Magnetic polarons in Ca_(1-x)Y_xMnO_3

Experimental evidence show that in the magnetoresistive manganite Ca_(1-x) Y_xMnO_3, ferromagnetic (FM) polarons arises in an antiferromagnetic (AF) background, as a result of the doping with Yttrium. This hypothesis is supported in this work by classical Monte Carlo (MC) calculations performed on a model where FM Double Exchange (DE) and AF Superexhange (SE) compite.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figs, submitted to LAW3M conferenc

The European port industry: an analysis of its economic efficiency

Because of their critical strategic role, ports have all traditionally been subject to some form of government control even if the legal form and the intensity of this control have varied across countries. The member countries of the European Union have not been different from the rest of the world in this respect. A significant difference however is the recurrent effort to integrate, in a coordinated way, the port sector in a trans-European transport network (TEN-T) through the adoption of a common legal framework. In this context, if the objective of the reforms is to ensure that port networks, integrated in combined transport networks, become competitors of the road network, the concept of port efficiency becomes central. This paper provides an overview of the evolution of the European Port Legislation and shows how comparative economic measures can be used to highlight the scope for port efficiency improvements, essential to allow short sea shipping transport to compete with road transport in Europe. To our knowledge, this paper is also the first effort of estimating technical efficiency of European Port Authorities. The average port efficiency in 2002 was estimated to be around 60%, denoting that ports could have handled 40% more traffic with the same resources. Maritime Economics & Logistics (2007) 9, 148â171. doi:10.1057/palgrave.mel.910017

Precipitation in the Mediterranean basin as seen from the 2000-2010 TRMM-3B42-v6 database

Sarrand, B. et al.Trabajo presentado en la EGU General Assemby 2012, celebrada del 22 al 27 de septiembre de 2012 en Viena (Austria)This work presents a detailed analysis of 11 yrs of the version 6 of the TRMM-3B42 multi-sensor precipitation product (3-h and 0.25° resolution) from March 2000 to February 2011 over the whole Mediterranean basin and surrounding areas including the Black Sea (25°N-50°N, 10°W-43°E). We first discuss some issues in the data set regarding spatial and temporal discontinuities in coastal areas, and further illustrate a critical underestimation of light rains at latitudes higher than 36-37° that somewhat improves from 2007 on and is associated to the absence of coverage by the Precipitation Radar. North of the radar field of view, it seems that the marine coastal band is subject to a significant under detection of precipitation, whereas, on the opposite, the terrestrial coastal band south of 35°N in North Africa and the Near East shows unrealistic over detection of precipitation. We then evaluate the product against rain gauges with a focus on the western Mediterranean basin and the Adriatic. Our reference rain gauge data set includes about 1 million daily rain reports from more than 260 Mediterranean surface stations from Croatia, France, Italy, Malta, Spain (including 2 stations on the northern coast of Africa) and Tunisia, and from 9 additional non-Mediterranean stations from a flat region in France. It includes stations from almost 20 small Mediterranean islands. The comparison shows a significant correlation between TRMM-3B42v6 and rain gauges but with an overall tendency to underestimation. The average ratio of daily rates between surface stations and TRMM product is ~0.63 with significant regional variations, Corsica showing the poorest results and Spain the best. Over the Mediterranean stations considered, the average rate of success on the occurrence of precipitation (~0.75) is enhanced by the high proportion of dry days in the Mediterranean climate (~4 over 5 on average in the rain gauge data set) and drops off when only days with precipitation recorded at surface stations are considered. Averaging fallout at monthly and annual time scales somewhat improves the comparison to rain gauges. We find that results are better in summer and likely more generally in unstable conditions, as illustrated by a subset of data composed of days with high African dust load over the basin. Using a few TRMM pixels that cover 3 or even 5 surface stations, we further illustrate how the small scale heterogeneity of precipitation is a limitation in the comparison between the integrated view of precipitation from space and the local surface measurements. Finally we integrate the variability of the rainfall geographical distribution at seasonal and annual scales over 5 sub-basins (western and eastern Mediterranean, Adriatic, Aegean, and Black Sea). An increasing trend in annual precipitation in the Mediterranean basin is observed over the decade that is also found at the global scale and appears related to the improving performance of the product with time regarding the detection of light rains, especially over Europe and the Mediterranean. Finally we compare the TRMM-3B42v6 precipitation budget over the basin with comparable budgets from ERA-Interim, HOAPS and CMAP data setsPeer Reviewe

Revisiting electric utilities’ efficiency in the Southern African Power Pool, 1998–2009

This study analyses the determinants of the technical efficiency performance for Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) power utilities in the period 1998-2009, excluding South Africa’s Eskom. The study formulated an explicit model for technical inefficiency by considering the vertical structure of the utilities and the definition of the product, considering the specific characteristics of this sample. It was found that the most significant improvement in the average efficiency of the sample occurred from 2000 to 2002, coinciding with the first SAPP Energy Plan of 2001. Density in consumption, control of corruption and load factor also contributed to the different levels of efficiency. The results provided a new empirical evidence that can be useful for the design of energy policy and incentive regulation

Drainage Areas of Texas Streams Colorado River Basin

Data on the drainage areas of Texas streams are being appropriately com piled in cooperation with the Texas Department of Water Resources so that information of uniform accuracy and reliability will be available for hydrau lic, hydrologic, or general engineering use. Only recently has large-scale topographic-map coverage of the Colorado River basin been completed. The mapping was largely financed through a cooperative program between the Texas Department of Water Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey. This report gives the drainage areas as determined by measurements at 429 points within the Colorado River basin. These data are tabulated in table 1, which gives the latitude and longitude of the points of determination, the drainage area in square miles above each point, and the distance in miles from the point to the mouth of the stream.Waller Creek Working Grou

Delayed administration of VEGF rescues spinal motor neurons from death with a short effective time frame in excitotoxic experimental models in vivo

VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) prevents neuronal death in different models of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), but few studies have addressed the efficacy of VEGF to protect motor neurons after the onset of symptoms, a critical point when considering VEGF as a potential therapeutic target for ALS. We studied the capability of VEGF to protect motor neurons after an excitotoxic challenge in two models of spinal neurodegeneration in rats induced by AMPA (α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid) administered either chronically with osmotic minipumps or acutely by microdialysis. VEGF was administered through osmotic minipumps in the chronic model or injected intracerebroventricularly in the acute model, and its effects were assessed by immunohistochemical and histological analyses and motor performance tests. In the chronic model, VEGF stopped the progression of the paralysis and protected motor neurons when administered after AMPA before the onset of the motor symptoms, whereas no protection was observed when administered after the onset. VEGF was also protective in the acute model, but with a short time window, since the protection was effective when administered 1 h but not 2 h after AMPA. Our results indicate that while VEGF has an indubitable neuroprotective effect, its therapeutic potential for halting or delaying the progression of motor neuron loss in ALS would likely have a short effective time frame