<p>This paper presents Theopoetics, a theo-philosophical aesthetic movement that arose from the 1960’s Death of God theology, as a hermeneutical framework that accounts for both embodiment and the numinous in poetry. Through an examination of the life and poetic works of the disenfranchised religious poet, Thomas Merton, and a more religiously nebulous poet, Denise Levertov. This paper will present two different perspectives from these poets who encountered the need to qualify the numinous in their poetry and subverted that qualification through a theopoetic process. </p>

In this work, we deal with theories of collective action. To categorize the researchers used information from the functionalist approach. The aim is to provide an overview of sociologists concerned with theories of collective action, i. e. various forms of collective action. Mainly for this work is the concept of function and its distribution eufunction and dysfunction as two poles. Researchers are closer to those poles. The inclusion of researchers in these poles are still dealing with other characteristics that unite and differentiate. In the first chapters of the thesis deals with the functionalist concepts and theories of collective action. The next chapter is already engaged functionalist categorization and other characteristics researchers. The chapter is divided into two parts, which correspond to two functionalist terms, i. e. eufunction and dysfunction. Keywords functionalism, collective action, eufunction, dysfunction, crowds, social movements, revolutions, R. K. Merton, T. Parsons

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本文實證探討黃金期貨報酬率的特性並在標的黃金期貨價格遵循狀態轉換跳躍擴散過程時實現美式選擇權之評價。在這樣的動態過程下，跳躍事件被一個複合普瓦松過程與對數常態跳躍振幅所描述，以及狀態轉換到達強度是由一個其狀態代表經濟狀態的隱藏馬可夫鏈所捕捉。考量不同的跳躍風險假設，我們使用Merton測度與Esscher轉換推導出在一個不完全市場設定下的風險中立黃金期貨價格動態過程。為了達到所需的精確度，最小平方蒙地卡羅法被用來近似美式黃金期貨選擇權的價值。基於實際市場資料，我們提供實證與數值結果來說明這個動態模型的優點。 / This dissertation empirically investigates the characteristics of gold futures returns and achieves the valuation of American-style options when the underlying gold futures price follows a regime-switching jump-diffusion process. Under such dynamics, the jump events are described as a compound Poisson process with a log-normal jump amplitude, and the regime-switching arrival intensity is captured by a hidden Markov chain whose states represent the economic states. Considering the different jump risk assumptions, we use the Merton measure and Esscher transform to derive risk-neutral gold futures price dynamics under an incomplete market setting. To achieve a desired accuracy level, the least-squares Monte Carlo method is used to approximate the values of American gold futures options. Our empirical and numerical results based on actual market data are provided to illustrate the advantages of this dynamic model.

Cette thèse traite des phénomènes liés aux mathématiques financières et économiques. Elle est composée de deux sujets de recherche indépendants. La première partie est consacrée à deux contributions au problème de Merton. Pour commencer, nous étudions le problème de l’investissement optimal et de la consommation de Merton dans le cas de marchés discrets dans un horizon infini. Nous supposons qu’il y a des frictions sur les marchés en raison de la perte due aux échanges financières. Ces frictions sont modélisées par des fonctions de pénalités non linéaires où les modèles classiques de coût de transactions étudiés par Magill et Constantinides [31] et les marchés illiquides étudiés par Cetin, Jarrow et Protter dans [6] sont inclus dans cette formulation. Dans ce contexte, la région de solvabilité est définie en tenant compte de cette fonction de pénalité et chaque investisseur doit maximiser son utilité, dérivée de la consommation. Nous donnons la programmation dynamique du modèle et nous prouvons l’existence et l’unicité de la fonction valeur. Des stratégies optimales d’investissement et de consommation sont également construites. Ensuite, nous étendons le modèle de Merton à un problème à plusieurs investisseurs. Notre approche consiste à construire un modèle d’équilibre général déterministe dynamique. Nous prouvons ensuite l’existence d’un équilibre du problème qui est un ensemble de contrôles composés de processus de consommation et de portefeuille, ainsi que les processus de prix qui en découlent afin que la politique de consommation de chaque investisseur maximise son profil. Les résultats obtenus dans cette partie étendent principalement les résultats récemment obtenus par Chebbi et Soner [10] ainsi qu’aux d’autres résultats obtenus dans ce cadre dans la littérature. Dans la deuxième partie, nous traitons le problème de l’existence d’un équilibre d’une économie de production avec des ensembles d’allocations réalisables non-bornés où les consommateurs peuvent avoir des préférences non-transitives non-complètes. Nous introduisons une propriété asymptotique sur les préférences pour les consommations réalisables afin de prouver l’existence d’un équilibre. Nous montrons que cette condition est vraie lorsque l’ensemble des allocations réalisables est compact ou aussi lorsque les préférences sont représentées par des fonctions d’utilité dans le cas où l’ensemble des niveaux d’utilité rationnels individuels réalisables est compact. Cette hypothèse généralise la condition de CPP de Allouch [1] et couvre l’exemple de Page et al. [40] lorsque les niveaux d’utilité disponibles définis ne sont pas compacts. Nous étendons donc les résultats existants dans la littérature avec des ensembles réalisables non bornés de deux façons en ajoutant la production et en prenant en compte des préférences générales. / This PhD dissertation studies two independent research topics dealing with phenomena issues from financial and economic mathematics.This thesis is organized in two parts. The first part is devoted to two contributions tothe Merton problem. First, we investigate the problem of optimal investment and consumption of Merton in the case of discrete markets in an infinite horizon. We suppose that there is frictions in the markets due to loss in trading. These frictions are modeled through nonlinear penalty functions and the classical transaction cost studied by Magill and Constantinides in [31] and illiquidity models studied by Cetin, Jarrow and Protter in [6] are included in this formulation. In this context, the solvency region is defined taking into account this penalty function and every investigator have to maximize his utility, that is derived from consumption, in this region. We give the dynamic programming ofthe model and we prove the existence and uniqueness of the value function. Optimalinvestment and consumption strategies are constructed as well. We second extend the Merton model to a multi-investors problem. Our approach is to construct a dynamic deterministic general equilibrium model. We then provide the existence of equilibrium of the problem which is a set of controls that is composed of consumption and portfolio processes, as well as the resulting price processes so that each investor’s consumption policy maximizes his lifetime expected. The results obtained in this part extends mainly the results recently obtained by Chebbi and Soner [10] and other corresponding results in the litterature.The second part of this thesis deals with the problem of the existence of an equilibrium of a production economy with unbounded attainable allocations sets where the consumers may have non-complete non-transitive preferences. We introduce an asymptotic property on preferences for the attainable consumptions in order to prove the existence of an equilibrium. We show that this condition holds true if the set of attainable allocations is compact or, when preferences are representable by utility functions, if the set of attainable individually rational utility levels is compact. This assumption generalizes the CPP condition of Allouch [1] and covers the example of Page et al. [40] when the attainable utility levels set is not compact. So we extend the previous existence results with unbounded attainable sets in two ways by adding a production sector and considering general preferences.

Optioner säljs och köps idag flitigt av många olika anledningar. En av dessa kan vara spekulation kring framtida händelser för aktiepriser där optioner har fördelar jämfört med aktier i form av en hävstångseffekt. En annan anledning för optionshandel är för att hedga (säkra) risker vilket ställer krav på att innehavet av optionen ska kompensera den negativa effekt som riskerna bidrar till. Med andra ord, om det finns en risk för ett negativt framtida scenario som man inte vill riskera att utsätta sig för så kan optioner vara rätt verktyg att använda sig av.   Risker finns idag överallt, i olika former, vilket har bidragit till att efterfrågan av optioner har ökat enormt de senaste årtiondena. Dock kan risker vara både komplexa och varierande vilket har lett till att mer komplexa optioner har utvecklats för att mätta den efterfrågan som utvecklats på marknaden. Dessa, mer komplexa optioner, kallas exotiska optioner och de skiljer sig från de vanliga europeiska och amerikanska köp- och säljoptionerna. Däribland hittar vi bland annat lookback-optioner i form av bland annat köpoptioner på maximum och kvantiloptioner vilka är två av de huvudsakliga optionerna som diskuteras i uppsatsen.   Det har länge varit känt hur man prissätter europeiska köp- och säljoptioner via Black-Scholes-Mertons modell men desto fler komplexa optioner som tillkommer på marknaden desto mer komplicerade prissättningsmodeller utvecklas. Till skillnad från europeiska köp- och säljoptioner vars utdelning beror på aktiepriset på lösendagen så är lookback-optioner beroende av aktieprisets rörelse under hela kontraktstiden. Detta medför att prissättningen av dessa beror av fler parametrar än i Black-Scholes-Mertons modell, bland annat ockupationstiden för den stokastiska process som beskriver aktiepriset, vilket bidrar till andra prissättningsmodeller.   Uppsatsen har som syfte att redogöra för modellen som används vid prissättningen av kvantiloptioner samt presentera hur deras egenskaper förhåller sig till andra typer av lookback-optioners egenskaper. Det presenteras i rapporten att kvantiloptioner liknar vissa typer av lookback-optioner, mer bestämt köpoptioner på maximum, och att kvantiloptioners egenskaper faktiskt konvergerar mot köpoptioner på maximums egenskaper då kvantilen närmar sig 1. Utifrån detta resonemang så kan det finnas fördelar i att använda kvantiloptioner snarare än köpoptioner på maximum vilket investerare bör ta i hänsyn när, och om, kvantiloptioner introduceras på marknaden. / Options are today used by investors for multiple reasons. One of these are speculation about future market movements, here ownership of options is advantageous over usual ownership of shares in the underlying stock in terms of a leverage effect. Furthermore, investors use options to hedge different kinds of risks that they are exposed to, this demands that the option compensates the possible negative effect that the risk brings to the table. In other words, if there is a risk of a future negative scenario which the investor is risk averse to, then owning specific options which neutralize this risk could be the perfect tool to use.   Risks are today seen all over the market in different shapes which have created a great demand for options over the last decades. However, since risks can be both complex and range over multiple business areas, investors have demanded more complex options which can neutralize the risk exposures. These, more complex options, are called exotic options, and they differ from the regular American and European options in the way they behave with respect to the underlying stock. Amongst these exotic options, we can find different kind of lookback options as well as quantile options which are two of the main options that are discussed in this thesis.   It has been known for a while how to price European call and put options by the Black-Scholes-Merton model. However, with more complex options also comes more complex pricing models and unlike the European options’ payoff which depend on the underlying stock price at time of maturity, the lookback option’s and quantile option’s payoff depend on the stock price movement over the total life span of the option contract. Hence, the pricing of these options depends on more variables than the classic Black-Scholes-Merton model include. One of these variables is the occupation time of the stochastic process which describes the stock price movement, this leads to a more complex and extensive pricing model than the general Black-Scholes-Merton’s model.   The objective of this thesis is to derive the pricing model that is used for quantile options and prove that the properties of quantile options are advantageous when compared to some specific lookback options, viz. call options on maximum.  It is concluded in the thesis that quantile options in fact converges to the call option on maximum for quantiles approaching 1. However, quantile options come with some different properties which potentially makes them a good substitute for the call option on maximum. This is a relevant factor for investors to consider when, and if, quantile options are introduced to the market.

本論文在引介並評析德國社會學家諾爾紐曼（Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann）的「沉默 螺旋論」（the Theory of the Spiral of Silence ）。全文凡五萬餘字，共分六章 、廿三節，各章大要如次： 第一章，緒論：說明本研究動機，臚列研究問題，並略述研究方法和限制。 第二章，螺旋論：介紹此理論的概念和變項，在民意、傳播與社會理論領域所衍生的 假設及主要代表模式；界定應用範圍並依理論特質予以定位；摘要諾氏檢驗此理論所 作的研究。 第三章，沉默螺旋論溯源：據諾氏對此理論由來的說明並藉墨頓（R.K.Merton）研究 社會學理論史的方法，來追溯螺旋論的源流。 第四章，沉默螺旋之沉默與迴響：摘要其他學者所作的有關研究；分別述析此理論引 起的共鳴、所面臨的挑戰以及諾氏的回應。 第五章，沉默螺旋「典範」：簡介孔思（Thomass Kunn）的自然科學沿革結構；比較沉默螺旋論發展歷程與此結構之異同；沉默螺旋論 蔚為典範之理由。 第六章，結論：以科學哲學的角度總評沉默螺旋論之得失；建議未來研究的方向。

台灣股市正走向法人時代，共同基金的重要性無庸置疑。可是台灣的共同基金市場存在著「市場封閉」、「資訊不公開」、「透明度不足」的問題，使得一般投資人在選擇基金時顯得無所適從。近來基金績效評估的研究逐漸受到重視，但是普遍未對評估方法的本身及方法間的演變過程有所了解，本研究藉由對各評估方法的深入探討及實證主題的層層闡釋，來找出一套評估方法的適用規則。 以下是歸納的研究過程與結論﹕（一）評估整體績效的各種方法﹕一般來說，若是投資人投資於多個基金，以Treynor指標來評估共同基金的績效比較合適。若投資人將其資金全部投入單一基金，則Sharpe指標原則上較能代表共同基金的營運績效。若希望與大盤績效做比較，則採用Jensen指標。在實證主題一的驗證中，利用模擬(simulation)的方法來研究第一階段三個經風險調整的重要模型Sharpe指標、Treynor指標、Jensen指標與基金累積報酬率(未經風險調整)在大多頭、大空頭市場下對基金績效的正確區別能力，發現四者對於異常績效的區別能力上其實非常類似，且整體而言區別能力都隨著異常報酬率預設值提高而上升。另外改變隨機抽樣的方式而以市值比大小來作為抽樣基礎，只會使各項指標的正確區別能力降低，四者結果仍然很接近。（二）衡量基金擇時選股能力的各種方法﹕可觀察基金經理人的內涵，當市場走「個股行情」或是市場走勢明確時，投資於選股能力佳的基金會有較佳的獲利情形。相反地，當市場多空看法分歧，個股走勢已脫離基本面而為市場大勢所左右時，投資於擇時能力佳的基金會有較佳的獲利情形。在實證主題二的前半部，利用Henriksson & Merton(1981)的模型針對台灣資料作實證研究，發現台灣的基金部分有選股能力卻完全沒有擇時能力。接著檢定模型殘差項，發現「有效性(efficiency)和一致性(consistency)」並未達成。此外參考了Jagannathan & Korajczyk(1986)對HM的批評而加入了非線性因素於HM模型中，重新對基金作擇時能力估計。在實證主題二的後半部，考慮了「二次方項」的市場因素之後，在同樣的資料下，基金擇時能力提昇了不少，只是在殘差項檢定上仍然存在異質變異數的情形。（三）評估持股比率變動的各種方法﹕本階段評估方法的起始概念都在計算持股比率與個股報酬率之間的相關性來判斷基金績效。愈晚近的模型不斷地改善早期模型的偏誤，像是「向下偏誤」(downward bias)與「存活性偏誤」(survivorship bias)、甚至異常報酬率的發生因素。然而本文並未對「評估持股比率變動的各種方法」作實證主題研究，因為直接代入數據作複雜運算、而不去考慮基金操作上的種種交易成本，將有可能發生倒置的結果，尤其在這個投信高度競爭的時代，手續費、管理費用不斷地有變化，不去考慮這個因素會非常冒險。 章節目錄 第壹章 緒論……………………………………………………… 1 第一節 研究動機、研究目的………………………………. 1 第二節 研究範圍……………………………………………. 4 第三節 研究架構……………………………………………. 4 第貳章 國內共同基金市場分析………………………………… 6 第一節 國內證券投資信託事業(SITE)…………………….. 6 第二節 投信事業的產品---共同基金………………………. 9 第三節 基金市場現狀說明…………………………………. 14 第參章 評估整體績效的各種方法……………………………… 17 第一節 單因素評估法………………………………………. 17 第二節 兩因素評估法………………………………………. 17 第三節 對整體績效評估法的看法…………………………. 26 第肆章 評估基金擇時選股能力的各種方法…………………… 35 第一節 分析投資組合的績效來源…………………………. 36 第二節 UD(Up-Down)模式…………………………………. 43 第三節 隨機變數(stochastic variable)模式………………….52 第伍章 評估持股比率變動的各種方法………………………… 65 第一節 早期觀察持股明細的模型…………………………. 65 第二節 近期觀察持股比率變動的模型……………………. 71 第陸章 實證主題設計…………………………………………… 80 第一節 實證主題內容………………………………………. 81 第二節 資料蒐集、樣本與相關變數的定義………………. 82 第三節 實證主題一的驗證…………………………………. 86 第四節 實證主題二的探討…………………………………. 98 第柒章 結論與建議……………………………………………… 116 第一節 結論…………………………………………………. 116 第二節 建議…………………………………………………. 119 參考文獻………………………………………………………….. 122

Credit risk measurement and management has great importance in credit market. Credit derivative products are the major hedging instruments in this market and credit default swap contracts (CDSs) are the most common type of these instruments. As observed in credit crunch (credit crisis) that has started from the United States and expanded all over the world, especially crisis of Iceland, CDS premiums (prices) are better indicative of credit risk than credit ratings. Therefore, CDSs are important indicators for credit risk of an obligor and thus these products should be understood by market participants well enough. In this thesis, initially, advanced credit risk models firsts, the structural (firm value) models, Merton Model and Black-Cox constant barrier model, and the intensity-based (reduced-form) models, Jarrow-Turnbull and Cox models, are studied. For each credit risk model studied, survival probabilities are calculated. After explaining the basic structure of a single name CDS contract, by the help of the general pricing formula of CDS that result from the equality of in and out cash flows of these contracts, CDS price for each structural models (Merton model and Black-Cox constant barrier model) and CDS price for general type of intensity based models are obtained. Before the conclusion, default intensities are obtained from the distribution functions of default under two basic structural models / Merton and Black-Cox constant barrier. Finally, we conclude our work with some inferences and proposals.

New Zealand expatriate artists working in England, Europe and North Africa in the early twentieth century painted a wide variety of market scenes. The subject features in the oeuvre of Frances Hodgkins, Maud Sherwood, Sydney Lough Thompson, Maude Burge, Owen Merton, Robert Procter and John Weeks and made a significant contribution to their artistic development. Like their contemporaries in the artists’ colonies and sketching grounds of England and Europe, New Zealand artists were often drawn to traditional rural and fishing villages and sought to capture the nostalgia of the ‘old world.’ Early exploratory works by New Zealand expatriates have often been dismissed merely as nostalgic visions of colonials, without any real artistic merit. This research offers a re-evaluation of these works, recognising their value as transitional works which illustrate New Zealand expatriate artists experimenting with early modernist trends, as well as revealing prevalent contemporary tastes among the New Zealand public. This study offers a comprehensive examination of the market theme and highlights the aspirations and achievements of New Zealand expatriate artists. This is reflected in both their choice of subjects and in the way in which these were depicted. A key finding of this research is that New Zealand expatriate artists developed a distinctive response towards the market subject. The vibrant atmosphere and activity of the market and colourful views of canvas booths, awnings and costume provided the perfect means of expression for these artists to explore a variety of painterly concerns and techniques, among them plein-air and impressionist painting, watercolour techniques and a modern treatment of colour and light. The hypothesis of a ‘female gaze’ is explored with specific reference to depiction of the market subjects by Frances Hodgkins and Maud Sherwood. Placed within a wider art historical context of images of female market vendors, their market works offer an original interpretation of the female milieu of the European market. Finally, the expatriates’ vision of the exotic and colourful markets in North Africa and Egypt is investigated. They offered an alternative response to more traditional Orientalist interpretations and their Maghrebian explorations were the catalyst for key stylistic developments in colour and form.