Growth and distribution: a revised classical model

This paper discusses distribution and the historical phases of capitalism. It assumes that technical progress and growth are taking place, and, given that, its question is on the functional distribution of income between labor and capital, having as reference classical theory of distribution and Marx’s falling tendency of the rate of profit. Based on the historical experience, it, first, inverts the model, making the rate of profit as the constant variable in the long run and the wage rate, as the residuum; second, it distinguishes three types of technical progress (capital-saving, neutral and capital-using) and applies it to the history of capitalism, having the UK and France as reference. Given these three types of technical progress, it distinguishes four phases of capitalist growth, where only the second is consistent with Marx prediction. The last phase, after World War II, should be, in principle, capital-saving, consistent with growth of wages above productivity. Instead, since the 1970s wages were kept stagnant in rich countries because of, first, the fact that the Information and Communication Technology Revolution proved to be highly capital using, opening room for a new wage of substitution of capital for labor; second, the new competition coming from developing countries; third, the emergence of the technobureaucratic or professional class; and, fourth, the new power of the neoliberal class coalition associating rentier capitalists and financiers

Reflecting on new developmentalism and classical developmentalism

This paper, first, distinguishes new developmentalism, a new theoretical system that is being created, from really existing developmentalism – a form of organizing capitalism. Second, it distinguishes new developmentalism from its antecedents, Development Economics or classical developmentalism and Keynesian Macroeconomics. Third, it discusses the false opposition that some economists have adopted between new developmentalism and social-developmentalism, which the author understands as a form of really existing developmentalism; as theory, it is just a version of classical developmentalism with a bias toward immediate consumption. Finally, it makes a summary of new developmentalism – of its main political economy, economic theory and economic policy claims

On invariant Rings of Sylow subgroups of finite classical groups

In this thesis we study the invariant rings for the Sylow p-subgroups of the nite classical groups. We have successfully constructed presentations for the invariant rings for the Sylow p-subgroups of the unitary groups GU(3; Fq2) and GU(4; Fq2 ), the symplectic group Sp(4; Fq) and the orthogonal group O+(4; Fq) with q odd. In all cases, we obtained a minimal generating set which is also a SAGBI basis. Moreover, we computed the relations among the generators and showed that the invariant ring for these groups are a complete intersection. This shows that, even though the invariant rings of the Sylow p-subgroups of the general linear group are polynomial, the same is not true for Sylow p-subgroups of general classical groups. We also constructed the generators for the invariant elds for the Sylow p-subgroups of GU(n; Fq2 ), Sp(2n; Fq), O+(2n; Fq), O-(2n + 2; Fq) and O(2n + 1; Fq), for every n and q. This is an important step in order to obtain the generators and relations for the invariant rings of all these groups.

An essay on economic growth: classical determinants, convergence and financial development

This dissertation surveys the literature on economic growth. I review a substantial number of articles published by some of the most renowned researchers engaged in the study of economic growth. The literature is so vast that before undertaking new studies it is very important to know what has been done in the field. The dissertation has six chapters. In Chapter 1, I introduce the reader to the topic of economic growth. In Chapter 2, I present the Solow model and other contributions to the exogenous growth theory proposed in the literature. I also briefly discuss the endogenous approach to growth. In Chapter 3, I summarize the variety of econometric problems that affect the cross-country regressions. The factors that contribute to economic growth are highlighted and the validity of the empirical results is discussed. In Chapter 4, the existence of convergence, whether conditional or not, is analyzed. The literature using both cross-sectional and panel data is reviewed. An analysis on the topic of convergence using a quantile-regression framework is also provided. In Chapter 5, the controversial relationship between financial development and economic growth is analyzed. Particularly, I discuss the arguments in favour and against the Schumpeterian view that considers financial development as an important determinant of innovation and economic growth. Chapter 6 concludes the dissertation. Summing up, the literature appears to be not fully conclusive about the main determinants of economic growth, the existence of convergence and the impact of finance on growth.

Effect of estradiol benzoate microinjection into the median raphe nucleus on contextual conditioning

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

Involvement of dopamine receptors in diethylpropion-induced conditioning place preference

Diethylpropion (DEP) is an amphetamine-like agent used as an anorectic drug. Abuse of DEP has been reported and some restrictions of its use have been recently imposed. The conditioning place preference (CPP) paradigm was used to evaluate the reinforcing properties of DEP in adult male Wistar rats. After initial preferences were determined, animals weighing 250-300 g (N = 7 per group) were conditioned with DEP (10, 15 or 20 mg/kg). Only the dose of 15 mg/kg produced a significant place preference (358 ± 39 vs 565 ± 48 s). Pretreatment with the D1 antagonist SCH 23390 (0.05 mg/kg, sc) 10 min before DEP (15 mg/kg, ip) blocked DEP-induced CPP (418 ± 37 vs 389 ± 31 s) while haloperidol (0.5 mg/kg, ip), a D2 antagonist, 15 min before DEP was ineffective in modifying place conditioning produced by DEP (385 ± 36 vs 536 ± 41 s). These results suggest that dopamine D1 receptors mediate the reinforcing effect of DEP

Thermoeconomic analysis of an evaporative desiccant air conditioning system

In this paper, a thermoeconomic analysis method based on the first and second law of thermodynamics and applied to an evaporative cooling system coupled to an adsorption dehumidifier, is presented. The main objective is the use of a method called exergetic manufacturing cost (EMC) applied to a system that operates in three different conditions to minimize the operation costs. Basic parameters are the RIP ratio (reactivation air/process air) and the reactivation air temperature. Results of this work show that the minimum reactivation temperature and the minimum RIP ratio corresponds to the smaller EMC. This result can be corroborated through an energetic analysis. It is noted that this case is also the one corresponding to smaller energy loss. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparison of the psychological evaluation test and classical psychoanalysis in infertile women

This study aims to compare a psychological evaluation test to classical psychoanalysis in infertile women. Two hundred women were submitted to the Psychological Evaluation Test (PET). The sum of the scores for the responses ranged from 15 to 60 points, with scores 30 points being defined as 'psycho-emotional maladjustment' (cut-off point: median + 25%). For comparison, the patients were simultaneously submitted to a psychological examination by a psychologist, who was unaware of the PET results. of the 200 patients, 66 (33%) presented a test with greater than or equal to30 points ('psycho-emotional maladjustment') and 134 (67%) a test with <30 points (normal). Upon psychological examination, 105 (52.5%) presented an abnormal evaluation and 95 (47.5%) a normal evaluation. For the PET, statistical analysis showed 82% efficiency, 62% sensitivity, 98% positive predictive value, 99% specificity, 70% negative predictive value, likelihood ratio for a positive test result 62, and likelihood ratio for negative test result 0.38. The PET proved to be a useful clinical instrument, being of help in the selection of patients with psychological needs induced by infertility.

Replication of classical infectious bursal disease virus in the chicken embryo related cell line

Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is an acute, highly contagious viral disease. The diagnosis of IBD depends on time-consuming and costly procedures, like virus isolation on chick embryos and histopathological examination, A double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA), immunoperoxidase and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) were applied in this study to detect classical IBD virus (IBDV) after three blind passages of the Lukert strain on chicken embryo related (CER) cell monolayer after different periods of infection: 6, 12, 24 and 48 h, Cytophatic effects were most evident 12 h post-infection (p.i.) but were observed at 6 h p.i. The maximum discrimination between IBDV-infected and uninfected cell suspensions obtained by the use of DAS-ELISA for virus detection corresponded to 0.597+/-0.02 and 0.010+/-0.01 after 12h p.i., respectively. The RT-PCR was performed using the set of primers A3.1 and A3.2 to amplify the VP2 region of the IBDV genome, This molecular technique demonstrated that from 6 h p.i., it was possible to detect the viral RNA. The results show that the CER cell line can be used for classical IBDV propagation, confirmed by the DAS-ELISA, immunoperoxidase and RT-PCR assay.

Influence of root-surface conditioning with acid and chelating agents on clot stabilization

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Response of human pulps following acid conditioning and application of a bonding agent in deep cavities

Objectives. The aim of this in vivo study was to evaluate the human dental pulp response when a one-bottle adhesive system was applied on etched or unetched deep dentine.Methods. Eighteen class V deep cavity preparations were divided in three groups: group 1-total etching + two coats of single bond (SB) + composite resin (Z-100); group 2-enamel etching + two coats of SB + Z-100, group 3-cavity floor lined with a calcium hydroxide liner (Dycal) + acid-etching of enamel and lateral walls + two coats of SB + Z-100. Two teeth were used as intact control group. After 30 days the teeth were extracted and processed through H and E, Masson's trichrome and Brown and Brenn staining techniques.Results. Moderate inflammatory response, disorganization of pulp tissue, as well as, deposition of thin layer of reactionary dentin were observed in group 1 teeth in which the remaining dentin thickness (RDT) was less than 300 mum. These histological findings appear to be related to long resin tags formation and bonding agent diffusion through dentinal tubules. In group 2, slight inflammatory response was observed only in one tooth in which the RDT was 162 mum. In group 3, all the teeth showed normal histological characteristics which were similar to the intact control group. Presence of bacteria was not correlated with the intensity of pulpal response. The patients reported no symptoms during the experiment. Radiographic evaluation showed no periapical pathology for any of the teeth,Significance and conclusions. Acid-etched deep dentin (RDT less than 300 mum) lined with SB causes more intense pulpal response than unetched deep dentin. Based on the results observed in the present study and the conditions in which it was carried out, we recommend the application of a biocompatible liner before etching deep dentin and applying SB. (C) 2002 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier B.V. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of dentin conditioning time on nanoleakage

Objectives: To study the nanoleakage pattern in the dentin hybrid layer by using different dentin adhesives. The null hypotheses tested in this study were: 1) dentin conditioning time does not affect nanoleakage within the hybrid layer; 2) the type of dentin adhesive used does not affect nanoleakage. Methods: Standardized Class V cavities were prepared in 30 intact human molars on the buccal and lingual surfaces. The specimens were randomly assigned to 2 total-etch dentin adhesives (OptiBond SOLO Plus [OPS, Kerr] and One-Step [ONS, BISCO Inc]) and 2 self-etch dentin adhesives (Clearfil SE Bond [CSE, Kuraray] and Adper Prompt L-Pop [APL, 3M ESPE]). The specimens were etched or conditioned for 15 seconds, 30 seconds or 60 seconds. Upon restoration of the Class V cavities with the proprietary resin composite, the specimens were isolated with nail polish except for a 2.0-mm rim around the restoration, and they were immersed in 50 wt% ammoniacal silver nitrate solution (pH=9.5) for 24 hours followed by 8 hours of immersion in photo-developing solution to reduce the silver ions to metallic silver. The specimens were fixed, dehydrated and processed for FESEM and TEM. Silver penetration was measured along the cervical wall, and data were analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric tests at a significance level of 95%. Results: There were no statistically significant differences among the experimental groups for the factor conditioning time (p>0.926). There were significant differences for the variable dentin adhesive (p<0.0001). The least amount of nanoleakage within the hybrid layer occurred with CSE, while ONS resulted in the greatest penetration of silver ions. The adhesives OPS and APL ranked in the intermediary subset. Under TEM, all adhesives resulted in some degree of nanoleakage within the hybrid layer. Both spotted/reticular and water-tree nanoleakage patterns were observed. Significance: Longer conditioning times did not increase nanoleakage within the hybrid layer. Nanoleakage varied with the type of adhesive used.

Comparative assessment of the organization of the colors of the Vita Classical color pallet by digital images and visual analysis for dental bleaching

New formularizations, techniques and devices have become the dental whitening most safe and with better results. Although this, the verification of the levels whitening is being continued for visual comparison, that is an empirical, subjective method, subject to errors and dependent of the individual interpretation. Normally the result of the whitening is express for the amplitude of displacement between the initial and the final color, being take like reference the tonalities of a scale of color commanded of darkest for more clearly. Although to be the most used scale, the ordinance of the Vita Classical (R) - Vita, according to recommendations of the manufacturer, reveals inadequate for the evaluation of the whitening. From digital images and of algorithm OER (ordinance of the reference scale), especially developed for the ScanWhite (C), the ordinance of the tonalities of the scale Vita Classical (R) was made. For such, the values of the canals of color R, G, and B of medium part average of the crowns was adopted as reference for evaluation. The images had been taken with the camera Sony Cybershoot DSC F828. The results of the computational ordinance had been compared with the sequence proposal for the manufacturer and with the earned one for the visual evaluation, carried through by 10 volunteers, under standardized conditions of illumination. It statistics analyzes demonstrated significant differences between the ordinances.

Conditioning of stress in Nile tilapia

A Pavlovian conditioning paradigm was used to induce a connection between a conditioned stimulus, light (CS), associated with an unconditioned stimulus, confinement (US) in Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus, which resulted in a conditioned endocrine response (CR) to the CS alone manifested as an increase in plasma cortisol. Individual isolated Nile tilapia were submitted for 10 days to the conditioning treatment consisting of turning on a light (CS) for I min with subsequent 30 min confinement (US). on the 10th day of the experiment, plasma cortisol was not increased when fish were subjected to no handling at all, or only light, or even a daily stressor for the 9 days. on the other hand, at the 10th day cortisol was significantly increased only when light was presented either with or without pairing with the stressor. These results confirmed that the cue, light (CS), was not stressful in itself, but when given as the CS in the absence of the US post conditioning the hypothalamus-pituitary-interrenal axis was activated. Therefore, it was concluded that memory of a previous experience with a stressor can be recalled by a conditioned stimulus and induce stress, which is the first demonstration of a memory-induced stress in fishes. (C) 2004 the Fisheries Society of the British Isles.