Joseph E. Stiglitz, Rewriting the Rules of the American Economy, An Agenda for Growth and Shared Prosperity

Abstract. The rules of game are fair if they are fair for all the economic agents; but if rules favor certain segment of society more than the others, then not to change rules would be grossly unfair. The rules that exacerbate the gap between the rich and the poor and make equality of opportunities conspicuously absent are not fair at all.  These unfair rules give birth to poverty and inequality and the issue of poverty and inequality is of utmost importance. For instance, in April 2013, the Board of Executive Director of the World Bank adopted two goals: end global extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity. The World Bank Group published a comprehensive report titled ‘Talking on Inequality’ in 2016.Keywords. American economy, Economic growth.JEL. A10

βC1 of chili leaf curl betasatellite is a pathogenicity determinant

<p/> <p>Background</p> <p>Cotton leaf curl disease in the Indian subcontinent is associated with several distinct begomoviruses that interact with a disease-specific DNA satellite named Cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite (CLCuMB). However, we have recently reported that Chili leaf curl betasatellite (ChLCB) is also occasionally found associated with the disease in Pakistan. The question as to whether ChLCB contributes to the development of disease symptoms such as leaf curling and enations remain to be answered. We have previously shown that the expression of βC1 of CLCuMB develops all symptoms of cotton leaf curl disease in <it>Nicotiana benthamiana </it>when expressed from PVX vector.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>The role of ChLCB in the induction of typical disease symptoms was studied by its expression from PVX vector in <it>N. benthamiana</it>. The expression of βC1 from PVX vector developed severe leaf curl symptoms and leaf-like enations that resemble the phenotype induced by βC1 of CLCuMB.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results presented here show that the expression of βC1 of ChLCB from PVX vector exhibit phenotype typical of cotton leaf curl and therefore ChLCB may contribute to the disease symptoms.</p

A Novel Hybrid GWO-LS Estimator for Harmonic Estimation Problem in Time Varying Noisy Environment

The power quality of the Electrical Power System (EPS) is greatly affected by electrical harmonics. Hence, accurate and proper estimation of electrical harmonics is essential to design appropriate filters for mitigation of harmonics and their associated effects on the power quality of EPS. This paper presents a novel statistical (Least Square) and meta-heuristic (Grey wolf optimizer) based hybrid technique for accurate detection and estimation of electrical harmonics with minimum computational time. The non-linear part (phase and frequency) of harmonics is estimated using GWO, while the linear part (amplitude) is estimated using the LS method. Furthermore, harmonics having transients are also estimated using proposed harmonic estimators. The effectiveness of the proposed harmonic estimator is evaluated using various case studies. Comparing the proposed approach with other harmonic estimation techniques demonstrates that it has a minimum mean square error with less complexity and better computational efficiency

2,2′-[(E,E)-cis-(Cyclo­hexane-1,4-di­yl)bis­(nitrilo­methanylyl­idene)]diphenol

In the title compound, C20H22N2O2, the asymmetric unit contains two independent half-mol­ecules, which are both completed by crystallographic inversion symmetry. The cyclo­hexane rings of both mol­ecules adopt chair conformations; the N atoms are in equatorial orientations in one mol­ecule and in axial orientations in the other. Both mol­ecules feature two intra­molecular O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds, which generate S(6) rings

2-Anilino-3-(2-hy­droxy­prop­yl)-4-methyl-1,3-thia­zol-3-ium chloride

In the title compound, C13H17N2OS+·Cl−, the thia­zolium ring mean plane makes a dihedral angle of 55.46 (9)° with the benzene ring. In the propanol group, the N—C—C—C and N—C—C—O torsion angles are 172.58 (15) and 52.9 (2)°, respectively, and the S—C—C—C torsion angle is 178.99 (18)°. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked by O—H⋯Cl and N—H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds, forming zigzag chains along [001]. There is also a C—H⋯Cl inter­action present

An efficient acetylation of dextran using in situ activated acetic anhydride with iodine

A facile, efficient, cost-effective and solvent-free acetylation method has been developed for the acetylation of dextran. Dextran acetates were successfully synthesized using different molar ratios of acetic anhydride in the presence of iodine as a catalyst without the use of any solvent. The reactions were realized at 50 °C for 3 h under stirring and nitrogen. This efficient method yielded highly pure and organosoluble dextran esters. The reaction appears highly effective for obtaining higher degrees of substitution (DS) with great efficiency. Under solvent-free conditions, dextran triacetates were efficiently synthesized. It was also observed that the molar ratio can easily control the DS of pendant groups onto the polymer backbone. Hence, a range of products with varying DS were successfully designed, purified and characterized. Covalent attachment of the pendant groups onto the polymer backbone was verified by spectroscopic techniques. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the obtained dextran esters were thermally as stable as dextran. The DS of the pendant groups onto the polymer backbone was calculated using standard acid base titration after saponification. Furthermore, all products were thoroughly characterized by thermal analysis (TG and DTG), and FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopic analysis

Principal Components Analysis of Raman Spectral Data for Screening of Hepatitis C Infection

In the current study, Raman spectroscopy is employed for the identification of the biochemical changes taking place during the development of Hepatitis C. The Raman spectral data acquired from the human blood plasma samples of infected and healthy individuals is analysed by Principal Components Analysis and the Raman spectral markers of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection are identified. Spectral changes include those associated with nucleic acidsat720 cm−1, 1077 cm−1 1678 (CO stretching mode of dGTP of RNA), 1778 cm−1 (RNA), with proteins at 1641 cm−1(amide-I), 1721 cm−1(CC stretching of proteins) and lipids at 1738 cm−1(CO of ester group in lipids). These differences in Raman spectral features of blood plasma samples of the patients and healthy volunteers can be associated with the development of the biochemical changes during HCV infection

Adaptasi bangunan pencakar langit dalam persekitaran bersejarah

Pada masa kini pembinaan bangunan tinggi yang berlaku secara mendadak di serata bandar telah menimbulkan beberapa persoalan tentang bangunan terdahulu ataupun erti kata lain bangunan bersejarah. Sebahagian dalam pembinaan bangunan tinggi ini terdiri daripada perjabat berbilang tingkat, kediaman dan pembangunan bercampur yang sedang rancak dibina atau peringkat perancangan di pusat-pusat bandar mahunpun di pinggir bandar. Dalam penulisan ini, beberapa bangunan diambil sebagai kajian kes. Terdapat beberapa karateria asas yang perlu diambil kira sebelum pemilihan tapak bangunan tinggi dicadangkan. Dalam sesebuah persekitaran sejarah kebiasaannya mempunyai geografi ciri-ciri khas dengan persekitaran berbukit puncak yang tinggi, dan watak ini meningkatkan nilai latar langit (skyline) di sesebuah bandar. Latar langit ini sebahagian besarnya dipengaruhi oleh jisim (massing) bangunan-bangunan tinggi. Dalam perkembangan pembangunan pada hari ini, dapat dilihat bahawa bangunan-bangunan yang tinggi tidak berada dalam keadaan yang harmoni pada latar langitnya. Bangunan-bangunan tinggi memberi impak dan kesan negatif pada latar langit bersejarah kerana ciri-ciri topografi khas bandar. Penulisan ini membincangkan kriteria bangunan tinggi dalam persekitaran bandar warisan dan latar langit bersejarah di sesebuah bandar, dan mengupas elemen utama bagi penerapan nilai sejarah warisan pada bangunan tinggi dimana mampu membaiki kualiti rekabentuk rupabandar

Evaluation of the Intestinal Bacterial Community of Local Omani and Cobb 500 Broiler Chickens Raised in an Open-Sided House Using 16S rDNA-Based Analysis

Little is known about how the intestinal bacterial microbiota differs among different strains of chickens raised in an open sided house, predominantly those with lower growth rates, such as Indigenous chickens. Ninety-one-day-old chicks of each strain of chickens were raised in an open-sided house system and fed a conventional corn-soybean meal diet from Day 0–35 days of age. The objective of this study was to assess the relative abundance of bacteria microbiota identified in the intestinal tract of local Omani and Cobb 500 broiler chickens raised in an open-sided house system using 16S rDNA-based analysis. The results obtained showed the diversity of bacterial populations in different intestinal regions of two chicken strains. Bacilli were found in higher numbers and reached 98.8% of the bacteria in the duodenum on Day 5 in Cobb 500 versus 72.5% in the Omani chickens. Local Omani chickens had significantly higher numbers of Clostridia at an early age period. On Day 5 Clostridia comprised 13.1% of the bacteria in the duodenum of local Omani chickens, versus only 0.062% in the Cobb 500. The relative abundance of the bacterial microbiota differed significantly (p &lt;0.05) across different intestinal segments of the two strains of chickens, suggesting that each region generated its bacterial community with different relative abundances