Fair Labor Association 2006 Annual Public Report

Introduction concerns effects of globalization. Examines changes from 2005-2006 as companies are encouraged to move towards self compliance, with a concentration on corporate responsibility. Data is broken down by company

Quantization of strings and branes coupled to BF theory

BF theory is a topological theory that can be seen as a natural generalization of 3-dimensional gravity to arbitrary dimensions. Here we show that the coupling to point particles that is natural in three dimensions generalizes in a direct way to BF theory in d dimensions coupled to (d-3)-branes. In the resulting model, the connection is flat except along the membrane world-sheet, where it has a conical singularity whose strength is proportional to the membrane tension. As a step towards canonically quantizing these models, we show that a basis of kinematical states is given by `membrane spin networks', which are spin networks equipped with extra data where their edges end on a brane

Lorentz Invariance Violation and its Role in Quantum Gravity Phenomenology

The notion that gravitation might lead to a breakdown of standard space-time structure at small distances, and that this might affect the propagation of ordinary particles has led to a program to search for violations of Lorentz invariance as a probe of quantum gravity. Initially it was expected that observable macroscopic effects caused by microscopic violations of Lorentz invariance would necessarily be suppressed by at least one power of the small ratio between the Planck length and macroscopic lengths. Here we discuss the implications of the fact that this expectation is in contradiction with standard properties of radiative corrections in quantum field theories. In normal field theories, radiative corrections in the presence of microscopic Lorentz violation give macroscopic Lorentz violation that is suppressed only by the size of Standard Model couplings, in clear conflict with observation. In general, this conclusion can only be avoided by extreme fine tuning of the parameters of the theory.Comment: Draft chapter contributed to the book "Towards quantum gravity", being prepared by Daniele Oriti for Cambridge University Pres

Export performance and trade facilitation reform : hard and soft infrastructure

The authors estimate the impact of aggregate indicators of"soft"and"hard"infrastructure on the export performance of developing countries. They build four new indicators for 101 countries over the period 2004-07. Estimates show that trade facilitation reforms do improve the export performance of developing countries. This is particularly true with investment in physical infrastructure and regulatory reform to improve the business environment. Moreover, the findings provide evidence that the marginal effect of infrastructure improvement on exports appears to be decreasing in per capita income. In contrast, the impact of information and communications technology on exports appears increasingly important for richer countries. Drawing on estimates, the authors compute illustrative exports growth for developing countries and ad-valorem equivalents of improving each indicator halfway to the level of the top performer in the region. As an example, improving the quality of physical infrastructure so that Egypt's indicator increases half-way to the level of Tunisia would increase exports by 10.8 percent. This is equivalent to a 7.4 percent cut in tariffs faced by Egyptian exporters across importing markets.Environmental Economics&Policies,Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Free Trade,Economic Theory&Research,Trade Policy

Guiding the Development of Efficient and Durable Electrodes for Electrochemical Energy Conversion Applications through Advanced Ion Beam Analysis

Surface-sensitive ion beam techniques, such as Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) and Low-Energy Ion Scattering (LEIS), are making significant contributions to further our understanding of the materials’ performance and the degradation processes that occur under operating conditions. In this contribution, we explore how recent instrumental developments and analytical approaches have boosted the application of these powerful techniques for the characterization of surfaces and interfaces in energy conversion and storage devices.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Why trade facilitation matters to Africa ?

This paper reviews data and research on trade costs for Sub-Saharan African countries. It focuses on: border-related costs, transport costs, costs related to behind-the border issues, and the costs of compliance with rules of origin specific to preferential trade agreements. Trade costs are, on average, higher for African countries than for other developing countries. Using gravity-model estimates, the authors compute ad-valorem equivalents of improvements in trade indicators for a sample of African countries. The evidence suggests that the gains for African exporters from improving the trade logistics half-way to the level in South Africa is more important than a substantive cut in tariff barriers. As an example, improving logistics in Ethiopia half-way to the level in South Africa would be roughly equivalent to a 7.5 percent cut in tariffs faced by Ethiopian exporters.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Free Trade,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Trade Policy

A new mechanism for generating broadband pulsar-like polarization

Observational data imply the presence of superluminal electric currents in pulsar magnetospheres. Such sources are not inconsistent with special relativity; they have already been created in the laboratory. Here we describe the distinctive features of the radiation beam that is generated by a rotating superluminal source and show that (i) it consists of subbeams that are narrower the farther the observer is from the source: subbeams whose intensities decay as 1/R instead of 1/R^2 with distance (R), (ii) the fields of its subbeams are characterized by three concurrent polarization modes: two modes that are 'orthogonal' and a third mode whose position angle swings across the subbeam bridging those of the other two, (iii) its overall beam consists of an incoherent superposition of such coherent subbeams and has an intensity profile that reflects the azimuthal distribution of the contributing part of the source (the part of the source that approaches the observer with the speed of light and zero acceleration), (iv) its spectrum (the superluminal counterpart of synchrotron spectrum) is broader than that of any other known emission and entails oscillations whose spacings and amplitudes respectively increase and decrease algebraically with increasing frequency, and (v) the degree of its mean polarization and the fraction of its linear polarization both increase with frequency beyond the frequency for which the observer falls within the Fresnel zone. We also compare these features with those of the radiation received from the Crab pulsar.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure

How Baywide Nutrient Trading Could Benefit Maryland Farms

Outlines pending legislation to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including a nutrient trading program that allows farms that reduce runoff of nutrients to below target to sell "credits." Estimates costs, credits, and credit revenue

How Baywide Nutrient Trading Could Benefit Pennsylvania Farms

Outlines how legislation to make the Chesapeake Bay watershed healthier, including a program allowing farms that reduce runoff of nutrients to below target to sell "credits," would benefit Pennsylvania farms through cost-sharing funds and new revenues