The Post-Apartheid Evolution of Earnings Inequality in South Africa, 1995-2004

This paper examines the trend in post-Apartheid earnings inequality in South Africa. By combining data sets, the paper is able to analyze the trend for the whole period 1995-2004. Earnings inequality rose sharply during 1995-1999 and then declined marginally, but remained high, during 2000-2004. A dramatic rise in unemployment was the driving force in exacerbating earnings inequality in the 1990s. Unemployment began to level off in the 2000s but remained at a high rate. An unprecedented influx of new entrants into the formal labour market in the 1990s put downward pressure on average real wages, affecting workers both in the middle of the distribution and toward the bottom. The growth of the South African economy has been neither rapid enough nor employment-intensive enough to absorb such a large influx of workers. Moreover, the economy?s greater openness to trade and financial flows appears to have left many workers behind, especially Africans, workers in low-skilled occupations, residents of rural areas in general and poor regions in particular. Earnings inequality remains high across groupings of workers differentiated by race, education and occupation although occupation has become a more important factor than the other two in the 2000s. Differentials across the mean earnings of workers classified by rural and urban residence and by province have also intensified. In the 1990s, inequalities within groupings of worker rose sharply and then moderated by the 2000s. While earnings differentials by race and the rural-urban divide also exacerbated inequality in the 1990s, they have been in modest decline since then. These changes in the dynamics of earnings inequality between the 1990s and 2000s pose new challenges for South African policymakers in their efforts to substantially reduce the Apartheid legacy of high inequality and poverty.South Africa, Income distribution, Earnings distribution, Inequality

Water calcium concentration modifies whole-body calcium uptake in sea bream larvae during short-term adaptation to altered salinities

Whole-body calcium uptake was studied in gilthead sea bream larvae (9–83·mg) in response to changing environmental salinity and [Ca2+]. Calcium uptake increased with increased fish size and salinity. Fish exposed to calcium-enriched, diluted seawater showed increased calcium uptake compared with fish in diluted seawater alone. Calcium uptake was unchanged in Na+- enriched, diluted seawater. Overall, [Ca2+], and not salinity/osmolarity per se, appears to be the main factor contributing to calcium uptake. By contrast, drinking was reduced by a decrease in salinity/osmolarity but was little affected by external [Ca2+]. Calculations of the maximum contribution from drinking-associated calcium uptake showed that it became almost insignificant (less than 10%) through a strong decrease in drinking rate at low salinities (0–8‰). Diluted seawater enriched in calcium to the concentration present in full-strength seawater (i.e. constant calcium, decreasing salinity) restored intestinal calcium uptake to normal. Extra-intestinal calcium uptake also benefited from calcium addition but to a lesser extent

Gestão de informação do Projeto Scaf através dos softwares Plone e Árvore Hiperbólica.

A implantação de softwares livres como ferramentas de gestão de conteúdo e facilitadores no fluxo de informação é cada vez mais comum em muitas organizações. Com a utilização dos softwares, Plone e Árvore Hiperbólica foi desenvolvido o portal do Projeto SCAF, com uma estrutura que permite de maneira segura e dinâmica, liberdade para os usuários, mesmo de lugares e plataformas diferentes, produzirem, atualizarem e gerenciarem conteúdos, promovendo o trabalho corporativo. Objetivo. Assimilar o uso das ferramentas Plone e Árvore Hiperbólica, visando facilitar e automatizar o fluxo da informação, possibilitando aos colaboradores o acesso, edição e divulgação de artigos relacionados ao Projeto SCAF.Trabalho apresentado na V Mostra de Trabalhos de Estagiários e Bolsistas, Campinas, out. 2009

Geração e organização das informações da cana-de-açúcar: impactos das mudanças climáticas e avaliação espaço-temporal.

O objetivo geral deste trabalho é apresentar o processo de geração e organização das informações climáticas e geográficas necessárias para se realizar o Zae Cana de acordo com as definições impostas por esses dois ministérios

A Sensorless PMDC Motor Speed Controller with a Logical Overcurrent Protection

A method to control the speed or the torque of a permanent-magnet direct current motor is presented. The rotor speed and the external torque estimation are simultaneously provided by appropriate observers. The sensorless control scheme is based on current measurement and switching states of power devices. The observer’s performances are dependent on the accurate machine parameters knowledge. Sliding mode control approach was adopted for drive control, providing the suitable switching states to the chopper power devices. Despite the predictable chattering, a convenient first order switching function was considered enough to define the sliding surface and to correspond with the desired control specifications and drive performance. The experimental implementation was supported on a single dsPIC and the controller includes a logic overcurrent protection

Coccolithophore fluxes in the open tropical North Atlantic: influence of thermocline depth, Amazon water, and Saharan dust

Coccolithophores are calcifying phytoplankton and major contributors to both the organic and inorganic oceanic carbon pumps. Their export fluxes, species composition, and seasonal patterns were determined in two sediment trap moorings (M4 at 12 degrees N, 49 degrees W and M2 at 14 degrees N, 37 degrees W) collecting settling particles synchronously from October 2012 to November 2013 at 1200 m of water depth in the open equatorial North Atlantic. The two trap locations showed a similar seasonal pattern in total coccolith export fluxes and a predominantly tropical coccolithophore settling assemblage. Species fluxes were dominated throughout the year by lower photic zone (LPZ) taxa (Florisphaera profunda, Gladiolithus flabellatus) but also included upper photic zone (UPZ) taxa (Umbellosphaera spp., Rhabdosphaera spp., Umbilicosphaera spp., Helicosphaera spp.). The LPZ flora was most abundant during fall 2012, whereas the UPZ flora was more important during summer. In spite of these similarities, the western part of the study area produced persistently higher fluxes, averaging 241 x 10(7) +/- 76 x 10(7) coccoliths m(-2) d(-1) at station M4 compared to only 66 x 10(7) +/- 31 x 10(7) coccoliths m(-2) d(-1) at station M2. Higher fluxes at M4 were mainly produced by the LPZ species, favoured by the westward deepening of the thermocline and nutricline. Still, most UPZ species also contributed to higher fluxes, reflecting enhanced productivity in the western equatorial North Atlantic. Such was the case of two marked flux peaks of the more opportunistic species Gephyrocapsa muellerae and Emiliania huxleyi in January and April 2013 at M4, indicating a fast response to the nutrient enrichment of the UPZ, probably by wind-forced mixing. Later, increased fluxes of G. oceanica and E. huxleyi in October-November 2013 coincided with the occurrence of Amazon-River-affected surface waters. Since the spring and fall events of 2013 were also accompanied by two dust flux peaks, we propose a scenario in which atmospheric dust also provided fertilizing nutrients to this area. Enhanced surface buoyancy associated with the river plume indicates that the Amazon acted not only as a nutrient source, but also as a surface density retainer for nutrients supplied from the atmosphere. Nevertheless, lower total coccolith fluxes during these events compared to the maxima recorded in November 2012 and July 2013 indicate that transient productivity by opportunistic species was less important than "background" tropical productivity in the equatorial North Atlantic. This study illustrates how two apparently similar sites in the tropical open ocean actually differ greatly in ecological and oceanographic terms. The results presented here provide valuable insights into the processes governing the ecological dynamics and the downward export of coccolithophores in the tropical North Atlantic.Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) [822.01.008]; European Research Council (ERC) [311152]; University of Bremen; European Union [600411]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The effect of nanocoatings enriched with essential oils on ‘Rocha’ pear long storage

The effect of coating 'Rocha' pears with alginate-based nanoemulsions enriched with lemongrass essential oil (LG) or citral (Cit) was investigated. Fruit were treated with the nanoemulsions: sodium alginate 2% (w/w) + citral 1% (w/w) (Cit1%); sodium alginate 2% (w/w) + citral 2% (w/w) (Cit2%); sodium alginate 2% (w/w) + lemongrass 1.25% (w/w) (LG1.25%); sodium alginate 2% (w/w) + lemongrass 2.5% (w/w) (LG2.5%). Then, fruit were stored at 0 °C and at 95% relative humidity, for six months. Fruit samples were taken after two, four and six months, and then placed at 22 °C. Upon removal and after 7 d shelf-life, fruit were evaluated for colour CIE (L*, h◦), firmness, soluble solids content (SSC), titratable acidity (TA), weight loss, electrolytic leakage, microbial growth, symptoms of superficial scald and internal browning. All nanoemulsions had droplets in the nano range <500 nm, showed uniformity of particle size and stable dispersion. Cit-nanoemulsions had lower droplet size and higher stability than LG. No nanoemulsion showed cytotoxicity. Coatings reduced fruit colour evolution and preserved better firmness than control. After shelf-life, better firmness was found in LG-coated fruit. Coatings did not affect SSC and TA. Microbial growth was below the safety limits in all treatments. Fruit treated with LG-nanoemulsions did not show scald symptoms and panelists preferred LG1.25% coated fruit. Cit2% treated fruit showed the highest scald and internal browning symptoms, while LG1.25% did not show any disorders. This study suggests that LG-nanocoatings have the potential for preserving the quality of 'Rocha' pear.FCT (SFRH/BPD/108831/2015); UID/BIA/04325/2019/ UID/Multi/00631/2019/ UID/AMB/50017/2019info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exploring young artists’ digital performance: the impact of online community engagement and co-creation on brand love

New music artists have been emerging in recent years through new digital platforms and streaming services. These platforms allow artists to build a community and interact with members who share the same tastes and ideas. Hence, new artists find success through their communities’ support and engagement. The current paper explores the everexpanding connection between digital media and music – allowing fans and/or consumers to naturally build a sense of belonging to a community of a single artist and/or band (Brodie et al., 2013). Brand communities are also a place where artists and fans can develop a long-term relationship (Baldus et al., 2015) and in turn create valuable personalised experiences together (Prahalad and Ramaswamy, 2004) that will result in higher levels of engagement, or brand love (Carroll and Ahuvia, 2006; Vernuccio et al., 2015).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

An empirical study on influencers and their engagement factors: The YouTubers' perspective

The current marketing arena is witnessing that the use of influencers or third-party content-generators is an efficient practice. Adding the fact that one of the arising-stars platforms in the social media spectrum is YouTube, the current research aims to understand how YouTube influencers can contribute to the process of customer engagement. The present research methodology is based on a qualitative approach through in-depth interviews of 22 female Youtubers devoted to the lifestyle categories. The questionnaire was built upon existing literature, aiming to understand what are the engagement factors that influencers should rely on to promote engagement from followers with the focal advertised object (i.e., product, brand). But this time from the Youtubers perspective. From the development of this study, a set of customer engagement factors arise. Based on the results we can claim that having an informal relationship with brands, presenting different content from others in the industry, or having a well-connected relationship with followers are engagement factors that contribute to customer engagement.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio