An Analysis on Differences in Spatial Computable General Equilibrium Models by Market Structure Assumption -A Comparison of Perfect Competition Modeling and Monopolistic Competition Modeling-

Spatial Computable General Equilibrium (SCGE) models are convenient methods of the analysis of the change of inter-regional economic interaction or regional benefit by policy shocks. Recent SCGE models have two main streams in terms of the assumption of market structure; perfect competition models and monopolistic competition models. Benefit measured by perfect competition based models is usually independent of economy of scale and therefore the policy assessment result is consistent with normal cost-benefit analysis. It is an important factor for practical welfare analysis when validity of policy implementation is discussed from a point of view of efficiency. On the other hand, monopolistic competition based models is suitable to theoretical framework of new economic geography field which highlights the economic agglomeration. Agglomeration effect is also an important factor from a point of view of regional economic development effects. Thus the both of two types of models have theoretical and practical merits respectively. However, the results of the model analyses of course depend on the model formulations and can be different in not only detail but also feature of benefit distribution. Understanding the difference of the model outputs by theoretical assumption is crucial theme of practical policy assessment. This paper attempts to compare the economic effects of a road transport development project estimated by a perfect competition based SCGE model and a monopolistic competition based SCGE model quantitatively. Our analysis emphasizes especially the differences in the magnitude of benefit and the regional distribution pattern of benefit because they are usually the largest interests of actual policy assessments. The results show that elasticity of substitution, which is a dominant parameter of monopolistic competition models as a key factor of markup, sensitively affects to benefit and its distribution. It mainly causes the difference of the outputs of the perfect competition based SCGE model and the monopolistic competition model, which implies that the elasticity parameter should be chosen carefully. We furthermore analyze the relationship between size of analysis target region and benefit as well as sensitivity analysis of model parameters. The analysis shows that the regional scale also influences to the benefit estimation in particular by monopolistic competition model. Finally, we summarize the tendency of model outputs of the two types of the models and points to keep in mind for the practical policy analysis by SCGE models

A convenient method for determining the concentration of hydrogen in water: use of methylene blue with colloidal platinum

A simple titration (oxidimetry) method using a methylene blue-platinum colloid reagent is effective in determining the concentration of hydrogen gas in an aqueous solution. The method performs as effectively as the more complex and expensive electrochemical method

Antiviral Effects of Micafungin Against Pteropine Orthoreovirus, an Emerging Zoonotic Virus Carried by Bats

Bat-borne emerging zoonotic viruses cause major outbreaks, such as the Ebola virus, Nipah virus, and/or beta coronavirus. Pteropine orthoreovirus (PRV), whose spillover event occurred from fruits bats to humans, causes respiratory syndrome in humans widely in South East Asia. Repurposing approved drugs against PRV is an effective tool to confront future PRV pandemics. We screened 2,943 compounds in an FDA-approved drug library and identified eight hit compounds that reduce viral cytopathic effects on cultured Vero cells. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis revealed that six of eight hit compounds significantly inhibited PRV replication. Among them, micafungin used clinically as an antifungal drug, displayed a prominent antiviral effect on PRV. Secondly, the antiviral effects of micafungin on PRV infected human cell lines (HEK293T and A549), and their transcriptome changes by PRV infection were investigated, compared to four different bat-derived cell lines (FBKT1 (Ryukyu flying fox), DEMKT1 (Leschenault\u27s rousette), BKT1 (Greater horseshoe bat), YUBFKT1 (Eastern bent-wing bats)). In two human cell lines, unlike bat cells that induce an IFN-γ response pathway, an endoplasmic reticulum stress response pathway was commonly activated. Additionally, micafungin inhibits viral release rather than suppressing PRV genome replication in human cells, although it was disturbed in Vero cells. The target of micafungin\u27s action may vary depending on the animal species, but it must be useful for human purposes as a first choice of medical care

Load carrying behavior of concrete reinforced with bundled BFRP bars by using DIC

Recently, basalt fiber-reinforced polymer (BFRP) has gained attention in the construction industry because of its worldwide availability and eco-friendly nature. Different from conventional steel bars, BFRP bar do not corrode being an ideal reinforcing material in structures surrounding magnetic fields and marine environments, given its chemical stability. This study investigated the load carrying behavior of concrete beams reinforced with conventional deformed steel bars and seven-bundled BFRP bars through four-point flexural test. For each case, two beams were pre-pared; one beam was designed with a low reinforcement ratio and another with a high rein-forcement ratio in order to obtain a load carrying capacity of around 330-368 kN and 483-519 kN, respectively. Deflection, crack width evolution, and strain behavior of each beam were comparatively analyzed using a digital image correlation (DIC) based technique. The DIC analysis results showed that the neutral axis of bundled BFRP reinforced cases move to the upper end in an early loading stage, with larger cracks width, and the deflection is larger in BFRP cases than in those of steel-reinforced beams with the respective reinforcement ratio. However, the four-point flexural test results revealed that bundled BFRP bars can be used as an alternative to conventional steel bars. The load carrying capacities were obtained similarly to designed values, around 364 and 551 kN for low and high reinforcement ratio cases, respectively