Interregional migration: who decides to move?

The functionality of a region depends on its people. Yet for some regions within Australia, attracting and retaining varied skilled people continues to be a challenge. What influences people to want to stay, move away from or move into a region? Before we can answer this question, we firstly need to understand 'who' is making this decision. Much of past research assumes the decision is made at the individual head of household level or must assume the decision is made at the individual as opposed to the household level as a result of data availability. This paper highlights the limitations of making such an assumption and offers an alternative method transforming secondary microdata to reflect the collective household unit as the decision making unit. We find that our migration models are statistically robust with results consistent with conventional studies that show smaller, younger households are more mobile. Most importantly, however, we find evidence that our proxies which represent characteristics of the collective unit, termed "Decision Making Unit", are also statistically significant. Thus, justifying the need for migration models to reflect the collective unit and not just the individual, should we seek to better understand motives

Comparative advantage

This paper is the outcome of a project to review the literature on comparative advantage. A good understanding of the literature on comparative advantage is seen as a precursor to increasing cooperation between stakeholders, especially in industries linked to international trade. Increased cooperation between stakeholders is seen as one of the early stages in the development process that might lead in the medium term to the establishment of a formal cooperation agreement or to an industrial cluster. It is widely believed by economists that comparative advantage is a key determinant of international production and trade patterns. Gaining a deeper understanding of the concept of comparative advantage enables countries to increase their welfare by exporting in those goods in which they know they have a comparative advantage. In Section II we review the evolution of trade theory from Classical to neo-classical and then to Modern theory. Section III is an application of comparative advantage. The outcomes, learning experiences, planned future directions and actions and potential spillovers identified from the Project were better than was expected in the planning stages of the Project because the paper turned out to be useful across a wider range of disciplines than was expected in the planning stages of the project

Internal migration in Australia: does it exacerbate or mitigate regional skills disparities?

Why do some regions prosper while others decline and what are the causes for the disparities between brain-rich and brain-poor regions? In the USA, UK and Europe, there is evidence to suggest that regions with an attractive 'people climate' are likely to be able to entice other people, with embodied levels of human capital to move there - thus creating a virtuous cycle of self-sustaining growth. As such, the spatial distribution of the highly educated population may become increasingly concentrated creating disparities between brain-rich and brain-poor regions. Whether or not this phenomenon is occurring in Australia has not, as yet, been investigated. This research paper thus attempts to explore the issue using, initially, a descriptive approach. Firstly, it examines spatial patterns of Australian residents who have changed their usual place of residence between the census years 2001 and 2006 by analysing the most current Census data - 2006 Census Confidentialised Unit Record Files (CURFS) Microdata to determine which regions experienced inward/outward migration of highly skilled persons. Secondly, it examines the characteristics of brain-rich and brain-poor regions the primary aim being to see if there is prime facie evidence for the existence of these self-sustaining cycles. There are however, likely to be many compounding factors, so whilst this analysis improves our understanding of the link between migration and human capital, it is but a start - with more sophisticated analysis planned for subsequent research

Mutagenic and DNA repair activity in traffic policemen: A case-crossover study

Background: Emissions from vehicles are composed of heterogeneous mixtures of hazardous substances; several pollutants such as Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are amongst the most dangerous substances detected in urban monitoring. A cohort of traffic policemen usually occupationally exposed to PAHs present in the urban environment were examined in order to assess the mutagenicity and DNA capacity repair. Methods: Seventy-two urban traffic policemen working in Catania's metropolitan area were enrolled in the study. Two spot urine samples were collected from each subject during the whole working cycle as follows: sample 1 (S1), pre-shift on day 1; sample 2 (S2) post-shift on day 6. 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) was measured to serve as an indirect exposure indicator. Urinary mutagenic activity was assessed through the plate incorporation pre-incubation technique with S9, using YG1024 Salmonella typhimurium strain over-sensitive to PAH metabolite. Concentrations of urinary 8-oxodG were measured using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Results: As regards the exposure to PAHs, results highlighted a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001) between pre-shift on day 1 and post-shift on day 6 levels. Mutagenic activity was detected in 38 (66%) workers on S1 and in 47 (81%) on S2. Also 8-oxodG analysis showed a statistically significant difference between S1 and S2 sampling. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that occupational exposure to pollutants from traffic emission, assessed via 1-OHP measurements in urine, may lead to DNA repair and mutagenic activity, in line with other studies

Occupational exposure to fluoro-edenite and prevalence of anti-nuclear autoantibodies

An environmental contamination due to an asbestiform mineral fiber, fluoro-edenite (FE), caused a significantly increased mortality rate for malignant mesothelioma in Biancavilla, Italy. Exposure to fluoro-edenite has been associated with inflammatory processes as an early response to inhaled fibers. The aim was to explore prevalence of anti-nuclear autoantibodies (ANA) in a group of construction workers residing and working in the contaminated area. Prevalences for samples positive to ANA were 60% (n = 9) and 13% (n = 2), for exposed and nonexposed, respectively (p-value <0.05), the odds ratio was 9.75 (95% CI: 1.59-59.69). The significance of elevated ANAs in subjects exposed to fibers is unknown; additional studies may provide a better opportunity to establish a correlation between autoimmunity and environmental exposure

Air, water and soil quality / Qualit\ue9 de l'air, de l'eau et du sol / Qualit\ue0 dell'aria, dell'acqua e del suolo

Preface This third volume of the "Qualit\ue0 of the Environment" series assembles the scientific communications presented during the "Air, Water, and Soil Quality" International Congress held at Imola (Imola) on 24th and 25th of June 2009. The air-water-soil system influences the life of the plants and animals which live on the Earth. This system governs biodiversity, giving birth to macro-ecosystems and micro- diversifications inside each different system. If the quality of one or more parts of the system decreases, natural biodiversity may be irrevocably damaged, causing the disappearance of some plant and animal species. Man's presumption at exploiting the ecosystem for his own profit is leading to an irresponsible waste of the necessary resources for his own life. Air, water, and land pollution are henceforth considered conditions that cannot be avoided when a fictive welfare that does not take account of human health and natural sustainability is to be reached. The aim of the meeting was to take account of the present quality of the air-water-soil system, comparing Italian realities with those in other countries of the European Union and to make known the most efficient measures and instruments for fighting ecosystem degradation and the waste of resources. By this we would like to make our public aware of the importance of protecting our environment and its natural resources. Pr\ue9face Ce troisi\ue8me volume de la collection "Qualit\ue9 de l'Environnement" rassemble les communications scientifiques pr\ue9sent\ue9es au cours du Congr\ue8s International "Qualit\ue9 de l'Air, de l'Eau et du Sol" tenu \ue0 Imola (Italie) les 24 et 25 juin 2009. L\u2019\ue9tat du syst\ue8me air-eau-sol influence la vie animale et v\ue9g\ue9tale sur la Terre; il est \ue0 l\u2019origine des biodiversit\ue9s qui ont cr\ue9e la muntiplicit\ue9 des macro-\ue9cosyst\ue8mes et des micro-diversifications \ue0 l\u2019int\ue9rieur de chacun d'eux. Si la qualit\ue9 d\u2019un ou de plusieurs \ue9l\ue9ments du syst\ue8me s\u2019effondre, la biodiversit\ue9 naturelle pourra s'appauvrir au point de cr\ue9er une situation irr\ue9versible conduisant \ue0 la disparition de certaines esp\ue8ces v\ue9g\ue9tales et animales. La pr\ue9somption humaine de pouvoir g\ue9rer l\u2019\ue9cosyst\ue8me \ue0 notre gr\ue9 est en train de conduire \ue0 une irresponsable d\ue9gradation des ressources essentielles \ue0 notre propre vie. La pollution de l\u2019air, des eaux et la contamination du sol, sont d\ue9sormais consider\ue9s comme des conditions in\ue9vitables pour atteindre rapidement un bien-\ueatre factice, sans tenir compte de son impact sur les \ue9cosyst\ue8mes, le d\ue9veloppement durable et la sant\ue9 de l\u2019humanit\ue9. Le congr\ue8s souhaite faire le point de la qualit\ue9 du syst\ue8me air-eau-sol en confrontant les diff\ue9rentes r\ue9alit\ue9s italiennes avec celles des autres pays de l'Union Europ\ue9enne. Son but principal est de faire conna\ueetre les instruments et les actions les plus efficaces pour lutter contre la d\ue9gradation des \ue9cosyst\ue8mes et le gaspillage des ressources ; et, pourquoi pas, nous avons aussi comme objectif de sensibiliser notre public \ue0 la d\ue9fense et \ue0 la valorisation de notre environnement. Prefazione Il terzo volume della Collana "Qualit\ue0 dell'ambiente" raccoglie le comunicazioni scientiche presentate nell'ambito del Congresso Internazionale "Qualit\ue0 dell'aria, dell'acqua e del suolo" svoltosi a Imola nei giotni 24-25 giugno 2009. Il sistema aria-acqua-suolo ha condizionato la vita vegetale ed animale sulla superficie della Terra dando origine alle biodiversit\ue0 che hanno condotto ad una molteplicit\ue0 di macro ecosistemi e di micro diversificazioni all'interno di ciascuno di essi. Se la qualit\ue0 di una o pi\uf9 delle componenti del sistema decade la biodiversit\ue0 naturale si impoverisce al punto tale da poter creare condizioni di irreversibilit\ue0 portando alla scomparsa di specie vegetali ed animali. La presunzione dell'uomo di potere governare l'ecosistema a proprio piacimento sta conducendo ad un irresponsabile degrado delle risorse essenziali per la vita, al punto tale che inquinamento dell'aria e delle acque o contamina..