Foreign and domestic growth drivers in Eastern Europe

This paper analyses the growth effects of capital formation, exports and FDI as major, drivers of economic development in Eastern Europe. The fundamental innovations are, identified by empirically and theoretically motivated short- and long-run restrictions in, structural cointegrated vector autoregressions. Impulse responses and variance, decompositions reveal quite different growth effects in various Eastern European countries. Generally, a strong reliance on exports goes along with higher GDP, and FDI bears, substantial potential for fostering economic growth. It is shown that the recent worldwide, recession clearly hit Eastern Europe through the export channel, whereas the recovery is, mainly supported by positive demand shocks.     

视频流应用层组播系统的设计与实现

文章设计了一个用于视频流分发的应用层组播系统,系统由视频采集、视频编解码、组播传输和服务器4个模块构成。视频捕获采用Video for Windows(VFW)技术实现,编解码基于H.263标准。网络结构上提出使用混合P2P树形结构,降低了中心服务器的压力,服务器负责会议成员信息的管理,为组播树的建立与维护提供支持,组播传输使用基于度约束的构造算法,考虑了节点带宽和计算能力。该系统已投入运行,基本达到设计目标。     

Trading horizons and the value of money

This paper shows that fiat money can be feasible and essential even if the trading horizon is finite and deterministic. The result hinges on two features of our model. First, individual actions can affect the future availability of productive resources. So, agents may be willing to sell for money, even if on that date they have no reason to accept it. This makes monetary trade feasible in all preceding dates. Second, agents are anonymous and direct their search for partners. So, gift-giving arrangements may be prevented because agents can misrepresent their consumption needs. This makes money essential in exploiting any gains from specialization and trade.     

Shifting Taxes from Labor to Consumption: More Employment and more Inequality?

This paper investigates the effect of shifting taxes from labor income to consumption on labor supply and the distribution of income in Germany. We simulate stepwise increases in the value‐added tax (VAT) rate, which are compensated by revenue‐neutral reductions in income‐related taxes. We differentiate between the personal income tax (PIT) and social security contributions (SSC). Based on a dual data base and a microsimulation model of household labor supply behavior, we find a regressive impact of such a tax shift in the short run. When accounting for labor supply adjustments, the adverse distributional impact persists for PIT reductions, while the overall effects on inequality and progressivity become lower when payroll taxes are reduced. This is partly due to increases in aggregate labor supply, resulting from higher work incentives.     

Comprehensive assessment of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and chronic idiopathic constipation using deterministically linked administrative claims and patient-reported data: the Chronic Constipation and IBS-C Treatment and Outcomes Real-World Research Platform (CONTOR)

Abstract

Aims

To characterize a US population of patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) or chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) using CONTOR, a real-world longitudinal research platform that deterministically linked administrative claims data with patient-reported outcomes data among patients with these conditions.     

Policy tolerance of economic crime? An empirical analysis of the effect of counterfeiting on Italian trade

Some governments seem ambivalent towards economic crime because, on the one hand, there are adverse effects on competition and legal businesses; on the other hand, there are benefits through (shadow) employment and income in less-developed areas, as well as benefits through relations of political clientage. We focus on counterfeiting and its economic effects on trade in Italy during the economic crisis. Using a newly built regional dataset and a dynamic panel model, we find evidence of the dual impact of counterfeiting. The production (and exchange) of fake goods depresses the legal market that relies on intellectual property rights but supports shadow-economic activities for the benefit of illegal workers, criminal organisations, and political clientele. We show that the negative effects outweigh the positive effects.     

How does reinsurance and derivatives usage affect financial performance? Evidence from the UK non-life insurance industry

A three-equation structural model is applied in this study to facilitate our examination of 1994–2011 regulatory returns data on UK non-life insurers, from which we find that those insurers using more reinsurance tended to have inferior financial performance, whilst those insurers with a predisposition towards risk management tended to have used both reinsurance and derivatives. We also find that those insurers with high loss ratios were found to have inferior financial performance. Our analysis sheds some light on the relationships between financial performance, reinsurance and derivative usage.     

Second thoughts on free riding

We use the strategy method to classify subjects into cooperator types in a large-scale online Public Goods Game and find that free riders spend more time on making their decisions than conditional cooperators and other cooperator types. This result is robust to reversing the framing of the game and is not driven by cognitive ability, confusion, or natural swiftness in responding. Our results suggest that conditional cooperation serves as a norm and that free riders need time to resolve a moral dilemma.     

健脾调肝法治疗2型糖尿病胃肠功能紊乱患者的临床价值

目的探讨常规西药联合健脾调肝法治疗2型糖尿病胃肠功能紊乱患者的临床价值。方法选取2019年3月至2021年1月盘锦市人民医院收治的102例2型糖尿病胃肠功能紊乱患者作为研究对象,按随机数字表法分为对照组与观察组,各51例。对照组患者单纯接受常规西药治疗,观察组患者在对照组基础上接受健脾调肝法(应用以葛根、党参、茯苓、炒白术、当归、鸡内金等中药组成的健脾理气疏肝方)治疗,比较两组治疗有效率、空腹血糖(FBG)、餐后2h血糖(2h PBG)以及糖化血红蛋白(Hb A1c)、胃排空率、肠鸣音。结果观察组治疗有效率高于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);治疗后,观察组患者FBG、2h PBG、Hb A1c水平低于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);治疗后,观察组胃排空率、肠鸣音高于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论健脾调肝法治疗2型糖尿病胃肠功能紊乱疗效显著,应用价值较高。