Multilateral strategy for international competition policy. A proposal on hard core cartels

El presente trabajo aborda la problemática de la política de competencia internacional bajo el prisma de la solución multilateral. A partir de la inconsistencia que supone la regulación nacional para mercados globales, y dada la resistencia de los estados a ceder soberanía en el ámbito de la política de competencia, exploramos cómo podría configurarse un organismo internacional para la detección e investigación de la única práctica restrictiva para la que existe consenso inter-jurisdiccional sobre sus efectos dañinos para la economía: los hard core cartels. En concreto, planteamos la creación de un Servicio de Investigación internacional y analizamos el modo en que éste desempeñaría sus funciones en la práctica.This paper addresses the issue of international competition policy through the prism of the multilateral solution. Since the inconsistency that results from that global markets are regulated by national institutions, and given the States ́ resistance to cede sovereignty in the field of competition policy, we explore how an international body could be set for the detection and investigation of the only restrictive practice for which there is inter-jurisdictional consensus about its harmful effects on the economy: hard core cartels. Specifically, we propose the creation of an International Investigation Service and analyze how it would perform its task in practic

Residential Location Econometric Choice Modeling With Irregular Zoning: Common Border Spatial Correlation Metric

[Abstract] Residential location choice (RLC) predicts where and how people choose their residential location in the framework of land use–transport interaction models (LUTI). This paper seeks an efficient RLC model in the context of irregular zoning of location alternatives. The main current proposals in the field are discrete choice models. In RLC modeling, the alternatives are spatial units, and spatially correlated logit (SCL) is an efficient approach when the analyst cannot pre-define groups of alternatives that efficiently reflect the systematic substitution patterns among the alternatives. The SCL uses the spatial information on the contiguity of the zones to determine spatial correlation among the alternatives. Urban residential location choice usually uses administrative zoning, which is very irregular in many cities (mainly historic cities); however, SCL is not efficient in this context owing to the limitations of the binary contiguity spatial variable employed as a spatial correlation metric (SCM). This paper proposes an extension of the mixed SCL model, with an SCM based on the proportion of common border length in contiguous zones, which is more efficient in the irregular urban zoning context. The proposed model is applied to an urban case study of LUTI RLC modeling with irregular zoning, based on the administrative divisions of the city of Santander (Spain) and is shown to be empirically more efficient than the previous approaches.The authors acknowledge the financial support provided by the Government of Spain under the projects TRA2012-37659 and RTI2018-097924-B-I00 MCIU/AEI/FEDER, U

La auditoría informática en España: el caso de los hoteles

Este estudio surge de otro estudio realizado sobre la evolución de la auditoría informática en el sector empresarial español, “IT audit in the Spanish business sector: longitudinal analysis (2001-2011)” (Martínez-López et al., 2015). Por tal motivo, se pretende situar la evolución de dicha auditoría perteneciente a las empresas del sector hotelero español en un marco comparativo al sector empresarial español en general, definiendo la evolución de la implementación de la auditoría informática en éstas, y encuadrándola enporcentajes de realización como en profesionales que la ejecutan, y su vinculación con la importancia que estas empresas le dan a Internet y con el uso del comercio electrónico.Con el fin de promover la concienciación en la prevención de posibles problemas informáticos en las empresas a través de laejecución de estas auditorías informáticas.62 empresas encuestadas que nos han permitido observar la mayor concienciación de las empresas del sector hotelero español, a lo largo del tiempo, por las auditorías informáticas como medida preventiva a los posibles problemas en una disciplina tan importante para las empresas como es la tecnología. Ya que, en un principio, la diferencia entre este sector y las empresas españolas en general era bastante amplia en este campo.This study stems from another study about the evolution of the IT audit in the Spanish business sector, ‘IT audit in the Spanish business sector: longitudinal analysis (2001-2011)’ (Martínez-López et al., 2015). Therefore, it is intended to place the development of this audit belonging to companies of Spanish hotel sector in a comparative frame to the Spanish businesssector in general, defining the evolution of the implementation of IT audit in these ones, and framing it in percentages of implementation and professionals who make them, and its linkages to the importance that these companies give Internet and the use of electronic commerce. In order to promote awareness on the prevention of possible IT problems in companies through the implementation of these IT audits.Conducted through a survey to 62 companies that has allowed us to observe the growing awareness of Companies of Spanish hotel sector, along time, by IT audits as a preventive measure to potential problems on a discipline so important for businesses as technology. Since, initially, the difference between this sector and the Spanish business sector in general was quite extensive in this fiel

Increasing Boarding Lost Time at Regular Bus Stops during Rainy Conditions: A Case Study

[Abstract] Inclement weather conditions affect the behavior of travelers and transportation system operations. Understanding this influence can help improve operational planning schemes for any mode of transport, especially for buses. One of the factors that can be affected by rainfall is the time expended by a passenger from the moment a bus opens its doors until he/she boards the bus. This time is known as “boarding lost time” (BLT), and it was first introduced in the latest edition of the Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual (TCQSM). TCQSM only considers BLT for bus rapid transit (BRT) stations with more than one berth. Weather conditions are not considered when calculating the current BLT for a BRT system, given the provision of protective shelters over the entire boarding area of such stations. Furthermore, recommendations with regard to BLT for regular bus stops have not been provided. This paper presents analyses of BLT for a two-berth regular bus stop under different rainy conditions. The findings demonstrate that the increment in BLT between Berth 2 and Berth 1 under heavy rainfall is significantly higher than in the absence of rainfall.This study is part of the research project “Experimental analysis and modeling of the influence of stops, transfers, and right-of-way in bus systems,” reference RTI2018-097924-B-I00 MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE

Compreender crianças com inibição emocional: Uma abordagem com múltiplos informadores do contexto educacional e familiar

Behavioral inhibition (BI) is a temperament trait characterized by extreme fear in the face of novelty. BI has been associated with the development of mental disorders. However, there is a lack of research examining the socioemotional and behavioral characteristics of behaviorally inhibited children both in family and school settings. For a more comprehensive and in-depth overview of children’s behavior in each of these contexts, this study has collected data from both parents (mother and father – family setting) and from teachers (educational environment). The sample consisted of 109 children aged between four and six years old. Multi-informant approach was used: all fathers, mothers and teachers completed both the Preschool Behavioral Inhibition Scales, the Child Behavior Checklist for parents and teachers, and the Behavior Assessment System for Children and Adolescents. Our findings revealed that children classified as BI exhibit less socioemotional and behavioral adjustments than their uninhibited peers both in family and school contexts. Further, the shyness variable seemed to be strongly associated with behavioral inhibition, regardless of informant and context.A inibição comportamental (IC) é um traço de temperamento caracterizado por medo extremo face a situações novas. A IC tem sido associada ao desenvolvimento de perturbações mentais. No entanto, é escassa a investigação que examina as características socio-emocionais e comportamentais de crianças com inibição comportamental em contextos educacionais e familiares. Para uma visão global mais compreensiva e aprofundada do comportamento da criança em cada um destes contextos, este estudo recolheu dados com os pais (mãe e pai – contexto familiar) e com os professores (contexto educacional). A amostra foi constituída por 109 crianças, entre os quatro e os seis anos de idade. Foi utilizada uma abordagem com múltiplos informadores: todos os pais, mães e professores completaram as Escalas de Inibição Comportamental para o Pré-Escolar, o Questionário de Comportamento da Criança para pais e professores (CBCL e TRF), e o Sistema de Avaliação do Comportamento para Crianças e Adolescentes (BASC). Os resultados revelaram que crianças consideradas com IC apresentavam níveis mais baixos de ajustamento socio-emocional e comportamental comparativamente a crianças não inibidas, tanto no contexto familiar como no contexto educacional. Adicionalmente, a variável de timidez pareceu ser a que mais fortemente se associou à inibição comportamental, independentemente do informador e do contexto

E-Tongues/Noses Based on Conducting Polymers and Composite Materials: Expanding the Possibilities in Complex Analytical Sensing

Conducting polymers (CPs) are extensively studied due to their high versatility and electrical properties, as well as their high environmental stability. Based on the above, their applications as electronic devices are promoted and constitute an interesting matter of research. This review summa- rizes their application in common electronic devices and their implementation in electronic tongues and noses systems (E-tongues and E-noses, respectively). The monitoring of diverse factors with these devices by multivariate calibration methods for different applications is also included. Lastly, a critical discussion about the enclosed analytical potential of several conducting polymer-based devices in electronic systems reported in literature will be offered

Theoretical study of the adsorption of hydrogen on cobalt clusters

Producción CientíficaAdsorption and dissociation of molecular hydrogen on transition metal clusters are basic processes of broad technological application in fields such as catalysis, hydrogenation reactions, hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen storage, etc. Here we focus on two cobalt clusters, Co6 and Co13, and use the density functional formalism to investigate: (i) the mechanisms for adsorption and dissociation of hydrogen, and (ii) the competition between the two processes as the amount of hydrogen increases towards cluster saturation. The dissociative adsorption of hydrogen is the preferred adsorption channel for low coverage. Each individual H atom binds to the cluster with an ionic type of bonding, similar to that in metal hydrides. The electronic levels of the H atoms hybridize with the deepest levels of the Co cluster, leading to the stabilization of the system. In contrast H2 binds to the cluster with a weak covalent type of bond and the electronic density of the molecule becomes polarized. The electronic levels of the molecule are deeper than those of the Co cluster and do not hybridize with them, which explains the weak bonding of the molecule to the cluster. Interestingly, the high magnetic moments of the Co clusters do not change when H2 is adsorbed in molecular form, but the magnetic moments decrease by two Bohr magnetons upon dissociative adsorption of the molecule. Adsorption and dissociation of H2 on Co6 and Co13 exhibit similar features, although the adsorption energies on Co13 are stronger. Saturation of Co6 with hydrogen has been also investigated. Co6 can adsorb up to four H2 molecules in the dissociated form. Additional hydrogen is adsorbed in molecular form leading to a saturated cluster with sixteen hydrogen molecules, four dissociated and twelve molecular. This limit corresponds to a content of 8.4 wt% of hydrogen in the Co cluster, which is promising for the purpose of hydrogen storage.2019-09-092019-09-09Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (Project MAT2014-54378-R)Junta de Castilla y León (programa de apoyo a proyectos de investigación - Ref.VA021G18