256 research outputs found
The Trade Effects of Endogenous Preferential Trade Agreements
Recent work by Anderson and van Wincoop (2003) establishes an empirical modelling strategy which takes full account of the structural, non-(log-)linear impact of trade barriers on trade in new trade theory models. Structural new trade theory models have never been used to evaluate and quantify the role of endogenous preferential trade agreement (PTA) membership for trade in a way which is consistent with general equilibrium. Apart from this gap, the present paper aims at delivering an empirical model which takes into account both that preferential trade agreement membership is endogenous and that the world matrix of bilateral trade flows contains numerous zero entries. These features are treated in an encompassing way by means of (possibly two-part) Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimation with endogenous binary indicator variables in the empirical model.gravity model, endogenous preferential trade agreement membership, Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimation with endogenous binary indicator variables
The Trade Effects of Endogenous Preferential Trade Agreements
Recent work by Anderson and van Wincoop (2003) establishes an empirical modeling strategy which takes full account of the structural, non-(log-)linear impact of trade barriers on trade in new trade theory models. Structural new trade theory models have never been used to evaluate and quantify the role of endogenous preferential trade agreement (PTA) membership for trade in a way which is consistent with general equilibrium. Apart from this gap, the present paper aims at delivering an empirical model which takes into account both that preferential trade agreement membership is endogenous and that the world matrix of bilateral trade flows contains numerous zero entries. These features are treated in an encompassing way by means of (possibly two-part) Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimation with endogenous binary indicator variables in the empirical model.Gravity model, Endogenous preferential trade agreement membership, Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood estimation with endogenous binary indicator variables
Higgs mass predictions of public NMSSM spectrum generators
The publicly available spectrum generators for the NMSSM often lead to
different predictions for the mass of the standard model-like Higgs boson even
if using the same renormalization scheme and two-loop accuracy. Depending on
the parameter point, the differences can exceed 5 GeV, and even reach 8 GeV for
moderate superparticle masses of up to 2 TeV. It is shown here that these
differences can be traced back to the calculation of the running standard model
parameters entering all calculations, to the approximations used in the
two-loop corrections included in the different codes, and to different choices
for the renormalization conditions and scales. In particular, the importance of
the calculation of the top Yukawa coupling is pointed out.Comment: 24 pages, no figures; v2: slightly extended discussion, matches
version accepted for publication by CP
Incense and ritual plant use in Southwest China: A case study among the Bai in Shaxi
ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Ritual and religious uses of plant-derived smoke are widespread throughout the world. Our research focuses on Southwest China, where the use of incense is very common. This study aims to document and analyze contemporary ritual plant uses by the Bai people of Shaxi Township (Jianchuan County, Dali Prefecture, Yunnan Province), including their related ethnobotanical knowledge, practices, and beliefs. METHODS: The present study builds on previous ethnobotanical research in Shaxi, which started in 2005. Interviews focusing on ritual plant use and associated beliefs were carried out with a total of 44 Bai informants in September 2009 and May and June 2010. The results are supplemented with information on the local religion collected from June to December 2010. All documented species were vouchered, and are deposited at the herbaria of Kunming Institute of Botany (KUN) and the University of Zurich (Z/ZT). RESULTS: A total of 17 species have been documented for use in incense. They are always used in mixtures and are either burned in the form of powders in a censer or as joss sticks. The smell of the smoke is the main criterion for the selection of the incense plants. Incense is burned for communication with spiritual entities at graves, temples, and cooking stoves, as well as for personal well-being. Cupressus funebris Endl., Gaultheria fragrantissima Wall., and Ligustrum sempervirens (Franch.) Lingelsh. are the most important incense species. Others serve as substitutes or are used to stretch incense powders. CONCLUSIONS: In Shaxi the use of incense mixtures at the household and community level is regularly practiced for communication with ancestors, ghosts, and deities and in some cases to strengthen self-awareness. Some of the documented species are widely used in central Asia and Europe, hinting at the well documented knowledge exchange that occurred in Shaxi, which was a major hub along the influential Southern Silk Road
Precision tools and models to narrow in on the 750 GeV diphoton resonance
The hints for a new resonance at 750 GeV from ATLAS and CMS have triggered a
significant amount of attention. Since the simplest extensions of the standard
model cannot accommodate the observation, many alternatives have been
considered to explain the excess. Here we focus on several proposed
renormalisable weakly-coupled models and revisit results given in the
literature. We point out that physically important subtleties are often missed
or neglected. To facilitate the study of the excess we have created a
collection of 40 model files, selected from recent literature, for the
Mathematica package SARAH. With SARAH one can generate files to perform
numerical studies using the tailor-made spectrum generators FlexibleSUSY and
SPheno. These have been extended to automatically include crucial higher order
corrections to the diphoton and digluon decay rates for both CP-even and CP-odd
scalars. Additionally, we have extended the UFO and CalcHep interfaces of
SARAH, to pass the precise information about the effective vertices from the
spectrum generator to a Monte-Carlo tool. Finally, as an example to demonstrate
the power of the entire setup, we present a new supersymmetric model that
accommodates the diphoton excess, explicitly demonstrating how a large width
can be obtained. We explicitly show several steps in detail to elucidate the
use of these public tools in the precision study of this model.Comment: 184 pages, 24 figures; model files available at
http://sarah.hepforge.org/Diphoton_Models.tar.gz; v2: added a few
clarifications and reference
POTENCIAL DE LA PERCEPCIÓN REMOTA – ESTUDIO BASADO EN DESASTRES NATURALES OCURRIDOS DURANTE LOS ÚLTIMOS 5 AÑOS EN CHILE
A través de desastres naturales ocurridos en Chile durante los últimos 5 años se ejemplifica como observaciones adquiridas por los diversos sensores, hoy en día disponibles en la Percepción Remota, fueron utilizadas con éxito en varias ocasiones, tanto durante como después de que ha ocurrido una catástrofe. Los ejemplos presentados en el presente artículo están relacionados con el terremoto y posterior tsunami ocurrido en febrero 2010 y las erupciones volcánicas en los años 2008 y 2011. Se da a conocer las plataformas y los sensores remotos más convenientes para realizar una administración moderna de desastres naturales.Aunque el catastro de daños producidos por un desastre natural es la aplicación más conocida en público, la Percepción Remota también puede ser usada en todas las fases de su administración: Mitigación, Preparación, Respuesta y Recuperación. Por tal motivo también se muestra como y en que situación puede ser útil el uso de datosadquiridos por sensores remotos. Como la Percepción Remota puede serconsiderada como una de las más importantes herramientas en el ámbito de la administración de desastres naturales se concluye que en un país como Chile, su aplicación debe ser intensificado para poder superar cualquier catástrofe
Selection of Pseudomonas sp. strain HBP1 Prp for metabolism of 2-propylphenol and elucidation of the degradative pathway
Selection of Pseudomonas sp. strain HBP1 Prp for metabolism of 2-propylphenol and elucidation of the degradative pathway
Selection of Pseudomonas sp. strain HBP1 Prp for metabolism of 2-propylphenol and elucidation of the degradative pathway
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