The development stories of equatorial Guinea and Botswana : a game theory model of how public-private partnerships can turn resources from a curse into a blessing

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, 2013.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 104-116).The growth acceleration episodes characterizing Botswana and Equatorial Guinea were based on the respective discoveries of diamonds and oil. However, while Botswana, already characterized by inclusive and democratic institutions, succeeded in transferring much of the benefits deriving from the natural resource to society, Equatorial Guinea's corrupt government retained all the oil-generated wealth and prevented the population's standard of living from improving at a pace proportional to the country's growth. The two countries also differ in terms of their vulnerability to the "resource curse" phenomenon, due to their unequal level of economic diversification both within the major natural resource sector and across several industries. This Thesis firstly adopts a deep analytical approach to compare the two countries' development records and to understand the discrepancy in the quality of the two growth acceleration episodes. The second main contribution of this study consists in the analysis of the potential benefits resulting from the implementation of Public-Private Partnerships in the developing world. The methodology applied in the last section derives from Game Theory, a branch of Economics increasingly adopted in applications to real-world circumstances. In this specific case, the results of this coordination exercise between public and private parties will present very different implications for a democratic country as Botswana and for a corrupt one as Equatorial Guinea.by Valentina Rizzati.S.M

A systematic review of agent-based modelling in the circular economy: Insights towards a general model

Circular Economy (CE) is a popular topic for governments and businesses around the world; yet, only a few comprehensive and economy-wide frameworks exist, and the consequences of the CE on economic systems stay unclear. With this systematic review, we put under scrutiny the existing contributions to Circular Economy (CE) that apply the Agent-based modelling methodology. There is an open gap in the CE literature regarding the use of ABM. The research question that guides this systematic review concerns the potential benefit of ABM for CE and how to use this methodology in the context of CE. We put in evidence three thematic areas, two agents and one process, namely producers, i.e. firms and industrial systems, consumers, i.e. households and waste disposal, and the diffusion of innovation. We infer that the former three thematic strands of literature can be further synthetized together to form a general model of the Circular Economy. This development is crucial to properly evaluate how the agent's heterogeneity affects the diffusion and the consequences of the adoption of CE practices on the economy. Research has widely applied ABM simulations to consider the impact of heterogeneity amongst individuals and their behavioural interactions on the evolution of complex systems, yet very little did it systematically about CE. Our results complement those of Computable General Equilibrium models. The review provides an interpretative framework, suggests valuable future research directions within the new comprehensive thematic area, and contributes to the theoretical and managerial discussion on agent-based modelling in the circular economy

Concealed SARS-CoV-2 interstitial pneumonia unmasked by infarct-like acute myocarditis

A 38-year-old otherwise healthy man presented to the emergency department for sudden-onset oppressive chest pain. On admission, vital parameters were within normal limits and physical examination was unremarkable. Since the ECG showed mild ST-segment eleva- tion in the inferior leads (Panel A), he underwent urgent coronary angiography which ruled out obstructive coronary artery disease (Panel B). Transthoracic echocardiogram showed preserved left ven- tricular (LV) ejection fraction with inferolateral wall hypokinesis. The peak of high-sensitive troponin I was 4038 ng/L (normal value <20). Acute myocarditis was suspected, and a cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) was performed. High signal intensity (SI) of the mid-basal LV lateral wall on T2 short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequences con- sistent with myocardial oedema (Panel C) and subepicardial late gado- linium enhancement in the same location (Panel D) were detected. Unexpectedly, areas of high SI on T2-STIR images were also noted on both lungs (Panel C), suggesting a pulmonary inflammatory pro- cess. Despite an initially negative chest X-ray, computed tomography revealed bilateral ground-glass opacity with multifocal consolidation and thickening of interlobular septa consistent with interstitial pneumonia (Panel E). Considering the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, a nasopharyngeal swab was obtained resulting positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The patient remained free from either cardiovascular or respiratory symptoms and presented only mild fever (37.5C). Laboratory tests detected an increase of transaminases and C-reactive protein (6.73 mg/dL; normal value <0.5) with stable lymphocytopenia. After 20 days of hospitalization, he was discharged with the diagnosis of infarct-like myocarditis associated with subclinical SARS-CoV-2 respiratory infection. Acute myocarditis in the setting of SARS-CoV-2 infection has been anecdotally reported and its mechanism remains to be elucidated. So far, the SARS-CoV-2 genome has never been detected within the myocardium, suggesting an immune-mediated inflammatory myocardial injury. For the first time we reported a case of subclinical SARS-CoV-2 interstitial pneumonia occasionally unmasked by CMR performed for acute myocarditis

Foreign exchange rates with the Taylor rule and VECMs

In this project, we challenge the conventional wisdom on exchange rate predictability with the Taylor rule (Molodtsova & Papell, 2009; Rossi, 2013) by employing the vector error correction model (VECM) when the cointegration (CI) rank of our multivariate model is greater than one and less than full. Even though our approach is quite bounded to the finding of a suitable CI rank, our predictions are quite good when compared to a driftless random walk as a benchmark in the long run, whilst the performance in the short run is not. Notwithstanding we claim that we could also obtain better results had we been able to perform a static forecast for three months ahead rather than one (the latter is the only case admitted by the gretl software)

Responsabilidade legal sobre modelos de prótese parcial removível

Artículo originalObjetivo: Verificar junto aos laboratórios que realizam próteses parciais removíveis na cidade de Piracicaba, São Paulo, como eles recebem os modelos enviados pelos cirurgiões-dentistas para confecção dessas próteses. Métodos: A legislação pertinente sobre a responsabilidade civil de todos os envolvidos na confecção e utilização deste tipo de prótese foi igualmente verificada. Para tanto, foi utilizado um questionário com questões estruturadas e abertas, abordando todos os aspectos inerentes ao estudo; submetido e preenchido pelo Técnico em Prótese Dentária responsável pelos laboratórios. Os dados foram analisados por meio de estatística descritiva. Resultados: Verificou-se que o Técnico em Prótese Dentária (100 porciento) é o responsável por todos os laboratórios pesquisados e estes (100 porciento) sabem que cabe ao cirurgião-dentista o planejamento das próteses parciais removíveis. Os respectivos modelos de próteses parciais removíveis representavam uma cavidade bucal praticamente sem preparo prévio à moldagem e estes são enviados sem os respectivos planejamentos. Conclusão: Concluiu-se que todos os profissionais envolvidos com este tipo de trabalho possuem conhecimentos parciais com relação às diversas fases necessárias para obtenção de sucesso neste tipo de tratamento e conhecimentos precários sobre a legislação que norteia suas funções. A responsabilidade civil do cirurgião-dentista, no tocante à área de Próteses Parciais Removíveis, independente da sua classificação (classe I, II, III e IV de Kennedy), é considerada como responsabilidade de meio. No entanto, deve-se destacar que a propaganda e a publicidade podem alterar tal consideração caso o cirurgião-dentista venha a prometer previsibilidade estética, conforme estabelecido no Código de Proteção e Defesa do Consumidor. (AU

Intra-arterial vasodilators infusion for management of reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome in a 12-year-old girl: A case report.

Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) is a vascular disease characterized by diffuse transient vasoconstriction and vasodilatation of the cerebral arteries. It is commonly associated with recurrent severe acute headaches with or without focal neurological deficits due to hemorrhages, infarcts, and even posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome. The optimal management of acute neurologic deficits caused by RCVS is still uncertain. Calcium channel blockers (CCBs) such as nimodipine or verapamil have been reported to be effective in adult series. Intra-arterial injection of nimodipine, verapamil, and milrinone has recently been demonstrated to be safe and effective for treating severe segmental vasoconstriction in adults. CCBs are the most used treatment in the available pediatric literature. Intra-arterial vasodilators have been reported in some rare pediatric reports with more severe diseases, but their utility is still under investigation. We report a case of a 12-year-old girl who underwent a severe course of RCVS complicated by multiple cerebral infarcts, treated by several sessions of intra-arterial vasodilators infusion

Role of cardiac magnetic resonance in MINOCA of unclear etiology: A case report of a suspicious paradoxical coronary embolism

The acronym MINOCA (Myocardial Infarction with Non-Obstructive Coronary Arteries) refers to myocardial infarction with normal or near-normal coronary arteries on invasive angiography. The broad spectrum of pathological mechanisms responsible for myocardial injury in MINOCA makes defining the exact underlying etiology challenging. We report the uncommon case of an acute myocardial infarction with normal coronary arteries suggestive of MINOCA caused by paradoxical coronary embolism due to a wide right-to- left shunting through a patent fossa ovalis. Integrated multimodality imaging diagnostic work-up, including cardiac magnetic resonance, transesophageal contrast echocardiography, and transcranial contrast Doppler, has been crucial for identifying the most likely mechanism underlying MINOCA

Cd content in phosphate fertilizer: Which potential risk for the environment and human health?

Cadmium (Cd) is a heavy metal that accumulates in soil and in living organisms and causes severe and permanent damage. Its presence in the soil depends largely on the use of phosphate fertilizers. Phosphorite and apatite rocks used in phosphate fertilizers production contain several other minerals, including Cd. The amount of Cd incorporated in phosphate fertilizers depends on the type of phosphorite and apatite rocks (with low or high Cd content). Cd is present in soil mainly in insoluble form and has no bioavailability for plants. However, plants can increase Cd solubility by releasing root exudates that change the pH of the rhizosphere, therefore increasing Cd accumulation. Once crops absorb Cd, it enters the food chain. Food is the primary source of Cd exposure (for the non-smoking population), with cereals, nuts and legumes, and fish and shellfish being the major contributors. Progressive accumulation of Cd in humans impairs kidney function, affects the liver, and causes bone demineralization. Cd classification as a human carcinogen goes back to the 1990s. The European Union adopted Regulation (EU) 2019/1009, limiting Cd content in organo-mineral fertilizer having total phosphorus (P) content of 5% P2O5 equivalent at 60 mg kg−1 P2O5. This threshold seems inadequate compared to the threshold values for Cd currently in place in some EU countries: 12 member states have a Cd threshold between 20 and 50 mg kg−1 P2O5, 8 have the same threshold as that proposed in the regulation, and 2 have a higher threshold. Meanwhile, the new EU Regulation on CAP Strategic Plans explicitly references soil health and fertility protection and the limitation of contaminants in fertilizers. Fertilizers with low Cd content, with thresholds no higher than 20 mg kg−1 P2O5, would effectively limit bioaccumulation. As stopping P fertilizer application cannot be an option, strategies such as the use of P fertilizers with low Cd content, the use of cultivars that accumulate less Cd in their consumed parts, production of mineral P fertilizers with higher nutrient use efficiency than those actually produced, the decadmiation of P rocks from the raw materials, soil phytoremediation before crops cultivation, and increased use of recovered nutrients, should be adopted

Variation of perimplant biofilm induced by non surgical periodontal therapy and the use of probiotics

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