Quality competition, Pricing-To-Market and Non-Tariff measures: A Unified Framework For the Analysis of Bilateral Unit Values

This paper presents a unified framework for analyzing several factors that have been independently studied as determinants of unit values in international trade: product differentiation by quality (which suggests that unit values should be positively correlated with exporters' per capita income), pricing-to-market (which suggests they should be positively correlated with importers' per capita income), and non-tariff measures (which suggests that remaining residuals may contain evidence of trade barriers). On a large sample of bilateral unit values for 2005, we find that about 58 percent of all HS-6 products demonstrate both significant quality-ladder effects and pricing-to-market effects, with quality-ladder effects predominating in importance. Distance-related effects appearing directly in prices appear significantly larger than one would expect as a result of shipping margins. We also rank importers by the remaining unexplained variation in import prices, and examine whether these variations are plausibly related to non-tariff measures.

Using Supply Chain Analysis to Examine the Costs of Non-Tariff Measures (NTMS) and the Benefits of Trade Facilitation

It has become increasingly common to produce goods in a number of geographically dispersed stages linked by international trade. This tendency, known by names such as production fragmentation, processing trade, and vertical specialization, has important implications for the analysis of nontariff measures (NTMs) and trade facilitation. First, different types of NTMs or trade facilitation issues are naturally associated with different stages in the movement of goods. Different price gaps can be assigned to these stages, making it possible to decompose the overall amount of distortion and to prioritize the policies with the largest potential efficiency gains. Second, NTMs may accumulate in long supply chains, implying that their trade-distorting effects are greater for goods produced in a fragmented manner than for goods with simple production processes. There is evidence that trade costs are more important for high technology goods or goods undergoing several stages of processing. Issues with product standards may be particularly important for goods with long supply chains. The link between NTMs and supply chains also has implications for economic development and for the relationship between liberalization in services and goods

proprioceptive identification of joint position versus kinaesthetic movement reproduction

Abstract Regarding our voluntary control of movement, if identification of joint position, that is independent of the starting condition, is stronger than kinaesthetic movement reproduction, that implies knowledge of the starting position and movement's length for accuracy, is still a matter of debate in motor control theories and neuroscience. In the present study, we examined the mechanisms that individuals seem to prefer/adopt when they locate spatial positions and code the amplitude of movements. We implemented a joint position matching task on a wrist robotic device: this task consists in replicating (i.e. matching) a reference joint angle in the absence of vision and the proprioceptive acuity is given by the goodness of such matching. Two experiments were carried out by implementing two different versions of the task and performed by two groups of 15 healthy participants. In the first experiment, blindfolded subjects were asked to perform matching movements towards a fixed target position, experienced with passive movements that started from different positions and had different lengths. In the second experiment, blindfolded subjects were requested to accurately match target positions that had a different location in space but were passively shown through movements of the same length. We found a clear evidence for higher performances in terms of accuracy ( 0.42 ± 0.01 1 / ° ) and precision ( 0.43 ± 0.01 1 / ° ) in the first experiment, therefore in case of matching positions, rather than in the second where accuracy and precision were lower ( 0.36 ± 0.01 1 / ° and 0.35 ± 0.01 1 / ° respectively). These results suggested a preference for proprioceptive identification of joint position rather than kinaesthetic movement reproduction

Special Economic Zones, Global Value Chains, and the Degree of Economic Linkages in the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is often considered an example of the successful implementation of Special Economic Zones (henceforth SEZs) in the Western hemisphere. The zones fueled economic growth during the 1980s and 1990s and, while they experienced a sharp decline in employment due in part to the expiry of the end of the Multi-Fiber Agreement and stronger international competition in the textile and apparel industry in 2005, signs of recovery have been observed since 2009. Surgical equipment, chemicals and plastics, and footwear have recently emerged as the new drivers of export dynamism in the zones (World Bank, 2015). The objective of this report is to inform the policy discussion around the developmental impact of SEZs in the Dominican Republic by empirically assessing i) the implications of regulatory reforms aimed at complying with WTO disciplines regarding the elimination of incentives conditioned on export performance for SEZs firms, ii) the extent to which SEZs participate in Global Value Chains, and iii) their linkages with domestic suppliers. The report is organized as follows: The second section presents the historical importance of SEZ as an engine of economic growth in the country. The third section depicts the structural shift in terms of production in SEZs and evaluates the degree of value addition taking place in the Dominican Republic. The fourth section evaluates the degree and evolution of linkages between SEZs and local firms. The fifth section shows the impact of the regulatory changes in the SEZ regimen undertaken to comply with WTO disciplines. Finally, some conclusions and policy recommendations are presented in section six

Prove di comprensione del testo: dalla somministrazione alla revisione

The paper describes the review procedure for a reading comprehension test designed for high school students. The objective is to analyze the functioning of a measuring instrument, used in the context of an investigation on reading in the high schools of three Italian regions – Basilicata, Calabria and Campania – in order to improve and perfect this instrument in view of the subsequent research phases. The reflections that follow are intended to provide a guide for the interpretation of the response frequencies, the indices of discrimination and difficulty, useful for establishing which questions need further revision. By analyzing internal consistency, construct validity, understood as item discriminativity, difficulty, biserial point values and distribution of answers on the four options provided by the multiple answer, we intend to demonstrate how, by administering the same test several times, we they can obtain new indications that allow them to file and refine the problematic questions, reflecting on the critical issues that have emerged (Agrusti, 2008)

La promozione delle soft skill a scuola per il potenziamento delle abilità metacognitive

Abstract: The contribution promotes a reflection on soft skills and their connection with the more well-known hard skills. The European LifeComp framework recognizes the key personal, social and ability to learn to learn skills as the ability to combine the two forms of skills; today schools must adopt this holistic vision in order to promote metacognitive learning that can be increasingly significant in the workplace.Keywords: soft skills; learning; metacognitionRiassunto: Il contributo affronta una riflessione in merito alle soft skill e al loro rapporto rispetto alle più note hard skill. Il framework europeo del LifeComp riconosce alla competenza chiave personale, sociale e capacità di imparare a imparare la funzione di collante tra le due forme di skill; oggi la scuola deve essere in grado di assumere tale visione olistica al fine di promuovere un apprendimento metacognitivo che possa essere sempre più significativo in ambito lavorativo.Parole chiave: soft skill; apprendimento; metacognizione

Competenze metodologiche e sviluppo professionale degli insegnanti di scuola dell’infanzia e primaria: un’esperienza di formazione in servizio

From many years the construct of competence entered in the italian school as an educational target to achieve and around which rethink the teaching/learning paths.1 It is a complicated challenge that required and requires to the teachers of the schools of all levels a considerable commitement in terms of restructuring of consolidated practice in education and revision of the way of working inthe classroom. The paper proposes a reflection on the teacher’s professional figure with particular reference to the methodological skills to be acquired in relation to this important paradigmatic change and to the importance of in service training for the improvement of those skills. In the firstpart we focus on the analysis of the teacher’s professional figure and about the set of knowledge and skills that qualify him as such, with particular reference to the methodological skills required to meet the challenge of competence. In the second part we describe what is the challenge of competence and how this challenge is transposed by the legislature in the text of the National Guidelinesfor the curriculum in kindergarten and in the first cycle of education (September 2012). In the third part we describe an experience of in-service training for teachers of kindergarten and primary school which took place in the Comprehensive Institute of San Marzano sul Sarno with the aim toimprove the expertise in the didactic planning. In closing it tell about some products of this experience that have been developed by working groups during lab training hours.Nella scuola italiana da anni ha fatto irruzione il costrutto di competenza come traguardo formativo da raggiungere e intorno al quale ripensare i percorsi di insegnamento/apprendimento. Si tratta di una sfida complessa che ha richiesto e richiede agli insegnati delle scuole di ogni ordine e grado unimpegno notevole in termini di ristrutturazione delle prassi didattiche consolidate e di revisione del modo di lavorare in classe. Il contributo propone una riflessione sulla figura dell’insegnante professionista con particolare riferimento alle competenze metodologiche da acquisire in relazione a questo importante cambiamento paradigmatico e all’importanza della formazione in servizio per ilmiglioramento di tali competenze. Nella prima parte ci soffermiamo sull’analisi della figura professionale dell’insegnante e dell’insieme di saperi e competenze che lo qualificano come tale, con particolare riferimento alle competenze metodologiche necessarie per rispondere alla sfida della competenza.Nella seconda parte descriviamo in cosa consiste la sfida della competenza e come tale sfida viene recepita dal legislatore nel testo delle Indicazioni Nazionali per il curricolo della scuola dell’infanzia e del primo ciclo d’istruzione (settembre 2012). Nella terza parte descriviamo un’esperienza di formazione in servizio destinata agli insegnanti di scuola dell’infanzia e primaria che si è svoltapresso l’Istituto Comprensivo di San Marzano sul Sarno con l’obiettivo di migliorare la competenza nella progettazione didattica. Si forniscono, in chiusura, alcuni prodotti di questa esperienza che sono stati elaborati dai gruppi di lavoro durante le ore di laboratorio formativo

Global DNA Methylation in Dental Implant Failure Due to Peri-Implantitis: An Exploratory Clinical Pilot Study

[Abstract] Background: Peri-implantitis (PIT) is highly prevalent in patients with dental implants and is a challenging condition to treat due to the limited outcomes reported for non-surgical and surgical therapies. Therefore, epigenetic therapeutics might be of key importance to treat PIT. However, developing epigenetic therapeutics is based on understanding the relationship between epigenetics and disease. To date, there is still scarce knowledge about the relationship between epigenetic modifications and PIT, which warrants further investigations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of global DNA methylation associated with implant failure (IF) due to PIT compared to periodontally healthy (PH) patients. Material and Methods: A total of 20 participants were initially enrolled in this pilot, exploratory, single-blinded, cross-sectional clinical human study in two groups: 10 in the PH group and 10 in the IF group. In the participants who have completed the study, gingival tissue and bone samples were harvested from each participant and were used to perform global DNA methylation analysis. The percentage of global DNA methylation (5-mC%) was compared (1) between groups (PH and IF); (2) between the subgroups of gingival tissue and bone separately; (3) in the whole sample, comparing gingival tissue and bone; (4) within groups, comparing gingival tissue and bone. Demographic, periodontal, and peri-implant measurements as well as periodontal staging, were also recorded. All statistical comparisons were made at the 0.05 significance level. Results: Out of the initially enrolled 20 patients, only 19 completed the study and, thus, were included in the final analysis; 10 patients in the PH group and 9 patients in the IF group, contributing to a total of 38 samples. One patient from the IF group was excluded from the study due to systemic disease. The mean implant survival time was 10.8 years (2.17–15.25 years). Intergroup comparison, stratified by group, indicated a similar 5-mC% between the PH and IF groups in both gingival tissue and bone (p = 0.599), only in bone (p = 0.414), and only in gingival tissue (p = 0.744). Intragroup comparison, stratified by the type of sample, indicated a significantly higher 5-mC% in gingival tissue samples compared to bone in both the PH and IF groups (p = 0.001), in the PH group (p = 0.019), and in the IF group (p = 0.009). Conclusions: Within the limitations of this study, higher global DNA methylation levels were found in gingival tissue samples compared to bone, regardless of the study groups. However, similar global DNA methylation levels were observed overall between the IF and PH groups. Yet, differences in the global DNA methylation levels between gingival tissues and bone, regardless of the study group, could reflect a different epigenetic response between various tissues within the same microenvironment. Further studies are necessary to elucidate the present findings and to evaluate the role of epigenetic modifications in IF due to PIT.Hjalmar Svensson Foundation (Sweden); HJSV202101

The Evaluation Process as a Model of Social Determinism

This paper addresses a central theme of the contemporary debate on education: the concept of evaluation. In particular, the reflection starts from a recognition of the theories of educational evaluation, to reach consideration that concerns the promotion of equality and equity through evaluation process. Recently, educational organizations have changed profoundly and terms like complexity and system are part of the scholastic terminology. Complexity that characterized today society requires a new way of knowing, studying and discovering reality, according to a different cultural paradigm which often share the same spaces. The purpose of this contribution is to recognize to the evaluation process the merit of promoting knowledge of reality, particularly of that scholastic one, and to promote the recognition the student individualism in a community, taking into consideration the principles of equality and equity