SEAM: A Small-Scale Euro Area Model With Forward-Looking Elements

This paper presents a small-scale estimated macro model for the euro area (SEAM) designed primarily to generate forecasts and to evaluate the dynamic response of the economy to unanticipated and anticipated shocks. One crucial feature of SEAM is the presence of forward-looking elements, which makes the model forecasts more robust to the 'Lucas critique', since it allows economic decisions to be moulded by the future impact of 'surprise' policy actions. In what concerns the reliability of the model-simulations, the inclusion of forward-looking behaviour enriches the dynamics of the response of the model's endogenous variables to exogenous shocks. Although the SEAM does not have the richness of full-scale macroeconometric models, as apparent interalia, by the absence of a steady-state analogue and also of some relationships important for a better characterisation of the euro area economy, the model has been shown to deliver reasonable forecasts and responses to shocks that are consistent with conventional wisdom.

Algumas notas sobre Viena, Paris, uma ilha na Grécia e dois amantes

O presente artigo pretende analisar três filmes de Richard Linklater: Before Sunrise, 1995, Before Sunset, 2004 e Before Midnight, 2013 que se debruçam sobre a história de um casal ao longo de dezoito anos. Para além de assinalar alguns dos aspectos mais relevantes de cada narrativa, a análise proposta debruça-se essencialmente na viagem feita pelos dois personagens – Jesse e Céline – e nos vários locais dos diferentes filmes e os seus significados. Deste modo, o objectivo deste estudo é analisar o modo como Viena (Sunrise), Paris (Sunset) ou uma ilha na Grécia (Midnight) simbolizam três momentos distintos na relação de Jesse e Céline, funcionando também os locais como personagens que envolvem e caracterizam os dois amantes

Targeted mutagenesis of FaTM6 in the Octoploid Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) using the CRISPR/Cas9 System

The B-class of MADS-box transcription factors has been studied in many plant species, but remain functionally uncharacterized in the Rosaceae family. APETALA3 (AP3), a member of this class, controls the identity of petals and stamens in Arabidopsis thaliana. In this work, we identified two members of the AP3 lineage in the cultivated strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa): FaAP3 and FaTM6. Interestingly, FaTM6, and not FaAP3, shows an expression pattern equivalent to that of AP3 in Arabidopsis. Genome editing using Cluster Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9 system is becoming a robust tool for targeted and stable mutagenesis of DNA. However, whether it can be efficiently used in an octoploid species such as F. × ananassa is not known. In our study, we report the application of the CRISPR/Cas9 in F. × ananassa to characterize the function of FaTM6 in flower development. An exhaustive analysis by high-throughput sequencing of the FaTM6 locus spanning the target sites showed a high efficiency genome editing already in the T0 generation. The phenotypic characterization of the mutant lines indicates that FaTM6 plays a key role in petal and especially in anther development in strawberry. Our results validate the CRISPR/Cas9 strategy for gene functional analysis in an octoploid species such as F. × ananassa, and offer new opportunities for engineering strawberry to improve traits of interest in breeding programs.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

The importance of being “on the road” : A reading of the journey in Darjeeling Limited (2007), by Wes Anderson.

Road stories are significant cultural objects that “provide a ready space for [the] exploration” (Cohan and Hark 1997, 2) of different landscapes, contributing to the encounter of the traveller with him/ herself or with the Other. These cultural encounters offer the opportunity both for inner reflection upon the nation in which the protagonists travel. Such is the case of the Whitman brothers in The Darjeeling Limited (2007, Wes Anderson), who embark on a journey in India seeking spiritual enlightenment from the problems of the past. The confrontation with the foreign Other will not only put into perspective a changed notion of the Indian nation but also their true purpose in life. Based upon the idea of the transformative power of journeys, and considering The Darjeeling Limited as a road movie, this article analyzes the brothers’ awakening as they travel deeper into the Indian landscape to emerge with a renewed sense of self.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio