How frequently do consumer prices change in Austria? Evidence from micro CPI data

Based on individual price records collected for the computation of the Austrian CPI, average frequencies of price changes and durations of price spells are estimated to characterize price setting in Austria. Depending on the estimation method, prices are unchanged for 10 to 14 months on average. We find strong heterogeneity across sectors and products. Price increases occur only slightly more often than price decreases. The typical size of a price increase (decrease) is 11 (15) percent. The aggregate hazard function of prices is decreasing with time. Besides heterogeneity across products and price setters, this is due to oversampling of products with a high frequency of price changes. Accounting for unobserved heterogeneity in estimating the probability of a price change with a fixed-effects logit model, we find a positive effect of the duration of a price spell. During the Euro cash changeover the probability of price changes was higher. JEL Classification: C41, D21, E31, L11consumer prices, duration of price spells, frequency and synchronization of price changes, sticky prices

On an air quality and odor modeling system for CMPC Celulose Riograndense

The present work is part of the research project that aims to create an automated system for the evaluation of air pollution and odour for CMPC CELULOSE RIOGRANDENSE. Initially, three different ways of initializing the CALPUFF model (one of the models under evaluation to compose the system) were evaluated. The results when compared with observational data on air quality suggest the need for a validation of the boundary conditions and turbulent scale parameters in the hourly time representation when CALPUFF is the model being used. The choice was not random, but based on three quantities that impose physical affinity to micrometeorological data. The surface roughness, the albedo and the Bowen ratio. Changes in these quantities were imposed during pre-processing of AERMET, which established the quantities of interest in a simulation of dispersion of pollutants. After this alternative the results become more representative for the atmospheric dispersion process. The monthly and annual representation of the CALPUFF model is satisfactory without validation procedure

Self-reciprocal fermion mass ratios from massless QED with curved momentum space

The present investigation is an attempt to understand the fermion mass ratios in the framework of QED of charged fermions without a bare mass. Since QED of massless charged fermions is invariant under the dilatation transformation, this symmetry has to be spontaneously broken to obtain massive fermions. In the proposed model we combine a mass-scale normalisation with the renormalisation procedure, assuming the fermion momentum space being a four-dimensional one-shell hyperboloid embedded in a five-dimensional space. The hyperboloid constrains the allowed fermion field solutions. We construct the theory in the conventional way using equal time anti-commutator and the Lagrangian formalism. Starting from the Dyson–Schwinger equation for fermion propagator in the Landau gauge, we derive the fermion mass function and self-reciprocal solutions for the mass ratios, which are independent of any constant

Buchonomyia thienemanni n. gen. n. sp. Chironomidenstudien IV (Diptera: Chironomidae).

Nomenklatorische Handlungenthienemanni Fittkau, 1955 (Buchonomyia), spec. n.Buchonomyia Fittkau, 1955 (Chironomidae), gen. n.Nomenclatural Actsthienemanni Fittkau, 1955 (Buchonomyia), spec. n.Buchonomyia Fittkau, 1955 (Chironomidae), gen. n

Umweltgeologische Aspekte zur Staubdeposition im Ballungsraum Wien

Es gibt immer mehr umweltrelevante Themengebiete, die besonders für Mensch und Umwelt in Ballungsräumen von großer Bedeutung sind. Einer dieser Bereiche ist die Staubbelastung und hier im Besonderen die Feinstäube < 10-20 µm, die in den letzten Jahren immer mehr an wissenschaftlicher Bedeutung und öffentlicher Beachtung gewonnen haben. Der Focus liegt dabei auf den gesundheitsrelevanten Schwermetallanteilen in den anthropogen emittierten Feinstäuben. Diese Diplomarbeit widmet sich einer Bestandsaufnahme und Analyse von partikulären Staubimmissionen an vier Standorten mit unterschiedlicher Hintergrundcharakteristik in Wien 1997. Die Unterscheidung zwischen geogenen und anthropogenen Stäuben und die Zuordnung zu deren Emittenten waren von besonderem Interesse. Im Zeitraum Jänner bis Dezember 1997 wurden mit verschiedenen Methoden (Bergerhoff-Deposition, Gentsammler-Filter, Splittaufsammlung und Bodenproben) Proben genommen. Die chemische und mineralogische Zusammensetzung der Fraktion <20 µm (Deposition, Splitt, Boden) und <10 µm (Filter) wurde mittels Röntgendiffraktometrie (RDA) und Totalreflexion-Röntgenfluoreszenzanalyse (TR-RFA) untersucht. Um die Reflexanalyse- und Auswertung der RDA Aufnahmen zu verbessern, wurden aufgrund der teils sehr geringen Probenmengen Silizium-Einkristallprobenträger verwendet, die sich bei idealer Ausrichtung und Null-Rotation durch einen schwachen Untergrund auszeichnen. Mittels Glühverlust wurden die organischen Anteile der Staubproben bestimmt. Die Ergebnisse der mittleren, quantitativen Feinstaubdeposition (Steinfelder, 114 mg/m²/Tag; Rinnböck-Str., 99 mg/m²/Tag; Lobau, 78 mg/m²/Tag; Hohen Warte, 36 mg/m²/Tag) bestätigen die unterschiedlichen Standortbelastungen. Bei der Herkunft und jahreszeitlichen Schwankung zeigten sich im Winter hohe Calcit-Werte aufgrund der Splittstreuung, mehr Gips durch erhöhtes SO2 (Hausbrand) und ebenfalls saisonale Schwankungen bei Anteilen von Quarz, Feldspäten, Tonmineralien und organischem Material (Abwehungen der landwirtschaftlichen Tätigkeit und höherer biologischer Aktivität). Die Bodenproben bestätigen, mit 60% Quarz an der Hohen Warte und 45% Cc An den Steinfeldern, grundsätzlich den geogenen Untergrund. Die Unterschiede der Umgebungscharakteristik der einzelnen Standorte konnte mit dem modifizierten Glühverlust (Lobau 60%, Steinfelder 35%) aufgezeigt werden. Mit der TR-RFA wurden 7 vorwiegend anthropogen emittierende Spurenelemente (Sb, Cd, Zn, Pb, As, Cu und Sr) nachgewiesen und konnten teilweise auch den Emittenten zugeordnet werden.There are more and more environmental topics which are of great importance to people and environment. One of these areas is dust incrimination, especially particle matter < 10-20 µm, whose scientific importance and public attention has risen in the past few years. The focus lies on health relevant shares of heavy metal in anthropogenically emitted dust particles. This thesis concentrates on the inventory and analysis of particulate dust emissions at four different sites with different backgrounds in Vienna in 1997.The difference between geogenic and anthropogenic fine dusts and correlation to the respective source was of particular interest. Between January 1997 and December 1997 samples were taken with different methods (Bergerhoff deposition, filter pump, collection of grit and samples of soil). The chemical and mineralogical constitution of fraction < 20 µm (deposition, grit, soil) and < 10 µm (filter) was analyzed with X-ray diffractometry (RDA) and total reflect X-ray fluorescent analysis (TR-RFA). Due to the very small amounts of samples silicium monochrystal carriers were used to improve the peak analysis and evaluation of RDA graphs. In case of ideal positioning and zero rotation these are characterized by weak background. The organic parts of the samples of fine dust were determined by annealing loss. The results of the average quantitative deposition of particle mass (Steinfelder, 114 mg/m²/Tag; Rinnböck-Str., 99 mg/m²/Tag; Lobau, 78 mg/m²/Tag; Hohen Warte, 36 mg/m²/Tag) confirm the various impacts on the sites. Origin and seasonal variations showed high concentrations of calcite due to distribution of grit, more gypsum because of increased SO² (house fire) and also seasonal fluctuations on parts of quartz, feldspar, clay minerals and organic material (drifts because of agricultural and biological activity). The samples of soil, that is 60 % of Quartz at the Hohen Warte and 45 % Cc at the Steinfelder basically confirm the geological background. The modified annealing loss (Lobau 60%, Steinfelder 35%) shows the different characteristics of the individual locations. By TR-RFA 7 mainly anthropogenously emitted trace elements (Sb, Cd, Zn, Pb, As, Cu und Sr) could be confirmed and partially attributed to the sources

On a model for pollutant dispersion in the atmosphere with partially reflective boundary conditions and data simulation using CALPUFF

The present work is an attempt to simulate the dispersion of pollutants in the surroundings of the thermoelectric plant located in Linhares from a new mathematical model based on partially reflective boundaries in the deterministic advection-diffusion equation. In addition to the advection-diffusion equation with partially reflective boundaries, it was used data simulated with the CALPUFF model. The exposed model was validated previously with the Hanford and Copenhagen experiments and the results indicate that effects on the boundaries are essential to model dispersion phenomenona in the atmospheric boundary layer