Európai Unió: túlélés vagy távlati tervezés – az állam változó szerepei (European Union – survival or long term planning?)

Az EU-ban, a mai állapotok szerint, csak „transzferunióról” beszélhetünk és nem egységes piacról. Az eurós pénzfolyamatok eltorzítva közvetítik a versenyképességet is: mind az árukban és vagyontárgyakban, mind – főleg – a pénzügyi eszközökben megtestesült munkákat/teljesítményeket rosszul árazzák. Egy ilyen keretben különösen könnyen alakul ki az, amit potyautas-problémának nevezünk, vagyis ahol tényleges vagy mérhető teljesítményleadás, vagy éppen fizetés nélkül lehet fogyasztani, és túl olcsón lehet szabad forrásokhoz jutni. Az eurózóna számos közvetítő mechanizmusában is tökéletlen. A sok, szuverénadósság-présbe került tagország között van kicsi, közepes és nagy is. Ez a tény, valamint az általános növekedési és munkapiaci problémák, egyértelműen „rendszerszintű zavarokat” jeleznek, amelyeket ebben a dolgozatban teljesítmény közvetítési-átviteli problémának hívunk, és ezért egy szokatlan, ám annál beszédesebb, elektromosenergia-átviteli rendszeranalógiával segítünk értelmezni. Megmutatjuk, hogy egy jó nagyvállalat miért jobb pénzügyi tervező, mint egy azonos méretű állam. _____ Why are ill-defined transfer mechanisms diverting valuable assets and resources to the wrong destination within the EU? Why do we witness ongoing pressure in the EU banking sector and in government finances? We offer an unusual answer to these questions: we apply an analogy from physics (from an electric generation and distribution network) to show the transmission inefficiency and waste, respectively, of the EU distribution mechanisms. We demonstrate that there are inherent flaws in both the measurement and in the distribution of assets and resources amongst the key EU markets: goods, money and factor markets. In addition, we find that when international equalizer mechanism is at work (cohesion funds allocated), many of these equity functions are at risk with respect to their reliable measurement. Especially are at risk the metered load factors, likewise the loss/waste factors. The map of desired outcomes does not match the real outcome, since EUtransfers in general are put to work with low efficiency.

A számviteli szabályozások eltérésének okairól (Causes of the differences in accounting regulations)

A számviteli szabályozások közötti eltérések oda vezethetnek, hogy ugyanarról a gazdálkodó egység, egyazon időszakáról, akár jelentősen is eltérő, és az adott szabályozási logika alapján helyes pénzügyi kimutatások készülnek. Ezek a sokszor materiális eltérések nehezen magyarázhatók, ha figyelembe vesszük azt a tényt is, hogy a különböző pénzügyi kimutatások mögött azonos gazdasági események húzódnak meg. Az eltérések a számviteli szabályozás különbségeivel magyarázhatók. A cikk feltárja, hogy a számviteli szabályozásnak milyen szintjeit lehet megkülönböztetni, és vizsgálja, hogy milyen tényezők vezettek el oda, hogy az egyes megközelítések akár markánsan eltérő megoldásokat kínálnak egy-egy adott vagyoni elem megjelenítésére és értékelésére, illetve egy tranzakció megjelenítésére. A cikk az egyes eltéréseket indukáló tényezők rendszerezése útján megkísérel deduktív úton becslést adni a számviteli harmonizáció további lehetséges irányaira. ____ Differences among the accounting regulations may lead to material dissimilarities in the financial statements prepared for the same entity and same financial year. These material differences are sometimes hard to explain, given that they shall be based on the same transactions. The differences are explained by the differences in the regulations. The paper explains the possible levels of accounting by-laws and examines – based on the relevant literature – the factors that led to different solutions for the recognition, measurement and disclosure of the same items or transactions. By structuring these factors the article tries to give possible future advances in the harmonization of such systems using a deductive approach.

Bizalom az üzleti kapcsolatokban. A diadikus adatelemzés egy alkalmazása = Trust in business relations - an application of dyadic data analysis

A tanulmány arra a feltevésre épül, hogy minél erősebb a bizalomra méltóság szintje egy adott üzleti kapcsolatban, annál inkább igaz, hogy nagy kockázatú tevékenységek mennek végbe benne. Ilyen esetekben a bizalomra méltóság a kapcsolatban zajló események, cselekvések irányítási eszközévé válik, és az üzleti kapcsolatban megjelenik a cselekvési hajlandóságként értelmezett bizalom. A tanulmány felhívja a figyelmet a bizalom és a bizalomra méltóság fogalmai közötti különbségre, szisztematikus különválasztásuk fontosságára. Bemutatja az úgynevezett diadikus adatelemzés gazdálkodástudományi alkalmazását. Empirikus eredményei is igazolják, hogy ezzel a módszerrel az üzleti kapcsolatok társas jellemzőinek (köztük a bizalomnak) és a közöttük lévő kapcsolatoknak mélyebb elemzésére nyílik lehetőség. ____ The paper rests on the behavioral interpretation of trust, making a clear distinction between trustworthiness (honesty) and trust interpreted as willingness to engage in risky situations with specific partners. The hypothesis tested is that in a business relation marked by high levels of trustworthiness as perceived by the opposite parties, willingness to be involved in risky situations is higher than it is in relations where actors do not believe their partners to be highly trustworthy. Testing this hypothesis clearly calls for dyadic operationalization, measurement, and analysis. The authors present the first economic application of a newly developed statistical technique called dyadic data analysis, which has already been applied in social psychology. It clearly overcomes the problem of single-ended research in business relations analysis and allows a deeper understanding of any dyadic phenomenon, including trust/trustworthiness as a governance mechanism.

Achieving zero accidents—A strategic framework for continuous safety improvement in the construction industry

In the U.S., construction accidents remain a significant economic and social problem. Despite recent improvement, the Construction industry, generally, has lagged behind other industries in implementing safety as a total management process for achieving zero accidents and developing a high-performance safety culture. One aspect of this total approach to safety that has frustrated the construction industry the most has been “measurement”, which involves identifying and quantifying the factors that critically influence safe work behaviors. The basic problem attributed is the difficulty in assessing what to measure and how to measure it—particularly the intangible aspects of safety. Without measurement, the notion of continuous improvement is hard to follow. This research was undertaken to develop a strategic framework for the measurement and continuous improvement of total safety in order to achieve and sustain the goal of zero accidents, while improving the quality, productivity and the competitiveness of the construction industry as it moves forward. The research based itself on an integral model of total safety that allowed decomposition of safety into interior and exterior characteristics using a multiattribute analysis technique. Statistical relationships between total safety dimensions and safety performance (measured by safe work behavior) were revealed through a series of latent variables (factors) that describe the total safety environment of a construction organization. A structural equation model (SEM) was estimated for the latent variables to quantify relationships among them and between these total safety determinants and safety performance of a construction organization. The developed SEM constituted a strategic framework for identifying, measuring, and continuously improving safety as a total concern for achieving and sustaining the goal of zero accidents.

Perceptions of the Beach Users: A Case Study of the Coastal Areas of North Cyprus Towards Establishment of a "Carrying Capacity"

Within the main elements of economic sustainability, socio-cultural sustainability, and environmental sustainability, the criteria of 'carrying capacity’ have ben emphasized through residents’ perception analysis to explore practical methods towards the application and implementation of such criteria. As data analysis revealed, the main tourist resources in the case of North Cyprus –the coast and the beach- have a certain capacity to sustain the impact and pressure of tourism. Despite the significance of the indigenous environment and with respect to the residents’ perception of optimum carrying capacity levels, this issue has not been given a due consideration. This has resulted in a process of coastal development which bypasses any measure ore application of a standard to harmonize the degree of physical development and the capacity of the beach. The main objective of this paper is to establish the concept of ‘carrying capacity’ as the means to achieve the reconciliation of environmental impacts with tourism development. The study concludes that, if carrying capacity measurement and its implementation are not incorporated into the planning decision as a clear policy, there will be grave negative consequences for those resources attracting visitors.

Estudo comparativo entre antipsicóticos atípicos no tratamento da esquizofrenia e sua influência na qualidade de vida dos pacientes

Schizophrenia is a severe and persistent mental illness; diagnosis occurs mainly during adolescence. The pharmacological treatment is done with typical and atypical antipsychotics. Atypical have the advantage of reduced extrapyramidal effects, which make them promising for the treatment of schizophrenia, furthermore, they have shown significant metabolic and hormonal changes. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of atypical antipsychotics, olanzapine and risperidone on the quality of life and on their adverse effects in schizophrenic patients. For this we analyzed the quality of life of patients with implementation of EuroQol-5D-3L instrument and performing biochemical and hormonal tests, blood pressure measurement, and measurement of anthropometric indices, besides the application of Ugvalg scales for Kliniske Undersgelser (UKU) and Simpson-Angus, who evaluated the side effects caused by drugs. Data were analyzed using the Student t test and chi-square test, with 5% significance level. The results showed that the EuroQol the antipsychotic olanzapine causes significant losses associated with personal care (p <0.001). Comparing the two groups of antipsychotics, the average years of quality-adjusted life, known per QALY was favorable for the risperidone group (p <0.032). The results of olanzapine and risperidone groups were compared. In terms of socioeconomic, it was observed that men used, the prevalent form, olanzapine (p <0.008); this same group showed the following results significantly unfavorable, related to anthropometric variables: waist circumference (p <0.01), hip circumference (p <0.02), weight (p <0.02) and blood pressure (p <0.04). The biochemical and hormonal analyzes showed that olanzapine resulted in losses related to the following variables: triglycerides (p <0.04), HDL cholesterol in men (p < 0.02) and cortisol (p < 0.01). In risperidone users, the only negative value was prolactin (p < 0.04). Regarding the analysis of the Simpson-Angus scale, the group treated with olanzapine was handicapped because the average total scores for olanzapine was 0.38, while for risperidone was 0.11 (p < 0.02). In the UKU scale, the following results were obtained also unfavorable for the olanzapine group: fatigue (P <0.02), dystonia (p <0.01) and tremor (p <0.03). According to the UKU scale, the side effects present in the risperidone group included: gynecomastia (p <0.01), ejaculatory dysfunction (p <0.02) and erectile dysfunction (p <0.02). It was concluded that olanzapine users had the worst score of quality of life, higher metabolic risks associated with overweight and inadequate lipid profile and greater tendency to extrapyramidal manifestations. However, risperidone users were more likely to adverse reactions due to hormonal changes.

The Politics of Gender Socialization

This manuscript is comprised of three papers that examine the far-reaching and often invisible political outcomes of gender role socialization in the United States. These papers focus primarily on two areas: political confidence amongst girls and women, and the effects of gender on survey measurement and data quality.

Chapter one focuses on political confidence, and the likelihood that women will run for political office. Women continue to be underrepresented at all levels of political leadership, and their lack of political ambition, relative to men, has been identified as a primary cause. In this paper, I explore the relationship between an individual's masculinity and femininity and her development of political ambition. Using original survey data from the 2012 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES), I first empirically demonstrate that gender (masculinity/femininity) and sex (male/female) are unique elements of identity and, moreover, are both independently related to political ambition. I then explore the relevance of gender for the study of candidate emergence, testing whether and how masculinity and femininity might be related to political ambition are supported empirically. While the results suggest that masculinity is positively associated with the development of political ambition, the relationship between femininity and candidate emergence seems to be more complicated and not what prevailing stereotypes might lead us to expect. Moreover, while the relationship between masculinity and political ambition is the same for men and women, the relationship between femininity and political ambition is very different for women than it is for men. This study suggests that gender role socialization is highly related with both men's and women's desire to seek positions of political leadership.

Chapter two continues this exploration of gendered differences in the development of political ambition, this time exploring how social attractiveness and gendered perceptions of political leadership impact the desire to hold political office.Women are persistently underrepresented as candidates for public office and remain underrepresented at all levels of government in the United States. Previous literature suggests that the gendered ambition gap, gender socialization, insufficient recruitment, media scrutiny, family responsibilities, modern campaign strategies, and political opportunity structures all contribute to the gender imbalance in pools of officeholders and candidates. To explain women's reticence to run, scholars have offered explanations addressing structural, institutional, and individual-level factors that deter women from becoming candidates, especially for high positions in the U.S. government. This paper examines a previously unexplored factor: how dating and socialized norms of sexual attraction affect political ambition. This study investigates whether young, single, and heterosexual women's desire for male attention and fear of being perceived as unattractive or "too ambitious" present obstacles to running for office. The results of these experiments suggest that social expectations about gender, attraction and sexuality, and political office-holding may contribute to women's reticence to pursue political leadership. Chapter two is a co-authored work and represents the joint efforts of Laura Lazarus Frankel, Shauna Shames, and Nadia Farjood.

Chapter 3 bridges survey methodology and gender socialization, focusing on how interviewer sex affects survey measurement and data quality. Specifically, this paper examines whether and how matching interviewer and respondent sex affects panel attrition--respondents dropping out of the study after participating in the first wave. While the majority of research on interviewer effects suggests that matching interviewer and respondent characteristics (homophily) yields higher quality data, little work has examined whether this pattern holds true in the area of panel attrition. Using paradata from the General Social Survey (GSS), I explore this question. My analysis reveals that, despite its broader positive effects on data quality, matching interviewer and respondent sex increases likelihood to attrit. Interestingly, this phenomenon only emerges amongst male respondents. However, while assigning female interviewers to male respondents decreases their propensity to attrit, it also increases the likelihood of biased responses on gender related items. These conflicting outcomes represent a tradeoff for scholars and survey researchers, requiring careful consideration of mode, content, and study goals when designing surveys and/or analyzing survey data. The implications of these patterns and areas for further research are discussed.

Together, these papers illustrate two ways that gender norms are related to political outcomes: they contribute to patterns of candidate emergence and affect the measurement of political attitudes and behaviors.

Sparse Sample Detection Using Magnetic Bead Manipulation on a Digital Microfluidic Device

This thesis demonstrates a new way to achieve sparse biological sample detection, which uses magnetic bead manipulation on a digital microfluidic device. Sparse sample detection was made possible through two steps: sparse sample capture and fluorescent signal detection. For the first step, the immunological reaction between antibody and antigen enables the binding between target cells and antibody-­‐‑ coated magnetic beads, hence achieving sample capture. For the second step, fluorescent detection is achieved via fluorescent signal measurement and magnetic bead manipulation. In those two steps, a total of three functions need to work together, namely magnetic beads manipulation, fluorescent signal measurement and immunological binding. The first function is magnetic bead manipulation, and it uses the structure of current-­‐‑carrying wires embedded in the actuation electrode of an electrowetting-­‐‑on-­‐‑dielectric (EWD) device. The current wire structure serves as a microelectromagnet, which is capable of segregating and separating magnetic beads. The device can achieve high segregation efficiency when the wire spacing is 50µμm, and it is also capable of separating two kinds of magnetic beads within a 65µμm distance. The device ensures that the magnetic bead manipulation and the EWD function can be operated simultaneously without introducing additional steps in the fabrication process. Half circle shaped current wires were designed in later devices to concentrate magnetic beads in order to increase the SNR of sample detection. The second function is immunological binding. Immunological reaction kits were selected in order to ensure the compatibility of target cells, magnetic bead function and EWD function. The magnetic bead choice ensures the binding efficiency and survivability of target cells. The magnetic bead selection and binding mechanism used in this work can be applied to a wide variety of samples with a simple switch of the type of antibody. The last function is fluorescent measurement. Fluorescent measurement of sparse samples is made possible of using fluorescent stains and a method to increase SNR. The improved SNR is achieved by target cell concentration and reduced sensing area. Theoretical limitations of the entire sparse sample detection system is as low as 1 Colony Forming Unit/mL (CFU/mL).

Annotated record of the detailed examination of Mn deposits from R/V Tokaidaigaku Maru II Cruise GDP-1 stations

The present paper, deals with the results of the bottom sampling. Sampling devices were a gravity corer for heat flow measurement and dredges of bucket type.

El impacto de la crisis en la industria cinematográfica en Europa

Este trabajo analiza el impacto que ha generado la crisis económica y financiera más reciente en las industrias cinematográficas de siete países miembros de la Unión Europea. Las conclusiones señalan que, en efecto, la crisis ha impactado negativamente en las industrias de España e Italia, y muy gravemente en la de Portugal, pero en el lado contrario, la del Reino Unido ha experimentado un crecimiento apreciable y las de Francia y Alemania también lo han hecho, aunque en menor medida. Y en segundo lugar, es muy notable la escasa colaboración alcanzada entre los agentes europeos.

Sistemas curriculares para la gestión de información y conocimiento institucional. Estudio de caso

La organización del conocimiento en el contexto de las Ciencias de la Información tiene como esencia la información y el conocimiento debidamente documentado o registrado. La organización del conocimiento como proceso, envuelve tanto la descripción física como de los contenidos de los objetos informacionales. Y el producto de ese proceso descriptivo es la representación de los atributos de un objeto o conjunto de objetos. Las representaciones son construidas por lenguajes elaborados específicamente para los objetivos de la organización en los sistemas de información. Lenguajes que se subdividen en lenguajes que describen el documento (el soporte físico del objeto) y lenguajes que describen la información (los contenidos).A partir de esta premisa la siguiente investigación tiene como objetivo general analizarlos sistemas de Gestión de Información y Conocimiento Institucional principalmente los que proponen utilizar el Currículum Vitae del profesor como única fuente de información, medición y representación de la información y el conocimiento de una organización. Dentro delos principales resultados se muestra la importancia de usar el currículo personal como fuente de información confiable y normalizada; una síntesis de los principales sistemas curriculares que existen a nivel internacional y regional; así como el gráfico del modelo de datos del caso de estudio; y por último, la propuesta del uso de las ontologías como principal herramienta para la organización semántica de la información en un sistema de gestión de información y conocimiento.

D2.3 First bundle of client-side components

This document describes the first bundle of core WP2 (user data analytics) client side components, including their specifications, usecases, and working prototypes. Included assets contain a description of their current status, and links to their full designs and downloadable versions. This deliverable only describes operational SW assets (even though beta) that are tested and documented. It should be noted, however, that various additional software assets (2.2d Cognitive Capacity Measurement and 2.3a Realtime Emotion Detection) are near completion for inclusion in games during the first pilot round. Those assets are still scheduled for inclusion in the final bundle deliverable D2.2.

UK consensus project on quality in palliative day services: developing a quality indicator set using the RAND/UCLA appropriateness method

Introduction
Evaluating quality of palliative day services is essential for assessing care across diverse settings, and for monitoring quality improvement approaches.

Aim
To develop a set of quality indicators for assessment of all aspects (structure, process and outcome) of care in palliative day services.

Methods
Using a modified version of the RAND/UCLA appropriateness method (Fitch et al., 2001), a multidisciplinary panel of 16 experts independently completed a survey rating the appropriateness of 182 potential quality indicators previously identified during a systematic evidence review. Panel members then attended a one day, face-to-face meeting where indicators were discussed and subsequently re-rated. Panel members were also asked to rate the feasibility and necessity of measuring each indicator.

Results
71 indicators classified as inappropriate during the survey were removed based on median appropriateness ratings and level of agreement. Following the panel discussions, a further 60 were removed based on appropriateness and feasibility ratings, level of agreement and assessment of necessity. Themes identified during the panel discussion and findings of the evidence review were used to translate the remaining 51 indicators into a final set of 27.

Conclusion
The final indicator set included information on rationale and supporting evidence, methods of assessment, risk adjustment, and recommended performance levels. Further implementation work will test the suitability of this ‘toolkit’ for measurement and benchmarking. The final indicator set provides the basis for standardised assessment of quality across services, including care delivered in community and primary care settings.

Reference

• Fitch K, Bernstein SJ, Aguilar MD, et al. The RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method User’s Manual. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation; 2001. http://www.rand.org/pubs/monograph_reports/MR1269

Measuring energy footprint of software features

Abstract—With the proliferation of Software systems and the rise of paradigms such the Internet of Things, Cyber- Physical Systems and Smart Cities to name a few, the energy consumed by software applications is emerging as a major concern. Hence, it has become vital that software engineers have a better understanding of the energy consumed by the code they write. At software level, work so far has focused on measuring the energy consumption at function and application level. In this paper, we propose a novel approach to measure energy consumption at a feature level, cross-cutting multiple functions, classes and systems. We argue the importance of such measurement and the new insight it provides to non-traditional stakeholders such as service providers. We then demonstrate, using an experiment, how the measurement can be done with a combination of tools, namely our program slicing tool (PORBS) and energy measurement tool (Jolinar).

Aspects of Land Take in the Metropolitan Area of Naples

Land take is a phenomenon of great concern nowadays because of the large number of its negative impacts regarding biological, economic and social balance. In Italy, the development of urban and other artificial land has been irreversibly transforming a nonrenewable resource such as soil, regardless the almost constant population rate, with different speed depending of the region considered. The aim of this paper is to analyze the phenomenon in the metropolitan area of Naples, which is an area highly affected by territorial aggression of human matrix. The data used are both by the Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA) Report 2015 on the usage of the land and by ISTAT relating to the resident population up to the 1st of January 2015 and the extension of land for agricultural use (Census 2010). The mathematical combination of this data creates a new indicator that can be referred to as “residual land”; this residual area is of great extension with many different characteristics and it could represent the area where the phenomenon of land take most occurs. The identification, measurement and analysis of “residual land” provide new insights on the evolution of land take and this new indicator can represent a critical element to work on to prevent future land transformation and protect natural and agricultural areas within the Italian context.