A Conversation with James O. Ramsay

Jim Ramsay was born on September 5, 1942, in Prince George, British Columbia. He pursued undergraduate studies at the University of Alberta, where he completed a BEd in 1964 with a major in English and a minor in mathematics. He then specialized in statistics and psychometry, earning a PhD in psychology from Princeton University in 1966. After holding a temporary lectureship in the Department of Psychology at University College London for one year, he joined the Department of Psychology at McGill University, where he rose through the academic ranks. He was chair of his department from 1986 to 1989 and spent sabbatical leaves in Cambridge, Grenoble, and Toulouse. He was named professor emeritus upon his retirement in 2007. Jim is the author of four influential books and over 100 peer‐reviewed articles in statistical and psychometric journals. He developed much of the statistical theory behind multidimensional scaling and is widely recognized as the founder of functional data analysis. Three of his papers were read to the Royal Statistical Society, and another won The Canadian Journal of Statistics 2000 Best Paper Award. The Statistical Society of Canada (SSC) awarded him a Gold Medal for research in 1998 and an honorary membership in 2012. Jim was president of the Psychometric Society in 1981–82 and president of the SSC in 2002–03. The following conversation took place at Jim's home in Ottawa, Ontario, on March 14 and April 4, 2012.     

Useful measures in the field of time and dimensional rationalisation of manual training lessons

Schoolwork, especially lessons in manual skills is often associated with various ergonomics stresses. These stresses are the result not only of school obligations but also of the physical working environment and inadequate lesson planning. Much can be done in this field if certain approaches are taken into consideration at the work planning stage. Thus we can use certain analytical methods, such as the Method of Temporary Observations (Multi-Moment Method) and OWAS (a method for the evaluation of postural load during work), when positioning stressful lesson factors. This can be done in a relatively simple way in the field of time rationalisation as well as in the field of dimensional work adjustment to pupils. Research results in this paper show that by using a planned directed approach in this field, it is possible to achieve, a higher level of efficiency with normal levels of fatigue.     

Distribution of Dixon’s statistics in the case of an exponential population

Summary The distributions of Dixon’s statistics for the case of the sample from an exponential population are found. For some of these statistics the upper 100 α percentage points (α=0,1; 0,05 and 0,01) are tabulated.

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Zusammenfassung Die Verteilungen der Variablen von Dixon werden für den Fall der Stichproben aus einer exponentialen Grundgesamtheit gefunden. Für einige dieser Variablen werden die oberen 100 α Prozentpunkte (α=0,1; 0,05 und 0,01) tabelliert.

     

Mean squared error of the empirical best linear unbiased predictor in an orthogonal finite discrete spectrum linear regression model

The mean squared error (MSE) of the empirical best linear unbiased predictor in an orthogonal finite discrete spectrum linear regression model is derived and a comparison with the MSE of the best linear unbiased predictor in this model is made. It is shown that under weak conditions these two mean square errors are asymptotically the same.     

Evaluation of investment subsidies: when is deadweight zero?

In the evaluation of investment subsidies one of the critical issues concerns the assessment of deadweight, that is, the degree to which projects would have been carried out without grant assistance. With the increasing restrictions on and cuts in subsidies for investment projects in the EU countries maximisation of the impact of the public resources that remain can be achieved through their allocation for projects with minimum deadweight. This paper studies the profile of subsidised zero deadweight investment projects – projects that would be abandoned without public subsidies – in Finland. The empirical analysis is conducted using micro level data on investment projects by private sector firms. The data set comprises 3,423 projects that were granted public investment subsidies between 2001 and 2003. Our results show that the likelihood of zero deadweight is significantly dependent on the characteristics of the subsidised firm, the characteristics of the investment project and the location of the subsidised firm.     

The accomplishment of the Maastricht criteria with respect to initial debt

The reduction of government debt to 60% of the GDP in order to satisfy the requirements of the Maastricht Treaty for participation in the European Monetary Union is one of the primary economic-policy goals for most of the European Union countries. The first aim of the present paper is to characterize the optimal path of the primary surplus that leads to the achievement of this Maastricht target. Using optimal-control theory we are able to determine an upper bound of the public-debt-to-GDP ratio above which no retrenchment policy becomes effective. The second issue taken up is that of the sensitivity analysis with respect to the initial level of the debt-to-GDP ratio, the growth rate of the economy, the interest rate, the inflation rate, and the inverse of the velocity of the monetary base circulation.     

Wine Tourism as an Opportunity for Tourism Development: Examples of Good Practice in Slovenia

The authors discuss wine tourism activities in the context of general tourism development in Slovenia. The country’s winegrowing areas have developed traditionally important viticulture, a relatively intensive production of typical grape varieties and in some cases also a distinct entrepreneurial spirit, which consequently reflects in tourism and regional development, based on diverse cultural heritage and natural values. Three Slovene wine regions are divided into nine wine districts with their own identities and more or less distinct terroirs. Despite a several centuries’ long tradition and a rich wine culture, it is evident that in national tourism strategies and development plans, wine tourism still does not occupy the position that it probably deserves, although most of the documents stress its potential for local or regional development. On the other hand, the authors recognize a significant interest among winemakers and tourism professionals for strategic cooperation and systematic approach to develop wine tourism in the selected destinations. The authors therefore focus on some paradoxes and emphasize examples of good practice at the national, regional, and local levels.