Multinationals, R&D and productivity: Evidence for UK Manufacturing firms

In this study we analyze multinationality (domestic-based firms vs. multinationals) and foreignness (foreign vs. domestic firms) effects in the returns of R&D to productivity. We follow a two-step strategy. In the first step, we consistently estimate firm’s productivity by GMM and numerically compute the sample distribution of the R&D returns. In the second step, we use stochastic dominance techniques to make inferences on the multinationality and foreignness effects. Results for a panel of UK manufacturing firms suggest that multinationality and foreignness effects operate in an opposite way: whilst the multinationality effect enhances R&D returns, the foreignness diminishes them.multinationals, foreignness, R&D, productivity

Tracking the slowdown in long-run GDP growth

Using a dynamic factor model that allows for changes in both the longrun growth rate of output and the volatility of business cycles, we document a significant decline in long-run output growth in the United States. Our evidence supports the view that most of this slowdown occurred prior to the Great Recession. We show how to use the model to decompose changes in long-run growth into its underlying drivers. At low frequencies, a decline in the growth rate of labor productivity appears to be behind the recent slowdown in GDP growth for both the US and other advanced economies. When applied to realtime data, the proposed model is capable of detecting shifts in long-run growth in a timely and reliable manner

Thermal Instability–Induced Fundamental Magnetic Field Strands in the Solar Corona

Thermal instability is a fundamental process of astrophysical plasmas. It is expected to occur whenever the cooling is dominated by radiation and cannot be compensated for by heating. In this work, we conduct 2.5D radiation MHD simulations with the Bifrost code of an enhanced activity network in the solar atmosphere. Coronal loops are produced self-consistently, mainly through Joule heating, which is sufficiently stratified and symmetric to produce thermal nonequilibrium. During the cooling and driven by thermal instability, coronal rain is produced along the loops. Due to flux freezing, the catastrophic cooling process leading to a rain clump produces a local enhancement of the magnetic field, thereby generating a distinct magnetic strand within the loop up to a few Gauss stronger than the surrounding coronal field. These strands, which can be considered fundamental, are a few hundred kilometers in width, span most of the loop leg, and emit strongly in the UV and extreme UV (EUV), thereby establishing a link between the commonly seen rain strands in the visible spectrum with the observed EUV coronal strands at high resolution. The compression downstream leads to an increase in temperature that generates a plume-like structure, a strongly emitting spicule-like feature, and short-lived brightening in the UV during the rain impact, providing an explanation for similar phenomena seen with IRIS. Thermal instability and nonequilibrium can therefore be associated with localized and intermittent UV brightening in the transition region and chromosphere, as well as contribute to the characteristic filamentary morphology of the solar corona in the EUV

An Early Neolithic enclosure at the site of Vlaho, Pelagonia

[EN] Recent study of Vlaho in Pelagonia confirms that it is the earliest known Neolithic settlement in North Macedonia. Multidisciplinary research of the architecture and material reveals a complex enclosure site dating to the seventh millennium BC, with dozens of ditches, daub buildings, white painted pottery and domesticated plants and animals

Regionalización histológica de la glándula dorsal del pecarí de collar (Artiodactyla, Tayassuidae: Pecari tajacu)

Se describe histológicamente la glándula dorsal de machos y hembras del pecarí de collar en tres regiones: craneal, media y caudal. Con las tinciones Hematocilinaeosina y Tricrómica de Masson observamos una clara regionalización morfológica e histológica de esta glándula y se describe por primera vez la presencia de glándulas tubuloacinares en la región craneal de la glándula dorsal del macho de pecarí, cuya función es aún desconocida.Se describe histológicamente la glándula dorsal de machos y hembras del pecarí de collar en tres regiones: craneal, media y caudal. Con las tinciones Hematocilinaeosina y Tricrómica de Masson observamos una clara regionalización morfológica e histológica de esta glándula y se describe por primera vez la presencia de glándulas tubuloacinares en la región craneal de la glándula dorsal del macho de pecarí, cuya función es aún desconocida

Design, Construction and Testing of a Hydraulic Power Take-Off for Wave Energy Converters

This paper presents the construction, mathematical modeling and testing of a scaled universal hydraulic Power Take-Off (PTO) device for Wave Energy Converters (WECs). A specific prototype and test bench were designed and built to carry out the tests. The results obtained from these tests were used to adjust an in-house mathematical model. The PTO was initially designed to be coupled to a scaled wave energy capture device with a low speed and high torque oscillating motion and high power fluctuations. Any Energy Capture Device (ECD) that fulfils these requirements can be coupled to this PTO, provided that its scale is adequately defined depending on the rated power of the full scale prototype. The initial calibration included estimation of the pressure drops in the different components, the pressurization time of the oil inside the hydraulic cylinders and the volumetric efficiency of the complete circuit. Since the overall efficiency measured during the tests ranged from 0.69 to 0.8 and the dynamic performance of the PTO was satisfactory, the results are really promising and it is believed that this solution might prove effective in real devices.Spanish Government from the PSE-MAR program PS-440000-2008-

Histological Characteristics of Gills and Dorsal Skin in Ambystoma leorae and Ambystoma rivulare: Morphological Changes for Living at High Altitude

Vertebrates exhibit structural changes in their cardiovascular and gas exchange systems in response to hypoxic conditions in high altitude environments. In highland neotenic mole salamanders, as other amphibians, the majority of gases exchange is carried out for skin and gills. But, in high altitude environments, the available oxygen is lower than it is in the air thus, the scarcity of oxygen limits the survival of organisms. Many studies on this subject have focused on understanding the hematological mechanisms that amphibians exhibit in response to hypoxia. However, little is known about possible morphological changes in respiratory structures that may permit increased gas exchange during respiration in high altitude amphibians like Ambystoma leorae and A. rivulare, two threatened Mexican salamander species. The aim of the present study was to describe and compare the histological characteristics of the gills and dorsal skin of A. leorae and A. rivulare from populations at low and high altitudes. We found that, in comparison to lowland organisms, highland ones exhibited more pronounced skin folds, greater numbers of secondary branches in the gills, thinner dorsal and gill epidermises, and greater quantity of melanin surrounding the gill blood vessels. These differences permit a greater capacity for gas exchange and also increase thermoregulatory capacity in high altitude environments.Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (grant 178723) Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SGPA/DGVS/02407/13)

Dissimilar esponses of ancient grapevines recovered in Navarra (Spain) to arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis in terms of berry quality

The exploitation of genetic diversity within agricultural plants, including grapevine, is suggested as a valuable tool to cope with the negative impacts of climate change on yield and crop quality. In some winegrowing regions of Europe, there is a renewed interest in knowing the grapevine genetic resources available, focusing on the prospection, recovery, and study of ancient cultivars typical of every zone. Grapevines are naturally associated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which provide some benefits to the host plant, although such effects depending on many factors, including variety. Therefore, the aim of this research was to characterize the potential fruit quality of eight old grapevine varieties recovered in Navarre (northeastern of the Iberian Peninsula), associated or not with AMF. The study was carried out on fruit-bearing cuttings grown under controlled conditions (greenhouse). Overall, AMF inoculation reduced bunch and berry mass, as well as phenolic content in fruits. In some varieties, AMF association improved some berry traits by increasing the concentrations of soluble solids and anthocyanins; in others, berry colour, total phenolic and anthocyanin content were diminished in AMF-inoculated plants. The results, therefore, suggest that intraspecific diversity of old grapevines could include different abilities to respond to arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis

The Multi-slit Approach to Coronal Spectroscopy with the Multi-slit Solar Explorer (MUSE)

The Multi-slit Solar Explorer (MUSE) is a proposed mission aimed at understanding the physical mechanisms driving the heating of the solar corona and the eruptions that are at the foundation of space weather. MUSE contains two instruments, a multi-slit EUV spectrograph and a context imager. It will simultaneously obtain EUV spectra (along 37 slits) and context images with the highest resolution in space (0.33-0.4 arcsec) and time (1-4 s) ever achieved for the transition region and corona. The MUSE science investigation will exploit major advances in numerical modeling, and observe at the spatial and temporal scales on which competing models make testable and distinguishable predictions, thereby leading to a breakthrough in our understanding of coronal heating and the drivers of space weather. By obtaining spectra in 4 bright EUV lines (Fe IX 171A, Fe XV 284A, Fe XIX-XXI 108A) covering a wide range of transition region and coronal temperatures along 37 slits simultaneously, MUSE will be able to "freeze" the evolution of the dynamic coronal plasma. We describe MUSE's multi-slit approach and show that the optimization of the design minimizes the impact of spectral lines from neighboring slits, generally allowing line parameters to be accurately determined. We also describe a Spectral Disambiguation Code to resolve multi-slit ambiguity in locations where secondary lines are bright. We use simulations of the corona and eruptions to perform validation tests and show that the multi-slit disambiguation approach allows accurate determination of MUSE observables in locations where significant multi-slit contamination occurs

Estudio de un proceso de compostaje de estiércol de conejo mediante técnicas espectroscópicas y análisis de ácidos húmicos y fúlvicos

El tratamiento de los residuos ganaderos se considera actualmente un importante paso, determinante para el desarrollo del sector ganadero. Un método de manejo del estiércol y enmienda del suelo de bajo costo lo constituye el uso agrícola del estiércol animal para cultivos forrajeros, pero también, existen otras técnicas como el compostaje y la biometanización.Su uso agrícola debe ser siempre la primera alternativa, ya que permite economizar en la adquisición de abonos y supone una forma eficiente y sostenible de emplearlos y optimizar el uso de la energía y la materia contenidos en ellos.La recuperación de recursos y el subsiguiente compostaje juegan un papel importante en la gestión de residuos, dado que los compost de calidad, ricos en materia orgánica estable, se podrían emplear como abono en sustitución de fertilizantes químicos, siendo fácil de producir en las explotaciones ganaderas. Las características de las deyecciones ganaderas pueden ser muy diferentes en función de la especie, la edad del ganado, el tipo de granja, la alimentación o el manejo. Sin embargo, en cualquier caso, la aplicación del compost como enmienda orgánica a los suelos, no sólo supondría un incremento de la materia orgánica del suelo, sino también conllevaría otro tipo de mejoras como en sus propiedades físicas o biológicas, importantes para el sostenimiento de su calidad.En este trabajo se propone el compostaje de estiércol de una explotación cunícola (3160 kg) con diferentes tipos de materiales estructurantes. Para ello, se conforman tres pilas dinámicas con aireación natural: pila 1 [estiércol + 200 kg cama (viruta + orina + pelo)], pila 2 [estiércol + 52 kg paja cebada], pila 3 [estiércol + 52 kg paja cebada]. Se tomó una muestra semanal durante la fase activa del proceso de compostaje que duró diez semanas y una muestra mensual durante la fase de maduración, que se desarrolló a lo largo cinco meses. Se realizaron análisis por triplicado de todas las muestras, controlando los parámetros básicos de seguimiento del proceso (temperatura, humedad, pH, CE, C/N, etc.). Además, se estudiaron las transformaciones que sufría la materia orgánica durante el proceso mediante un método espectroscópico [infrarrojo de transformada de Fourier (FTIR)], que permitía conocer la composición química de la materia orgánica, permitiendo controlar la calidad del producto final. Los espectros FTIR revelaron una transformación inicial de los compuestos más sencillos, tras la que se sucedió una descomposición y mineralización de compuestos orgánicos más complejos, para finalmente dar lugar a reacciones de polimerización de materiales orgánicos más resistentes, característicos del proceso de formación de humus.Palabras clave: estiércol cunicola, compostaje, FTIR, materia orgánica