Essays in taxation and savings

Esta tese é composta por três artigos. Dois deles investigam assuntos afeitos a tributação e o terceiro é um artigo sobre o tema “poupança”'. Embora os objetos de análise sejam distintos, os três possuem como característica comum a aplicação de técnicas de econometria de dados em painel a bases de dados inéditas. Em dois dos artigos, utiliza-se estimação por GMM em modelos dinâmicos. Por sua vez, o artigo remanescente é uma aplicação de modelos de variável dependente latente. Abaixo, apresenta-se um breve resumo de cada artigo, começando pelos dois artigos de tributação, que dividem uma seção comum sobre o ICMS (o imposto estadual sobre valor adicionado) e terminando com o artigo sobre poupança. O primeiro artigo analisa a importância da fiscalização como instrumento para deter a evasão de tributos e aumentar a receita tributária, no caso de um imposto sobre valor adicionado, no contexto de um país em desenvolvimento. O estudo é realizado com dados do estado de São Paulo. Para tratar questões relativas a endogeneidade e inércia na série de receita tributária, empregam-se técnicas de painel dinâmico. Utiliza-se como variáveis de controle o nível do PIB regional e duas proxies para esforço fiscal: a quantidade e o valor das multas tributárias. Os resultados apontam impacto significativo do esforço fiscal nas receitas tributárias. O artigo evidencia, indiretamente, a forma como a evasão fiscal é afetada pela penalidade aplicada aos casos de sonegação. Suas conclusões também são relevantes no contexto das discussões sobre o federalismo fiscal brasileiro, especialmente no caso de uma reforma tributária potencial. O segundo artigo examina uma das principais tarefas das administrações tributárias: a escolha periódica de contribuintes para auditoria. A melhora na eficiência dos mecanismos de seleção de empresas tem o potencial de impactar positivamente a probabilidade de detecção de fraudes fiscais, provendo melhor alocação dos escassos recursos fiscais. Neste artigo, tentamos desenvolver este mecanismo calculando a probabilidade de sonegação associada a cada contribuinte. Isto é feito, no universo restrito de empresas auditadas, por meio da combinação “ótima” de diversos indicadores fiscais existentes e de informações dos resultados dos procedimentos de auditoria, em modelos de variável dependente latente. Após calculados os coeficientes, a probabilidade de sonegação é calculada para todo o universo de contribuintes. O método foi empregado em um painel com micro-dados de empresas sujeitas ao recolhimento de ICMS no âmbito da Delegacia Tributária de Guarulhos, no estado de São Paulo. O terceiro artigo analisa as baixas taxas de poupança dos países latino-americanos nas últimas décadas. Utilizando técnicas de dados em painel, identificam-se os determinantes da taxa de poupança. Em seguida, faz-se uma análise contrafactual usando a China, que tem apresentado altas taxas de poupança no mesmo período, como parâmetro. Atenção especial é dispensada ao Brasil, que tem ficado muito atrás dos seus pares no grupo dos BRICs neste quesito. O artigo contribui para a literatura existente em vários sentidos: emprega duas amplas bases de dados para analisar a influência de uma grande variedade de determinantes da taxa de poupança, incluindo variáveis demográficas e de previdência social; confirma resultados previamente encontrados na literatura, com a robustez conferida por bases de dados mais ricas; para alguns países latino-americanos, revela que as suas taxas de poupança tenderiam a aumentar se eles tivessem um comportamento mais semelhante ao da China em outras áreas, mas o incremento não seria tão dramático.

Informática: fator de mudanças na organização, métodos, informação e sistemas (O&M - I&S) dos recursos humanos nas empresas no Brasil

Este trabalho tem por objetivo estudar os processos de mudanças nos ambientes interno e externo de RECURSOS HUMANOS (sub-divididos em Unidades de Análise - UNAN - especificas, sob os aspectos de Organização, Métodos, Informação e Sistemas ou, simplesmente, O & M -I & S, provocadas pela INFORMÁTICA, na esfera empresarial brasileira. Especificamente, foi realizada uma pesquisa de caráter exploratório junto ao principal responsável pela área de RECURSOS HUMANOS das empresas, que devería, por sua vez, e se quisesse, solicitar a colaboração íntima do profissional responsável pelas políticas de INFORMÁTICA. Em alguns casos os pontos de vista desses profissionais e a visão perceptiva do futuro foram tão conflitantes que resultaram em dois posicionamentos para uma mesma empresa, enriquecendo ainda mais a pesquisa. Em outros momentos o pesquisador atuou como entrevistador, obtendo as colocações reais dos respondentes, fator de uma maior confiabilidade para as réplicas obtidas. O ponto de partida desta tese é o pressuposto de que existiria uma relação intima e uma vinculação subjacente, entre, por um lado as teorias administrativas em geral com as suas inúmeras variáveis (em particular, a sistêmica) e, de outro lado, a epistemologia cibernética, ambas procurando tratar da Organização e dos Métodos de análise e engenharia de manipulação das Informações e estruturação dos Sistemas (OMIS) de uma forma disciplinada e bem pensada. Em resumo, considerando de uma forma ingênua, trata-se do estudo do comportamental versus o instrumental e o que este ocasionou naquele, num período de 20 anos (1980/2000), nos ambientes interno (Ai) e externo (Ae) da Empresa. Os resultados obtidos, bem como os pedidos de profissionais que desejavam participar da pesquisa por dela terem conhecimento através de terceiros, indicaram a crescente consideração por esta forma de estudo, o interesse pelo assunto e, principalmente, o reconhecimento do papel de uma Universidade na criação, desenvolvimento e manutenção de uma consciência comunitária, onde a Empresa desempenha um papel de extrema importância para uma melhor qualidade de vida dos RECURSOS HUMANOS em geral, através da INFORMÁTICA.

Banks, liquidity crises and economic growth

How do the liquidity functions of banks affect investment and growth at different stages of economic development? How do financial fragility and the costs of banking crises evolve with the level of wealth of countries? We analyze these issues using an overlapping generations growth model where agents, who experience idiosyncratic liquidity shocks, can invest in a liquid storage technology or in a partially illiquid Cobb Douglas technology. By pooling liquidity risk, banks play a growth enhancing role in reducing inefficient liquidation of long term projects, but they may face liquidity crises associated with severe output losses. We show that middle income economies may find optimal to be exposed to liquidity crises, while poor and rich economies have more incentives to develop a fully covered banking system. Therefore, middle income economies could experience banking crises in the process of their development and, as they get richer, they eventually converge to a financially safe long run steady state. Finally, the model replicates the empirical fact of higher costs of banking crises for middle income economies.

Depleting the curriculum: teaching digital platforms and curricular impoverishment

The paper aims at showing how curricular complexity tends to be depleted by the use of digital platforms based on the SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model) standard, which was created with the main purpose of recycling content as it is supposed to be independent both from the context of learning and the supporting technology also deemed to be neutral, all surrounded by a rhetoric of innovation and “pedagogical” innovation. The starting point of the discussion is García Perez’s model of Traditional Didactics as a simple tool to show almost graphically that any ancient didactic model is far richer in terms of complexity than the linearity, in disguise most of the times but still visible under a not so sophisticated critical lens, of the interaction human-(reusable) content that is the basis of the SCORM standard. The paper also addresses some of the more common deliberate mix-ups related to those digital platforms, such as learning and teaching, content and learning object, systems of automatic teaching and learning management systems.

Influence of a Brazilian sewage outfall on the toxicity and contamination of adjacent sediments

The submarine sewage outfall of Santos (SSOS) is situated in the Santos Bay (São Paulo, Brazil) and is potentially a significant source of contaminants to the adjacent marine ecosystem. The present study aimed to assess the influence of SSOS on the sediment toxicity and contamination at Santos Bay. At the disposal site, sediments tended to be finer, organically richer and exhibited higher levels of surfactants and metals, sometimes exceeding the Threshold Effect Level values. The SSOS influence was more evident toward the East, where the sediments exhibited higher levels of TOC, total S and metals during the summer 2000 sampling campaign. Sediment toxicity to amphipods was consistently detected in four of the five stations studied. Amphipod survival tended to correlate negatively to Hg, total N and % mud. This work provides evidence that the SSOS discharge affects the quality of sediments from Santos Bay, and that control procedures are warranted. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Library exceptions in the copyright laws of Ibero-American countries

The development of the digital setting has made it absolutely necessary to revise copyright legislation as a whole, including the exceptions that benefit libraries and similar institutions. Unfortunately, adaptation to the new technological reality is not taking place satisfactorily in most countries - the predominating trend is a refortification of copyright as opposed to user interests, and the maintenance of a certain pre-digital philosophy. In the case of Ibero-America the problem is twofold: aside from obsolescence or a lack of adaptation to the new technological setting, there are countries that have not yet included library-related exceptions in the national laws. Moreover, these happen to be developing countries, whose needs and interests do not coincide with those of the richer nations who paved the path to be followed by international treaties and copy- or copyright agreements. This study looks into the situation of exceptions to copyright to benefit libraries in the countries constituting Ibero-America, with a comparative analysis of the most significant characteristics of their national laws. It is concluded that it is crucial for these countries to take advantage of the options offered through the WIPO Copyright Treaty of 1996 and the results of the WIPO Development Agenda to update their legislation, in order that copyright will be respected, while at the same time making it easier for libraries to continue carrying out their social function in an adequate manner, always with the understanding of the developmental context of these countries.

Distribuição dos recursos do FNE para o setor turístico entre os estados nordestinos, no período de 1998/2004

The work aims to analyze the criteria that supported the geographic distribution of credit with FNE funds for the private tourism sector in the period 1998-2004 the Northeast, which is the maturing of a significant part of investments in the region I PRODETUR . The working hypothesis is that the credit allocation for the tourism industry, with FNE funds among the Northeastern states during the period analyzed broke with the trend towards concentration of credit in the richer economies of the region. The investigation concluded that there is enough evidence to enhance the degree of confidence in that hypothesis. However, the allocation criteria do not only benefited the poorest economies, nor directed lending while building on the weight that the tourism sector held in state economies

Morphological and physiological specialization for digging in amphisbaenians, an ancient lineage of fossorial vertebrates

Amphisbaenians are legless reptiles that differ significantly from other vertebrate lineages. Most species dig underground galleries of similar diameter to that of the animal. We studied the muscle physiology and morphological attributes of digging effort in the Brazilian amphisbaenid Leposternon microcephalum (Squamata; Amphisbaenia), which burrows by compressing soil against the upper wall of the tunnel by means of upward strokes of the head. The individuals tested (<72 g) exerted forces on the soil of up to 24 N. These forces were possible because the fibres of the longissimus dorsi, the main muscle associated with burrowing, are highly pennated, thus increasing effective muscle cross-sectional area. The muscle is characterized by a metabolic transition along its length: proximal, medial and distal fibres are fast contracting and moderately oxidative, but fibres closer to the head are richer in citrate synthase and more aerobic in nature. Distal fibres, then, might be active mainly at the final step of the compression stroke, which requires more power. For animals greater than a given diameter, the work required to compress soil increases exponentially with body diameter. Leposternon microcephalum, and probably some other highly specialized amphisbaenids, are most likely constrained to small diameters and can increase muscle mass and effective muscle cross-sectional area by increasing body length, not body diameter.

Structural description of humic substances from subtropical coastal environments using elemental analysis, FT-IR and C-13-solid state NMR data

Elemental composition and spectroscopic properties (FT-IR and CP/MAS C-13-NMR) of sedimentary humic substances (HS) from aquatic subtropical environments (a lake, an estuary and two marine sites) are investigated. Humic acids (HA) are relatively richer in nitrogen and in aliphatic chains than fulvic acids (FA) from the same sediments. Conversely, FA are richer in carboxylic groups and in ring polysaccharides than HA. Nitrogen is mostly present as amide groups and for lake and marine HS the FT-IR peaks around 1640 cm(-1) and 1540 cm(-1) identify polypeptides. Estuarine HS exhibit mixed continental-marine influences, these being highly influenced by site location. Overall, the data suggest that aquatic and mixed HS are more aliphatic than has been proposed in current models and also that amide linkages form an important part of their structural configuration.

Subtropical Brazilian mangroves as a refuge of crab (Decapoda: Brachyura) diversity

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Rotifer abundance, biomass, and secondary production after the recovery of hydrologic connectivity between a river and two marginal lakes (São Paulo, Brazil)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Mites associated to Xylopia aromatica (Lam.) Mart. (Annonaceae) in urban and rural fragments of semidecidual forest

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Angular-planar CMB power spectrum

Gaussianity and statistical isotropy of the Universe are modern cosmology's minimal set of hypotheses. In this work we introduce a new statistical test to detect observational deviations from this minimal set. By defining the temperature correlation function over the whole celestial sphere, we are able to independently quantify both angular and planar dependence (modulations) of the CMB temperature power spectrum over different slices of this sphere. Given that planar dependence leads to further modulations of the usual angular power spectrum C(l), this test can potentially reveal richer structures in the morphology of the primordial temperature field. We have also constructed an unbiased estimator for this angular-planar power spectrum which naturally generalizes the estimator for the usual C(l)'s. With the help of a chi-square analysis, we have used this estimator to search for observational deviations of statistical isotropy in WMAP's 5 year release data set (ILC5), where we found only slight anomalies on the angular scales l = 7 and l = 8. Since this angular-planar statistic is model-independent, it is ideal to employ in searches of statistical anisotropy (e.g., contaminations from the galactic plane) and to characterize non-Gaussianities.

Photo-electrochemical investigation of anodic oxide films on cast Ti-Mo alloys I. Anodic behaviour and effect of alloy composition

The anodic behaviour of cast Ti-Mo alloys, having different Mo contents (6-20 wt.%), was investigated in acidic and neutral aerated aqueous solutions. All sample showed a valve-metal behaviour, owing to formation and thickening of barrier-type anodic oxides displaying interference colours Growth kinetics. of passive films is influenced by both anodizing electrolyte and composition of the starting alloy. This last parameter was found to change also the solid-state properties of the films, explored by photoelectrochemical and impedance spectroscopy experiments. Thicker films (U(f) = 8 V/MSE) grown on alloys richer in Mo showed more resistive character and a photocurrent sign inversion under negative bias, that revealed an insulating character, whereas corresponding films grown on alloys with lower Mo content, as well as thinner films, behaved as n-type semiconductors. Results are discussed in terms of formation of a mixed Ti-Mo oxide phase. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

The Ni-Cu-PGE sulfide ores of the komatiite-hosted Fortaleza de Minas deposit, Brazil: Evidence of hydrothermal remobilization

The Fortaleza de Minas Ni-Cu-PGE sulfide deposit is hosted by Archean komatiitic rocks of the Morro do Ferro greenstone belt, near the southwestern margin of the Sa (aFrancisco) over tildeo Francisco craton, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The deposit contains 6 million tonnes of ore with an average grade of 2.2 wt% Ni, 0.4% Cu, 0.05% Co and 1.2 ppm PGE+Au, and comprises (i) a main orebody, which is metamorphosed, deformed and transposed along a regional shear zone, consisting mainly of disseminated, brecciated and stringer sulfide ores that are interpreted to be of early magmatic origin, and (ii) PGE-rich discordant veins that are hosted in N-S- and NE-SW-trending late faults that cross-cut the main orebody. The discordant PGE-rich ore (up to 4 ppm total PGE) is characterized by thin, discontinuous and irregular veins and lenses of massive sulfides hosted by serpentinite and talc schist, and is relatively undeformed if compared with the early types of ore. It is composed mainly of pyrrhotite, pentlandite, chalcopyrite, magnetite, carbonates, and amphiboles, with minor cobaltite-gersdorffite, sphalerite, ilmenite, and quartz, and rarely maucherite (Ni11Asg), tellurides and platinum-group minerals (PGM). Omeeite, irarsite, sperrylite, and Ni-bearing merenskyite are the main PGM, followed by minor amounts of testibiopalladite and an unknown phase containing Ru, Te, and As. The PGM occur either included in, or at the margins of, sulfides, sulfarsenides, silicates and oxides, or filling fractures in pyrrhotite, pentlandite, and chalcopyrite, suggesting that they started to precipitate with these minerals and continued to precipitate after the sulfides were formed. The mantle-normalized metal distribution of the two samples of discordant veins shows distinct patterns: one richer in Ni-Pd-Ir-Rh-Ru-Os and another with higher amounts of Cu-Pt-Bi. Both are strongly depleted in Cr if compared with the metamorphosed magmatic ore of this deposit, which follows the general Kambalda-type magmatic trend. on the basis of structural, mineralogical and geochemical evidence, we propose that the PGE-rich discordant ore may have formed by remobilization of metals from the deformed, metamorphosed magmatic orebody (which shows a depleted pattern in these elements) by reduced (pyrrhotite - pentlandite - pyrite are stable), neutral to alkaline and carbonic fluids (carbonate-stable). The PGE may have been transported as bisulfide complexes, and precipitated as tellurides (mainly Pd) and arsenides (Pt, Rh, Ru, Os, Ir) in the late N-S and NE-SW-trending faults owing to a decrease in the activity of S caused by the precipitation of sulfides in the veins.