ODRŽIVOST KOLUZIJE PRI „STACKED REVERSION“

We consider a multi-period oligopoly model to analyze cartel sustainability where a subset of collusive firms is exogenously given. We assume that in case of cheating only the cheater is expelled from the cartel and collusion continues without the cheater. We show that, in our model, when firms compete in quantities and the cartel is sufficiently small, a Stackelberg leader cartel can always be sustained if firms are patient enough. Furthermore, in this case collusion is more easily sustained than when firms play grim trigger strategies. The opposite result is obtained in a price-setting supergame with differentiated products.Razmatramo multiperiodni model oligopola kako bismo analizirali održivost kartela u kojem je podskup koluzivnih tvrtki dan egzogeno. Pretpostavljamo da u slučaju prevare samo varalica biva izbačen iz kartela te se koluzija nastavlja bez prevaranta. Na našem modelu pokazujemo da kad tvrtke konkuriraju u količinama a kartel je dovoljno malen, Stackelberg leader kartel može uvijek biti održan ako su tvrtke dovoljno strpljive. Nadalje, u ovom slučaju, koluzija se jednostavnije održava nego kad tvrtke igraju „grim trigger“ strategije. Obrnuti se rezultat dobiva u cjenovnom nadigravanju s diferenciranim proizvodima

ODRŽIVOST KOLUZIJE PRI „STACKED REVERSION“

We consider a multi-period oligopoly model to analyze cartel sustainability where a subset of collusive firms is exogenously given. We assume that in case of cheating only the cheater is expelled from the cartel and collusion continues without the cheater. We show that, in our model, when firms compete in quantities and the cartel is sufficiently small, a Stackelberg leader cartel can always be sustained if firms are patient enough. Furthermore, in this case collusion is more easily sustained than when firms play grim trigger strategies. The opposite result is obtained in a price-setting supergame with differentiated products.Razmatramo multiperiodni model oligopola kako bismo analizirali održivost kartela u kojem je podskup koluzivnih tvrtki dan egzogeno. Pretpostavljamo da u slučaju prevare samo varalica biva izbačen iz kartela te se koluzija nastavlja bez prevaranta. Na našem modelu pokazujemo da kad tvrtke konkuriraju u količinama a kartel je dovoljno malen, Stackelberg leader kartel može uvijek biti održan ako su tvrtke dovoljno strpljive. Nadalje, u ovom slučaju, koluzija se jednostavnije održava nego kad tvrtke igraju „grim trigger“ strategije. Obrnuti se rezultat dobiva u cjenovnom nadigravanju s diferenciranim proizvodima

Metodologías de enseñanza/aprendizaje y evaluación de la actividad docente en el marco del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES)

El documento presente es fruto del trabajo y las experiencias que, en el ámbito de la innovación educativa, los autores vienen desarrollando y aplicando desde el año 2007 en las materias y asignaturas que imparten en la licenciatura de “Ciencia Política y de la Administración” y en la diplomatura de “Administración y Gestión Pública” de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Durante el curso 2008-2009, los autores dirigieron dos proyectos de innovación educativa que se proyectaron, el primero de ellos, sobre aspectos metodológicos y nuevas actividades de aprendizaje/enseñanza y, el segundo, sobre la evaluación de la metodología y de las actividades docentes desarrolladas, al efecto de verificar su impacto en los resultados académicos y en la satisfacción de los estudiantes. El trabajo presentado, que fue defendido presencialmente por los autores en un Congreso Internacional y que fue seleccionado para su exposición tras una evaluación anónima, realiza un inventario de los objetivos conseguidos, pero también plantea retos a abordar en un futuro

Strategic Airline Alliances: Advantages for Major Airlines Being Aligned

SSome factors including the deregulation in the U.S and the liberalization in Europe of the airline industry are essential to understanding why the number of partnership agreements between airlines has increased during the last 25 years. These events, coupled with the continuous economic downturn and the 9/11 catastrophe seem to be the perfect framework for the tendency to develop airline strategic alliances. However, it has been observed that this trend was not followed during the period 2005-2008. The purpose of this paper is to analyze if a benefit was experienced by the major airlines who became a member of the current 3 big alliances compared to the major airlines that decided not to become a member or were not admitted into the alliances during 2005-2008. The methodology of this report includes an analysis of several airlines’ performance figures. These performance figures include the revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs), the passenger load factor (PLF) and also the market share (MS). The figures will be compared between the aligned airlines and others which have similar business models. The value of this paper is to reveal whether being aligned provides advantages to major airlines under a bearish airline market in a globalized environment

Analysis of the 40K contamination in NaI(Tl) crystals from different providers in the frame of the ANAIS project

NaI(Tl) large crystals are applied in the search for galactic dark matter particles through their elastic scattering off the target nuclei in the detector by measuring the scintillation signal produced. However, energies deposited in the form of nuclear recoils are small, which added to the low efficiency to convert that energy into scintillation, makes that events at or very near the energy threshold, attributed either to radioactive backgrounds or to spurious noise (non-bulk NaI(Tl) scintillation events), can compromise the sensitivity goals of such an experiment. DAMA/LIBRA experiment, using 250 kg NaI(Tl) target, reported first evidence of the presence of an annual modulation in the detection rate compatible with that expected for a dark matter signal just in the region below 6 keVee (electron equivalent energy). In the frame of the ANAIS (Annual modulation with NaI Scintillators) dark matter search project a large and long effort has been carried out in order to understand the origin of events at very low energy in large sodium iodide detectors and develop convenient filters to reject those non attributable to scintillation in the bulk NaI(Tl) crystal. 40K is probably the most relevant radioactive contaminant in the bulk for NaI(Tl) detectors because of its important contribution to the background at very low energy. ANAIS goal is to achieve levels at or below 20 ppb natural potassium. In this paper we will report on our effort to determine the 40K contamination in several NaI(Tl) crystals, by measuring in coincidence between two (or more) of them. Results obtained for the 40K content of crystals from different providers will be compared and prospects of the ANAIS dark matter search experiment will be briefly reviewed.Comment: Submitted to International Journal of Modern Physics

Total comfort as a referential to the process of architectural project

Orientador: Lucila Chebel LabakiTese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e UrbanismoResumo: Sem abjurar da arte enquanto essência da e na arquitetura e destacando-a enquanto atividade e expressão utilitária, esta Tese pretende que seja a confortabilidade nos ambientes construídos para as atividades humanas o objetivo subjacente, subjuntivo ou declarado e predominante da arquitetura por sobre qualquer outro. Alega ser explícita a atenção dos arquitetos nos aspectos plástico-visuais dos seus projetos enquanto outros não fruem da mesma relevância, o que se reflete comportamentalmente nos usuários. O conforto geral e pleno é a condição essencial a ser oferecida ao homem nos ambientes construídos. Entendido este com abrangência holística, variável, dinâmica, flexível, sistêmica e não parcial e restrito a alguns aspectos específicos (térmico, acústico, ergonômico) deve ser fundamento e referencial constante do projeto arquitetônico. Como pedestal estruturador do projeto possibilita melhores resultados ambientais e comportamentais. O trabalho analisa a origem e a semântica do termo. Avalia as características que orientam sua observação, discute a subjetividade dos padrões de referência na base das diferenças e diversidade dos usuários das construções que variam conforme idade, sexo, região, cultura, etnia e outras particularidades, e questiona a validade dos padrões em geral, especificamente dos antropomórficos e suas aplicações nos projetos arquitetônicos. São estudados o ser humano e as relações interativas e interdependentes com a comunidade e o meio ambiente, com ênfase no modificado, sob o ponto de vista da percepção e das reações do homem aos estímulos presentes e das sensações que provocam. Relaciona o bem-estar com a percepção bio-psicológica e as impressões subjetivas de prazer, felicidade (conforto) e comportamentais que provocam nas pessoas, física, emocional e psicologicamente. Conceitua psicologia ambiental e ambiência e avalia alguns aspectos do conforto nos ambientes arquitetônicos, indicando referências e vetores que orientam a sua consideração na ação projetual. A partir de um foco centrado em residências unifamiliares e dos dados disponíveis são analisados três exemplos paradigmáticos de três mestres modernistas e confrontadas as intenções explícitas e as subjacentes dos criadores, os desejos dos clientes e os resultados objetivos e subjetivos. São avaliados os efeitos quanto à confortabilidade no usufruto das construções pelos seus usuários iniciais. Propõe-se uma matriz para um processo metodológico que possibilite conceber uma arquitetura orientada para o conforto.Abstract: Never forsaking Art as the essence of Architecture, comfort in constructed environments is analyzed as the main implicit and explicit goal of any architectural project. Comfort is the explicit intention of architects in the visual-plastic aspects of their projects to the extent its impact on users' behaviours is greater than other lesser architectural aspects. General comfort is the essential condition to be offered to users in constructed environments. Total Comfort is understood in its holistic, variable, dynamic, flexible and systemic totality, and it is not restricted to specific aspects such as thermal, acoustic, ergonomic aspects. It is the constant and fundamental referential of the architectonic project, and the construction underpinning of better environmental and behavioural results. The semantic origin of the word comfort is analyzed. The main objective and subjective features of comfort standards are approached from the standpoint of users' diversity of age, gender, region, culture, ethnic and other particular aspects. Standards validity is probed, in particular for anthropomorphic aspects and their application to architectonic projects. Interactive and inter-dependent relationship between humans, their community and environment are analyzed, with emphasis on modified environment, from the standpoint of human perception and reaction to stimuli and their elicited sensations. Well-being is related to the bio-psychological and behavioural subjective perceptions of pleasure and happiness (comfort) and their physical, emotional and psychological unfolding. Environmental psychology and ambience are conceptualized, and particular aspects of comfort in architectonic projects are analyzed. Guiding references and vectors for the consideration of comfort in project action are indicated. Departing from a focus on unifamiliar residence and from available data, three paradigmatic examples of three modernist masters are analyzed and confronted with the implicit and explicit intentions of their creators, the desires of their clients and the subjective and objective results. Comfortability effects are evaluated from the perspective of comfortability in the use and enjoyment of constructions by their primary users. A matrix for a methodological process that allows comfort-oriented architecture is proposed.DoutoradoArquitetura e ConstruçãoDoutor em Engenharia Civi

Elaboración y análisis de imágenes radar desde satélite: Monitorización de deformaciones del terreno

Este proyecto, realizado en el Instituto de Geomática en colaboración con la unidad de Teledetección Activa, trata una de las técnicas más utilizadas en esta unidad, la interferometría diferencial SAR (DInSAR) para la medida de pequeñas deformaciones del terreno. Esta técnica está en constante evolución y una de las principales labores en este proyecto ha sido colaborar en la mejora del procesado de los datos interferométricos para obtener de forma automática la estimación de las deformaciones. Gracias a estas mejoras, el análisis de las deformaciones de la superficie terrestre ahora si se hace de forma más rápida y eficaz. Otro tema que este proyecto abarca, y de los cuales me siento ciertamente orgulloso ya que ha tomado cierta importancia, es un estudio específico de la sensibilidad de la técnica DInSAR para medir los movimientos en la superficie terrestre. En este estudio se ha podido comprobar que la técnica puede llegar a medir las deformaciones de los edificios debidas a la dilatación térmica