Exact Solution of a One-Dimensional Multicomponent Lattice Gas with Hyperbolic Interaction

We present the exact solution to a one-dimensional multicomponent quantum lattice model interacting by an exchange operator which falls off as the inverse-sinh-square of the distance. This interaction contains a variable range as a parameter, and can thus interpolate between the known solutions for the nearest-neighbor chain, and the inverse-square chain. The energy, susceptibility, charge stiffness and the dispersion relations for low-lying excitations are explicitly calculated for the absolute ground state, as a function of both the range of the interaction and the number of species of fermions.Comment: 13 REVTeX pages + 5 uuencoded figures, UoU-003059

A descriptive study of two community projects for the coordination of services for the aged

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

Instabilities in Multi-Planet Circumbinary Systems

The majority of the discovered transiting circumbinary planets are located very near the innermost stable orbits permitted, raising questions about the origins of planets in such perturbed environments. Most favored formation scenarios invoke formation at larger distances and subsequent migration to their current locations. Disk-driven planet migration in multi-planet systems is likely to trap planets in mean motion resonances and drive planets inward into regions of larger dynamical perturbations from the binary. We demonstrate how planet-planet resonances can interact with the binary through secular forcing and mean-motion resonances, driving chaos in the system. We show how this chaos will shape the architecture of circumbinary systems, with specific applications to Kepler 47 and the Pluto-Charon system, limiting maximum possible stable eccentricities and indicating what resonances are likely to exist. We are also able to constrain the minimum migration rates of resonant circumbinary planets.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Towards a European Union Child Basic Income? Within and between country effects

ABSTRACT: This paper explores the within and between country distributional implications of an illustrative Child Basic Income (CBI) operated at EU level. Using EUROMOD, we establish that a universal payment of €50 per month per child aged under 6 could take 800,000 children in this age group out of poverty. It could be financed by an EU flat tax of 0.2% on all household income, assuming that it would also be taxed nationally as income. Most member states and virtually all families with children aged under 6 would be net gainers. We simulate two versions of EU CBI, with the benefit rate of €50 per month adjusted or not for differences in purchasing power between member states. In general, fiscal flows between member states, and also poverty reduction, would be smaller under the adjusted version. The political feasibility of such a scheme might be questioned, especially within the net contributor countries. Nevertheless, for those seeking ways to strengthen solidarity across national boundaries, a scheme supporting the incomes of families with young children, wherever in the EU they might reside "could be a demonstration of the EU's commitment to children, to the future" (EC 2012a: 62)

Maternal Cardiovascular Impairment in Pregnancies Complicated by Severe Fetal Growth Restriction

Abstract—Fetal growth restriction and preeclampsia are both conditions of placental etiology and associated to increased risk for the long-term development of cardiovascular disease in the mother. At presentation, preeclampsia is associated with maternal global diastolic dysfunction, which is determined, at least in part, by increased afterload and myocardial stiffness. The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that women with normotensive fetal growth-restricted pregnancies also exhibit global diastolic dysfunction. This was a prospective case-control study conducted over a 3-year period involving 29 preterm fetal growth-restricted pregnancies, 25 preeclamptic with fetal growth restriction pregnancies, and 58 matched control pregnancies. Women were assessed by conventional echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging at diagnosis of the complication and followed-up at 12 weeks postpartum. Fetal growth-restricted pregnancies are characterized by a lower cardiac index and higher total vascular resistance index than expected for gestation. Compared with controls, fetal growth-restricted pregnancy was associated with significantly increased prevalence (P�0.001) of asymptomatic left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (28% versus 4%) and widespread impaired myocardial relaxation (59% versus 21%). Unlike preeclampsia, cardiac geometry and intrinsic myocardial contractility were preserved in fetal growth-restricted pregnancy. Fetal growth-restricted pregnancies are characterized by a low output, high resistance circulatory state, as well as a higher prevalence of asymptomatic global diastolic dysfunction and poor cardiac reserve. These findings may explain the increased long-term cardiovascular risk in these women who have had fetal growth-restricted pregnancies. Further studies are needed to clarify the postnatal natural history of cardiac dysfunction in these women

A descriptive study of two community projects for the coordination of services for the aged

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

Micro-simulating child poverty in 2010 and 2020

The 2008 Pre-Budget Report (PBR) said that 'the Government will take stock of progress towards its 2010 and 2020 child poverty target in the [2009] Budget'. As background to that exercise, this paper updates our previous analysis of the prospects for child poverty in the UK in 2010-11 and 2020-21

GINI DP 2: Are European Social Safety Nets Tight Enough? Coverage and adequacy of minimum income schemes in 14 EU countries

This paper explores and compares the effectiveness of Minimum Income (MI) schemes in protecting persons of working age from poverty in the European Union. Using the European microsimulation model EUROMOD we estimate indicators of coverage and adequacy of MI schemes in 14 EU countries. In terms of coverage, we find that in several countries a significant number of individuals are ineligible for MI even when they fall below a poverty line set at 40 per cent of median income. With respect to adequacy, we show that in certain countries a large fraction of those entitled to MI remain at very low levels of income even when MI benefit is added. Overall, our findings suggest that the clustering of MI schemes in Europe may be more complex than previous literature has hitherto allowed for.

Institutionalising Performance Management in R&D Organisations: Key Concepts and Aspects

In an era in which accountability, cost effectiveness and impact orientation are at premium, Research and Technological Organisations are under pressure not only to improve their performance but also to be able to demonstrate this improvement. This pressure is particularly hard-felt by agricultural research organisations, where funders’ perceptions of a lack of evidence for the uptake and impact of products and services are raising questions about their efficacy and existence. Such pressures can be traced back to several factors, including changes in management trends and the growing scarcity of donor funding in the face of proliferation of Non-Governmental Organisations. These pressures have focussed R&D Organisations attention on the need to develop monitoring and evaluation systems that are capable of ensuring and demonstrating improved performance. In recognising that the developmental impact of research is notoriously difficult to assess, the paper is predicated on the belief that indicators of organisational uptake can provide reliable proxies, or ‘leading’ indicators of development impact. The background to this paper is a DFID-funded pilot action research project that ran between September 2001 and December 2002. The project aimed to adapt and test a novel approach to performance management within three agricultural research and development agencies. The key concepts and aspects of this novel approach and similar work done are discussed.Performance Management; Impact; Evaluation; DFID