Joint compensation of multiple RF impairments in MIMO STBC systems

In this paper, we propose a compensation method for the joint effect of high-power amplifier (HPA) nonlinearity, in-phase/quadrature-phase (I/Q) imbalance and crosstalk in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) orthogonal space-time block coding (OSTBC) systems. The performance of the MIMO OSTBC equipped with the proposed compensation mechanism is evaluated in terms of average symbol error probability and system capacity, in Rayleigh fading channels. Numerical results are provided and show the effects on performance of several system parameters, namely, the HPA parameters, image-leakage ratio, crosstalk, numbers of antennas, and phase-shift keying modulation order.

Analysis and compensation for the joint effects of HPA nonlinearity, I/Q imbalance and crosstalk in MIMO beamforming systems

In this paper, we investigate the joint effects of high-power amplifier (HPA) nonlinearity, in-phase/quadrature-phase (I/Q) imbalance and crosstalk, on the performance of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmit beamforming (TB) systems, and propose a compensation method for the three impairments together. The performance of the MIMO TB system equipped with the proposed compensation scheme is evaluated in terms of average symbol error probability and capacity when transmissions are performed over uncorrelated Rayleigh fading channels. Numerical results are provided and show the effects on performance of several system parameters, namely, the HPA parameters, image-leakage ratio, crosstalk, numbers of antennas, length of pilot symbols and phase-shift keying modulation order.

Compensation for HPA nonlinearity and I/Q imbalance in MIMO beamforming systems

In this paper, we investigate the effects of high-power amplifier (HPA) nonlinearity and in-phase and quadrature-phase (I/Q) imbalance on the performance of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmit beamforming (TB) systems. Specifically, we propose a compensation method for HPA nonlinearity and I/Q imbalance together in MIMO TB systems. The performance of the MIMO TB system under study is evaluated in terms of the average symbol error probability (SEP) and system capacity, considering transmission over uncorrelated frequency-flat Rayleigh fading channels. Numerical results are provided and show the effects of several system parameters, such as the HPA parameters, image-leakage ratio, numbers of transmit and receive antennas, length of pilot symbols, and modulation order of phase-shift keying (PSK), on performance.

Band gap control via tuning of inversion degree in CdIn2S4 spinel

Based on theoretical arguments we propose a possible route for controlling the band-gap in the promising photovoltaic material CdIn2S4. Our ab initio calculations show that the experimental degree of inversion in this spinel (fraction of tetrahedral sites occupied by In) corresponds approximately to the equilibrium value given by the minimum of the theoretical inversion free energy at a typical synthesis temperature. Modification of this temperature, or of the cooling rate after synthesis, is then expected to change the inversion degree, which in turn sensitively tunes the electronic band-gap of the solid, as shown here by Heyd-Scuseria-Ernzerhof screened hybrid functional calculations.

Management compensation systems in MNCs and domestic firms. Cross-national empirical evidence

• This is a study of the relationship between institutional settings and managerial compensation systems, based on extensive cross-national survey evidence. • We compare differences in practices between Multinational Corporations (MNCs) and domestic firms across a range of capitalist archetypes. • We find that MNCs are more likely to promote compensation systems that incentivise managers in line with organisational performance compared to domestic firms. Our findings also reveal persistent diversity reflecting firm type and institutional setting. We find that the gap between MNCs and domestic firms in terms of the usage of incentive-related compensation is less pronounced in Liberal Market Economies than in other settings. This suggests that it is a combination of being an MNC and the specific home locale that moulds approaches to managerial compensation. This reflects considerable hybridisation of practices within and between settings.

A systematic approach to identify the sources of tropical SST errors in coupled models using the adjustment of initialised experiments

Understanding the sources of systematic errors in climate models is challenging because of coupled feedbacks and errors compensation. The developing seamless approach proposes that the identification and the correction of short term climate model errors have the potential to improve the modeled climate on longer time scales. In previous studies, initialised atmospheric simulations of a few days have been used to compare fast physics processes (convection, cloud processes) among models. The present study explores how initialised seasonal to decadal hindcasts (re-forecasts) relate transient week-to-month errors of the ocean and atmospheric components to the coupled model long-term pervasive SST errors. A protocol is designed to attribute the SST biases to the source processes. It includes five steps: (1) identify and describe biases in a coupled stabilized simulation, (2) determine the time scale of the advent of the bias and its propagation, (3) find the geographical origin of the bias, (4) evaluate the degree of coupling in the development of the bias, (5) find the field responsible for the bias. This strategy has been implemented with a set of experiments based on the initial adjustment of initialised simulations and exploring various degrees of coupling. In particular, hindcasts give the time scale of biases advent, regionally restored experiments show the geographical origin and ocean-only simulations isolate the field responsible for the bias and evaluate the degree of coupling in the bias development. This strategy is applied to four prominent SST biases of the IPSLCM5A-LR coupled model in the tropical Pacific, that are largely shared by other coupled models, including the Southeast Pacific warm bias and the equatorial cold tongue bias. Using the proposed protocol, we demonstrate that the East Pacific warm bias appears in a few months and is caused by a lack of upwelling due to too weak meridional coastal winds off Peru. The cold equatorial bias, which surprisingly takes 30 years to develop, is the result of an equatorward advection of midlatitude cold SST errors. Despite large development efforts, the current generation of coupled models shows only little improvement. The strategy proposed in this study is a further step to move from the current random ad hoc approach, to a bias-targeted, priority setting, systematic model development approach.

Haircut undone? The Greek drama and prospects for investment arbitration

As a result of the sovereign debt crisis that engulfed Europe in 2010, investors are much more likely to pursue dispute resolution options when faced with losses. This paper seeks to examine the position of investors who suffered losses in the Greek haircut of 2012 in the context of investment treaty arbitration. The paper evaluates arguments that investments in Greek sovereign bonds have been expropriated by the introduction of retrofit CACs and that compensation is payable as a result of the protections offered by BITs. The paper investigates whether sovereign bonds come within the definition of protected investment in BITs, assesses the degree to which CACs act as a jurisdictional bar to investor-state claims and attempts an evaluation of whether claims could be successful. The analysis uses as an illustration recent cases brought against Greece at ICSID. The paper concludes by considering whether the Greek haircut was expropriatory and reflects on the possible outcome of current arbitrations.

In optics humidity compensation in NDIR exhaust gas measurements of NO2

NDIR is proposed for monitoring of air pollutants emitted by ship engines. Careful optical filtering overcomes the challenge of optical detection of NO2 in humid exhaust gas, despite spectroscopic overlap with the water vapour band.

Energy compensation following consumption of sugar-reduced products: a randomized controlled trial

PURPOSE: Consumption of sugar-reformulated products (commercially available foods and beverages that have been reduced in sugar content through reformulation) is a potential strategy for lowering sugar intake at a population level. The impact of sugar-reformulated products on body weight, energy balance (EB) dynamics and cardiovascular disease risk indicators has yet to be established. The REFORMulated foods (REFORM) study examined the impact of an 8-week sugar-reformulated product exchange on body weight, EB dynamics, blood pressure, arterial stiffness, glycemia and lipemia. METHODS: A randomized, controlled, double-blind, crossover dietary intervention study was performed with fifty healthy normal to overweight men and women (age 32.0 ± 9.8 year, BMI 23.5 ± 3.0 kg/m2) who were randomly assigned to consume either regular sugar or sugar-reduced foods and beverages for 8 weeks, separated by 4-week washout period. Body weight, energy intake (EI), energy expenditure and vascular markers were assessed at baseline and after both interventions. RESULTS: We found that carbohydrate (P < 0.001), total sugars (P < 0.001) and non-milk extrinsic sugars (P < 0.001) (% EI) were lower, whereas fat (P = 0.001) and protein (P = 0.038) intakes (% EI) were higher on the sugar-reduced than the regular diet. No effects on body weight, blood pressure, arterial stiffness, fasting glycemia or lipemia were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Consumption of sugar-reduced products, as part of a blinded dietary exchange for an 8-week period, resulted in a significant reduction in sugar intake. Body weight did not change significantly, which we propose was due to energy compensation.

L'effet de compensation morale ou comment les 'bonnes actions' peuvent aboutir à une situation indésirable

Des recherches récentes arguent qu’une « bonne action » pourrait contribuer à « désinhiber » l’individu en lui permettant d’entreprendre des actions « moins souhaitables » par la suite. Cet effet de compensation morale reste un domaine peu étudié, en dépit des conséquences potentielles considérables sur l’efficacité des politiques publiques. L’objectif de notre contribution est de définir et de caractériser cet effet tout en soulignant les risques d’effets pervers associés. Nous utilisons à cet effet des études et des exemples tirés de divers domaines, comme la consommation alimentaire ou les comportements prosociaux, et identifions des pistes de recherche visant à mieux comprendre les conséquences directes et indirectes de cet effet, tout en mentionnant quelques stratégies envisageables afin d’atténuer ce biais.

Compensation and Rewards for Environmental Services (CRES) and efficient design of contracts in developing countries. Behavioral insights from a natural field experiment

The use of economic incentives for biodiversity (mostly Compensation and Reward for Environmental Services including Payment for ES) has been widely supported in the past decades and became the main innovative policy tools for biodiversity conservation worldwide. These policy tools are often based on the insight that rational actors perfectly weigh the costs and benefits of adopting certain behaviors and well-crafted economic incentives and disincentives will lead to socially desirable development scenarios. This rationalist mode of thought has provided interesting insights and results, but it also misestimates the context by which ‘real individuals’ come to decisions, and the multitude of factors influencing development sequences. In this study, our goal is to examine how these policies can take advantage of some unintended behavioral reactions that might in return impact, either positively or negatively, general policy performances. We test the effect of income's origin (‘Low effort’ based money vs. ‘High effort’ based money) on spending decisions (Necessity vs. Superior goods) and subsequent pro social preferences (Future pro-environmental behavior) within Madagascar rural areas, using a natural field experiment. Our results show that money obtained under low effort leads to different consumption patterns than money obtained under high efforts: superior goods are more salient in the case of low effort money. In parallel, money obtained under low effort leads to subsequent higher pro social behavior. Compensation and rewards policies for ecosystem services may mobilize knowledge on behavioral biases to improve their design and foster positive spillovers on their development goals.