Land, technical progress and the falling rate of profit

The paper sets out a one sector growth model with a neoclassical production function in land and a capital-labour aggregate. Capital accumulates through capitalist saving, the labour supply is infinitely elastic at a subsistence wage and all factors may experience factor augmenting technical progress. The main result is that, if the elasticity of substitution between land and the capital-labour aggregate is less than one and if the rate of caital augmenting technical progress is strictly positive, then the rate of profit will fall to zero. The surprise is that this result holds regardless of the rate of land augmenting technical progress; that is, no amount of technical advance in agriculture can stop the fall in the rate of profit. The paper also discusses the relation of this result to the classical and Marxist literature and sets out the path of the relative price of land.

Technical innovations at the service of cheaper labour in pre-industrial Europe. The Enlightened agenda to transform the gender division of labour in silk manufacturing

In 1749, Jacques de Vaucanson patented his or tour pour tirer la soie or spindle for silk reeling. In that same year he presented his invention to the Academy of the Sciences in Paris, of which he was a member1. Jacques de Vaucanson was born in Grenoble, France, in 1709, and died in Paris in 1782. In 1741 he had been appointed inspector of silk manufactures by Louis XV. He set about reorganizing the silk industry in France, in considerable difficulty at the time due to foreign competition. Given Vaucanson’s position, his invention was intended to replace the traditional Piémontes method, and had an immediate impact upon the silk industry in France and all over Europe.

Nuclear Weapons as Symbols. The Role of Norms in Nuclear Policy Making

Throughout history, nuclear weapons have been considered to be the ultimate weapons. This understanding largely detached them from the portfolio of conventional military means and assigned them a symbolic meaning that influenced the identity and norms creation of nations. In most countries today, the development of nuclear weapons is considered morally prohibitive, incompatible with a country’s identity and international outlook. In some states, however, these negative norms are overridden by a positive set of norms, causing nuclear weapons to become either symbols of invulnerability to perceived threats or the regalia of major power status. Main purpose of this paper is to explore on the conditions that cause most states to develop a moral aversion to nuclear weapons, yet effectively lead to their glorification in others. Many studies on the normative understanding of nuclear weapons consider the existence of a negative normative predisposition, often referred to as ‘nuclear taboo’, as a major factor in preventing their acquisition and use. Other studies acknowledge the existence of a nuclear taboo inhibiting the use of nuclear weapons, but point to the existence of the opposing effect of norms, frequently referred to as the ‘nuclear myth’, when it comes to the acquisition of nuclear weapons. This myth emerges when certain symbolic meanings are attached to nuclear weapons, such as a state’s identity, self-image, and its desired position in the international system. With 180 odd countries in the world abstaining from the acquisition of nuclear weapons and 8 countries in possession of them (with two further countries assumed to have pursued their acquisition), one might consider the dominance of the nuclear taboo over the nuclear myth to be the rule. The core question is thus why and how this relationship reversed in the case of defectors.

Caracterización agronómica, fenológica, cualitativa y molecular de la colección nuclear de cebadas españolas

El presente proyecto planteaba el paso siguiente a la construcción, por nosotros mismos, de la Colección Nuclear de Cebadas Españolas, que es una representación esquemática de la variabilidad genética de las cebadas ancestralmente cultivadas en nuestro país. Para la explotación completa de estos materiales autóctonos en el Programa Nacional de Mejora de Cebadas, que estamos llevando a cabo los grupos integrantes de este proyecto, se realizó el mismo, que ha comprendido los objetivos siguientes: - Caracterización agronómica, mediante ensayos de campo en ambientes contrastantes y representativos, incluyendo la evaluación de respuestas a factores productores de estreses bióticos y abióticos. - Caracterización fenológica, mediante ensayos en invernadero con protocolos desarrollados por nosotros, para identificar la respuesta de estos genotipos a la vernalización y el fotoperiodo. - Caracterización maltero-cervecera/pienso, mediante análisis de cebada y malta. - Caracterización molecular, mediante el uso de marcadores SSRs y STS.

North-South trade and directed technical change

In a world where poor countries provide weak protection for intellectual property rights (IPRs), market integration shifts technical change in favor of rich nations. Through this channel, free trade may amplify international income differences. At the same time, integration with countries where IPRs are weakly protected can slow down the world growth rate. An important implication of these results is that protection of intellectual property is most beneficial in open countries. This prediction, which is novel in the literature, is consistent with evidence from a panel of 53 countries observed in the years 1965-1990. The paper also provides empirical support for the mechanism linking North-South trade to the direction of technical change: an increase in import penetration from low-wage, low-IPRs, countries is followed by a sharp fall in R&D investment in a panel of US manufacturing sectors.

Organització nuclear dels gens que codifiquen per a les proteïnes làcties en cèlules epitelials mamàries en diferents estadis de desenvolupament

Estudi realitzat a partir d’una estada al Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), a França, entre 2006 i 2008. En el ultims anys, estudis realitzats en diferents tipus cel•lulars han pogut determinar l’importància de l’organització nuclear en el control i regulació gènica. S’han realizat diferents experiments per tal de determinar si la posició dels gens de les proteïnes làcties en el nucli interfàsic de cel•lules epitelials mamaries és important per regular la seva expressió. Els gens de les proteïnes de la llet s’expressen a la glàndula mamaria durant la lactació en resposta a les hormones lactogèniques (majoritàriament prolactina i glucocorticoids). Mitjançant la tècnica de FISH (fluorescent in situ hibridization) en 3D s’ha caracteritzat la localització nuclear del gens WAP (whey acidic protein) i les caseïnes en cèl•lules epitelials mamaries de ratolí (HC11) cultivades en l’absència i presencia d’hormones lactogèniques. En absència d’hormones, els dos gens estan distribuïts dins del nucli de forma no aleatòria, el gen WAP es troba localitzat en l’interior del nucli, mentre que les caseïnes es troben localitzades prop de la perifèria nuclear. L’estimulació hormonal indueix un canvi significatiu en la distància dels dos gens a la perifèria nuclear. Així mateix, la posició del locus de la caseïna en relació al seu territori cromosòmic (CT) 5 està correlacionada amb la inducció hormonal i per tant amb la seva activació transcripcional, mentre que la posició del gen WAP amb relació al seu CT11 sembla més determinada pel context cromosòmic del gen. Per últim, no s’han trobat diferencies en la localització dels gens en relació a l'heterocromatina del centròmer, descrit com a compartiment repressiu, entre les cèl•lules estimulades amb hormones i les que no. En els dos casos s’ha trobat un gran percentatge de gens que no estan associats als centròmers.

The problem of the competitiveness of nuclear energy: a biophysical explanation

In this study I try to explain the systemic problem of the low economic competitiveness of nuclear energy for the production of electricity by carrying out a biophysical analysis of its production process. Given the fact that neither econometric approaches nor onedimensional methods of energy analyses are effective, I introduce the concept of biophysical explanation as a quantitative analysis capable of handling the inherent ambiguity associated with the concept of energy. In particular, the quantities of energy, considered as relevant for the assessment, can only be measured and aggregated after having agreed on a pre-analytical definition of a grammar characterizing a given set of finite transformations. Using this grammar it becomes possible to provide a biophysical explanation for the low economic competitiveness of nuclear energy in the production of electricity. When comparing the various unit operations of the process of production of electricity with nuclear energy to the analogous unit operations of the process of production of fossil energy, we see that the various phases of the process are the same. The only difference is related to characteristics of the process associated with the generation of heat which are completely different in the two systems. Since the cost of production of fossil energy provides the base line of economic competitiveness of electricity, the (lack of) economic competitiveness of the production of electricity from nuclear energy can be studied, by comparing the biophysical costs associated with the different unit operations taking place in nuclear and fossil power plants when generating process heat or net electricity. In particular, the analysis focuses on fossil-fuel requirements and labor requirements for those phases that both nuclear plants and fossil energy plants have in common: (i) mining; (ii) refining/enriching; (iii) generating heat/electricity; (iv) handling the pollution/radioactive wastes. By adopting this approach, it becomes possible to explain the systemic low economic competitiveness of nuclear energy in the production of electricity, because of: (i) its dependence on oil, limiting its possible role as a carbon-free alternative; (ii) the choices made in relation to its fuel cycle, especially whether it includes reprocessing operations or not; (iii) the unavoidable uncertainty in the definition of the characteristics of its process; (iv) its large inertia (lack of flexibility) due to issues of time scale; and (v) its low power level.

Uranium reserve, nuclear fuel cycle delusion, CO2 emission from the sea, and electricity supply: reflections after the fuel meltdown of Fukushima nuclear power units

The Great Tohoku-Kanto earthquake and resulting tsunami has brought considerable attention to the issue of the construction of new power plants. We argue in this paper, nuclear power is not a sustainable solution to energy problems. First, we explore the stock of uranium-235 and the different schemes developed by the nuclear power industry to exploit this resource. Second, we show that these methods, fast breeder and MOX fuel reactors, are not feasible. Third, we show that the argument that nuclear energy can be used to reduce CO2 emissions is false: the emissions from the increased water evaporation from nuclear power generation must be accounted for. In the case of Japan, water from nuclear power plants is drained into the surrounding sea, raising the water temperature which has an adverse affect on the immediate ecosystem, as well as increasing CO2 emissions from increased water evaporation from the sea. Next, a short exercise is used to show that nuclear power is not even needed to meet consumer demand in Japan. Such an exercise should be performed for any country considering the construction of additional nuclear power plants. Lastly, the paper is concluded with a discussion of the implications of our findings.

Ús de la ressonància magnètica nuclear amb espectroscopia per a la detecció del càncer prostàtic a la glàndula central

El diagnòstic precoç del càncer de pròstata fins a dia d’avui s’ha servit del tacte rectal, i els valors de PSA per establir quins pacients són sospitosos de patir aquesta afecció. Treballs recents estableixen que proves morfològiques com la ressonància magnètica, i funcionals com l’espectroscòpia ajudarien encara més a discriminar aquests pacients dels sans. En el nostre treball pretenem esbrinar; si l’ús de la ressonància magnètica amb espectroscòpia és igual d’eficient en el cas de que l’eventual càncer es localitzi a la glàndula central.

Decomposable approximations of nuclear C*-algebras

We show that nuclear C*-algebras have a re ned version of the completely positive approximation property, in which the maps that approximately factorize through finite dimensional algebras are convex combinations of order zero maps. We use this to show that a separable nuclear C*-algebra A which is closely contained in a C*-algebra B embeds into B.

Biophysical requirements of power-supply systems: nuclear energy and fossil energy

The report presents a grammar capable of analyzing the process of production of electricity in modular elements for different power-supply systems, defined using semantic and formal categories. In this way it becomes possible to individuate similarities and differences in the process of production of electricity, and then measure and compare “apples” with “apples” and “oranges” with “oranges”. For instance, when comparing the various unit operations of the process of production of electricity with nuclear energy to the analogous unit operations of the process of production of fossil energy, we see that the various phases of the process are the same. The only difference is related to characteristics of the process associated with the generation of heat which are completely different in the two systems. As a matter of facts, the performance of the production of electricity from nuclear energy can be studied, by comparing the biophysical costs associated with the different unit operations taking place in nuclear and fossil power plants when generating process heat or net electricity. By adopting this approach, it becomes possible to compare the performance of the two power-supply systems by comparing their relative biophysical requirements for the phases that both nuclear energy power plants and fossil energy power plants have in common: (i) mining; (ii) refining/enriching; (iii) generating heat/electricity; (iv) handling the pollution/radioactive wastes. This report presents the evaluation of the biophysical requirements for the two powersupply systems: nuclear energy and fossil energy. In particular, the report focuses on the following requirements: (i) electricity; (ii) fossil-fuels, (iii) labor; and (iv) materials.

Assessing the viability of power-supply systems: a tentative protocol

This Technical Report presents a tentative protocol used to assess the viability of powersupply systems. The viability of power-supply systems can be assessed by looking at the production factors (e.g. paid labor, power capacity, fossil-fuels) – needed for the system to operate and maintain itself – in relation to the internal constraints set by the energetic metabolism of societies. In fact, by using this protocol it becomes possible to link assessments of technical coefficients performed at the level of the power-supply systems with assessments of benchmark values performed at the societal level throughout the relevant different sectors. In particular, the example provided here in the case of France for the year 2009 makes it possible to see that in fact nuclear energy is not viable in terms of labor requirements (both direct and indirect inputs) as well as in terms of requirements of power capacity, especially when including reprocessing operations.

Comparativa de dues eines de software pel desenvolupament de classificadors d'espectroscòpia de ressonància magnètica nuclear de tumors cerebrals humans

En aquest treball s’ha fet una avaluació comparativa dels resultats que es poden obtenir amb el software SpectraClassifier 1.0 (SC) desenvolupat al nostre grup de recerca, comparant‐lo amb l’SPSS, un programa estadístic informàtic estàndard, en un problema de classificació de tumors cerebrals humans amb dades d’espectroscopia de ressonància magnètica de protó (1H‐ERM). El interès d’aquesta avaluació comparativa radica en la documentació dels resultats obtinguts amb els dos sistemes quan en la correcció dels resultats obtinguts, així com ponderar la versatilitat i usabilitat dels dos paquets de software per a una aplicació concreta d’interès al treball del GABRMN. Per a aquest treball s’han utilitzat dades provinents de dos projecte europeus multicèntrics (INTERPRET i eTumour) en els quals vam participar. Les classes tumorals utilitzades (d’un total de 217 pacients) han sigut les majoritàries des del punt de vista epidemiològic: glioblastoma multiforme, metàstasi, astrocitomes de grau II, ligodendrogliomes de grau II, oligoastrocitomes de grau II i meningiomes de baix grau. Amb les dades d’aquests pacients s’han dissenyat classificadors basats en l’anàlisi discriminant lineal (LDA), s’han avaluat amb diferents mètodes matemàtics i s’han testat amb dades independents. Els resultats han estat satisfactoris, obtenint amb l’SC resultats més robusts amb dades independents respecte la classificació realitzada per l’SPSS.

A systematic and feasible method for computing nuclear contributions to electrical properties of polyatomic molecules

An analytic method to evaluate nuclear contributions to electrical properties of polyatomic molecules is presented. Such contributions control changes induced by an electric field on equilibrium geometry (nuclear relaxation contribution) and vibrational motion (vibrational contribution) of a molecular system. Expressions to compute the nuclear contributions have been derived from a power series expansion of the potential energy. These contributions to the electrical properties are given in terms of energy derivatives with respect to normal coordinates, electric field intensity or both. Only one calculation of such derivatives at the field-free equilibrium geometry is required. To show the useful efficiency of the analytical evaluation of electrical properties (the so-called AEEP method), results for calculations on water and pyridine at the SCF/TZ2P and the MP2/TZ2P levels of theory are reported. The results obtained are compared with previous theoretical calculations and with experimental values

Simple finite field nuclear relaxation method for calculating vibrational contribution to degenerate four-wave mixing

A simple extended finite field nuclear relaxation procedure for calculating vibrational contributions to degenerate four-wave mixing (also known as the intensity-dependent refractive index) is presented. As a by-product one also obtains the static vibrationally averaged linear polarizability, as well as the first and second hyperpolarizability. The methodology is validated by illustrative calculations on the water molecule. Further possible extensions are suggested