Explaining Early Adoption on New Medicines: Regulation, Innovation and Scale

Understanding how price regulations affect the adoption of new patent-protected pharmaceutical technologies is a crucial question in designing health systems. This paper addresses this question by examining how price expectations shape the probability of launch, controlling for competition, market size expectations, firm and molecule heterogeneity across the major OECD markets during 1999-2008. Due to the censoring of launch data we use discrete time duration modelling with parametric and semi-parametric duration dependence specification. A sub-sample analysis including only EU countries also investigates the impact of price interdependencies and potential firm strategies in launch and pricing decisions. The empirical analysis of the global set of molecules which have diffused across more than 10 markets in the OECD, suggests there is a statistically significant and robust price effect in the adoption of new pharmaceutical technologies; low-prices result in reduced and slower adoption. Concentrated therapeutic subgroups, reflecting market crowding constitutes a significant barrier to entry. Sub-sample findings from the EU market suggest strategic firm behaviour with firms delaying launch in low-priced markets and attempts to maintain price differentials across interdependent markets to a minimum due to price complementarities. Firm economies of scale and the therapeutic importance of innovations are other important drivers of adoption speed.pharmaceutical innovation, regulation, adoption, duration analysis

Does Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Affect the Adoption of Generic Competition? Evidence from the OECD, 1999-2008

Generic competition in the pharmaceutical market is an effective cost-containment mechanism that improves static efficiency and stimulates pharmaceutical innovation. There is no prior study that has empirically analysed the relative delays in adoption of generic competition. This paper aims to investigate how price regulations in the OECD affect the adoption of generic competition following the first global generic launch of each molecule. Drawing upon data from 1999 to 2008, we estimate the impact of ex-ante price and market size expectations on the probability of generic launch using discrete-time duration modelling with cloglog and logit regressions. The econometric strategy employs both parametric and non-parametric duration dependence and includes controls for generic competition in each country, firm characteristics and molecule heterogeneity. Ex-ante profit expectations result in faster adoption; both expected price and market size increase the probability of launch. Our findings suggest that neither molecule nor firm characteristics have a significant effect on generic adoption across different specifications. Instead, evidence indicates that generic competitors follow a locally oriented strategy in contrast to research-intensive pharmaceutical firms.generic competition, regulation, adoption, discrete-time duration analysis

Acute Investigation of Maximal Strength, Power and Rapid Strength Production on Lower Compartment Circuit Resistance Training of International Female Wrestling Athletes

The circuit resistance training is high intense and high load repetition training method completed on different sport modalities for wrestling women. A total of 10 wrestling women age mean 17 yr, height 1.63 m, body mass 54 kg, training experience 10 yrs participated in this study. Equipment and methods: To circuit resistance training determined on 1RM maximal test, gradually increase rapid strength production and lower leg power to CMJ and SJ actualized on six resistance exercises; a) hip flexion (HP), b) ankle inversion (AI), c) squat (SQ), d) hip extension (HE), e) deadlift (DE), and f) ankle eversion (AE) for wrestling women athletes on team professional sport performance. The lower compartment circuit resistance training was provided on advanced maximal load and power performance by 85% of 1RM (6 rep) high training load and (10 repetition – 20 s interval) intensity. Compared to Pre-test and Post-test that lower compartment resistance training concluded increased maximal strength for acute training load repetition and rapid strength load lifting performance and lower leg power resulted to CMJ decreased for wrestling and SJ increased for wrestling, circuit resistance training promoted high resistance load variability and minimum short time recovery on the one session non-periodic exercises performance with strength and power development. Other, experimental results for different sport modalities may be performing on maximal strength and power performance change in short recovery training phase for minimum effort rapid strength performance

Numerical Simulation of Nano Scanning in Intermittent-Contact Mode AFM under Q control

We investigate nano scanning in tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) under quality (Q) control via numerical simulations performed in SIMULINK. We focus on the simulation of whole scan process rather than the simulation of cantilever dynamics and the force interactions between the probe tip and the surface alone, as in most of the earlier numerical studies. This enables us to quantify the scan performance under Q control for different scan settings. Using the numerical simulations, we first investigate the effect of elastic modulus of sample (relative to the substrate surface) and probe stiffness on the scan results. Our numerical simulations show that scanning in attractive regime using soft cantilevers with high Qeff results in a better image quality. We, then demonstrate the trade-off in setting the effective Q factor (Qeff) of the probe in Q control: low values of Qeff cause an increase in tapping forces while higher ones limit the maximum achievable scan speed due to the slow response of the cantilever to the rapid changes in surface profile. Finally, we show that it is possible to achieve higher scan speeds without causing an increase in the tapping forces using adaptive Q control (AQC), in which the Q factor of the probe is changed instantaneously depending on the magnitude of the error signal in oscillation amplitude. The scan performance of AQC is quantitatively compared to that of standard Q control using iso-error curves obtained from numerical simulations first and then the results are validated through scan experiments performed using a physical set-up

Nazarbayev University multigrasp hand with bidirectional tendon actuation

Robotic hands are being used in various areas such as industrial automation, medical robotics, and defense. In this work, we are presenting the Nazarbayev University Multigrasp Robot Hand with an integrated RGB-Depth camera for intelligent object manipulation. The novelty ofthe project is seen in the creation of an end effector system which obtains higher level autonomy from the base manipulator, being able to recognize target objects, generate approach trajectories and apply corresponding grasping patterns to capture the object

Inertial motion capture based teleoperation of a mobile robot manipulator with a multigrasp hand

Autonomous mobile robots are still not reliable enough for performing complex tasks such as search and rescue, space or undersea exploration and explosive ordnance disposal. Human intelligence is frequently employed for high-level robot decision making and control. Moreover, for most of the cases low-weight and dexterous end-effectors are required for performing delicate tasks efficiently

Inertial motion capture based teleoperation of a mobile robot manipulator with a multigrasp hand

Autonomous mobile robots are still not reliable enough for performing complex tasks such as search and rescue, space or undersea exploration and explosive ordnance disposal. Human intelligence is frequently employed for high-level robot decision making and control. Moreover, for most of the cases low-weight and dexterous end-effectors are required for performing delicate tasks efficiently

Effects of irrigation applied at different growth stages on chickpea yield

ArticleThis study was conducted over the experimental fields of Erciyes University in 2016 to investigate the effects of irrigations applied at different growth stages on chickpea yields. Experiments were conducted in randomized blocks design with 3 replications. There were 7 irrigation treatments as of I1: rainfed, I2: pre-bloom single irrigation, I3: single irrigation at the beginning of blooming, I4: single irrigation at 50% pod set, I5: two irrigations at 50% bloom and 50% pod-set, I6: two irrigations at pre-bloom and 50% pod-set, I7: full irrigation. The amount of applied irrigation water varied between 85.6–323 mm. Plant water consumptions varied between 262 – 569 mm. The greatest yield was obtained from I4 treatment with 273 kg da-1 and the lowest yield was obtained from I1 treatments with 146 kg da-1. It was concluded for chickpea cultivation under deficit water resources conditions that water deficits may be applied at different growth stages except for 50% pod-set period

Competing Ultrafast Energy Relaxation Pathways in Photoexcited Graphene

For most optoelectronic applications of graphene a thorough understanding of the processes that govern energy relaxation of photoexcited carriers is essential. The ultrafast energy relaxation in graphene occurs through two competing pathways: carrier-carrier scattering -- creating an elevated carrier temperature -- and optical phonon emission. At present, it is not clear what determines the dominating relaxation pathway. Here we reach a unifying picture of the ultrafast energy relaxation by investigating the terahertz photoconductivity, while varying the Fermi energy, photon energy, and fluence over a wide range. We find that sufficiently low fluence ($\lesssim$ 4 $\mu$J/cm$^2$) in conjunction with sufficiently high Fermi energy ($\gtrsim$ 0.1 eV) gives rise to energy relaxation that is dominated by carrier-carrier scattering, which leads to efficient carrier heating. Upon increasing the fluence or decreasing the Fermi energy, the carrier heating efficiency decreases, presumably due to energy relaxation that becomes increasingly dominated by phonon emission. Carrier heating through carrier-carrier scattering accounts for the negative photoconductivity for doped graphene observed at terahertz frequencies. We present a simple model that reproduces the data for a wide range of Fermi levels and excitation energies, and allows us to qualitatively assess how the branching ratio between the two distinct relaxation pathways depends on excitation fluence and Fermi energy.Comment: Nano Letters 201