The Tobin tax is a solution proposed by many economists for limiting the speculation in foreign exchange and stock markets and for making these markets stabler. In this paper we present a study on the effects of a transaction tax on one and on two related markets, using an artificial financial market based on heterogeneous agents. The microstructure of the market is composed of four kinds of traders: random traders, fundamentalists, momentum traders and contrarians, and the resources allocated to them are limited. In each market it is possible to levy a transaction tax. In the case of two markets, each trader can choose in which market to trade, and an attraction function is defined that drives their choice based on perceived profitability. We performed extensive simulations and found that the tax actually increases volatility and decreases trading volumes. These findings are discussed in the paper

No abstract

The use of teledermatology in primary care has been shown to be reliable, offering the possibility of improving access to dermatological care by using telecommunication technologies to connect several medical centers and enable the exchange of information about skin conditions over long distances. This paper describes the main points of a teledermatology project that we have implemented to promote and facilitate the diagnosis of skin diseases and improve the quality of care for rural and remote areas. Moreover, we present a blockchain-based approach which aims to add new functionalities to an innovative teledermatology platform which we developed and tested in the Sardinian Region (Italy). These functionalities include giving the patient complete access to his/her medical records while maintaining security. Finally, the advantages that this new decentralized system can provide for patients and specialists are presented.

Abstract. Job satisfaction has been studied by economists and psychologists. We believe this factor is very important in that it influences the effectiveness of the software development process. This paper reports the first results of a comparative analytic study on the job satisfaction of developers that use XP practices and others that do not use XP practices. By determining the factors that are highly valued by developers, the research can provide insight in currently practised software development processes, and help make changes that increase their strategic value.

No abstract

No abstract

Nowadays, Scrum is the most used Agile Methodology, while the Lean-Kanban approach is perhaps the fastest growing AM.\ud On the other hand, traditional, waterfall-like approaches are still very used in real-life software projects, due to the ease of up-front planning and budgeting, that however are seldom matched upon project completion.\ud In our opinion, more effort is needed to study and model the inner structure and behavior of these approaches,\ud highlighting positive and negative feedback loops that are strategic to understand their features, and to decide on their adoption.\ud In this paper we analyze the dynamic behavior of the adoption of Kanban and Scrum, versus a traditional software\ud development process such as the Waterfall approach.\ud We use a system dynamics model, based on the relationships between system variables, to assess the relative benefits of the studied approaches. The model is simulated using a commercial tool.\ud The proposed model visualizes the relationships among these software development processes, and can be used to study their relative advantages and disadvantages

In this paper we present a blockchain based system for the supply chain management of a typical Italian bread. Goal of the system is to guarantee a transparent and auditable traceability of the Carasau bread in such a way that each actor of the supply chain can verify the quality of the products and the conformity to the normative about the hygienic-sanitary conditions along the chain. To realize this system we relied on the Blockchain and the Internet of Thing technologies in order to provide a trustless environment, in which trust is placed in cryptography, in mathematical operations and on the network, and not in public or private companies. Thanks to the use of digital technologies the system aims to reduce the data entry errors and the risk of tampering. Our system is designed in such a way that, along the supply chain, the nodes equipped with several sensors directly communicate their data to Raspberry Pi units that elaborate and transmit them to Interplanetary File System and to the Ethereum Blockchain. Furthermore, we designed ad hoc Radio Frequency Identification and Near Field communication tags to shortly supply the proposed system with information about the products and batches. The system will easily allow end consumers to have a transparent view on the whole journey from raw material to purchased final product and a supervisory authority to perform online inspections on the products' quality and on the good working practices.