Costs of compliance with EU regulations and competitiveness of the EU dairy sector

The introduction of cross-compliance mechanism in the European Union with its 2003 CAPreform might affect the costs of production and thus competitiveness of the EU. Little evidence is available to asses the costs of compliance with regulations and it implication for trade. In this study a farm level competitiveness analysis of the impacts of the Nitrate Directive and the Identification & registration Directive focuses on the dairy sector in Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands and UK (within EU), and the US and New Zealand (outside EU). The findings from this study are integrated into a trade analysis which assesses the impact of compliance costs on competitiveness of the various trading nations in global trade. Representative farm studies were used as a basis for the cost increase calculations. Best-estimates of compliance are used from the existing literature and expert judgements. The negative impact of these measures (for nitrates, and animal identification and registration) on EU imports and exports are less than 3 percent. If a smaller increase in compliance takes place, these already relatively small trade impacts will be further diminished. When the standards for nitrate pollution taken by the US and New Zealand are taken into account along with full compliance assumption in all countries analysed, this would only slightly improve the EU exports. The trade impacts obtained when no changes are assumed to happen in key competitor countries can thus be argued as providing the upper bound of the likely trade impacts

Occupational distribution of metabolic syndrome prevalence and incidence differs by sex and is not explained by age and health behavior:results from 75 000 Dutch workers from 40 occupational groups

INTRODUCTION: This study examines the association between 40 occupational groups and prevalence and incidence of metabolic syndrome (MetS), separately for male and female workers, and whether age and health behaviors can explain the association. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Data from 74 857 Lifelines Cohort and Biobank Study participants were used to regress occupational group membership, coded by Statistics Netherlands, on the prevalence and incidence of MetS using logistic and Cox regression analyses. MetS diagnosis was based on physical examinations, blood analysis, and recorded medication use. Information on age, smoking status, physical activity, diet and alcohol consumption was acquired using questionnaires. RESULTS: Baseline MetS prevalence was 17.5% for males and 10.6% for females. During a median 3.8 years of follow-up, MetS incidence was 7.8% for males and 13.2% for females. One occupational group was associated with an increased MetS risk in both sexes. Six additional occupational groups had an increased risk for MetS among men, four among women. Highest risks were found for male 'stationary plant and machine operators' (HR: 1.94; 95% CI 1.26 to 3.00) and female 'food preparation assistants' (HR: 1.80; 95% CI 1.01 to 3.22). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that occupational group matters for men and women in MetS development, and that differences in MetS prevalence across occupations are not merely a reflection of selection of metabolically unhealthy workers into specific occupations. The striking sex differences in the occupational distribution of MetS indicate that preventive measures should, with some exceptions, target men and women separately

Global Diffusion of Montessori Schools: A Report From the 2022 Global Montessori Census

Montessori education is distinct for its implementation in 154 countries around the world. Lacking a Montessori trademark or comprehensive overseeing body, the expansion of the Montessori approach has often been diffuse and fragmented among competing organizations. The absence of centralized, accurate, and consistent accounting has made it difficult to document the scope, growth trends, and diverse populations of students served in Montessori schools. The primary objective of this study was to gather evidence to support a robust estimate of the number of Montessori schools worldwide. This estimate relies on national and regional organizations’ broadest definitions of what constitutes a Montessori program. The study included two components: a survey of regional and national Montessori organizations and supplemental sources, including other published estimates and direct inquiries within key countries. Multiple sources allowed for triangulating data to reach a more confident estimate for the number of schools in each country and for synthesizing global perspectives on significant elements of Montessori fidelity worldwide. Through these sources, we document a total of 15,763 Montessori schools around the globe, roughly 9% of which are government funded. Countries with the largest number of Montessori schools are the United States, China, Thailand, Germany, Canada, and Tanzania; the United States, Thailand, the Netherlands, and India have the largest number of government-funded or public Montessori programs. Results of the fidelity analysis identified six practices that emerge consistently as central pillars of Montessori implementation

Global Diffusion of Montessori Schools: A Report From the 2022 Global Montessori Census

Montessori education is distinct for its implementation in 154 countries around the world. Lacking a Montessori trademark or comprehensive overseeing body, the expansion of the Montessori approach has often been diffuse and fragmented among competing organizations. The absence of centralized, accurate, and consistent accounting has made it difficult to document the scope, growth trends, and diverse populations of students served in Montessori schools. The primary objective of this study was to gather evidence to support a robust estimate of the number of Montessori schools worldwide. This estimate relies on national and regional organizations’ broadest definitions of what constitutes a Montessori program. The study included two components: a survey of regional and national Montessori organizations and supplemental sources, including other published estimates and direct inquiries within key countries. Multiple sources allowed for triangulating data to reach a more confident estimate for the number of schools in each country and for synthesizing global perspectives on significant elements of Montessori fidelity worldwide. Through these sources, we document a total of 15,763 Montessori schools around the globe, roughly 9% of which are government funded. Countries with the largest number of Montessori schools are the United States, China, Thailand, Germany, Canada, and Tanzania; the United States, Thailand, the Netherlands, and India have the largest number of government-funded or public Montessori programs. Results of the fidelity analysis identified six practices that emerge consistently as central pillars of Montessori implementation

The galaxy environment in GAMA G3C groups using the Kilo Degree Survey Data Release 3

We aim to investigate the galaxy environment in GAMA Galaxy Groups Catalogue (G3C) using a volume-limited galaxy sample from the Kilo Degree Survey Data Release 3. The k-Nearest Neighbour technique is adapted to take into account the probability density functions (PDFs) of photometric redshifts in our calculations. This algorithm was tested on simulated KiDS tiles, showing its capability of recovering the relation between galaxy colour, luminosity and local environment. The characterization of the galaxy environment in G3C groups shows systematically steeper density contrasts for more massive groups. The red galaxy fraction gradients in these groups is evident for most of group mass bins. The density contrast of red galaxies is systematically higher at group centers when compared to blue galaxy ones. In addition, distinct group center definitions are used to show that our results are insensitive to center definitions. These results confirm the galaxy evolution scenario which environmental mechanisms are responsible for a slow quenching process as galaxies fall into groups and clusters, resulting in a smooth observed colour gradients in galaxy systems.Comment: 14 pages, Accepted to MNRA

Quantum-Statistical Current Correlations in Multi-Lead Chaotic Cavities

Quantum mechanics requires that identical particles are treated as indistinguishable. This requirement leads to correlations in the fluctuating properties of a system. Theoretical predictions are made for an experiment on a multi-lead chaotic quantum dot which can identify exchange effects in electronic current-current correlations. Interestingly, we find that the ensemble averaged exchange effects are of the order of the channel number, and are insensitive to dephasing.Comment: 4 pages REVTEX, including two figure

Avoidance as a strategy of (not) coping: qualitative interviews with carers of Huntington's Disease patients

Peer reviewedPublisher PD