A multidimensional assessment of social cohesion in 47 European countries

This paper presents a theoretically based, multidimensional and comparable measurementof social cohesion applicable in 47 European countries using the most recent micro-level data of European Value Study (EVS) from 2008. The analysis is conducted in four steps. In the first part, we create a set of measurable intermediate indicators that correspond to social cohesion dimensions suggested by the theory. In the second part, we verify whether these indicators empirically corroborate the multidimensional structure of the concept proposed by the theory. The third part examines whether the obtained intermediate indicators of social cohesion form the same constructs across countries and whether they can yield a cross country equivalent measure of social cohesion. In the fourth step, composite scores of all dimensions of social cohesion are calculated for all 47 countries to demostrate applicability of this constructed measurement in comparative research.social cohesion; measurement equivalence; multidimensional scaling; LISREL; multidimensional indicators

Measuring and validating social cohesion: a bottom-up approach

The aim of this paper is to provide a synthetic macro index of social cohesion based on the observation of several individual level variables. Based on the definition of social cohesion by Bernard (1999) and Chan et al. (2006) an index of social cohesion (henceforth VALCOS Index) was created. It covers the political and sociocultural domains of life in their formal and substantial relations. Results suggest that the VALCOS-Index of social cohesion is strongly and significantly correlated with other macro indicators largely used by the scientific community. The aggregation of EVS 2008 data on social cohesion together with many macro indicators of several dimensions of social life (including economic, socio-demographic, health and subjective well-being indicators) allowed us to rank social cohesion across 39 European countries and to explore differences across groups of countries. Subsequently, we validated our index by correlating it with many national level variables.social cohesion; methodology; macro index; micro index; EVS

Diene-modified nucleotides for the DielsAlder-mediated functional tagging of DNA

We explore the potential of the DielsAlder cycloaddition for the functional tagging of DNA strands. A deoxyuridine triphosphate derivative carrying a diene at position 5 of the pyrimidine base was synthesized using a two-step procedure. The derivative was efficiently accepted as substrate in enzymatic polymerization assays. Diene carrying strands underwent successful cycloaddition with maleimide-terminated fluorescence dyes and a polymeric reagent. Furthermore, a nucleotide carrying a peptide via a DielsAlder cyclohexene linkage was prepared and sequence-specifically incorporated into DNA. The DielsAlder reaction presents a number of positive attributes such as good chemoselectivity, water compatibility, high-yield under mild conditions and no additional reagents apart from a diene and a dienophile. Furthermore, suitable dienophiles are commercially available in the form of maleimide-derivatives of fluorescent dyes and bioaffinity tags. Based on these advantages, diene- and cyclohexene-based nucleotide triphosphates are expected to find wider use in the area of nucleic acid chemistry

Valeurs de base et cohésion sociale. Enquête EVS Luxembourg 2008

L?objectif général de cette publication est de mettre en relation les valeurs et la cohésion sociale. Nous menons ici une démarche originale visant à mesurer les valeurs pour les intégrer ensuite dans des modèles de régression multiple, et ce, afin d?identifier leur contribution à la prédiction de la cohésion sociale. Trois objectifs spécifiques sont ainsi poursuivis. Le premier vise à vérifier la théorie des valeurs de Schwartz au moyen d?analyses par échelonnement multidimensionnel appliquées aux données luxembourgeoises de l?European Values Study (EVS) de 2008. Cette démarche n?aboutit pas aux résultats attendus. Cependant, au moyen de méthodes plus classiques, nous parvenons à dégager des valeurs particulières et des valeurs de base convenant à une interprétation hiérarchique pour notre recherche. Le deuxième objectif a pour but de mesurer, au moyen d?analyses de régression multiple, la dépendance des valeurs de base des caractéristiques sociodémographiques des individus. Le dernier objectif, enfin, consiste à mesurer l?effet de ces valeurs sur la cohésion sociale. Le résultat sans doute le plus intéressant est que, la plupart du temps, les valeurs de base contribuent fortement à améliorer la prédiction de la cohésion sociale, dès lors que les variables sociales et démographiques sont contrôlées.valeurs; social cohesion; Schwartz; Luxembourg; EVS; méthodologie

THE IMPACT OF TAX-BENEFIT SYSTEMS ON LOWINCOME HOUSEHOLDS IN THE BENELUX COUNTRIES. A SIMULATION APPROACH USING SYNTHETIC DATASETS.

Computing the tax-benefit position of similar "typical" households across countries is a method widely used in comparative fiscal- and social policy research. These calculations provide convenient summary pictures of certain aspects of tax-benefit systems. They can, however, be seriously misleading because they reduce very complex systems to single point estimates. Using an integrated European tax-benefit model (EUROMOD), we substitute the typical household by a synthetic dataset, which can be used across countries. By varying certain important household characteristics (notably income), this dataset captures a much larger range of household situations. The calculations performed on this range of households not only show the tax-benefit position of many individual households but also demonstrate which household characteristics determine taxes and benefits in each country. Hypothetical calculations such as those presented here do not exploit the ability of EUROMOD to determine the impact of social and fiscal policies on actual populations. Nevertheless, they can be a valuable contribution to understanding tax-benefit systems since they allow us to separate the effects of tax-benefit rules from those of the population structure. We compute and compare disposable incomes for a large range of pre-tax-and-benefit income (so called budget constraints) of households in the Benelux countries. Disposable incomes are then decomposed to separately show the effects of each simulated tax and transfer payment. Based on these results, we illustrate the performance of the three tax-benefit systems in terms of ensuring a minimum level of household income.Microsimulation; European Union; Benelux; Average Production Worker; Poverty

Les résidants du Luxembourg et leurs voisins : Attitudes et sentiment de solidarité

Le présent article a pour objectif de dresser un portrait sommaire des attitudes de la population du Luxembourg à l?égard de ses voisins ainsi que du sentiment de solidarité qu?elle nourrit à leur endroit. S?appuyant sur les données luxembourgeoises de l?European Values Study (EVS) de 1999 et de 2008, il vise plus particulièrement à savoir comment ont évolué ces deux aspects au cours de la dernière décennie. Les résultats révèlent que les résidants du Luxembourg sont aujourd?hui un peu plus sélectifs vis-à-vis de leur voisinage éventuel qu?ils ne l?étaient en 1999. Cette sélectivité n?a toutefois pas évolué de la même manière suivant le critère de rejet, d?importantes différences apparaissant selon que ce critère renvoie aux comportements politiques, aux comportements déviants ou aux différences. Concernant la solidarité à l?égard des voisins, les résultats indiquent une légère diminution de ce sentiment entre 1999 et 2008. Loin de refléter une tendance générale d?indifférence vis-à-vis des autres, cet affaiblissement du sentiment de solidarité à l?endroit des voisins témoignerait plutôt d?un déplacement de la solidarité au profit de situations de vie concrètes, comme la vulnérabilité.

The Impact Of Tax Benefit Systems On Low Income Households In The Benelux Countries. A Simulation Approach Using Synthetic Datasets

Computing the tax-benefit position of similar typical households across countries is a method widely used in comparative fiscal- and social policy research. These calculations provide convenient summary pictures of certain aspects of tax-benefit systems. They can, however, be seriously misleading because they reduce very complex systems to single point estimates. Using an integrated European tax-benefit model (EUROMOD), we substitute the typical household by a synthetic dataset, which can be used across countries. By varying certain important household characteristics (notably income), this dataset captures a much larger range of household situations. The calculations performed on this range of households not only show the tax-benefit position of many individual households but also demonstrate which household characteristics determine taxes and benefits in each country. Hypothetical calculations such as those presented here do not exploit the ability of EUROMOD to determine the impact of social and fiscal policies on actual populations. Nevertheless, they can be a valuable contribution to understanding tax-benefit systems since they allow us to separate the effects of tax-benefit rules from those of the population structure. We compute and compare disposable incomes for a large range of pre-tax-and-benefit income (so called budget constraints) of households in the Benelux countries. Disposable incomes are then decomposed to separately show the effects of each simulated tax and transfer payment. Based on these results, we illustrate the performance of the three tax-benefit systems in terms of ensuring a minimum level of household income.European Union, Microsimulation, Poverty, Benelux, Average Production Worker

A New Application of the Lunar Laser Retroreflectors: Searching for the "Local" Hubble Expansion

Precise measurements of the Earth-Moon distance by the lunar laser ranging (LLR), which begun in the early 1970's, contributed significantly to geodesy, geophysics, and lunar planetology, as well as enabled astrophysicists to perform several fine tests of the relativistic gravitational field theory (General Relativity). Yet another promising application of LLR arises just now in the context of recent cosmological models, whose dynamics is substantially affected by some kinds of the dark matter (or the so-called "dark energy") uniformly distributed in space, and therefore should be accompanied by some residual Hubble expansion at any spatial scales, particularly, in the Earth-Moon system. The "local" Hubble expansion can be revealed by comparing the rate of increase in the lunar semi-major axis measured by LLR (which should be produced both by the well-known tidal exchange of angular momentum between the Earth and Moon and the local Hubble expansion) with the same quantity derived indirectly from astrometric data on the Earth's rotation deceleration (which is produced only by the tidal interaction). Such analysis really points to the discrepancy 1.3 cm/yr, which corresponds to the local Hubble constant H_0^(loc) = 33 +/- 5 (km/s)/Mpc. This value is about two times less than at intergalactic scales but many orders of magnitude greater than was predicted in earlier theoretical works.Comment: Single PS file, 6 pages, submitted to "Advances in Space Research". Substantial new explanations, requested by the reviewers', were introduced; minor misprints were correcte

Vertical integration in the e-commerce sector

This paper studies vertical integration of a retailer and an operator in the e-commerce sector. It shows first that the comparison between independent oligopoly and integrated monopoly involves a tradeoff between competition and double marginalization which will have the opposite effect. With linear demand we need at least 3 firms (upstream and downstream) for the independent oligopoly to yield larger surplus. With constant elasticity demand, on the other hand, this is always true. Second it considers a setting where the number of firms is endogenous and determined such that gross profits cover fixed costs. While the integration of a single retailer-delivery operator pair may initially be welfare improving, the resulting market structure may not be sustainable. Furthermore, there exist a range of fixed costs for which the integrated monopoly emerges (following a single integration) and is welfare inferior to the initial independent equilibrium even when the reduction in the number of fixed costs is taken into account. Within this setting it also shows that multiple integration is typically welfare superior (for a given total number of firms) to the integration of a single retailer-delivery operator. Third and last, it considers an extension wherein customers differ according to their location, urban or rural, involving di¤erent delivery costs. It shows that urban integration is more likely to have an adverse effect on welfare than full integration