Electronic titling: Potential and risks

Initiatives in electronic conveyancing and registration show the potential of new technologies to transform such systems, reducing costs and enhancing legal security. However,they also incur substantial risks of transferring costs and risks among registries, conveyancersand rightholders, instead of reducing them; entrenching the private interests of conveyancers,instead of increasing competition and disintermediating them; modifying the allocation of tasksin a way that leads in the long term to the debasement of registries of rights with indefeasibletitle into mere recordings of deeds; and empowering conveyancers instead of transactors andrightholders, which increases costs and reduces security. Fulfilling the promise of newtechnologies in both costs and security requires strengthening registries incentives andempowering rightholders in their interaction with registries.

The size and distribution of donations: Effects of numbers of potential recipients

Whereas much literature exists on choice overload, little is known about effects of numbers of alternatives in donation decisions. How do these affect both the size and distribution of donations? We hypothesize that donations are affected by the reputation of recipients and increase with their number, albeit at a decreasing rate. Allocations to recipients reflect different concepts of fairness equity and equality. Both may be employed but, since they differ in cognitive and emotional costs, numbers of recipients are important. Using a cognitive (emotional) argument, distributions become more uniform (skewed) as numbers increase. In a survey, respondents indicated how they would donate lottery winnings of 50 Euros. Results indicated that more was donated to NGO s that respondents knew better. Second, total donations increased with the number of recipients albeit at a decreasing rate. Third, distributions of donations became more skewed as numbers increased. We comment on theoretical and practical implications.

Predicting the potential for lightning activity in mediterranean storms based on the WRF model dynamic and microphysical fields

A new parameter is introduced: the lightning potential index (LPI), which is a measure of the potential for charge generation and separation that leads to lightning flashes in convective thunderstorms. The LPI is calculated within the charge separation region of clouds between 0 C and 20 C, where the noninductive mechanism involving collisions of ice and graupel particles in the presence of supercooled water is most effective. As shown in several case studies using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model with explicit microphysics, the LPI is highly correlated with observed lightning. It is suggested that the LPI may be a useful parameter for predicting lightning as well as a tool for improving weather forecasting of convective storms and heavy rainfall.

Experimental evidence that intra-specific competition in seagrass meadows reduces reproductive potential in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus (Lamarck)

To better understand the biological controls that regulate sea urchin dynamics, we studied the effects of potential inter- and intra-specific competition for food on several biological variables of the main sea urchin in the Mediterranean (Paracentrotus lividus). We carried out a caging experiment in which we manipulated sea urchin density (natural vs. high density) and herbivorous fish (Sarpa salpa) accessibility (free access vs. exclusion) in a Posidonia oceanica meadow. No evidence of competition between fish and urchins was detected. Neither density-dependent mortality nor changes in the somatic variables were found; however, we detected that intra-specific competition affected the reproductive potential of P. lividus. The gonad index of urchins at high population densities was ca. 30% lower than that of urchins at natural densities. As a spawning event had just occurred when urchins were collected, these differences probably reflect differences in reserve content, which may compromise the following reproductive period and decrease survival in the long term, as the gonads are also used as storage organs. For the time period studied, mortality rates appeared to be independent of local densities. The results indicate that a long-term negative feedback mechanism appears to take place in P. lividus in response to increased population density.

Specialisation in Europe and asymmetric shocks: potential risks of EMU

Most optimistic views, based on Optimum Currency Areas (OCA) literature, have concluded that the probability of asymmetric shocks to occur at anational level will tend to diminish in the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)as a result of the intensification of the integration process during the most recent years. Therefore, since Economic Geography Theories predict a higherspecialisation of regions, it is expected that asymmetric shocks will increase.Previous studies have examined to what extent asymmetric shocks have been relevant in the past using, mainly, static measures of asymmetries such as the correlation coefficients between series of shocks previously calculated from astructural VAR model (Bayoumi and Eichengreen, 1992).In this paper, we study the evolution of manufacturing specific asymmetries in Europe from a dynamic point of view (applying the modelproposed by Haldane and Hall, 1991) in order to obtain new evidence about potential risks of EMU.

Specialisation in Europe and asymmetric shocks: potential risks of EMU

Most optimistic views, based on Optimum Currency Areas (OCA) literature, have concluded that the probability of asymmetric shocks to occur at anational level will tend to diminish in the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)as a result of the intensification of the integration process during the most recent years. Therefore, since Economic Geography Theories predict a higherspecialisation of regions, it is expected that asymmetric shocks will increase.Previous studies have examined to what extent asymmetric shocks have been relevant in the past using, mainly, static measures of asymmetries such as the correlation coefficients between series of shocks previously calculated from astructural VAR model (Bayoumi and Eichengreen, 1992).In this paper, we study the evolution of manufacturing specific asymmetries in Europe from a dynamic point of view (applying the modelproposed by Haldane and Hall, 1991) in order to obtain new evidence about potential risks of EMU.

Comment on the plasmon model for image-potential-induced surface states

Calculations of the binding energy of bound positron states in metal surfaces, with explicit inclusion of plasmon dispersion and single-particle effects, are presented. The binding energy is greatly reduced with respect to the undispersed case.

Semiclassical image potential at a solid surface

A surface dielectric function of a semi-infinite plane-bounded metal is defined in the spirit of the plasmon-pole dielectric function of the bulk. It is modeled in such a way that the surface-plasmon dispersion relation is recovered for small momentum transfer. This function is employed to compute the image potential at all distances outside the surface. Interaction with bulk modes is neglected for simplicity and clarity. The interaction of a massive point charge with a metal surface is also considered in the context of a boson model for surface-plasmon excitation. We present a new definition of the image potential for this case.

Pauli distorted double folded potential

The enhancement in the production of even-Z nuclei observed in nuclear fission has also been observed in fragments produced from heavy ion collsions. Beams of 40Ar, 40Cl, and 40Ca at 25 MeV/nucleon were impinged on 58Fe and 58Ni targets. The resulting fragments were detected using the MSU 4pi detector array, which had additional silicon detectors for better isotopic resolution. Comparison of the ratios of yields for each element showed enhancement of even-Z fragment production. The enhancement was more pronounced for reactions with a greater difference in the N/Z of the compound system. However, this effect was less for systems that were more neutron rich. The average N/Z for fragments also displayed an odd-even effect with a lower average N/Z for the even-Z fragments. This is related to the greater availability of neutron-poor isotopes for even-Z nuclei

Antikaon potential in hot and dense matter

The antikaon optical potential in hot and dense nuclear matter is studied within the framework of a coupled-channel self-consistent calculation taking, as bare meson-baryon interaction, the meson-exchange potential of the Jlich group. Typical conditions found in heavy-ion collisions at GSI are explored. As in the case of zero temperature, the angular momentum components larger than L=0 contribute significantly to the finite temperature antikaon optical potential at finite momentum. It is found that the particular treatment of the medium effects has a strong influence on the behavior of the antikaon potential with temperature. Our self-consistent model, in which antikaons and pions are dressed in the medium, gives a moderately temperature dependent antikaon potential which remains attractive at GSI temperatures, contrary to what one finds if only nuclear Pauli blocking effects are included.

Escape over a potential barrier driven by colored noise: Large but finite correlation times

The recent theory of Tsironis and Grigolini for the mean first-passage time from one metastable state to another of a bistable potential for long correlation times of the noise is extended to large but finite correlation times.

Deuteron properties using a truncated one-piox exchange potential

Deuteron properties are studied using the one-pion exchange potential truncated at a radius R, with a constant interior potential. The spectrum of bound states and their properties are put in evidence. We discuss the relation of this model to more realistic models of the nucleon-nucleon interaction.