Bank Credit and the 2008 Financial Crisis: A cross-country Comparison

The purpose of this paper is to empirically study the macroeconomic, structural and banking determinants of bank credit growth in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Using standard cross-section econometric techniques on a sample covering over 80 countries, analyzed in the period from January 2002 to May 2009, this paper finds that larger bank credit booms in the 24 months before the crisis and lower GDP growth of main trading partners after are among the most relevant determinants of the post-crisis bank credit slowdown. Structural variables such as financial depth and integration were also important determinants of bank credit growth after the crisis. Finally, countercyclical monetary policy and liquidity played a critical role in alleviating bank credit contraction after the 2008 financial crisis, suggesting that countries should pursue appropriate institutional and macroeconomic frameworks conducive to countercyclical monetary policies.

Market Integration: Case Studies of Structural Change

The grain/oilseed industry is undergoing considerable structural change through mergers and new value-added businesses, which raises price-related questions. We analyze the level of price integration prior to and following a merger between two grain firms and the start-up of a producer-owned ethanol facility. This research utilizes error correction vector autoregression analysis to compute market integration structural change effects. We find evidence that market integration initially increases with the merger, but deteriorates with time following the merger. We find no significant localized change in the level of price integration for the case of a new value-added business.consolidation, structural change, price integration, Agribusiness, Industrial Organization,

Exploring Touch Communication Between Coaches and Athletes

In athletics, coaches and athletes share a unique and important relationship. Recently Jowett and her colleagues (Jowett & Cockerill, 2003; Jowett & Meek, 2000; Jowett & Ntoumanis, 2003, 2004; Jowett & Timson-Katchis, 2005) utilized relationship research (focusing on, for example, marital, familial and workplace relationships) from conjoining fields, and in particular social and cognitive psychology, to develop and test a four-component model (4 C’s) that depicts the most influential relational and emotional components (closeness, commitment, complementarity and co-orientation) of coach-athlete relationships. Proceeding from a review of the literature on human touch communication to examine research on the power of touch to exchange relational and emotional messages (Hertenstein et al., 2006), the present study explores coaches’ and athletes’ collective experiences of communicating via touch, utilizing in-depth interviews with eight college coaches and athletes. A phenomenological approach was used to gather, analyze and interpret the data, drawing on Merleau-Ponty’s (1945/1962) philosophical exploration of perception and human experience, which emphasizes the body as a means of communicating with the world. The findings indicate that touch between coaches and athletes increased at major events when emotions and tensions ran high. In addition, touch involved showing appreciation, instructing, comforting and giving attention, and affected perceptions of relationships. The findings also show that touch communication is influenced by societal factors, such as gender, relational stage, and what spectators, parents and other athletes may think. By illustrating how touch is enacted and experienced by a group of college coaches and athletes, the study represents an initial step toward understanding touch communication in the coach-athlete dyad. Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, Volume 7, Edition 2 September 200

Cow-Calf Producer Interest in Retained Ownership

The beef industry’s share of domestic meat demand continues to decline, as increasing vertical coordination in pork and poultry contribute to these industries’ ability to offer convenient, consistent, and less expensive products. For such vertical coordination to be effective, incentives must be properly aligned so that those responsible for making the most important investments for system profitability are appropriately compensated. This study demonstrates that cow-calf producers who invest in quality registered cattle and those who are interested in incorporating feedlot and carcass data into herd management decisions are also more interested in retained ownership.beef cattle, property rights theory, retained ownership, Livestock Production/Industries, Marketing, Q13,

Sleep Loss Reduces the DNA-Binding of BMAL1, CLOCK, and NPAS2 to Specific Clock Genes in the Mouse Cerebral Cortex

We have previously demonstrated that clock genes contribute to the homeostatic aspect of sleep regulation. Indeed, mutations in some clock genes modify the markers of sleep homeostasis and an increase in homeostatic sleep drive alters clock gene expression in the forebrain. Here, we investigate a possible mechanism by which sleep deprivation (SD) could alter clock gene expression by quantifying DNA-binding of the core-clock transcription factors CLOCK, NPAS2, and BMAL1 to the cis-regulatory sequences of target clock genes in mice. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), we first showed that, as reported for the liver, DNA-binding of CLOCK and BMAL1 to target clock genes changes in function of time-of-day in the cerebral cortex. Tissue extracts were collected at ZT0 (light onset), −6, −12, and −18, and DNA enrichment of E-box or E'-box containing sequences was measured by qPCR. CLOCK and BMAL1 binding to Cry1, Dbp, Per1, and Per2 depended on time-of-day, with maximum values reached at around ZT6. We then observed that SD, performed between ZT0 and −6, significantly decreased DNA-binding of CLOCK and BMAL1 to Dbp, consistent with the observed decrease in Dbp mRNA levels after SD. The DNA-binding of NPAS2 and BMAL1 to Per2 was also decreased by SD, although SD is known to increase Per2 expression in the cortex. DNA-binding to Per1 and Cry1 was not affected by SD. Our results show that the sleep-wake history can affect the clock molecular machinery directly at the level of chromatin binding thereby altering the cortical expression of Dbp and Per2 and likely other targets. Although the precise dynamics of the relationship between DNA-binding and mRNA expression, especially for Per2, remains elusive, the results also suggest that part of the reported circadian changes in DNA-binding of core clock components in tissues peripheral to the suprachiasmatic nuclei could, in fact, be sleep-wake driven

Biocultural Evidence of Precise Manual Activities in an Early Holocene Individual of the High-Altitude Peruvian Andes

OBJECTIVES: Cuncaicha, a rockshelter site in the southern Peruvian Andes, has yielded archaeological evidence for human occupation at high elevation (4,480 masl) during the Terminal Pleistocene (12,500–11,200 cal BP), Early Holocene (9,500–9,000 cal BP), and later periods. One of the excavated human burials (Feature 15‐06), corresponding to a middle‐aged female dated to ~8,500 cal BP, exhibits skeletal osteoarthritic lesions previously proposed to reflect habitual loading and specialized crafting labor. Three small tools found in association with this burial are hypothesized to be associated with precise manual dexterity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Here, we tested this functional hypothesis through the application of a novel multivariate methodology for the three‐dimensional analysis of muscle attachment surfaces (entheses). This original approach has been recently validated on both lifelong‐documented anthropological samples as well as experimental studies in nonhuman laboratory samples. Additionally, we analyzed the three‐dimensional entheseal shape and resulting moment arms for muscle opponens pollicis. RESULTS: Results show that Cuncaicha individual 15‐06 shows a distinctive entheseal pattern associated with habitual precision grasping via thumb‐index finger coordination, which is shared exclusively with documented long‐term precision workers from recent historical collections. The separate geometric morphometric analysis revealed that the individual\u27s opponens pollicis enthesis presents a highly projecting morphology, which was found to strongly correlate with long joint moment arms (a fundamental component of force‐producing capacity), closely resembling the form of Paleolithic hunter‐gatherers from diverse geo‐chronological contexts of Eurasia and North Africa. DISCUSSION: Overall, our findings provide the first biocultural evidence to confirm that the lifestyle of some of the earliest Andean inhabitants relied on habitual and forceful precision grasping tasks

Data-Driven Regionalization of Decarbonized Energy Systems for Reflecting Their Changing Topologies in Planning and Optimization

The decarbonization of energy systems has led to a fundamental change in their topologysince generation is shifted to locations with favorable renewable conditions. In planning, this changeis reflected by applying optimization models to regions within a country to optimize the distributionof generation units and to evaluate the resulting impact on the grid topology. This paper proposesa globally applicable framework to find a suitable regionalization for energy system models witha data-driven approach. Based on a global, spatially resolved database of demand, generation,and renewable profiles, hierarchical clustering with fine-tuning is performed. This regionalizationapproach is applied by modeling the resulting regions in an optimization model including asynthesized grid. In an exemplary case study, South Africa’s energy system is examined. The resultsshow that the data-driven regionalization is beneficial compared to the common approach of usingpolitical regions. Furthermore, the results of a modeled 80% decarbonization until 2045 demonstratethat the integration of renewable energy sources fundamentally changes the role of regions withinSouth Africa’s energy system. Thereby, the electricity exchange between regions is also impacted,leading to a different grid topology. Using clustered regions improves the understanding and analysisof regional transformations in the decarbonization process

Модернизация котла при переходе на другой тип угля

Объектом исследования является Котел ПК-38 ст. №3А АО «Назаровская ГРЭС» Цель работы – Перевод на сжигание Назаровского и Бородинского бурых углей с целью увеличения номинальной производительности котла. В процессе исследования проводились Выбор системы пылеприготовления и оптимальной схемы сжигания, расчеты и компановки топочно горелочных устройств, тепловые и аэродинамические расчеты котла и системы пылеприготовления. Ресурсоэффективность и ресурсосбережение .Разработаны вопросы :охраны труда, охраны окружающей среды.The object of the study is the Boiler PK-38 St. # 3A, JSC "Nazarovo GRES" Purpose – the conversion to the burning of Nazarovsky and Borodino lignite with the objective of increasing the rated capacity of the boiler. In the process of investigation the Choice of pulverizing system and the optimal scheme of combustion, the calculations and layout of furnace burners, thermal and aerodynamic calculations of boiler pulverizing system. Resource efficiency and resource conservation .Developed issues :labor protection, environmental protection

Формирование бренда компании в условиях повышенной конкуренции на местном рынке

Актуальность данной работы состоит в комплексном рассмотрении разработок коммуникативных мероприятий по совершенствованию бренда с учетом конкурентного анализа. Объектом исследования данной работы является бренд компании "Стройся". Предметом является организация коммуникативных мероприятий по совершенствованию бренда компании"Стройся". Цель ВКР – разработка практических алгоритмов реализации коммуникативных возможностей по брендированию компании "Стройся" для продвижения компании на рынок города Томска. Методы: анализ, сравнение, изучение, наблюдение, анкетирование, синтез теоретических и эмпирических материалов. Новизна и практическая значимость работы: на основе маркетингового исследования выработаны практические алгоритмы реализации коммуникативных возможностей.The relevance of this work lies in the integrated treatment of development of communicative activities to improve brand subject to competitive analysis. The research object of this work is the company brand "Build up". The subject is the organization of communicative activities to improve company brand"Build up". The purpose of the WRC – development of practical algorithms for the implementation of the communicative possibilities of branding the company's "Build" for promotion of the company on the market of the city of Tomsk. Methods: analysis, comparison, study, observation, questioning, synthesis of theoretical and empirical materials. The novelty and practical significance of the research: based on marketing research developed practical algorithms for implementing communicative possibilities

Sulphur tolerant diesel oxidation catalysts by noble metal alloying

A series of Mn-alloyed Pt supported catalysts were investigated for the NO oxidation reaction applied in diesel oxidation catalysts under sulphur-containing conditions. The observed NO oxidation conversion correlated to the Pt amount in the catalyst under sulphur-free conditions. In the presence of SO2 in the feed, the Pt/Al2O3 catalyst heavily deactivated resulting in the lowest performance compared to Mn-alloyed Pt catalysts. Already small amounts of Mn improved the SO2-resistance significantly. Whilst pure Pt/Al2O3 catalyst deactivates fully within the first 30 min under NO oxidation conditions including 300 ppm SO2, an alloy with a Mn to Pt ratio of 1:1 performed with a remarkable high catalytic stability for the NO oxidation over at least 70 h under continuous testing conditions