What prospects for transport infrastructure and impacts on growth in southern and eastern Mediterranean countries? MEDPRO Report No. 3, February 2013

Lack of adequate infrastructure is a significant inhibitor to increased trade of the countries of the Mediterranean region. Bringing their transport infrastructure to standards comparable with countries of a similar per capita GDP will be costly but worthwhile. We compare the current quantities of six types of transport infrastructure with international benchmarks, and estimate the additional quantities needed to reach the benchmarks. We also estimate the cost of that infrastructure and express it as a percentage of GDP. Finally we make tentative estimates of how much trade might be generated and how this might impact on GDP. All the estimates are made for 11 southern and eastern Mediterranean countries (SEMCs) under four scenarios. The greatest need for additional infrastructure is for airport passenger terminals (between 52% and 56%), whereas the least is for more unpaved roads (between 7% and 13%). The investment (including maintenance) cost would be between 0.9% of GDP and 2.4% of GDP, although the investments in some countries would be between 1.4% and 4.5% of GDP. The impact on non-oil international trade would be substantial, but with differences between imports and exports. The overall trade balance of the 11 countries would be an improvement of between 5.4% and 17.2%, although some countries would continue to have a negative balance. A final assessment is made of the benefit ratio between the increase in GDP and the cost of transport investment. This varies between about 3 and 8, an indication of the high return to be expected from increased investment in transport infrastructure

Affordability of urban Public Transport

Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies. Faculty of Economics and Business. The University of Sydne

Affordability of urban Public Transport

Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies. Faculty of Economics and Business. The University of Sydne

Examining School Board Leaders' Use of Online Resources to Inform Decision-Making | Examen de l’usage des ressources en ligne par les dirigeants des conseils scolaires pour guider les prises de décisions

In the past five years, there has been considerable interest in the decision-making process of school board officials in the field of education.  However, a paucity of research exists on how these leaders use online resources to make decisions.  Through an online survey and face to face interviews, this study examined the use of online resources by school-board trustees (n=164) to guide board-level decisions.  Trustees used online articles (news, research articles, journals) twice as much as social media (Twitter, Facebook, blogs) or repository services (clipping services, Google Scholar).  Almost 70% of trustees used three or more resources to inform their decision making.  Seventy-five to 85% of trustees rated online articles and repository services as being useful.   Trustees actively checked the trustworthiness of online resources by evaluating sources, cross-checking data, and asking colleagues.  Key barriers to using online resources included lack of time, finding reliable or relevant information, and negotiating conflicting results.  Some trustees wanted access to a third-party, repository of valid, reliable information. Au cours des cinq dernières années, le processus de prise de décisions des officiels des conseils scolaires a suscité un grand intérêt. Il existe cependant peu d’études sur la façon dont ces dirigeants utilisent les ressources en ligne pour guider leurs prises de décisions. Grâce à un sondage en ligne et à des entrevues menées en personne, la présente étude se penche sur l’usage que font les commissaires scolaires (n=164) des ressources en ligne pour appuyer les décisions du conseil. Les commissaires se servaient d’articles en ligne (actualités, articles de recherche, revues) deux fois plus que des réseaux sociaux (Twitter, Facebook, blogues) ou de services d’archivage (services de coupures de presse, Google Scholar). Près de 70 % des commissaires se servaient de trois ressources ou plus pour guider leurs décisions. De 75 % à 85 % des commissaires estimaient que les articles en ligne et les services d’archivage étaient utiles. Les commissaires vérifiaient activement la fiabilité des ressources en ligne en évaluant les sources, en recoupant les données et en demandant l’avis de collègues. Les principaux obstacles à l’usage des ressources en ligne comprenaient le manque de temps, la difficulté à trouver des renseignements fiables ou pertinents, et l’évaluation de résultats contradictoires. Certains commissaires souhaitaient accéder à des archives externes rassemblant des renseignements fiables et valides

Maritime Networks, Port Efficiency, and Hinterland Connectivity in the Mediterranean

International audience; For millennia, the Mediterranean has been one of the most active trading areas, supported by a transport network connecting riparian cities and beyond to their hinterland. The Mediterranean has complex trade patterns and routes--but with key differences from the past. It is no longer an isolated world economy: it is both a trading area and a transit area linking Europe and North Africa with the rest of the world through the hub-and-spoke structure of maritime networks. Understanding how trade connectivity works in the Mediterranean, and elsewhere, is important to policy makers, especially those in developing countries in the Mediterranean, concerned with the economic benefits of large investment in infrastructure. Better connectivity is expected to increase trade with distant markets and stimulate activities in the hinterland. This book is a practical exploration of the three interdependent dimensions of trade connectivity: maritime networks, port efficiency, and hinterland connectivity. Because of the complexity and richness of maritime and trade patterns in the Mediterranean, the research book combines both a regional focus and globally scalable lessons. This book is intended for a wide readership of policy makers in maritime affairs, trade, or industry; professionals from the world of finance or development institutions; and academics. It combines empirical analysis of microeconomic shipping and port data with three case studies of choice of port (focusing on Spain, Egypt, and Morocco) and five case studies on hinterland development (Barcelona; Malta; Marseilles; Port Said East, Egypt; and Tanger Med, Morocco). Document type: Boo

Single-Molecule Imaging Reveals Aβ42:Aβ40 Ratio-Dependent Oligomer Growth on Neuronal Processes

AbstractSoluble oligomers of the amyloid-β peptide have been implicated as proximal neurotoxins in Alzheimer’s disease. However, the identity of the neurotoxic aggregate(s) and the mechanisms by which these species induce neuronal dysfunction remain uncertain. Physiologically relevant experimentation is hindered by the low endogenous concentrations of the peptide, the metastability of Aβ oligomers, and the wide range of observed interactions between Aβ and biological membranes. Single-molecule microscopy represents one avenue for overcoming these challenges. Using this technique, we find that Aβ binds to primary rat hippocampal neurons at physiological concentrations. Although amyloid-β(1–40) as well as amyloid-β(1–42) initially form larger oligomers on neurites than on glass slides, a 1:1 mix of the two peptides result in smaller neurite-bound oligomers than those detected on-slide or for either peptide alone. With 1 nM peptide in solution, Aβ40 oligomers do not grow over the course of 48 h, Aβ42 oligomers grow slightly, and oligomers of a 1:1 mix grow substantially. Evidently, small Aβ oligomers are capable of binding to neurons at physiological concentrations and grow at rates dependent on local Aβ42:Aβ40 ratios. These results are intriguing in light of the increased Aβ42:Aβ40 ratios shown to correlate with familial Alzheimer’s disease mutations

Copper coordination polymers from cavitand ligands: hierarchical spaces from cage and capsule motifs, and other topologies

The cyclotriveratrylene-type ligands (±)-tris(iso-nicotinoyl)cyclotriguaiacylene L1 (±)-tris(4-pyridylmethyl)cyclotriguaiacylene L2 and (±)-tris{4-(4-pyridyl)benzyl}cyclotriguaiacylene L3 all feature 4-pyridyl donor groups and all form coordination polymers with CuI and/or CuII cations that show a remarkable range of framework topologies and structures. Complex [CuI4CuII1.5(L1)3(CN)6]·CN·n(DMF) 1 features a novel 3,4-connected framework of cyano-linked hexagonal metallo-cages. In complexes [Cu3(L2)4(H2O)3]·6(OTf)·n(DMSO) 2 and [Cu2(L3)2Br2(H2O)(DMSO)]·2Br·n(DMSO) 3 capsule-like metallo-cryptophane motifs are formed which linked through their metal vertices into a hexagonal 2D network of (43.123)(42.122) topology or a coordination chain. Complex [Cu2(L1)2(OTf)2(NMP)2(H2O)2]·2(OTf)·2NMP 4 has an interpenetrating 2D 3,4-connected framework of (4.62.8)(62.8)(4.62.82) topology with tubular channels. Complex [Cu(L1)(NCMe)]·BF4·2(CH3CN)·H2O 5 features a 2D network of 63 topology while the CuII analogue [Cu2(L1)2(NMP)(H2O)]·4BF4·12NMP·1.5H2O 6 has an interpenetrating (10,3)-b type structure and complex [Cu2(L2)2Br3(DMSO)]·Br·n(DMSO) 7 has a 2D network of 4.82 topology. Strategies for formation of coordination polymers with hierarchical spaces emerge in this work and complex 2 is shown to absorb fullerene-C60 through soaking the crystals in a toluene solution