Description: The objectives of this paper are: 1. To show why scientific laws of mortality are preferable to the continued use of graduation techniques on mortality tables. 2. To develop a new theory leading to a new mathematical law of mortality that reduces to Gompertz's law as a first approximation. 3. To demonstrate an understanding of select mortality and produce a simple formula that is reasonably consistent with it. 4. To develop methods to test this and other similar formulas on various bodies of data to establish their validity and usefulness. 5. To discuss the meaning of the results and provide some examples of the use of the formula for purposes other than graduation. 6. To discuss extensions of the models. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1980, Vol. 32.

Description: This paper summarizes default experience on bonds from 1900 through 1987. Although the information is more extensive for publicly traded bonds, the paper includes some information on private placements, some of which is not otherwise available.

Description: This session from the 1984 SOA Toronto Meeting focuses on non-traditional employment for actuaries. From Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 10, No. 4B

Description: This paper presents the theory of immunization of investments to changes in interest rates and provides an extensive series of examples and formulas used in its implementation. Also presents some implications for investment behavior, product development, interest assumptions, valuation and adjusted earnings. Discussions of this paper are included.

Description: In this session 93PD of the 1998 New York Annual Meeting panelists discuss three levels of protection available to bank depositors and insurance purchasers in the United States. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 24, No. 3.

Description: This article discusses that over the past five years, an increasing number of actuaries have become concerned with the asset side of the balance sheet.

Description: The panel discusses the cost feasibility of a large scale computer being shared by a group of smaller companies, applications found for medium sized computers and the extent companies are using deck size electronic computers. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1959, Vol. 11, No. 29 AB.

Description: This article describes activities of the Board of Governors to strengthen the role of research within the SOA. The Board actions include approving two additional professional staff positions for the Research Department and including $150,000 in a Research Development Fund to serve as seed money for research projects.

Description: Discusses cost-benefit decision-making for acquiring electronic data-processing equipment and installation issues, ability of small companies to compete in pension trust arena, effectiveness of various agency compensation programs in stimulating sales and improving persistency, success of sales to substandard risks and rating methods, and pricing, reinsurance and experience with individual hospital and medical policies.

Description: This article highlights the research projects under review by the Research Policy Committee. It also invites submission of other projects with the caveat that ideas submitted without an offer of partial or complete funding will have a lower priority level.