180,171 research outputs found
The moral layer of contemporary economics: A virtue-ethics perspective
No full textThis paper questions whether the contemporary science of economics and its recommendations are built on sound moral foundations as assessed from a virtue-based definition of ethical behaviour. We argue that the model of man underlying economic analyses can correspond to the model of a virtuous person, and that economics, by advocating reasoned choice and careful resource utilization, makes a positive contribution to the moral development of individuals.Economics; Efficiency; Rationality; Tastes; Virtue Ethics
Financial Instability under Floating Exchange Rates
No full textAt the end of the nineties, many developing countries featured an open capital market and relied heavily on dollar-debt financing of their economy. This paper analyses whether, in this context, clean floating can be a sustainable policy choice. The model is cast as a game between successive generations of investors who decide whether they buy or not the debt of a representative firm. The exchange rate is subject to random shocks, which makes uncertain the private sector’s solvency. We show that a small risk of insolvency would bring about a much larger risk of illiquidity. A rational expectation equilibrium without default can be put forward only in the highly improbable case when the currency is extremely overvalued. The case against flexible exchange rates may be stronger than usually thought.Floating; Rational Expectations; Financial Crises; Developing Countries
Money in the Inflation Equation: the Euro Area Evidence
No full textThe ECB is the only major central bank that still emphasizes the role of money in monetary policy management. In this paper, we bring some support to this approach. Taking into account Euro area data from the period between 1999 and 2007, we demonstrate that a steady 10 per cent increase in M3 may result in an inflation rate of approximately 2½ percentage points. A negative output gap would have a short term offsetting effect, and vice versa.ECB; Inflation; Monetary Policy; Money
The Ethical Dimension of Economic Choices
No full textIn general, capitalist countries display sustained growth, dynamism and innovation, and a high adaptability in response to external shocks. Yet in the last twenty years discontent over the notorious drawbacks of capitalism – corporate frauds, corruption, abuses of market power – has grown continually. In this paper, we argue that no remedy to these difficulties can be found if ethical dilemmas are not anticipated and addressed at the individual, firm and economy-wide level. While pro-ethical changes in business regulation would help, government action alone may not be effective enough. Given that the social sciences provide the general framework of reference for human action, better integration of the ethical dimension by these disciplines would bring about additional benefits. In particular, economic theory would gain from developing more in-depth reflection on human end-goals and values.Calculativeness; Capitalism; Corporate social responsibility; Economics; Virtue Ethics
Asset Prices and Assymetries in the Fed's Interest Rate Rule : a Financial Approach
No full textFinancial Newspapers have for long suggested that the Fed tends to provide additional Liquidity when the Stock Market thumbs. We provide a theoretical Explanation for this Behaviour that builds on the Methodology developed by Romaniuk (2008) for a central Banker with two main Goals, Output and Price stability. In this Paper, the Policymaker behaves as a Portfolio Manager who aims at stabilizing Output, Goods Prices, as well as Asset Prices. An optimal, Time-varying Interest Rate Rule is obtained as the Merton's (1971) continuous Time Solution to the Portfolio Manager's Problem. In a second Step, we infer the optimal Interest Rate Rule of a central Bank that can react differently to positive and negative Variations in the Stock Market.Optimal Interest Rate Rule; Portfolio Choice; Fed; Asset Prices; Options Theory
Manager Unethical Behavior During The New Economy Bubble
No full textThis paper investigates factors that brought about the surge in manager unethical behavior within the US economy. Key structural causes are the weak internal control, perverse incentives related to managers’ compensation, conflicts of interest in the banking and auditing sectors. Unethical behavior was further enhanced by the large economic noise specific to the IT bubble, which emerged in the late nineties against the background of increased deregulation in the goods and financial markets. The US administration opposed to the proliferation of CEO unethical behavior the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; we argue why some of its provisions might be taken one step furtherUnethical behavior; CEOs; Financial deregulation; Activism; Sarbanes-Oxely Act
Dual effect of methylglyoxal on the intracellular Ca(2+) signaling and neurite outgrowth in mouse sensory neurons.
No full textThe formation of advanced glycation end products is one of the major factors involved in diabetic neuropathy, aging, and neurodegenerative diseases. Reactive carbonyl compounds, such as methylglyoxal (MG), play a key role in cross-linking to various proteins in the extracellular matrix, especially in neurons, which have a high rate of oxidative metabolism. The MG effect was tested on dorsal root ganglia primary neurons in cultures from adult male Balb/c mice. Lower MG doses contribute to an increased adherence of neurons on their support and an increased glia proliferation, as proved by MTS assay and bright-field microscopy. Time-lapse fluorescence microscopy by Fura-2 was performed for monitoring the relative fluorescence ratio changes (ΔR/R (0)) upon depolarization and immunofluorescence staining for quantifying the degree of neurites extension. The relative change in fluorescence ratio modifies the amplitude and dispersion depending on the subtype of sensory neurons, the medium-sized neurons are more sensitive to MG treatment when compared to small ones. Low MG concentrations (0-150 μM) increase neuronal viability, excitability, and the capacity of neurite extension, while higher concentrations (250-750 μM) are cytotoxic in a dose-dependent manner. In our opinion, MG could be metabolized by the glyoxalase system inside sensory neurons up to a threshold concentration, afterwards disturbing the cell equilibrium. Our study points out that MG has a dual effect concentration dependent on the neuronal viability, excitability, and neurite outgrowth, but only the excitability changes are soma-sized dependent. In conclusion, our data may partially explain the distinct neuronal modifications in various neurodegenerative pathologies
Realising fusion systems
No full textWe show that every fusion system (saturated or not) on a p-group S is equal to the fusion system associated to a discrete group G containing S as a subgroup and such that every finite subgroup of G is conjugate to a subgroup of S
Capsaicin decreases blood glucose, insulin and TRPV1 expression in sensory peripheral neurons in double transgenic diabetes mice
No full textIntroduction: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a common chronic complic ation of diabetes mellitus. Transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels are involved in sensing physical and chemical stimuli. TRPV1 is a Ca2+ permeant non-selective cation channel expressed predominantly by unmyelinated C-fibers and thinlymyelinated A-d fibers and plays a major role in inflammatory thermal sensation. Capsaicin is the active component of chili peppers (which are plants belonging to the genus Capsicum) and is the main compound responsible for TRPV1 activation. Purpose: The goal of our study was to evaluate the effect of dietary capsaicin on the diabetic status of the double-transgenic mice. Material: We have used sensory neurons from dorsal root ganglia extracted from double transgenic TCR-HA+/-/Ins-HA+/- diabetic mice and Balb/c mice. Both strains of mice received a supplement in diet of 0.015% capsaicin for 10 weeks and were compared with unsupplemented controls. Method: Whole cell patch-clamp recording and immunofluorescence microscopy have been employed. PCR tests were employed to identify the presence of transgenes. Insulin and glucose were monitored using commercial strips.Results: Larger amplitude and a reduced desensitization of TRPV1 currents were induced by dietary capsaicin in TCR-HA+/-/Ins-HA+/- mice. These data closely resemble changes identified in streptozotocin-induced diabetes in rats upon superfusion of capsaicin in cell culture . Capsaicin treatment reduced the TRPV1 expression in the double-transgenic diabetic mice. Conclusions: In diabetes, the link between abnormal pain sensitivity and hyperglycemia resulting from insulin deficiency is not clear, but our study proves that capsaicin plays a major role in regulating TRPV1 function and expression in diabetes. In addition, dietary capsaicin is able to decrease the glucose and insulin levels, and in principal may reduce the oxidative status induced by hyperglycemia deficiency is not clear, but our study proves that capsaicin plays a major role in regulating TRPV1 function and expression in diabetes. In addition, dietary capsaicin is able to decrease the glucose and insulin levels, and in principal may reduce the oxidative status induced by hyperglycemia conditions. This study was financed by the research grant PNCDI2 41-074/2007
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
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