HEP@Home - A distributed computing system based on BOINC

Project SETI@HOME has proven to be one of the biggest successes of distributed computing during the last years. With a quite simple approach SETI manages to process large volumes of data using a vast amount of distributed computer power. To extend the generic usage of this kind of distributed computing tools, BOINC is being developed. In this paper we propose HEP@HOME, a BOINC version tailored to the specific requirements of the High Energy Physics (HEP) community. The HEP@HOME will be able to process large amounts of data using virtually unlimited computing power, as BOINC does, and it should be able to work according to HEP specifications. In HEP the amounts of data to be analyzed or reconstructed are of central importance. Therefore, one of the design principles of this tool is to avoid data transfer. This will allow scientists to run their analysis applications and taking advantage of a large number of CPUs. This tool also satisfies other important requirements in HEP, namely, security, fault-tolerance and monitoring.Comment: 4 pages, 4 Postscript figures, uses CHEP2004.cls, submitted to CHEP200

Social Mobility and Demand for Redistribution. A Comparative Analysis

The literature on preferences for redistribution has paid little attention to the effect of social mobility on the demand for redistribution, which is in contrast with the literature on class-voting, where studies on the effect of social mobility has been very common. Some works have addressed this issue but no systematic test of the hypotheses connecting social mobility and preferences has been done. In this paper we use the diagonal reference models to estimate the effect of origin and destination class on preferences for redistribution in a sample of European countries using data from the European Social Survey. Our findings indicate that social origin matters to a little extent to explain preferences, as newcomers tend to adopt the preferences of the destination class. Moreover, we have found only limited evidence supporting the acculturation hypothesis and not support for the status maximization hypothesis. Furthermore, the effect of social origin varies largely between countries. In a second step of the analysis we investigate what are the national factors explaining this variation. The empirical evidence we present leads to conclude that high rates of upward social mobility sharply reduce the effect of social origin on preferences for redistributionUniversidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

EUROPEAN UNION COTTON DEMAND: AN APPLICATION OF DEMAND SYSTEMS AND PANEL DATA

A demand system approach incorporating demographic variables is used to estimate the European Union cotton demand parameters. The European Union is the largest cotton importer of the world. Accurate estimation of European demand parameters is critical to evaluate world cotton trends and to realistically simulate future market scenarios. Unlike previous studies, this paper reports a research in which demands of the 15 European Union members are not aggregated. Moreover, unlike available estimations, the study does not use mill consumption data but cotton equivalent consumption at home.International Relations/Trade,

Forecast and Simulation Analysis of Mexican Meat Consumption at the Table Cut Level: Impacts on U.S. Exports.

An analysis of current and forecasted Mexican meat consumption and imports is presented at the table cut level of disaggregation. Unlike previous studies, this study uses adult equivalence scales, a price imputation approach, a consistent censored demand system, and estimation techniques from stratified sampling. The results indicate that most Mexican consumption and imports of table cuts of meats grow at different rates. In addition, Mexico seems to be following the U.S. preferences for beef cuts, but it does not seem to be following the U.S. preferences for chicken cuts. The study may help U.S. and Canadian meat exporters in forecasting future exports to Mexico, conducting long-term meat investment decisions, or identifying trends in the consumption of specific table cuts of meats.forecast of Mexican meat consumption, forecast of Mexican imports, U.S. meat exports to Mexico, Mexican meat demand elasticities, meat analysis at the table cut level, censored demand system, two-step estimation procedure, stratified sampling, Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, International Relations/Trade, Q11,

Estimation of a Censored Demand System in Stratified Sampling: An Analysis of Mexican Meat Demand at the Table Cut Level.

Evidence of meat trade in the form of table cuts suggests that consumer preferences and tastes vary across meat cuts. Unlike previous studies, this paper estimates demand elasticities at the table cut level from a Mexican survey of household incomes and expenditures, which is a stratified sample. The study uses the two-step estimation of a censored demand system proposed by Shonkwiler and Yen (1999) but incorporates stratification variables into the estimation procedure. Parameter estimates are reported and its standard errors are approximated by using the bootstrap procedure.censored demand system, two-step estimation procedure, stratified sampling, Mexican meat demand, elasticities, adult equivalent scales, bootstrap standard errors, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Q11,

Use of idempotent functions in the aggregation of different filters for noise removal

The majority of existing denoising algorithms obtain good results for a specific noise model, and when it is known previously. Nonetheless, there is a lack in denoising algorithms that can deal with any unknown noisy images. Therefore, in this paper, we study the use of aggregation functions for denoising purposes, where the noise model is not necessary known in advance; and how these functions affect the visual and quantitative results of the resultant images

Evaluation of the mechanical properties of self compacting concrete using current estimating models. Estimating the modulus of elasticity, tensile strength, and modulus of rupture of self compacting concrete

This study includes an analysis of the applicability of current models used for estimating the mechanical properties of conventional concrete to self-compacting concrete. The mechanical properties evaluated are: modulus of elasticity, tensile strength, and modulus of rupture. An extensive database which included the dosifications and the mechanical properties of 627 mixtures from 138 different references, was used. The models considered are: ACI, EC-2, NZS 3101:2006 (New Zealand code) and the CSA A23.3-04 (Canadian code). The precision in estimating the modulus of elasticity and tensile strength is acceptable for all models; however, all models are less precise in estimating the modulus of rupture

Welfare Policies and Solidarity Toward the Elderly

In this paper we analyze the effect of welfare policies oriented toward the elderly on solidarity toward the elderly in a sample of European countries. The research question is whether more generous welfare policies crowd out solidarity. For this purpose, we analyze four waves of the SHARE database. We use multilevel analysis to estimate the effect of national variables on transfers toward the elderly, controlling for individual level variables. At the national level we focus on the effect of public spending on policies oriented toward the elderly after controlling for some other relevant variables, such as the proportion of elderly people, female labor force participation and unemployment. Our results indicate that expenditure in social protection toward the elderly has a positive and significant (albeit moderate) effect on the economic support received by the elderly (which is in line with the Crowding-in hypothesis). However, in the case of time transfers, we find that expenditure in social protection toward the elderly has a negative and significant impact on the time transfers received by the elderly (which is consistent with the Crowding-out hypothesis).Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech