How the interbank market becomes systemically dangerous: an agent-based network model of financial distress propagation

Assessing the stability of economic systems is a fundamental research focus in economics, that has become increasingly interdisciplinary in the currently troubled economic situation. In particular, much attention has been devoted to the interbank lending market as an important diffusion channel for financial distress during the recent crisis. In this work we study the stability of the interbank market to exogenous shocks using an agent-based network framework. Our model encompasses several ingredients that have been recognized in the literature as pro-cyclical triggers of financial distress in the banking system: credit and liquidity shocks through bilateral exposures, liquidity hoarding due to counterparty creditworthiness deterioration, target leveraging policies and fire-sales spillovers. But we exclude the possibility of central authorities intervention. We implement this framework on a dataset of 183 European banks that were publicly traded between 2004 and 2013. We document the extreme fragility of the interbank lending market up to 2008, when a systemic crisis leads to total depletion of market equity with an increasing speed of market collapse. After the crisis instead the system is more resilient to systemic events in terms of residual market equity. However, the speed at which the crisis breaks out reaches a new maximum in 2011, and never goes back to values observed before 2007. Our analysis points to the key role of the crisis outbreak speed, which sets the maximum delay for central authorities intervention to be effective

Electrophoretic Deposition of WS2 Flakes on Nanoholes Arrays—Role of Used Suspension Medium

Here we optimized the electrophoretic deposition process for the fabrication of WS2 plasmonic nanohole integrated structures. We showed how the conditions used for site-selective deposition influenced the properties of the deposited flakes. In particular, we investigated the effect of different suspension buffers used during the deposition both in the efficiency of the process and in the stability of WS2 flakes, which were deposited on an ordered arrays of plasmonic nanostructures. We observed that a proper buffer can significantly facilitate the deposition process, keeping the material stable with respect to oxidation and contamination. Moreover, the integrated plasmonic structures that can be prepared with this process can be applied to enhanced spectroscopies and for the preparation of 2D nanopores

Interdisciplinary rehabilitation in morbidly obese subjects: an observational pilot study.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: To assess the clinical effectiveness of a interdisciplinary rehabilitation programme (CR), in a population of morbidly obese subjects we have undertaken a observational study. METHODS: The study included fifty-nine adult subjects (18 M, 60+/-10 years, BMI 47+/-8) with sleep-disturbance related symptoms and disabilities. Assessment and correction of sleep disordered breathing (SDB) abnormalities, improvement of exercise tolerance, body weight and associated psychological features were the aims of this CR, which has been carried out over a 1 month period.Lung functions, apnea/hypopnea index (AHI), 6-minute walking distance (6MWD), body weight (BW), quality of life by means of Sat-P questionnaire and serum metabolic data has been recorded at baseline (TO), at the end (Ti) and 6 months after (T2) the CR. RESULTS: The percentage of patients with AHI > 10 declined from 65% (at TO) to 20% (at both T1 and T2). 6MWD and BW significantly improved (p < 0.005) at T1 and still maintained at T2; a significant relationship (r = 0.379, p < 0.01) has been found between changes of BW and 6MWD recorded in between TO and T2. Sat-P item scores dealing with sleep efficiency, problem solving, and social interactions improved (p < 0.01) at T1 and still maintained at T2. CONCLUSIONS: This hospital-based CR provides indication for effectiveness in advanced morbidly obese subjects and warrants further controlled trials to confirm the results

The SOD2 C47T polymorphism influences NAFLD fibrosis severity: evidence from case-control and intra-familial allele association studies.

AIMS: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a complex disease trait where genetic variations and environment interact to determine disease progression. The association of PNPLA3 with advanced disease has been consistently demonstrated but many other modifier genes remain unidentified. In NAFLD, increased fatty acid oxidation produces high levels of reactive oxygen species. Manganese-dependent superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), encoded by the SOD2 gene, plays an important role in protecting cells from oxidative stress. A common non-synonymous polymorphism in SOD2 (C47T; rs4880) is associated with decreased MnSOD mitochondrial targeting and activity making it a good candidate modifier of NAFLD severity. METHODS: The relevance of the SOD2 C47T polymorphism to fibrotic NAFLD was assessed by two complementary approaches: we sought preferential transmission of alleles from parents to affected children in 71 family trios and adopted a case-control approach to compare genotype frequencies in a cohort of 502 European NAFLD patients. RESULTS: In the family study, 55 families were informative. The T allele was transmitted on 47/76 (62%) possible occasions whereas the C allele was transmitted on only 29/76 (38%) occasions, p=0.038. In the case control study, the presence of advanced fibrosis (stage>1) increased with the number of T alleles, p=0.008 for trend. Multivariate analysis showed susceptibility to advanced fibrotic disease was determined by SOD2 genotype (OR 1.56 (95% CI 1.09-2.25), p=0.014), PNPLA3 genotype (p=0.041), type 2 diabetes mellitus (p=0.009) and histological severity of NASH (p=2.0×10(-16)). CONCLUSIONS: Carriage of the SOD2 C47T polymorphism is associated with more advanced fibrosis in NASH

High-temperature antiferromagnetism in molecular semiconductor thin films and nanostructures

The viability of dilute magnetic semiconductors in applications is linked to the strength of the magnetic couplings, and room temperature operation is still elusive in standard inorganic systems. Molecular semiconductors are emerging as an alternative due to their long spin-relaxation times and ease of processing, but, with the notable exception of vanadium-tetracyanoethylene, magnetic transition temperatures remain well below the boiling point of liquid nitrogen. Here we show that thin films and powders of the molecular semiconductor cobalt phthalocyanine exhibit strong antiferromagnetic coupling, with an exchange energy reaching 100 K. This interaction is up to two orders of magnitude larger than in related phthalocyanines and can be obtained on flexible plastic substrates, under conditions compatible with routine organic electronic device fabrication. Ab initio calculations show that coupling is achieved via superexchange between the singly occupied a(1g) ([Image: see text]) orbitals. By reaching the key milestone of magnetic coupling above 77 K, these results establish quantum spin chains as a potentially useable feature of molecular films

Increased luminescence efficiency by synergistic exploitation of lipo/hydrophilic co-solvency and supramolecular design

We use steady-state and time-resolved photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy to investigate the luminescent properties of a sulfonated poly(diphenylenevinylene) lithium salt (PDV.Li) in water/propanol solutions at different concentrations, with a view to assessing its aggregation behavior. In particular, we compare results from uninsulated PDV.Li and cyclodextrin-threaded PDV.Li polyrotaxane (PDV.Li⊂β-CD). We find that addition of 1-propanol (≥20 weight%) leads to a significant blue-shift (of ∼0.20 eV) of the PL spectra, that we assign to suppressed interchain aggregation in PDV.Li solutions, with a concomitant fourfold increase in the fluorescence quantum efficiency (i.e. from 14 to 60%). Surprisingly, a moderate concentration of propanol increases further the luminescence efficiency even for PDV.Li⊂β-CD, whose supramolecular encapsulation already provides a shield against aggregation. Indeed, addition of propanol reduces the solvent polarity, and therefore helps solubilizing these materials that are still largely aromatic in nature. Interestingly, however, both uninsulated PDV.Li and polyrotaxane solutions exhibit signs of aggregation at high propanol fraction (>70%) with a distinctively weaker coupling than that of interchain states in PDV.Li at high water concentration and in pure water in particular. While we ascribe such behavior to a poor solvation of the polar moieties, we also report a different strength of aggregation for PDV.Li and PDV.Li⊂β-CD that can be attributed to the presence of the cyclodextrin rings. In PDV.Li⊂β-CD hydrogen bonding between the cyclodextrin rings may lead to closer packing between the polymer chains. We therefore suggest that a content of propanol between 30 and 70% provides a good balance of hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions both for PDV.Li and PDV.Li⊂β-CD

Tectonic setting of the kenya rift in the nakuru area, based on geophysical prospecting

In this paper, we present results of tectonic and geophysical investigations in the Kenya Rift valley, in the Nakuru area. We compiled a detailed geological map of the area based on published earlier works, well data and satellite imagery. The map was then integrated with original fieldwork and cross sections were constructed. In key areas, we then performed geophysical survey using Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), Hybrid Source AudioMagnetoTelluric (HSAMT), and single station passive seismic measurements (HVSR). In the study area, a volcano-sedimentary succession of the Neogene-Quaternary age characterized by basalts, trachytes, pyroclastic rocks, and tephra with intercalated lacustrine and fluvial deposits crops out. Faulting linked with rift development is evident and occurs throughout the area crosscutting all rock units. We show a rotation of the extension in this portion of the Kenya rift with the NE-SW extension direction of a Neogene-Middle Pleistocene age, followed by the E-Wextension direction of anUpper Pleistocene-Present age. Geophysical investigations allowed to outline main lithostratigraphic units and tectonic features at depth and were also useful to infer main cataclasites and fractured rock bodies, the primary paths for water flow in rocks. These investigations are integrated in a larger EU H2020 Programme aimed to produce a geological and hydrogeological model of the area to develop a sustainable water management system

Interdisciplinary rehabilitation in morbidly obese subjects: an observational pilot study

Background and aim. To assess the clinical effectiveness of a interdisciplinary rehabillitation programme (CR), in a population of morbidly obese subjects we have undertaken a observational study. Methods. The study included fifty-nine adult subjects (18 M, 60±10 years, BMI 47±8) with sleep-disturbance related symptoms and disabilities. Assessment and correction of sleep disordered breathing (SDB) abnormalities, improvement of exercise tolerance, body weight and associated psychological features were the aims of this CR, which has been carried out over a 1 month period.Lung functions, apnea/hypopnea index (AHI), 6-minute walking distance (6MWD), body weight (BW), quality of life by means of Sat-P questionnaire and serum metabolic data has been recorded at baseline (T0), at the end (T1) and 6 months after (T2) the CR. Results. The percentage of patients with AHI>10 declined from 65% (at T0) to 20% (at both T1 and T2). 6MWD and BW significantly improved (p<0.005) at T1 and still maintained at T2; a significant relationship (r=0.379, p<0.01) has been found between changes of BW and 6MWD recorded in between T0 and T2. Sat-P item scores dealing with sleep efficiency, problem solving, and social interactions improved (p<0.01) at T1 and still maintained at T2. Conclusions. This hospital-based CR provides indication for effectiveness in advanced morbidly obese subjects and warrants further controlled trials to confirm the results

A simulation tool for MRPC telescopes of the EEE project

The Extreme Energy Events (EEE) Project is mainly devoted to the study of the secondary cosmic ray radiation by using muon tracker telescopes made of three Multigap Resistive Plate Chambers (MRPC) each. The experiment consists of a telescope network mainly distributed across Italy, hosted in different building structures pertaining to high schools, universities and research centers. Therefore, the possibility to take into account the effects of these structures on collected data is important for the large physics programme of the project. A simulation tool, based on GEANT4 and using GEMC framework, has been implemented to take into account the muon interaction with EEE telescopes and to estimate the effects on data of the structures surrounding the experimental apparata.A dedicated event generator producing realistic muon distributions, detailed geometry and microscopic behavior of MRPCs have been included to produce experimental-like data. The comparison between simulated and experimental data, and the estimation of detector resolutions is here presented and discussed