The Scope of Variable Inputs and Markup Estimates

This paper builds an empirically tractable framework for the analysis of marginal costs in markup estimates from the production approach and examines how markups differ by the scope of variable inputs. Using plant-product matched data from Japan, we show that changes in markups can capture price and marginal cost dynamics, irrespective of the scope of variable inputs. Markups, however, are negatively and conditionally correlated with real output when only the most flexible intermediate inputs are selected as variable inputs. We find that the properties of markups depend on how variable inputs are selected and how underlying marginal costs are specified

2011年タイ洪水時の居住者の対応と防災教育 ―バンコク、アユタヤを事例として―

Several researches have been conducted after 2011 catastrophic flood in Thailand, however, there is not enough information of actual behavior at the community level.　We conducted research of residents' responses regarding the flood in Bangkok and Ayutthaya.　People suffered from severe flood in 2011.　We got 31 and 20 residents' information through interview in Bangkok and Ayutthaya, respectively.　We found residents' actual responses at the flood varied in Bangkok and Ayutthaya.　Various preparations such as lift up furniture, using boat, piling up sandbags and stocking up food and drinks are done in Ayutthaya where people are used to the flood.　However, it was done less in Bangkok where most of the residents face to the flood for the first time in 2011. 　There is not enough opportunity to take disaster education including disaster drill and activity in Thailand.　Knowing and understanding living environment including disaster risks is one of the important aspects for disaster education.　Most of the residents want to share the flood experience with young generation.　Previous disaster experience in the region should be researched and shared with residents including children in order to prepare for the flood

バンコクの公団住宅地における洪水被災の実態と居住者の対応

　Several researches have been conducted after 2011 catastrophic flood in Thailand, however, there is not enough information of actual behavior at the community level in Bangkok.　This paper clarifies the residents’responses toward flood and residents’opinion toward sharing flood experiences with younger generations.　We conducted research in NHA housing site and got 31 household information in August 2016. 　All the respondents suffered disaster from flood.　All the houses got inundation above floor level and 52％ sank into more than 1 meter.　Only 13％ stay at home and 42％ evacuated to family and relative’s house. 19％ evacuated to public evacuation place.　They stay about 2 months at their evacuation place.　77％ lifted up their furniture and 13％ used boat, however, nobody prepared food and drinks.　90％ want to share and hand on their flood experience with younger generations for preparation toward next flood

Entropy Characterisation of Insurance Demand: Theory and Evidence

This paper characterises the insurance demand in terms of the entropy of the underlying probability distribution for losses. A characterisation of this nature provides the prediction that insurance for large losses with small probabilities tends to be purchased less frequently than insurance for moderate losses with higher probabilities, without deviating from the standard expected utility framework. The predictions of the theoretical model are tested empirically using household data collected in Vietnam.

Asking Retrospective Questions in Household Surveys: Evidence from Vietnam

Asking retrospective questions about consumption and income has become an important part of household surveys and research in developing countries. While recall errors in retrospective data may generate estimation biases, the nature and the magnitude of the errors are largely unknown, especially in the context of developing countries. To fill this gap in the existing studies, we collect unique household data from Vietnam, a resurvey of respondents of the Vietnam Health and Living Standard Survey (VHLSS) 2006. This combined data allows us to investigate a variety of errors associated with recall surveys and the size of consumption categories in questionnaires. Our empirical results suggest that asking for total expenditure, rather than categorical expenditure, will cause fewer recall errors in a retrospective survey. This is especially true in the case of purchased or bartered consumption expenditure. Our results also suggest that while recall errors in the categorical sum of expenditure may exhibit mean-reverting patterns, retrospective total expenditure data is less likely to involve problems of mean reverting measurement error.

Structural basis for the sequence-specific RNA-recognition mechanism of human CUG-BP1 RRM3

The CUG-binding protein 1 (CUG-BP1) is a member of the CUG-BP1 and ETR-like factors (CELF) family or the Bruno-like family and is involved in the control of splicing, translation and mRNA degradation. Several target RNA sequences of CUG-BP1 have been predicted, such as the CUG triplet repeat, the GU-rich sequences and the AU-rich element of nuclear pre-mRNAs and/or cytoplasmic mRNA. CUG-BP1 has three RNA-recognition motifs (RRMs), among which the third RRM (RRM3) can bind to the target RNAs on its own. In this study, we solved the solution structure of the CUG-BP1 RRM3 by hetero-nuclear NMR spectroscopy. The CUG-BP1 RRM3 exhibited a noncanonical RRM fold, with the four-stranded b-sheet surface tightly associated with the N-terminal extension. Furthermore, we determined the solution structure of the CUG-BP1 RRM3 in the complex with (UG)3 RNA, and discovered that the UGU trinucleotide is specifically recognized through extensive stacking interactions and hydrogen bonds within the pocket formed by the b-sheet surface and the N-terminal extension. This study revealed the unique mechanism that enables the CUG-BP1 RRM3 to discriminate the short RNA segment from other sequences, thus providing the molecular basis for the comprehension of the role of the RRM3s in the CELF/Bruno-like family

Metastasis to the finger of oral floor squamous cell carcinoma: A case report

When cetuximab is used, diagnosing finger metastasis can be difficult due to the side effects of paronychia and color changes of nails. Finger metastasis may be a marker of multiple metastasis; therefore, it can lead to a poor prognosis