Commercial Policy and Foreign Ownership

To serve the domestic market, foreign multinationals often not only export there but also control local firms through FDI. This paper examines the effects of trade and industrial policies on prices, outputs, profits, and welfare when exports and FDI coexist. Specifically, we focus on the case in which a foreign firm has full control of a local firm through partial ownership. Cross-border ownership on the basis of both financial interests and corporate control leads to horizontal market-linkages through which tariffs and production subsidies may harm a locally-owned firm but benefit a foreign firm. Foreign ownership regulation benefits a locally-owned firm.foreign direct investment, corporate control, tariffs, production subsidies, ownership regulation

Commercial Policy and Foreign Ownership

To serve the domestic market, foreign multinationals often not only export there but also control local firms through FDI. This paper examines the effects of trade and industrial policies on prices, outputs, profits, and welfare when exports and FDI coexist. Specifically, we focus on the case in which a foreign firm has full control of a local firm through partial ownership. Cross-border ownership on the basis of both financial interests and corporate control leads to horizontal market-linkages through which tariffs and production subsidies may harm a locally-owned firm but benefit a foreign firm. Foreign ownership regulation benefits a locally-owned firm.foreign direct investment, corporate control, tariffs, production subsidies, ownership regulation

Tracking of perturbed nonlinear plants using robust right coprime factorization approach

This paper deals with a plant output tracking design problem of perturbed nonlinear plants by using a robust right coprime factorization approach. An interesting control system design scheme, which was given by G. Chen and Z. Han, uses robustness of the right coprime factorization for robust stability of the closed-loop system with perturbation. Unfortunately, robust right coprime factorization cannot easily improve tracking performance of the control system except for simple cases. In this paper, a nonlinear operator-based design method for nonlinear plant output to track a reference input is given. Examples are presented to support the theoretical analysis.</p

On-line actuator state monitoring of a MIMO bioprocess

In the actuator state monitoring of a time varying human multi-joint arm dynamics, typical issues are compounded by problems related to the uncertainty factor consisting of measurement noises and modeling error of the rigid body dynamics. In general, the uncertainty factor is under the case of non-Gaussian noises. In this paper, for improving the monitoring, a robust filter system based on a score function approach is modified. The score function is associated with U_D factorization algorithm. The selection of the shape parameter in the monitoring filter is discussed. Examples of the proposed method for an experiment-based human arm model show better accuracy and robustness compared with standard Kalman filter.</p

Prevalence, Spinal Alignment, and Mobility of Lumbar Spinal Stenosis with or without Chronic Low Back Pain: A Community-Dwelling Study

Although lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) occurs almost universally with aging, little is known regarding its actual prevalence and relationships to chronic low back pain (CLBP) in the general population. The presence of CLBP in subjects with LSS may have negative impacts on spinal alignment and mobility. This study evaluated the prevalence of LSS using a self-administered, self-reported history questionnaire in 630 community-dwelling individuals ≥50 years old. Subjects with LSS were further divided into LSS+CLBP and LSS alone groups, and spinal alignment and mobility were compared using a computer-assisted device. Prevalence of LSS was 10.8% in this cohort. Subjects in the LSS+CLBP group (n = 46) showed a significantly more kyphotic lumbar spinal alignment with limited lumbar extension (P < .05), resulting in a stooped trunk compared to subjects in the LSS alone group (n = 22). However, no significant difference in spinal mobility was seen between groups

Granulites from Cape Hinode in the amphibolite-facies eastern part of Prince Olav Coast, East Antarctica: New evidence for allochthonous block in the Lutzow-Holm Complex

High-grade metamorphic rocks occurring along the Prince Harald, Soya, and Prince Olav Coasts make up the Latest Proterozoic-Early Paleozoic Lutzow-Holm Complex, which is the youngest orogenic belt in the East Antarctic Shield. A systematic increase in metamorphic grade from east to west, ranging from upper amphibolite facies on the eastern Prince Olav Coast to upper granulite facies at the head of Lutzow-Holm Bay, has been well-established in the complex. However, granulites are newly found to occur as blocks sitting within meta-tonalites at Cape Hinode located on the amphibolite-facies eastern Prince Olav Coast. In addition, it is newly revealed that kyanite occurs rather commonly in meta-tonalites which contain hornblende with or without clinopyroxene. The modes of occurrence in the field, petrographical features, and major element bulk rock compositions of the granulites and related rocks are given in some detail in this study. These, along with the previously presented geochronological, geochemical and petrographical data, would indicate that the rocks in the Cape Hinode area as a whole make up a Mesoproterozoic allochthonous block in the Latest Proterozoic-Early Paleozoic Lutzow-Holm Complex

Emergence of swing-to-stance transition from interlocking mechanism in horse hindlimb

The bodies of quadrupeds have very complex muscle-tendon structure. In particular, it is known that in the horse hindlimb, multiple joints in the leg are remarkably interlocked due to the muscle-tendon structure. Although the function of these interlocking mechanisms during standing has been investigated in the field of anatomy, the function related to the emergence of limb trajectory during dynamic walking has not been revealed. To investigate the role of the interlocking mechanism, we developed a robot model imitating the muscle-tendon arrangement and the dynamics of a horse hindlimb. In the walking experiment, the robot autonomously generated a limb trajectory with a smooth transition between the swing phase and the stance phase by simply swinging the hip joint with sinusoidal input. Moreover, we compared the joint angles between successful and failed walking. The compared results indicate that the extension of the fetlock joint after hoof touchdown plays the crucial role in emergence of a function of supporting body.K. Miyashita, Y. Masuda, M. Gunji, A. Fukuhara, K. Tadakuma and M. Ishikawa, "Emergence of Swing-to-Stance Transition from Interlocking Mechanism in Horse Hindlimb," 2020 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Las Vegas, NV, USA, 2020, pp. 7860-7865, doi: 10.1109/IROS45743.2020.9341026

Japan Tsunami Current Flows Observed by HF Radars on Two Continents

Quantitative real-time observations of a tsunami have been limited to deep-water, pressure-sensor observations of changes in the sea surface elevation and observations of sea level fluctuations at the coast, which are essentially point measurements. Constrained by these data, models have been used for predictions and warning of the arrival of a tsunami, but to date no detailed verification of flow patterns nor area measurements have been possible. Here we present unique HF-radar area observations of the tsunami signal seen in current velocities as the wave train approaches the coast. Networks of coastal HF-radars are now routinely observing surface currents in many countries and we report clear results from five HF radar sites spanning a distance of 8,200 km on two continents following the magnitude 9.0 earthquake off Sendai, Japan, on 11 March 2011. We confirm the tsunami signal with three different methodologies and compare the currents observed with coastal sea level fluctuations at tide gauges. The distance offshore at which the tsunami can be detected, and hence the warning time provided, depends on the bathymetry: the wider the shallow continental shelf, the greater this time. Data from these and other radars around the Pacific rim can be used to further develop radar as an important tool to aid in tsunami observation and warning as well as post-processing comparisons between observation and model predictions