Towards a New (European Research) Deal: The Case for Enhanced Fiscal Policy Coordination on Research and Innovation. Bruges European Economic Policy (BEEP) Briefing 20/2008

The paper reviews the evolution of research and innovation in the EU and assesses how current policies and programmes have influenced the development of Europe's research landscape. Based on existing literature, evaluation reports and practice, the paper critically examines the effectiveness of current European research funding instruments in a context of open innovation and in the presence of global spillovers. It therefore develops a subsidiarity test to assess whether current rationales still prove sufficient to justify policy intervention in this area. The paper sheds light on how to improve the effectiveness of EU action by enriching it by the use of coordinated fiscal policy for research funding. This will constitute an incentive to genuine bottom-up research, development and innovation (R&D&I) and a stimulus to local investments in innovation. The paper also assesses the potentials of a reinforced open method of coordination as well as a review of state aid law in the field of research funding in the EU

Morphological updating on the basis of integrated DTMs: study on the Albano and Nemi craters

The Colli Albani Volcano has recently developed particular interest in the geophysical community for some peculiar characteristics imputable to a recent residual volcanic activity, thus evidencing that it cannot be considered extinguished yet. On April 2006 an airborne laser scanning (ALS) survey of the Albano and Nemi craters has been carried out to obtain a high resolution digital terrain model (DTM) of the area. We have compared the accuracy of the ALS heights with those obtained by a fast GPS kinematic survey, obtaining maximum deviation within 50 cm. Then, we have integrated the ALS survey of the craters and the bathymetry of the Albano lake to achieve a complete DTM, useful for morphological studies. In addition, with a GNSS/RTK survey (July 2007) we have estimated the Albano and Nemi mean lake levels respectively at 288.16 m and 319.02 m (asl). Based on the integrated DTM and the newly estimated water level values, we have evaluated about 21.7 106 of m3 the water volume loss of the Albano lake from 1993 to 2007, with an average rate of about 1.6 106 m3/yr. © 2008, de Gruyter. All rights reserved

Alien Registration- Di Pietrantonio, Petronilla (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/25542/thumbnail.jp

Class is out: mental health professionals\u27 social class identification and classist attitudes toward low-income clients

Social class as a variable of culturally competent psychology remains a misunderstood and understudied phenomenon. This study was designed to explore how mental health providers’ social class of origin and classist attitudes impact their beliefs and treatment of clients from different economic backgrounds. This was accomplished by exploring five domains across two vignettes that varied in SES indicators (Low-­‐Income vs. Middle Class Vignette). The domains of study included classist beliefs, GAF scores with or without treatment over time, positive and negative stereotype endorsement, perceptions of the therapeutic relationship, and potential treatment modalities. Clinicians did not rate the vignettes differently in terms of stereotypes but rated the low-­‐income client as having a lower GAF score both with and without treatment over time. Clinicians also endorsed the belief that they would like to work with the low-­‐income client more and believed the low-­‐ income client would benefit more from therapy. Clinicians from upper class backgrounds tended to endorse more positive stereotypes about the low-­‐income client and believed that said client would decompensate less without therapy. Finally, clinicians from lower class backgrounds tended to be more pessimistic about the middle class client in terms of GAF scores with treatment

A Computational Model of Team-based Dynamics in the Workplace: Assessing the Impact of Incentive-based Motivation on Productivity

Large organizations often divide workers into small teams for the completion of essential tasks. In an effort to maximize the number of tasks completed over time, it is common practice for organizations to hire workers with the highest level of education and experience. However, despite capable workers being hired, the ability of teams to complete tasks may suffer if the workers\u27 individual motivational needs are not satisfied. To explore the impact of incentive-based motivation on the success of team-based organizations, we developed an agent-based model that stochastically simulates the proficiency of 100 workers with varying abilities and motive profiles to complete time-sensitive tasks in small teams. The model is initialized by randomly assigning each of the 100 workers an ability value (1 through 5) and a motive profile from initial probability distributions. A motive profile is a 3-parameter equation that quantifies a worker\u27s tendency to actualize his or her potential based on the individual\u27s motivational needs for affiliation, achievement, and power. The model creates new tasks as workers become available; each new task is assigned a random difficulty value and a team of 2 to 4 workers. During each time step, each worker contributes to their assigned task at a rate determined by the worker\u27s ability and motive profile. At the end of 365 time steps (1 year), the model outputs the total number of completed tasks, which is the primary measurement of productivity. By simulating the model hundreds of times for different sets of initial distributions and analyzing output, we are able to determine which worker attributes lead to increased team-based productivity. Results aid in understanding optimal hiring and human resource allocation in a team-based organization

International agencies and the reform of food subsidies in Egypt after the revolution of 2011

Egypt has a very expensive and extensive food subsidy system representing a heavy burden on the State’s public budget. At the same time, however, these subsidies secure the livelihood of the most vulnerable part of the Egyptian population. While this situation is not sustainable in its current form, no agreement on the extent of the reforms needed and how they should be conducted has yet been reached. This research aims to examine the different viewpoints of stakeholders involved in this issue as well as it intends to investigate the position of different international agencies on food subsidies in general, and in Egypt in particular. Furthermore, does this thesis look at how international agencies influence government decisions on food subsidy reforms and it attempts to determine the other factors of importance in this matter. The analysis is being based on publications from these institutions and on interviews conducted with stakeholders involved in food subsidies reforms. This allowed us to conclude that all actors agree on the fact that the Egyptian food subsidy system needs to be reformed due to its high cost and because it is not sufficiently targeted and suffers important leakages. Regarding the changes that should be introduced, two main positions can be identified; the financial institutions advocate for an immediate switch to a less costly cash transfer system, while the UN organizations, although not against cash transfers, argue that those are not sufficient in protecting the livelihood of the poor in Egypt and are rather in favor of keeping and improving the current systems

Alien Registration- Di Pietrantonio, Mary (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/25655/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Di Pietrantonio, Antonio (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/25621/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Di Pietrantonio, Agustino (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/25619/thumbnail.jp