The Efficiency of Direct Payments versus Tax Reductions under Uncertainty

This paper analyzes the optimal behavior of farmers in the presence of direct payments and uncertainty. In an empirical analysis for Switzerland, it confirms previously obtained theoretical results and determines the magnitude of the theoretical predicted effects. The results show that direct payments increase agricultural production between 3.7% to 4.8%. Alternatively to direct payments, the production effect of tax reductions is evaluated in order to determine its magnitude. The empirical analysis corroborates the theoretical results of the literature and demonstrates that tax reductions are also distorting, but to a substantially lesser degree if losses are not offset. However, tax reductions, independently whether losses are offset or not, lead to higher government spending than pure direct payments.Uncertainty; Direct Payments; Income Tax; Reductions; Agriculture

An evaluation of risk factors for major adverse cardiovascular events during tocilizumab therapy

Objective: To evaluate associations between lipid levels, inflammation, and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease activity, at baseline and during treatment, with the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in tocilizumab‐treated patients with RA. Methods: In retrospective post hoc analyses, data were pooled for 3,986 adult patients with moderate to severe RA who received ≥1 dose of tocilizumab (4 mg/kg or 8 mg/kg) intravenously every 4 weeks in randomized controlled trials and extension studies. Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to evaluate associations between baseline characteristics and posttreatment changes in laboratory and disease characteristics (week 24) and change in disease activity and laboratory values from baseline to week 24 with the risk of future MACE during extended followup. Results: We identified 50 independently adjudicated cases of MACE during 14,683 patient‐years of followup (0.34 MACE cases/100 patient‐years). At baseline, age, a history of cardiac disorders, the Disease Activity Score in 28 joints (DAS28), and the total cholesterol:high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio were independently associated with MACE in multivariable models (P < 0.05 for all). During treatment, a higher DAS28 and higher swollen and tender joint counts at week 24 were associated with future MACE. In separate models, greater reductions in the DAS28 and joint counts from baseline to week 24 were inversely associated with future MACE; changes in lipid parameters were not statistically significantly associated with the risk of MACE. Conclusion: In this population of patients treated with tocilizumab, an association was observed between the baseline total cholesterol:high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio and an increased risk of MACE. The risk of MACE while receiving treatment, however, was associated with control of disease activity but not lipid changes. Larger studies are needed to confirm these findings

Conflict Management and Resolution For The Sustainability Of Educational Institutions In Nigeria

This paper examines the concept of conflict management and resolution for the sustainability in Nigerian educational institutions. Security and peace are, no doubt, an important aspect of educational management and planning and conflict is unavoidable in the educational sector. To this end, this paper takes a look at the causes of conflict, conflict management and resolution. Some recommendations made among others are that, rigidity should be eliminated during negotiation, internal conflict should not be externalized, dialoguing and bargaining should be used in a fair, honest, equitable and acceptable manner

The Near-Linear Regime of Gravitational Waves in Numerical Relativity

We report on a systematic study of the dynamics of gravitational waves in full 3D numerical relativity. We find that there exists an interesting regime in the parameter space of the wave configurations: a near-linear regime in which the amplitude of the wave is low enough that one expects the geometric deviation from flat spacetime to be negligible, but nevertheless where nonlinearities can excite unstable modes of the Einstein evolution equations causing the metric functions to evolve out of control. The implications of this for numerical relativity are discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 2 postscript figures, revised tex

Soft-Wall Stabilization

We propose a general class of five-dimensional soft-wall models with AdS metric near the ultraviolet brane and four-dimensional Poincar\'e invariance, where the infrared scale is determined dynamically. A large UV/IR hierarchy can be generated without any fine-tuning, thus solving the electroweak/Planck scale hierarchy problem. Generically, the spectrum of fluctuations is discrete with a level spacing (mass gap) provided by the inverse length of the wall, similar to RS1 models with Standard Model fields propagating in the bulk. Moreover two particularly interesting cases arise. They can describe: (a) a theory with a continuous spectrum above the mass gap which can model unparticles corresponding to operators of a CFT where the conformal symmetry is broken by a mass gap, and; (b) a theory with a discrete spectrum provided by linear Regge trajectories as in AdS/QCD models.Comment: 27 pages, 6 figures, 1 table. v2: references added, version to appear in NJP Focus Issue on Extra Dimension

Cosmology with variable parameters and effective equation of state for Dark Energy

A cosmological constant, Lambda, is the most natural candidate to explain the origin of the dark energy (DE) component in the Universe. However, due to experimental evidence that the equation of state (EOS) of the DE could be evolving with time/redshift (including the possibility that it might behave phantom-like near our time) has led theorists to emphasize that there might be a dynamical field (or some suitable combination of them) that could explain the behavior of the DE. While this is of course one possibility, here we show that there is no imperative need to invoke such dynamical fields and that a variable cosmological constant (including perhaps a variable Newton's constant too) may account in a natural way for all these features.Comment: LaTeX, 9 pages, 1 figure. Talk given at the 7th Intern. Workshop on Quantum Field Theory Under the Influence of External Conditions (QFEXT 05

Temporal trends in symptom experience predict the accuracy of recall PROs

Objective - Patient-reported outcome measures with reporting periods of a week or more are often used to evaluate the change of symptoms over time, but the accuracy of recall in the context of change is not well understood. This study examined whether temporal trends in symptoms that occur during the reporting period impact the accuracy of 7-day recall reports. Methods - Women with premenstrual symptoms (n = 95) completed daily reports of anger, depression, fatigue, and pain intensity for 4 weeks, as well as 7-day recall reports at the end of each week. Latent class growth analysis was used to categorize recall periods based on the direction and rate of change in the daily reports. Agreement (level differences and correlations) between 7-day recall and aggregated daily scores was compared for recall periods with different temporal trends. Results - Recall periods with positive, negative, and flat temporal trends were identified and they varied in accordance with weeks of the menstrual cycle. Replicating previous research, 7-day recall scores were consistently higher than aggregated daily scores, but this level difference was more pronounced for recall periods involving positive and negative trends compared with flat trends. Moreover, correlations between 7-day recall and aggregated daily scores were lower in the presence of positive and negative trends compared with flat trends. These findings were largely consistent for anger, depression, fatigue, and pain intensity. Conclusion - Temporal trends in symptoms can influence the accuracy of recall reports and this should be considered in research designs involving change

Dynamics of Gravitational Waves in 3D: Formulations, Methods, and Tests

The dynamics of gravitational waves is investigated in full 3+1 dimensional numerical relativity, emphasizing the difficulties that one might encounter in numerical evolutions, particularly those arising from non-linearities and gauge degrees of freedom. Using gravitational waves with amplitudes low enough that one has a good understanding of the physics involved, but large enough to enable non-linear effects to emerge, we study the coupling between numerical errors, coordinate effects, and the nonlinearities of the theory. We discuss the various strategies used in identifying specific features of the evolution. We show the importance of the flexibility of being able to use different numerical schemes, different slicing conditions, different formulations of the Einstein equations (standard ADM vs. first order hyperbolic), and different sets of equations (linearized vs. full Einstein equations). A non-linear scalar field equation is presented which captures some properties of the full Einstein equations, and has been useful in our understanding of the coupling between finite differencing errors and non-linearites. We present a set of monitoring devices which have been crucial in our studying of the waves, including Riemann invariants, pseudo-energy momentum tensor, hamiltonian constraint violation, and fourier spectrum analysis.Comment: 34 pages, 14 figure

A Focus of Human Infection by \u3ci\u3eHaplorchis taichui\u3c/i\u3e (Trematoda: Heterophyidae) in the Southern Philippines

We report an exceptionally high rate of infection by Haplorchis taichui (Nishigori, 1924) in human populations on Mindanao Island, southern Philippines. This intestinal fluke is seldom encountered, and this is the first report of high prevalence of infection (36%) in humans by H. taichui in the Philippines. The likely source of haplorchine infection has been linked to consumption of raw or undercooked freshwater fish containing infective metacercariae. The most common clinical symptoms appeared as upper abdominal discomfort or pain and borborygmi. Praziquantel (75 mg/kg divided in 3 doses in 1 day) was a well-tolerated and effective treatment for infection by H. taichui