Income Distributions, Inequality, and Poverty in Asia, 1992–2010

Income distributions for developing countries in Asia are modeled using beta-2 distributions, which are estimated by a method of moments procedure applied to grouped data. Estimated parameters of these distributions are used to calculate measures of inequality, poverty, and pro-poor growth in four time periods over 1992–2010. Changes in these measures are examined for 11 countries, with a major focus on the People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, and Indonesia, which are separated into rural and urban regions. We find that the PRC has grown rapidly with increasing inequality accompanying this growth. India has been relatively stagnant. Indonesia has grown rapidly after suffering an initial set back from the Asian financial crisis in 1997

Probability distributions for economic surplus changes: the case of technical change in the Australian wool industry

Mullen, Alston and Wohlgenant (1989) (MAW) examined the distribution of the benefits of technical change in the Australian wool industry. Their conclusions are revisited by examining the probability distributions of changes in the welfare measures, given uncertainty about their model parameters. Subjective probability distributions are specified for the parameters and correlations among some of the parameters are imposed. Hierarchical distributions are also used to model diverse views about the specification of the subjective distributions. A sensitivity elasticity is defined through the estimation of a response surface to measure the sensitivity of the estimated research benefits to individual parameters. MAW’s conclusions are found to be robust under the stochastic approach to sensitivity analysis demonstrated in this article.Livestock Production/Industries,

Electromagnetics from a quasistatic perspective

Quasistatics is introduced so that it fits smoothly into the standard textbook presentation of electrodynamics. The usual path from statics to general electrodynamics is rather short and surprisingly simple. A closer look reveals however that it is not without confusing issues as has been illustrated by many contributions to this Journal. Quasistatic theory is conceptually useful by providing an intermediate level in between statics and the full set of Maxwell's equations. Quasistatics is easier than general electrodynamics and in some ways more similar to statics. It is however, in terms of interesting physics and important applications, far richer than statics. Quasistatics is much used in electromagnetic modeling, an activity that today is possible on a PC and which also has great pedagogical potential. The use of electromagnetic simulations in teaching gives additional support for the importance of quasistatics. This activity may also motivate some change of focus in the presentation of basic electrodynamics

Meditation Awareness Training for the Treatment of Sex Addiction: A Case Study

Background Sex addiction is a disorder that can have serious adverse functional consequences. Treatment effectiveness research for sex addiction is currently underdeveloped, and interventions are generally based on the guidelines for treating other behavioral (as well as chemical) addictions. Consequently, there is a need to clinically evaluate tailored treatments that target the specific symptoms of sex addiction. It has been proposed that second-generation mindfulness-based interventions (SG-MBIs) may be an appropriate treatment for sex addiction because in addition to helping individuals increase perceptual distance from craving for desired objects and experiences, some SG-MBIs specifically contain meditations intended to undermine attachment to sex and/or the human body. The current study conducts the first clinical investigation into the utility of mindfulness for treating sex addiction. Case presentation An in-depth clinical case study was conducted involving an adult male suffering from sex addiction that underwent treatment utilizing an SG-MBI known as Meditation Awareness Training (MAT). Following completion of MAT, the participant demonstrated clinically significant improvements in addictive sexual behavior, as well as reductions in depression and psychological distress. The MAT intervention also led to improvements in sleep quality, job satisfaction, and non-attachment to self and experiences. Salutary outcomes were maintained at 6-month follow-up. Discussion and conclusion The current study extends the literature exploring the applications of mindfulness for treating behavioral addiction, and findings indicate that further clinical investigation into the role of mindfulness for treating sex addiction is warranted

Electrostatic internal energy using the method of images

For several configurations of charges in the presence of conductors, the method of images permits us to obtain some observables associated with such a configuration by replacing the conductors with some image charges. However, simple inspection shows that the potential energy associated with both systems does not coincide. Nevertheless, it can be shown that for a system of a grounded or neutral conductor and a distribution of charges outside, the external potential energy associated with the real charge distribution embedded in the field generated by the set of image charges is twice the value of the internal potential energy associated with the original system. This assertion is valid for any size and shape of the conductor, and regardless of the configuration of images required. In addition, even in the case in which the conductor is not grounded nor neutral, it is still possible to calculate the internal potential energy of the original configuration through the method of images. These results show that the method of images could also be useful for calculations of the internal potential energy of the original system.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. New discussions added. Minor change

Numerical approach to the Schrodinger equation in momentum space

The treatment of the time-independent Schrodinger equation in real-space is an indispensable part of introductory quantum mechanics. In contrast, the Schrodinger equation in momentum space is an integral equation that is not readily amenable to an analytical solution and is rarely taught. We present a numerical approach to the Schrodinger equation in momentum space. After a suitable discretization process, we obtain the Hamiltonian matrix and diagonalize it numerically. By considering a few examples, we show that this approach is ideal for exploring bound-states in a localized potential and complements the traditional (analytical or numerical) treatment of the Schrodinger equation in real-space.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, several changes and one figure correctio

The impact of streetlights on an aquatic invasive species: artificial light at night alters signal crayfish behaviour

Artificial light at night (ALAN) can significantly alter the behaviour, communication and orientation of animals, and will potentially interact with other stressors to affect biodiversity. Invasive, non-native species are one of the largest threats to freshwater biodiversity; however, the impact of ALAN on such species is unknown. This study assessed the effects of ALAN at ecologically relevant levels on the behaviour of a globally widespread invasive species, the signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus). In experimental aquaria, crayfish were exposed to periods of daylight, control (<0.1 lx) and street-lit nights to test two hypotheses: (1) signal crayfish under natural conditions are nocturnal animals, spending more time in shelter during the day, whilst active and interacting during the night, and (2) ALAN reduces crayfish activity and intraspecific interactions, whilst increasing their propensity to use shelter. Our results confirm that signal crayfish are largely nocturnal, showing peak activity and interaction levels during control nights, whilst taking refuge during daylight hours. When exposed to short-term simulated light pollution from a streetlight at night however, activity and interactions with conspecifics were significantly reduced compared to control nights, whilst time spent in shelters increased. By altering crayfish behaviour, ALAN may change the ecosystem impacts of invasive crayfish in the wild. This study is the first to show an impact of ALAN on the behaviour of an invasive, non-native species, and provides information for the management of invasive crayfish in areas where ALAN is prevalent