Preference erosion and multilateral trade liberalization

Because of concern that OECD tariff reductions will translate into worsening export performance for the least developed countries, trade preferences have proven a stumbling block to developing country support for multilateral liberalization. The authors examine the actual scope for preference erosion, including an econometric assessment of the actual utilization and the scope for erosion estimated by modeling full elimination of OECD tariffs, and hence full most-favored-nation liberalization-based preference erosion. Preferences are underutilized due to administrative burden-estimated to be at least 4 percent on average-reducing the magnitude of erosion costs significantly. For those products where preferences are used (are of value), the primary negative impact follows from erosion of EU preferences. This suggests the erosion problem is primarily bilateral rather than a WTO-based concern.Free Trade,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Policy,Trade and Regional Integration,Rules of Origin

Stroke: Identifying Symptoms and Acting Fast to Save Lives and Prevent Permanent Disabilities

Stroke is the 5th leading cause of death in the United States. Strokes and their long-term effects are preventable. Recognizing the symptoms of stroke and acting quickly can prevent death and minimize long-term disabilities. Family members and bystanders have an important role to play. This issue brief describes stroke symptoms and prevention guidelines, summarizes the information 9-1-1 callers should be prepared to provide when someone is having a stroke, and discusses the importance of acting quickly to save lives and long-term damage

Our age: Our stage

Through archival research and interviews with older people, an innovative project- ‘Ages and Stages’ aimed to explore the role the New Vic Theatre has played in the creative life of the people of Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire, past and present. The project also considered how ageing and old age have been portrayed in the theatre’s famous social documentary productions from the 1960s to the 1990s in ways that shed light on the experiences of those in the local community. Findings from the research were drawn together to create a new social documentary performance, ‘Our Age, Our Stage’ and the associated ‘Ages and Stages Exhibition’. Here, Miriam Bernard the Project Lead and Professor of Social Gerontology at Keele University talks about challenges and benefits of going outside the traditional remit of academic communication and the impacts it has had

Leisure-rich and leisure-poor: the place of leisure in the life styles of young adults

Any attempt to understand the nature of leisure must explore how it meshes with other aspects of people's lives. Early research on leisure tended to be large-scale and activity rather than peopleorientated, which has proved restrictive in planning terms. More recently though, approaches have moved towards smaller scale in depth behavioural studies. By locating leisure-in life style, the present study offers a perspective which both synthesises and extends traditional approaches, while focussing on a hitherto littleresearched sub-population: young adults. Having reviewed the growing body of research on leisure and detailed the environmental and methodological background, the empirical half of this thesis begins by using cluster analysis to characterise respondents according to selected attributes of their leisure behaviour. This produces six groups who, on the basis of participation levels, are ordered along a leisure-rich to leisure-poor spectrum. The picture of each cluster is developed by examining socio-economic and demographic indices and by considering leisure in its broader spatial context. This elucidates the links between leisure and other life domains, and uncovers systematic variations in people's knowledge and awareness of leisure opportunities. Attention is then focussed on some of the less tangible and more subjective elements. The concepts of free time and leisure time are explored, as are the nature and perceived intensity of constraints. Leisure satisfaction is related to satisfaction with other life domains and to young adults' feelings about their present lives. This study reveals that leisure has a very important place in the life styles of young adults. It also cautions against regarding them as a homogeneous and non problematic sub-population, by showing that leisure participation does not necessarily equate directly with satisfaction. In this way, it has been possible to begin to distinguish between groups 'at benefit' or 'at risk', and to draw out some broad implications for local leisure planning and provision. Above all, it confirms the importance of studying leisure in the context of life styles if the holistic nature of this relationship is to be more fully understood

Protection against Bordetella pertussis in mice in the absence of detectable circulating antibody: implications for long-term immunity in children

Most vaccines used for humans work through humoral immunity, yet many appear to be protective even after specific circulating antibody levels have waned to undetectable levels. Furthermore, it has been difficult to define a serologic correlate of protection against a number of infectious diseases, including those caused by Bordetella pertussis. B. pertussis clearance in immunized mice has been shown to correlate with pertussis vaccine efficacy in children. This murine respiratory challenge model was used to demonstrate persistent vaccine-induced protection against B. pertussis in the absence of circulating antibody at the time of challenge. Whole-cell and acellular pertussis vaccines induced persistent memory T and B cells and anamnestic antibody responses after challenge. The findings suggest that immunologic memory is more significant in protection than is the induction of immediate antibody responses and imply that vaccinated children still may be protected against disease following the disappearance of specific serum IgG

Continuity or Change? Older People in Three Urban Areas

The post war period has witnessed considerable changes affecting family structures and social relationships both within, and between, the generations. Recent research has examined the impact of these changes on the lives of older people living in three contrasting areas of England: Bethnal Green (a deprived, ethnically diverse, inner city are of London with a history of transient populations), Wolverhampton (an industrial and multi-cultural Midlands Metropolitan Borough, which experienced substantial redevelopment and slum clearance) and Woodford (a relatively affluent, ageing suburb in North East London). Against a background of growing concern about the increasing numbers of older people, these three areas provided the locations for a number of classic community studies undertaken in the 1940s and 50s: The Family Life of Old People (Townsend, 1957), Family and Class in a London Suburb (Willmott and Young, 1960), and The Social Medicine of Old Age (Sheldon, 1948). The original studies examined the thesis that, in the context of a developing welfare state, families were leaving the old to fend for themselves. The reality, however, was somewhat different as the rich material about the social and family networks of elderly people was to demonstrate. The focus of the paper is on reporting some of the key changes and continuities in intergenerational contact and support between the baseline studies and research undertaken in the mid 1990s in the three areas. Using both survey data and case study material, ways in which intergenerational support and care is exchanged, reciprocated and managed will be discussed. Particular reference is made to mother- daughter relationships, which highlight continuity in relation to the importance of this relationship within the older person's network, but also illustrates change in the way this is experienced by both older and younger generations.family structure; intergenerational relationships

Biobased polyester from soybean oil: Synthesis, characterization and degradation studies

Industrially used polymers derived from fossil fuels have a negative environmental impact when being disposed of. They could be efficiently replaced by natural polymers, which are potentially degradable and which can match or even surpass them in mechanical performance. In this work, a rigid thermosetting polymer is obtained by copolymerization of maleinated acrylated epoxidized soybean oil (MAESO) with styrene (St). MAESO is synthetized by epoxidation, acrylation and maleinization from industrial soybean oil (SO). Resin characterization is performed using FT-IR,1H NMR and SEC, while copolymer characterization includes a mechanical test, degradation test and SEM. The aim of this work is the replacement of unsaturated polyester (UP) and the optimization of the SO modification reaction in MAESO. The replacement of UP by 25, 50 and 100% of MAESO enables improvements in the mechanical properties. Additionally, it is assessed whether the replacement of UP by MAESO is enough to improve the degradation properties, and the effect of degradation on the mechanical properties is analyzed. MAESO-St copolymers improve the degradation process in relation to UP, and 240 days of in vitro degradation in the presence of Aspergillus niger and Alternaria alternata fungi causes cracks, surface damage and changes in the mechanical properties of the degraded copolymer.Fil: Bernard, Mariana Del Valle. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional San Francisco. Departamento de Ingeniería Electromecánica; ArgentinaFil: Nicolau, Veronica Viviana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto de Desarrollo Tecnológico para la Industria Química; ArgentinaFil: Strumia, Miriam Cristina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional San Francisco. Departamento de Ingeniería Electromecánica; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Química Orgánica; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos y Química Aplicada. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ingeniería de Procesos y Química Aplicada; Argentin

Verankerung von Open Access Diensten in den Organisationsstrukturen von wissenschaftlichen Bibliotheken in Deutschland

Um neue Themengebiete wie Open Access in die Organisation von Bibliotheken zu integrieren, sind grundlegende Veränderungsprozesse nötig. Da an den Open-Access-Services in der Regel verschiedene Abteilungen der Bibliothek beteiligt sind, stellt sich die Frage, wie man dieses vielfältige Arbeitsgebiet am besten in die bestehenden Strukturen einer Bibliothek einbinden kann. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde untersucht, welche Organisationsmodelle wissenschaftliche Bibliotheken für die Verankerung ihrer Open-Access-Dienstleistungen nutzen. Es wurden Unterschiede in den Organisationsstrukturen verschiedener Bibliothekstypen deutlich, die vermutlich auf die Bedeutung des wissenschaftlichen Publizierens in den jeweiligen Einrichtungen zurückzuführen sind. Darüber hinaus wurden Experteninterviews mit Vertreter*innen verschiedener Bibliothekstypen durchgeführt, um herauszuarbeiten, welche strategischen Überlegungen bei der organisatorischen Einbindung von Open-Access-Aufgaben zu berücksichtigen sind. Dabei zeigte sich, dass die Erfahrungen oft von lokalen Begebenheiten abhängig sind und nicht ohne Weiteres auf andere Bibliotheken übertragbar sind. Dennoch konnten aus den Interviews grundlegende Empfehlungen zur Organisation der Aufgaben abgeleitet werden