Empirische Analyse des Zeitpunktes schweizerischer Direktinvestitionen in Osteuropa

Die Studie untersucht die Eigenschaften der Unternehmen, die als Erste in einen sich neu oeffnenden Markt investieren. Fuer den ersten Investor bestehen gewisse Vorteile (first-mover-advantages), die einen moeglichst fruehen Eintritt in den Markt nahe legen. Andererseits fuehrt die politische und wirtschaftliche Unsicherheit in Osteuropa zu einem Anreiz, die Investitionsentscheidung hinauszuzoegern, um von den Erfahrungen der anderen zu profitieren. Die Einflussfaktoren fuer die Wahl des Zeitpunktes der ersten Direktinvestition in Osteuropa werden anhand der Daten von rund 1000 Industrieunternehmen aus der Schweiz geschaetzt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass grosse und international erfahrene Unternehmen aus dem Konsumgueterbereich einen fruehen Markteintritt bevorzugen. Zudem werden Direktinvestitionen, die auf den lokalen Markt ausgerichtet sind, frueher getaetigt als Investitionen zur Ausnutzung der niedrigen Arbeitskosten.foreign direct investment, Eastern Europe, Switzerland

Influence of Manufacturing Regimes on the Phase Transformation of Dental Zirconia

Background: The influence of typical manufacturing regimes for producing fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) from yttria partly-stabilized zirconia polycrystals (3Y/4Y/5Y-TZP) on the phase composition is quantified. Methods: Fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) were designed using a CAD process and machined from different Y-TZP blanks from two manufacturers differing in yttria contents. Subsequent to sintering, the FDPs were glaze fired and air-blasted using alumina particles. Phase composition was determined with X-ray diffraction and quantified with Rietveld refinement. Results: The blanks from VITA Zahnfabrik (VITA YZ HT, VITA YZ ST, VITA YZ XT) and Dental Direct (DD Bio ZX2, DD cube ONE, DD cube X2) featured a rhombohedral portion with rather small crystallites and a small monoclinic portion for 3Y/4Y-TZPs, which increased after machining and disappeared after sintering. Glaze firing and air-blasting with alumina particles had no significant influence on the phase composition. Conclusion: The phase history of dental zirconia is revealed, which may have implications on further processing and aging of the FDP (e.g. low temperature degradation) in mouth

A full year of turbulence measurements from a drift campaign in the Arctic Ocean 2019-2020

Ocean turbulent mixing is a key process in the global climate system, regulating ocean circulation and the uptake and redistribution of heat, carbon, nutrients, oxygen and other tracers. In polar oceans, turbulent heat transport additionally affects the sea ice mass balance. Due to the inaccessibility of polar regions, direct observations of turbulent mixing are sparse in the Arctic Ocean. During the year-long drift expedition “Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate” (MOSAiC) from September 2019 to September 2020, we obtained an unprecedented data set of vertical profiles of turbulent dissipation rate and water column properties, including oxygen concentration and fluorescence. Nearly 1,700 profiles, covering the upper ocean down to approximately 400 m, were collected in sets of 3 or more consecutive profiles every day, and complemented with several intensive sampling periods. This data set allows for the systematic assessment of upper ocean mixing in the Arctic, and the quantification of turbulent heat and nutrient fluxes, and can help to better constrain turbulence parameterizations in ocean circulation models.publishedVersio

The Influence of Surface Preparation, Chewing Simulation, and Thermal Cycling on the Phase Composition of Dental Zirconia

The effect of dental technical tools on the phase composition and roughness of 3/4/5 yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystalline (3y-/4y-/5y-TZP) for application in prosthetic dentistry was investigated. Additionally, the X-ray diffraction methods of Garvie-Nicholson and Rietveld were compared in a dental restoration context. Seven plates from two manufacturers, each fabricated from commercially available zirconia (3/4/5 mol%) for application as dental restorative material, were stressed by different dental technical tools used for grinding and polishing, as well as by chewing simulation and thermocycling. All specimens were examined via laser microscopy (surface roughness) and X-ray diffraction (DIN EN ISO 13356 and the Rietveld method). As a result, the monoclinic phase fraction was halved by grinding for the 3y-TZP and transformed entirely into one of the tetragonal phases by polishing/chewing for all specimens. The tetragonal phase t is preferred for an yttria content of 3 mol% and phase t″ for 5 mol%. Mechanical stress, such as polishing or grinding, does not trigger low-temperature degradation (LTD), but it fosters a phase transformation from monoclinic to tetragonal under certain conditions. This may increase the translucency and deteriorate the mechanical properties to some extent

Liver transplantation in patients with a history of migration: A German single center comparative analysis

Liver transplant (LT) programs in Germany increasingly face a multiethnic patient population. To date no outcome data for LT in patients with a history of migration is available for Germany. This complicates decision-making before wait-listing such patients. We conducted a single-center cohort analysis of all primary LT between April 2007 and December 2015, stratified for the history of migration to investigate differences in the outcome. We found transplant rates resembling the proportion of persons with a history of migration in the general public in the region of our center. Differences were found concerning age at LT and prevalence of underlying diseases. Re-Transplant rates, Kaplan-Meier Estimates for overall survival, also after stratification for viral hepatitis, sex, ethnicity or presence of a language-barrier showed no statistical differences. The multivariate analysis showed no migration-related covariate associated with a negative outcome. These results stand in contrast to most of the previous evidence from North America and the UK and need to be taken into consideration during the wait-listing process of patients with a history of migration in need of a LT in centers in the Eurotransplant region

Разработка системы управления сепаратора факельной системы установки комплексной подготовки газа

Объектом исследования является блок подготовки газа (сепаратор факельной системы) установки комплексной подготовки газа. Цель работы – разработка системы управления сепаратора факельной системы установки комплексной подготовки газа с использованием ПЛК, на основе выбранной SCADA-системы.The object of the study is the gas treatment unit (flare system separator) of the complex gas treatment unit. The aim of the work is the development of a control system for the flare system separator of the complex gas treatment unit using PLCs, based on the selected SCADA system