Chromosomal diversification and karyotype evolution of diploids in the cytologically diverse genus Prospero (Hyacinthaceae)

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited

A study on two multiaxial creep theories

Two multiaxial creep theories, a modified creep hardening surface model proposed by Murakamy and Ohno and a unified creep-plasticity model by Robinson, are evaluated by comparing their theoretical predictions with available creep test data of 304 stainless steel under variable stresses of combined tension and torsion at 593 [degrees] C. The material constants of each model were determined by trial and error methods for best fitting of theoretical curves to creep test data under constant stresses. The evaluation of each theory was made in view of its proper predictability of plastic and creep behavior of the material under step changes of stresses including unloading, reloading and stress reversals. Also, the prediction by a classical strain hardening theory was compared with the modified creep hardening surface model. The modified creep hardening surface model predicted much greater creep rates than the test data for most of reloadings and step-up stress changes, but the modified creep hardening surface model had good agreements for creep under stress reversals in torsion. The unified creep plasticity model predicted much larger plastic and creep strain than the test data upon reloading following complete unloading and some step-up stress changes as well as stress reversals. A good agreement was found for partial unloading and reloading to the same initial stress level.Includes bibliographical references

DEBT INSTRUMENTS\u27 TAX TREATMENT IN CORPORATE MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

The increase of merger and acquisition(M&A) activity since 1992 has resulted mainly from a domestic economic recovery. The current M&A trend shows that M&A is still an important means of enhancing many corporations\u27 competitive power and of stimulating growth in such areas as computer software and services, wholesale and distribution, miscellaneous services, banking and finance, and leisure and entertainment. Fundraising for mezzanine-fund financing, which reflects investors\u27 foresight about current and future M&A trends, has also seen rapid growth. After the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and the repeal of the General Utilities doctrine, the elimination of the capital gain preference for corporate taxpayers and the recognition of gain by an acquired corporation making an I.R.C. With respect to debt instruments, the use of debt may be limited in the nontaxable reorganization, but not in a taxable transaction. In addition, the deductibility of debt instruments could render taxable mergers and acquisitions framed by debt instruments much more desirable

Moment matching versus Bayesian estimation: Backward-looking behaviour in the new-Keynesian three-equations model

The paper considers an elementary New-Keynesian three-equations model and contrasts its Bayesian estimation with the results from the method of moments (MM), which seeks to match the model-generated second moments of inflation, output and the interest rate to their empirical counterparts. Special emphasis is placed on the degree of backward-looking behaviour in the Phillips curve. While, in line with much of the literature, it only plays a marginal role in the Bayesian estimations, MM yields values of the price indexation parameter close to or even at its maximal value of one. These results are worth noticing since the matching thus achieved is entirely satisfactory. The matching of some special (and even better) versions of the model is econometrically evaluated by a model comparison test. --inflation persistence,autocovariance profiles,goodness-of-fit,model comparison

Productivity shocks and the New Keynesian Phillips Curve: Evidence from US and Euro area

This paper seeks to understand dynamics of inflation and marginal cost (labor share) in models that account for the inclusion of productivity shocks in standard New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC). The question of interest is on the empirical importance of and whether productivity shocks shift the Phillips curve using U.S. and Euro area data. Highlighting the inclusion of productivity growth, we employ a hybrid model specification augmented with a productivity term. The model is estimated using the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) following Gali and Gertler (1999). Our main finding is that a simple extension of the baseline and hybrid models using more recent data (2006:Q4 for the US and 2005:Q4 for the Euro area) yield less convincing results than the previous literature. Furthermore, our estimation results provide some support for the inclusion of productivity growth particularly for the US. We conclude that a better understanding of the inflation-unemployment tradeoff requires accounting for shifts in the Phillips Curve due to productivity shocks

Modeling consumer confidence and its role for expectation formation: A horse race

The notion of bounded rationality has received a considerable attention in the midst of debate over the usefulness of various macroeconomic models. In this paper we empirically seek to analyze the baseline New-Keynesian model with heterogeneous agents who may adopt various heuristics used to forecast future movements in consumption. Agents could exhibit an optimistic or pessimistic view or act as fundamentalists or chartists when forming expectations on future consumption based on discrete choice. Our empirical results via the Simulated Method of Moment Approach show that consumer confidence in the US is heavily grounded on consumers' emotional state (with respect to optimism and pessimism), while for the Euro Area it is most likely technical in nature (with respect to fundamentalists and chartists). These heuristics lead to an equivalent or even better fit to the data compared to the hybrid version of the baseline New-Keynesian model. We argue that this study could open up new possibilities for estimating bounded rationality models and policy analysis

Macroeconomic dynamics under bounded rationality: on the impact of consumers' forecast heuristics

This paper considers various types of forecast heuristics to examine the effects of boundedly rational agents on macroeconomic dynamics. Given the baseline New Keynesian model, we seek to find the expectation formation process that is most suitable in describing economic adjustments over the business cycle. In particular, impulse response analysis is used to compare the performances of the macroeconomic model under bounded rationality and under rational expectations. The results show that the fluctuations in consumer confidence mainly explain the degree of persistence in consumption. We conclude that a model under bounded rationality with a heuristic-induced switching process can qualitatively provide a good fit to the data that is equivalent to a model under rational expectations

Mehanizam akutne neurotoksičnosti u Sprague-Dawley štakora izazvane trovanjem endosulfanom

The purpose of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanism underlying oxidative and inflammatory neuronal cell death induced by endosulfan, a pesticide belonging to the chemical family of organochlorines. The cortical and hippocampal tissues derived from Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats treated with endosulfan exhibited increased intracellular accumulation of reactive oxygen species and oxidative damages to cellular macromolecules such as depletion of glutathione, lipid peroxidation, and protein carbonylation. Conversely, the expression of antioxidant enzymes including γ-glutamylcysteine ligase (GCL), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) was markedly reduced in the brain tissues exposed to endosulfan. Moreover, during endosulfan-induced neuronal cell death, mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) was elevated, which seemed to be mediated by the activation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) by phosphorylation of p65 subunit. These results suggest a new molecular mechanism underlying the endosulfan-induced acute neurotoxicity via induction of oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory responses.Istražen je molekularni mehanizam koji dovodi do smrti neurona potaknute oksidativnim i upalnim procesima uzrokovanim organoklornim pesticidom endosulfanom. U tkivima korteksa i hipokampusa Sprague-Dawley (SD) štakora tretiranih endosulfanom uočena su oksidativna oštećenja staničnih makromolekula, poput smanjene razine glutationa, lipidne peroksidacije i karbonilacije proteina, te povećane unutarstanične akumulacije reaktivnih kisikovih spojeva. Isto tako, u moždanom tkivu nakon izlaganja endosulfanu značajno je smanjena ekspresija enzimskih antioksidansa, uključujući i γ-glutamilcistein ligazu (GCL), superoksidnu dismutazu (SOD) i hem oksigenazu-1 (HO-1). Tijekom endosulfanom izazvane smrti neurona povećala se i ekspresija mRNA pro-upalnih citokina poput čimbenika nekroze tumora-α (TNF-α) i interleukina-1β (IL-1β), što je čini se bilo posredovano aktivacijom nuklearnoga faktora kapa B (NF-κB) putem fosforilacije podjedinice p65. Navedeni rezultati upućuju na novi molekularni mehanizam koji stoji iza akutne neurotoksičnosti izazvane endosulfanom putem indukcije oksidativnoga stresa i pro-upalnih odgovora