The Federal Reserve’s QE Practices Impact on Inflation: A Comparative Analysis of the GFC and Covid-Eras

This paper investigates and compares the effects of the Fed’s quantitative easing policies on US inflation during the Global Financial Crisis and the Covid-era up to February of 2022. As inflation continues to rise, a quantitative measurement of the Fed’s monetary policy response to recessions and its resulting effect on the price level is becoming increasingly relevant. Supporting the quantity monetary theory, I test the impact of the Fed’s increasing their total assets and securities on their balance sheet on CPI and core CPI. Using multiple time series regressions and a single lag component on the analyzed variables. The model best fit the GFC-era data; however, the model saw greater impact of the predictor variables on CPI in the Covid-era data. The model showed that the lag variables were less significant. To determine statistically significant lead times and the quantitative effects of an increase of the money supply, a data set that contains the entire inflationary cycle associated with the Coronavirus pandemic must be used. Future models between an increase in the money supply and inflation are expected to yield greater significance

The epidemiology of work-related fatalities in Australia

Background: There is no on-going information on the number, rate or circumstances of work-related fatal injury in Australia. This thesis reports on a study aimed to identify and describe all work-related fatalities that occurred in Australia during the four-year period 1989 to 1992, in order to make a significant contribution to the effectiveness of activity designed to prevent work-related traumatic death. Methods: A broad definition of work was used, with particular focus on workers and bystanders. The study also included the injury-related deaths of volunteers, students, persons performing home duties and persons fatally injured on farms but not due to obvious farm work. The data were obtained primarily from coronial files. Files were found for 99.7% of the deaths of interest. Detailed results are presented on the work-related deaths of workers, bystanders and persons fatally injured while engaged in home duties. The results for workers are also compared with those from an earlier study of work-related fatalities in Australia, which covered the years 1982 to 1984 inclusive. Other aspects of work-related deaths are considered in detail, including the effect of employment arrangements; their coverage by occupational health and safety and compensation agencies; their handling by the coronial system; the role of External Cause codes in identifying and monitoring work-related injury deaths; and the reliability and validity of the definitions used to classify work-related injury deaths. Results: There were 2,413 persons fatally injured while working or commuting during the study period (1,787 working; 626 commuting), with a rate of death for working persons of 5.5 per 100,000 persons per year. This compared to the rate of 6.7 for working deaths during 1982 to 1984, with just under half of the decline probably due to changes in the industry distribution of the workforce. Another 802 persons were fatally injured as a result of someone else’s work activity, and 296 persons aged 15 years and over were fatally injured while undertaking active tasks in an unpaid and informal capacity in their own home or in someone else’s home. Thirty-four percent of working deaths were not covered by either occupational health and safety (OHS) or compensation agencies. A consideration of External Cause codes for the period 1979 to 1997 inclusive suggested there was a yearly decrease in the rate of workplace deaths of 2.6% per year, with less than half of this change due to industry changes in the workforce. Deaths occurring in a small number of particular circumstances were found to pose classification problems. Conclusion: Fatal work-related trauma remains an important problem for the Australian community. By understanding how and why these deaths occur, appropriate steps can be taken to prevent similar incidents recurring. It is expected that the results reported here, and other information that has arisen from the study, will make an important contribution to developing this understanding and preventing the occurrence of work- related traumatic death in Australia

Asia Comes to Main Street and May Learn to Speak Spanish: Globalization in a Poor Neighborhood in Worcester

This paper considers how and why an Asian enclave of small businesses has appeared in a poor neighborhood characterized by Puerto Rican and other Latino immigration in the post-industrial city of Worcester, Massachusetts. We begin by examining the role of the US in the world system, and argue that the US hegemonic role and specific political economic aspects of global capitalism (ie. deindustrialization) account for some of the migration stream. Next, using socioeconomic and historical data, interviews, and observations, we outline the history of Worcester’s economy and immigration patterns. We demonstrate that the increasing economic inequality leaves few promising employment options for newcomers to Worcester. Drawing on existing literature on immigrant entrepreneurs and ethnic enclaves, we argue that some aspects of the literature appear to shed light on the Vietnamese enterprises which have so visibly appeared (e.g., ethnic niches), while others, (e.g., middle-man minority theory) are not now reflected in local conflict. We conclude by considering the prospects for immigrants to this neighborhood in light of its political economic context

Study of Maize Drying in Uganda Using an in-Store Dryer Weather Data Simulation Software

The applicability of an in-store drying system in Uganda as an alternative for maize drying and storage was studied. With the 13.5 tonne capacity In-store Dryer (ISD) used in this study, the predicteddrying rates were lower,and investment costs and operating costs lower, than other comparable grain dryers. In the simulation, the fan and burner were operated 24 hours continuously irrespective of weather. Under these conditions for the two districts Jinja and Kasese, the cost of drying a kilogram of maize was estimated at around US$0.203/kg. The final product after drying had a dry matter loss (DML) of under 0.6$0.0507/kg, was better for the Kasese district. It was observed that both drying costs and profit were greatly affected by price fluctuations of fuel and electricity and also the unpredictable prices for maize

Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy : I. Semimetals and semiconductors. II. Atom-resolved imaging of DNA

The topographic and electronic structure of semiconductor and semimetal surfaces were investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS), respectively. The longrange morphology and atomic-scale characteristics of cleaved materials such as highly oriented pyrolitic graphite (HOPG), boronated pyrolitic graphite (BPG), titanium disulfide, and gallium arsenide (GaAs) were revealed by STM performed under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions. Atomic resolution constant-current and current-imaging data, as well as barrier height information obtained from tunneling gap modulation, are presented. Both point and line defects were observed on these surfaces; the origin and role of native and adsorbed surface defects are discussed. Visual evidence of coulombic screening caused by adsorption of charged species on n-type GaAs(110) is provided. The atomic corrugation of the GaAs surface was measured to be as little as 0.03 Å peak-to-valley, attesting to the stability of the microscope design. The BPG sample used in these studies consisted of up to 0.5% boron; boron is the only known substitutional impurity of graphite. Boron substituent atoms appeared as small protrusions approximately 3 Å in diameter, with an atom density consistent with the assumed concentration.The BPG surface exhibited frequent line defects, including large-angle grain boundaries, and monolayer-depth etch pits. Images of BPG in air using graphite tips showed similar results; the validity of the popular "sliding-planes" mechanism for graphite imaging is evaluated. The effects of anisotropic stress on the morphology and reconstruction of a thermally annealed Si(111) wafer were explored. The height and orientation of step bunches, as well as terrace widths, on the (7x7) surface were determined. Electromigration effects were also observed; although the overall surface slope was conserved, the step bunches were "smeared out" by reversal of the current direction during heating. Line fault defects at step kinks were observed; a theory for the origin and structure of these features based on stress relief is proposed. Current imaging tunneling spectroscopy (CITS) and localized STS revealed differences between the adatom sites of the (7x7) surface. Atom-resolved barrier height images were also obtained;comparison to constant-current images may in fact provide a means of differentiating between defects and adsorbed species on the surface. The local effective barrier height was seen to depend strongly on the "cleanliness" of the STM tip. The barrier height increased dramatically following voltage pulsing on the order of ten volts. The large height of the step bunches also provided a good test to evaluate the sharpness of the STM tip; examples of "tip changes" affecting image resolution and "multiple-tipping" are provided. Silicon samples annealed at temperatures below 1000°C revealed substantial silicon carbide (SiC) contamination which effected step pinning. No SiC islands were observed on samples annealed above 1250°C. In addition, atom-resolved STM images of duplex DNA supported on a HOPG surface were obtained in UHV. These images revealed double-helical structure, major and minor groove alternation, base pairs, and atomic-scale substructure. Comparison of the DNA dimensions derived from the STM data were in agreement with those from x-ray crystallography for "random-sequence" A-form DNA. Cross sectional profiles of the experimental STM data showed excellent correlation with the atomic contours of the van der Waals surface of A-DNA. Barrier height cross-sections showed general correlation with the atomic-scale topography over the phosphate-sugar backbone but distinct anticorrelation (complementarity) over the base pair region. The problems of aggregation and deposition coverage are discussed in the context of possible future applications of STM to DNA sequencing. The use of alternate techniques of DNA deposition, including electrospray ionization, for increased experimental reproducibility are described. The limitations of HOPG as a substrate for biomolecular adsorbates in STM experiments are evaluated.</p

BMY21190, A Potent Inhibitor of cAMP Phosphodiesterase

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72811/1/j.1527-3466.1994.tb00291.x.pd

p38 MAPK and the C2C12 cell cycle : in vitro and in silico investigations.

Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.The mammalian cell cycle and its points-of-entry are well characterized pathways. These points-of-entry are normally regulated via mitogens and include, amongst others, the ERK, JNK and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. However, while the restriction point(R-point), the temporal switch-point at which a cell becomes irrevocably committed to division irrespective of mitogenic stimulus, is known among other cell types, its position within the murine myoblast line C2C12 is currently unknown. Similarly, while MAPK pathways, such as JNK and ERK, have been modeled computationally, no model yet exists of p38 MAPK as stimulated by mitogens. The aims of this dissertation, then, were to determine the R-point within the C2C12 cell cycle and construct a computational mitogen-stimulated p38 MAPK model. It was found that a synchronous C2C12 population, when stimulated to divide, took 7 to 9 hours to reach S-phase from G0, consistent with data from the literature. The R-point was determined to lie between 6 and 7 hours post G1-re-entry stimulation,which was consistent with studies in other cell types. Core modeling of the p38 MAPK pathway revealed that ultrasensitivitywas inherent within the pathway structure. Further, a branching/re-converging structure within the pathway imparted greater responsiveness to signal upon the pathway. A realistic p38 MAPK model demonstrated good responsiveness to signal, its output matched that of several other MAPK models, and it was capable of replicating previous in vitro data. This model can be used as a tool for further investigation of the mammalian cell cycle by linking it to other cell cycle models. The predictions by an expanded model may be better suited for understanding the effects of mitogen stimulus on the cell cycle in situ

Presumptive TRP channel CED-11 promotes cell volume decrease and facilitates degradation of apoptotic cells in

Apoptotic cells undergo a series of morphological changes. These changes are dependent on caspase cleavage of downstream targets, but which targets are signifi cant and how they facilitate the death process are not well understood. In Caenorhabditis elegans an increase in the refractility of the dying cell is a hallmark morphological change that is caspase dependent. We identify a presumptive transient receptor potential (TRP) cation channel, CED-11, that acts in the dying cell to promote the increase in apoptotic cell refractility. CED-11 is required for multiple other morphological changes during apoptosis, including an increase in electron density as visualized by electron microscopy and a decrease in cell volume. In ced-11 mutants, the degradation of apoptotic cells is delayed. Mutation of ced-11 does not cause an increase in cell survival but can enhance cell survival in other cell-death mutants, indicating that ced-11 facilitates the death process. In short, ced-11 acts downstream of caspase activation to promote the shrinkage, death, and degradation of apoptotic cells. Keywords: TRP channel; apoptosis; C. elegans; cell volume; apoptotic volume decreaseNational Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant T32GM007287