bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evidence for nontraditional
mcr
-containing archaea contributing to biological methanogenesis in geothermal springs
Authors: Wang Jiajia , Qu Yan-Ni , Evans Paul N. , Guo Qinghai , Zhou Fengwu , Nie Ming , Jin Qusheng , Zhang Yan , Zhai Xiangmei , Zhou Ming , Yu Zhiguo , Fu Qing-Long , Xie Yuan-Guo , Hedlund Brian P. , Li Wen-Jun , Hua Zheng-Shuang , Wang Zimeng , Wang Yanxin
Published: June 2023

Recent discoveries of methyl-coenzyme M reductase–encoding genes (
mcr
) in uncultured archaea beyond traditional euryarchaeotal methanogens have reshaped our view of methanogenesis. However, whether any of these nontraditional archaea perform methanogenesis remains elusive. Here, we report field and microcosm experiments based on
13
C-tracer labeling and genome-resolved metagenomics and metatranscriptomics, revealing that nontraditional archaea are predominant active methane producers in two geothermal springs.
Archaeoglobales
performed methanogenesis from methanol and may exhibit adaptability in using methylotrophic and hydrogenotrophic pathways based on temperature/substrate availability. A five-year field survey found
Candidatus
Nezhaarchaeota to be the predominant
mcr
-containing archaea inhabiting the springs; genomic inference and
mcr
expression under methanogenic conditions strongly suggested that this lineage mediated hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis in situ. Methanogenesis was temperature-sensitive , with a preference for methylotrophic over hydrogenotrophic pathways when incubation temperatures increased from 65° to 75°C. This study demonstrates an anoxic ecosystem wherein methanogenesis is primarily driven by archaea beyond known methanogens, highlighting diverse nontraditional
mcr
-containing archaea as previously unrecognized methane sources.
Computational design of the temperature optimum of an enzyme reaction
Authors: van der Ent Florian , Skagseth Susann , Lund Bjarte A. , Sočan Jaka , Griese Julia J. , Brandsdal Bjørn O. , Åqvist Johan
Published: June 2023

Cold-adapted enzymes are characterized both by a higher catalytic activity at low temperatures and by having their temperature optimum down-shifted, compared to mesophilic orthologs. In several cases, the optimum does not coincide with the onset of protein melting but reflects some other type of inactivation. In the psychrophilic α-amylase from an Antarctic bacterium, the inactivation is thought to originate from a specific enzyme-substrate interaction that breaks around room temperature. Here, we report a computational redesign of this enzyme aimed at shifting its temperature optimum upward. A set of mutations designed to stabilize the enzyme-substrate interaction were predicted by computer simulations of the catalytic reaction at different temperatures. The predictions were verified by kinetic experiments and crystal structures of the redesigned α-amylase, showing that the temperature optimum is indeed markedly shifted upward and that the critical surface loop controlling the temperature dependence approaches the target conformation observed in a mesophilic ortholog.
Robot swarms neutralize harmful Byzantine robots using a blockchain-based token economy
Authors: Strobel Volker , Pacheco Alexandre , Dorigo Marco
Published: June 2023

Through cooperation, robot swarms can perform tasks or solve problems that a single robot from the swarm could not perform/solve by itself. However, it has been shown that a single Byzantine robot (such as a malfunctioning or malicious robot) can disrupt the coordination strategy of the entire swarm. Therefore, a versatile swarm robotics framework that addresses security issues in inter-robot communication and coordination is urgently needed. Here, we show that security issues can be addressed by setting up a token economy between the robots. To create and maintain the token economy, we used blockchain technology, originally developed for the digital currency Bitcoin. The robots were given crypto tokens that allowed them to participate in the swarm’s security-critical activities. The token economy was regulated via a smart contract that decided how to distribute crypto tokens among the robots depending on their contributions. We designed the smart contract so that Byzantine robots soon ran out of crypto tokens and could therefore no longer influence the rest of the swarm. In experiments with up to 24 physical robots, we demonstrated that our smart contract approach worked: The robots could maintain blockchain networks, and a blockchain-based token economy could be used to neutralize the destructive actions of Byzantine robots in a collective-sensing scenario. In experiments with more than 100 simulated robots, we studied the scalability and long-term behavior of our approach. The obtained results demonstrate the feasibility and viability of blockchain-based swarm robotics.
Delivery of gene therapy through a cerebrospinal fluid conduit to rescue hearing in adult mice
Authors: Mathiesen Barbara K. , Miyakoshi Leo M. , Cederroth Christopher R. , Tserga Evangelia , Versteegh Corstiaen , Bork Peter A. R. , Hauglund Natalie L. , Gomolka Ryszard Stefan , Mori Yuki , Edvall Niklas K. , Rouse Stephanie , Møllgård Kjeld , Holt Jeffrey R. , Nedergaard Maiken , Canlon Barbara
Published: June 2023

Inner ear gene therapy has recently effectively restored hearing in neonatal mice, but it is complicated in adulthood by the structural inaccessibility of the cochlea, which is embedded within the temporal bone. Alternative delivery routes may advance auditory research and also prove useful when translated to humans with progressive genetic-mediated hearing loss. Cerebrospinal fluid flow via the glymphatic system is emerging as a new approach for brain-wide drug delivery in rodents as well as humans. The cerebrospinal fluid and the fluid of the inner ear are connected via a bony channel called the cochlear aqueduct, but previous studies have not explored the possibility of delivering gene therapy via the cerebrospinal fluid to restore hearing in adult deaf mice. Here, we showed that the cochlear aqueduct in mice exhibits lymphatic-like characteristics. In vivo time-lapse magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, and optical fluorescence microscopy showed that large-particle tracers injected into the cerebrospinal fluid reached the inner ear by dispersive transport via the cochlear aqueduct in adult mice. A single intracisternal injection of adeno-associated virus carrying solute carrier family 17, member 8 (
Slc17A8
), which encodes vesicular glutamate transporter-3 (VGLUT3), rescued hearing in adult deaf

Slc17A8
−/−

mice by restoring VGLUT3 protein expression in inner hair cells, with minimal ectopic expression in the brain and none in the liver. Our findings demonstrate that cerebrospinal fluid transport comprises an accessible route for gene delivery to the adult inner ear and may represent an important step toward using gene therapy to restore hearing in humans.
Cadherin Is a Binding Protein but Not a Functional Receptor of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry2Ab in Helicoverpa armigera
Authors: Naing Zaw Lin , Soe Ei Thinzar , Zhang Caihong , Niu Linlin , Tang Jinrong , Ding Zhongwei , Yu Siqi , Lu Jie , Fang Fengyun , Liang Gemei
Published: June 2023

To improve the efficiency of production of a single toxin in crops and to delay the evolution of insect resistance to the toxin, the second generation of Bt cotton, expressing Cry1Ac and Cry2Ab, was introduced. Understanding the mode action of the Cry proteins in the insect midgut and the mechanisms insects use to overcome these toxins plays a crucial role in developing measures to counter them.
Enteric
Aeromonas
Infection: a Common Enteric Bacterial Infection with a Novel Infection Pattern Detected in an Australian Population with Gastroenteritis
Authors: Yuwono Christopher , Wehrhahn Michael C. , Liu Fang , Zhang Li
Published: June 2023

Aeromonas
species are emerging human enteric pathogens. However, these species are currently not routinely detected in many diagnostic laboratories, and no studies have reported the detection of
Aeromonas
enteric infection using molecular methods.
Establishment of a Novel Detection Platform for Clostridioides difficile Toxin Genes Based on Orthogonal CRISPR
Authors: Jiang Tong , Hu Xinyi , Shen Jilu
Published: June 2023

C. difficile
is currently the primary causative agent of hospital-acquired antibiotic-induced diarrhea, and timely and accurate diagnosis is crucial for hospital-acquired infection control and epidemiological investigation. Here, a new method for the identification of
C. difficile
was developed based on the recently popular CRISPR technology, and an orthogonal CRISPR dual system was utilized for the simultaneous detection of toxin genes A and B.
Distribution and Spread of the Mobilized RND Efflux Pump Gene Cluster
tmexCD-toprJ
in Klebsiella pneumoniae from Different Sources
Authors: Sun Lin , Wang Hanyun , Meng Nan , Wang Zhenyu , Li Guiling , Jiao Xinan , Wang Jing
Published: June 2023

Tigecycline has been regarded as one of the last-resort antibiotics available for the treatment of infections caused by carbapenem-resistant
Enterobacterales
. The plasmid-mediated resistance-nodulation-division–type efflux pump gene cluster
tmexCD
-
toprJ
is a newly identified tigecycline resistance determinant.
Effect of socioeconomic deprivation as determined by the English deprivation deciles on the progression of diabetic retinopathy and maculopathy: a multivariate case–control analysis of 88 910 patients attending a South-East London diabetic eye screening service
Authors: Giannakis Periklis , Nderitu Paul , Nunez do Rio Joan M , Webster Laura , Mann Samantha , Hopkins David , Cardoso Manuel Jorge , Modat Marc , Bergeles Christos , Jackson Timothy L
Published: June 2023

Purpose

To determine associations between deprivation using the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD and individual IMD subdomains) with incident referable diabetic retinopathy/maculopathy (termed rDR).

Methods

Anonymised demographic and screening data collected by the South-East London Diabetic Eye Screening Programme were extracted from September 2013 to December 2019. Multivariable Cox proportional models were used to explore the association between the IMD, IMD subdomains and rDR.

Results

From 118 508 people with diabetes who attended during the study period, 88 910 (75%) were eligible. The mean (± SD) age was 59.6 (±14.7) years; 53.94% were male, 52.58% identified as white, 94.28% had type 2 diabetes and the average duration of diabetes was 5.81 (±6.9) years; rDR occurred in 7113 patients (8.00%). Known risk factors of younger age, Black ethnicity, type 2 diabetes, more severe baseline DR and diabetes duration conferred a higher risk of incident rDR. After adjusting for these known risk factors, the multivariable analysis did not show a significant association between IMD (decile 1 vs decile 10) and rDR (HR: 1.08, 95% CI: 0.87 to 1.34, p=0.511). However, high deprivation (decile 1) in three IMD subdomains was associated with rDR, namely living environment (HR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.12 to 2.41, p=0.011), education skills (HR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.12 to 2.41, p=0.011) and income (HR: 1.19, 95% CI: 1.02 to 1.38, p=0.024).

Conclusion

IMD subdomains allow for the detection of associations between aspects of deprivation and rDR, which may be missed when using the aggregate IMD. The generalisation of these findings outside the UK population requires corroboration internationally.
Differences in acute ischaemic stroke in-hospital mortality across referral stroke hospitals in Spain: a retrospective, longitudinal observational study
Authors: Estupiñán-Romero Francisco , Pinilla Dominguez Jaime , Bernal-Delgado Enrique
Published: June 2023

Objective

To assess differences in acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) in-hospital mortality between referral stroke hospitals and provide evidence on the association of those differences with the overtime adoption of effective reperfusion therapies.

Design

Retrospective, longitudinal observational study using administrative data for virtually all hospital admissions from 2003 to 2015.

Setting

Thirty-seven referral stroke hospitals in the Spanish National Health System.

Participants

Patients aged 18 years and older with a hospital episode with an admission diagnosis of AIS in any referral stroke hospital (196 099 admissions).

Main endpoints

(1) Hospital variation in 30-day in-hospital mortality measured in terms of the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC); and (2) the difference in mortality between the hospital of treatment and the trend of utilisation of reperfusion therapies (including intravenous fibrinolysis and endovascular mechanical thrombectomy) in terms of median OR (MOR).

Results

Adjusted 30-day AIS in-hospital mortality decreased over the study period. Adjusted in-hospital mortality after AIS rates varied from 6.66% to 16.01% between hospitals. Beyond differences in patient characteristics, the relative contribution of the hospital of treatment was higher in the case of patients undergoing reperfusion therapies (ICC=0.031 (95% Bayesian credible interval (BCI)=0.017 to 0.057)) than in the case of those who did not (ICC=0.016 (95% BCI=0.010 to 0.026)). Using the MOR, the difference in risk of death was as high as 46% between the hospital with the highest risk and the hospital with the lowest risk of patients undergoing reperfusion therapy (MOR 1.46 (95% BCI 1.32 to 1.68)); in patients not undergoing any reperfusion therapy, the risk was 31% higher (MOR 1.31 (95% BCI 1.24 to 1.41)).

Conclusions

In the referral stroke hospitals of the Spanish National Health System, the overall adjusted in-hospital mortality decreased between 2003 and 2015. However, between-hospital variations in mortality persisted.
Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on outpatient care and rehabilitation in neuromuscular clinical practice in Japan: a health insurance claims database analysis
Authors: Saito Toshio , Matsuo-Tezuka Yukari , Sugitani Yasuo , Tajima Takumi , Fukao-Washino Junko , Sakai Sadaoki , Iwagami Masao
Published: June 2023

Objectives

To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on outpatient care in Japanese patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMDs).

Design

This retrospective cohort study included patients between January 2018 and February 2019; the follow-up period was divided into ‘before COVID-19’ (March 2019–February 2020) and ‘during COVID-19’ (March 2020–February 2021).

Setting

JMDC claims database study.

Participants

Of the 10 655 557 patients identified, we included patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA; n=82), neuromyelitis optica (NMO; n=342), myasthenia gravis (MG; n=1347), Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS; n=442) or autoimmune encephalitis/encephalopathy (AIE; n=133). Patients were required to have ≥1 month of data available, have a diagnosis of NMD during the enrolment period and be available for follow-up.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

We estimated the proportion of patients with >30% change in outpatient consultation and rehabilitation visits before versus during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Results

Small reductions in the proportion of patients with outpatient consultation/rehabilitation visits were observed before versus during the pandemic. Compared with before the pandemic, 30.4%, 27.8%, 28.7%, 49.4% and 50.0% of patients showed a >30% decrease in outpatient consultation visits and 58.6%, 75.0%, 50.0%, 76.3% and 84.6% showed a >30% decrease in outpatient rehabilitation visits during the pandemic for SMA, NMO, MG, GBS and AIE, respectively. The median change in the number of outpatient consultation visits per year before versus during pandemic was −1.0 day for all NMDs, and that in outpatient rehabilitation visits per year was −6.0, –5.5, −1.5, –6.5 and −9.0 days for SMA, NMO, MG, GBS and AIE, respectively. The reduction in outpatient rehabilitation visits was greater in the absence versus presence of a neurology specialist.

Conclusions

Outpatient consultation and rehabilitation visits during the COVID-19 pandemic were affected in Japanese patients with NMDs. Longer-term evaluations are required to understand if these reductions in outpatient care would affect patient prognosis.
Home care/outpatient versus hospital admission in mild acute pancreatitis: protocol of a multicentre, randomised controlled trial (PADI_2 trial)
Authors: Ramírez-Maldonado Elena , Rodrigo-Rodrigo Marta , Lopez Gordo Sandra , Sanchez Ariadna , Coronado Llanos Daniel , Sanchez Raquel , Vaz Joao , Fondevila Constantino , Jorba-Martin Rosa
Published: June 2023

Introduction

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is the third most common gastrointestinal disease resulting in hospital admission, with over 70% of AP admissions being mild cases. In the USA, it costs 2.5 billion dollars annually. The most common standard management of mild AP (MAP) still is hospital admission. Patients with MAP usually achieve complete recovery in less than a week and the severity predictor scales are reliable. The aim of this study will be to compare three different strategies for the management of MAP.

Methods/design

This is a randomised, controlled, three-arm multicentre trial. Patients with MAP will be randomly assigned to group A (outpatient), B (home care) or C (hospital admission). The primary endpoint of the trial will be the treatment failure rate of the outpatient/home care management for patients with MAP compared with that of hospitalised patients. The secondary endpoints will be pain relapse, diet intolerance, hospital readmission, hospital length of stay, need for intensive care unit admission, organ failure, complications, costs and patient satisfaction. The general feasibility, safety and quality checks required for high-quality evidence will be adhered to.

Ethics and dissemination

The study (version 3.0, 10/2022) has been approved by the Scientific and Research Ethics Committee of the ‘Institut d’Investigació Sanitaria Pere Virgili-IISPV’ (093/2022). This study will provide evidence as to whether outpatient/home care is similar to usual management of AP. The conclusions of this study will be published in an open-access journal.

Trial registration number

ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT05360797).
Advance care plans for vulnerable and disadvantaged adults: systematic review and narrative synthesis
Authors: Brean Samantha Jane , Recoche Katrina , William Leeroy , Lakhani Ali , Zhong Yaping , Shimoinaba Kaori
Published: June 2023

Background

Evidence suggests that there is a gap in advance care planning (ACP) completion between vulnerable and disadvantaged populations compared with the general population. This review seeks to identify tools, guidelines or frameworks that have been used to support ACP interventions with vulnerable and disadvantaged adult populations as well as their experiences and outcomes with them. The findings will inform practice in ACP programmes.

Methods

A systematic search of six databases from 1 January 2010 to 30 March 2022 was conducted to identify original peer-reviewed research that used ACP interventions via tools, guidelines or frameworks with vulnerable and disadvantaged adult populations and reported qualitative findings. A narrative synthesis was conducted.

Results

Eighteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Relatives, caregivers or substitute decision-makers were included in eight studies. Settings: hospital outpatient clinics (N=7), community settings (N=7), nursing homes (N=2), prison (N=1) and hospital (N=1). A variety of ACP tools, guidelines or frameworks were identified; however, the facilitator’s skills and approach in delivering the intervention appeared to be as important as the intervention itself. Participants indicated mixed experiences, some positive, some negative and four themes emerged: uncertainty, trust, culture and decision-making behaviour. The most common descriptors relating to these themes were prognosis uncertainty, poor end-of-life communication and the importance of building trust.

Conclusion

The findings indicate that ACP communication could be improved. ACP conversations should incorporate a holistic and personalised approach to optimise efficacy. Facilitators should be equipped with the necessary skills, tools and information needed to assist ACP decision-making.
A coarse graining CFD–DEM simulation on contact erosion of layered cohesionless soils
Authors: Guo Yuan , Xiao Jinqin , Wang Chen
Published: June 2023

A coarse graining computational fluid dynamics–discrete element method (DEM) model is developed to analyze the contact erosion of cohesionless soils at the coarse/fine soil interface. Two benchmark cases are provided to verify the model implementation, including the collision of two groups of particles and collapse of a soil column in water. It is demonstrated the CG approach significantly reduces the computational cost with sufficiently good accuracy. Two typical CG approaches, i.e., the relative overlap scaling (ROS) and absolute overlap scaling approaches, are compared and show similar model performance. While the DEM time step of ROS approach is scaled up by the scaling factor, it is recommended in this study for the better computational performance. The verified model is used to simulate the laboratory contact erosion experiment under various flow conditions. The critical discharge rate calculated from the numerical model is 357 mL/s, which achieves a high consistency with the experimental value of 311 mL/s. Further study shows the scaling factor influences the critical discharge rate, as large parcels introduce boundary effects especially for coarse soils. It is also shown the packing state of coarse soils is a determinant in the erosion initiation, as the void fraction distribution is the key for particle and fluid transports, especially near the contact surface.
Analysis of biofilm expansion rate of Bacillus subtilis (MTC871) on agar substrates with different stiffness
Authors: Wu Jin , Li Xianyong , Kong Rui , Wang Jiankun , Wang Xiaoling
Published: June 2023

The surface morphology of mature biofilms is heterogeneous and can be divided into concentric rings wrinkles (I), labyrinthine networks wrinkles (II), radial ridges wrinkles (III), and branches wrinkles (IV), according to surface wrinkle structure and distribution characteristics. Due to the wrinkle structures, channels are formed between the biofilm and substrate and transport nutrients, water, metabolic products, etc. We find that expansion rate variations of biofilms growing on substrates with high and low agar concentrations (1.5, 2.0, 2.5 wt.%) are not in the same phase. In the first 3 days’ growth, the interaction stress between biofilm and each agar substrate increases, which makes the biofilm expansion rate decreases before wrinkle pattern IV (branches) comes up. After 3 days, in the later growth stage after wrinkle pattern IV appears, the biofilm has larger expansion rate growing on 2.0 wt.% agar concentration, which has the larger wrinkle distance in wrinkle pattern IV reducing energy consumption. Our study shows that the stiff substrate does not always inhibit the biofilm expansion, although it does in the earlier stage; after that, mature biofilms acquire larger expansion rate by adjusting the growth mode through the wrinkle evolution even in nutrient extremely depletion.
The Role of Decentralization in Promoting Effective Schooling in Developing Asia
Authors: Behrman Jere R. , Deolalikar Anil B. , Soon Lee-Ying
Published: June 2023

While decentralization of schooling in Asian developing countries has largely been driven by fiscal constraints, it has also been motivated by concerns about the effectiveness of a centralized system in delivering schooling services. The statistics are revealing about some of these concerns: while virtually all of these countries have made impressive gains in expanding the coverage of primary schooling, enrollment rates remain generally low at secondary and tertiary levels, particularly for children coming from disadvantaged backgrounds. The quality of schooling is also a cause for concern, judging by dropout and grade repetition rates, and international comparisons of achievement test scores. Another cause for concern is whether the curricula used are appropriate, especially for higher schooling levels.
Globalization, Technology, and Asian Development
Authors: STIGLITZ JOSEPH E.
Published: June 2023

Globalization has many dimensions, mostly familiar to many such as trade, capital, labor, and knowledge. We distinguish between short-term and long-term capital flows, and between foreign direct investment and short-term capital flows. In terms of labor, we are not only interested in the flows of labor across countries but also across education markets. But these are only the economic dimensions of globalization. There are other dimensions to globalization as well, having to do with, for instance, globalization of civil society, which has had such an important impact on so many aspects of recent events. This discussion focuses on the economic dimensions of globalization and tries to relate them in a more positive way to development.
Planners versus Searchers in Foreign Aid
Authors: Easterly William
Published: June 2023

Only for the recipients of foreign aid is something akin to central planning seen as a way to achieve prosperity. The end of poverty is achieved with free markets and democracy—where decentralized “searchers” look for ways to meet individual needs—not Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The PRSPs and MDGs create lots of bureaucracy but hold no one specific agency in foreign aid accountable for any one specific task. Planners in foreign aid use the old failed models of the past—the “Financing Gap”, the “poverty trap”, the government-to-government aid model; and the “expenditures = outcomes” mentality. Searchers in foreign aid would imitate the feedback and accountability of markets and democracy to provide goods and services to individuals until homegrown markets and democracy end poverty in the society as a whole. An example of the more promising “searchers” approach in foreign aid is 2006 Nobel Peace Laureate Mohammad Yunus and Grameen Bank.
New Global Poverty Counts
Authors: Kakwani Nanak
Published: June 2023

The main objective of this paper is to compute an international poverty threshold based on the food requirement that ensures adequate calorie intake for the world’s poorest. The study proposes a new methodology based on consumer theory to provide a caloric-based international poverty threshold. Using this methodology, the international poverty line is estimated to be equal to $1.22 in 1993 purchasing power parity exchange rates. According to this new yardstick, almost 1.37 billion people were poor around the world in 2001. The study also provides global estimates of hunger, according to which 13.28 percent of the world population—equivalent to 687 million people—suffered from hunger in 2001.
Performance and Sustainability of Self-Help Groups in India: A Gender Perspective
Authors: Parida Purna Chandra , Sinha Anushree
Published: June 2023

The existing literature on self-help group (SHG) bank linkage programs portrays them as an effective tool being used in various countries to approach a range of socioeconomic issues. This paper explores the performance and sustainability of this type of program in India at the group level. Because income-generating activities and other characteristics vary with the gender composition of self-help groups, their performance and sustainability vary. The analysis in this study is based on data from a survey carried out in six states in India. Overall, the performance analysis reveals that all-female SHGs perform best. The female SHGs are doing particularly well in terms of recovery of loans and per capita saving. The econometrics results indicate that only all-female SHGs are sustainable. The factors that determine the sustainability include recovery of loans, per capita savings, and linkage with an SHG federation.
Taking Institutions Seriously: Rethinking the Political Economy of Development in the Philippines
Authors: Nye John V. C.
Published: June 2023

Despite the current fashion for issues such as institutional transparency or corruption, the modern policy development literature does too little to integrate the core ideas of modern political economy with standard economic theory. Little is done to distinguish the advice given to developing countries—especially on macroeconomic aggregates—from that given to richer nations with stronger institutional environments. The essay uses the Philippines as a case study to suggest what is wrong with leading prescriptions. It suggests a framework that starts from a basic analysis of sectoral distortions to identify the areas where ideal reforms are likely to have the most impact and then pairs such analysis with more institutionally consistent considerations to see which second best reforms are most likely to be implemented. The focus should be on incentive compatible, self-enforcing policy mechanisms which usually imply greater market access and decentralized competition.
National IQ and National Productivity: The Hive Mind Across Asia
Authors: Jones Garett
Published: June 2023

A recent line of research demonstrates that cognitive skills—intelligence quotient scores, math skills, and the like—have only a modest influence on individual wages, but are strongly correlated with national outcomes. Is this largely due to human capital spillovers? This paper argues that the answer is yes. It presents four different channels through which intelligence may matter more for nations than for individuals: (i) intelligence is associated with patience and hence higher savings rates; (ii) intelligence causes cooperation; (iii) higher group intelligence opens the door to using fragile, high-value production technologies; and (iv) intelligence is associated with supporting market-oriented policies. Abundant evidence from across ADB member countries demonstrates that environmental improvements can raise cognitive skills is reviewed.
South–South FDI and Development in East Asia
Authors: Lipsey Robert E. , Sjöholm Fredrik
Published: June 2023

This paper attempts to measure the size of South–South foreign direct investment (FDI) in developing East Asia and the trends in it, the characteristics of the investing countries, and the investments themselves. It also summarizes the findings of studies in individual countries of the effects of these investments. The studies of individual countries will be used to try to find some consensus on differences between South–South FDI and North–South FDI. Among the comparisons of the two types of FDI summarized are findings about their industrial composition; their effects on their host countries and their host-country firms’ productivity, wages, and employment; and how these differ across industries.
Rural Development in Asia: Issues and Perspectives
Authors: Jha Satish C.
Published: June 2023

During the last two decades, developing countries in Asia made remarkable progress in increasing agricultural production and rural incomes. Since the 1950s, there have been perceptible improvements in the countryside with expanded transportation networks, better communication systems, more developed irrigation infrastructure and modern buildings. However, it would be rather presumptuous to conclude from these physical developments that all the countries have reached the take-off stage in their development process. The available literature suggests that although incomes per capita have increased in absolute terms, the poor have become poorer and the rich, richer…
Financing Public Sector Development Expenditure: The Asian Experience
Authors: Kohli Kedar N.
Published: June 2023

The public sector has played a key role in the economies of Asian developing countries. Most of these countries, after achieving politicial independence, embarked on national economic development plans involving ambitious investment programs. The need for building up physical and social infrastructure and the risks associated with large industrial investments in the absence of developed capital markets provided the rationale for the active participation of the public sector in the development process. Also, it was considered that the involvement of the public sector was necessary to generate sufficient domestic savings through budgetary surpluses and profits of public enterprises to finance development expenditures…
The Newly Industrializing Economies and Asian Development: Issues and Options
Authors: Choo Hakchung , Ali Ifzal
Published: June 2023

The development experience of Asia in the last three decades is characterized by countries pursuing widely divergent strategies and policies resulting in disparate growth performances. The resource-poor Asian newly industrializing economies (NIEs), namely, Hong Kong; Republic of Korea; Singapore; and Taipei, China with their outward-looking export-oriented strategies, have recorded high growth rates. In contrast, the resource-rich Southeast Asian countries, namely, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand, have had varied experiences, with Malaysia and Thailand showing promise of joining the ranks of the NIEs in the near future. The success of the NIEs, and of Malaysia and Thailand, has led to a rethinking of development policies in many Asian countries…
The NIEs and the Developing Asian and Pacific Region: A View from South Asia
Authors: Alagh Yoginder K.
Published: June 2023

This article intends to provide a framework for discussing the relevance of the economic growth experience of the Asian newly industrializing economies (NIEs) to the developing economies in the Asian and Pacific region, with particular reference to certain aspects of the development experience of India…
Employment Generation: The Long-Term Solution to Poverty
Authors: Oshima Harry T.
Published: June 2023

The proximate causes of poverty are many, among them lack of land, insufficient education and skills, poor health, and other factors, and they are all related to employment in one way or another. A person without education or skills has difficulty finding work, and when he or she finds a job, it is likely to be low paying and of uncertain duration. Related to poor health are malnutrition and the inability to afford health care services, which in turn are linked to low income and joblessness. The situation is a vicious circle as those in chronic poor health find it difficult to hold on to jobs as they are unable to work with sustained vigor and efficiency. And without farm land, or with too little of it, the farm worker cannot find enough work through the year…
Intra-Generational Economic Security in Asian Countries
Authors: Yeon Ha-Cheong
Published: June 2023

During the last two decades several Asian countries experienced rapid rates of economic growth. The Asian region as a whole has frequently been cited as one of the most rapidly developing regions in the world. This rapid economic growth, in turn, has contributed to the improvement of the quality of life and, to a large extent, to the alleviation of poverty especially by creating jobs for the unemployed. In many parts of Asia, however, the living standards of large sections of the population are still below the poverty line. In some countries, the national economic development effort has been less successful than originally envisaged. In others, despite overall economic growth, the benefits of economic development have not reached the population in an equitable manner…
International Investments and Rising Protectionism
Authors: Emmerij Louis
Published: June 2023

The relationship between international investments and protectionism is an evolving one. U.S. multinational enterprises have traditionally invested in Latin America for import substituting reasons. In other words, the foreign firm entered in order to take advantage of the internal market. In recent years, however, these firms have turned more and more to export markets, given the collapse of purchasing power in Latin America. Japanese multinational enterprises, on the contrary, have traditionally invested abroad to take advantage of lower costs for the production of goods then reimported into Japan, and in general for exports on the world market. This tendency has seen an acceleration since 1985, i.e., since the upward pressure on the yen began. There are other reasons for international investments but the two mentioned are clearly the most important. International investments occur to take advantage of national markets, particularly when access becomes difficult due to protectionist walls. International investments also occur to take advantage of differences in labor costs as a springboard to conquer a corner of global markets…
Rural Poverty in India: Incidence, Issues and Policies
Authors: Mahendra Dev S. , Suryanarayana M.H. , Parikh Kirit S.
Published: June 2023

India accounts for about 14 per cent of the world’s population and about 25 per cent of that of developing countries. The number of the poor in India was about 420 million in 1985 and now represents about 38 per cent of the poor in developing countries. India has been trying to reduce poverty by adopting economic planning for growth with redistribution of income in the framework of a mixed economy…
Rural Poverty in the Republic of Korea: Trends and Policy Issues
Authors: Chung Ki-Whan , Oh Nae-Won
Published: June 2023

Korea was one of the least developed countries in the world when was liberated from Japanese colonial occupation in 1945. Immediately after liberation, the country was divided into the North and the South. The South had 65.8 per cent of the total population and 47.8 per cent of the territory. Most natural resources and heavy industrial facilities were located in the North. The partition of the nation made the South a poor agrarian country with a high population density. The division of Korea into two confronting ideological polities resulted in a war in 1950 which destroyed lives, industrial facilities and agricultural production bases…
Urban Poverty in Thailand: Critical Issues and Policy Measures
Authors: Ratanakomut Somchai , Ashakul Charuma , Kirananda Thienchay
Published: June 2023

Thailand has been experiencing significant economic growth since World War II. The economy has gone through various phases of development and transformation. Thailand is linked with other countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, and Viet Nam. The Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR), with a population of over 9 million, along with other five nearby provinces (Nakon Patom, Samut Prakarn, Samut Sakon, Northaburi and Patumthani), is one of the most important and fastest growing cities in Southeast Asia…
An International Perspective on Schooling Investments in the Last Quarter Century in Some Fast-Growing East and Southeast Asian Countries
Authors: Behrman Jere R. , Schneider Ryan
Published: June 2023

Cross-country comparisons suggest no simple patterns in how schooling investments in seven successful Asian developing countries differed from other countries, and that some differences are sensitive to whether there are controls for per capita income and / or adult literacy. Neither in 1965 before a quarter century of rapid growth, nor in 1987 after rapid growth, did these countries have unusually great schooling investments. They favored females relatively at the primary level in 1965, and relatively at both primary and secondary levels in 1987. In 1965-1987 these countries had some of the largest relative increases in schooling investments, but also some of the smallest.
Technology Choice, Employment, and Development
Authors: Otsuka Keijiro
Published: June 2023

The purpose of this article is to gain deeper insights into the development process led by international technology transfer and its implications for employment generation by reviewing case studies. It is argued that conventional rice research has fallen in the region of diminishing returns and, hence, greater research resources should be allocated to nonrice research and research based on new scientific principles. It is also argued that while the improved seed technology is conducive to employment generation, its impact is likely to be rather limited, which means that the development of the nonfarm sector is indispensable to achieve growth with equity. In the case of low-income economies, the paper finds that the choice of labor-using industrial technology is critical for successful development. To achieve appropriate technology choice, it will be imperative to create and maintain competitive market environments.
People’s Republic of China: Economic Performance and Prospects
Authors: Fan Gang , Perkins Dwight H. , Sabin Lora
Published: June 2023

The economic reforms of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have led to a switch from negative to large positive total factor productivity growth when Chinese GDP is recalculated using market rather than state-set prices. The reforms have also led to a substantial but less than complete correction of distortions in the structure of GDP, particularly the overemphasis on the producers goods industry during the pre-reform years. The reform process itself proceeded along a dual track of developing new systems without first reforming old systems. Political resistance to reform made this approach necessary, but it also had a number of adverse effects. Markets performed well in some sectors such as agriculture and small-scale industry, but poorly in such key sectors as finance. The partial nature of reforms thus led to an economy subject to strong cyclical savings. Reform in the earlier years was accompanied by declining inequality in the rural areas, but this decline soon reversed itself, and inequality began rising markedly in the rural areas. Because urban inequality rose from the beginning of the reform, overall inequality has risen substantially, although the number of absolute poor has fallen steadily. Regional and rural-urban inequality have resulted in large migration within the PRC, posing a broadbased challenge to government reformers.
The Role of Institutions in Asian Development
Authors: Chang Ha-Joon
Published: June 2023

The paper identifies three types of institutions that are particularly important for economic development—institutions for coordination and administration, institutions for learning and innovation, and institutions for income redistribution and social cohesion—and examines how they contributed to the development of different Asian countries. While developing countries can import and adopt some institutions from more developed countries, there is no “best practice” institutional structure that fits every country. Applying this conclusion to the current situation in Asia, it is argued that despite the currently popular argument that Asian countries should remodel their institutions along the Anglo-American line, institutional changes need to be made cautiously and in line with local conditions.
Non-Fermi liquid behavior in a simple model of Fermi arcs and pseudogap
Authors: Wang Ruojun , Yang Kun
Published: June 2023

In this paper, we consider a perturbed version of a very simple and exactly solvable model that supports Fermi arcs and pseudogap in its ground state and excitation spectrum, which includes Hubbard-like interactions in both momentum and real spaces. We find that the combined effects give rise to non-Fermi liquid behavior in the electron self-energy. This points to a novel mechanism that leads to non-Fermi liquid behavior, which is of strong current interest in the context of strongly correlated metals, that often become superconductors. Comparison will be made with phenomenology of high- temperature cuprate superconductors.
Xi Jinping’s Consolidation of Power at the 20th Party Congress: Implications for Chinese Foreign Policy
Authors: ZHAO SUISHENG
Published: June 2023

The 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in October 2022 secured Xi Jinping’s third term as General Secretary and secured a team of supporters amid socioeconomic woes and increasingly hostile global circumstances. While leadership matters in all political systems, it matters much more in totalitarian and authoritarian ones. Political leaders in democracies are constrained by electoral cycles, term limits, and approval ratings, but the leaders of the PRC’s single-party system that emphasizes discipline, hierarchy, and democratic centralism operate relatively unchecked by bureaucracy, opposition forces, or public opinion. Its leaders possess the ultimate decision-making authority in national security and strategic policies (Zhao, 2022, p. 5).

The consolidation of Xi’s power has far-reaching implications for China’s foreign policy. As a feared, sycophantically revered, and ruthless emperor confident in his country’s military power and economic clout, Xi feels equipped to accomplish his mission of making China great again. He has also inherited a pervasive insecurity of pushback from Western powers that threatens his authoritarian rule. He has therefore upheld the security of the regime beyond Deng Xiaoping and his decades of prioritizing growth. Proactively stifling any opposition to his rule and cracking down on any hint of a “color revolution” at home in connection with foreign forces, Xi has strengthened the military and reorganized the economy in preparation for a possible showdown with the United States. He has required Chinese diplomats to act as “wolf warriors” in diplomatic battles and fight criticisms of the regime even at the cost of escalating international tensions. While his team of supporters has maximized his power to implement his policies, this has also prevented his colleagues from counseling against any mistakes they may anticipate or discover. Intentionally or not, he has minimized opportunities to correct his mistakes and increased the stakes and the risks they present, raising the potential for his country to become embroiled in a foreign adventure of no return.
Memory disaggregation: why now and what are the challenges
Authors: Aguilera Marcos K. , Amaro Emmanuel , Amit Nadav , Hunhoff Erika , Yelam Anil , Zellweger Gerd
Published: June 2023

Hardware disaggregation has emerged as one of the most fundamental shifts in how we build computer systems over the past decades. While disaggregation has been successful for several types of resources (storage, power, and others), memory disaggregation has yet to happen. We make the case that the time for memory disaggregation has arrived. We look at past successful disaggregation stories and learn that their success depended on two requirements: addressing a burning issue and being technically feasible. We examine memory disaggregation through this lens and find that both requirements are finally met. Once available, memory disaggregation will require software support to be used effectively. We discuss some of the challenges of designing an operating system that can utilize disaggregated memory for itself and its applications.