12,933 research outputs found
Gains from trade liberalization with imperfectly competitive world markets. A note.
No full textThe paper shows how analyses assuming perfect competition can yield a distorted estimation of the expected effects of a trade liberalization when market imperfections exist. The analytical framework adopted is very simple and three extreme imperfect market structures are considered. In the first case, the exporting country maximizes its producer and consumer surplus by intervening in the world market. The second market imperfection considered is the existence of a private firm playing the role of "pure middleman" in the world market. Then the case of a producer-owned marketing board which is granted exclusive export authority is addressed. It is shown that estimates of the impact of a tariff reduction in terms of prices and volume traded obtained assuming perfect competition when this postulate does not hold, are distorted. When domestic demand and supply functions are assumed to be linear, the impact is overestimated; a ranking of the size of such distortions in the three cases analyzed is provided. When no restriction is imposed on the demand and supply functions, the error in the estimated impact of a tariff reduction involves the magnitude as well as the sign of the expected changes in prices and volume traded. Finally, it is proved that when a private firm exerts monopoly and monopsony power in the world market, both the importing and the exporting countries may well be better off if, rather than making a move towards trade liberalization, the importing country "compensates" the exporting country by means of a direct transfer. El artÃculo muestra cómo los análisis que incorporan el supuesto de competencia perfecta pueden proporcionar una estimación distorsionada de los efectos esperados de una liberación del comercio en presencia de imperfecciones de mercado . Adoptando un marco analÃtico muy sencillo, se consideran tres casos extremos de imperfecciones de mercado. En el primero, el paÃs exportador maximiza los excedentes del productor y consumidor interviniendo en el mercado mundial. El segundo es el caso de una empresa privada que desempeña en el mercado mundial un papel de "intermediario puro". El último trata de una junta de comercialización, propiedad de productores que han conseguido derechos exclusivos de exportación. En este trabajo se demuestra la existencia de una desviación de las estimaciones del impacto de una reducción de aranceles sobre los precios y el volumen comercializado cuando en el análisis se supone competencia perfecta y dicho supuesto no se cumple. Además si las funciones de demanda y oferta domésticas son lineales, el impacto precedente queda sobreestimado. Asimismo, en el trabajo se presenta una ordenación de la magnitud de dichas desviaciones para cada uno de los tres casos analizados. Cuando no se impone ninguna restricción sobre las funciones de demanda y oferta, el error de estimación afecta tanto a la magnitud como al signo de los cambios esperados en precios y volumen comercializado, como consecuencia de una reducción de aranceles. Finalmente, se demuestra que, cuando una empresa privada ejerce un poder de monopolio y de monopsonio en el mercado mundial, tanto los paÃses importadores como los exportadores pueden beneficiarse si, en lugar de inclinarse hacia la liberalización del comercio, el paÃs importador "compensa" al paÃs exportador mediante una transferencia directa. Palabras clave: liberalización del comercio; mercados imperfectos; monopolio; monopsonio; junta de comercialización.trade liberalization, imperfect markets, monopoly, monopsony, marketing board, International Relations/Trade, F12, F13, Q17, Q18,
Letter: Treatment Options for Hydrocephalus Following Foramen Magnum Decompression for Chiari I Malformation: A Multicenter Study
No full textMABS validation through repeated execution and data mining analysis
No full textAgent Based Modelling is the most interesting and advanced approach for simulating a complex system: in a social context, the single parts and the whole are often very hard to describe in detail. Besides, there are agent based formalisms which allow to study the emergency of social behaviour with the creation and study of models, known as artificial societies. Thanks to the ever increasing computational power, it's been possible to use such models to create software, based on intelligent agents, which aggregate behaviour is complex and difficult to predict, and can be used in open and distributed systems. Data mining is born in the last decades in order to help users in finding useful knowledge from the otherwise overwhelming amount of data available nowadays from the web and the data collected every day by companies. Data Mining techniques can therefore be the keystone to reveal non-trivial knowledge expressed by the initial assumption used to build the micro-level of the model and the structure of the society of agents that emerged from the simulation
Achieving Efficient District Heating Targets in a Croatian Network: Heat Source Mapping and Techno-Economic Scenarios Analysis
No full textThis study presents a replicable methodological framework for supporting the decarbonization of district heating (DH) systems, addressing both technical and economic aspects. The approach integrates spatial mapping of renewable energy sources (RES) and waste heat (WH), pre-screening of individual technologies through parametric analyses, and hourly aggregated simulation of decarbonization scenarios. The pre-screening step helps identify promising technologies early on and reduces the number of scenario simulations needed. The aggregated model accounts for temperature-dependent heat losses and dispatch priorities, and is calibrated using real operational data to ensure accurate performance representation. The methodology combines source mapping, technology economic evaluation, and scenario simulation in a structured workflow designed to support early-stage planning and local decision-making in line with the desired decarbonization targets. The methodology is applied to the DH network of Vukovar in Croatia, which is currently reliant on natural gas and features a 3% solar thermal contribution. In 2023, the total heat production of the network amounted to 12.7 GWh. RES and WH options—such as river water, air-source and shallow geothermal heat pumps, supermarket waste heat, and solar thermal—are assessed based on local availability and expected performance. Among the scenarios investigated, the one combining an extension of the solar field size up to 3000 m2, a 1.25 MW river-source heat pump, and a 5 MWh thermal storage unit emerged as the most cost-effective solution capable of achieving the target of a 50% RES + WH share—aligned with the 2035 European definition of Efficient District Heating and Cooling. This scenario also proves to be economically competitive, with a Levelized Cost of Heat (LCOH) below the current district heating tariff
Facades of the Libreria di San Marco in Venice, The: An Interpretation of the Design Process
No full text"A new work in which I propose an interpretation of the design process Sansovino used to create the magnificent facades of the Libreria di San Marco in Venice, a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture." Sent to Marquand librarian by author Dec. 202
La rappresentazione dell’Armenia negli Ašxarhac‘oyc‘. Alcune osservazioni preliminari
No full textThe article presents some preliminary observations on the way Armenia is
represented in the Geographies (Ašxarhac‘oyc‘) attributed to Anania Širakac‘i and Vardan
Arewelc‘i. Both these authors reserve a considerably larger space for the description of
Armenia than for that of other countries. However, they convey radically different
information about Armenia. In addition to showing the physical aspects of the territory
(orography and hydrography) and the anthropic presence (fortresses, cities, villages), Anania
Širakac‘i describes the regions he is dealing with by mentioning the flora and fauna that
characterize them, and is attentive to the products of the soil and subsoil, only rarely
indulging in reporting news of a political nature and even less in giving information of a
cultural or religious nature. On the other hand, Vardan Arewelc‘i’s Geography does not provide
any information regarding the plants, animals and products that can be found in the regions it
deals with, and only to a very limited extent alludes to the political geography of the territory.
In general, it can be said that it rather aims to outline a historical-religious geography, which
unites space and time, mentioning monasteries and relics that are kept there, and evoking
episodes related to their history and to the religious history of Armenia
Art without an Author: Vasari’s Lives and Michelangelo’s Death
No full textMonografia sulla rappresentazione di Michelangelo nelle due edizioni delle Vite, sulla storia del libro e la questione della sua paternitàBook dedicated to the representation of Michelangelo in Vasari's Lives of the Artists, to the history of the book, and to the problem of its authorshi
Thyroid function in childhood obesity and metabolic comorbidity
No full textChildhood obesity is a worldwide health problem and its prevalence is increasing steadily and dramatically all over the world. Obese subjects have a much greater likelihood than normal-weight children of acquiring dyslipidemia, elevated blood pressure, and impaired glucose metabolism, which significantly increase their risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Elevated TSH concentrations in association with normal or slightly elevated free T4 and/or free T3 levels have been consistently found in obese subjects, but the mechanisms underlying these thyroid hormonal changes are still unclear. Whether higher TSH in childhood obesity is adaptive, increasing metabolic rate in an attempt to reduce further weight gain, or indicates subclinical hypothyroidism or resistance and thereby contributes to lipid and/or glucose dysmetabolism, remains controversial. This review highlights current evidence on thyroid involvement in obese children and discusses the current controversy regarding the relationship between thyroid hormonal derangements and obesity-related metabolic changes (hypertension, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia and insulin resistance, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease) in such population. Moreover, the possible mechanisms linking thyroid dysfunction and pediatric obesity are reviewed. Finally, the potential role of lifestyle intervention as well as of therapy with thyroid hormone in the treatment of thyroid abnormalities in childhood obesity is discussed. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
Recycled aggregates: circular economy in the construction sector, the case study of Sardinia Region
No full textThe research project funded by Sardegna Ricerche (POR FESR 2014/2020 funds) aimes to define applicable Circular Economy strategies in the construction sector to support the Sardinia Region, in particular recycled aggregates in the structural concrete. The research group of the University of Cagliari, the stakeholders (recycling plants, concrete producers, precast concrete companies) and the Regional Public Administration carry out a synergic work to activate virtuous processes, through case studies, that can be replicated. The analysis regards the recycling of demolished large structure rubble, the use of recycled aggregates in precast concrete companies and the use of aggregates and recycled concrete and their amount in the urban planning of three town of Sardinia
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