Sharing Default Information as a Borrower Discipline Device

Creditors often share information about their customers' credit record. Besides helping them to spot bad risks, this informational exchange acts as a disciplinary device. If creditors are known to exchange data about defaults, borrowers must consider that default on a current lender would disrupt their credit rating with all the other lenders. This raises their incentive to perform. But sharing more detailed information can reduce this disciplinary effect: when lenders only disclose past defaults, borrowers' incentives to perform may be greater than when lenders share all their information. In some instances, by "fine-tuning" the type and accuracy of the information shared, lenders can raise borrowers' incentives to their first-best level.Fiscal policy, national saving, contractionary fiscal expansions

Afro-Brazilian Religions and Ethnic Identity Politics in the Brazilian Public Health Arena

In this article, I examine the ways in which health activists from Afro-Brazilian religions deploy ethnic identity politics within the Brazilian public health arena to gain recognition and respect for their beliefs and practices, as well as public health goods for their communities. I also discuss the creation and enactment of “culturally competent” healthcare initiatives for members of Afro-Brazilian religions. Finally, I examine the tension between universal particular identity frames that emerges within the political discourses of health activists from Afro-Brazilian religions. Throughout, I place this case study in dialogue with similar scholarship on minority health politics and cultural competence initiatives in other parts of the world

Doppler imaging of the young late-type star LO Pegasi (BD +22 4409) in September 2003

A Doppler image of the ZAMS late-type rapidly rotating star LO Pegasi, based on spectra acquired between 12 and 15 September 2003, is presented. The Least Square Deconvolution technique is applied to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of the mean rotational broadened line profiles extracted from the observed spectra. In the present application, a unbroadened spectrum is used as a reference, instead of a simple line list, to improve the deconvolution technique applied to extract the mean profiles. The reconstructed image is similar to those previously obtained from observations taken in 1993 and 1998, and shows that LO Peg photospheric activity is dominated by high-latitude spots with a non-uniform polar cap. The latter seems to be a persistent feature as it has been observed since 1993 with little modifications. Small spots, observed between ~ 10 and ~ 60 degrees of latitude, appears to be different with respect to those present in the 1993 and 1998 maps.Comment: 21 pages, 10 figures, accepted by Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Societ

A High-Resolution Resistive Probe for Nonlinear Analysis of Two-Phase Flows

Two-phase flow dynamics are highly complex, due to the strong coupling of various independent mechanisms and as demonstrated by the existence of a variety of flow patterns. The adoption of appropriate tools for nonlinear time series analysis tools may lead to a deeper insight in this complexity but requires high quality time series. This study describes a procedure appositely assessed in order to realise an impedance void fraction sensor of resistive type characterised by high-spatial and -temporal resolution. These characteristics have been accomplished through an appropriate geometrical design of the probe electrodes, aiming at obtaining a thin measurement volume so to improve the probe spatial resolution, and through the electronic assessment of the data acquisition system, improving its temporal resolution. A new calibration procedure has been also defined, based on an estimation of void fraction through a code for automatic extraction of bubble contours and the correction of image distortions