THE DEGREE OF PARTICIPATION IN THE GLOBAL MARKET – A FINANCIAL MARKETS GLOBALISATION CRITERION

We can measure the globalisation tendency of financial markets by means ofseveral criteria - the degree of financial openness, the degree of financial integration andthe degree of participation in the global financial market. This study aims at analysingthe degree of participation in the global market as a Financial Markets GlobalisationCriterion based on indicators such as the amount of issuing on the international markets,the number of cross listing, the percentage of foreign investments into the GDP etc. Wecan conclude that although we cannot talk about a global financial market yet, theintensity and extent of the cross-border financial activity indicates an evolution in thisdirection. Yet, the process does not have a linear trend.degree of participation in the global financial market, international financialmarkets, Euromarkets, home bias

CFD Evaluation of a New Centrifugal Pump Concept for Rocket Propulsion

The rocket propulsion system provides forces to a flight shuttle so that it can accelerate or decelerate and overcome the drag force or change direction. The simplest propulsion system can be made using pressurized propellant tanks with supply of compressed gas but, for minimum weight design requirements, a system with propellant pumps satisfies better. This paper aims to evaluate the performances of a new centrifugal pump concept using computational fluid dynamics. The paper is based on an innovative pump design consisting of two centrifugal stages superposed into a novel and promising configuration. The CFD analysis is performed on 3D domains by using the CFD commercial code ANSYS CFX. The numerical solvers used are pressure based using the SIMPLE method with RANS. The post processing of the results delivers speed, pressure and temperature distribution in the field. A classic two stage centrifugal pump is compared with the new stage-over-stage design, where the axial length is considerably reduced. Regarding the total efficiency, in both cases its value is around 97%. This paper presents an innovative geometry for centrifugal pumps, that can contribute to the improvement of rocket propulsion systems

CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING AN INTEGRATED UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Today we witness an increase in the role of universities in civil society. The international trends show the universities’ openness towards the alternative offered by new technologies. The article shows the actual perspectives in our country, presents the main characteristics and the structure of a computerized university management system, and also indicates the possibility of informatic integration for the system modules. The development of such a project must be controlled and validated by a standardized methodology for project management, which is shown in the article.Project Management, informatic system, management of an educational institution, portal application integration, methodology, Prince2

Robust sparse representation for adaptive sensing of turbulent phenomena

Special Issue on Compressive Sensing and Robust TransformsInternational audienceIn this study, the authors propose a method for turbulence characterisation by using sparse representation of a channel's impulse response. They consider the case of moving vortices created naturally or artificially that do not conserve their physical properties when observed at two distinct positions in space. The existing amplitude-based techniques fail to provide an accurate representation when the physical properties of the dynamic turbulence are altered. A two stages approach is proposed in this study. The first one deals with the design of robust waveforms for sensing of turbulent phenomena. The second stage consists of sparsely representing the decomposition of the turbulence's impulse response, based on a physically driven decomposition basis. The tests conducted in a reduced scale experimental facility show, on real data, the efficiency of the turbulence tracking. They compare several types of signals and show that the wideband signals are best suited for the application, achieving a high resolution combined with excellent results in terms of robustness

Oxidative Stress-Based Photodynamic Therapy with Synthetic Sensitizers and/or Natural Antioxidants

Photodynamic therapy (also called PDT, photoirradiation therapy, phototherapy, or photochemotherapy) as a new modality for cancer treatment involves the combination of light with a photosensitizing drug in an oxygen-rich environment. PDT consists in the systemic administration of a photosensitizer (PS), which is selectively retained by tumor cells and the subsequent irradiation with visible light of the affected area. Basically two types of reactions can occur after photoactivation of the photosensitizer: the first involves the generation of free radicals (type-I photochemical reaction) and the other the production of singlet molecular oxygen, (type II) as the main species responsible for cell inactivation. The mechanism of PDT effects may involve a direct tumor cell injury and also an indirect cell killing via microcirculatory changes resulting in reduced blood flow in the tumor. Also, PDT may be considered an oxidative stress that induces cellular death in different types of cancerous cells both in vitro and in vivo. Oxidation or oxidative stress leads to the production of free radicals. Generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) cause oxidative stress in the cells targeting mainly at cellular macromolecules, such as lipids, nucleic acids and proteins. These oxidizing agents can damage cells by starting chain reactions such as lipid peroxidation, or oxidation of proteins or DNA, causing mutations and even major diseases, while protein oxidation can lead to distortion and degradation. To evaluate the presence of oxidative stress in PDT, some methods could be used: detection of malondialdehyde (MDA), the carbonylated proteins (CP), the hydrogen donating capacity (HDA), detection pf the -SH groups. By reducing basal levels of ROS in cells may facilitate the therapeutic effects of oxidative stress-based therapies. Natural antioxidants may also protect healthy tissues and lower the incidence of treatment-related side effects, and the chapter shows some results about hesperidin, hesperitine, diosmin and also, some tea rxtracts based on tea leaves and fruits. The Green tea polyphenols have been shown to have a protective effect in different forms of cancer in a variety of pre-clinical animal models. Green tea is composed of several catechins, including (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), epicatechin (EC), epicatechin-3-gallate (ECG), and epigallocatechin (EGC). Among them, (-)-Epigallocatechin-3- gallate (EGCG), the major catechin found in green tea, has been recognized as a potential therapeutic agent. In the context where many clinical studies with respect to the application of antioxidants as sensitizers are lacking, this chapter shows a systematic review by putting into evidence the antioxidant action in photochemotherapy and their comparison with synthetic sensitizers (porphyrins and phthalocyanines). Some up-to-date results of photodynamic therapy with synthetic sensitizers and/or coupled with some natural antioxidants are shown and discussed

The independence of Central Banks, a reductio ad impossibile

This paper testifies to the fact that the independence of the Central Banks, as stated by its founding fathers, is nothing more than a chimera. We demonstrate that the hypothesis inflation is a purely monetary phenomenon does not support the plea for independence. Moreover, we show that the conservative central banker, the imaginary Principal-Agent contract, the alleged financial autonomy, just like the ban on budgetary financing, are all arguments that lack logic. We equally show that the idea of independence is not convincing because its operational toolbox, as well as the system of rules it relies on, lack well-defined outlines

OPTIMIZING LARGE COMBINATIONAL NETWORKS FOR K-LUT BASED FPGA MAPPING

Optimizing by partitioning is a central problem in VLSI design automation, addressing circuit’s manufacturability. Circuit partitioning has multiple applications in VLSI design. One of the most common is that of dividing combinational circuits (usually large ones) that will not fit on a single package among a number of packages. Partitioning is of practical importance for k-LUT based FPGA circuit implementation. In this work is presented multilevel a multi-resource partitioning algorithm for partitioning large combinational circuits in order to efficiently use existing and commercially available FPGAs packagestwo-way partitioning, multi-way partitioning, recursive partitioning, flat partitioning, critical path, cutting cones, bottom-up clusters, top-down min-cut

Using wide band signals for obstacle path correction in acoustic scintillation flow meters

International audienceThis paper deals with the challenges of water flow measurement in hydroelectric plants using acoustic scintillation. One of the drawbacks of ultrasonic signal propagation through water is that measurements require relatively clean water conditions. In water with significant amount of impurities, the level of transmitted signals may not be sufficient for an accurate flow measurement. In terms of signal processing, the effect of impurities is represented by a random loss or fading of received signals. In order to improve the measurement, the wide band signals can be used in order to improve the quality factor of the signals by adaptive filtering using a static mode reference. Results show that, in real configurations, the interference due to the obstacles can be reduced