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Publication Defining and Designing an Ethical Approach to Generative Artificial Intelligence in Text-to-Image Modeling(2024) Goodman, DrakeThis paper addresses the ethical concerns that generative artificial intelligence (AI) in text-to-image modeling poses, specifically in protecting social equality and against discrimination. It first defines AI and explains the focus on generative AI. It then discusses the emergence of generative AI modeling, as well as prominent players in the generative AI text-to-image space. After explaining different ethical questions that have arisen in response to the rapid deployment of the technology, this paper establishes an ethical claim for why AI developers need to design these models to protect social equality and reduce stereotypes. This occurs in two ways. The first is explaining how the biases and stereotypes present in generative AI differ from the world before this technology existed. The second is establishing why amplifying stereotypes and biases is wrong, as well as why generative AI developers specifically have a moral obligation to protect social equality.Publication The Neurodegenerative Effects of Occupational Blasts on Military and Law Enforcement Personnel(2024) Roberto LemusThis paper gives a thorough analysis of current and past research on the neurodegenerative effects of blast overpressure on military and law enforcement personnel. Chronic neurodegenerative disease has historically been studied among sports such as football and boxing, leading to both pathological and symptomatological findings that have been used as diagnosis tools. The start of war in the Middle East led to a discovery in the same pathological and symptomatological discoveries in military settings. Blast overpressure waves are suspected to be the catalyst attributing to these findings, produced through occupational factors such as weapons. The research analyzed in this paper is used to give a concluding set of general guidelines for prevention practices that can be applied to military and law enforcement training settings. The use of brain proteins as a diagnostic tool for chronic neurodegenerative diseases like CTE is discussed.Publication Proptech and Housing: A Solution to the Affordability Crisis?(2024) Steinberg, HaileyRental home affordability is a growing concern across the United States, perpetuating secondary issues of homelessness and food insecurity. Despite many policy interventions aimed at promoting affordable housing, rising costs far outpace the current solutions. Previous research has explored the relationship between modular construction methods and cheaper construction cost. I hypothesize that, given cheaper costs, modular housing should reduce rent prices at the hyperlocal level. To test my hypothesis, I investigated the rent price per square foot for 200 homes (100 modular homes and 100 traditionally-built) across five major U.S. cities. I found that modular construction has no statistically significant impact on rent price per square foot. While modular construction may offer potential long-term benefits in terms of cost-effectiveness, the full realization of these advantages may not have happened yet. Future studies should consider a more extensive sample of homes before recommendations regarding modular construction subsidies can be made.Publication THE TWENTY-THREE TRILLION DOLLAR QUESTION: THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL WARFARE ON THE UNITED STATES AND CHINA(2023) Brotherton, Paige A.The United States has been a world power since the beginning of the twentieth century, and the world power since its defeat of the Soviet Union in the Cold War. China, meanwhile, has been on the economic and political rise for a little over thirty years, its meteoric expansion raising questions about its willingness and desire to compete with the United States. Such a conflict could take the form of a Cold War, or something much, much messier. Tension regarding Taiwan and spheres of influence in the Pacific, along with fundamentally contrasting political, economic, and social ideals, lead the world to wonder if another war between powers is brewing. However, as this paper shows, the cost would be too high—literally. The intertwined economies of both countries mean both would have too much to lose by engaging in warfare that prevents trade. This paper explores sanctions and their affects during warfare using three case studies before analyzing the situation between China and United States for consequent observations and predictions.Publication "Smells Like Team Spirit": Turnover and Team Success Through the Lens of Rock Bands(2023) DiCampli, IsabellaThis paper evaluates how well team performance can be predicted by member turnover within the team. With the increased use of teams in organizations, it is important for businesses to understand how they function, especially when one member of the team leaves. This paper investigates how member turnover affects team success, and examines if there are differences in team success following turnover depending on if the turnover is voluntary or involuntary. The methodology involves collecting characteristic information regarding tenure about a subset of musical groups and examining their group success rates with varying types of turnover using a regression analysis. Through regression, this paper finds that teams with involuntary turnover seem to have better success than teams with voluntary turnover or no turnover, but these results need to be examined further. This paper concludes that team success can somewhat be predicted by member turnover. Beyond music composition and performance, these results can be applied to any team setting, especially those experiencing some form of member turnover during their tenure.Publication Post-COVID Office Real Estate: The Effect of Working From Home and Mass Transit Reliance on Office REIT Valuations(2021-05-01) Jordan Garrett CohenUtilization of office real estate is at a tremendous inflection point. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a plethora of new trends in human behavior, including the rise of working from home (WFH) and reluctance to utilize mass transit. Through a study of REIT returns, this thesis explores the relationship between these largely COVID-induced exposures and how the market views REITs that are invested in office real estate across the United States. The study finds that REITs that are more exposed to more WFH-oriented industries and cities have actually performed better during the pandemic, contradicting the initial hypothesis. However, REITs that are more exposed to cities that rely on mass transit have performed worse during the pandemic. Both findings are statistically significant, suggesting that REIT returns have in fact been affected by exposures to these variables, only in a way that was not expected.Publication Profitability in Sports Betting: A Case Study of Men's Tennis(2023-01-01) Ciobanu, RobertThis paper evaluates the feasibility of profit generation through sports betting. While sports gambling represents a large and rapidly growing economic sector, few bettors are actually profitable and there is limited evidence of successful publicly available strategies. We investigate how such a strategy can be built for the game of men’s tennis. Our methodology for creating a strategy consists of two components. First, it includes a predictive analytics component, in which we combine a large number of observable player, match, and tournament characteristics in order to estimate the probability of either player winning the match. We study both linear and non-linear multivariate combination approaches. Second, our methodology contains a financial strategy component, in which we focus on using money allocation techniques to achieve optimal returns. Through statistical simulations and back-testing, we find that it is possible to generate positive expected profits at sustainable levels of risk, with both formal and informal strategies. Interestingly, we also establish that building a successful strategy does not necessarily require the bettor’s model to have higher predictive accuracy than the betting markets. Instead, bettors can focus on a narrow segment of matches (for example “upsets” – i.e., matches in which the lower-ranked player wins) and outperform the market in that segment alone. We conclude that sports betting can be used as a profitable investment vehicle. Beyond tennis, these techniques can be applied to most other sports, especially those for which large volumes of historical data are publicly available.Publication Addressing Mental Health at Work: Managerial Interventions to Promote Employee Utilization of Resources(2023-01-01) Korn, HunterMental health is becoming a growing crisis in the United States, with significant costs to the workplace. Despite the availability of company-sponsored mental health resources, they are often underutilized. Previous research has established that managers can improve resource usage through active promotion, and self-disclosure can play an important role in challenging stigma. However, existing research focuses on Employee Action Programs (EAPs) rather than a broader set of mental health resources, and self-disclosure literature revolves around employee self-disclosure but ignores manager self-disclosure. To address these gaps, I investigated how manager endorsement and self-disclosure influence resource utilization. I conducted interviews and a study that varied endorsement. I found that there is a relationship between managerial endorsement, perceived quality of the resource, and utilization. Study findings also point to future extensions such as conducting a cost-benefit analysis of self-disclosure, having a control condition in which mental health resources are not mentioned at all, and the effect of regular, active promotion.Publication Attrition Trends of Malaysian Education Sponsored Scholars(2023-01-01) Mohammad Razin, Noor SafiaEducation sponsorship programs have long been the solution to fill the gap in talent recruitment of high-potential individuals by both public and private organizations in Malaysia. As good talent and people management play a crucial component in driving performance, there is good reason for organizations to invest in the education of promising leaders. However, successful retention of scholars in these programs can depend on several factors, including proper talent management. This study investigates the various factors contributing to the likelihood of attrition among scholars and their general sentiment toward these programs. Data was collected through a survey and interviews with past scholars who had participated in education sponsorship programs. The findings suggest that ethnic background influences attrition rates in government-sponsored programs, as Malay scholars receive preferential treatment. However, this population also benefits from more opportunities beyond the terms of the sponsorship contract. Additionally, scholars who perceive sponsoring agencies with good talent management have a positive sentiment toward the sponsorship program. Lastly, other variables affect the decision-making process of scholars when deciding to serve their sponsoring agreement that is beyond the sponsoring agency's control.Publication Is the Stable Preference-Based Utility Maximization a Good Account of Economic Rationality?(2023-01-01) Shirai, AyanaThis philosophical paper asks whether the economic account of rationality captures the essence of practical rationality, or what is rational for human agents to do. The paper develops an argument to show that the economic account of rationality, or an understanding of agents as rational on the condition of preference axiom fulfillment, does not capture rationality adequately. The argument comprises overinclusiveness, underinclusiveness, and high context-dependency. The paper then compares the economic account with a philosophical alternative, which is shown to overcome the problem the economic account faces. The paper concludes with responses to counterarguments and the relevance of this topic to the greater policy context.