Optimal copyright length and ex post investment: a Mickey Mouse approach

This paper formally explores the optimal length of copyright protection when the value of an intellectual work changes over time due to depreciation and value-enhancing ex-post investments. The first main finding is that, in the case of a single project, granting infinitely-lived copyright protection maximizes social welfare when the return on ex-post investments is high relative to the return on the initial investment. We also provide simulation results of our model for the case of multiple heterogeneous projects that show how social welfare varies with the length of copyright protection and the returns on initial and ex-post investments. We then consider what our framework says concerning the social-welfare effects of the 1998 Copyright Term Extension Act. Here we show that, depending on the importance of ex-post investments, the act may have either increased or decreased social welfare. Our final analysis considers the social-welfare implications of replacing fixed-length copyright protection with Landes and Posner's (2003) idea of indefinitely-renewable copyright protection. We find that implementing indefinitely-renewable copyright protection frequently increases social welfare provided the returns on ex-post investments are sufficiently large. We also provide a brief history of Disney's Mickey Mouse and argue that the history of that character matches quite well with the predictions of our theoretical approach.Optimal copyright length; copyright term extension act

Does Television Cause Autism?

Autism is currently estimated to affect approximately one in every 166 children, yet the cause or causes of the condition are not well understood. One of the current theories concerning the condition is that among a set of children vulnerable to developing the condition because of their underlying genetics, the condition manifests itself when such a child is exposed to a (currently unknown) environmental trigger. In this paper we empirically investigate the hypothesis that early childhood television viewing serves as such a trigger. Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' American Time Use Survey, we first establish that the amount of television a young child watches is positively related to the amount of precipitation in the child's community. This suggests that, if television is a trigger for autism, then autism should be more prevalent in communities that receive substantial precipitation. We then look at county-level autism data for three states -- California, Oregon, and Washington -- characterized by high precipitation variability. Employing a variety of tests, we show that in each of the three states (and across all three states when pooled) there is substantial evidence that county autism rates are indeed positively related to county-wide levels of precipitation. In our final set of tests we use California and Pennsylvania data on children born between 1972 and 1989 to show, again consistent with the television as trigger hypothesis, that county autism rates are also positively related to the percentage of households that subscribe to cable television. Our precipitation tests indicate that just under forty percent of autism diagnoses in the three states studied is the result of television watching due to precipitation, while our cable tests indicate that approximately seventeen percent of the growth in autism in California and Pennsylvania during the 1970s and 1980s is due to the growth of cable television. These findings are consistent with early childhood television viewing being an important trigger for autism. We also discuss further tests that can be conducted to explore the hypothesis more directly.

The sensory system acts with a neuromedin U signaling pathway to mediate food type-dependent effects on lifespan

In order to survive, the animal uses its sensory system to interpret the complexity of its environment. Interestingly, a subset of sensory neurons, which function in taste or olfaction, has been found to influence the lifespan of C. elegans and Drosophila. Although the mechanisms by which these neurons affect lifespan are unknown, the nature of these neurons suggest that the sensory influence on lifespan is mediated by food-derived cues. This thesis shows that sensory neurons recognize different food types to affect C. elegans lifespan through a mechanism distinct from that of calorie restriction, which is commonly studied by restricting the levels of food intake. Moreover, this work identifies a neuropeptide signaling pathway, the neuromedin U pathway, which acts with the sensory system to affect C. elegans lifespan in response to specific food-derived cues, such as the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) structure of its E. coli bacterial food source. The neuromedin U neuropeptide receptor nmur-1, which is expressed in sensory neurons, interneurons and the somatic gonad, shortens lifespan on E. coli food sources that have short LPS. In contrast, a neuromedin U ligand precursor, nlp-44, which is expressed in only two pairs of sensory neurons, lengthens lifespan in a food source-dependent manner. Genetic epistasis analysis suggests that nlp-44 might encode ligands that act downstream of or in parallel to nmur-1. Since C. elegans has three other members of the neuromedin U receptor (NMUR) family, future studies are needed to determine whether nlp 44 encodes different peptide ligands that could then act on several NMUR proteins, including NMUR-1. The identification of a neuromedin U pathway that mediates the sensory recognition of food quality provides a genetic framework to elucidate further the mechanisms that underlie this sensory influence on lifespan. In addition, the observation that a neuropeptide signaling pathway promotes the sensory influence on lifespan raises the intriguing possibility that other neuropeptides might also affect lifespan in response to other types of sensory cues. These neuropeptide pathways might thus integrate different sensory information with signaling pathways already known to regulate lifespan

Landscape Works in the Aral Sea Region Effective Organization

This article presents research on improving the improvement of the area using the climatic conditions of the Aral Sea region

Socio-Ecological Factors of Formation of the Architectural Environment of Streets of Tashkent

The urban environment is one of the factors that affect not only the physical and mental state of people, but also determine their social behavior. The most important element of the city's infrastructure is the system of street squares; the complex organization of its architectural environment is becoming one of the most urgent tasks.The article deals with the problems of the formation of the spatial environment of city streets in the following aspects: social, aesthetic and ecological. The results of research in this area are presented on the example of the urban environment of Tashkent

Azerbaycan’da hüküm sürmüş bir müslüman hanedanlığı : Revvâdîler (IV-V/X-XI. yüzyıllar)

06.03.2018 tarihli ve 30352 sayılı Resmi Gazetede yayımlanan “Yükseköğretim Kanunu İle Bazı Kanun Ve Kanun Hükmünde Kararnamelerde Değişiklik Yapılması Hakkında Kanun” ile 18.06.2018 tarihli “Lisansüstü Tezlerin Elektronik Ortamda Toplanması, Düzenlenmesi ve Erişime Açılmasına İlişkin Yönerge” gereğince tam metin erişime açılmıştır.Müslümanların Azerbaycan bölgesini fethetmesi, Azerbaycan tarihinin önemli safhalarından birini teşkil etmektedir. Müslümanlar, fethettikleri bölgelere kendi kabilelerini yerleştirmiş, bölgenin yönetimi onlar tarafından gerçekleştirilmiştir. Bu kabileler yerli halkın Müslüman olmasında da etkin rol oynamışlardır. Abbâsîler'in İslam toplumunun idaresini üstlenmesi sonrasında Azerbaycan'a özellikle Yemen asıllı Güney Arap kabileleri iskân edilmeye başlanmış, bunlar arasında Ezd koluna mensup olan Revvâdîler, Tebriz ve civarına yerleştirilerek bölgede yöneticilik yapmışlardır. Daha sonraki dönemlerde bu aile Azerbaycan tarihinde önemli bir rol oynamıştır. Revvâdîler'in idare ettikleri Tebriz ve civarı önceleri küçük bir köy hüviyetinde iken onların idaresi sırasında çok önemli imar faaliyetlerine sahne olmuştur. II/VIII. asrın ortalarında Azerbaycan'a yerleşen ve her geçen gün gücünü artıran Revvâdîler, bazen bağımsız bazen de Hilâfete tabi olarak Azerbaycan'da varlık göstermişlerdir. III/IX. yy.'ın ortalarından X. yy'ın ortalarına kadar geçen bir asırlık süre zarfında haklarında bilgi bulunmayan hanedan, IV/X. yy'ın ortalarında bölgede güçlenerek V/XI. yy'ın son çeyreğine kadar burada hanedanlık tesis etmişler. Bu çalışmada öncelikle Revvâdî hanedanlığının varlık gösterdiği Azerbaycan'ın İslam fetihleri öncesi durumu ve bu sırada bölgede hüküm sürmüş ilk siyasî yapılar hakkında bilgi verilmiştir. Ardından Azerbaycan'da uygulanan iskân politikası ve Revvâdîler'in Tebriz ve etrafına yerleşmelerine ve ilk Revvâdî yöneticilerine değinilmiştir. Abbâsîler'in güç kaybetmeye başladığı III/IX. asrın ikinci yarısında hilâfete karşı isyan eden hanedanların ve Revvâdîler'in bu süreçteki durumu değerlendirildikten sonra IV/X. yy'ın ortalarından itibaren yaklaşık bir asır boyunca bölgede hâkim güç haline gelen ve haklarında malumata erişilebilen yedi Revvâdî emirinin dönemleri ele alınmıştır. Son olarak söz konusu dönemde Azerbaycan'ın idarî ve ekonomik durumu incelenmiştir. Revvâdî emirlerinin bastırmış olduğu paralar, hanedanlıktan günümüze ulaşan en önemli eserler olarak bu bölümdeki yerini almıştır. Çalışmanın ekler bölümünde Revvâdîler'in hâkim oldukları coğrafyayı gösteren haritalara ve Revvâdî emirlerinin bastırdığı paraların resimlerine yer verilmiştir.The Muslim conquest of the Azerbaijani region represents one of the most important pages in the history of Azerbaijan. The Muslims settled their own tribes to govern the conquered regions. These tribes also played an active role with indigenous people becoming Muslims. After the Abbasids took over the administration of the Islamic society, South Arab tribes, especially from Yemen, started to be resettled in Azerbaijani. Among them, the Rawwadid dynasty that belonged to the Azd tribe was placed in Tabriz and its vicinity to administrate the region. Subsequently, this family played an important role in the history of Azerbaijan. Tabriz and its environs were characterized as a small village, but during the rule of Rawwadids very important development and enhancement activities took place. Rawwadids who settled in Azerbaijan in the middle of the 2nd AH / 8th CE century increased their power with each passing day; they existed in Azerbaijan sometimes independently and sometimes as a subject of the Caliphate. There is no information about the tribe between the 3rd AH / 9th CE to the middle of the 10th CE centuries, but becoming a regional power in the middle of the 4th AH / 10th CE century, it established itself as a strong dynasty here until the last quarter of the 5th AH / 11th CE century. In this study, information is firstly given about Azerbaijan before the Islamic conquest, and earlier political structures in the region before the Rawwadid dynasty came to power. Then the settlement policy implementation in Azerbaijan, establishing of Rawwadids in Tabriz and its vicinity, and the first Rawwadid rulers are discussed. Then the topic goes to the second half of the 3rd AH / 9th CE century when the Abbasids began to lose power, various dynasties' rebellions against the Caliphate, Rawwadids' evaluation of the developing situation, and the period since the middle of the 4th AH / 10th CE century where seven Rawwadid amirs became the dominant power in the region for about a century of which there can be found reliable information. Finally, the administrative and economic situation of Azerbaijan was examined in the above-mentioned period. The coins issued by Rawwadid amirs took their place in this section as the most important work from the dynasty that survived to the present day. In the annexes to this study, maps showing the geography dominated by Rawwadids and pictures of the coins issued by Rawwadid amirs are included

Complex Processing of Copper Smelting Slags with Obtaining of Cast Iron Grinding Media and Proppants

The Ural region has a large number of metallurgical companies. The extraction of metals from ore is always accompanied by the accumulation of wastes. Currently, most of the wastes are stored in dumps and storage facilities forming technogenic deposits. One such that occupies huge areas is copper slag from the copper-smelting production. According to current estimations, about 2.2 tons of slag is formed for each ton of copper produced and about 24 million tons are produced annually [1]. In general, a copper slag contains about 35-45% iron and 0.4-0.5 copper, which indicates that this is a valuable secondary resource for recycling and utilization [33]. However, more than 80% of copper slag is not utilized, which makes it possible to consider this waste not only as a valuable material, but also as a potential hazard for the environment; it contaminates the soil and water with heavy elements [8]. Currently, only small amounts of the waste are recycled. In addition, technologies do not allow the complete extraction of valuable elements. This offers potential for the development of new highly efficient technologies for processing copper smelting wastes with extraction of valuable elements such as iron (Fe). Improvement of Fe quality requires a decrease in non-ferrous metal content, especially Cu. In recent years, extensive research was directed at the extraction of valuable materials from copper slags by high-temperature firing of copper conglomerates with subsequent magnetic separation or leaching of non-ferrous metals. However, these studies do not allow the complete processing of copper smelting slags. This work studies the production of iron-containing briquettes from copper-smelting slags, and their subsequent processing to obtain valuable products for metallurgical and oil companies. Keywords: briquette, reduction, cast iron, proppant

«Тәте» жəне өзге де туыстық атаулардың семантикасы

Сөз мағынасының кеңеюі мен тарылуы, бастапқы семантикасының өзгеруі − тілге тән құбылыс. Қазақ тіліндегі сөздер бір ғана мағынада жұмсала бермейді. Әдеби тілдегі бір мағыналы сөздің өзі говорларда немесе ауыз әдебиеті үлгілерінде ауыспалы мағынасында жұмсалуы мүмкін. Әдеби тілдегі сөздің говорларда туынды немесе бастапқы мағынасында айтылатынына байланысты мысалдардың бірі – «тәте» сөзі. Тәте атауының туысқан әйелдерге қарата айтылатын мағынасы әдеби тіл нормасына әбден сіңген. Ал оның ер адамдарға қатысты «әке; көке; әке жағынан туыс аға» деген қарама-қарсы мағынасы жергілікті сөйленістерге тән. Туып-өскен жері, балалық шағы, отбасы жайлы жазатын оңтүстік өңірлері қаламгерлердің шығармаларында бұл сөз жергілікті сөйленістегі мағынасында пайдаланыла береді. Говорлардан бөлек ертеректегі жазбаларда да мұндай қолданыс байқалады, мәселен, Абай «інісі Халиоллаға жазған хатында» «тәте» сөзін «әке» мағынасында қолданған. «Тәте» атауының қолданысын іздесек, оның «әке» немесе «әке жағынан туысқа» айтылатынын тек оңтүстік өңірлерден емес, батыс, шығыс, тіпті солтүстіктің кейбір аудандарындағы тілдік материалдардан табуға болады. «Тәте» туыстық терминінің бірнеше өңірде өзге мағынада қолданылуында тарихи негіз жатқаны айқын. Көне түркі жазба ескерткіштеріне жүгінсек, тәтенің «әке, ата» мағынасында жұмсалғаны аңғарылады. Мақалада тәте сөзінің қазақ тілінде ер адамға қарата айтылуының себептері зерттеліп, оның қолданыс аясы, түп-төркіні талданады. Қазақ тіліндегі тәте сөзі cекілді мағыналық жағынан өзгерген әже, әке, апа туыстық атауларының да төркіні түркі тілдері деректерімен салыстырылып анықталады