On the topology of components of some Springer fibers and their relation to Kazhdan-Lusztig theory

We describe the irreducible components of Springer fibers for hook and two-row nilpotent elements of gl_n(C) as iterated bundles of flag manifolds and Grassmannians. We then relate the topology (in particular, the intersection homology Poincare' polynomials) of the intersections of these components with the inner products of the Kazhdan-Lusztig basis elements of irreducible representations of the rational Iwahori-Hecke algebra of type A corresponding to the hook and two-row Young shapes.Comment: This work has been submitted to Advances in Mathematics (Academic Press) for possible publication

Integration of markets vs. integration by agreements

This paper provides an analysis of the two channels of regional integration: integration via markets and integration via agreements. Given that East Asia and Latin America are two fertile regions where both forms of integrations have taken place, the authors examine the experiences of these two areas. There are four related results. First, East Asia had been integrating via markets long before formal agreements were in vogue in the region. Latin America, by contrast, has primarily used formal regional trade treaties as the main channel of integration. Second, despite the relative lack of formal regional trade treaties until recently, East Asia is more integrated among itself than Latin America. Third, from a purely economic and trade standpoint, the proper sequence of integrations seems to be first integrating via markets and subsequently via formal regional trade agreements. Fourth, regional trade agreements often serve multiple constituents. The reason why integrating via markets first can be helpful is because this can give stronger political bargaining power to the outward-looking economic-oriented forces within the country.Trade Law,Free Trade,Trade and Regional Integration,Trade Policy,Emerging Markets

Foreign Direct Investment in Cross-Border Infrastructure Projects

In this paper the authors critically review the relevant information and literature that can enhance the feasibility and the successful implementation of cross-border infrastructure projects. They provide detailed information concerning foreign direct investment in the major emerging regions: East Asia and the Pacific, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. They also discuss the theoretical and empirical literature which sheds light on the characteristics of transnational infrastructure projects, who should conduct them, and what determines their existence. The literature points to the importance of government involvement in transnational infrastructure projects as there are clear external benefits which will otherwise not be reaped. It also points to the importance of coordination for the success of the project. The Asian Development Bank is well placed to perform that role. Lastly, they provide six cases of cross-border infrastructure projects, two each from East Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. These cases illustrate the critical need for smooth coordination of the diverse groups of team players, top-level backing of the projects, as well as a thorough understanding of all the political and financial factors involved that can influence the success of these projects.cross-border infrastructure; transnational infrastructure projects; foreign direct investment; east asia pacific

China and Central and Eastern European Countries: Regional networks, global supply chain or international competitors?

China has emerged as one of the world's leading recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI). Meanwhile, the successful transition experience of many Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs) also enables them to attract an increasing share of global foreign investment, particularly from the European Union (EU). What is the relationship between inward FDI of China and the CEECs? We conceptualize the relationship according to three alternative paradigms: 1) China and the CEECs each exist in its own regional production network, with no linkage between FDI flows into China and into CEECs; 2) China and the CEECs together comprise a global production network, so that FDI into China is positively related to FDI into CEECs; and 3)FDI into China is a substitute for FDI into the CEECs, so that the correlation between them is negative. In this paper, we employ panel data to study this issue in detail. Specifically, we compare empirical estimates for 15 CEECs over the 15-year period 1990-2004 using four different econometric approaches: FGLS with Random effects, FGLS with fixed effects, EC2SLS and GMM. The result supports the conclusion that China's inward FDI does not crowd out CEECs' inward FDI. In fact, it shows that in some circumstances FDI flows in these two regions are moderately complementary. In addition, our analysis confirms the importance for FDI flows of recipient-country characteristics such as market size, degree of trade liberalization and labor quality, as well as a healthy global capital market.foreign direct investment (FDI); regional networks; global supply chain; China’s FDI; Central and Eastern European Countries’ FDI

China and central and eastern European countries : regional networks, global supply chain, or international competitors?

China has emerged as one of the top recipients of foreign direct investment in the world. Meanwhile, the successful transition experience of many Central and Eastern European countries has also allowed them to attract an increasing share of global foreign direct investment. In this paper, the authors use a panel data set to investigate whether foreign direct investment flows to these two regions are complements, substitutes, or independent of each other. Taking into account the role of host country characteristics - such as market size, degree of trade liberalization, and human capital - the authors find no evidence that foreign direct investment flows to one region are at the expense of those to the other. Instead, the results suggest that foreign direct investment flows are driven by distinct regional production networks (and thus are largely independent of each other) and the development of global supply chains (indicating that foreign direct investment flows are complementary).Debt Markets,Foreign Direct Investment,Emerging Markets,Economic Theory&Research,Investment and Investment Climate

Tele-operation of a manufacturing system for vocational education

A flexible manufacturing system was designed and developed to become a decentralised modular network manufacturing plant in the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (Chai Wan). The system consists of a flexible machining cell, flexible assembly cell, automatic storage system, a database server, web-server and video conferencing system which are to be linked by various networks internationally with other educational institutions or manufacturing sites. Various areas for the development such as system layout, simulation, mechanical design, hardware and software development have been carried out. The current development is to establish a web-based control and training system to the customers or students. They can view the operation of manufacturing and assembly processes as well as access system data and information globally. The aim of this paper is to report the tele-control development of the flexible manufacturing system. The development changes the current education process. The system provides virtual and animated images on design, manufacturing attributes and supports remote training. Students, at a distant location can acquire skills, production methods and access system data and information globally. Moreover, instant feedback from students is possible, as they can make criticism at any geographical area. Delivery of knowledge can now be on-line and in real time globally to achieve better result of education. Students using this system can communicate with the system host using Internet or ISDN leased line directly. They can submit task on various manufacturing processes and control of industrial robots through Internet or intranet. Host’s feedback to students is also provided in order to enhance the learning process

Measurement of teicoplanin by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry:development of a novel method

Teicoplanin is an antibiotic used for the treatment of endocarditis, osteomyelitis, septic arthritis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Teicoplanin is emerging as a suitable alternative antibiotic to vancomycin, where their trough serum levels are monitored by immunoassay routinely. This is the first report detailing the development of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for measuring teicoplanin in patients' serum

Computer Vision-Based Techniques for Quality Inspection of Concrete Building Structures

Quality performance of building construction is frequently assessed throughout the construction life cycle. In Hong Kong, quality management system must be established before commencing new building works. Regular building inspections are conducted in accordance with the code of practice of new building works. Quality managers are deployed in construction sites to inspect and record any building defects. The concrete cracks must be identified, which is usually followed by proposed rectifications, in order to protect the public and occupants from dangers. This chapter is structured as follows: Background information of concrete cracks is firstly given. Traditional technique of conducting regular manual inspection is introduced, in accordance with Hong Kong’s code of practice “Building Performance Assessment Scoring System (PASS)”. Then, an advanced technique of conducting crack inspection intelligently based on computer vision is introduced. The procedures of defining, training, and benchmarking the architecture of convolutional neural network models are presented. The calculation steps are detailed and illustrated using a simple textbook example. An experiment case study is used to compare the time, cost of inspecting concrete cracks using both manual and advanced technique. The study concludes with a presentation of the future vision of robot-human collaboration for inspecting concrete cracks in building construction

Global Incidence and mortality of oesophageal cancer and their correlation with socioeconomic indicators temporal patterns and trends in 41 countries

Oesophageal cancers (adenocarcinomas [AC] and squamous cell carcinomas [SCC]) are characterized by high incidence/mortality in many countries. We aimed to delineate its global incidence and mortality, and studied whether socioeconomic development and its incidence rate were correlated. The age-standardized rates (ASRs) of incidence and mortality of this medical condition in 2012 for 184 nations from the GLOBOCAN database; national databases capturing incidence rates, and the WHO mortality database were examined. Their correlations with two indicators of socioeconomic development were evaluated. Joinpoint regression analysis was used to generate trends. The ratio between the ASR of AC and SCC was strongly correlated with HDI (r = 0.535 [men]; r = 0.661 [women]) and GDP (r = 0.594 [men]; r = 0.550 [women], both p < 0.001). Countries that reported the largest reduction in incidence in male included Poland (Average Annual Percent Change [AAPC] = −7.1, 95%C.I. = −12,−1.9) and Singapore (AAPC = −5.8, 95%C.I. = −9.5,−1.9), whereas for women the greatest decline was seen in Singapore (AAPC = −12.3, 95%C.I. = −17.3,−6.9) and China (AAPC = −5.6, 95%C.I. = −7.6,−3.4). The Philippines (AAPC = 4.3, 95%C.I. = 2,6.6) and Bulgaria (AAPC = 2.8, 95%C.I. = 0.5,5.1) had a significant mortality increase in men; whilst Columbia (AAPC = −6.1, 95%C.I. = −7.5,−4.6) and Slovenia (AAPC = −4.6, 95%C.I. = −7.9,−1.3) reported mortality decline in women. These findings inform individuals at increased risk for primary prevention