1,677 research outputs found
Pietro Verri’s Contribution to the Economic Theory of the 18th Century: Commercial Society, Civil Society and Governance of the Economy
No full text'Count Pietro Verri (1728-97) - Schumpeter writes (History, p. 178) - - would have to be included in any list of the greatest economists'. Within the Milanese school, he certainly stands out, alongside with Cesare Beccaria, during one of the most interesting periods from a history of analysis point of view. Luigi Cossa's famous introduction to the study of political economy rates Pietro Verri to be inferior to Beccaria in ingenuity and scientific cultivation, but greatly to be ahead of him as an economist.1 This judgement by Cossa, in particular, seems to echo the relative position of the two men in the history of ideas, particularly after Beccaria's rise to fame with a book - On crimes and punishments - which had in fact been largely inspired by Verri himself and defended by him.2 It is proposed in the present paper to revisit some of the basic tenets of Pietro Verri's political economy, with more in view than dwell on specific intuitions and theorems: namely relate those to Verri's own - quite original - conception of the economy. The scholarly work of Pietro Verri - with a special reference to his Meditazioni sulla economia politica of 1771 - provides the first systematic contribution stemming from the quarters of Lombard enlightenment in the field of political economy, especially so if one considers that Cesare Beccaria's parallel work - namely his Elementi di economia pubblica, conceived and drafted at the same time as Verri's Meditazioni - would only be published posthumously several years later. From the vantage point afforded by Verri's political economy, we gain a considerably attractive view of the most significant elements and characteristic concepts of Lombard enlightenment during the latter half of the 18th century; Verri, moreover, as we shall see, builds on a number of them in a new and original way. This paper is aimed at discussing Verri's political economy mainly along two distinct, but related, lines. In the first place the conception of commercial society is considered such as it is treated by the author particularly in his Meditazioni. In this perspective the analysis of such issues as competition and the market or money and taxation occupy a central place. Secondly it will be necessary to emphasise that Verri's approach has little to do either with forms of pure economics on one side - largely yet to be born throughout the 18th century - or, on the other side, with such conceptions of the polis - contrariwise well alive among his own contemporaries - as are founded on a sovereign authority conceived to be situated above the law. What Verri's political economy ultimately amounts to is an economic conception of civil society. The latter has natural strong connections with his own fact-mindedness - emphasised by Schumpeter - as well as with his deep practical involvement in administrative affairs and in the reforming process taking place during the latter half of the 18th century in Milan. In our view, a thorough investigation along the mentioned lines is the precondition for an understanding of the intellectual stature and of the scholarly contribution of Pietro Verri. His main ground is distinctly analytical and only by appreciating his analysis is it possible to shed light on the meaning and intellectual significance also of his practical contributions. Moreover Verri's pronouncements on the criticism of despotic government, the relevance of intermediate powers or bodies and on multiple levels of governance will be examined in a new and original light, showing how close they are to the gist of his analysis.
The influence of lactation on the quantity and quality of cashmere production
No full textThe aim of this study was to investigate the influence of lactation on cashmere production. Two groups of cashmere bearing goats, aged between 2 and 3 years, were used in this study. The control group included 12 non-lactating, non-pregnant subjects. The experimental group was made up of 12 goats that had given birth to twins or triplets and that had begun lactating in the second half of May. Lactation therefore had begun approximately 45 days prior to the beginning of the emergence of fibre on the body surface. Live weight was not affected by the physiological state under consideration. The decrease observed in January is too remote to have been an effect of lactation. One likely explanation is that after shearing the animals were obliged to use their body reserves for thermoregulation. Prolactin concentration was higher at the beginning of the study in both groups and it was not influenced by lactation. Albeit with a varied intensity, secondary follicles were found to be active during the entire trial period but activ- ity never reached 100% in either group. Lactation significantly suppressed the percentage of secondary follicle activity and this was more evident from June to September. Fibre length and diameter did not differ between the two groups, so lactation did not affect fibre dimensions. The period of growth was shorter in lactating goats (184 vs 226 d). This did not make a difference in fibre length in so much as the lactating goats manifested a higher daily aver- age growth rate (0.27 ± 0.03 vs 0.20 ± 0.03 mm/d; P lesser than 0.05) which compensated for the shorter period of growth. Lactation caused a decrease in productivity of an insignificant nature, therefore we hold that the negative effect of lactation on cashmere production does not depend upon the physiological status as such but, most probably, upon the level of productivity and the degree to which the lactation and fibre growth cycles overlap
Oxidant/Antioxidant Balance in Animal Nutrition and Health: The Role of Protein Oxidation
No full textThis review examines the role that oxidative stress (OS), and protein oxidation in particular, plays in nutrition, metabolism, and health of farm animals. The route by which redox homeostasis is involved in some important physiological functions and the implications of the impairment of oxidative status on animal health and diseases is also examined. Proteins have various and, at the same time, unique biological functions and their oxidation can result in structural changes and various functional modifications. Protein oxidation seems to be involved in pathological conditions, such as respiratory diseases and parasitic infection; however, some studies also suggest that protein oxidation plays a crucial role in the regulation of important physiological functions, such as reproduction, nutrition, metabolism, lactation, gut health, and neonatal physiology. As the characterization of the mechanisms by which OS may influence metabolism and health is attracting considerable scientific interest, the aim of this review is to present veterinary scientists and clinicians with various aspects of oxidative damage to proteins
About twin primes and distribution of primes
No full textThis paper give us a demonstration of twin primes conjecture using approximation of function �(iupsilon) that we introduce in section 6. Section 1-5 give us introduction to terminology and a clarification on (iupsilon) terms. In particular section
5 is really important because of its Lemma. Section 7 reassume foregoing explanations and it give us two theorems and one corollary;the theorem 7.2 give us exact approximation of twin primes counting function
The use of digital infrared thermography and measurement of oxidative stress biomarkers as tools to diagnose foot lesions in sheep
No full textThis study reports preliminary data on the use of digital infrared thermography (IRT) and
biomarkers of oxidative stress (OS) to diagnose foot lesions in sheep. Interdigital space skin
temperatures were obtained from crossbred rams with healthy (n=9) and with foot lesions (n=6)
with a FLIR T620 series infrared camera. Interdigital space lesions were scored using a five
point scoring system (0–4). Blood was sampled from all rams and plasma was analysed for
reactive oxygen metabolites (ROMs), biological antioxidant potential (BAP), and advanced
oxidation protein products (AOPP). The degree of OS was estimated by the ratio of ROMs/BAP
(U.Carr./μmol/L) multiplied by 100 to give an OS index (OSI). Footrot scores were used to
stratify the rams in 2 groups: Healthy Group (HG; n=9) or Foot Lesion (FL; n=6), if the lesions
were recorded as absent or present, respectively. Differences in OS biomarkers and IRT
temperatures between the two groups were analysed by a linear mixed model. A significant (P <
0.05) increase of IRT temperature was observed in rams with foot lesions compared with healthy
rams. Rams that presented foot lesions had significantly higher values of ROMs (P < 0.05) and
OSI (P < 0.001) and lower concentration of BAP than healthy rams (P < 0.05). In conclusion,
IRT and biomarkers of oxidative stress were able to identify sheep with foot lesions
The effect of environmental temperature and humidity on cashmere yield, secondary active follicles and thyroid hormones in cashmere goats
No full textRelationships between blood hormonal concentrations and secondary fibre shedding in young cashmere-bearing goats at their first moult
No full textVariazioni circannuali degli ormoni tiroidei (T3 e T4) in soggetti cashmere di ambo i sessi
No full textThe influence of pregnancy and the beginning of lactation on pelage traits in cashmere goats
No full textThe aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pregnancy followed by the beginning of lactation on fibre traits in
cashmere goats. Two groups of cashmere-bearing goats aged between 2-3 years were used. The control group (A) included
12 non-lactating, non-pregnant subjects. The experimental group (B) included 12 goats mated during the first week
of June, in order to have pregnancy and the beginning of lactation coincide with the period when cashmere normally
grows. As expected, Liveweight significantly varied in Group B during the last two months of pregnancy, when foetal
growth reaches its maximum, and following delivery. Hair patch weight, because of the continuous growth of primary and
secondary fibres, increased significantly during the trial (P<0.001). The physiological status considered negatively affected
(P<0.05) the total mean growth rate of cashmere fibres and, as a result, their length. Cashmere daily growth rate
values varied significantly (P<0.05) throughout the experiment, while the effect of the physiological status was noted
only in November – December. Furthermore, this parameter also seems to be influenced by climatic factors and, in particular,
environmental temperature, as shown by the negative correlation (r = - 0.28; P<0.05) between cashmere daily
growth rate and environmental temperature. Guard hair length and growth rate did not differ between the two groups,
however, they were influenced by time. Cashmere yield and cashmere production were lower in group B (P<0.05). No
differences between groups were observed for cashmere diameter. Overall, pregnancy and the consequent period of lactation
negatively influenced cashmere rather than guard hair fibres. These negative effects were noted in quantitative
terms as yield and production dropped by 37% and 43%, respectively. We hypothesise that the complete overlap of pregnancy
and lactation with the period of cashmere growth reduced the number of secondary active follicles and their degree
of activity and caused an increase in competition for the partitioning of nutrients between hair follicles and the gravid
uterus, first, and then the mammary gland, later
Role of oxidant?antioxidant balance in reproduction of domestic animals
No full textReproductive process leads to dynamic changes in metabolism and energy consumption, which may be
responsible for the excessive production of free radicals (oxidants) that are generated during the physiological process of
oxygen consumption. As the ovary is a metabolically active organ, it produces oxidants. Growing follicles, granulose cells of
Graffian follicles and ovulated follicles all produce both enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants to preserve themselves
from the oxidative damage of oxidants. Oxidants and antioxidants are involved in several reproductive functions such as
the regulation of follicular fluid environment, folliculogenesis, steroidogenesis, corpus luteum function, and luteolysis.
In this article, the currently available literature is reviewed in relation to the roles of oxidants and oxidative stress in both
normal and abnormal reproductive physiological processes
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