The influence of minimum wage regulation on labor income share and overwork: evidence from China

Minimum Wage Regulation (MWR) can raise wage rate, but its relation with labor income share is in controversy. We explore the influence of raising wage rate on labor income share and overwork in China. Panel data regressions are taken mainly based on China’s Industrial Enterprise Database and the International Labor Organization Database. Our findings show that raising wage rate can increase labor income share without leading to overwork. Factors that may significantly increase overwork are a higher proportion of male workers, a larger income gap and a lower percapita income. We point out that the neoclassical explanation for labor income share is not persuasive. We support policies of raising wage rate and believe MWR is an effective measure to increase labor income share

Risk Prioritization and Management in Gas Stations by using Fuzzy AHP and IPA Analysis

1107-1116Gasoline industry is the main pillar of Pakistan’s economy and is of immense importance. This industry is confronted by diverse risks which significantly affect its performance resulting in decreased economic contribution. On the other side, published literature merely analyzes this industry and suggests directions to improve it. Thus, this study is a kickoff step in this regard, and its purpose is to study the relationship between risk factors, importance, and performance of gasoline industry, which is based on questionnaire data collected from three districts, viz., Gujranwala, Gujrat and Sialkot of Punjab, Pakistan. In total, 159 completed questionnaires were collected having consistency ratio (CR) less than 0.1. Acquired stats were investigated using the latest techniques of multi-criteria decision making routines, viz., fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (Fuzzy AHP) and importance performance analysis (IPA) software Expert Choice 2000. Among the five main risk types faced by gasoline industry, transportation / tanker unloading (importance, 0.467: rank, 1) was the most, whereas, the least significant factor was miscellaneous category (importance, 0.049: rank, 5). Moreover, the most significant factor which showed high importance with high performance was driving carelessness / accidents (importance, 0.278; performance, 3.32), high importance with low performance was uncontrolled vapor released (importance, 0.087; performance, 2.53), low importance with low performance was fire / explosion (importance, 0.021; performance, 2.66) and low importance with high performance was overfill / crossover (importance, 0.027; performance, 4.11). Thus, this work identifies, prioritizes and highlights the areas where improvement is needed to encounter risk and increase quality function development of gas stations

Laboratory observation of ion acceleration via reflection off laser-produced magnetized collisionless shocks

Fermi acceleration by collisionless shocks is believed to be the primary mechanism to produce high energy charged particles in the Universe,where charged particles gain energy successively from multiple reflections off the shock front.Here,we present the first direct experimental evidence of ion energization from reflection off a supercritical quasi perpendicular collisionless shock,an essential component of Fermi acceleration in a laser produced magnetized plasma. We observed a quasi monoenergetic ion beam with 2,4 times the shock velocity in the upstream flow using time of flight method. Our related kinetic simulations reproduced the energy gain and showed that these ions were first reflected and then accelerated mainly by the motional electric field associated with the shock. This mechanism can also explain the quasi monoenergetic fast ion component observed in the Earth's bow shock

Enabling the ability of Li storage at high rate as anodes by utilizing natural rice husks-based hierarchically porous SiO2/N-doped carbon composites

One of the greatest challenges in developing SiO 2/C composites as anode materials in lithium ion batteries (LIBs) is to improve the ability of Li storage at high rate over long-term cycles. Herein, biomass rice husks-based hierarchically porous SiO 2/N-doped carbon composites (BM-RH-SiO 2/NC) were prepared by ball mill and thermal treatment. BM-RH-SiO 2/NC can still retain a reversible capacity of 556 mAh g −1 over 1000 cycles at a high current of 1.0 A g −1. At 5.0 A g −1 the capacity is kept as high as 402 mAh g −1. This impressively long-term cyclic performance and high-rate capability of BM-RH-SiO 2/NC can be ascribed to the synergetic effect between the natural SiO 2 nanoparticles (< 50 nm) and the NC layer. The coating NC layer can not only effectively mitigate the volume strain during charge-discharge process to offer stably cyclic performance but also improve the electrical conductivity. Furthermore, the hierarchical porosity and better electrolyte wettability offer the rapid Li + diffusion and electron transfer, which enhance the pseudocapacitive behavior of whole electrode material and then guarantee fast electrochemical kinetics. Importantly, the unique Li-storage mechanism of active SiO 2 in BM-RH-SiO 2/NC composite was formed and found, which further validates the improved electrochemical capability

Neoproterozoic to Paleozoic long-lived accretionary orogeny in the northern Tarim Craton

The Tarim Craton, located in the center of Asia, was involved in the assembly and breakup of the Rodinia supercontinent during the Neoproterozoic and the subduction-accretion of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) during the Paleozoic. However, its tectonic evolution during these events is controversial, and a link between the Neoproterozoic and Paleozoic tectonic processes is missing. Here we present zircon U-Pb ages, Hf isotopes, and whole-rock geochemical data for the extensive granitoids in the western Kuruktag area, northeastern Tarim Craton. Three distinct periods of granitoid magmatism are evident: circa 830–820 Ma, 660–630 Ma, and 420–400 Ma. The magma sources, melting conditions (pressure, temperature, and water availability), and tectonic settings of various granitoids from each period are determined. Based on our results and the geological, geochronological, geochemical, and isotopic data from adjacent areas, a long-lived accretionary orogenic model is proposed. This model involves an early phase (circa 950–780 Ma) of southward advancing accretion from the Tianshan to northern Tarim and a late phase (circa 780–600 Ma) of northward retreating accretion, followed by back-arc opening and subsequent bidirectional subduction (circa 460–400 Ma) of a composite back-arc basin (i.e., the South Tianshan Ocean). Our model highlights a long-lived accretionary history of the southwestern CAOB, which may have initiated as part of the circum-Rodinia subduction zone and was comparable with events occurring at the southern margin of the Siberian Craton, thus challenging the traditional southward migrating accretionary models for the CAOB

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)1.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field

Crowdsourced assessment of common genetic contribution to predicting anti-TNF treatment response in rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects millions world-wide. While anti-TNF treatment is widely used to reduce disease progression, treatment fails in Bone-third of patients. No biomarker currently exists that identifies non-responders before treatment. A rigorous community-based assessment of the utility of SNP data for predicting anti-TNF treatment efficacy in RA patients was performed in the context of a DREAM Challenge (http://www.synapse.org/RA_Challenge). An open challenge framework enabled the comparative evaluation of predictions developed by 73 research groups using the most comprehensive available data and covering a wide range of state-of-the-art modelling methodologies. Despite a significant genetic heritability estimate of treatment non-response trait (h(2) = 0.18, P value = 0.02), no significant genetic contribution to prediction accuracy is observed. Results formally confirm the expectations of the rheumatology community that SNP information does not significantly improve predictive performance relative to standard clinical traits, thereby justifying a refocusing of future efforts on collection of other data