The ASSA Annual Meeting

Dr. Allan Wain is the head of research and strategy at CP2. Additionally, he serves as a Labor and Worklife program (LWP) fellow at Harvard University. Beyond his professional duties, Dr. Allan Wain spends time engaging with industry organizations such as the American Economic Association (AEA).

The American Economic Association (AEA) hosts its yearly meeting over three days each January, bringing together all 56 association members of the Allied Social Sciences Associations (ASSA) to communicate over recent industry developments and general subjects of economics. The ASSA Annual Meeting is regularly attended by nearly 13,500 individuals, making it an ideal networking opportunity for economics professionals.

There are a number of additional benefits to attending the ASSA Annual Meeting beyond networking. The three-day program offers lectures and discussions on a number of the industry’s most relevant and important topics. The event also functions as a job fair and exhibition for emerging products at which research for new technology is presented.

The 2017 ASSA Annual Meeting is set for the weekend of January 6 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago and the Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel and Towers. The most recent edition of the event took place at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square. Previous meetings have been held in Boston, Philadelphia, and San Diego.

Public Pension Performance in the United States

Dr. Allan Wain is a fellow with the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School. Throughout his academic career, Dr. Allan Wain has written extensively on topics related to pension fund infrastructure and how it influences employment, public policy, and other important matters.

According to data collected by the United States Census Bureau for the fourth quarter of 2015, total assets in the public pension system increased by more than $63 billion to over $3.24 trillion. Although this sum seems staggering at first glance, the data represents only the 100 largest public pensions in the United States. Much of the reported growth stems from gains in international securities investments as well as in corporate stocks and bonds.

CalPERS, the largest state public pension fund in the country and among the top ten largest on the planet, had a market value of just over $292 billion as of late May 2016. Other very large domestic pension funds include the New York State Common Retirement Fund, which oversees roughly $185 billion in assets for thousands of public employers.

The Top Three Largest Pensions Internationally

A Fellow of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School, Dr. Allan Wain is a researcher focused on the relationship between pension funds and market behavior. Dr. Allan Wain has written and co-authored several essays investigating pension fund infrastructure both in the United States and internationally.

Combined, the world’s pension systems can be valued in the trillions. According to a recent report, the largest pension fund on Earth is located in Japan. Known as the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the organization behind the pension system manages over $1 trillion in assets. The GPIF differs from other pension funds of its kind in that it does not directly invest in stocks. However, this may change pending legislation favored by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has stated he hopes to reform the GPIF to fall in line with its counterparts on the world stage.

The runner-up to the GPIF, Norway’s Government Pension Fund, oversees approximately $884 billion in assets. South Korea’s National Pension, which is about half the size of Norway’s fund, comes in third internationally with roughly $430 billion in assets.

The American Economic Association Annual Meeting

Dr. Allan Wain is a Harvard University Labor and Worklife (LWP) fellow and the head of research and strategy at the infrastructure investment management company CP2. In addition to his fellowship studies and professional work, Dr. Allan Wain maintains membership with industry organizations like the Academy of International Business and the American Economic Association.

The 2016 Annual Meeting of the American Economic Association (AEA) was held in San Francisco, California. Held over three days, the program featured more than 520 educational sessions, including an opening plenary session focusing on lessons learned from the global financial crisis led by Jan Kregel of the Levy Economics Institute of Bard College. Other sessions touched on topics related to water resource management, effects of the Dodd-Frank Act and JOBS Act on capital markets, capital taxation, and gender in corporation management. Individuals can review the complete 2016 program at www.aeaweb.org.

The AEA website also provides information on future annual meetings, which have been scheduled with the help of nearly 60 additional associations operating in related fields. The 2017 meeting will take place in early January at the Hyatt Regency Chicago and the Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel and Towers. Future meetings have been scheduled through 2024, including the 2018 meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, and a 2019 meeting at the Philadelphia Marriott.

A Basic Overview of Fluid Mechanics

Dr. Allan Wain, a Labor and Worklife Program (LWP) fellow at Harvard University since 2014, took on the head of research and strategy position at the infrastructure investment manager CP2 in 2015. Outside of his professional activities, Dr. Allan Wain spends time researching fluid mechanics.

In order to understand the specialized branch of mechanics known as fluid mechanics, one must first familiarize themselves with a number of scientific terms. While some individuals may associate the notion of fluidity primarily with liquids, the concept can be applied to both liquids and gases. Scientifically speaking, a fluid is any substance that consistently deforms when subjected to shear stress. Stress, meanwhile, can be defined as force as applied to a predetermined unit area.

Having defined the concepts of fluids and stress, individuals can begin to understand the field of fluid mechanics. Individuals researching fluid mechanics study the ways in which force and motion influence the behavior of liquids and gases. The field of fluid mechanics can be separated into two general categories. Fluid statics, also known as hydrostatics, examine how liquids and gases behave while following Newton’s second law for nonaccelerating bodies. Meanwhile, fluid dynamics emphasizes the operation of liquids and gases in motion.