The Regressive Nature of Indirect Taxes: Lessons from a Micro-Simulation Model

The the impact of several reforms of indirect taxation is evaluated by the use of a behavioral micro-simulation model. Price elasticities on the basis of a linearised quadratic demand system are estimated with specific prices, called personalized prices index. The laters allow a correct identification of the price parameters, using the information provided by the heterogeneous structure of household's spending. This framework associated with a complete modelisation of each fiscal mechanism on a broad range of goods allow the simulation of two measures, the first of which spaces out the VAT rates, while the second increases excise duties and reduces the rate of VAT. Each gives rise to a tax burden transfer of limited extent, which favours low-earners in the first instance and disadvantages them in the second. The relative similarity of the households consumption profiles between decile, but their wide variation within decile, lessen the redistributive effects.Indirect Taxation, Micro-simulation, Demand System, Personalized Prices Index

Les métaphores, allégories et personnifications dans le livre d'Habacuc : figures d'un Dieu de la guerre ou d'un Dieu de l'espérance?

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal

Temporal variations of mixed-layer oceanic CO2 at JGOFS-KERFIX time-series station: Physical versus biogeochemical processes

The seasonal and interannual variations in mixed-layer carbon dioxide in the Southern Ocean are analyzed from January 1990 to March 1995 at KERFIX time-series station (50°40S-69°25E). The temperature, salinity and chlorophyll time series are used as constraints on a simple box model to extrapolate total dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), total alkalinity (TA) and oceanic CO2 fugacity (fCO2) over the five years of the monitoring. Results of the simulation are compared to all available observations. Both measured and simulated DIC and TA give seasonal signals of 25 µmol/kg and 8 µeq/kg, respectively. In spite of a weak primary production about 70 gC/m2/yr, the biological pump appears to play a significant role on seasonal and interannual variations in air-sea CO2 exchanges. Its contribution varies from 10 to 45% of the total sea surface fCO2 variations depending on the period. This area has been a sink for atmospheric CO2 with annual mean values of-0.8 to-3.0 mol/m2/yr during the whole period investigated. Annually the CO2 sink is due to the balance between biological activity and mixing processes on fCO2 inducing thermodynamically mediated variations. The sink\u27s interannual variations appear to be mainly due to the high variability of the wind speeds and hence, of the mixed-layer depth. The impact of the anthropogenic atmospheric CO2 increase on oceanic fCO2 is also investigated. The rate of increase of oceanic fCO2 (0.6 µatm/yr) was half that of atmospheric fCO2 (1.2 µatm/yr). The increase of the air-sea CO2 gradient lead to an increase of the CO2 sink of about 0.07 mol/m2/yr (0.02 GtC/yr) over the five years investigated

Les métaphores animales dans les oracles contre les nations : le livre de Jérémie

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal

REPPlab: An R package for detecting clusters and outliers using exploratory projection pursuit

The R-package REPPlab is designed to explore multivariate data sets using one-dimensional unsupervised projection pursuit. It is useful as a preprocessing step to find clusters or as an outlier detection tool for multivariate data. Except from the packages tourr and rggobi, there is no implementation of exploratory projection pursuit tools available in R. REPPlab is an R interface for the Java program EPP-lab that implements four projection indices and three biologically inspired optimization algorithms. It also proposes new tools for plotting and combining the results and specific tools for outlier detection. The functionality of the package is illustrated through some simulations and using some real data

SN~1991T: Reflections of Past Glory

We have obtained photometry and spectra of SN~1991T which extend more than 1000 days past maximum light, by far the longest a SN~Ia has been followed. Although SN~1991T exhibited nearly normal photometric behavior in the first 400 days following maximum, by 600 days its decline had slowed, and by 950~days the supernova brightness was consistent with a constant apparent magnitude of $m_B=21.30$. Spectra near maximum showed minor variations on the SN~Ia theme which grew less conspicuous during the exponential decline. At 270 days the nebular spectrum was composed of Fe and Co lines common to SNe~Ia. However, by 750 days past maximum light, these lines had shifted in wavelength, and were superimposed on a strong blue continuum. The luminosity of SN~1991T at 950 days is more than $9.0\times10^{38}(D/13~{\rm Mpc})^2$~ergs~s$^{-1}$ with a rate of decline of less than $0.04$ mags/100~days. We show that this emission is likely to be light that was emitted by SN~1991T near maximum light which has reflected from foreground dust, much like the light echos observed around SN~1987A.Comment: 15 pages (includes figures and tables) uuencoded compressed postscript, CfA Preprint - To Appear in ApJ

Attachement como Método de Retenção Adicional para Reabilitação com Prótese Removível

O edentulismo é uma condição oral que pode afetar a qualidade e o estilo de vida de uma pessoa, portanto, existe numa procura por tratamentos que nos ajudem a resolver este problema. Um desses tratamentos é a prótese combinada que consiste em dois tipos de próteses constituída por um componente fixo, que consiste numa parte cimentada/aparafusada, e um removível ao qual se fixa ao componente fixo por meio de um encaixe. Chamaremos a estes componentes attachement, e eles terão a finalidade de aumentar a estabilidade, retenção e suporte da prótese e porque que permanece escondido melhora a estética, distanciando-se muito dos tradicionais ganchos das próteses removíveis convencionais. Estes podem ser classificados em diferentes grupos de acordo com a localização dos componentes, a sua construção, a forma como se consegue a retenção e o grau de mobilidade do conjunto. Existem vários tipos de attachment, bem como indicações e contra-indicações para o seu uso. A selecção de um determinado attachment dependerá de cada caso, uma vez que cada um destes attachment tem características diferentes, que deverão ser tidas em conta para uma reabilitação mais eficaz. No início eram realizados apenas em dentes, mas com o aparecimento das reabilitações sobre-implantes, It has become possible to use attachments in conjunction with these, acting as a retentive medium mainly on over-dentures

Trace fossils as mechanical discontinuities in shales, insight for the generation of bedding-parallel veins (BPV)

Understanding shale petrophysical parameters is of interest due to its direct implications as cap rocks for CO2 or hydrogen storage, waste depositions, and as unconventional reservoirs. The generation and propagation of natural and induced fracture networks in such rocks is highly dependent on the mechanical behavior linked to several sedimentological parameters, as lithological discontinuities or bioturbation. This study is focused on a diferent sedimentological parameter that consists of trace fossils and their implication on the generation of fuid-assisted fractures, called bedding-parallel veins. In the Austral-Magallanes Basin, Southern Patagonia, Argentina, both geological features, Skolithos Ichnofacies (doomed pioneers trace fossils) and bedding-parallel veins, are numerous, especially at the top of the turbiditic bodies. The trace fossils exhibit U-shaped vertically oriented burrows composed of clean sandstone, partially cemented by calcite, and a spreite in the central part with heterogenous laminated siltstone. Bedding-parallel veins are composed of calcite fbers with some pyrite grains and bitumen. They are located on the top of the trace fossils along the lithological discontinuity between the turbiditic bodies and the impermeable shales. On their surfaces, a radial pattern starts growing from the trace fossils. Moreover, the number of bedding-parallel veins is dependent on the bioturbation intensity. With this study, we infer that trace fossils represent ichnological mechanical discontinuities (IMD) that have a key role in the generation and development of bedding-parallel veins. By correlation, we also suggest that these geological features must be thoroughly studied, especially regarding their potential for the development of induced fracturing networks.Fil: Zanella, Alain. Le Mans Université.; FranciaFil: Ruiz, Remigio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. YPF - Tecnología; ArgentinaFil: Varela, Augusto Nicolás. YPF - Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Arregui, Mariano Germán. YPF - Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Medium voltage-high power converter topologies comparison procedure for a 6.6kV Drive Application using 4.5kV IGBT Modules

This paper presents a general comparison procedure for medium voltage - high power multilevel converter topologies and semiconductors, which is mainly based on analyzing the performance limits of the converters output characteristics such as the output voltage, current, active power, efficiency, etc. Afterwards, the general procedure is applied to compare some of the most relevant converter topologies oriented to a 6.6 kV drive application supplying quadratic torque loads and using 4.5 kV IGBT modules. The paper concludes evaluating the comparison factors of the different converter topologies and selected semiconductors obtained by the proposed procedure. The proposed procedure can potentially be extrapolated to any desired application framework