Extremism within the family

This paper considers an economic analysis of intergenerational transition of ethnic and social trait. We consider the level of social traits chosen by parents and its effect on their children's choice of ethnic and social traits when reaching adulthood. We develop a theory that suggests that parents will chose extreme ethnic and social traits in order to increase the cost that their children will pay if they wish to deviate from their parent's "ideal". The extreme choice of the ethnic social traits of parents has an effect on the segregation of minorities and migrants

Geophysical surveys near Strontian, Highland Region

Reconnaissance VLF-EM and magnetic surveys have bean carried out over Ba- Pb-Zn prospects in an area near Strontian in the Highland Region of Scotland. Rather than attempting to detect the economic minerals directly, which is unlikely to be practicable by geophysical methods, the trials concentrated on exploration for the crush zones and associated Permo-Carboniferous basic dykes which act as hosts to mineralisation. The results are encouraging, with the VLF-EM method proving effective in delineating crush zones while magnetic traverses detected the basic dykes. To the east of Bellsgrove mine a crush zone and dyke extend eastwards along the strike of the Strontian Main Vein; however, to the west of the Whitesmith mine the evidence of a westward extension of the Main Vein is insubstantial. A number of crush zones and associated dykes have been identified in the Corrantee-Whitesmith area. Probable ext_ensions are indicated to a number of known veins in the vicinity of the Fee Donald mine. The rss~llts merit geophysical, geological and possibly geochemical follow-up

The CLAWAR project

In Europe, there are two main thematic groups focusing on robotics, the Climbing and Walking Robots (CLAWAR) project (http://www.clawar.net) and the European Robotics Network (EURON) project (http://www.euron.org). The two networks are complementary: CLAWAR is industrially focused on the immediate needs, and EURON is focused more on blue skies research. This article presents the activities of the CLAWAR project

Virtual annihilation contribution to orthopositronium decay rate

Order alpha^2 contribution to the orthopositronium decay rate due to one-photon virtual annihilation is found to be delta Gamma = (alpha/pi)^2 (pi^2 ln(alpha) - 0.8622(9))Gamma_LO.Comment: 2 pages, no figure

Ridge Estimators for Distributed Lag Models

The paper explains how the Almon polynominal lag specification can be made stochastic in two different ways - one suggested by Shiller and another following the lines of Lindley and Smith. It is shown that both the estimators can be considered as modified ridge estimators. The paper then compares these modified ridge estimators with the ridge estimator suggested by Hoerl and Kennard. It is shown that for the estimation of distributed lag models the ridge estimator suggested by Hoerl and Kennard is not useful but that the modified ridge estimators corresponding to the stochastic versions of the Almon lag are promising. The paper has two empirical illustrations.

Experimental testing of tape springs folded in three dimensions

One of the main drivers in satellite design is the minimization of mass, in the attempt to reduce the large costs involved in the launch of the spacecraft. However, the recent advances in micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) have allowed a further reduction in the mass of on-board equipment. With advances in micro ion propulsion systems for attitude control, and the miniaturisation of ground based mobile communications, the satellite power requirement does not reduce linearly with mass. This creates the need for photovoltaic cell areas larger than the surface area of the satellite bus. Therefore small satellite deployable structures become increasingly important. The major design requirements for such systems are reliability and low cost. The simpler the components of the system are (i.e. the minimum number of moving parts, lubrication etc), the more chance of the system meeting the design requirements. For this reason, there has been significant investigation into the deployment dynamics of tape springs folded in two dimensions, to form simple hinges which do not require lubrication and automatically locks in the deployed configuration. The present work focuses on using tapes springs to support a new conceptual area deployment design for nano/micro satellites. The deployment of this design incorporates bi-axial folding, which requires the tape springs to unfold in three dimensions. Little research has been carried out in this area. The design of a test rig to determine the properties of this three dimensional deployment is presented in detail. This rig measures both the bending and twisting moments produced from the three- dimensional fold. The combination of these two moments defines the main deployment properties of the tape springs and hence the final array. The experimental results will be compared to theoretical results produced using shell theory and non- linear, finite element analysis

Living on apples - anthropogenic influence on microbial communities of apple fruits

Microbial communities on non-processed foods are complex with unknown effects on food quality and human health. It is generally assumed that the ecology of the microflora associated with apples reflects the environment of the orchard, handling, harvesting, and storage. We performed a comparative field trial to assess how anthropogenic factors, such as organic and conventional farming practices, influence the microbial community of apple fruits. Apples are an economically important crop in Switzerland. In 2004, we harvested apple fruits cv. Golden Delicious of five pairs of organic/ conventional farms at five different locations in Switzerland. We combined classical microbiological methods and genetic tools to characterize the cultivable and uncultivable microflora of apple fruits. Morphologically distinct mold and yeast colonies were recovered from apple fruit surface (epiphytes) or from underneath the skin (endophytes) and recorded on nutrient agar. We also started to develop culture-independent molecular DNA-techniques (e.g. PCR of internal transcribed spacer region, ITS) for species identification and fungal community studies. Several white and red/pink yeasts and yeastlike fungi were the predominant epiphytes. Morphologically different molds formed almost exclusively the endophytic microflora. The yeast-like fungi were more abundantly and more frequently found on organic apple fruits whereas red/pink yeasts prevailed on conventional fruits. We found higher numbers of endophytic molds and more morphological types in organic fruits. These results suggest that the microbial community of apple fruits adapts to the farming practice, a feature which might be useful for authenticity and food quality

Illegal migration, enforcement and minimum wage

This paper examines the connection between illegal migration, minimum wages and enforcement policy. We first explore the employers’ decision regarding the employment of illegal migrants in the presence of an effective minimum wage. We show that the employers’ decision depends on the wage gap between those of the legal and illegal workers and on the penalty for employing illegal workers. We consider the effects a change in the minimum wage has on the employment of illegal immigrants and local workers. We conclude by considering the optimal migration policy taking into consideration social welfare issues

Managing Global Customers

Multinational companies need to manage their relationships with multinational customers in a globally integrated approach. This paper provides a systematic framework for developing and implementing such global customer management programmes. The paper is based on Chapter 1 of George S. Yip and Audrey Bink, Managing Global Customers: An Integrated Approach, Oxford University Press, 2007. The book takes a strategic, total business, and not just sales approach to managing global customers. It also takes a customer as well as a supplier perspective. The book provides guidance on both strategy and implementation. Lastly, the book takes a systematic and logic driven approach, yet provides many creative insights and practical advice. The primary supporting research is a study on global customer-supplier management with primary research conducted at 22 multinational companies, both global suppliers and global customers. This research involved personal interviews with over 60 senior executives, as well as a detailed multi-level survey completed by 27 executives. The authors obtained information on the way global customer-supplier relationship programmes can be implemented, the barriers that can be encountered and best practices that can lead to extra advantage.global marketing;global customers;global account management

Jet confinement by magneto-torsional oscillations

Many quasars and active galactic nuclei (AGN) appear in radio, optical, and X-ray maps, as a bright nuclear sources from which emerge single or double long, thin jets. When observed with high angular resolution these jets show structure with bright knots separated by relatively dark regions. Nonthermal nature of a jet radiation is well explained as the synchrotron radiation of the relativistic electrons in an ordered magnetic field. We consider magnetic collimation, connected with torsional oscillations of a cylinder with elongated magnetic field, and periodically distributed initial rotation around the cylinder axis. The stabilizing azimuthal magnetic field is created here by torsional oscillations, where charge separation is not necessary. Approximate simplified model is developed. Ordinary differential equation is derived, and solved numerically, what gives a possibility to estimate quantitatively the range of parameters where jets may be stabilized by torsional oscillations.Comment: accepted for publication in Astrophysics and Space Scienc