Are dictatorships more unequal? : economic growth and wage inequality during Portugal's estado novo, 1944-1974.

This paper relates the changes in the structure of the Portuguese economy to changes in wage inequality, during 1944-1974, when Portugal had its golden age of growth under a dictatorial regime. We present a new wage data set based on surveys conducted by the Portuguese Statistics Office (INE). Our data set covers the whole economy, including 16 sectors, and data on skilled and unskilled labor for manufacturing, and on male and female labor force for agriculture. To measure the evolution of wage inequality we estimate a Theil index. The results reveal an inverted-U curve with a peak in 1959. We proceed by estimating econometrically the relationship between wage inequality and per capita income growth, controlling for the influence of additional variables that capture the effects of industrialization, investment in human and physical capital, emigration, foreign trade and the size of the government. We find a significant relationship between wage inequality, real GDP per capita, human capital and the share of government spending.Wage inequality; Structural change; Portugal;

Synchronization by dynamical relaying in electronic circuit arrays

We experimentally study the synchronization of two chaotic electronic circuits whose dynamics is relayed by a third parameter-matched circuit, to which they are coupled bidirectionally in a linear chain configuration. In a wide range of operating parameters, this setup leads to synchronization between the outer circuits, while the relaying element remains unsynchronized. The specifics of the synchronization differ with the coupling level: for low couplings a state of intermittent synchronization between the outer circuits coexists with one of antiphase synchronization. Synchronization becomes in phase for moderate couplings, and for strong coupling identical synchronization is observed between the outer elements, which are themselves synchronized in a generalized way with the relaying element. In the latter situation, the middle element displays a triple scroll attractor that is not possible to obtain when the chaotic oscillator is isolated.Comment: 7 pages, 12 figure

Are dictatorships more unequal? : economic growth and wage inequality during Portugal's estado novo, 1944-1974

This paper relates the changes in the structure of the Portuguese economy to changes in wage inequality, during 1944-1974, when Portugal had its golden age of growth under a dictatorial regime. We present a new wage data set based on surveys conducted by the Portuguese Statistics Office (INE). Our data set covers the whole economy, including 16 sectors, and data on skilled and unskilled labor for manufacturing, and on male and female labor force for agriculture. To measure the evolution of wage inequality we estimate a Theil index. The results reveal an inverted-U curve with a peak in 1959. We proceed by estimating econometrically the relationship between wage inequality and per capita income growth, controlling for the influence of additional variables that capture the effects of industrialization, investment in human and physical capital, emigration, foreign trade and the size of the government. We find a significant relationship between wage inequality, real GDP per capita, human capital and the share of government spending

Wage inequality in a developing open economy: Portugal, 1944–1984

This paper estimates and analyses wage inequality trends in Portugal, from 1944 to 1984, a period that comprises the Estado Novo dictatorship and the first decade after the transition to democracy. Wage inequality is measured by the gap between skilled and unskilled labour, and reveals a downward trend in most of the period in analysis. We provide an explanation for the observed trends by looking at the influence of domestic and international forces on changes in the relative supply and demand of skilled labour. According to our findings, the skill premium declined due to the combined influence of two major forces: an increase in the relative supply of skilled labour due to the mass emigration of unskilled labour, and the decrease in the relative demand for skills, related to trade-induced changes stemming from the country's increasing openness, which followed the country's unskilled labour comparative advantages. Our findings point to the conclusion that the impact of openness on wage inequality is related to the country's relative level of development among its major trading partners

A cutting-plane approach for large-scale capacitated multi-period facility location using a specialized interior-point method

We propose a cutting-plane approach (namely, Benders decomposition) for a class of capacitated multi-period facility location problems. The novelty of this approach lies on the use of a specialized interior-point method for solving the Benders subproblems. The primal block-angular structure of the resulting linear optimization problems is exploited by the interior-point method, allowing the (either exact or inexact) efficient solution of large instances. The effect of different modeling conditions and problem specifications on the computational performance are also investigated both theoretically and empirically, providing a deeper understanding of the significant factors influencing the overall efficiency of the cutting-plane method. This approach allowed the solution of instances of up to 200 potential locations, one million customers and three periods, resulting in mixed integer linear optimization problems of up to 600 binary and 600 millions of continuous variables. Those problems were solved by the specialized approach in less than one hour, outperforming other stateof- the-art methods, which exhausted the (144 Gigabytes of) available memory in the largest instances.Preprin

WETWALL - an innovative design concept for the treatment of wastewater at an urban scale

Rising temperatures, increasing food demand and scarcity of water and land resources highlight the importance of promoting the sustainable expansion of agriculture to our urban environment, while preserving water resources. Treating urban wastewaters, such as greywater and hydroponic wastewater, may represent a strategic point for the implementation of urban farming, ensuring food security, reducing pressures on water resources and promoting climate change mitigation. The WETWALL design concept proposes a unique ecotechnology for secondary wastewater treatment at an urban scale, which brings the novelty of a modular living wall hybrid flow. This concept is based on the integration of two established nature-based solutions/ecomimetic designs: constructed wetlands and a modular living walls. First presented is an overview about the state of the art in the scope of living walls treating wastewater, in order to identify the main design aspects related to the performance of such systems, which mainly concerns the removal of nitrates and phosphates. Second, the WETWALL design concept is presented. A scheme regarding the selection of the main components, such as plants and substrate, is proposed, and potential structure developments and operation strategies are discussed. In addition, considering the scope of integrating the circular economy with the design process, potential interactions between this technology and the urban environment are discussed. The main goal of this article is to substantiate the potential of the WETWALL design concept as an innovative wastewater treatment at an urban scale.Biggest thanks to the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development – Brazil (CNPQ), for their financial support (doctoral fellowship). The authors also would like to thank the UNESCO Chair on Sustainability of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (Spain), the Aarhus University (Denmark) and the research groups GREA (2014 SGR 123), DIOPMA (2014 SGR 1543) and GICITED (2014 SGR 1298)

Highly Species-Specific Foliar Metabolomes of Diverse Woody Species and Relationships with the Leaf Economics Spectrum

Plants show an extraordinary diversity in chemical composition and are characterized by different functional traits. However, relationships between the foliar primary and specialized metabolism in terms of metabolite numbers and composition as well as links with the leaf economics spectrum have rarely been explored. We investigated these relationships in leaves of 20 woody species from the Mediterranean region grown as saplings in a common garden, using a comparative ecometabolomics approach that included (semi-)polar primary and specialized metabolites. Our analyses revealed significant positive correlations between both the numbers and relative composition of primary and specialized metabolites. The leaf metabolomes were highly species-specific but in addition showed some phylogenetic imprints. Moreover, metabolomes of deciduous species were distinct from those of evergreens. Significant relationships were found between the primary metabolome and nitrogen content and carbon/nitrogen ratio, important traits of the leaf economics spectrum, ranging from acquisitive (mostly deciduous) to conservative (evergreen) leaves. A comprehensive understanding of various leaf traits and their coordination in different plant species may facilitate our understanding of plant functioning in ecosystems. Chemodiversity is thereby an important component of biodiversity

Generació automàtica de resums de textos especialitzats: experimentacions en llengua catalana

En aquest article presentem un nou algoritme per al resum automàtic de textos especialitzats, que combina recursos terminològics (l'ús de l'extractor de termes YATE) i semàntics (consulta de l'ontologia lèxica EuroWordNet). Apliquem l'algoritme a un corpus de textos mèdics en català i n'avaluem els resums automàtics produïts, amb el sistema FRESA, tot comparant-los amb sengles resums baseline i amb els resums d'un altre resumidor automàtic, el sistema OTS. L'algoritme proposat obté prou bons resultats, però el potencial de millora és, segons el nostre parer, molt alt.In this article we present a new algorithm for the automatic summarisation of specialized texts, which combines terminological resources (YATE as a terminology extractor) and semantic resources (EuroWordNet as a lexical ontology). We apply this algorithm to a corpus of medical texts in Catalan and we evaluate the automatic summaries produced with the system FRESA, comparing them with baseline summaries and with results of another automatic summary system, the OTS. The new algorithm yields adequate results, but the potential for improvement is, in our view, very high

Crushed autoclaved aerated concrete (CAAC), A potential reactive filter medium for enhancing phosphorus removal in nature-based solutions-preliminary batch studies

Phosphorus (P) is a limited resource and can promote eutrophication of water streams and acidification of oceans when discharged. Crushed autoclaved aerated concrete (CAAC), a by-product from demolition, has shown great potential for recovering P. The potential of CAAC to be used in nature-based solutions as a P-reactive filter medium was evaluated by performing preliminary batch essays. Here, we evaluated the interactions and main effects of the initial concentration of P (Pi; 5, 10 or 20 mg L-1), particle size (PS; 4 or 5 mm) and contact time (CT; 60, 180, 360, 720 and 1440 min) upon the removal. We performed physical and chemical characterization to understand the removal processes. Data collected were fitted in adsorption kinetic models. The statistical analysis showed a significant interaction between CT and Pi, with the combination of its main effects stronger on P removal than each one separately. Intriguingly, we noticed that the higher the concentration of Pi, the faster and higher the removal of P. Contrary to expectations, PS 5 mm showed higher removal rates than PS 4 mm, indicating that besides adsorption, other unidentified chemical processes are in place. Further studies using columns/pilots with real wastewater are recommended for a future follow-up.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Evidence for two populations of Galactic globular clusters from the ratio of their half-mass to Jacobi radii

We investigate the ratio between the half-mass radii r_h of Galactic globular clusters and their Jacobi radii r_J given by the potential of the Milky Way and show that clusters with galactocentric distances R_{GC}>8 kpc fall into two distinct groups: one group of compact, tidally-underfilling clusters with r_h/r_J<0.05 and another group of tidally filling clusters which have 0.1 < r_h/r_J<0.3. We find no correlation between the membership of a particular cluster to one of these groups and its membership in the old or younger halo population. Based on the relaxation times and orbits of the clusters, we argue that compact clusters and most clusters in the inner Milky Way were born compact with half-mass radii r_h < 1 pc. Some of the tidally-filling clusters might have formed compact as well, but the majority likely formed with large half-mass radii. Galactic globular clusters therefore show a similar dichotomy as was recently found for globular clusters in dwarf galaxies and for young star clusters in the Milky Way. It seems likely that some of the tidally-filling clusters are evolving along the main sequence line of clusters recently discovered by Kuepper et al. (2008) and are in the process of dissolution.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, MNRAS in pres