Subprime consumer credit demand: evidence from a lender's pricing experiment

We test the interest rate sensitivity of subprime credit card borrowers using a unique panel data set from a UK credit card company. What is novel about our contribution is that we were given details of a randomized interest rate experiment conducted by the lender between October 2006 and January 2007. We find that individuals who tend to utilize their credit limits fully do not reduce their demand for credit when subject to increases in interest rates as high as 3 percentage points. This finding is naturally interpreted as evidence of binding liquidity constraints. We also demonstrate the importance of truly exogenous variation in interest rates when estimating credit demand elasticities. We show that estimating a standard credit demand equation with nonexperimental variation leads to seriously biased estimates even when conditioning on a rich set of controls and individual fixed effects. In particular, this procedure results in a large and statistically significant 3-month elasticity of credit card debt with respect to interest rates even though the experimental estimate of the same elasticity is neither economically nor statistically different from zero. JEL Classification: D11, D12, D14liquidity constraints, randomized trials, subprime credit

Labor market institutions and the business cycle Unemployment rigidities vs. real wage rigidities

This paper investigates the importance of labor market institutions for inflation and unemployment dynamics. Using the New Keynesian framework we argue that labor market institutions should be divided into those institutions that cause Unemployment Rigidities (UR) and those that cause Real Wage Rigidities (RWR). The two types of institutions have opposite effects and their interaction is crucial for the dynamics of inflation and unemployment. We estimate a panel VAR with deterministically varying coefficients and find that there is a profound difference in the responses of unemployment and inflation to shocks under different constellations of the labor market. JEL Classification: E32, E24, E52business cycle, Labor Market Search, monetary policy, Real Wage Rigidity, Unemployment

Stress-dependent local oxidation of silicon

The two-dimensional isolation oxidation of silicon is considered for stress-dependent reaction and diffusion coefficients. The influence of such parameters is investigated numerically and asymptotically in the bird's beak problem and for curved geometries arising in the oxidation of cylindrical and spherical structures. In the bird's beak problem, the limit of large activation volume is described for a stress-dependent reaction coefficient, illustrating the significant growth retardation of the silicon/silicon oxide interface and reduced stresses in the silicon oxide. Novel high-order nonlinear evolution-type PDEs are derived and investigated using asymptotic and numerical techniques

Regional Variety of Biotechnology Development in Asia

AbstractToday's biotechnology is widely regarded as a one of the most important sectors of the technology, a new wave of knowledge- based economy. It is characterized by innovation and a very fast pace of development, which is connected with the involvement of highly qualified specialists, research centers, varied sources of information, investments, as well as interconnections to guarantee the flow of information. Potentially, biotechnology has a wide range of applications, such as the food industry, production of genetically modified organisms, pharmaceutics, healthcare, detergents and bioremediation, forestry and agriculture. There is a huge variety in the world when it comes to the structure and space where the biotech development occurs. According to the collected data, there is an obvious dominant role of highly developed countries such as the United States and European countries: the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Sweden as well as Canada. Nevertheless the dynamic expansion of biotechnology occurs in new centers of biotech development in eastern European countries such as Lithuania and Slovakia as well as in Asian countries, including Turkey, India, South Korea and Japan. Furthermore, biotech development is determined by several factors. A distance from scientific centers, location of universities, financial sources and international cooperation must be taken into consideration. Country policies also come as the major determinants. With the Internet and common access to a very sophisticated piece of information and a very fast-developing technology, it's even easier for the biotech to make a step forward

Research Regarding Connections between Risks and Processes within Small and Medium Enterprises

AbstractBusiness process approach is a current concern for many scholars and practitioners as the performance of any organization is directly influenced on how the objectives of these activities are achieved. The methodology framework consists of a literature review regarding the main concepts which are underlying the connection between risk and process. Main findings of the study will comprise of identifying the risks along with the trigger causes or circumstances and their potential effect not only on the activity, but also on the overall process. The importance to detect the risks whose impact has critical effect on the SMEs activity in terms of sustainable development and business continuity will be emphasized. In this respect, the potential processes highly exposed to risks are the most reliable indicators highlighting where an SME is vulnerable and to where should resources be directed to. A clear understanding of the types and intensity of the relationships and interactions between processes and their particular risks leads to cost effective decisions regarding undertaking long term mitigating strategies. The awareness of the link between different types of processes with their specific risks has become highly important as the overall vulnerability of an enterprise is enlarging in line with the business development

Reinventar o futuro em sintonia com a identidade : traçado de uma ecovia que potencie os patrimónios natural e cultural dos terceirenses

Dissertação de Mestrado, Gestão e Conservação da Natureza, 14 de outubro de 2019, Universidade dos Açores.A ilha Terceira, sendo uma ilha do arquipélago dos Açores, com cerca de 400 km2, torna possível e fácil a deslocação das pessoas de bicicleta, diminuindo o impacto dos combustíveis fósseis. Como a velocidade atingida é inferior à de um carro, é possível apreciar a natureza omnipresente sem lhe causar grande impacto. O acentuado crescimento de um turismo de natureza nas ilhas vem, a par do incremento de estilos de vida saudáveis junto dos residentes, reforçar a necessidade de criar condições para que as pessoas possam usufruir deste meio de transporte alternativo, desfrutando em segurança dos recursos paisagísticos existentes. É, neste sentido, que surge a ideia de criar uma ecovia. A sua implementação exige, todavia, que seja ponderado um conjunto de vertentes tão distintas quanto: as questões climáticas e orográficas do terreno, os recursos naturais e culturais, o ordenamento do território, as infraestruturas existentes, entre outras. Para a escolha do traçado, que melhor valorize estas caraterísticas, foi necessário recorrer a um conjunto de informações indagadas pela investigadora e ao saber especializado e processado de peritos, através de entrevistas, que sustentaram posições muito distintas sobre esta questão. A informação recolhida foi projetada em diferentes mapas, através dos SIG, possibilitando o traçado de diferentes cenários possíveis, dividido em vários troços, que delimitaram as áreas com maior aptidão para implementação de uma ecovia na Ilha Terceira. Desta forma, a metodologia adotada assumiu um caráter multidisciplinar, desenvolvida em três momentos distintos: no tratamento de recolha de dados, no processo de análise de dados e na apresentação e discussão dos resultados obtidos da 1ª proposta do traçado edafoclimático e da 2ª proposta do traçado com a valorização dos patrimónios naturais e histórico-culturais da ecovia, bem como a apresentação das conclusões. A proposta do traçado final é a mais confiável para a implementação de uma ecovia na Ilha Terceira, pois resultou de uma metodologia diversificada e robusta, que emergiu do conhecimento de profissionais, recolhido e testado através de métodos e ferramentas, tornando-se crucial para estar à altura do dinamismo exigido por este projeto.ABSTRACT: Terceira Island is in Azores archipelago. This Island has 400km2 what permits people cycling all the day, reducing the consumption of fossil fuels. The speed is lower than a car, so it is possible to enjoy and appreciate all landscapes, with no direct impact. The strong growth of nature tourism in all islands combined with the healthy lifestyle of population have created the need to join conditions for people cycling securely and enjoying the peaceful and charming landscapes. This is why the idea of creating a Greenway emerges. However, its implementation requires a deep analysis of distinct areas, such as: climate and topography issues in the ground, natural and cultural resources, territorial planning, and infrastructures, among others. To choose the best track, the researcher gathered data combined with expert’s knowledge through structured interviews which supported very distinct positions about this subject. The collected data was processed in SIG’s maps, allowing the creation of numerous tracks, divided into different sections, which delimited regions with more ability to the Greenway’s implementation, in Terceira Island. Thus, the adopted methodology led a multidisciplinary dimension, developed in three moments: data cleaning/analysis, data handling and present/discuss the conclusion and obtained results in the 1st edaphic track proposal and in the 2nd track proposal with the valorisation of the natural, cultural and historical heritage. The final track proposal is the most trusted to implement the Greenway in Terceira, due it’s resulted from a straight application of the strong and appropriate methodology, which emerged of expert’s knowledge and tested using methods and tools. This proposal is the key to match this project’s dynamism

Antimicrobial Activity of Natural and Synthetic Compounds Against Candida spp., Gram-Positive and Gram-Negative Bacteria

Antibiotics resistant bacteria have become over the last few decades one of the greatest threats to global health. Infections caused by multi-drug-resistant pathogens are generally difficult to treat and are often fatal. Biofilm formation has been recognized as one of the most important, and most difficult to treat, among the mechanisms conferring antibiotics tolerance to pathogens. There is currently an urgent need for novel and effective approaches to fight the global health challenge of antibiotic resistance and in particular biofilm based tolerance. In this context, antimicrobial peptides (AMP) and antimicrobial plant extracts are among the most promising solutions. This thesis work was aimed at the discovery, characterization and evaluation of the antimicrobial, and especially anti-biofilm, activity of novel AMPs and novel plant extracts. A set of analyses integrating bioinformatics, synthetic biology and biochemical approaches has been employed to identify new antimicrobial compounds. Clinical phenotype as well as reference fungal and bacterial strains were used to test the antimicrobial and anti-biofilm potential of these new compounds. Antimicrobial activity assays were performed by microdilution method and time kill assays, while anti-biofilm activity was evaluated with biomass quantification, biofilm vitality assessment and by means of confocal laser scanner microscopy. Finally, cytotoxic experiments were performed against human cells to determine if the discovered compounds could be considered promising candidates for the development of topical antimicrobial agents. As a first step, a cryptic AMP-like peptide named VLL-28, identified in the sequence of an archaeal protein was analyzed and characterized with efficient antifungal and anti-biofilm activities against all tested clinical strains. Then, a second cryptic AMP-like peptide (PAP-A3), derived by in silico screening of human proteins, was identified in the Pepsinogen A activation peptide along with two other fragments (IMY25 and FLK22). These three peptides exhibited considerable antimicrobial and anti-biofilm properties against a range of pathogenic bacteria, including foodborne organisms infecting the stomach and biofilm producing strains. Furan-motifs and lignan-motifs were than employed to identify new molecules exhibiting antimicrobial properties. This activity led to the characterization of fourteen synthetic arylfurans and lignan-like arylbenzylfurans, that in turn were tested against Gram-negative (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus and S. epidermidis). One of these compounds, methyl 4-(2-hydroxybenzyl)-2-phenylfuran-3-carboxylate, was found to be active against S. aureus and S. epidermidis. This latter showed also a good anti-biofilm activity and was found to be nontoxic in human cells. Finally, Abietic acid, a tricyclic diterpenoid derived from the resin of pine trees, was tested against Staphylococcus pseudintermedius strains and was found to be able to increase the susceptibility to Methicillin in Methicillin-resistant isolates of S. pseudintermedius (MRSP) by modulating the expression of mec genes. Moreover, Abietic acid also displayed a good anti-biofilm activity by killing almost all cells embedded in biofilm already at very low concentrations. In conclusion, new possible sources were explored in this work to find novel antimicrobial compounds to fight the emerging antimicrobial resistance to conventional drugs. As a result, a series of new and effective antimicrobial agents were detected, characterized and tested against a wide range of pathogens

Introduction

New version (2021) of the Italian introduction (Piludu & Frog) previously published in 2014 (bilingual edition of the book - Italian and English) and in 2015 (Italian edition): the original Italian text has been reviewed, standardized and corrected, and there are new footnotes written for the Italian readers by the reviewers of the mythological series "Bifröst" (VociFuoriScena): Dario Giansanti and Elisa Zanchetta. The chapters are based on the papers of the scientific symposium: "Kalevala: Epica, Magia, Arte e Musica / Kalevala: Epic, Magic, Art and Music" organized in Bottenicco di Moimacco / Cividale del Friuli (Udine, Italy) for the centenary of Kalevalaseura (2011). Non peer reviewe