Optimal-state-dependent rules, credibility, and inflationary inertia

This paper examines the output losses caused by disinflation and the role of credibility in a model where pricing mIes are optimal and individual prices are rigid. Individual nominal rigidity is modeled as resulting from menu costs. The interaction between optimal pricing mIes and credibility is essential in determining the inflationary inertia. A continued period of high inflation generates an asymmetric distribution of price deviations, with more prices that are substantially lower than their desired leveIs than prices that are substantially higher than the optimal ones. When disinflation is not credible, inflationary inertia is engendered by this asymmetry: idiosyncratic shocks trigger more upward than downward adjustments. A perfect1y credible disinflation causes an immediate change of pricing rules which, by rendering the price deviation distribution less asymmetric, practically annihilates inflationary inertia. An implication of our model is that stabilization may be sucessful even when credibility is low, provided that it is preceded by a mechanism of price alignment. We also develop an analytical framework for analyzing imperfect credibility cases.

Welfare and growth effects of alternative fiscal rules for infrastructure investment in Brazil

This article studies the interplay between fiscal rules, public investment and growth in Brazil. It is investigated if it would make sense to raise public investment and, if so, under which fiscal rule it is best to do it — whether through tax financing, debt financing, or a reduction of public consumption. We construct and simulate a competitive general equilibrium model, calibrated to Brazilian economy, in which public capital is a component of the production function and public consumption directly affects individuals’ well-being. After assessing the impacts of alternative fiscal rules, the paper concludes that the most desirable financing scheme is the reduction of public consumption, which dominates the others in terms of output and welfare gains. The model replicates the observed growth slowdown of the Brazilian economy when we increase taxes and reduce public capital formation to the levels observed after 1980 and shows that the growth impact of the expansion of tax collection in Brazil was much larger than that of public investment compression.

Decision rules and information provision : monitoring vs manipulation

We analyze the contractual design problem of a principal who delegates decision-making and information provision. The principal faces two tasks: he has to decide the level of discretion to be granted to the decision-maker and to establish who is in charge of supplying the information. We show that these two choices are intrinsically related. When the decision-maker is granted high discretion, information provision is optimally delegated to the parties directly affected by the decision. Conversely, when the decision-maker enjoys little discretion, it is more desirable to rely on a third impartial agent. The paper helps rationalize some organizational arrangements that are commonly observed in the context of judicial and antitrust decision-making.

Robustness and stabilization properties of monetary policy rules in Brazil

Based on three versions of a small macroeconomic model for Brazil, this paper presents empirical evidence on the effects of parameter uncertainty on monetary policy rules and on the robustness of optimal and simple rules over different model specifications. By comparing the optimal policy rule under parameter uncertainty with the rule calculated under purely additive uncertainty, we find that parameter uncertainty should make policymakers react less aggressively to the economy's state variables, as suggested by Brainard's "conservatism principIe", although this effect seems to be relatively small. We then informally investigate each rule's robustness by analyzing the performance of policy rules derived from each model under each one of the alternative models. We find that optimal rules derived from each model perform very poorly under alternative models, whereas a simple Taylor rule is relatively robusto We also fmd that even within a specific model, the Taylor rule may perform better than the optimal rule under particularly unfavorable realizations from the policymaker' s loss distribution function.

Rules of origin: an unfinished negotiation

Many countries are also engaged in trade negotiations on FTAs. RO are a central theme on each of theses fronts. A detailed analysis of the key questions surrounding the harmonization process is compelling, given that RO talks at the WTO will affect the negotiation of FTAs. Many developing countries are waiting the results from WTO to define their own RO. Since the impasse continues, they are creating their own systems and multiplying different ROs to satisfy their needs. This article seeks to provide some clues why it was impossible, till now, to finish this multilateral negotiation. It is organized as follows: i) review of the main issues in the ARO; ii) present the main points of contention in the harmonization work; iii) analyze the implications of a harmonized system of rules of origin to the other major WTO agreements as well as to other national trade policy instruments; and to present some possible scenarios how to conclude the negotiation

Joint dynamic probabilistic constraints with projected linear decision rules

We consider multistage stochastic linear optimization problems combining joint dynamic probabilistic constraints with hard constraints. We develop a method for projecting decision rules onto hard constraints of wait-and-see type. We establish the relation between the original (in nite dimensional) problem and approximating problems working with projections from di erent subclasses of decision policies. Considering the subclass of linear decision rules and a generalized linear model for the underlying stochastic process with noises that are Gaussian or truncated Gaussian, we show that the value and gradient of the objective and constraint functions of the approximating problems can be computed analytically.

Trade rules and exchange rate misalignments : in search for a WTO solution e medidas compensatórias

The debate on the link between trade rules and rules on exchange rates is raising the attention of experts on international trade law and economics. The main purpose of this paper is to analyze the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on tariffs as applied by the WTO – World Trade Organization. It is divided into five sections: the first one explains the methodology used to determine exchange rate misalignments and also presents its results for Brazil, US and China; the second summarizes the methodology applied to calculate the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on the level of tariff protection through an exercise of “misalignment tariffication”; the third examines the effects of exchange rate variations on tariffs and their consequences for the multilateral trading system; the fourth one creates a methodology to estimate exchange rates against a currency of the World and a proposal to deal with persistent and significant misalignments related to trade rules. The conclusions are present in the last section

Evaluation of the Genotoxicity of Chitosan Nanoparticles for Use in Food Packaging Films

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

Effects of gamma-irradiation on caprolactam level from multilayer PA-6 films for food packaging: Development and validation of a gas chromatographic method

A gas chromatographic method to determine caprolactam in multilayer PA-6 films used for meat foodstuffs and cheese was developed and validated. A wide linear range (0.8-400 mu g/ml), RSD <= 4.1% and recovery higher than 90.0% were obtained for the chromatographic system, while precision and accuracy of the method showed RSD <= 3.8%, recovery from 95.5-100.0% and LOQ of 32 mu g/g. Irradiated (3, 7 and 12 kGy) and non-irradiated commercial films were analyzed. Most of them increased caprolactam levels with the increase of irradiation doses. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

MIGRATION MEASUREMENTS FROM PLASTIC PACKAGING: A SIMULATION STUDY ON INFLUENCE OF INITIAL CONCENTRATION PROFILE

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

The transformation between exploration and exploitation applied to inventors of packaging innovations

While the inventor is often the driver of an invention in the early stages, he/she needs to move between different social networks for knowledge in order to create and capture value. The main objective of this research is to propose a literature-based framework based on innovation network theory and complemented with C-K theory, in order to analyze the invention/innovation process of inventors and the product concepts in a packaging industry context. Empirical input from three case studies of packaging inventions and their inventors is used to elaborate the suggested framework.The article identifies important gaps in the literature of innovation networks. This is addressed through a theoretical framework based on network theories, complemented with C-K theory for the product design level. The strength-of-ties dimension of the theoretical framework suggests, in agreement with the mainstream literature and the cases presented, that weak ties are required to access the knowledge related to exploration networks and strong ties are required to utilize the knowledge in the exploitation network. The transformation network is an intermediate step acting as a bridge where entrepreneurs can find required knowledge. The transformation network is also an intermediate step where entrepreneurs find financing and companies interested in commercializing inventions. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A method for plotting the complementary root locus using the root-locus (positive gain) rules

The root-locus method is a well-known and commonly used tool in control system analysis and design. It is an important topic in introductory undergraduate engineering control disciplines. Although complementary root locus (plant with negative gain) is not as common as root locus (plant with positive gain) and in many introductory textbooks for control systems is not presented, it has been shown a valuable tool in control system design. This paper shows that complementary root locus can be plotted using only the well-known construction rules to plot root locus. It can offer for the students a better comprehension on this subject. These results present a procedure to avoid problems that appear in root-locus plots for plants with the same number of poles and zeros.

Large nuclear vacuoles are indicative of abnormal chromatin packaging in human spermatozoa

The aim of this investigation was to determine the presence of abnormal sperm chromatin packaging in spermatozoa with large nuclear vacuoles (LNV) selected via high magnification by analysing the pattern of chromomycin A3 (CMA3) staining. A prospective observational study was designed to analyse semen samples obtained from 66 men undergoing infertility diagnosis and treatment. The numbers of cells with normal (dull yellow staining of the sperm head/CMA3-negative) and abnormal (bright yellow fluorescence of the sperm head/CMA3-positive) chromatin packaging were determined on slides with normal and LNV spermatozoa. The presence of bright yellow fluorescence (CMA3-positive) was significantly higher (p < 0.0001) in spermatozoa with LNV than in normal spermatozoa (719/1351; 53.2% vs. 337/835; 40.3%, respectively), reflecting a higher percentage of abnormal chromatin packaging in spermatozoa with large LNV. Our data support the hypothesis that the presence of LNV reflects the presence of abnormal chromatin packaging, which may facilitate sperm DNA damage. As sperm nuclear vacuoles are evaluated more precisely at high magnifications using motile sperm organelle morphology examination (MSOME), the present results support the use of high-magnification sperm selection for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).

Acrosomal ultrastructure of stallion spermatozoa cryopreserved with ethylene glycol using two packaging systems

The present experiments aimed to examine the substitution of glycerol (G) by ethylene glycol (E) as a cryoprotective agent for stallion spermatozoa. Two different ethylene glycol concentrations (5% and 10%) and also the association of glycerol (2%) and ethylene glycol (3%) (E/G) were studied (Experiment 1). In Experiment 2, two packing systems (0.5 x 4.0 ml) were evaluated using both cryoprotectors. In both experiments, the sperm membrane integrity after freezing was evaluated using transmission electron microscopy. The mean post-thaw motility was 34.25, 36.5, 29.25 and 34.75% for G5%, E5%, E10% and E/G, respectively. It was observed that the percentage of motile spermatozoa was significantly smaller (P<0.05) when semen was processed with E10%. A decrease in the acrosome integrity was observed in frozen thawed spermatozoa from all treated groups. It was observed that 28.0, 22.5, 25.5 and 22.5 % of the sperm cells had a normal acrosome following freezing with G5%, E5%, E10% and E/G, respectively. Undulation of the outer acrosomal membrane, acrosomal swelling and loss of acrosomal content density and homogeneity were the most evident ultrastructural alterations observed. In Experiment 2, the post-thaw motility was higher (P<0.05) for sperm frozen in 0.5 ml straws than in 4.0 mi straws, regardless of the cryoprotector used. The ultrastructural evaluation showed 26.7 and 16.0% of intact acrosomes for sperm frozen in 0.5 ml and 4.0 ml straws, respectively. We concluded that ethylene glycol has similar cryoprotective properties to glycerol and that utilisation of 0.5 ml straws improved the ability of horse sperm cells to withstand damage after the cryopreservation process.