1,355,955 research outputs found
Payments and finance problems in the Commonwealth of Independent States
No full textPayments problems constrained interstate trade among the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries in 1992-95, especially during the prolonged demise of the ruble zone. Two kinds of solutions should be sought: 1) more effective stabilization measures to improve the prospects of currency convertibility among CIS countries; and 2) strengthening of institutional arrangements to permit payments and settlements through correspondent bank accounts. Strengthening institutions will require not only strengthening commercial banks but liberalizing foreign exchange markets and promoting the use of letters of credit and other mechanisms to increase the security of trade transactions. A multilateral clearing arrangement operated among central banks would have been a useful alternative to the chaotic payments prevailing earlier, but such arrangements are no longer needed as considerable progress has been made toward convertibility. Nor is a payments union desirable. Trade deficits are likely to persist in such countries as Belarus and Ukraine. Surplus countries such as Russia and Turkmenistan must develop transparent means of trade financing that take into account the recipient countries'ability to pay. External financing will remain important for practically all CIS countries. The best way to mobilize private financing will be to establish macroeconomic stability and stable, transparent rules on private capital inflows. Improving the flow of public resources requires improving countries'capacity to quickly absorb the large amounts already committed. Donors need to expedite procurement and other procedures and recipient countries must address governance problems and institutional weaknesses that delay disbursements. Certain smaller CIS countries face significant debt servicing problems and often the creditors are other CIS countries that themselves need additional financing. The smaller countries need debt relief on concessional terms, which is possible only if external assistance allows local creditors to offer such relief.Environmental Economics&Policies,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Policy,Financial Intermediation,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,TF054105-DONOR FUNDED OPERATION ADMINISTRATION FEE INCOME AND EXPENSE ACCOUNT,Trade Policy,Financial Intermediation
Andreas MICHALOPOULOS, Ancient Etymologies in Ovid's Metamorphoses : A Commented Lexicon.
No full textTordeur Pol. Andreas MICHALOPOULOS, Ancient Etymologies in Ovid's Metamorphoses : A Commented Lexicon.. In: L'antiquité classique, Tome 72, 2003. pp. 394-395
Michalopoulos (Α.), Ancient Etymologies in Ovid's Metamorphoses : A Commented Lexicon, 2001
No full textCormier Raymond. Michalopoulos (Α.), Ancient Etymologies in Ovid's Metamorphoses : A Commented Lexicon, 2001. In: Revue des Études Anciennes. Tome 105, 2003, n°1. pp. 310-311
Trade and Geographyin the Economic Origins of Islam: Theory and Evidence
No full textThis research examines the economic origins of Islam and uncovers two empirical regularities. First,
Muslim countries, virtual countries and ethnic groups, exhibit highly unequal regional agricultural
endowments. Second, Muslim adherence is systematically larger along the pre-Islamic trade routes in
the Old World. The theory argues that this particular type of geography (i) determined the economic
aspects of the religious doctrine upon which Islam was formed, and (ii) shaped its subsequent economic
performance. It suggests that the unequal distribution of land endowments conferred di§erential gains
from trade across regions, fostering predatory behavior from the poorly endowed ones. In such an
environment it was mutually beneÖcial to institute a system of income redistribution. However, a
higher propensity to save by the rich would exacerbate wealth inequality rendering redistribution
unsustainable, leading to the demise of the Islamic unity. Consequently, income inequality had to
remain within limits for Islam to persist. This was instituted via restrictions on physical capital
accumulation. Such rules rendered the investments on public goods, through religious endowments,
increasingly attractive. As a result, capital accumulation remained low and wealth inequality bounded.
Geography and trade shaped the set of economically relevant religious principles of Islam a§ecting its
economic trajectory in the preindustrial world
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Ethnic Inequality
No full textThis study explores the consequences and origins of between-ethnicity inequality for a large sample of countries. First, combining satellite images of nighttime luminosity with the homelands of ethnolinguistic groups, we construct measures of ethnic inequality. Second, we uncover a strong inverse association between ethnic inequality and contemporary development above and beyond its relationship with cross-region and cross–administrative unit inequality. Third, we establish that differences in geographic endowments across ethnic homelands explain a sizable fraction of the variation in economic disparities across groups. Fourth, we show that inequality in geographic endowments across ethnic homelands is a negative correlate of development
A Water Futures Approach on Water Demand Forecasting with Online Ensemble Learning
No full textZanutto D, Michalopoulos C, Chatzistefanou G-A, et al. A Water Futures Approach on Water Demand Forecasting with Online Ensemble Learning. In: The 3rd International Joint Conference on Water Distribution Systems Analysis & Computing and Control for the Water Industry (WDSA/CCWI 2024). Basel Switzerland: MDPI; 2024: 60.This study presents a collaborative framework developed by the Water Futures team of researchers for the “Battle of the Water Demand Forecasting” challenge at the 3rd International WDSA-CCWI Joint Conference. The framework integrates an ensemble of machine learning forecasting models into a deterministic outcome consistent with the competition formulation. The water demand trajectory over a week exhibits complex overlapping patterns and non-linear dependencies to multiple features and time-dependent events that a single model cannot accurately predict. As such, the reconciled forecast from an ensemble of models exceeds the performance of the individual ones and exhibits higher stability across the weeks of the year and district metered areas considered
Response of linear mechanical systems with nonclassical damping
No full textA first-order matrix perturbation technique is used to obtain the response of nonclassically damped linear systems. Solutions are presented for a unit impulse, step function, and a harmonic forcing function. The approximation employed herein, which is valid for nearly diagonal damping, is the same as that used by Michalopoulos in obtaining the response of such systems to stationary random excitation. Numerical results for a four-de- gree-of-freedom system are presented in graphical form, for the transient and steady state response, showing the improvement of the first-order over the zero-order approximation.Mechanical Engineering, Department o
Variations on the Author
No full text“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
More favorable and differential treatment of developing countries : toward a new approach in the World Trade Organization
No full textThe authors discuss options that could be considered in the World Trade Organization (WTO) to provide more favorable treatment-so-called special and differential treatment (SDT)-to small and low-income countries. They argue that there is a need both for differentiation across WTO members and for steps that would benefit all developing countries. The authors suggest the following to make the Doha Round more supportive of development: 1) A binding commitment by industrial countries to abolish export subsidies and nontariff barriers (tariff quotas) and to reduce most-favored-nation tariffs on labor-intensive products of export interest to developing countries to no more than 5 percent in 2010, and to no more than 10 percent for agricultural products. All tariffs on manufactures should go to zero by 2015, the target date for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Liberalization should also be undertaken by developing countries on the basis of a formula approach. 2) A binding commitment by industrial countries on services to expand temporary access for service providers by a specific amount-for example, equal to an additional 1 percent of the workforce-and not to restrict cross-border trade (for example, by telecom channels). 3) Unilateral action by all industrial countries to extend preferential market access for less developed countries, and to simplify eligibility criteria, especially rules of origin. 4) Affirmation by the WTO that core disciplines relating to the use of trade policy apply equally to all WTO members. 5) Acceptance of the principle that for small and low-income countries"one size does not fit all"when it comes to domestic regulation and to WTO agreements requiring substantial investment of resources. 6) Recognition that some WTO agreements need to be adapted to make them moresupportive of development, and a consequent willingness by industrial countries to modify them. 7) Expansion of development assistance to bolster trade capacity in poor countries and strengthening of the links between trade-related technical assistance and the mechanisms through which aid priorities are determined in developing countries. In practice, calls for specific types of SDT often appear to be motivated by a perception that a certain WTO rule is"anti-development"and that therefore developing countries should be exempted from the rule in question. The authors suggest that the appropriate solution to such problems is to change the rules rather than seek an opt-out. What should be up front changes in rules and what should be part of the negotiating agenda is a major issue which needs to be addressed at the Cancun Ministerial meeting. The suggestion that SDT should focus primarily on WTO rules and be limited to those countries that need it most-very small and poor economies-implies that criteria should be adopted to differentiate between countries. Leaving this to self-declaration-the current approach-is not feasible, while reliance on case-by-case, agreement-specific negotiation can generate excessive costs, discretion, and associated uncertainty. While the authors'preference is for a simple rule-of-thumb approach to determine eligibility, this is an issue that requires much more thought and discussion. They suggest that WTO members establish a high-level group to consider criteria that could be used for differentiation purposes and to determine the set of agreements to which differentiation will apply.Economic Theory&Research,Rules of Origin,Environmental Economics&Policies,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Decentralization,TF054105-DONOR FUNDED OPERATION ADMINISTRATION FEE INCOME AND EXPENSE ACCOUNT,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Poverty Assessment,World Trade Organization
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