Total assets versus risk weighted assets: does it matter for Mrel? Bruegel Policy Contribution Issue 2016/12

Highlights • The European Union’s Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive foresees a ‘minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities’ (known as MREL) that banks need to comply with in order to ensure the effectiveness of the bail-in tool. The details of how MREL should be constructed in practice are under discussion. • We look at alternative ways to compute MREL, showing how the choice of the benchmark metric (risk weighted assets, total assets or leverage exposure) can change the allocation of requirements across banks. We also review MREL in light of the global effort to ensure future resolvability of banks, highlighting some differences with, and inconsistencies in relation to, the Financial Stability Board’s total loss-absorption capacity (TLAC)

On the use of Fractional Polynomials in Dynamic Cox Models

Despite a sophisticated research on modelling of survival data in the last years, the most popular model used in practice is still the proportional hazards regression model proposed by Cox (1972). This is mainly due to its exceptional simplicity. Nevertheless the fundamental assumption of the Cox model is the proportionality of the hazards, which particularly implies that the covariate effects are constant over time. For many applications this assumption is, however, doubtful. Other, more flexible approaches, which are able to cope with non-proportional hazards usually require non-standard estimation techniques, which are often rather complex and thus not favoured in application. Moreover, the selection of an appropriate test-statistic, to examine the improvement of the fit, is not obvious. In this paper we propose a flexible, yet simple method for modelling dynamic effects in survival data within the Cox framework. The method is based on Fractional Polynomials as introduced by Royston and Altman (1994). This allows for a transformation of the dynamic predictor which leads back to the conventional Cox model and hence fitting is straightforward using standard estimation techniques. In addition, it offers the possibility to easily verify the existence of time-variation. We describe a model selection algorithm which enables to include time-varying effects only when evidence is given in the data, in order to construct a model, which is just as complex as needed. We illustrate the properties of the approach in a simulation study and an application to gastric carcinoma data and compare it with other methods (e.g. the residual score test and smoothed Schoenfeld residuals of Grambsch and Therneau, 1994; natural smoothing splines of Hastie and Tibshirani, 1993)

ADHD som diagnose : en vurdering av ADHD-diagnosens gyldighet og pålitelighet, og av det metateoretiske grunnlaget for diagnosen

Masteroppgave i pedagogikk 2007 - Høgskolen i Agder, KristiansandFor noen år siden publiserte fem kanadiske psykiatere artikkelen ”Patologi i Hundremetersskogen”. Der brukte de moderne diagnosesystemer på skikkelsene i A. A. Milnes klassiske barnebøker, og det viste seg at Ole Brumm og alle vennene hans hadde alvorlige psykiske lidelser. Poenget med denne artikkelen var ikke å kaste kritisk lys over A. A. Milnes bøker, men heller å fleipe med diagnosesystemene (Shea m.fl. 2000). Stadig flere menneskelige problemer blir innlemmet i et sterkt voksende område for psykiske lidelser. Årsakene til denne utviklingen kan forstås på forskjellige måter: Enten er folk blitt sykere, eller så har man er bitt flinkere til å fange opp folk som oppfyller kriteriene til en gitt diagnose, eller så er det slik at man har utvidet kriteriene for de ulike tilstandene slik at en større gruppe enn tidligere faller inn under diagnosene. I denne masteroppgaven har jeg valgt å rette et kritisk fokus mot ADHD-diagnosen, og den dramatiske økningen i bruk av denne. Jeg vil stille spørsmål ved diagnosens gyldighet og pålitelighet, med den hensikt å vurdere diagnosens legitimitet og troverdighet som medisinsk diagnostiseringsverktøy. Er diagnosen, slik den i dag benyttes av medisinsk fagpersonell, god nok til å fange opp de personer man mener lider av tilstanden ADHD, slik at så alvorlige tiltak som å gi sentralstimulerende legemidler til barn kan forsvares? Utgangspunktet for min kritiske vurdering har vært å sette meg inn i relevant faglitteratur om ADHD-tilstanden. Jeg har også forsøkt å sette meg inn i den debatt som i dag finnes omkring diagnosen, og i dette arbeidet har Internett vært en sentral kilde for informasjonsinnhenting. Fordelen med bruk av Internett er at man ved hjelp av et par tastetrykk får tilgang til et relativt stort kunnskapsmateriale. Utfordringen i denne sammenheng er imidlertid å skille seriøse kilder fra mer kontroversielle innlegg med mangelfull vitenskapelig holdbarhet. Jeg har derfor i dette arbeidet forsøkt å holde meg til artikler publisert i kjente tidsskrifter, offentlige dokumenter eller informasjon lagt ut på hjemmesidene til sentrale interesseorganisasjoner. Et foredrag/artikkel benyttet som kilde i denne masteroppgaven; ”Biologi som ideologi” av Ekeland (2006), finnes imidlertid ikke lenger på den Internettadressen jeg lastet det ned fra (Mental Helses hjemmeside), og det har ikke lykkes meg å finne dette materialet publisert andre steder. Jeg har likevel valgt å beholde denne kilden, da foredraget uttrykker en del sentrale poenger med stor relevans for denne masteroppgaven. Også to andre artikler av Ekeland, publisert i kjente tidsskrifter, er benyttet som kilder i denne masteroppgaven. Oppgaven er delt inn i 6 kapitler, i tillegg til sammendrag og litteraturhenvisninger. I det første kapitelet presenteres tema og problemstiling, samt bakgrunnen for min interesse for ADHD-utviklingen de senere årene. Hvilke tendenser kan sees i relevante rapporter og litteratur om ADHD-tilstanden, og hvilke synspunkter rører seg i feltet? Målet med denne innføringen er å få frem den dramatiske økningen i antall barn og unge som får diagnosen ADHD og den tilsvarende økning i bruk av sentralstimulerende legemidler, for så å problematisere denne tendensen. Er dette en utvikling vi i vårt moderne samfunn ønsker oss, eller trengs en dreining av forståelsen og behandlingen av barn og unge med atferdsvansker? I det andre kapittelet gjøres greie for det vitenskapsfilosofiske, teoretiske og metodologiske grunnlaget for det videre arbeidet med ADHD-diagnosen. Hva betyr det når man innen forskning snakker om vitenskapelig fundert kunnskap, og hvilke kriterier må oppfylles for at man skal kunne hevde å ha sikker og sann kunnskap om ADHD. Først i kapittelet imidlertid en kort innføring i kritisk teori, og hva det vil si å ha en slik referanseramme som utgangspunkt for vurderingen av ADHD-diagnosen. I det tredje kapittelet gis en beskrivelse tilstanden; Hyperkinetisk atferdsforstyrrelse i WHOs diagnosemanual ICD-10, og AD/HD i den amerikanske psykiatriforening (APA)s diagnosemanual DSM-IV. Hvilke kriterier må oppfylles for å utløse diagnosen i de to diagnosesystemene, og hvilke likheter/forskjeller er det mellom disse. I tillegg redegjøres for omfang, følger og medikamentell behandling av tilstanden. I det fjerde kapittelet foretas en kritisk vurdering av ADHD-diagnosen. Oppfyller diagnosen, slik medisinsk personell i dag læres opp i den, vitenskapelige krav til validitet og reliabilitet? Målet med denne vurderingen er å se etter eventuelle svakheter ved diagnosen, og stille spørsmål ved dens legitimitet som medisinsk diagnostiseringsverktøy. Kan eventuelle svakheter ved diagnosen være med å forklare den dramatiske økningen i antall ADHDtilfeller de senere årene? I det femte kapittelet gis en kritisk vurdering av det biologiske forståelsesparadigmet, og de metateoretiske premissene som ligger til grunn for å forstå, imøtekomme og behandle barn og unges atferdsvanskeligheter med diagnoser og sentralstimulerende legemidler i et slik omfang man ser konturene av i dag. Hva betyr det at et slikt forståelsesparadigme gjennomsyrer det medisinske praksisfeltet i den vestlige verden, og hvilke konsekvenser får en slik referanseramme for legitimering av tiltak i forbindelse med tilstanden ADHD. Målet med denne kritiske vurderingen er å problematisere tendensen til å oppfatte den ”diagnostiske virkeligheten” som omgir oss: Diagnosen er ikke nødvendigvis ”sannheten”, den er snarere en konstruksjon som må sees i lys av historiske, politiske og kontekstuelle faktorer. Når dette blir tydelig, kan man så vurdere om en slik konstruksjon er ønskelig i vårt samfunn, eller om et nytt paradigme, som bedre ivaretar mellommenneskelige og kontekstuelle faktorer, bør utarbeides. I det sjette og siste kapittelet gis en oppsummering og avslutning av dette prosjektet. Hvilken kunnskap kan trekkes ut av den kritiske vurderingen av ADHD-diagnosen, og hva kan denne kunnskapen så bety for vår forståelsen av barn og unge med impulsiv, ukonsentrert og hyperaktiv atferd? Kildehenvisninger i denne masteroppgaven er ordnet etter Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA)s retningslinjer

Cultivation of Inonotus hispidus in Stirred Tank and Wave Bag Bioreactors to Produce the Natural Colorant Hispidin

Hispidin (6-(3,4-dihydroxystyrl)-4-hydroxy-2-pyrone) production in submerged cultured mycelia of the basidiomycete Inonotus hispidus was doubled in shake flasks through irradiation with white light. The daily addition of 1 mM hydrogen peroxide as a chemical stressor and a repeated supplementation of the shake flask cultures with 2 mM caffeic acid, a biogenetic precursor, further increased the hispidin synthesis. These cultivation conditions were combined and applied to parallel fermentation trials on the 4 L scale using a classical stirred tank bioreactor and a wave bag bioreactor. No significant differences in biomass yield and colorant production were observed. The hispidin concentration in both bioreactors reached 5.5 g·L−1, the highest ever published. Textile dyeing with hispidin was successful, but impeded by its limited light stability in comparison to industrial dyes. However, following the idea of sustainability and the flawless toxicity profile, applications in natural cosmetics, other daily implements, or even therapeutics appear promisin

Pilot-Scale Production of the Natural Colorant Laetiporic Acid, Its Stability and Potential Applications

Laetiporus sulphureus, a wood-decaying basidiomycete, produces yellow-orange pigments in fruiting bodies and, as was recently shown, in submerged cultivated mycelia. Out of four strains, the most potent laetiporic acid producer was identified and its yield compared in different media. The complex Moser b medium was replaced by potato dextrose broth, achieving higher yields at a lower cost. Cultivation was then scaled up from shake flask to a 7 L stirred tank bioreactor. Optimization of parameters led to increased product concentrations up to 1 g L−1, the highest yield reported so far. An in situ product recovery strategy with a biphasic system was established, increasing the yield by 19% on the shake flask scale. A crude ethanolic extract of the biomass was examined for color stability and application trials. In contrast to what has been suggested in the past, the pigment showed limited long-term stability to oxygen and light, but was stable under storage in the dark at 4 °C under nitrogen. The orange extract was successfully incorporated into different matrices like foods, cosmetics and textiles. Laetiporic acid can potentially replace petrochemical based synthetic dyes, and can thus support the development of a circular bioeconomy

Cross-sectional study: prevalence of oedema disease Escherichia coli (EDEC) in weaned piglets in Germany at pen and farm levels

Background Escherichia coli bacteria capable of producing the toxin Stx2e and possessing F18-fimbriae (edema disease E. coli, EDEC) are considered causative agents of porcine oedema disease. This disease, which usually occurs in piglets shortly after weaning, has a high lethality in affected animals and can lead to high economic losses in piglet rearing. The aim of this cross-sectional field study was to determine the prevalence of EDEC in weaned piglets in Germany at pen and farm levels. Results Ninety-nine farms with unknown history of infections with shigatoxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and oedema disease were sampled. On each farm, up to five pens were selected for sampling (n = 481). The piglets in these pens were at an age 1–3 weeks after weaning. Single faecal samples (n = 2405) and boot swabs (n = 479) were collected from the floor. On 50 farms, cotton ropes were additionally used to collect oral fluid samples (n = 185) and rope wash out samples (n = 231) from the selected pens. All samples were analyzed by bacterial culture combined with a duplex PCR for the presence of the corresponding genes stx2e and fedA (major subunit protein of F18 fimbriae). In addition, whole DNA specimens extracted from boot swabs, oral fluid samples, and rope wash out samples were directly examined by duplex PCR for DNA of stx2e and fedA. A pen was classified as positive if at least one of the samples, regardless of the technique, yielded a positive result in the PCR, and farms were considered positive if at least one pen was classified as positive. Overall, genes stx2e and fedA were found simultaneously in 24.9% (95% CI 22.1–29.1%) of sampled pens and in 37.4% (95% CI 27.9–47.7%) of sampled farms. Regardless of the presence of F18-fimbriae, Escherichia coli encoding for Stx2e (STEC-2e) were found in 35.1% (95% CI 31.0–39.1%) of the pens and 53.5% (95% CI 44.4–63.6%) of the farms sampled. Conclusions Escherichia coli strains considered capable to cause oedema disease in swine (EDEC) are highly prevalent in the surveyed pig producing farms in Germany. Due to intermittent shedding of EDEC and a potentially low within-farm prevalence, we recommend a combination of different sampling techniques for EDEC monitoring at pen and farm levels. Further studies are needed to understand which STEC-2e strains really pose the risk of causing severe porcine disease

Production of natural colorants by liquid fermentation with Chlorociboria aeruginascens and Laetiporus sulphureus and prospective applications

The replacement of potentially hazardous synthetic dyes with natural dyes and pigments are of great interest for a sustainable economy. In order to obtain cost-efficient, environmentally friendly and competitive products, improvements in the cultivation and extraction of pigment-producing organisms and in dyeing processes are necessary. In our study, we were able to scale up the production of xylindein by Chlorociboria aeruginascens from 3 to 70 L bioreactor cultivations. We have identified important bioprocess parameters like low shear stress (150 rpm, tip speed <0.5 m/s) for optimal pigment yield (4.8 mg/L/d). Additionally, we have demonstrated the potential of laetiporic acid production by Laetiporus sulphureus in various cultivation systems and media, achieving dried biomass concentrations of almost 10 g/L with a 7 L bioreactor cultivation after 17 days. Extractions performed at 70°C and 15 min incubation time showed optimal results. To the best of our knowledge, we have described for the first time the use of this pigment in silk dyeing, which results in a brilliant hue that cannot easily be produced by other natural pigments. © 2020 The Authors. Engineering in Life Sciences published by Wiley-VCH Gmb

Fluorescence optical imaging feature selection with machine learning for differential diagnosis of selected rheumatic diseases

Background and objectiveAccurate and fast diagnosis of rheumatic diseases affecting the hands is essential for further treatment decisions. Fluorescence optical imaging (FOI) visualizes inflammation-induced impaired microcirculation by increasing signal intensity, resulting in different image features. This analysis aimed to find specific image features in FOI that might be important for accurately diagnosing different rheumatic diseases.Patients and methodsFOI images of the hands of patients with different types of rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), osteoarthritis (OA), and connective tissue diseases (CTD), were assessed in a reading of 20 different image features in three phases of the contrast agent dynamics, yielding 60 different features for each patient. The readings were analyzed for mutual differential diagnosis of the three diseases (One-vs-One) and each disease in all data (One-vs-Rest). In the first step, statistical tools and machine-learning-based methods were applied to reveal the importance rankings of the features, that is, to find features that contribute most to the model-based classification. In the second step machine learning with a stepwise increasing number of features was applied, sequentially adding at each step the most crucial remaining feature to extract a minimized subset that yields the highest diagnostic accuracy.ResultsIn total, n = 605 FOI of both hands were analyzed (n = 235 with RA, n = 229 with OA, and n = 141 with CTD). All classification problems showed maximum accuracy with a reduced set of image features. For RA-vs.-OA, five features were needed for high accuracy. For RA-vs.-CTD ten, OA-vs.-CTD sixteen, RA-vs.-Rest five, OA-vs.-Rest eleven, and CTD-vs-Rest fifteen, features were needed, respectively. For all problems, the final importance ranking of the features with respect to the contrast agent dynamics was determined.ConclusionsWith the presented investigations, the set of features in FOI examinations relevant to the differential diagnosis of the selected rheumatic diseases could be remarkably reduced, providing helpful information for the physician

International circular economy strategies and their impacts on agricultural water use

Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsThe concept of Circular Economy (CE) is becoming increasingly important in the pursuit of more sustainable societies. CE strategies are being applied in the sustainable management of a plethora of areas, such as energy, water, food and eco-industrial parks. The present paper focuses on the question of how CE principles can support the sustainable management of water in the agricultural sector around the world, considering different legislative environments, water resources management guidelines, environmental stressors, and CE practices. Considering these practices and circumstances, seven countries were compared: Brazil, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Portugal, and Taiwan. Together, CE experts in the seven countries developed a set of 44 criteria to assess each of these areas. Broader establishment and respect of water resources legislation was found to be strongly correlated with lower agricultural water use. While the application of CE practices was found to not be correlated with lower consumption, this is still novel in most countries. Based on the studied countries, it can be concluded that a global CE agenda has not been reached for water resources. Further application and variety of practices is required to better represent the impact of CE on a national scale, but local success stories could support the wider application of CE in agriculture. The findings and the framework of the study can be applied to other countries in directing CE strategies for more sustainable water use in agriculture. Increasing CE implementation, motivated by legislation and better management can help ensure water security throughout nations.publishersversionpublishe