Performance pay and shifts in macroeconomic correlations

A coincidence in time between the volatility break associated with the "Great Moderation" and large changes in the pattern of conditional and unconditional correlations between output, hours and labor productivity was detected by Galí and Gambetti (2009). We provide a novel explanation for these findings, based on the major changes that occurred in the U.S. design of labor compensation around the mid-1980s. These include a substantial increase in the incidence of performance pay coupled with a higher responsiveness of real wages to the business cycle. We capture this shift in the structure of labor compensation in a Dynamic New Keynesian (DNK) model and show that, by itself, it generates the disappearance of the procyclical response of labor productivity to non-technology shocks and a reduction of the contractionary effects of technology shocks on hours worked. Moreover, it accounts for a large share of the observed drop in output volatility after 1984 and for most of the observed changes in unconditional correlations.procyclical productivity, wage rigidities, performance pay.

Cosmic Ray Muons as Penetrating Probes to Explore the World around Us

Secondary cosmic muons provide a powerful probe to explore various aspects of the world around us. Various physical processes have been employed over the last years for such applications. Muon absorption was used to probe the interior of natural and man-made structures, from the Egypt pyramids to big volcanoes, contributing to interdisciplinary studies. Multiple scattering was employed to reconstruct the location of scattering centres, producing 2D and 3D images of the interior of hidden volumes (muon tomography). Additional possibilities of cosmic muons have been exploited even for the alignment of large civil structures and in the study of their stability. All these applications benefit from the development of advanced detection techniques and improvement in software algorithms. This contribution surveys the state of the art of these applications, with special emphasis on their possibilities and limitations

Auroral radio emission from low-mass stars

It is now a well-established fact that also very low mass stars harbor planetary systems. These stars represent the large majority of our nearby stars but, despite their proximity, their low optical luminosity makes it difficult to apply the usual methods for exoplanet search. An effective probe for the environment of these stars is the auroral radio emission. This kind of emission is well understood for those stars whose magnetic field can be approximated as a dipole. In these cases the radio emission has a peculiar signature in time and in polarization. The presence of a planet nearby the star triggers or perturbs this emission leading to a predictable modulation. We present the case study of the ultra-cool dwarf TVLM 513-46546, for which we take advantage of VLA observations at 4.9 and 8.4 GHz. We reproduce the cyclic circularly-polarized pulses of the star using a 3D model of the auroral radio emission from the stellar magnetosphere. To take into account the possible deviation from the dipolar symmetry, the model simulates a magnetosphere shaped like an offset-dipole. To reproduce the timing and pattern of the observed pulses we explored the space of parameters controlling the auroral beaming pattern and the magnetosphere geometry. Our model explains the observed anomalies of the radio emission at 8.4 GHz as a possible interaction of the star with an external body, like in the case of the interaction between Jupiter and Io

EMISSION OF MOLECULAR IONS FROM A PEPTIDE SAMPLE UNDER 32S BOMBARDMENT AT ENERGIES 25-90 MeV

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Prototype and mass production tests of avalanche photodiodes for the electromagnetic calorimeter in the ALICE experiment at LHC

Avalanche PhotoDiodes (APD) have been chosen as photonsensors for the new Electromagnetic Calorimeter (EMCal) of the ALICE experiment at the LHC. The size of the calorimeter requires the overall use of more than 12 000 APDs, all of which have to be tested and characterized individually. A procedure for the test of a large amount of APDs has been developed and is here described in detail, together with results from a first sample of devices

Preclinical Evaluation and Dosimetry of [111In]CHX-DTPA-scFv78-Fc Targeting Endosialin/Tumor Endothelial Marker 1 (TEM1)

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The SKA Dish SPF and LMC Interaction Design: Interfaces, Simulation, Testing and Integration

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project is responsible for developing the SKA Observatory, the world's largest radio telescope ever built: eventually two arrays of radio antennas - SKA1-Mid and SKA1-Low - will be installed in the South Africa's Karoo region and Western Australia's Murchison Shire respectively, each covering a different range of radio frequencies. In particular, the SKA1-Mid array will comprise of 133 15m diameter dish antennas observing in the 350 MHz-14 GHz range, each locally managed by a Local Monitoring and Control (LMC) system and remotely orchestrated by the SKA Telescope Manager (TM) system. All control system functionality run on the Tango Controls platform. The Dish Single Pixel Feed (SPF) work element will design the combination of feed elements, orthomode transducers (OMTs), and low noise amplifiers (LNAs) that receive the astronomical radio signals. Some SPFs have cryogenically cooled chambers to obtain the sensitivity requirements. This paper gives a status update of the SKA Dish SPF and LMC interaction design, focusing on SPF, LMC simulators and engineering/operational user interfaces, prototypes being developed and technological choices

Synergy SKA - CTA: Supernova remnants as cosmic accelerators

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are one of the most important sites where particles are accelerated with high efficiency and in a wide range of energies, becoming an important component of cosmic rays. A good test for this hypothesis will be possible using the data collected by next-generation radio and gamma-ray observatories, like the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA). Radio emission is fundamental to explore the SNR environment and to shed light on the physical processes involved in particle acceleration, providing direct links to high-energy physics. Two cases of SNRs recently studied in radio are presented, showing the importance of high-resolution radio images. An overview of SKA and its precursors is given with our ongoing preparation work. In particular, we present the EMU survey and the pathfinder project SCORPIO. Finally a direct view of the tight connection between SKA and CTA future studies of SNRs is provided