Trade Policy and the Returns to Investment

This paper considers the effect of a firm’s sales location on the relationship between tariffs, exchange rates, and the flows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Much of the FDI literature assumes that an increase in the average tariff or relative exchange rate will provoke a decrease in foreign investment. This result, however, is contingent on the firm’s preference for exporting. When the majority of sales for a foreign firm are located within its own the domestic market, the impact from changes in the tariff and exchange rate are reversed. This paper further argues that the firm\u27s pre-existing sales orientation(domestic/foreign) will be a factor that initially determines the influence of tariff and exchange rates on FDI flows. Applying the logic of the Stolper-Samuelson theorem, we develop a theoretical framework to predict a variety of consequences for wages and rental rates in US industrial sectors. Using a series of panel data regressions and a three-equation model, we generate a policy analysis that incorporates and partially validates our theory. Our final conclusions also call upon the elasticities of substitution in major industrial sectors as they correspond to changes in trade policy

Hezbollah\u27s Nasrallah: the great man of the Levant

Since its founding in the early 1980s, Hezbollah has become a major political player in Middle East politics. Attempts at explaining the organization\u27s behavior, however, has been largely limited to one theory---that the group\u27s actions are driven by long-time allies and benefactors Iran and Syria. This thesis challenges this proxy view of Hezbollah and explores, under the great men theory, the influence of the organization\u27s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, a charismatic leader with celebrity status across the entire Arab world. This study finds that, while Iran and Syria were defining forces in Hezbollah\u27s early ideologies and actions, the organization now operates with a high level of independence, allowing Nasrallah to carry out his own vision for the Party of God. Therefore, to understand the organization today and to predict how it will act in the future, focus cannot remain solely on Iran and Syria but must be expanded to include the preferences and strategies of Secretary-General Nasrallah

The Goto numbers of parameter ideals

Let Q be a parameter ideal of a Noetherian local ring (R,m). The Goto number g(Q) of Q is the largest integer g such that Q:m^g is integral over Q. We examine the values of g(Q) as Q varies over the parameter ideals of R. We concentrate mainly on the case where dim R = 1, and many of our results concern parameter ideals of a numerical semigroup ring.Comment: 21 pages; the project started in a working group at AIM in December 200

Developments in impact damage modeling for laminated composite structures

Damage tolerance is the most critical technical issue for composite fuselage structures studied in the Advanced Technology Composite Aircraft Structures (ATCAS) program. The objective here is to understand both the impact damage resistance and residual strength of the laminated composite fuselage structure. An understanding of the different damage mechanisms which occur during an impact event will support the selection of materials and structural configurations used in different fuselage quadrants and guide the development of analysis tools for predicting the residual strength of impacted laminates. Prediction of the damage state along with the knowledge of post-impact response to applied loads will allow for engineered stacking sequencies and structural configurations; intelligent decisions on repair requirements will also result

An Investigation of the Natural and Anthropogenic Contributions of Arsenic to Urban Fill Soil

Arsenic in urban/historic fill soil, originating from both natural and anthropogenic sources, is a continuing concern from a human health risk point of view. This concern is heightened in urban gardens where the soil is to be used for growing vegetables for consumption. The presentation explores the origin of arsenic present in New England urban/historic fill soil and will derive an understanding of the relative contribution of the natural and anthropogenic components using available data sets. These data sets include more than 5,000 urban soil samples from the Central Artery/Tunnel Project in Boston statistically analyzed using ProUCL 4.0. Data also includes more than 2,700 samples of a natural/rural background data set from a comprehensive study of rock and stream sediment arsenic in New England analyzed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), supported by other available data sets resulting in a broad base of up to approximately 10,000 individual sample results. These multiple data sets will be reviewed and summarized such that there are a mean/median and upper values presented for natural soils and rocks and a mean/median and upper values presented for anthropogenic impacted soils, with and without outliers. From this compilation will be derived an understanding of the numerical differential between them. Finally, we will apply standard human health risk calculations, provided by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), to illustrate the magnitude of potential effects of the natural soil and the anthropogenic–containing soil. The derived mean, median, and upper percentage values will be considered in the context of the human health risk assessment calculations. In conclusion, the exercise will identify the risk significance of the anthropogenic contribution relative to the natural soil and provide an understanding of the overall affect associated with background in the urban environment

A central role for C1q/TNF-related protein 13 (CTRP13) in modulating food intake and body weight.

C1q/TNF-related protein 13 (CTRP13), a hormone secreted by adipose tissue (adipokines), helps regulate glucose metabolism in peripheral tissues. We previously reported that CTRP13 expression is increased in obese and hyperphagic leptin-deficient mice, suggesting that it may modulate food intake and body weight. CTRP13 is also expressed in the brain, although its role in modulating whole-body energy balance remains unknown. Here, we show that CTRP13 is a novel anorexigenic factor in the mouse brain. Quantitative PCR demonstrated that food restriction downregulates Ctrp13 expression in mouse hypothalamus, while high-fat feeding upregulates expression. Central administration of recombinant CTRP13 suppressed food intake and reduced body weight in mice. Further, CTRP13 and the orexigenic neuropeptide agouti-related protein (AgRP) reciprocally regulate each other's expression in the hypothalamus: central delivery of CTRP13 suppressed Agrp expression, while delivery of AgRP increased Ctrp13 expression. Food restriction alone reduced Ctrp13 and increased orexigenic neuropeptide gene (Npy and Agrp) expression in the hypothalamus; in contrast, when food restriction was coupled to enhanced physical activity in an activity-based anorexia (ABA) mouse model, hypothalamic expression of both Ctrp13 and Agrp were upregulated. Taken together, these results suggest that CTRP13 and AgRP form a hypothalamic feedback loop to modulate food intake and that this neural circuit may be disrupted in an anorexic-like condition