Lagrangian tracer dynamics in a closed cylindrical turbulent convection cell

Turbulent Rayleigh-Benard convection in a closed cylindrical cell is studied in the Lagrangian frame of reference with the help of three-dimensional direct numerical simulations. The aspect ratio of the cell Gamma is varied between 1 and 12, and the Rayleigh number Ra between 10^7 and 10^9. The Prandtl number Pr is fixed at 0.7. It is found that both the pair dispersion of the Lagrangian tracer particles and the statistics of the acceleration components measured along the particle trajectories depend on the aspect ratio for a fixed Rayleigh number for the parameter range covered in our studies. This suggests that large-scale circulations present in the convection cell affect the Lagrangian dynamics. Our findings are in qualitative agreement with existing Lagrangian laboratory experiments on turbulent convection.Comment: 10 pages, 11 Postscript figure

GPs and end of life decisions : views and experiences

The views and experiences of GPs with respect to end of life (EoL) care are seldom addressed. The aim of this article is to better understand this aspect of care. A cross-sectional survey of all doctors in the country was designed and set up. The overall response was 396 (39.7%), 160 of which were GPs. 28.7% of GPs received no formal training in palliative medicine. 89.8% of respondents declared that their religion was important in EoL care. 45.3% agreed with the right of a patient to decide whether or not to hasten the EoL. 70.5% agreed that physicians should aim to preserve life. 15% of GPs withdrew or withheld treatment in the care of these patients. 41.1% had intensified analgesia at EoL. 7.5% had sedated patients at EoL. Lastly, 89.1% GPs would never consider euthanasia. Significant correlation (p< 0.05) was observed between considering euthanasia, using sedation, importance of religion and patients’ rights in EoL. A thematic analysis of comments highlighted the importance of the topic and feeling uncomfortable in EoL care. In conclusion there needs to be more training in palliative care. GPs believe in preserving life, would not consider euthanasia but do not shun intensification of analgesia at the end of life. There might be some misunderstanding with respect to the role of sedation at the EoL. GPs need legal and moral guidance in EoL care, in the absence of which, their religion is used as a guide.peer-reviewe

Marketing externalities and market development

The authors use survey data from Bangladesh to present empirical evidence on externalities at household level sales decisions resulting from increasing returns to marketing. The increasing returns that arise from thick market effects and fixed costs imply that a trader is able to offer higher prices to producers if the marketed surplus is higher in villages. The semi-parametric estimates identify highly nonlinear own and cross commodity externality effects in the sale of farm households. The vegetable markets in villages with low marketable surplus seem to be trapped in segmented local market equilibrium. The analysis points to the coordination failure in farm sale decisions as a plausible explanation for the lack of development of rural markets even after market liberalization policies are implemented.Markets and Market Access,Economic Theory&Research,Labor Policies,Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Economics&Finance,Economic Theory&Research,Access to Markets,Markets and Market Access,Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Economics&Finance

Cultural Inheritance, Gender, and Intergenerational Occupational Mobility: Evidence from a Developing Economy

This paper presents evidence on intergenerational occupational mobility from agriculture to the nonfarm sector using survey data from Nepal with a focus on the role played by cultural inheritance and gender norms. In the absence of credible instruments, the degree of selection on observables is used as a guide to the degree of selection on unobservables ´a la Altonji et. al. (2005) to address the unobserved genetic correlations. The results show that cultural inheritance plays a causal role in intergenerational occupational correlation between the mother and daughter. In contrast, there is no robust evidence that cultural inheritance is important for sons’ occupation choice. A moderate genetic correlation can easily explain away the estimated partial correlation in non-farm participation between the father and a son.Intergenerational Occupational Correlations, Non-Farm Participation, Gender effect, Cultural Inheritance, Selection on Observables, Selection on Unobservables

The extent of the market and stages of agricultural specialization

This paper provides empirical evidence of nonlinearity in the relationship between crop specialization in a village economy and the extent of the market (size of the urban market) relevant for the village. The results suggest that the portfolio of crops in a village economy becomes more diversified initially as the extent of the market increases. However, after the market size reaches a threshold, the production structure becomes specialized again. This evidence on the stages of agricultural diversification is consistent with the stages of diversification identified in the recent literature for the economy as a whole and also for the manufacturing sector. The evidence highlights the importance of improving farmers'access to markets through investment in transport infrastructure and removal of barriers to trading.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Markets and Market Access,Political Economy,Debt Markets,Crops&Crop Management Systems

Public Information and Household Expectations in Developing Countries: Evidence From a Natural Experiment

Governments provide public information about economic conditions to reduce information imperfections and facilitate efficient allocation of resources. Do households in developing countries rely on public signals to inform themselves about market conditions? To identify the importance of public information in households’ price expectations, we take advantage of a unique natural experiment in Ecuador where the published inflation rate had been different from the true rate over a period of 14 months due to a software error. We find that the public signal about prices plays an important role in households’ price expectations; the effect is stronger for better educated families, older people and men.Public Information, Price Expectations, Developing Countries, Natural Experiment, Heterogeneity

Foreign Trade Regimes and Import Demand Function: Evidence from Sri Lanka

Time series data for Sri Lanka span periods of pervasive trade and exchange restrictions along with periods of liberalized trade. This paper implements a structural econometric model of aggregate imports which incorporates the implications of the shifts in the policy regime. The results demonstrate that the model outperforms the existing alternatives both on statistical and economic grounds. The estimated elasticities, in contrast to the available evidence, have correct signs, high statistical significance, and plausible magnitudes. The implications for policy analysis like calculation of equilibrium exchange rate are discussed. Special Note: If you are looking for the paper titled "Import Demand Under Trade and Exchange Rate Restrictions: A Structural Econometric Approach with an Application to India", it has been withdrwan temporarily. A revised version will be posted in near future.Trade Policy, Import demand, Sri Lanka, Cointegration, Intertemporal elasticity of substitution