bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Inefficiency of Financial Markets and Paths to the Development of a Modern Financial Theory
Authors: Kobiyh Miloudi , El Amri Adil
Published: July 2023

The purpose of this work is to examine new avenues for developing financial theory, including the role of ethics and cognitive psychology. This paper explains the Inefficiency of the financial markets and the paths to the development of a modern financial theory. Compliance with Islamic ethics means embarking on a far-reaching reform to transform the dominant financial model and tackle socio-economic objectives; it means pursuing life's broader aspirations, such as cooperation and solidarity. Similarly, investor emotions, such as over-confidence and optimism, affect investor behaviour and are implicated in their investment choices. Exploring these new avenues of finance means deciphering the behaviour of financial market participants, and thus shedding light on the decision-making process of financial investors. The aim is to see how psychological appeals and ethical attitudes have come to occupy an undeniable place in finance. More specifically, the aim is to explain the factors contributing to the emergence of Islamic finance and behavioural finance and to analyse how the limited efficiency of financial markets marks the starting point for these approaches and thus the development of modern finance. By allowing the use of financial capital, this finance makes itself available to the real economy and serves it. Its growth and development will have favourable repercussions on the entire socio-economic system. The key is to focus on projects and investments that are in line with the prerogatives of behavioural finance and ethics. This is a solution to the inefficiency of the financial markets, as it will result in better performance.
Measuring the Level of Awareness of COSO Internal Control Standards in Metropolitan Municipalities in Turkey
Authors: Baral Gokhan , Cakirsoy Evren
Published: July 2023

Internal control is a management control built by managers to achieve organizational goals and ensure sustainability. COSO (Committee of Sponsoring Organizations), consisting of five independent organizations in the USA (United States of America), pioneered the internal control system to become a standard structure. COSO's internal control model covers five primary dimensions: control environment, risk assessment and management, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring. Through these five closely related dimensions, it serves to ensure organizational effectiveness by building an orderly system. It is a structure developed for organizations to manage the risks they encounter successfully and ensure the sustainability of organizational processes. In this way, organizations provide advantages such as reducing risks, increasing the reliability of financial statements, and becoming more compliant with the laws and regulations that must be complied with. It is essential to know about these standards and their implementation for organizations. Implementing these standards in the public sector is also noteworthy, and it has especially come to the fore in the activities of metropolitan municipalities. This research aims to determine the level of awareness of COSO internal control standards in metropolitan municipalities in Turkey. The general secretary, deputy general secretaries, and authorized persons in strategic planning and financial services (N = 149) working in 30 metropolitan municipalities in Turkey participated in the research. The sample group comprises officials selected by the purposive sampling method. Data were obtained by online survey. Frequency analysis, analysis of descriptive statistics, tests to examine differences, and correlation analysis was used in the data analysis. According to the findings, it has been determined that the efficiency of the COSO internal control standards in metropolitan municipalities is almost at the expected level. A strong correlation was obtained between the structures comprising the COSO internal control standards. The findings are discussed from a theoretical and practical point of view. Then, various suggestions are presented for decision-makers and future research.
Reliability and Validity of the Turkish Version of Short fom Consumer Need for Uniqueness Scale
Authors: Arslan Yusuf , Yilmaz Aykut , Sezai Aykac Omer , Ozsoy Emrah
Published: July 2023

Individuals have the desire to differentiate themselves, at least to some extent, from those in their immediate surroundings. This need to stand out from others is often satisfied through the adoption of unique hobbies or by consuming distinct products etc. The concept of “Consumer need for uniqueness” in marketing literature is concerned with the latter form of differentiation, specifically the motivation to consume products that set the individual apart from their peers. In the literature, the concept is measured through scales of varying lengths and types. It is important to examine the validity and reliability of this scales across different cultures, as cultural differences are likely to impact the underlying structure of the concept. In consideration of the benefits of shorter scales, we sought to adapt the short version of the consumer need for uniqueness scale (CNFU-s), developed by Ruvio et al. (2008), to the Turkish context, and to assess its validity and reliability. To that end, we tested the factor structure (via confirmatory factor analysis), construct validity (through relationships with other constructs), and reliability (internal consistency) of the Turkish CNFU-s. Additionally, to examine the relationship between the CNFU-s and other constructs, we investigated the relationship between market mavenism and status consumption, which according to the literature, were expected to have a positive correlation with the CNFU-s (N = 742). The results of the study showed that the factor structure of the Turkish CNFU-s was compatible with the long-original version and the values of fit indices were within acceptable levels. The internal consistency of the CNFU-s was calculated as .89, indicating that the reliability of the scale was at a satisfactory level. As expected, the CNFU-s was positively associated with market mavenism (r = 0.17) and status consumption (r = 0.23). In conclusion, the Turkish version of the CNFU-s is a measurement tool with evidence to support its psychometric properties and can be utilized in future research studies with Turkish samples.
Consumer’s Online Brand-Related Activities in Instagram and their Impact on Word-of-Mouth
Authors: Nastisin Ludovit , Kmec Kvetoslav , Kral Stefan
Published: July 2023

A comprehensive examination of COBRAs concerning word-of-mouth marketing has yet to be fully conducted. A brand needs to know whether such activities can also entail offline consequences for the brand, i.e. in the form of word of mouth. The distinction between relevant and irrelevant activities is important from the brand’s managerial point of view for cost-effective management and the pursuit of its stated goals. The paper intends to examine the consequences of consumers’ online brand-related activities, along with word-of-mouth marketing, in the setting of the Instagram social network. Instagram is currently a highly effective medium for fostering brand growth in the digital sphere. The dataset comprises 335 standardised questionnaires amassed in the first half of 2021. Based on the current state of the literature and research, together with the research question, one statistical hypothesis was formulated for analysis. The study focused on determining whether certain consumers’ online brand-related activities had a statistically significant effect on word-of-mouth about the brand. The statistical examination of the presented issue made use of Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) employing Maximum Likelihood Estimation (ML) as well as Partial Least Square – Path Modeling (PLS PM). This method was selected based on the fact that the items do not interfere with the internal structure of factors in the instrument, which captures specific aspects of attitudes and perceptions regarding brand-related activities on social networks. The findings revealed that consumers’ online brand-related activities exert two statistically significant effects on brand word-of-mouth, specifically concerning content consumption and content creation, at a 0.05 significance level. The context and potential consequences of this discovery are examined in the concluding discussion section, with reference to existing literature and ongoing research.
Çevrim İçi Yemek Sipariş Sitelerindeki Restoran Yorumları Üzerine Bir Çalışma (A Study on Restaurant Reviews on Online Food Ordering Websites)
Authors: ÜNAL Ahmet
Published: July 2023

Tüketicilerin çevrim içi yemek siparişi hizmetlerine yönelik ilgisi, özellikle Covid-19 pandemisi sürecinde giderek artmıştır. Tüketicilerin yemek satın alma davranışlarında yaşanan bu gelişme beraberinde, konuya ilişkin akademik ilgiyi de artırmıştır. Ancak çevrim içi restoran yorumlarına yönelik çalışmalar kısıtlı kalmıştır. Bu çalışma temel olarak, Yemeksepeti isimli çevrim içi yemek siparişi sitesinde yer alan tüketici yorumlarını incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Bu çalışmada, nitel ve nicel araştırma yöntemlerinin birlikte yer aldığı karma yöntem deseni kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın yürütülmesinde öncelikle, çevrim içi yemek siparişi hizmeti veren Yemeksepeti isimli sitede yer alan tüketici yorumları, içerik analizi ile sınıflandırılmıştır. Araştırmanın nitel aşamasında analiz edilen verilere ait frekans değerleri, araştırmanın ikinci aşamasında nicel ilişkisel analizlere tabi tutulmuştur. Bu aşamada tüketici yorumlarının, restoran türüne ve restoran sınıfına göre olası ilişkileri Ki-Kare analiziyle araştırmaya konu edilmiştir. Mevcut çalışma tüketicilerin, araştırmanın kapsamını oluşturan çevrim içi yemek siparişi sitesinde yaptıkları yorumların, özellikle lezzet teması içerikli olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Ayrıca bu çalışma tüketici yorumları ile restoran türleri ve restoran sınıfları arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir ilişki olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır.
Gastronomik Değeri Olan Koruk Ekşilerinin Geleneksel Üretim Yöntemlerinin Karşılaştırılması (Comparison of Traditional Production Methods of Verjuice Sours That Gastronomic Value)
Authors: TÜRK ASLAN Sinem , TOKATLI DEMİROK Nazan , YIKMIŞ Seydi
Published: July 2023

Koruk, olgunlaşmamış üzümlere verilen isim olup, üzümlerin sıkılmasıyla elde edilen suya koruk suyu veya koruk ekşisi denir. Koruk ekşileri, koruk suyunun çeşitli işlemlerden geçirilmesiyle elde edilir ve koruk ekşisi üretiminde standart bir üretim yöntemi bulunmamaktadır. Bu çalışmada aynı zamanda hasat edilen olgunlaşmamış yabani üzümlerin (Vitis vinifera) suları çıkarılıp beş farklı geleneksel yöntemle koruk ekşileri üretilmiş ve ekşilerin bazı kalite özellikleri belirlenmiştir. Yapılan analizler sonucunda; en yüksek toplam fenolik madde, toplam flavonoid madde, DPPH ve CUPRAC değerleri 5. yöntemin uygulandığı koruk ekşisinden elde edilirken, en düşük değerler 1. yöntemin uygulandığı koruk ekşisinden elde edilmiştir. En açık renge sahip olan ve duyusal açıdan en yüksek puanları alan ekşi ise 1.yöntemle elde edilen koruk ekşisi olmuştur. Geleneksel olarak üretilen koruk ekşilerinin saklama koşulları göz önüne alındığında, oda sıcaklığında saklamanın daha ekonomik olması nedeniyle koruk ekşisi üretiminde 5. yöntemin uygulanmasının daha doğru olacağı düşünülmektedir.
A Conceptual Evaluation of Cycling Tourism in the Context of Sustainable Tourism
Authors: DERMAN Engin , KELES Hüseyin
Published: July 2023

In recent years, the changes in people's lifestyles, the inactivity caused by work life and sustainable environmental goals have increased the importance of cycling. There are numerous economic, health and environmental benefits of cycling. A significant number of people of all ages around the world have realized these benefits and have adopted cycling as a lifestyle. These people also want to use their bicycles for travelling. Those who use bicycles for sports may travel to participate in bicycle races. Recreational cyclists travel to attend cycling festivals in different cities and countries. Some people make all their trips on bicycles and travel to different cities and even different countries using bicycles. All of these activities carried out by bicycles constitute cycling tourism. This type of tourism, which has an important place among alternative tourism types, also contributes to the efforts of a destination to spread tourism over time and space. Besides, bicycle infrastructure projects to be implemented within the destination will encourage local people to use bicycles. In this study, bicycle tourism, which has become increasingly important worldwide and has limited studies in the Turkish literature, has been discussed in different dimensions. In this context, bicycle tourism has been presented under the titles of "The Development of Cycling Tourism in the World", "Cycling Tourism within the Scope of Sustainable Tourism", "Importance of Bike Sharing Systems in Cycling Tourism", " The Economy of Cycling Tourism" and " The Factors Affecting the Development of Cycling Tourism" by reviewing the literature with the systematic review method.
Evaluation of Online Customer Complaints for Hotel Businesses in Terms of Expectation Management and Behavioral Intention
Authors: MUTLUBAŞ Ilgın
Published: July 2023

Businesses that possess an understanding of customer expectations are able to align their products and services accordingly, thereby minimizing customer losses and reducing the occurrence of complaints. The primary objective of this research is to ascertain the pre-stay expectations of customers staying at five-star hotels and analyze customer feedback with respect to behavioral intentions. The content analysis method was employed as the research approach. The study population comprises five-star hotel establishments located in the Kemer and Belek regions of Antalya. Qualitative data analysis software was utilized to analyze the collected data. The analysis revealed that customer expectations can be categorized into nine main dimensions, namely: food, staff, general areas and activities, prices, rooms, front desk, management, customers, and drinks and bars. It was observed that the majority of pre-stay expectations primarily revolve around hotel personnel, and when these expectations are not met, customers tend to express the highest level of dissatisfaction. Furthermore, the analysis determined that food-related issues serve as the focal point for customer complaints, which significantly influence their subsequent behavioral intentions.
Codebase release 0.1 for infstat
Authors: Kong Kyoungchul , Matchev Konstantin T. , Mrenna Stephen , Shyamsundar Prasanth
Published: July 2023

We propose an intuitive, machine-learning approach to multiparameter inference, dubbed the InferoStatic Networks (ISN) method, to model the score and likelihood ratio estimators in cases when the probability density can be sampled but not computed directly. The ISN uses a backend neural network that models a scalar function called the inferostatic potential \varphiφ. In addition, we introduce new strategies, respectively called Kernel Score Estimation (KSE) and Kernel Likelihood Ratio Estimation (KLRE), to learn the score and the likelihood ratio functions from simulated data. We illustrate the new techniques with some toy examples and compare to existing approaches in the literature. We mention en passant some new loss functions that optimally incorporate latent information from simulations into the training procedure.
Production and morphophysiological responses of Panicum maximum cv. BRS Zuri to water availability
Authors: Bonfim-Silva Edna. M. , Oliveira Niclene. P. R. , Mazero Horácio. M. , Alves Daniele. J. , Oliveira Jakeline. R. , Silva Tonny. J. A.
Published: July 2023

Due to the increasing intensification of livestock farming and agricultural systems, there is demand for highly productive forage species. Panicum maximum cv. BRS Zuri is forage that has good productivity, vigor and promotes good animal performance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the morphophysiological and production characteristics of Panicum maximum cv. BRS Zuri subjected to water availability in Fluvic Neosol (Entisol). A potted-plant experiment was conducted in a greenhouse at the Federal University of Rondonópolis, Brazil. The experimental design was completely randomized, with five levels of water availability, corresponding to 25, 50, 75, 100 and 125 % of the maximum soil water holding capacity, and six replicates, in three successive cuts. The variables analyzed were: soil pH, SPAD index, plant height, leaf area, shoot dry mass, root dry mass, root volume, water consumption and water use efficiency. Water availability influenced the development of Panicum maximum cv. BRS Zuri, with the highest results between 67 % and 111 % of the maximum soil water holding capacity. The results show that the production and morphological responses were negatively influenced by water availability levels of 25 % and 125 %. These results makes it possible to affirm that, under the studied conditions, the cultivar BRS Zuri showed moderate adaptation to 125% water availability (excess water).
Macro-and micronutrient content in native varieties of Phaseolus lunatus L. fertilized with rock dust
Authors: Filho Tarciso B. Pereira , Marini Fillipe S. , Freitas Marta S. M. , Pereira Emmanuel M.
Published: July 2023

The objective of this study was to evaluate the macro- and micronutrient content in the leaves of Phaseolus lunatus L. fertilized with MB-4®. The research was carried out in two consecutive experiments, with a 2x5 randomized factorial block design and four replicates, in which two native varieties of Phaseolus lunatus L. were evaluated (Lima bean ‘Cara Larga’ and Lima bean ‘Branca’) based on responses to five varying doses of MB-4® (0, 100, 200, 400, and 800 g hole-1). Leaf analyses were performed to quantify nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, boron, copper, iron, manganese, and zinc. Leaf analysis indicated that N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn levels increased significantly in the second year of cultivation, and that only B content decreased. The contents of N, P, Ca, B, Fe, Mn, and Zn were within the recommended range, whereas only K and Mg were outside the recommended range for the species. The values found between 200 and 400 g hole-1, corresponding to 4 and 8 t ha-1 of MB-4®, respectively, were the ones that contributed the most to the nutrient content increase in Lima bean varieties
Rice demands higher nitrogen fertilizer during grain filling stage under elevated atmospheric CO2 condition
Authors: Rahman Md. Sohanur , Mamun Md. Abdullah Al , Miah Md. Main Uddin , Haque Md. Moynul , Rahman Md. Mizanur , Rubayet Md. Tanbir , Biswas Jatish Chandra , Karim Md. Abdul , Miah Md. Giashuddin
Published: July 2023

An experiment was conducted in open top chamber (OTC) to determine the response of rice to elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2) under varying time of nitrogen (N) application. Rice was grown in OTC with 500 ppm CO2 (eCO2), 450 ppm CO2 (intermediate CO2, iCO2), ambient CO2 (aCO2) and open field (OF, 380 ppm CO2). The timings of N application were N1 = 1/3rd N at early tillering (ET) + 1/3rd at active tillering (AT) + 1/3rd before panicle initiation (PI) stage, N2 = 1/3rd N at ET + 1/3rd before PI + 1/3rd at booting stage (BS), and N3 = 1/3rd N at ET + 1/3rd before PI + 1/3rd at flowering stage (FS). The results revealed that photosynthesis (Pn), shoot and root dry matter (SDM and RDM) production, yield and yield components were favored at eCO2 when N application scheduled from ET to FS of rice. Interestingly, the N application up to FS of rice showed significant improved grain fertility and reduced sterility under rising CO2. However, rice plant accumulated and translocated more nutrients from shoot to grain under elevated CO2 (eCO2) condition. Moreover, higher grain amylose and lower protein was obvious at eCO2. Collectively, rice yield increased by 18 to 20 % under eCO2 with the application of N at FS of rice. These results indicate that to maximize rice yield under eCO2, it is crucial to supply N at FS of rice in order to increase grain fertility and reduce spikelet sterility
Dialectic of Tradition’s Strength and Demand for Flexibility: A Study of Minang Families in Yogyakarta
Authors: Naldo Jufri , Tarigan Azhari Akmal , Warfete Umar
Published: July 2023

The strong Minang family traditions are facing the demand for flexibility from modern city life, especially when Minang people live outside the Minang land, such as in Yogyakarta. This study aims to reveal how the ‘flexible life’ is experienced by Minang families. The questions are how family traditional provisions have fared and how Minang families in Yogyakarta accommodate traditional provisions in different social and cultural contexts. This study applies qualitative methods and a phenomenological approach involving 15 informants. The findings show that Minang families in Yogyakarta have seen changes in their marriage traditions, which used to be strictly regulated by Minangkabau custom. By opening a dialectical process in Yogyakarta, they accommodate and adapt to the Javanese traditions and customs in conducting marriages. The impact is that family marriage traditions change. Nonetheless, Minang families in Yogyakarta have not lost their Minang identity. They remain Minang even though they marry a non-Minang.
Ivanovo-Voznesensk War Industry Committee in 1915–1917: Problems and Achievements
Authors:   Lomonosov Moscow State University, Belov S. I.
Published: July 2023

The article examines the activities of the Ivanovo-Voznesensk military-industrial committee in 1915– 1917. Close attention to the object of study is determined by the fact that Ivanovo-Voznesensk was the center of the largest textile region in Russia, and the local military-industrial committee united enterprises with a total number of more than 30 thousand workers. On the basis of the analysis of the archival documents of the committee, the author comes to the conclusion that the sole direction of its activity was the supply of the army with military equipment: the production of grenade and shell cases, and the production of asphyxiant gas. For this, special enterprises (shell and phosgene plants) were founded, generously financed by the members of the Committee. They regularly carried out deliveries for the military department. On the other hand, the local textile enterprises, which fulfilled large defense orders for the supply of fabrics, found themselves outside the sphere of influence of the military-industrial committee. All factories received orders and reported on them independently. Based on this, the thesis is confirmed that the military-industrial committees were not monopolists in the distribution of military orders. Even the attempts of local manufacturers, with the help of the military-industrial committee, to ensure the allocation of additional labor, raw materials, fuel and equipment were not very successful. As a result, no more than 40 % of the capacities of the Ivanovo-Voznesensk textile industry were mobilized for “defense production”. In addition, there is absolutely no trace of the role of the local military-industrial committee in the political organization of the bourgeoisie in Ivanovo-Voznesensk. This can be attributed to the fact that, on the one hand, the committee solved mainly economic problems, and, on the other hand — that the local bourgeoisie had other economic and political organizations that had operated long before the committee was created.
The Role of Coercion and Falsification in the Preparation of Stalin-era Interrogation Protocols
Authors:   University of Richmond, Brandenberger D.
Published: July 2023

This article shows the problematic nature of modern studies that consider interrogation protocols of the Stalinist era to be reliable sources in their analyses. To begin with, these studies use primitive and inconsistent methodologies in their analysis of the interrogation protocols. Most of them approach the problem without the appropriate level of criticism, expressing little or no doubt about the content of these documents. Others, which claim to have adopted more specific methodological approaches, often base them on unverified hypotheses instead of empirically-proven principles. Secondly, these studies ignore recent work in neuroscience and cognitive, social, and clinical psychology that shows that coercion and torture undermine the ability of those under interrogation to give credible testimony. Biomedical studies have demonstrated that extremely stressful conditions (torture, coercion, blackmail, fear, deprivation of sleep and food, etc.) impair the function of the mind and erode its ability to retrieve reliable information from memory, especially affecting the accuracy and clarity of these recollections. Such techniques can significantly distort the testimony of detainees and even force those under interrogation to change their testimony, to repeat false information provided by the investigator or to falsely incriminate themselves. Thirdly, these studies overlook the fact that state security officials of that period systematically falsified interrogation protocols. Protocols, as a rule, were drawn up by the investigators and then were simply signed by those under interrogation — a practice that raises questions about how accurately these protocols convey the actual words, expressions and meanings contained in the elicited testimony. What’s more, many investigators are known to have often added details or to have embellished the confessions, while others made up entire conspiracies from scratch, before forcing the suspects to sign protocols recording their false confessions. This article illustrates these theses with evidence from the case of A. V. Putintsev, a state security investigator between 1941–1954.
Why Isn’t the Doha Development Agenda More Poverty Friendly?
Authors: Hertel Thomas , Keeney Roman , Ivanic Maros , Winters Alan
Published: July 2023

The breakdown of the WTO negotiations under the Doha Development Agenda has inspired critics to highlight the lack of effort on the part of rich countries to reform their agricultural policies. In this paper, we focus instead the poverty impacts of developing country tariff cuts – particularly those in agriculture. We argue that the Doha Development Agenda is fundamentally less poverty-friendly than it could be -- in large part due to the absence of tariff cuts on staple food products in developing countries. Such cuts would give the poor access to food at world prices, thereby reducing the cost of living at the poverty line. We also explore the contention that such tariff cuts will hurt the poor working in agriculture. Based on our analysis of the impacts of multilateral trade policy reforms on a sample of fifteen developing countries, we find there is some evidence of poverty increases in agriculture. However, such effects are minimized by ensuring that agricultural tariffs are cut in all developing countries. Overall, the poverty-reducing impact of lower food prices dominates; we conclude that the Doha Development Agenda would be more poverty friendly if it were to include deeper cuts in developing country agricultural tariffs. This contrasts sharply with calls for special products exemptions by many developing country advocates.
Biomass Energy and Competition for Land
Authors: Reilly John , Paltsev Sergey
Published: July 2023

*Chapter 8 of the forthcoming book "Economic Analysis of Land Use in Global Climate Change Policy," edited by Thomas W. Hertel, Steven Rose, and Richard S.J. Tol We describe an approach for incorporating biomass energy production and competition for land into the MIT Emissions Prediction and Policy Analysis (EPPA) model, a computable general equilibrium model of the world economy. We examine multiple scenarios where greenhouse gas emissions are abated or not. The global increase in biomass energy use in a reference scenario (without climate change policy) is about 30 EJ/year by 2050 and about 180 EJ/year by 2100. This deployment is driven primarily by a world oil price that in the year 2100 is over 4.5 times the price in the year 2000. In the scenarios of stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations, the global biomass energy production increases to 50-150 EJ/year by 2050 and 220-250 EJ/year by 2100. The estimated area of land required to produce 180-250 EJ/year is about 1 Gha, which is an equivalent of the current global cultivated area. In the USA we find that under a stringent climate policy biofuels could supply about 55% of USA liquid fuel demand, but if the biofuels were produced domestically the USA would turn from a substantial net exporter of agricultural goods ($20 billion) to a large net importer ($80 billion). The general conclusion is that the scale of energy use in the USA and the world relative to biomass potential is so large that a biofuel industry that was supplying a substantial share of liquid fuel demand would have very significant effects on land use and conventional agricultural markets.
Impact of Biofuel Production on World Agricultural Markets: A Computable General Equilibrium Analysis
Authors: Birur Dileep , Hertel Thomas , Tyner Wally
Published: July 2023

This paper introduces biofuels sectors as energy inputs into the GTAP data base and to the production and consumption structures of the GTAP-Energy model developed by Burniaux and Truong (2002), and further modified by McDougall and Golub (2008). We also incorporate Agro-ecological Zones (AEZs) for each of the land using sectors in line with Lee et al. (2005). The GTAP-E model with biofuels and AEZs offers a useful framework for analyzing the growing importance of biofuels for global changes in crop production, utilization, commodity prices, factor use, trade, land use change etc. We begin by validating the model over the 2001-2006 period. We focus on six main drivers of the biofuel boom: the hike in crude oil prices, replacement of MTBE by ethanol as a gasoline additive in the US, and subsidies for ethanol and biodiesel in the US and EU. Using this historical simulation, we calibrate the key elasticities of energy substitution between biofuels and petroleum products in each region. With these parameter settings in place, the model does a reasonably good job of predicting the share of feedstock in biofuels and related sectors in accordance with the historical evidence between 2001 and 2006 in the three major biofuel producing regions: US, EU, and Brazil. The results from the historical simulation reveal an increased production of feedstock with the replacement of acreage under other agricultural crops. As expected, the trade balance in oil sector improves for all the oil exporting regions, but it deteriorates at the aggregate for the agricultural sectors.
Introduction to the Global Trade Analysis Project and the GTAP Data Base
Authors: Walmsley Terrie , Aguiar Angel , Narayanan Badri
Published: July 2023

The Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) is a global network of researchers and policy makers conducting quantitative analysis of international policy issues. The motivation and ultimate success of the Project stems from the fact that collaboration is essential for detailed analysis of the global economy. The importance of collaboration to improve the quality of policy analysis world-wide is most clearly seen in the development of the GTAP Data Base. The GTAP Data Base is the centerpiece of the Global Trade Analysis Project. It records the annual flows of goods and services for the entire world economy in the benchmark year(s). It consists of bilateral trade, transport, and protection matrices that link individual country/regional economic data bases. The production of the GTAP Data Base relies on the valuable contributions of many individuals and organizations throughout the world. Individuals contribute the best available input-output table for their country, while other experts contribute the macro, trade, protection and other data required. The Center for Global Trade Analysis, the home of GTAP, then brings these contributions together into one useable, globally consistent, database. The result is a fully documented , publicly available and regularly updated global database. This year (2012), the eighth version of the GTAP Data Base was released, covering 129 countries, 57 sectors, 5 factors and two base years (2004 and 2007). The GTAP Data Base is utilized in a suite of comparative static and dynamic computable general equilibrium models and underlies most contemporary economic analysis of global policy issues related to trade, energy and the environment.
SIMPLE: a Simplified International Model of agricultural Prices, Land use and the Environment
Authors: Baldos Uris Lantz , Hertel Thomas
Published: July 2023

In this paper, we document the Simplified International Model of agricultural Prices, Land use and the Environment (SIMPLE). SIMPLE is a partial equilibrium model which is designed to better understand the competing forces that influence the global farm and food system and how these drivers influence long run agricultural land use, production, prices, GHG emissions and food consumption. SIMPLE has been developed under the principle that a model should be no more complex than is absolutely necessary to understand the basic forces at work. Therefore, unlike other global models which are generally more complex and disaggregated, SIMPLE is parsimonious and tractable. Indeed, our historical validation over the period 1961-2006 confirms that SIMPLE can be used to simulate the long run changes in the global farm and food system given exogenous shocks in a few key drivers of world agriculture. Equally important is that we demonstrated how SIMPLE can be used to assess the relative contribution of each of the individual drivers to the endogenous changes in world agriculture via the numerical and the analytical decomposition tools. With these tools at hand, SIMPLE offers a more robust analysis of both historical and future long run changes in the global farm and food system. Keywords: world agriculture, long run analysis, land use, environment, biofuels, food consumption, SIMPLE JEL: Q11, Q15, Q16, Q54
MyGTAP Model: A Model for Employing Data from the MyGTAP Data Application—Multiple Households, Split Factors, Remittances, Foreign Aid and Transfers
Authors: Walmsley Terrie , Minor Peter
Published: July 2023

The GTAP standard model has proved a useful analysis tool and data source for over 20 years. The GTAP model has been updated overtime, but it maintains the structure of a single regional household, with income distributed into three components: government, private and savings-investment expenditures. There has been a need for a more detailed accounting system, especially as it relates to estimating the potential impacts of policies and global shocks on poverty, sustainable and inclusive growth. This paper presents an extension to the GTAP model and its accounting framework to implement distinct and multiple households, split factors of production, foreign aid and remittances, government and household transfer. The model and associated accounting links a household’s expenditure to factor incomes (through ownership shares) and taxes. Government expenditure is linked to taxes and foreign aid. The MyGTAP model provides the user more flexibility in: the treatment of government and household savings and spending; the selection of a linear expenditure systems (LES) or a constant difference of elasticities (CDE) demand function\s. The model is incorporated into a RunGTAP application which supports many of RunGTAP’s popular programs such as alter-tax, GTAPview and others. The introduction of a split regional household (which does not require splitting data for every region) supports economic analysis based on detailed households, government, factor income, remittances, foreign aid and income transfers. The code can be modified to include multiple regions with unique household structures. This paper documents the model and accounting framework for the use of data output from the MyGTAP data splitting program. It is intended to be used in tandem with a complimentary paper and programs found in:"MyGTAP Data Program: A Program for Customizing and Extending the GTAP Database”, GTAP Working Paper No. 79, by Minor, Peter and Terrie Wamsley 2013.
MyGTAP: A Program for Customizing and Extending the GTAP Database for Multiple Households, Split Factors, Remittances, Foreign Aid and Transfers
Authors: Minor Peter , Walmsley Terrie
Published: July 2023

The GTAP standard model has proved a useful analysis tool and data source for over 20 years. The GTAP model has been updated overtime, but it maintains the structure of a single regional household, with income distributed into three components: government, private and savings-investment expenditures. There has been a need for a more detailed accounting system, especially as it relates to estimating the potential impacts of policies and global shocks on poverty, sustainable and inclusive growth. This paper (and its companion paper) present a method for splitting the GTAP regional household and linking these households to factor incomes and taxes. It introduces a user friendly GEMPACK based application, MyGTAP, for splitting the GTAP regional household based on basic data and splitting shares which may be obtained from a Social Accounting Matrix (SAM); this greatly reduces the development requirements for introducing multiple households into the GTAP model. The introduction of a split regional household (which does not require splitting data for every region) supports economic analysis based on detailed households, government, factor income, remittances, foreign aid and income transfers. The splitting method is based on the normalized GTAP database found in SplitCom, however, it is shown in the paper that this approach is easily reconciled and is consistent within a SAM framework. The code can be modified to include multiple split regions with unique household structures. This paper is a guide to employing the data tools and programs for splitting the regional household and factors of production in the GTAP database. It is intended to be used in tandem with a complimentary paper detailing the theory, accounting and model code "MyGTAP Model: A Model for Employing Data from the MyGTAP Data Program: Multiple Households, Split Factors, Remittances, Foreign Aid, and Transfers”, GTAP Working Paper No. 78, by Walmsley and Minor 2013.
Volume Preserving CES and CET Formulations
Authors: van der Mensbrugghe Dominique , Peters Jeffrey C.
Published: July 2023

As economists are increasingly working across disciplines, they are assessing alternative mathematical formulations to more closely align with the results from these disciplines. Two of the most widely used functional forms in quantitative economic analysis are the constant-elasticity-of-substitution (CES) and constant-elasticity-of-transformation (CET) functions. However, neither functional form preserves volume additivity, which may be a desirable feature in a number of contexts including labor and land allocation, energy systems, etc. This paper explores two alternatives to the ubiquitous CES and CET formulations, which have many of the same characteristics in terms of ease of implementation, but also preserve volume additivity. It illustrates some of the properties of the so-called additive forms of the CES and CET and assesses the impacts of switching to the additive CET in the context of land-use allocation in the Envisage model.
A membrane filtration method for the enumeration of Escherichia coli in bathing water and other waters with high levels of background bacteria
Authors: Kemper Merel A. , Veenman Christiaan , Blaak Hetty , Schets Franciska M.
Published: July 2023

The presence and level of faecal indicator bacteria are important factors in estimating the microbiological quality of surface water and the risk of human infection upon exposure to this water. Until 2014, ISO 9308-1:2000 was available and used to enumerate faecal indicator Escherichia coli in bathing water. In 2014, this ISO was technically revised and replaced by ISO 9308-1:2014. This ISO introduced a less selective method for enumeration of E. coli that allows non-specific growth from waters containing high levels of bacteria, such as surface waters. This implies that currently there is no suitable reference membrane filtration method for the compliance monitoring of official bathing sites for E. coli according to the European Bathing Water Directive. Here, the performance characteristics of three chromogenic culture media, namely Tryptone Bile X-glucuronide (TBX) agar, Chromogenic Coliform Agar (CCA), and CHROMagar E. coli/Coliform (ECC) were investigated at 44 °C for water with varying levels of bacteria according to ISO 13843:2017. Based on performance characteristics, colony counts, and practical usage, TBX appeared the most suitable culture medium for the enumeration of E. coli in bathing water and other waters with high levels of background bacteria, such as surface water in agricultural areas and wastewater discharge points.
Estrategias para un liderazgo efectivo
Authors: Molina Montalvo Hugo Isaias , Saldaña Salazar Bárbara
Published: July 2023

El presente artículo da cuenta de una investigación que fue realizada como parte de un proyecto en un instituto de investigación de la Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas cuyo objetivo es desarrollar un liderazgo que contribuya al mejoramiento de la organización del personal y a la toma de decisiones. La investigación, de tipo aplicado, partió del modelo de rejillas de Blake y Mouton. Se utilizaron estrategias como el diseño de un manual de funciones, un calendario de reuniones, los planificadores de metas laborales y las listas de cotejo. Como parte de los resultados, se constata un cambio favorable en la gestión del personal, organización, integración y compromiso, así como en la comunicación y la motivación. La propuesta se diseñó para la mejora del liderazgo, en específico en un centro educativo, por ser una investigación aplicada. Además, porque se enfocó en la atención de las problemáticas administrativas y de gestión, contribuyó a mejorar la calidad académica. Es importante el fortalecimiento de la investigación de procesos de liderazgo en el interior de las instituciones de educación superior.
A Study on the Improvement of Support Policies for the Activation of Local Bookstores
Authors:   The Korean Publishing Science Society, Park Chan Su
Published: July 2023

The decline in the population of the region, the growth of online bookstores, the crisis of books due to changes in the social environment such as digitization, and the risk of extinction of local bookstores are accelerating. In order to respond to this, it is urgent to make a physical foundation for local bookstores to function as cultural spaces beyond book sales. It is also important to establish a cooperative system between the government, local governments, and private organizations related to bookstore support policies. The purpose of this study is to examine the local bookstore support policy of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Publishers & Culture Industry Promotion Agency and the local bookstore support policy supported by local governments and private organizations and to find out what should be discussed as improvement measures for the activation of local bookstores in the future. In order to revitalize local bookstores, the result was derived that the book experience space should be advanced and cultural functions should be expanded, and the following suggestions were made. First, the organization needs to be reorganized by the Korea Publication and Culture Industry Promotion Agency. Second, conducting a comprehensive survey on the actual conditions of local bookstores based on the 「Publication Culture Industry Promotion Act」. Third, solving the problem of ghost bookstores. Fourth, establishing a foundation for self-reliance of local bookstores through cooperation with local governments. Fifth, activation of online purchase and ordering of publications.
The Efficacy of Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Diet on Lipid Profile: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Clinical Controlled Trials
Authors: Sahebkar Amirhossein , Heidari Zahra , Kiani Zahra , Atefi Masoumeh , Zareie Azadeh , Shojaei Mehrnaz , Askari Gholamreza , Kesharwani Prashant , Bagherniya Mohammad
Published: July 2023

Background:

Dyslipidemia is considered a causal risk factor for coronary heart disease
and stroke. Plant-based diets such as dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) have beneficial
effects on cardiovascular health. This meta-analysis was conducted to assess the effects of the
DASH diet on lipid profiles based on clinical controlled trials.

Methods:

An inclusive online search was performed in medical databases including Web of Science,
PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar up to October 2021 to identify trials assessing the effect
of the DASH diet on lipid profiles.

Results:

Seventeen studies comprising 2218 individuals were included in this meta-analysis. In
comparison to the control group, following the DASH diet resulted in a significant reduction in
serum triglycerides (WMD: -5.539 mg/dl; 95% CI: -8.806, -2.272) and low-density lipoprotein
cholesterol (WMD: -6.387 mg/dl; 95% CI: -12.272, -0.501). However, DASH diet could not reduce
serum total cholesterol (WMD: -5.793 mg/dl; 95% CI: -12.84, 1.254), high-density lipoprotein
cholesterol (WMD: 0.631 mg/dl; 95% CI: -0.749, 2.011), and total cholesterol/high-density
lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (WMD: -0.11 mg/dl; 95% CI: -0.27, 0.05).

Conclusion:

Findings of this meta-analysis showed that following the DASH diet had beneficial effects
on serum triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, however, it had no effect on
serum total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Based on these results, the
DASH diet can be considered a strategy for the prevention and complementary management of dyslipidemia.
Fluvastatin: A Choice for COVID-19-associated Mucormycosis Management
Authors: Tavakkoli Alireza , Johnston Thomas P. , Sahebkar Amirhossein
Published: July 2023

:

SARS-CoV-2 invades the respiratory tract epithelium and can result in systemic
inflammation prior to an infection caused by either bacteria or fungus. COVID-19-
associated mucormycosis (CAM) is a serious condition that can occur during the time of
the disease due to increased administration of corticosteroids. Various studies have
suggested that statins may improve clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients. According
to several preclinical reports, fluvastatin was shown to exert direct and indirect synergistic
antifungal activity. Thus, fluvastatin could be considered a potential antifungal agent
when no other option is available. Furthermore, in comparison with other statins, fluvastatin
exhibits the fewest drug/drug interactions with anti-Mucorales azoles (e.g., isavuconazole
and posaconazole), as well as with medicines that are used in solid organ transplant
recipients (e.g., cyclosporine) and HIV-positive individuals (e.g., ritonavir); two groups
of patients that have a higher risk of infection with Mucorales fungi following a SARSCoV-
2 infection.