Endogenous Price Leadership with Asymmetric Costs: Experimental Evidence

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from SAGE Publications via the DOI in this recordThis paper presents experimental evidence on the action commitment game with cost-asymmetric firms in a differentiated-products Bertrand duopoly. Unlike its quantity-setting counterpart, the risk-dominant leader–follower equilibrium Pareto dominates the simultaneous-move equilibrium. This equilibrium also minimizes payoff differences between firms. Hence, one would expect the model to accurately capture behavior. The evidence partially supports the theory: low-cost firms price in the first period more often than high-cost firms, and depending on the treatment, between 40 and 57 per cent of all observations conform to equilibrium play. However, the modal timing outcome involved both firms delaying their pricing decision. This timing outcome is characterized by Nash play and some collusion. The high frequency of delaying decisions could be due to a desire to reduce strategic uncertainty

Do behavioral nudges in pre-populated tax forms affect compliance? Experimental evidence with real taxpayers

This is the final version of the article. Available from American Marketing Association via the DOI in this record.Defaults, in the form of prepopulated fields within the tax form, have been identified as potential mechanisms that tax authorities can use to reduce noncompliance. They achieve this by simplifying the process of filing taxes, thus reducing the scope for errors. However, defaults may increase the scope for evasion if set incorrectly. The authors report experimental data on the effect of correct and incorrect defaults. They find that prepopulating tax returns is a worthwhile policy only if it is done with highly reliable information. Setting default levels that underestimate taxpayers’ true tax liability leads to significant drops in compliance and tax revenue. The authors also study whether nudges that contain messages with descriptive norms about compliance can mitigate the adverse effect of prepopulated returns with incorrect values. Nudges that react to inputs from the taxpayer effectively raise compliance, whereas static nudges do not. This result demonstrates the limits to the applicability of nudges in a public policy sphere as well as possible adverse effects resulting from poor implementation.Funding from the Tax Administration Research Centre, ESRC/HMRC/HMT grant ES/K005944/1 is gratefully acknowledged

Religious fragmentation, social identity and cooperation: Evidence from an artefactual field experiment in India

We study the role of village-level religious fragmentation on intra- and inter-group cooperation in India. We report on data on two-player prisoners׳ dilemma and stag hunt experiments played by 516 Hindu and Muslim participants in rural India. Our treatments are the identity of the two players and the degree of village-level religious heterogeneity. In religiously heterogeneous villages, cooperation rates in the prisoners׳ dilemma, and to a lesser extent the stag hunt game, are higher when subjects of either religion play with a fellow in-group member than when they play with an out-group member or with someone whose identity is unknown. Interestingly, cooperation rates among people of the same religion are significantly lower in homogeneous villages than in fragmented villages in both games.We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the ESRC Grant ES/J018643/1

Urban growth and loss of green spaces in the metropolitan areas of São Paulo and Mexico City: effects of land-cover changes on climate and water flow regulation

Urban green spaces provide ecosystem services that directly or indirectly benefit people, however, urban growth (especially in developing countries) generates the loss of these green areas and consequently of their ecosystem services. This paper aims to present the effects of land use and land cover changes in the last 30 years on two basic urban ecosystem services, water flow regulation and local and regional climate in two of main Latin American megacities (São Paulo and Mexico City). The study focuses on urban green spaces because they reduce the urban heat island effects, improve air quality, create habitats for biodiversity conservation, provide cultural services, and contribute to flooding prevention and groundwater conservation. A spatial analysis with the aid of geographic information systems was performed to assess (i) the urbanization process of the Metropolitan Areas of both cities over time; (ii) how this process generated changes in the land cover in both metropolises, and (iii) how these changes caused environmental negative impacts on ecosystem services. The loss of green areas as a consequence of urban expansion in the Metropolitan Areas of São Paulo and Mexico City changed the spatial distribution of urban heat island and increased the surface runoff, generating floods during the rainy periods. Our results suggest the urgent need for implementation of ecosystem-based spatial planning and ecological restoration of urban green areas in both studied cities to prevent further losses in ecosystem services and to improve the quality of life of urban inhabitants

Especificidade do parasitóide Apanteles militaris (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) em relação ao hospedeiro Mythimna unipuncta (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

IV Encontro Nacional de Protecção Integrada, 3–4 Outubro, 1997, Angra do Heroísmo, Açores.Apanteles militaris (Walsh) é o mais importante parasitóide larvar de Mythimna unipuncta (Haworth) em todas as ilhas dos Açores. Pretendendo-se saber do modo de actuação deste parasitóide larvícola, procedeu-se ao estudo semanal da sua abundância e à do seu hospedeiro natural. Numa tentativa de compreender onde se encontra este parasitóide durante o Invermo, realizámos ensaios de parasitismo, em condições controladas, utilizando como hospedeiro larvas de Noctua pronuba L., Peridroma saucia (Hb), Xestia c-nigrum (L.), Spodoptera litoralis B., Agrotis ipsilon (Hüf.), Heliothis armigera (Hb.), Sesamia nonagrioides (Lef.), Autographa gamma (L.) e Pieris brassicae azorensis Rebel. Estes Lepidópteros foram seleccionados por existirem nos biótopos que são ocupados por M. unipuncta, apresentarem uma densidade importante nas condições ambientais dos Açores ou por serem hospedeiros de parasitóides pertencentes ao mesmo género. Para além de M. unipuncta, apenas S. nonagrioides e A. gamma apresentaram uma percentagem muito reduzida de larvas efectivamente parasitadas, 10 e 12,5%, respectivamente. Assim, a população açoreana de A. militaris apresenta uma grande especificidade em relação ao seu hospedeiro natural

Faster algorithms for 1-mappability of a sequence

In the k-mappability problem, we are given a string x of length n and integers m and k, and we are asked to count, for each length-m factor y of x, the number of other factors of length m of x that are at Hamming distance at most k from y. We focus here on the version of the problem where k = 1. The fastest known algorithm for k = 1 requires time O(mn log n/ log log n) and space O(n). We present two algorithms that require worst-case time O(mn) and O(n log^2 n), respectively, and space O(n), thus greatly improving the state of the art. Moreover, we present an algorithm that requires average-case time and space O(n) for integer alphabets if m = {\Omega}(log n/ log {\sigma}), where {\sigma} is the alphabet size

Effect of maternal country of birth on breastfeeding practices: results from Portuguese GXXI birth cohort

Background: Maternal country of birth has been associated with perinatal health outcomes but less is known regarding breastfeeding practices in contemporary European settings. This study investigated effect of maternal country of birth on breastfeeding initiation and duration by comparing native Portuguese and migrant mothers. Methods: We analyzed data of 7065 children of the Generation XXI (GXXI) birth cohort recruited at birth (2005-06) and followed-up 4 years later. Logistic regression was used to assess the effect of maternal country of birth on breastfeeding initiation. Kaplan-Meier estimate was used to compare breastfeeding duration by maternal country of birth and length of residence by migrant mothers in Portugal. Results: Breastfeeding initiation and the type of breastfeeding practice were similar for native Portuguese and migrant mothers. The migrants had significantly higher median duration in months of any breastfeeding (Odds Ratio [OR] 6.0, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 5.4,6.6) and exclusive breastfeeding (OR 4.0, 95% CI 3.8,4.2) than native Portuguese mothers (OR 4.0, 95% CI 3.8,4.2 and OR 3.0, 95% CI 2.9,3.0). Migrant mothers who resided in Portugal for either 5 years (OR 6.0, 95% CI 5.5,6.5 and OR 4.0, 95% CI 3.7,4.3) years had similar duration of any breastfeeding or exclusive breastfeeding, in both cases higher than the native Portuguese mothers. No significant differences were found when world regions were compared. Conclusions: Maternal country of birth does not influence breastfeeding initiation and type of feeding practice. However, migrant mothers have longer breastfeeding duration of either exclusive or any breastfeeding, which was not changed by length of residence in Portugal.GXXI was funded by Programa Operacional de Saude-Saude XXI, Quadro Comunitario de Apoio III and Administracao Regional de Saude Norte (Regional Department of Ministry of Health). It has support from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology. Precisely, EPIUnit-Instituto de Saude Publica da Universidade do Porto (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006862; Ref. UID/DTP/04750/2013); PhD Grant SFRH/BD/111794/2015 (Carina Rodrigues) as well as the individual grants IF/01060/2015 (Ana Cristina Santos) and SFRH/BSAB/113778/2015 (Henrique Barros), co-funded by the FCT and the POCH/FSE Program

Religious fragmentation, social identity and other-regarding preferences: Evidence from an artefactual field experiment in India

This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordWe examine the impact of religious identity and village-level religious fragmentation on other-regarding preferences. We report on a series of two-player binary Dictator experiments conducted on a sample of 516 Hindu and Muslim participants in rural West Bengal, India. Our treatments are the identity of the two players and the degree of religious fragmentation in the village where subjects reside. Both Muslims’ and Hindus’ aversion to advantageous inequality declines as the probability of facing an out-group member increases. We find no evidence of aversion to disadvantageous inequality on either religious sample. Both Muslim and Hindu participants display aversion to advantageous inequality in both fragmented villages and homogeneous villages. The effect of village fragmentation on aversion to disadvantageous inequality differs across religious groups.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Marginal Bone Loss and Pink Esthetic Evaluation of Narrow-Diameter Dental Implants for Single Crowns: 1-Year Prospective Clinical Study

Purpose: The aims of this study were: (1) to quantify the marginal bone loss (MBL) of 3.3-mm narrow-diameter, bone-level, titanium-zirconia (Ti-Zr) implants with two different surfaces in single restorations after a 1-year follow-up; (2) to analyze the combinations of different variables that may influence MBL; and (3) to record the Pink Esthetic Score (PES) value and its correlation with MBL. Materials and Methods: This is a prospective longitudinal clinical study with a 1-year follow-up after crown placement. Two different implant surfaces (sandblasted acid-etched and modified sandblasted acid-etched) were used. All bone-level and bone level-tapered implants had a diameter of 3.3 mm. Different healing and prosthetic abutments were used. Clinical, radiographic, and photographic records were taken 6 months and 1 year after placement of the restorations, and the survival rate, MBL, PES, clinical parameters, and biologic and/or mechanical complications were assessed. The correlations between the variables and MBL were verified. Results: A total of 30 narrow-diameter implants were placed in 30 patients; 18 implants had a sandblasted acid-etched surface, and 12 implants had a modified sandblasted acid-etched surface. The measured MBL at 1 year after implant function had a mean value of-0.36 mm, ranging from 0 mm to-1.77 mm. There was no implant loss. A statistically significant relationship was observed between implant shape (design and length), implant placement level, healing abutment, prosthetic abutment size, gingival thickness, and MBL. The mean PES values recorded at the beginning and end of the study were 7.58 and 11.37, respectively. Conclusion: Narrow-diameter implants showed reduced MBL values, with the surrounding tissues remaining stable after 1 year of follow-up. The MBL did not show different values on two implant surfaces. MBL does not seem to influence esthetic outcome. Int.Oral Maxillofaciallmplants2022;37::515-524. doi: 10.11607/jomi.905

Is it costly to deceive? People are adept at detecting gossipers’ lies but may not reward honesty

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the Royal Society via the DOI in this recordData accessibility: Materials, data, analysis code and the electronic supplementary material documents are available for replication and reanalysis purposes at https://osf.io/t2vr9/.The possibility that gossipers may share dishonest reputational information is a key challenge to claims that gossip can shore up cooperation in social groups. It has been suggested that imposing social costs on dishonest gossipers should increase the honesty of these reputational signals. However, at present, there is little evidence of people’s willingness to impose costs on dishonest gossipers; there is also little evidence of their ability to detect gossipers’ lies in the first place. This paper aims to shed light on people’s abilities to detect dishonest gossip and their treatment of those who share it. To do this, we report the results of two trust game studies using the strategy method (Study 1) and repeated interactions in the lab (Study 2). We show that in an environment where gossipers tell spontaneous lies people are more inclined to believe honest than dishonest gossip. We also show that people are more likely to treat favourably gossipers they believe to be honest, but that this does not always result in more favourable treatment for gossipers who were actually honest. We discuss the implications for the potential utility of social sanctions as a tool for securing honesty