Informal sector, productivity, and tax collection

The informal sector is a prominent characteristic of many developing countries. Most of the literature has focused on understanding the determinants of informality. The connection between the informal sector and economic development is, nonetheless, relatively less understood. One of the most important determinants of informality is the tax enforcement quality of a country which, some authors argue, additionally distorts firms' decisions and creates inefficiency. In this paper, I assess the quantitative importance of the effects of incomplete tax enforcement on aggregate output and productivity. I use a dynamic general equilibrium framework to study effects that have received little attention in the literature. I calibrate the model using data for Mexico, an economy where 31% of the employees work in informal establishments. I then investigate the effects of improving enforcement. My main finding is that under complete enforcement, Mexico's labor productivity and output would be 17% higher.Informal Sector, Productivity, tax enforcement, TFP, Heterogeneous plants

Loop representation of charged particles interacting with Maxwell and Chern-Simons fields

The loop representation formulation of non-relativistic particles coupled with abelian gauge fields is studied. Both Maxwell and Chern-Simons interactions are separately considered. It is found that the loop-space formulations of these models share significant similarities, although in the Chern-Simons case there exists an unitary transformation that allows to remove the degrees of freedom associated with the paths. The existence of this transformation, which allows to make contact with the anyonic interpretation of the model, is subjected to the fact that the charge of the particles be quantized. On the other hand, in the Maxwell case, we find that charge quantization is necessary in order to the geometric representation be consistent.Comment: 6 pages, improved versio

Petalite as determinant of maximum lithium content of Variscan pegmatites from NW Portugal – paragenetic and geochemical approach

Estudos petrológicos de aplito-pegmatitos Variscos, de tipo LCT, intrusivos em terrenos Silúricos do NW de Portugal, mostraram que o intercrescimento de espodumena + quartzo, em proporção modal 1:2, é persistente em dispositivos texturais circunscritos que podem ser interpretados como agregados miméticos, pseudomórficos após petalite em subsolvus, os quais depois evoluem sujeitos à deformação, metamorfismo e alteração. Cerca de 6 % dos corpos aplito-pegmatíticos que afloram naqueles terrenos, apresentam estes intercrescimentos, ou p etalite primária, a valores de Li2O situados no intervalo de 0,5 a 2,5 %. Uma sistemática químico - mineralógica das fácies analisadas sugere que o valor máximo de 2,5 % de Li2O em rocha total, pode ser considerado uma barreira geoquímica, imposta por um determinante petalítico primário cuja prevalência é balizada pelo equilíbrio com os feldspatos e pela magnitude da alteração argílica e correspondente lixiviação de LiPetrologica l studies of Variscan LCT aplite-pegmatites, hosted in Silurian metamorphic suites in Northwestern Portugal, revealed that the intergrowths of spodumene+quartz, in modal proportions 1:2, is ubiquitous in concealed pegmatite intergrowths, which can be interpreted as mimetic aggregates, pseudomorphic after petalite, that, afterwords, evolve, under changing conditions of metamorphism, deformation and alteration. 6% of the aplite –pegmatite bodies individualized in those Silurian host- rocks show this kind of intergrowths, or primary petalite, at a Li2O range between 0.5 % and 2.5 %. A chemical-mineralogical systematics of the composition data suggests that the maximum value of 2.5 % Li2O, in whole-rock analysis, should be considered a geochemical barrier imposed by a primary petalitic determinant and framed by the equilibrium with feldspars and by the magnitude of argillic alteration and corresponding lithium leaching(undefined)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Treatment of bimodality in proficiency test of pH in bioethanol matrix

The pH value in bioethanol is a quality control parameter related to its acidity and to the corrosiveness of vehicle engines when it is used as fuel. In order to verify the comparability and reliability of the measurement of pH in bioethanol matrix among some experienced chemical laboratories, reference material (RM) of bioethanol developed by Inmetro - the Brazilian National Metrology Institute - was used in a proficiency testing (PT) scheme. There was a difference of more than one unit in the value of the pH measured due to the type of internal filling electrolytic solutions (potassium chloride, KCl or lithium chloride, LiCl) from the commercial pH combination electrodes used by the participant laboratories. Therefore, bimodal distribution has occurred from the data of this PT scheme. This work aims to present the possibilities that a PT scheme provider can use to overcome the bimodality problem. Data from the PT of pH in bioethanol were treated by two different statistical approaches: kernel density model and the mixture of distributions. Application of these statistical treatments improved the initial diagnoses of PT provider, by solving bimodality problem and contributing for a better performance evaluation in measuring pH of bioethanol.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, Accepted for publication in Accreditation and Quality Assurance (ACQUAL

Water Quality Study and Plume Behavior Modeling for Lake Pontchartrain at the Mouth of the Tchefuncte River

Over the last several decades, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin has been impacted by the presence of high levels of Fecal Coliform bacteria following periods of rainfall. This is a potential problem for recreational uses of the area. In 2003 a field sampling study was initiated in the north shore area of the Lake at the mouth of the Tchefuncte River. The objectives were to determine the water quality in the area and to simulate the plume patterns from the Tchefuncte River. Twenty eight stations at the mouth of the Tchefuncte River, and a station at the Madisonville Bridge were selected for study on the basis of proximity to the mouth of the River. Fecal coliform counts were found to be “wet†weather-dependent at the mouth of the River and unsuitable for primary contact recreation for at least two to three days following a rain event. A 3-D finite volume hydrodynamics model (A coupled Hydrodynamical-Ecological Model for Regional and Shelf Seas – COHERENS) and the TECPLOT™ equation feature were used for the prediction of contaminant plumes from the Tchefuncte River into the Lake Pontchartrain. The field data were used to validate the model. The upper limits predicted by the model and those measured in the field were in good agreement. The model used river flow and tidal forcing without wind shear. The model verified that that the wet weather effect lasted for two to three-day after a high storm water discharges at the mouth of the river