Call for Contributions to ERCIM News News No. 78 (July 2009)

DEADLINE FOR CONTRIBUTIONS: Tuesday 19 May 2009

  • Articles have to be sent to the local editor for your country (see http://ercim-news.ercim.org/content/view/7/16/) or to the central editor This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
  • Please read the guidelines before submitting an article

The sections of ERCIM News 78 are :

  • Joint ERCIM Actions
  • The European Scene
  • Special Theme: "Mathematics for Finance and Economics"
  • R&D and Technology Transfer
  • Events
  • In Brief

Special Theme: "Mathematics for Finance and Economics"

Coordinated by:
Ralf Korn, Fraunhofer ITWM Kaiserslautern and University of Kaiserslautern

The impact of mathematical modelling and numerical methods on the computation of prices and the design of products on the financial and the insurance industry is enormous. Without those mathematical tools the modern stock markets would not be viable. On the other hand, the invention and design of new complex products on both the financial and the insurance side often propose formidable challenges for mathematicians when it comes to the tasks of pricing and hedging them.

Further, problems of society such as growing pension payments due to longevity call for new mathematical models and methods. And finally, the current credit and financial crisis has demonstrated that risk measurement and management methods have to be further developed and implemented.

This ERCIM News special theme invites short articles on new models, mathematical methods and applications in finance, insurance and quantitative economic modelling.

Some potential topics are:

  • new Monte Carlo methods for finance, insurance and economics
  • algorithmic improvements for standard financial and economics problems
  • pricing of (exotic) options
  • risk management
  • asset-liability-management
  • aspects of efficient computation of risk measures
  • mathematical modelling of longevity
  • Pension modelling, life-cycle asset allocation and variable annuities
  • recent models for stock prices, interest rates, mortality, etc.
  • mathematics of solvency II
  • portfolio optimization
  • credit rating and credit risk.

Suggestions from other areas of application of mathematics in finance and economics are also welcome !

Reviewing:
Articles submitted to the special theme are subject to a review process.

Guidelines for ERCIM News articles

Style: ERCIM News is read by a large variety of people. Keeping this in mind the article should be descriptive (emphasize more the 'what' than the 'how') without too much technical detail together with an illustration, if possible.

Contributions in ERCIM News are normally presented without formulas. One can get a long way with careful phrasing, although it is not always wise to avoid formulas altogether. In cases where authors feel that the use of formulas is necessary to clarify matters, this should be done in a separate box (to be treated as an illustration). However, formulas and symbols scattered through the text must be avoided as much as possible.

Length: Keep the article short, i.e. 700-800 words.

Format: Submissions preferably in ASCII text or MS Word. Pictures/Illustrations must be submitted as separate files (not embedded in a MS Word file) in a resolution/quality suitable for printing.

Structure of the article:
The emphasis in ERCIM News is on 'NEWS'. This should be reflected in both title and lead ('teaser').
Also: NO REVIEW ARTICLES!

  • Title
  • Author (full name, max. two or three authors)
  • Teaser:
    a few words about the project/topic. Printed in bold face, this part is intended to raise interest. (keep it short)
  • Details describing:
    what the project/product is
    who is involved
    where it takes place
    why the research is being done
    when it was started/completed the aim of the project
    the techniques employed
    the orientation of the project
    future activities
    other institutes involved in this project
    co-operation with other ERCIM members in this field
  • Useful Link(s) (only URIs, no references!)
  • Contact address with:
    - full name of the author
    - phone number
    - e-mail address
  • Additional items:
    aillustrationn (photos, graphics), for example of the product, applications mentioned in the article, people working on the project, etc. (avoid as much as possible flow charts and screen dumps).

Publishing in ERCIM News offers several advantages:

  • ERCIM News represents an excellent opportunity to present your research to a broad audience, also outside your own research community
    • the printed edition has a circulation of 10,000 copies
    • the online edition has excellent visibility with a Google ranking of PR8
  • ERCIM News is widely distributed in the European Commission
  • ERCIM offers a free professional proof-reading service
  • Authors can reuse their articles; the copyright of the articles remains with the authors.