Interstate Migration of College Freshmen: An Economic Analysis

We examine the economic determinants of interstate migration of college-bound freshmen, using state-level data. Our analysis provides a richer explanation of the striking differences among the U.S. states in out-migration of college-bound freshmen. States that provide more educational choices and higher quality education services, charge lower tuition, have broad-based merit scholarship programs and have lower income levels tend to retain a higher percentage of their college-bound freshmen at home.

Electronic spectra of bare and solvated ruthenium polypyridine complexes

We present work on a prototypical water oxidation catalyst, namely the aqua-complex [(bpy)(tpy)Ru-OH$_2$]$^{2+}$ (2,2’-bpy = bipyridine, tpy = 2,2’:6’,2”-terpyridine), and its hydrated clusters [(bpy)(tpy)Ru-OH$_2$]$^{2+}$ ·(H2O)$_n$, with n = 1 – 4. This complex is the starting species in a catalytic cycle for water oxidation. We couple electrospray ionization mass spectrometry with laser spectroscopy to circumvent challenges that arise in reactive solutions from speciation. Here, we report the electronic spectrum of [(bpy)(tpy)Ru-OH$_2$]$^{2+}$ by photodissociation spectroscopy of mass selected, cryogenically prepared ions, and we examine effects of its microhydration environment on its electronic structure. In particular, we investigate the solvatochromic shift of the spectral envelope upon sequential addition of water molecules up to the tetrahydrate

Challenges and innovations in the economic evaluation of the risks of climate change

A large discrepancy exists between the dire impacts that most natural scientists project we could face from climate change and the modest estimates of damages calculated by mainstream economists. Economic assessments of climate change risks are intended to be comprehensive, covering the full range of physical impacts and their associated market and non-market costs, considering the greater vulnerability of poor people and the challenges of adaptation. Available estimates still fall significantly short of this goal, but alternative approaches that have been proposed attempt to address these gaps. This review seeks to provide a common basis for natural scientists, social scientists, and modellers to understand the research challenges involved in evaluating the economic risks of climate change. Focusing on the estimation processes embedded in economic integrated assessment models and the concerns raised in the literature, we summarise the frontiers of research relevant to improving quantitative damage estimates, representing the full complexity of the associated systems, and evaluating the impact of the various economic assumptions used to manage this complexity

IODP Expeditions 303 and 306 Monitor Miocene-Quaternary Climate in the North Atlantic

Introduction The IODP Expeditions 303 and 306 drilling sites were chosen for two reasons: (1) to capture Miocene-Quaternary millennial-scale climate variability in sensitive regions at the mouth of the Labrador Sea and in the North Atlantic icerafted debris (IRD) belt (Ruddiman et al., 1977), and (2) to provide the sedimentary and paleomagnetic attributes, including adequate sedimentation rates, for constructinghigh-resolution isotopic and magnetic stratigraphies.High accumulation rates, reaching 20 cm ky-1, permit the study of millennial-scale variations in climate and in the Earth's magnetic fi eld over the past several million years, when the amplitude and frequency of climate variability changed substantially. Shipboard logging and scanning data (magnetic susceptibility and remanence, density, natural gamma radiation, digital images and color refl ectance) and post-expedition x-ray fl uorescence (XRF) scanning datahave revealed that the sediment cores recovered on Expeditions 303 and 306 contain detailed histories of millennial-scale climate and geomagnetic fi eld variability throughout the late Miocene to Quaternary epochs. The climate proxies will be integrated with paleomagnetic data to place the records of millennial-scale climate change into a high resolution stratigraphy based on oxygen isotope andrelative paleomagnetic intensity (RPI). The paleomagnetic record of polarity reversals, excursions and RPI in these cores is central to the construction of the stratigraphic template and will provide detailed documentation of geomagnetic fi eld behavior

Accounting Induced Distortions in Public Enterprise Pricing

Certain government enterprises not subject to competition (e.g., municipal utilities, irrigation agencies) commonly aim to set prices at average cost. In periods of inflation, unadjusted accounting data understate the economic costs of fixed assets and, thus, generate inefficiently low prices and high consumption rates for outputs of these enterprises. Since dividends and taxes are not involved, the primary function of accounting is cost determination rather than profit measurement. We measure the nature and extent of undercosting and underpricing for a group of government owned water utilities in the arid western United States. Economic costs appear to be two to three times their accounting counterparts for the cases studied.

Neuromuscular responses to mild-muscle damaging eccentric exercise in a low glycogen state.

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of low muscle glycogen on the neuromuscular responses to maximal eccentric contractions. Fourteen healthy men (22±3years) performed single-leg cycling (20min at ∼75% maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O2 max); eight 90 s sprints at a 1:1 work-to-rest ratio (5% decrements from 90% to 55% V̇O2 max until exhaustion) the evening before 100 eccentric (1.57rads(-1)) with reduced (RED) and normal glycogen (NORM). Neuromuscular responses were measured during and up to 48h after with maximal voluntary and involuntary (twitch, 20Hz and 50Hz) isometric contractions. During eccentric contractions, peak torque decreased (RED: -16.1±2.5%; NORM: -6.2±5.1%) and EMG frequency increased according to muscle length. EMG activity decreased for RED only. After eccentric contractions, maximal isometric force was reduced up to 24h for NORM (-13.5±5.8%) and 48h for RED (-7.4±10.9%). Twelve hours after eccentric contractions, twitch force and the 20:50Hz ratio were decreased for RED but not for NORM. Immediate involuntary with prolonged voluntary force loss suggests that reduced glycogen is associated with increased susceptibility to mild muscle-damaging eccentric exercise with contributions of peripheral and central mechanisms to be different during recovery