Estimation of Individual Demand for Alcohol

Using individual data from RLMS, the longitudinal survey of the representative sample of the Russian population, we study static and dynamic models of demand for alcohol. We show the demand curve has traditional negative slope for any type of alcoholic drink: vodka, beer, and wine. We find substitution of moonshine for vodka with higher price on vodka and between vodka&beer with higher price on one of them. As a result of substitution vodka price has no impact on total ethanol consumption, while higher price on beer and wine reduce demand for ethanol. We also demonstrate that income has important effect on demand for alcoholic drinks. Risk to be drinker is rising with individual income. Higher income results in lower consumption of moonshine and in higher consumption of vodka, beer, and wine.Alcohol; Demand; Russia

Entanglement created by spontaneously generated coherence

We propose a scheme able to generate on demand a steady-state entanglement between two non-degenerate cavity modes. The scheme relies on the interaction of the cavity modes with driven two or three-level atoms which act as a coupler to build entanglement between the modes. We show that in the limit of a strong driving, crucial for the generation of entanglement between the modes is to imbalance populations of the dressed states of the driven atomic transition. In the case of a three-level V-type atom, we find that a stationary entanglement can be created on demand by tuning the Rabi frequency of the driving field to the difference between the atomic transition frequencies. The resulting degeneracy of the energy levels together with the spontaneously generated coherence generates a steady-state entanglement between the cavity modes. It is shown that the condition for the maximal entanglement coincides with the collapse of the atomic system into a pure trapping state. We also show that the creation of entanglement depends strongly on the mutual polarization of the transition atomic dipole moments.Comment: Published versio

Federal Financial Monitoring Service as a Member of the National Security of the Russian Federation and the Implementation of the Strategy of the Country's Economic Security

National-State interests of the Russian Federation are the most significant and objective political determinants of the totality of the vital needs of the population, which are aimed at the satisfaction and development of an individual, society and the State in all their areas of activity: International, military, economic, social, information, internal political, environmental. Maintaining a level of well-being of citizens, to ensuring high standards of life and health, the country's territorial integrity, its sovereignty, guaranteing citizens ' constitutional rights, stable economic development are relevant political objectives activities in Russia

Iz istorii evrejskoj muzyki v Rossii (Aus der Geschichte jüdischer Musik in Russland), hg. von Galina Kopytova und Alexander Frenkel, St. Petersburg: Evrejskij Obscinnyj Centr Sankt-Peterburga 2006 [Rezension]

Fünf Jahre nach dem Sammelband einer internationalen Konferenz über die Gesellschaft für jüdische Volksmusik (hg. von Leonid Guralnik und Alexander Frenkel, St. Petersburg 2001) erschien im Verlag des Jüdischen Gemeindezentrums St. Petersburg nun ein weiterer Band unter dem gleichen Titel: 'Iz istoriievrejskoj muzyki v Rossii\ [Aus der Geschichte jüdischer Musik in Russland] (hg. von Galina Kopytova und Alexander Frenkel, St. Petersburg 2006)

Joachim Braun, Raksti - Studies - Schriften, Verlag Musica Baltica, Riga 2002; Joachim Braun, On Jewish Music. Past and Present, Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2006 [Rezension]

Rezension über Joachim Braun: Raksti. - Verlag Musica Baltica, Riga 2002 und Joachim Braun: On Jewish Music: Past and Present. - Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main 200

Mortality in Russia in light of the reduction in alcohol consumption

In the contemporary history of Russia, there have been three significant reductions in alcohol consumption associated with a decrease in mortality. The first, resulting from the anti-alcohol campaign of 1985, lasted 3 years, and the second, resulting from the impoverishment of the population and death of a large part of heavy drinkers, 4 years (1995-1998). In 2004 began the third decrease in consumption, often inexplicably linked with the anti-alcohol laws of 2005. However, the history of this decline goes back to the year 2000. It started with the creation of Rosspirtprom (RSP) and the anti-beer campaign, with Rosalkogolregulirovanie (RAR) taking over in 2009. The main activities of RSP and RAR involved the bankruptcy of several hundred enterprises of the alcohol industry. This and many other actions of the RSP and the RAR resulted in the instability, sometimes disruption, of the alcohol market. This could be a significant cause of the decrease in consumption and mortality in 2004. In fact, in 2000 the second anti-alcohol campaign started. The object of the first one had been the consumer, of the second - the alcohol market. The aim of the first campaign was to decrease consumption and improve the economy. The aim of the second was to fill the budget by suppressing the illegal market and moving consumers into the legal market. The methods of the first campaign consisted of a reduction of production and trade restrictions; the methods of the second one changed in the course of the campaign. The main goal was to squeeze small and medium-sized players out of the market, on the assumption that they were the principal suppliers of illegal products. The methods of the second campaign included the introduction of a Unified State Automated System, the growth of excise taxes and a minimum price for alcohol, as well as tough, sometimes criminal competition. The tool of the first campaign was administrative pressure. The main instruments of the second one were RSP and then RAR. As a result, there was neither an economic recovery in the first campaign, nor a filling of the budget thanks to alcohol in the second. The decrease in consumption and mortality in the first campaign was short-lived. The second campaign was in this regard more effective, due to the economic crisis and the growing budget deficit. Both campaigns led to increased consumption of illegal alcohol

Simultaneous calculation of the helical pitch and the twist elastic constant in chiral liquid crystals from intermolecular torques

We present a molecular simulation method that yields simultaneously the equilibrium pitch wave number q and the twist elastic constant K2 of a chiral nematic liquid crystal by sampling the torque density. A simulation of an untwisted system in periodic boundary conditions gives the product K2q; a further simulation with a uniform twist applied provides enough information to separately determine the two factors. We test our new method for a model potential, comparing the results with K2q from a thermodynamic integration route, and with K2 from an order fluctuation analysis. We also present a thermodynamic perturbation theory analysis valid in the limit of weak chirality