Alleged Tax Competition: The Mysterious Death of Inheritance Taxes in Switzerland

Interjurisdictional competition over mobile tax bases is an easily understood mechanism, but actual tax-base elasticities are difficult to estimate. Political pressure for reducing tax rates could therefore be based on erroneous estimates of the mobility of tax bases. We show that tax competition provided the overwhelmingly dominant argument in the policy debates leading to a succession of reforms of bequest taxation by Swiss cantons. Yet, we find only very weak statistical evidence of a relationship between tax burdens on bequests and the concerned tax base of wealthy elderly individuals. Moreover, inheritance tax revenues are found to increase in inheritance tax rates even in the long run, and actual tax rates lie well below the revenue-maximising levels throughout. The alleged pressures of tax competition did not seem in reality to exist.

UniPathway: a resource for the exploration and annotation of metabolic pathways.

UniPathway (http://www.unipathway.org) is a fully manually curated resource for the representation and annotation of metabolic pathways. UniPathway provides explicit representations of enzyme-catalyzed and spontaneous chemical reactions, as well as a hierarchical representation of metabolic pathways. This hierarchy uses linear subpathways as the basic building block for the assembly of larger and more complex pathways, including species-specific pathway variants. All of the pathway data in UniPathway has been extensively cross-linked to existing pathway resources such as KEGG and MetaCyc, as well as sequence resources such as the UniProt KnowledgeBase (UniProtKB), for which UniPathway provides a controlled vocabulary for pathway annotation. We introduce here the basic concepts underlying the UniPathway resource, with the aim of allowing users to fully exploit the information provided by UniPathway.

Research resource: the dynamic transcriptional profile of sertoli cells during the progression of spermatogenesis.

Sertoli cells (SCs), the only somatic cells within seminiferous tubules, associate intimately with developing germ cells. They not only provide physical and nutritional support but also secrete factors essential to the complex developmental processes of germ cell proliferation and differentiation. The SC transcriptome must therefore adapt rapidly during the different stages of spermatogenesis. We report comprehensive genome-wide expression profiles of pure populations of SCs isolated at 5 distinct stages of the first wave of mouse spermatogenesis, using RNA sequencing technology. We were able to reconstruct about 13 901 high-confidence, nonredundant coding and noncoding transcripts, characterized by complex alternative splicing patterns with more than 45% comprising novel isoforms of known genes. Interestingly, roughly one-fifth (2939) of these genes exhibited a dynamic expression profile reflecting the evolving role of SCs during the progression of spermatogenesis, with stage-specific expression of genes involved in biological processes such as cell cycle regulation, metabolism and energy production, retinoic acid synthesis, and blood-testis barrier biogenesis. Finally, regulatory network analysis identified the transcription factors endothelial PAS domain-containing protein 1 (EPAS1/Hif2α), aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT/Hif1β), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) as potential master regulators driving the SC transcriptional program. Our results highlight the plastic transcriptional landscape of SCs during the progression of spermatogenesis and provide valuable resources to better understand SC function and spermatogenesis and its related disorders, such as male infertility.

The role of clade competition in the diversification of North American canids.

The history of biodiversity is characterized by a continual replacement of branches in the tree of life. The rise and demise of these branches (clades) are ultimately determined by changes in speciation and extinction rates, often interpreted as a response to varying abiotic and biotic factors. However, understanding the relative importance of these factors remains a major challenge in evolutionary biology. Here we analyze the rich North American fossil record of the dog family Canidae and of other carnivores to tease apart the roles of competition, body size evolution, and climate change on the sequential replacement of three canid subfamilies (two of which have gone extinct). We develop a novel Bayesian analytic framework to show that competition from multiple carnivore clades successively drove the demise and replacement of the two extinct canid subfamilies by increasing their extinction rates and suppressing their speciation. Competitive effects have likely come from ecologically similar species from both canid and felid clades. These results imply that competition among entire clades, generally considered a rare process, can play a more substantial role than climate change and body size evolution in determining the sequential rise and decline of clades.

Les composantes du risque : une entrée par les acteurs et le conflit lors de la mise en place des solutions : le cas de Los Chorros, Guatemala

Ce travail présente une étude de cas post-catastrophe à San Cristobal, Guatemala, où un important glissement de terrain du nom «Los Chorros» (8-10 millions de m3 de roche) affecte depuis 2009 diverses communautés et une des routes principales du pays. Les gestionnaires des risques, sur la base de leur propre évaluation, ont décidé de répondre d'une manière qui ne correspond pas aux intérêts de la population affectée. Les communautés locales ont évalué le risque de catastrophe et ont établi une autre solution suivant une conception du risque différente. Les conflits sociaux et la concurrence entre les différents acteurs du territoire, pour la définition des priorités et des solutions, révèlent les aspects sous-jacents de la société, utiles pour identifier et comprendre ce qui constitue le risque de catastrophe dans un contexte donné. Ce conflit montre que le risque de catastrophe n'est pas univoque mais un concept complexe, constitué par un grand nombre de composants. En termes de gouvernance, il met également en évidence la confrontation des savoirs et la tension qui peut exister entre les différentes approches du risque. Depuis une approche où le risque de catastrophe est considéré comme une construction sociale (les vulnérabilités étant historiquement générées par des processus sociaux, politiques, économiques et culturels), ce travail évalue d'autres modes d'interprétation, de traitement et d'intervention qui peuvent aider à améliorer les méthodes d'évaluation et de gestion des risques. Enfin, la proposition de gestion qui découle de l'exemple guatémaltèque invite à une autre manière de concevoir la gestion des risques en intégrant les différentes conceptions du risque et en visant une coordination stratégique entre les acteurs des politiques publiques, les échelles d'intervention, les experts en charge des différents aléas et la société civile, afin d'obtenir une solution acceptable pour tous les acteurs impliqués dans un territoire. -- This work analyses a post-disaster case study from San Cristobal, Guatemala where a large landslide named "Los Chorros (8 millions cubic meters of rock) affects several communities and one of the country's main west-east access highways. Risk managers, starting from their own assessment, decided to respond in a way that does not correspond to the interests of the afected population. Local communities assessed the risk disaster situation and establised another solution from a different conception of risk. These social conflict and competition for priorities and solutions for risk management reveal that disaster risk is not unequivocal but a complex and holistic concept, constituted by a large set of components. From a social constructivism approach, where disaster risk is considered as the results of social, political, economic and historic process, this thesis evaluates other modes of interpreting, shaping and managing risk that can help improve methods of risk assessment and management. Studying the logic of action of actors, who mobilize to establish a solution, enables to identify as to what constitutes a disaster. For this reason, the study focus, in particular, on the analysis of practices (practical science) implemented by all actors in San Cristobal Altaverapaz. Finally, it puts into perspective the risk management in terms of an integrative approach for policy experts that find compromise between different conceptions of risk in order to obtain a solution acceptable to all those involved.

Cooperation versus competition effects on information sharing and use in group decision making

Information processing in groups has long been seen as a cooperative process. In contrast with this assumption, group members were rarely found to behave cooperatively: They withhold unshared information and stick to initial incorrect decisions. In the present article, we examined how group members' cooperative and competitivemotives impact on group information processing and propose that information sharing and use in groups could be seen as strategic behavior. We reviewed the latest developments in the literature investigating different forms of strategic information processing and their underlying mechanisms. This review suggests that explicit cooperative goals are needed for effective group decision-making.

Support for a demographically based selection method at University: The role of competition

Building on the instrumental model of group conflict (IMGC), the present experiment investigates the support for discriminatory and meritocratic method of selections at university in a sample of local and immigrant students. Results showed that local students were supporting in a larger proportion selection method that favors them over immigrants in comparison to method that consists in selecting the best applicants without considering his/her origin. Supporting the assumption of the IMGC, this effect was stronger for locals who perceived immigrants as competing for resources. Immigrant students supported more strongly the meritocratic selection method than the one that discriminated them. However, contrasting with the assumption of the IMGC, this effect was only present in students who perceived immigrants as weakly competing for locals' resources. Results demonstrate that selection methods used at university can be perceived differently depending on students' origin. Further, they suggest that the mechanisms underlying the perception of discriminatory and meritocratic selection methods differ between local and immigrant students. Hence, the present experiment makes a theoretical contribution to the IMGC by delimiting its assumptions to the ingroup facing a competitive situation with a relevant outgroup. Practical implication for universities recruitment policies are discussed.

Evolution of reduced post-copulatory molecular interactions in Drosophila populations lacking sperm competition.

In many species with internal fertilization, molecules transferred in the male ejaculate trigger and interact with physiological changes in females. It is controversial to what extent these interactions between the sexes act synergistically to mediate the female switch to a reproductive state or instead reflect sexual antagonism evolved as a by product of sexual selection on males. To address this question, we eliminated sexual selection by enforcing monogamy in populations of Drosophila melanogaster for 65 generations and then measured the expression of male seminal fluid protein genes and genes involved in the female response to mating. In the absence of sperm competition, male and female reproductive interests are perfectly aligned and any antagonism should be reduced by natural selection. Consistent with this idea, males from monogamous populations showed reduced expression of seminal fluid protein genes, 16% less on average than in polygamous males. Further, we identified 428 genes that responded to mating in females. After mating, females with an evolutionary history of monogamy exhibited lower relative expression of genes that were up regulated in response to mating and higher expression of genes that were down-regulated - in other words, their post-mating transcriptome appeared more virgin-like. Surprisingly, these genes showed a similar pattern even before mating, suggesting that monogamous females evolved to be less poised for mating and the accompanying receipt of male seminal fluid proteins. This reduced investment by both monogamous males and females in molecules involved in post-copulatory interactions points to a pervasive role of sexual conflict in shaping these interactions.

Peatlands and plantations in Sumatra, Indonesia : Complex realities for resource governance, rural development and climate change mitigation

Peatlands play a crucial role in Indonesia's economic development, and in its stated goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Improved peatland management - including a national moratorium on the granting of any new conversion licenses - forms a cornerstone of Indonesia's climate change mitigation commitment. At the same time, rapid expansion of the plantation sector is driving wide-scale drainage and conversion of peat swamp ecosystems. The province of Riau, in central Sumatra, finds itself at the crossroads of these conflicting agendas. This essay presents a case study of three islands on Riau's east coast affected by industrial timber plantation concessions. It examines the divergent experiences, perceptions and responses of communities on the islands. A mix of dramatic protests, localised everyday actions and constructive dialogue has succeeded in delaying or perhaps halting one of the concessions, while negotiations and contestation with the other two continue. With the support of regional and national non-governmental organisations and local government, communities are pursuing alternative development strategies, including the cultivation of sago, which requires no peat drainage. While a powerful political economy of state and corporate actors shapes the contours of socio-environmental change, local social movements can alter trajectories of change, promoting incremental improvements and alternative pathways.

Hope as a Resource for Career Exploration : Examining Incremental and Cross-Lagged Effects

Hope is believed to be beneficial for vocational pursuits, but the question of how and why hope is related to pivotal career development variables remains largely unaddressed. In a series of three studies,we investigated the relationship between hope and career exploration. Study 1 examined at-risk adolescents (N = 228) in Switzerland and showed that hope explains variance in career exploration beyond the significant effects of generalized self-efficacy beliefs and perceived social support. Study 2 found the same result among a group (N=223) of first-year students at a Swiss university with a measure of state hope. Study 3 applied a one-year cross-lagged design with a diverse group of students (N = 266) at a German university to investigate the mutual effects of dispositional hope and career exploration over time. Although both variables were found to be related within and over time, we could not confirm lagged effects in either direction. The results suggest that hope is significantly correlated with career exploration because both are related to personality and social-contextual variables.

Mother-offspring competition promotes colonization success.

Colonization is the crucial process underlying range expansions, biological invasions, and metapopulation dynamics. Which individuals leave their natal population to colonize empty habitats is a crucial question and is presently unresolved. Dispersal is the first step in colonization. However, not all dispersing individuals are necessarily good colonizers. Indeed, in some species, the phenotype of dispersers differs depending on the selective pressures that induce dispersal. In particular, kin-based interactions, a factor driving social evolution, should induce different social response profiles in nondispersing and dispersing individuals. Kin competition (defined here as between the mother and offspring) has been proven to produce dispersers with a particular phenotype that may enhance their colonizing ability. By using the common lizard (Lacerta vivipara), we conducted a multipopulation experiment to study the effect of kin competition on dispersal and colonization success. We manipulated mother-offspring interactions, which are the most important component of kin competition in the studied species, at the family and population levels and measured the consequences on colonization success. We demonstrate that mother-offspring competition at the population level significantly influences colonization success. Increased competition at the population level enhanced the colonization rate of the largest juveniles as well as the growth and survival of the colonizers. Based on these results, we calculated that kin-induced colonization halves the extinction probability of a newly initiated population. Because interactions between relatives are likely to affect the ability of a species to track habitat modifications, kin-based dispersal should be considered in the study of invasion dynamics and metapopulation functioning.

Postmating-prezygotic isolation between two allopatric populations of Drosophila montana: fertilisation success differs under sperm competition

Postmating but prezygotic (PMPZ) interactions are increasingly recognized as a potentially important early-stage barrier in the evolution of reproductive isolation. A recent study described a potential example between populations of the same species: single matings between Drosophila montana populations resulted in differential fertilisation success because of the inability of sperm from one population (Vancouver) to penetrate the eggs of the other population (Colorado). As the natural mating system of D. montana is polyandrous (females remate rapidly), we set up double matings of all possible crosses between the same populations to test whether competitive effects between ejaculates influence this PMPZ isolation. We measured premating isolation in no-choice tests, female fecundity, fertility and egg-to-adult viability after single and double matings as well as second-male paternity success (P-2). Surprisingly, we found no PMPZ reproductive isolation between the two populations under a competitive setting, indicating no difficulty of sperm from Vancouver males to fertilize Colorado eggs after double matings. While there were subtle differences in how P-2 changed over time, suggesting that Vancouver males' sperm are somewhat less competitive in a first-male role within Colorado females, these effects did not translate into differences in overall P-2. Fertilisation success can thus differ dramatically between competitive and noncompetitive conditions, perhaps because the males that mate second produce higher quality ejaculates in response to sperm competition. We suggest that unlike in more divergent species comparisons, where sperm competition typically increases reproductive isolation, ejaculate tailoring can reduce the potential for PMPZ isolation when recently diverged populations interbreed.