The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) abandoned the live hog futures contract (physical delivery) in December 1996 and replaced it with the lean hog futures contract (cash settlement), with the intention of improving the effectiveness of the contract as a risk management tool. This paper applies...

Prior to 1986, any opening position on feeder cattle futures contract must be settled with physical delivery after the last trading day. Due to dwindling commercial interests, Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) subsequently replaced the system with the cash settlement method. It was argued that...

Prior to 1986, any opening position on feeder cattle futures contract must be settled with physical delivery after the last trading day. Due to dwindling commercial interests, Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) subsequently replaced the system with the cash settlement method. It was argued that...

In this paper we propose a theoretical model of evaluating the economic costs and benefits of physician assisted suicide (euthanasia). The contemplation of euthanasia is modeled akin to the valuation of a real option. Our modeling of the decision shows that euthanasia is optimal when certain...

In this paper, I present a case for universal health care in the United States by arguing that government policies related to employee health care, payment system and regulation on health care insurance are the main reasons that contribute to skyrocketing cost of health care. I also argue that...

In this teaching note, I demonstrate how literal application of the Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) could lead to inconsistent performance by using data from the U.S. stock markets. The demonstration shows that it is impossible to construct a forecast of an efficient frontier by static analysis of...

Traditional finance teaching on derivatives suggests that they can be utilized to reduce portfolio and market risk. Such outcome hinges on the assumption that derivatives are used as risk management tools and there is at least one true hedger in the transaction. In the absence of hedgers,...