Corporate Taxation and the Choice of Patent Location within Multinational Firms

This paper investigates whether corporate taxation affects the location of patents within a multinational group. We exploit a unique dataset which links patent data from the European Patent Office to micro panel data on European firms for 1995-2003. Our results suggest that the host country’s corporate tax rate exerts a negative effect on the number of patents filed by a multinational subsidiary. The effect is statistically significant and quantitatively large and turns out to be robust against controlling for affiliate size. The findings prevail if we additionally account for royalty withholding taxes. Moreover, binding ‘Controlled Foreign Company’ rules tend to decrease the number of patent applications.corporate taxation, multinational enterprise, profit shifting

The Regis Santos: A Teaching Collection at 50 Years

Father Thomas J. Steele, S.J. (1933-2010), a professor of English at Regis College for nearly 30 years, started the Regis Collection of New Mexico and Colorado Santos in 1966 when, as a Ph.D. candidate at the University of New Mexico, he bought his first santo (saint) in a secondhand store in Albuquerque. The santo tradition of Christian folk art flourished in New Mexico from the late 18th century through the mid-19th century, then as a revival art in the early 20th century. The tradition continues as a strong and diverse contemporary expression of faith and artistic enterprise. Fr. Steele donated his initial collection of 60 objects to the Regis Jesuit Community in 1976, and the university has continued to support acquisitions. The collection, which Fr. Steele envisioned as a “teaching collection,” has grown to nearly 1,000 objects. Following up on Fr. Steele’s book The Regis Santos: 30 Years of Collecting, published in 1996, this essay provides insight into Fr. Steele’s collecting, the history of santo production, and the work of contemporary santeros and santeras (saint makers), illustrated with examples from the collection acquired primarily in the past 20 years

Corporate Taxation and the Choice of Patent Location with Multinational Firms

Corporate patents are perceived to be the key profit-drivers in many multinational enterprises (MNEs). Moreover, as the transfer pricing process for royalty payments is often highly intransparent, they also constitute a major source of profit shifting opportunities between multinational entities. For both reasons, MNEs have an incentive to locate their patents at affiliates with a relatively small corporate tax rate. Our paper empirically tests for this relationship by exploiting a unique dataset which links information on patent applications to micro panel data for European MNEs. Our results suggest that the corporate tax rate (differential to other group members) indeed exerts a negative effect on the number of patents filed by a subsidiary. The effect is quantitatively large and robust against controlling for affiliate size. The findings prevail if we additionally account for royalty withholding taxes. Moreover, binding `Controlled Foreign Company' rules tend to decrease the number of patent applications

A Kind of Archeology: Collecting American Folk Art, 1876-1976

Book Review of A Kind of Archeology: Collecting American Folk Art, 1876-1976, by Elizabeth Stillinger. ISBN 9781558497443. Reviewed by Tom Riedel

Kenneth Milton Chapman: A Life Dedicated to Indian Arts and Artists

Book Review of Kenneth Milton Chapman: A Life Dedicated to Indian Arts and Artists / Janet Chapman and Karen Barrie.--ISBN 978-0-8263-4424-3. Reviewed by Tom Riedel

Design of biomimetic collagen matrices by reagent-free electron beam induced crosslinking: Structure-property relationships and cellular response

Novel strategies to mimic mammalian extracellular matrix (ECM) in vitro are desirable to study cell behavior, diseases and new agents in drug delivery. Even though collagen represents the major constituent of mammalian ECM, artificial collagen hydrogels with characteristic tissue properties such as network size and stiffness are difficult to design without application of chemicals which might be even cytotoxic. In our study we investigate how high energy electron induced crosslinking can be utilized to precisely tune collagen properties for ECM model systems. Constituting a minimally invasive approach, collagen residues remain intact in the course of high energy electron treatment. Quantification of the 3D pore size of the collagen network as a function of irradiation dose shows an increase in density leading to decreased pore size. Rheological measurements indicate elevated storage and loss moduli correlating with an increase in crosslinking density. In addition, cell tests show well maintained viability of NIH 3T3 cells for irradiated collagen gels indicating excellent cellular acceptance. With this, our investigations demonstrate that electron beam crosslinked collagen matrices have a high potential as precisely tunable ECM-mimetic systems with excellent cytocompatibility

A comparative study of the actions of alkylpyridinium salts from a marine sponge and related synthetic compounds in rat cultured hippocampal neurones

Background: Polymeric alkylpyridinium salts (poly-APS), are chemical defences produced by marine sponges including Reniera sarai. Poly-APS have previously been shown to effectively deliver macromolecules into cells. The efficiency of this closely follows the ability of poly-APS to form transient pores in membranes, providing strong support for a pore-based delivery mechanism. Recently, water soluble compounds have been synthesised that are structurally related to the natural polymers but bear a different number of pyridinium units. These compounds may share a number of bio-activities with poly-APS. Using electrophysiology, calcium imaging and 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene imaging, the pore forming properties of poly-APS and four related synthetic oligomers have been tested on primary cultured rat hippocampal neurones.Results: Acute application of poly-APS (0.5 μg/ml), reduced membrane potential, input resistance and suppressed action potential firing. Poly-APS evoked inward cation currents with linear current-voltage relationships similar to actions of pore formers on other cell types. Poly-APS (0.005-5 μg/ml) also produced Ca2+ transients in ∼41% of neurones. The dose-dependence of poly-APS actions were complex, such that at 0.05 μg/ml and 5 μg/ml poly-APS produced varying magnitudes of membrane permeability depending on the order of application. Data from surface plasmon resonance analysis suggested accumulation of poly-APS in membranes and subsequent enhanced poly-APS binding. Even at 10-100 fold higher concentrations, none of the synthetic compounds produced changes in electrophysiological characteristics of the same magnitude as poly-APS. Of the synthetic oligomers tested compounds 1 (monomeric) and tetrameric 4 (5-50 μg/ ml) induced small transient currents and 3 (trimeric) and 4 (tetrameric) produced significant Ca2+ transients in hippocampal neurones.Conclusion: Poly-APS induced pore formation in hippocampal neurones andsuch pores were transient, with neurones recovering from exposure to these polymers. Synthetic structurally related oligomers were not potent pore formers when compared to poly-APS and affected a smaller percentage of the hippocampal neurone population. Poly-APS may have potential as agents for macromolecular delivery into CNS neurones however; the smaller synthetic oligomers tested in this study show little potential for such use. This comparative analysis indicated that the level of polymerisation giving rise to the supermolecular structure in the natural compounds, is likely to be responsible for the activity here reported.</p