In this thesis we deal with the longevity risk originating from the uncertain future evolution of mortality at adult-old ages. It may emerge in particular because of an unanticipated reduction in mortality rates. That risk is significant for annuity and pension providers. We consider a model portfolio represented by one cohort of recipients of immediate life annuities. We introduce possibilities for assessing the risk of such portfolio. A comparison of the impact of longevity risk is made with random deviations in mortality rates. We also deal with the question of solvency of the insurer by investigating the solvency capital requirement for longevity risk.

Orientador: Danísio Prado Munari / Coorientador: Sabrina Luzia Caetano / Banca: Humberto Tonhati / Banca: João Ademir de Oliveira / Banca: José Bento Sterman Ferraz / Banca: Cláudia Cristina Paro de Paz / Resumo: A habilidade de permanência da vaca no rebanho é economicamente importante em gado de corte. Quanto mais tempo a vaca permanecer no rebanho, maiores serão as chances da vaca pagar seus custos de recria e gerar lucro ao produtor. Este trabalho teve dois objetivos: primeiro, avaliar a variável idade da vaca ao último parto (IVUP) como medida de habilidade de permanência da vaca no rebanho em diferentes critérios de censura; segundo, estimar parâmetros genéticos para a mesma para cada um dos diferentes critérios de censura considerados. Registros de 22312 vacas da raça Nelore provenientes de 13 fazendas foram utilizados neste estudo. As variáveis explanatórias utilizadas foram idade ao primeiro parto, número de partos, estação e ano de nascimento e fazenda. Três critérios de censura foram escolhidos: 16, 26 e 36 meses de idade. Metodologias de análise de sobrevivência foram utilizadas para a análise dos dados e estimação dos parâmetros das curvas de sobrevivência e risco. A variância de IVUP foi estudada considerando o efeito de cada variável explanatória proposta para os três critérios de censura. A metodologia dos estimadores de Kaplan-Meier foi empregada para estimar a probabilidade da vaca permanecer no rebanho. O modelo de riscos proporcionais de Cox foi utilizado para estimar o risco da vaca deixar o rebanho. Os valores genéticos dos animais e a herdabilidade do risco da vaca deixar o rebanho foram estimados por modelo de riscos proporcionais de Weibull. A análise da classificação dos reprodutores com base no valor genético foi realizada por meio do teste de correlação de Spearman. Quanto maior o valor do critério de censura adotado, maior foi o número de vacas com informações completas incluídas na análise. Há diferenças significativas (P<0,05) entre as funções de sobrevivência e risco dos três critérios adotados. A habilidade de permanência da ... / Abstract: Stayability is economically importante in the beef cattle industry. The longer the cow ramains in the herd, the greater are the chances it will pay for its costs and generate revenue. This study had two objectives: first, evaluate the variable age of cow at last calving (ALC) as a measurement of stayability considering diferent censoring criteria; second, to estimate genetic parameters for the same variable considering the diferent censoring criteria. Records of 22313 Nellore cows, from 13 farms were used in this study. The explanatory variables considered were age at first calving, number of calvings, season and year of birth and farm. Three censoring criteria were chosen: 16, 26 and 36 months of age. Survival analysis techniques were used to evaluate the variable and to estimate survival and risk curves. The variance of the ALC was studied considering the effect of each explanatory variable. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the cows'survival curves. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the hazard of the cow being culled. The breeding values and heritability of the hazard of being culled were estimated by a proportional hazards Weibull model. The Spearman correlation test was used to study the rank of the animals considering the three censoring criteria. The greater the censoring criterion addopted, the greater was the number of cows with complete records. The estimated survival curves and hazard functions differ among each other (P<0.05). The stayability estimated considering the 16 months of age criterion was the greater when compared with the other censoring criteria. The heritability estimates for the 16, 26 and 36 months criteria were 0.1020, 0.1002 and 0.0871, respectively. The Spearman correlation estimates for the 16 and 26, 16 and36 and 26 and 36 months of censoring criteria were -0.2124, 0.1348 and 0.1211, respectively (P>0.05). A big part of the ... / Doutor

Orientador: Lucia Galvão de Albuquerque / Banca: Henrique Nunes de Oliveira / Banca: Fernando Sebastián Baldi Rey / Banca: Arione Augusti Boligon / Banca: Fabyano Fonseca e Silva / Resumo: As características reprodutivas são importantes para o sistema produtivo de carne bovina e, algumas delas, como a idade ao primeiro parto (IPP), dias para o segundo parto (DPP) e longevidade produtiva (LONG), são de fácil mensuração e não oneram o sistema produtivo para a obtenção fenotípica de sua expressão. Porém, estas características reprodutivas apresentam herdabilidade de baixa magnitude e, uma das razões, pode ser o fato de estas serem mensuradas apenas nas fêmeas consideradas férteis, pois no momento da avaliação genética, uma porção das fêmeas, normalmente, não apresentam fenótipos devido a falhas reprodutivas, descarte voluntário e involuntário anterior à estação de monta e, em alguns casos, por registros inconsistentes. Estes registros parciais ou desconhecidos são denominados informações censuradas. De acordo com alguns estudos, a inclusão adequada das informações censuradas poderiam evitar distorções nas inferências e melhoria na predição dos valores genéticos. Algumas metodologias têm sido utilizadas para lidar com a censura nas avaliações genéticas como modelos com penalização, modelos hierárquicos Bayesianos para dados censurados, modelo linear-limiar e o de análise de sobrevivência. Porém no Brasil, essas abordagens não vêm sendo muito utilizadas. Este estudo tem como objetivo avaliar as características reprodutivas de idade ao primeiro parto, dias para o segundo parto e longevidade produtiva, de fêmeas da raça Nelore, utilizando modelos que tratam as expressões fenotípicas destas características como não censuradas e censuradas, com a finalidade de encontrar modelos adequados para avaliação genética dos animais para estas características. Foram utilizadas fêmeas nascidas entre 1993 a 2007, da região sudeste e centro-oeste do Brasil, as quais fazem parte da base de dados Aliança Nelore. Para IPP, os grupos de ... / Abstract: Reproductive traits are very important to beef cattle production system and, some of them, such as age at first calving (AFC), days to calving (DC), and longevity (LONG) are easy to measure and do not bring further measurement costs to the production system. However, these reproductive traits show low heritabilities and, one of the reasons might be the fact that only fertile females have phenotypic records, because when the genetic evaluation is performed some cows have missing records due to reproductive failure, as well as due to voluntary and involuntary culling, which are made before the breeding season, and, in some cases, due to inconsistent phenotypic informations. These partially or unobserved phenotypes are termed as censored records. According to some studies, properly accounting for censored records in genetic analysis could avoid distorted inferences and better genetic breeding value predictions. Several methodologies have been proposed to cope with censored records in genetic evaluations, such as models in which censored records are penalized, Bayesian hierarchical models to deal with censored data, threshold-linear models, and frailty survival models. However, these approaches have not been widely applied in Brazil. The objectives of this study were to evaluate age at first calving, days to calving, and longevity, of the Nellore breed females, applying models which handle phenotypic informations as uncensored and censored, aiming to find appropriate models to genetic evaluation for these traits. Data were provided by Nellore Alianca and reproductive records of animals born from 1993 to 2007, in farms located in south-east and middle-west of Brazil, were considered in the study. Contemporary groups (CG) for AFC were defined by the combination of farm, month, and year of birth, farm and management group at weaning, and farm and management group at long-yearling. For DC and LONG ... / Doutor

Thesis advisor: Mathis Wagner / The essays that comprise my dissertation analyze the interactions among old age labor supply, health, and Social Security system in the United States. In the first chapter of my dissertation, I provide estimate of the causal effect of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) application on employment of denied applicants. Using exogenous variations of SSDI application decision, I find that the employment rate is 36 percentage points lower for the denied applicants than that of comparable non-applicants in the short-run. In the second chapter (with Matthew Rutledge and April Wu) we explore the relationship between individuals’ expectation on longevity and their plans for retirement in a quasi-experimental setting. The estimates in this paper suggest a large and statistically significant relationship between subjective life expectancy and retirement expectations: an individual who is one standard deviation more optimistic about living to age 75 has a greater probability of planning to work fulltime at 62 and 65 by 10 percent and 21 percent, respectively. In the third chapter of my dissertation (with Norma Coe and Matthew Rutledge) we identify the contribution of Medicare in explaining the retirement behavior of workers. We find individuals without access to retiree health insurance from work are 7.5 percentage points more likely to retire soon after their 65th birthdays and are 5.8 percentage points less likely to delay retirement until the Full Retirement Age (FRA) than those with that insurance. We interpret this finding as evidence that Medicare eligibility persuades more people to retire, because they can begin receiving federal health coverage. The findings of the research in my dissertation provide important insights in making the Social Security system more welfare enhancing for the older workers and the disabled as well as keeping it sustainable in the long-run. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2017. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Economics.

Thesis advisor: John B. Williamson / The desire to defy the aging process and to prolong the lifespan has long captured the human imagination. Recognized as one of the most ancient known pieces of literature, the Epic of Gilgamesh documents a King’s quest to find immortality. More recent examples include the story of Ponce de Leon’s 16th century search to discover the Fountain of Youth, Sir Francis Bacon’s (1659) assertion that humans are naturally immortal “potens non mori,” and Benjamin Franklin’s desire to be preserved in a vat of madeira until science is capable of life extension. Developments in science and technology, including telomere manipulation, genetic engineering, cloning, nanotechnology, the potential to create new organs from stem cells, and the creation of therapeutic pharmaceuticals that could significantly postpone disease, have served to inspire; aging in the 21st century is no longer regarded by scientists as an inevitable process programmed by evolution (Olshansky et al. 2006). Situated within a detailed historical overview, this qualitative research project explores the experiences of individuals engaged in practices currently implicated in potentially delaying aging and even extending life. Based on information from 44 in-depth interviews, this research explores issues such as lay understandings of the biology of aging, conceptualizations of the inner body, the use of and experience with optimization technologies, and the embodied effects of participation in anti-aging and life-extension body regimens. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2008. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology.

O envelhecimento está associado a profundas mudanças, novos comportamentos, expectativas e valores com pontos divergentes atuando nesse processo. O objetivo desse estudo foi conhecer o fenômeno do envelhecimento em área adstrita da Estratégia de Saúde da Família do município de Bauru-SP, para melhorcompreender a ocorrência dessa demanda emergente e estruturante socialmente. Para tanto, buscou-se também detectar as condições de saúde geral dessa população específica com o intuito de saber quais agravos que mais os afetam; avaliar a satisfação dos idosos nos atendimentos dos serviços públicos de saúde e os direitos a eles inerentes, e identificar as percepções e significações do envelhecimento para esses sujeitos. Optou-se pelos métodos de pesquisa quantitativa, utilizando-se de parte do Questionário Brazil Old Age Scudule - BOA, e qualitativa, utilizando-se de formulários elaborados pela pesquisadora. O universo da pesquisa foi de 170 sujeitos, pessoas consideradas idosas, com 60 anos ou mais de acordo com o Estatuto do Idoso, Lei 10.4741, de outubro de 2003, residentes no bairro Santa Edwirges e cadastrados na Unidade Básica de Saúde no Município de Bauru - SP. Obteve-se os seguintes resultados analfabetismo,(27,0% ), em relação a saúde geral dos idosos confirmou-se as doenças prevalentes, hipertensão( 50,0% ) diabetes (17,2%) e colesterol (13,1%), a saúde auditiva apontou para ocorrência de queixa de zumbido (28,7%): saúde bucal com (39,3%), edentulismo (96,7%) problema na mastigação (41,0%), os idosos demonstraram satisfação com a vida em geral (70,5%) e satisfação com os atendimentos na Unidade de Saúde da Família.(75,4%). Referente à autopercepção do envelhecimento, confirmou-se os resultados antevistos em estudos como: experiência negativa, desvalorização, socialmente estigmatizada e estereotipada em torno da doença, com nuances negativas, dificuldades nos relacionamentos familiares e pessoais, sentimentos desfavoráveis provocando a vulnerabilidade psíquica. deixando explícito o desamparo. Sendo. imprescindível um novo olhar para essa realidade da vida em comum e para que isso ocorra é necessário entender as fases da vida e com ela a existência humana. / The ageing process is related to deep changes, new behavior, expectations and values, with different references happening in this process. The aim of this study is to know the ageing phenomenon in the \'Estratégia Saúde da Família\' area, to have a better comprehension of the happening of its socially, structuring and increasing demand. For this, it was necessary to detect the general health conditions of this specific population, in order to know which diseases are affecting them the most, evaluate the satisfaction of the elderly with the public health service and also the rights they have, and identify the perceptions and symbolism of the ageing process in this people. It was opted to use of quantitative methods of research, using a part of the questionnaire \'Brazil Old Age Scudule BOA\' and qualitative methods, by means of forms created by the researcher. The universe of the research was composed of 170 people considered elderly, of 60 years of age or more, living in \'Santa Edwirges\' neighbourhood and registered in the \' Unidade Básica de Saúde\' located in Bauru-SP, Brazil, according to the Statute of the Elderly, law number 10.474 from October 1st , 2003. We obtained the following results literacy (27.0%) than the overall health of elderly people it was confirmed prevalent disease, hypertension (50.0%) diabetes (17.2%) and cholesterol (13.1% ), hearing health pointed to the occurrence of tinnitus (28.7%) with oral health (39.3%), tooth loss (96.7%) problem in chewing (41.0%), the elderly showed satisfaction with life in general (70.5%) and satisfaction with care in the Family Health Unit. (75.4%). Concerning the perception of aging, it was confirmed in studies on expected results as: negative experience, devaluation, socially stigmatized and stereotyped around the disease, with negative nuances, difficulties in family relationships and personal feelings unfavorable causing psychic vulnerability. making explicit the helplessness. Being. imperative a new look to this reality of life in common and for this to occur it is necessary to understand the stages of life and with her human existence.

O envelhecimento está associado a profundas mudanças, novos comportamentos, expectativas e valores com pontos divergentes atuando nesse processo. O objetivo desse estudo foi conhecer o fenômeno do envelhecimento em área adstrita da Estratégia de Saúde da Família do município de Bauru-SP, para melhorcompreender a ocorrência dessa demanda emergente e estruturante socialmente. Para tanto, buscou-se também detectar as condições de saúde geral dessa população específica com o intuito de saber quais agravos que mais os afetam; avaliar a satisfação dos idosos nos atendimentos dos serviços públicos de saúde e os direitos a eles inerentes, e identificar as percepções e significações do envelhecimento para esses sujeitos. Optou-se pelos métodos de pesquisa quantitativa, utilizando-se de parte do Questionário Brazil Old Age Scudule - BOA, e qualitativa, utilizando-se de formulários elaborados pela pesquisadora. O universo da pesquisa foi de 170 sujeitos, pessoas consideradas idosas, com 60 anos ou mais de acordo com o Estatuto do Idoso, Lei 10.4741, de outubro de 2003, residentes no bairro Santa Edwirges e cadastrados na Unidade Básica de Saúde no Município de Bauru - SP. Obteve-se os seguintes resultados analfabetismo,(27,0% ), em relação a saúde geral dos idosos confirmou-se as doenças prevalentes, hipertensão( 50,0% ) diabetes (17,2%) e colesterol (13,1%), a saúde auditiva apontou para ocorrência de queixa de zumbido (28,7%): saúde bucal com (39,3%), edentulismo (96,7%) problema na mastigação (41,0%), os idosos demonstraram satisfação com a vida em geral (70,5%) e satisfação com os atendimentos na Unidade de Saúde da Família.(75,4%). Referente à autopercepção do envelhecimento, confirmou-se os resultados antevistos em estudos como: experiência negativa, desvalorização, socialmente estigmatizada e estereotipada em torno da doença, com nuances negativas, dificuldades nos relacionamentos familiares e pessoais, sentimentos desfavoráveis provocando a vulnerabilidade psíquica. deixando explícito o desamparo. Sendo. imprescindível um novo olhar para essa realidade da vida em comum e para que isso ocorra é necessário entender as fases da vida e com ela a existência humana. / The ageing process is related to deep changes, new behavior, expectations and values, with different references happening in this process. The aim of this study is to know the ageing phenomenon in the \'Estratégia Saúde da Família\' area, to have a better comprehension of the happening of its socially, structuring and increasing demand. For this, it was necessary to detect the general health conditions of this specific population, in order to know which diseases are affecting them the most, evaluate the satisfaction of the elderly with the public health service and also the rights they have, and identify the perceptions and symbolism of the ageing process in this people. It was opted to use of quantitative methods of research, using a part of the questionnaire \'Brazil Old Age Scudule BOA\' and qualitative methods, by means of forms created by the researcher. The universe of the research was composed of 170 people considered elderly, of 60 years of age or more, living in \'Santa Edwirges\' neighbourhood and registered in the \' Unidade Básica de Saúde\' located in Bauru-SP, Brazil, according to the Statute of the Elderly, law number 10.474 from October 1st , 2003. We obtained the following results literacy (27.0%) than the overall health of elderly people it was confirmed prevalent disease, hypertension (50.0%) diabetes (17.2%) and cholesterol (13.1% ), hearing health pointed to the occurrence of tinnitus (28.7%) with oral health (39.3%), tooth loss (96.7%) problem in chewing (41.0%), the elderly showed satisfaction with life in general (70.5%) and satisfaction with care in the Family Health Unit. (75.4%). Concerning the perception of aging, it was confirmed in studies on expected results as: negative experience, devaluation, socially stigmatized and stereotyped around the disease, with negative nuances, difficulties in family relationships and personal feelings unfavorable causing psychic vulnerability. making explicit the helplessness. Being. imperative a new look to this reality of life in common and for this to occur it is necessary to understand the stages of life and with her human existence.

Successful aging, the ability to resist age-associated illnesses and functional disability, is of increasing importance as the population ages. Studies have shown that exceptionally long-lived individuals fit the successful aging paradigm by compressing disability toward the end of life. This study investigated whether there is evidence of successful cognitive aging in a familial longevity cohort, the Long Life Family Study (LLFS). Part 1 describes the feasibility of conducting a 2.5 hour neuropsychological battery emphasizing episodic memory and executive function, cognitive domains that elicit signs of cognitive dysfunction in relation to normal aging and dementia. The rationale for the selected tests is discussed within the context of minimizing effects from sensory impairments in an aged cohort and optimizing qualitative and quantitative data. In Part 2, the testing of 70 proband generation and 100 offspring generation LLFS participants and 140 generation-matched referent participants without familial longevity is described. Comparison of LLFS proband generation participants with their referent cohort revealed no significant differences in test scores. However, the referent cohort also had more years of education (an important exposure which is discussed in Part 3). LLFS offspring generation participants had borderline significant better performance on a test of executive function (Clock Drawing Test) and attention (Digits Forward) compared with referents. These findings suggest that familial longevity is associated with better cognitive function even at relatively young ages. Continuing to follow these cohorts to older ages may reveal differences in rate of change in cognitive function. Part 3 examines the role of indicators of cognitive reserve. In the proband generation education and participation in mid- and late-life cognitively stimulating activities were found to be higher in the referent cohort. This suggests that people without familial longevity may be more reliant on higher cognitive reserve in order to achieve similar cognitive performance to those from long-lived families. Implications of preserved cognitive function in long-lived families and the effect of cognitive reserve in those without familial longevity are discussed in terms of compression of disability and successful cognitive aging.

Animals rely on the integration of a variety of external cues to understand and respond appropriately to their environment. The relative amounts of food and constitutively secreted pheromone detected by the nematode C. elegans determines how it will develop and grow. Starvation conditions cause the animal to enter a protective stage, termed dauer. Dauer animals are non-eating, long-lived and stress resistant. Yet, when these animals are introduced to food replete conditions they will recover from dauer and proceed into normal development. Furthermore, food restriction has been demonstrated to extend the lifespan of a wide-range of species including C. elegans. However, the exact mechanism by which food signals are detected and transduced by C. elegans to influence development and longevity remains unknown. Here, we identify a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) DCAR-1 that acts in two chemosensory neurons to mediate food signaling in an autophagy-related manner. The DCAR-1 ligand Dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA) competes with dauer-inducing pheromone to promote growth. DHCA is a key intermediate in the shikimate pathway, which is required to synthesize folate and aromatic amino acids. We report that dcar-1 mutations influence dauer formation and extend wildtype lifespan via a mechanism of dietary restriction. Moreover, we show that the lifespan extension of dcar-1 mutants is completely dependent on autophagy gene atg- 18. Furthermore, our data suggests metabolites derived from shikimate are food signals that control aging and dauer development through GPCR signaling in C. elegans. These studies will contribute to the delineation of mechanisms behind the beneficial effects of dietary restriction in eukaryotic organisms. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Typically, small businesses have encountered issues with sustaining their enterprise for longer than 5 years after inception, which can adversely affect the prosperity of the communities in which the businesses operate. The purpose of this multiple case study was to identify and explore strategies some owners of small business trucking companies used to achieve profitability and longevity for longer than 5 years. The population of the study consisted of owners of 4 small business trucking companies located in Northern Virginia, who demonstrated profitability and longevity for longer than 5 years of operation. The conceptual framework for this study was systems theory. The data for the study came from semistructured interviews, and review of companies' documents. The data analysis process consisted of organizing the data, interpreting the data, and identifying the themes. After verifying the themes through methodological triangulation, 3 themes emerged: relationship building, passion and commitment, and access to capital. The findings, conclusions, and recommendations from this study could effect social change by providing profits to the small business trucking owners for sustaining and aiding employees, families, and their communities' economies.