terms of employment growth over 2008-2009. This effect dramatically varies with trade credit intensity. Strongly relying on trade credit made firms more vulnerable to unanticipated shocks, for which the adverse impact of the crisis was exacerbated. This effect intensified among firms with important sourcing ties with severely shocked countries. While the negative effect of the crisis was mitigated when sourcing relations with countries subject to milder shocks were stronger. Supporting, therefore, the hypothesis that trade credit was an alternative source of financing for enterprises during the crisis, where implicitly borrowing from suppliers helped importers overcoming financial constraints. Our contribution to the literature adds to the debate on the role of trade finance in explaining the real economic downturn across borders.

O presente trabalho busca avaliar os efeitos da liberalização financeira externa da economia brasileira sobre variáveis macroeconômicas como oferta de crédito ao setor privado, produto nominal, reservas internacionais, risco-país, taxa de juros e volatilidade cambial, no decorrer do período que vai de 1995 a 2014, por meio da estimação de dois modelos econométricos assentados em Vetores Autorregressivos: o primeiro com Mudanças Markovianas de Regime (MS-VAR), e o segundo com correção de erros vetorial (VEC). Além disso, realiza revisão da literatura teórica e empírica acerca da liberalização financeira externa e seus desdobramentos; apresenta os indicadores de abertura (ICC) - presente nos trabalhos de Cardoso e Goldfajn (1998), Soihet (2002), Laan (2007) e Cunha e Laan (2013), dentre outros - e de integração financeira (IIF); e expõe a história do processo brasileiro de liberalização financeira. No que tange aos resultados, ambas as metodologias econométricas apontam que: uma reversão do ciclo financeiro global impacta negativamente as duas dimensões da liberalização financeira externa da economia brasileira; um avanço da desregulamentação não gera efeitos significativos, o que contrasta com a posição favorável à plena conversibilidade da conta capital e financeira, defendida por Arida (2003a, 2003b, 2004); um aumento no grau de integração financeira engendra desdobramentos macroeconômicos problemáticos. No que tange ao modelo MS-VAR, sublinha-se que as consequências de um choque liberalizante são mais profundas em momentos de reversão do ciclo financeiro global, bem como que a endogeneidade dos controles, nos termos de Cardoso e Goldfajn (1998), é contingente à fase vigente do ciclo financeiro global. Quanto ao modelo VEC, destaca-se a precedência, no sentido de Granger, da variação da volatilidade financeira internacional frente à variação grau de integração financeira da economia brasileira, e deste frente à variação do risco-país. Conclui que, se não é possível descartar os benefícios da abertura financeira, há que se redobrar a atenção frente a seus riscos, considerando também as consequências negativas em termos de grau de integração financeira e a influência do ciclo financeiro global. / This study aims to evaluate the external financial liberalization of the Brazilian economy on macroeconomic variables such as country risk, credit supply to the private sector, exchange rate volatility, interest rate, international reserves and nominal product, during the period from 1995 to 2014, by estimating two Vectors Autoregressive econometric models: the first with Markov-Switching (MS-VAR), and the second with Vector Error-Correction (VEC). In addition, this study aimed to: conduct a review of theoretical and empirical literature about external financial liberalization and its consequences; present financial opening index (ICC) - present in the work of Cardoso and Goldfajn (1998), Soihet (2002), Laan (2007) and Cunha and Laan (2013), among others - and financial integration index (IIF); and exposing the history of Brazilian process of financial liberalization. With respect to the results, both econometric methodologies show that: a reversal of the global financial cycle adversely impacts the two dimensions of external financial liberalization of the Brazilian economy; an advance of deregulation does not generate significant effects, in contrast to the position in favor of capital account full convertibility, advocated by Arida (2003a, 2003b, 2004); an increase in financial integration creates problematic macroeconomic developments. Regarding the MS-VAR model, it points out that the consequences of a liberalizing shock are deeper in times of reversal of global financial cycle and that the endogeneity of capital controls, from Cardoso and Goldfajn (1998), is contingent on current phase of the global financial cycle. Regarding the VEC model, there is precedence, in Granger terms, of the international financial volatility variation over the Brazilian economy financial degree variation, and from it to country risk variation. It is concluded that if it cannot be dismissed the benefits of financial openness, we must exercise caution against its risks, also considering the negative consequences in terms of financial integration degree and the influence of global financial cycle.

A utilização do conceito de tempo como uma categoria de análise em Geografia não é tão rara quanto se imagina, mas tampouco é tão presente e reflexiva quanto se gostaria. Ainda mais raros são os trabalhos de pesquisa que incluem de maneira efetiva a dimensão espaçotemporal na análise geográfica. Esta pesquisa apresenta, portanto, uma discussão em torno de autores que analisam esta perspectiva, na tentativa de construir os conceitos de espaço-tempo, temporalidade (velocidade de transporte de matéria e informação) e identidade espaçotemporal, ao mesmo tempo em que tenta articulá-los ao universo conceitual da Geografia. Adicionalmente, esta pesquisa também tenta demonstrar uma possibilidade de uso efetivo destes conceitos na análise de um recorte espacial específico. O trabalho de campo experimental foi desenvolvido na cidade de Terra de Areia, no Litoral Norte do Rio Grande do Sul, onde diversos fluxos lentos e rápidos convivem proximamente, gerando conflitos temporais manifestados nos hábitos, gestos e sentimentos dos habitantes da localidade. / The use of the concept of time as a category of analysis in Geography is not as rare as we imagine, but neither is as reflexive or common as we would like it to be. Even more rare are the scientific works that include in an effective way the space-time dimension in geographical analysis. This research presents, therefore, a discussion about authors who discuss this perspective, in trying to build the concepts of space-time, temporality (matter and information transport speed) and spatial-temporal identity at the same time that tries to link them to the conceptual universe of Geography. Also, this research tries to demonstrate a possibility of effective use of these concepts in the analysis of a specific portion of space. The experimental field work was developed in the city of Terra de Areia, in the northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul/Brazil, where several flows with different speeds live closely, generating temporal conflicts manifested in habits, gestures and feelings of the inhabitants of the town.

I study various aspects of mutual funds in my thesis. These are divided over four chapters. The first chapter is an introduction to the thesis and sets out an executive summary of my research. The second to fourth chapters each deal with a new concept. The second chapter shows that the sensitivity of an investor's reaction to a mutual fund's recent performance increases with the fund's historical performance. Put differently, bad (good) performance combined with a good-history for a fund results in a greater fraction of capital outflows (inflows) relative to a fund with a poor past history. The evidence is puzzling as we would expect investors to stick with a fund having a good-history, even after a single bad performance. I solve this problem using a model with investors of differing attentiveness. In equilibrium, fund owner's attentiveness increases the historical record of a fund. With this mechanism, the model can explain the higher sensitivity of outflows for higher reputation funds. The chapter is important in that it shows that return-chasing behavior is not ubiquitous. It also provides a clear evidence where the market is slow to incorporate the new information into decision making. The third chapter studies the managerial side of the mutual funds industry regarding the risk-taking behavior of the mutual funds. Mutual fund managers are compared against a benchmark or with the peers. The employment, as well as investor's capital flows, depends on how the manager fares in the competition. I present new evidence in the chapter that the exposure of a manager to these risks is heterogeneous, and manager's historical performance governs it. The evidence implies that the risk-appetite and behavior of a manager depends on his historical performance. I find strong support in the data for this hypothesis. I show that funds with poor historical performance do not boost the portfolio risk to catch up with the peers if they are lagging at the interim date. In general, the risk appetite of the poor-history manager is less driven by their interim performance. But the good-history managers respond to their midyear position and more so during the bull years. The evidence on risk-shifting is consistent with the evidence on how each incentive behaves for good and poor history managers over bull and bear phases. The fourth chapter shows that capital movement in and out of a mutual fund is more sensitive to fund performance during periods of high market volatility. I explain this result using a model where the manager has picking as well as timing skill. A volatile market presents an opportunity to generate timing value and to that extent produces speedy learning about managerial timing ability. Persistence in volatility boosts the sensitivity of flows to performance during such times. Given the counter-cyclical nature of market volatility, the model predicts that the flow sensitivity is higher during the recessions. Data supports the model prediction. The chapter provides a clear example when the trade volume (here capital flows) is linked positively with the volatility. Usually, literature has shown how the volatile periods slows the learning and hence trade volumes too. But my model indicates that there could be substantial learning going on during volatile times about critical economics parameters, mainly because those parameters are revealed only during volatile times.