State Aid, EU Maritime Transport Policies and Competitiveness of EU Country Fleets

Aim and purposes: This study conducts an across-the-board comparative analysis of the impact of the main measures used by the 10 leading maritime nations of the EU on the relative competitiveness of the fleets that they control, covering the period from 1996 to 2011. We propose two models to compare the relative effectiveness of the maritime policy measures implemented: one for the full set of countries and measures and the other specifically for each maritime nation. Findings: The estimation results make us conclude that generally the measures adopted in national-level maritime policies (tonnage tax, second register and other measures) seem to have been effective in that they have had a positive effect on the competitiveness of controlled fleets, but with uneven impact on the fleets of each countryThe authors acknowledge research funding from University of the Basque Country (grant GIU19/078); Econometrics Research Group (Basque Government Department of Education grant IT-1359-19) and Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness and ERDF (grant PID2019-105986GB-C22

Finite sample behavior of two step estimators in selection models

The problem of specification errors in sample selection models has received considerable attention both theoretically and empirically. However, very few is known about the finite sample behavior of two step estimators. In this paper we investigate by simulations both bias and finite sample distribution of these estimators when ignoring heteroskedasticity in the sample selection mechanism. It turns out that under conditions traditionally faced by practitioners, the misspecified parametric two step estimator (Heckman, 1979) performs better, in finite sample sizes, than the robust semiparametric one (Ahn and Powell, 1993). Moreover, under very general conditions, we show that the asymptotic bias of the parametric two step estimator is linear in the covariance between the sample selection and the participation equation.The first two authors wish to thank the Dirección General de Enseñanza Superior, research project PB96-C05-03 for its financial support. The third author acknowledges financial support from the DGICYT, research project PB94-0602

Finite sample behavior of two step estimators in selection models

The problem of specification errors in sample selection models has received considerable attention both theoretically and empirically. However, very few is known about the finite sample behavior of two step estimators. In this paper we investigate by simulations both bias and finite sample distribution of these estimators when ignoring heteroskedasticity in the sample selection mechanism. It turns out that under conditions traditionally faced by practitioners, the misspecified parametric two step estimator (Heckman, 1979) performs better, in finite sample sizes, than the robust semiparametric one (Ahn and Powell, 1993). Moreover, under very general conditions, we show that the asymptotic bias of the parametric two step estimator is linear in the covariance between the sample selection and the participation equation.sample selection models, semiparametric models, finite sample analysis, misspecification error, heteroskedasticity, Heckman two step estimator

¿Es necesaria una política redistributiva del ingreso en Chile? Evidencia Empírica desde el principio de igualdad de oportunidades

[ES] Este trabajo evalúa la política tributaria vigente en Chile desde la perspectiva del criterio de Igualdad de Oportunidades. Bajo este criterio es deseable actuar para compensar a las personas por las circunstancias en las que nacen, pero es necesario permitir las diferencias originadas por el esfuerzo individual. La principal conclusión es que, en el caso chileno, la aplicación del principio de Igualdad de Oportunidades al sistema tributario, conduce a un empeoramiento de la distribución del ingreso.igualdad de oportunidades, coste de eficiencia, sistema tributario, distribución del ingreso

Are long bone fractures really rare in children younger than 2 years?

Fonament. Les fractures són habituals entre les lesions no intencionades de la infància, però es creu que són poc fre- qüents en lactants. Objectiu. Determinar la freqüència diagnòstica i les caracte- rístiques de les fractures produides en nens menors de 2 anys. Mètode. Estudi retrospectiu de les consultes d'infants menors de 2 anys diagnosticats de fractura d'os llarg a urgències. Resultats. S'inclouen 258 consultes (prevalença 0,2%), el 25,2% de les quals corresponen a infants de menys d'1 any. Es van diagnosticar 293 fractures (35 infants en pre- sentaven dues). L'os més fracturat va ser el radi (en menors d'1 any, el fèmur), i la fractura en rodet, el tipus més ha- bitual. En 196 consultes (76%) se n'especifica la causa, i les més freqüents són caigudes i traumatismes. El 15,1% dels pacients van necessitar ingressar. Conclusions. Les fractures d'os llarg, tot i que són poc fre- qüents en lactants, presenten una morbiditat elevada. És important fer una anamnesi exhaustiva per esclarir-ne la causa i poder aplicar mesures preventive

Quemador poroso

Quemador poroso adaptado para ser alimentado con diferentes tipos de gases, que comprende un soporte que incluye un conducto a través del cual entra una mezcla de aire/gas en el quemador poroso, y una estructura cerámica, soportada por el soporte, que comprende una esponja inicialmente polimérica que se impregna con una barbotina, comprendiendo dicha barbotina al menos un material cerámico. La estructura cerámica tiene una porosidad final de entre aproximadamente 50 ppi hasta aproximadamente 70 ppi, y una densidad final de entre aproximadamente 0.45 hasta aproximadamente 0.65 g/cm3.Peer reviewedConsejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (España), P.I. Prosider Ibérica S.A, Ikerlan S COOPB1 Patente sin examen previ

FILMAT 2.0 software de diseño de filtros de microondas en tecnología microtira para aplicaciones docentes

The aim of the work presented here is the development of an educational free microwave design filter tool. The software called FILMAT 2.0, is based on a previous program developed by our group for lumped elements filter design. The application presented here has been implemented under MATLAB environment. The graphic interface and functionality have been improved using the latest versions of toolboxes provided with MATLAB. Moreover, an independent application has been generated, allowing the software to be functional without the requirement of having a MATLAB license, just accompanied with a free runtime. Results are comparable in quality with the commercial simulators. The application presented here has been developed under “user friendly” philosophy, is easy to use and could be operated for users at any level

Rainfall characteristics in León in 2016 and 2017

Ponencia presentada en: XXXV Jornadas Científicas de la AME y el XIX Encuentro Hispano Luso de Meteorología celebrado en León, del 5 al 7 de marzo de 2018.Nowadays, air pollution is one of the principal risk to human health and rain is the main sink of aerosol particles in the atmosphere, since it is the main process to mitigate pollution. Furthermore, the study of rainfall characteristics is crucial because it can provide information about present and future risks in an area, related to rain amount or intensity. In order to know the characteristics of the precipitation in the city of León, rain was sampled during 2016 and 2017 using a Laser Precipitation Monitor (LPM) of Thies Clima which registered drops between 0.125 and 8 mm in 22 channels. Furthermore, a Circulation Weather Types (CWTs) classification was carried out based on Lamb (1972), to identify the weather type related to a peculiar synoptic situation in days with rain. Focusing on rain characteristics in the city of León, 3.23·109 drops m-2 have fallen in 2016 with a mean size of 0.36±0.20 mm and 1.06·109 drops m-2 in 2017 with a mean size of 0.35±0.19 mm. The rain characteristic according to Lamb Weather Types during rain events will be analyzed.This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Grant TEC2014-57821-R), the University of Leon (Programa Propio 2015/00054/001) and the AERORAIN project (Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Grant CGL2014-52556-R, ERDF co-financed)

Microfinance crisis: identifying problems

RESUMEN. La actividad en el sector de las microfinanzas ha crecido de manera exponencial en los últimos años. En este periodo han existido grandes éxitos, pero también bastantes fracasos, los cuales han tenido menor repercusión. La literatura se ha centrado principalmente en los logros del sector y las buenas prácticas que han emergido de sus experiencias. Sin embargo, poco se ha tratado sobre los fracasos institucionales y menos sobre las estrategias que siguieron las entidades supervivientes a esas crisis. A pesar de la escasa producción científica sobre los fracasos de estas instituciones, no cabe duda que analizar los factores que influyen en las crisis microfinancieras puede ser muy útil para predecir futuras dificultades y, de esta manera, poder aplicar los mitigadores oportunos. Realizando un análisis empírico con datos de panel, para una muestra de entidades a nivel internacional, el trabajo se ocupará de analizar cuáles son los factores internos y externos más relevantes que explican las dificultades de las entidades del sector de las microfinanzas.ABSTRACT. The activity in the microfinance sector has grown exponentially in recent years. In this period there have been great successes, but also many failures, which have had less impact. The literature has focused mainly on the achievements of the sector and the best practices that have emerged from their experiences. However, there is little research about microfinance crises. Despite the lack of scientific literature on failures of microfinance institutions, the analysis of the factors of microfinance crises could be very useful in predicting future difficulties and failures. These results could be very helpful in applying the appropriate measures in order to reduce these failures. We propose an empirical analysis with panel data for a sample of international microfinance institutions. We analyze the most important factors, internal and external, which explain the difficulties of microfinance institutions