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Continental Europe (continental + europe)
Selected AbstractsAnatomy of employment growthECONOMIC POLICY, Issue 34 2002Pietro Garibaldi Summary This paper studies net employment growth across 21 OECD economies since 1980, focusing on the wide range of experiences within the European Union. The initial composition of employment across sectors is relevant in a few countries, but can only partially account for cross-country differences in net employment growth. Institutions play a more important role. A policy package including low dismissal costs and low taxation is significantly associated with high net employment growth and can account for a substantial share of cross-country differences. While the Netherlands' employment miracle is largely accounted for by an increase in part-time jobs for women aged 25,49 in the services sector, we find that in the whole sample part-time jobs largely replace full-time jobs, and temporary jobs replace permanent jobs, with small net effects on hours worked. Continental Europe did not increase employment as much as other OECD countries until the mid-1990s, but later appears to be staging a resurgence of employment growth. We argue that this resurgence is not merely cyclical, is likely related to reforms, and may well be there to stay. [source] The construct validity of three entry level personality inventories used in the UK: cautionary findings from a multiple-inventory investigation,EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY, Issue S1 2003Neil Anderson This paper reports psychometric analyses into the convergent and divergent validity of three popular entry-level measures of occupational personality in the UK and Continental Europe. A sample of 504 individuals completed all three measures: the British version of the Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI), the Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ Version FS5.2), and the Business Personality Indicator (BPI). In addition, independent ratings of the conceptual loading of primary source scales onto the Five Factor Model (FFM) were obtained (n,=,66). Data were used in a three-stage analytical procedure directed at examining psychometric and construct validity. Results are reported for descriptive statistics (means, standard deviations, Cohen's d), internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alphas), and exploratory factor analyses. Findings into the construct validity of first-order scales (i.e. primary source scales) and second-order scales (i.e. FFM loadings) are presented in detail, including multitrait,multimethod (MTMM) analyses of convergent and divergent validity. For some scales, the observed variability in our sample suggested significant range restriction/enhancement. It was found that scale reliabilities were generally lower than those typically reported by the test publishers, and that published factor structures for these measures could not be replicated by the authors for this sample of individuals. Further independent construct validity research into occupational personality inventories is encouraged based upon our proposed model of single-, dual-, and multiple-inventory construct validation studies. Practically, our findings suggest that when IWO psychologists or personnel professionals aim to select/screen job applicants for a particular personality trait those who are selected may vary depending on (i) which personality inventory is used, (ii) the actual variability in the applicant sample tested, and (iii) reliability of the scales under consideration. As such, this study sounds a note of caution. Future research is called for to replicate these findings. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Dependence of broad-scale geographical variation in fleshy-fruited plant species richness on disperser bird species richnessGLOBAL ECOLOGY, Issue 4 2004Ana L. Márquez ABSTRACT Aim, We analysed the interdependence of avian frugivore- and fruited plant-species richness at the scale of major river basins across Europe, taking into account several environmental factors along different spatial gradients. Location, Continental Europe and the British Isles. Methods, We focused on wintering birds and autumn/winter fruiting plants, and used major river basins as geographical units and Structural Equation Modelling as the principal analytical tool. Results, The statistical influence of disperser species richness on fleshy-fruited plant species richness is roughly double that of the reverse. Broad-scale variation in frugivore richness is more dependent on environmental factors than on fruited plant richness. However, the influence of disperser richness on plant richness is four times higher than the influence of environmental factors. Environmental influences on both birds and plants are greater than purely spatial influences. Main conclusions, Our results are interpreted as indicating that biotic dispersal of fruits strongly affects broad-scale geographical trends of fleshy-fruited plant species richness, whereas richness of fruited plants moderately affects frugivore richness. [source] Corporate Failure Prediction Modeling: Distorted by Business Groups' Internal Capital Markets?JOURNAL OF BUSINESS FINANCE & ACCOUNTING, Issue 5-6 2006Nico Dewaelheyns However, in view of the importance of business groups in Continental Europe, ignoring group ties may have a negative impact on predictive reliability. We find that models encompassing both bankruptcy variables defined at subsidiary level and at group level have a substantially better fit and classification performance. Furthermore we find that the group's support causes improved survival chances for subsidiaries, especially when these subsidiaries belong to the group's core business. Overall our results are consistent with existing theoretical and empirical findings from the internal capital markets literature. [source] Ownership Structure and Accounting Information Content: Evidence from FranceJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & ACCOUNTING, Issue 3 2007Ronald Zhao This paper investigates how family and bank ownership affect the accounting information content of French firms. In Continental Europe, the existence of block-holders triggers specific corporate governance issues, including the transparency of financial reporting. Our test results for the clean surplus model show that book value carries a significantly greater weight for family-controlled firms. This finding is attributed to their lack of incentive to report timely and relevant earnings to outside (minority) investors. In contrast, bank owners are under more market pressure to achieve earnings persistence through the use of accounting accruals. Bank ownership is also associated with higher levels of debt. These results are consistent with findings that in code law countries, insiders dominate as a source of finance, and financial reporting is aimed at creditor protection. [source] Corporate governance and the returns to acquiring firms' shareholders: an international comparison,MANAGERIAL AND DECISION ECONOMICS, Issue 8 2007Dennis C. Mueller We examine the effects of mergers on the returns to acquiring companies' shareholders for a large sample of companies from both Anglo-Saxon and non-Anglo-Saxon countries over the 1980s and 1990s. With the important exception of Japan, we find similar patterns of returns across both types of countries. For a sample of 9733 acquiring companies the mean percentage gain over a short window of 21 days is 0.6%. This picture changes dramatically as the market has more time to evaluate the mergers and/or the acquiring firms. After three years, acquirers' shareholders in the United States and continental Europe lost on average 19% of their market value compared to a portfolio of non-merging firms in their size deciles and their two-digit industry, in Canada, Australia and New Zealand roughly 16%, and in the four Scandinavian countries almost 15%. Further analysis indicates that some mergers are consistent with the hypothesis that mergers generate synergies, but that a majority of mergers in Continental Europe are explained by the managerial discretion and/or hubris hypothesis. Our findings also suggest that corporate governance institutions in the United States and the other Anglo-Saxon countries lead to better investment performance than in continental Europe, when one confines one's attention to mergers. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Gastroschisis: International epidemiology and public health perspectives,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS, Issue 3 2008Eduardo E. Castilla Abstract Gastroschisis offers the intriguing epidemiological situation of a pandemic, strongly associated with very low maternal age. Identifying gastroschisis, and distinguishing it from the other abdominal wall defects, is theoretically easy but difficult in practice. The baseline birth prevalence of gastroschisis before the pandemic was approximately 1 in 50,000 births and has increased since between 10- and 20-fold. In many populations worldwide, it is still increasing. Such increasing prevalence and the association with very low maternal age are well proven, but the interaction between these two findings remains unknown. Geographic gradients (decreasing prevalence from North to South) are clear in Continental Europe and suggestive in Britain and Ireland. Gastroschisis seems more frequent in Caucasians compared to African Blacks and Orientals, and in Northern compared to Southern Europeans. These observations indicate the need for investigating gene,environment interactions. Since the global human situation is marked by inequalities among as well as within countries, the medical care and public health impact of gastroschisis varies widely among regions and social strata. The postnatal benefits of prenatal diagnosis of gastroschisis include family awareness; adequate planning of delivery with alerted obstetrical, pediatric, and surgical staff; optimal risk categorization, and personalized protocol for action. The increasing prevalence of gastroschisis combined with improved medical techniques to reduce morbidity and mortality are also increasing the burden and costs of this anomaly on health systems. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The Liquidity of Property Shares: An International ComparisonREAL ESTATE ECONOMICS, Issue 3 2009Dirk Brounen This article investigates the magnitude and determinates of share liquidity over the 1990,2007 period in the world's four largest securitized real estate markets: the United States, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe and Australia. We document a significant and consistent role for market capitalization, nonretail share ownership and dividend yield as drivers of liquidity across markets. We also document significant differences in liquidity across countries and between property and nonproperty companies. Also striking is the lack of correlation among our three measures of liquidity across property firms and time. This supports the notion that share price liquidity is multifaceted and therefore reliance on any one measure of liquidity in empirical work may produce misleading conclusions. Although we find some evidence of a connection between liquidity and firm value, it is less conclusive than prior studies. [source] The relevance of international consortia in studies on the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes: the role of ET1DGNDIABETES/METABOLISM: RESEARCH AND REVIEWS, Issue 3 2006Flemming Pociot Abstract The Type 1 Diabetes Genetics Consortium (T1DGC), funded September 2002, is a collaborative effort to develop resources for the purpose of identifying risk genes for type 1 diabetes. One of the aims is to establish a renewable resource of DNA on 2500 affected sib-pair families. Regional networks have been established and in continental Europe, the European Type 1 Diabetes Genetics Network (ET1DGN) is responsible for identifying and collecting families. Most European countries have shown interest in this study and many have started recruiting families. The consortium is open to participation and there are several ways one can participate as a member of the consortium. ET1DGN suggests going beyond the tasks of T1DGC and establishing a well-organized network for additional and future studies in Europe. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Estimating arable output using Durham Priory tithe receipts, 1341,1450ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW, Issue 2 2004BEN DODDS Research on English late medieval economic history has neglected the evidence of tithes as indicators of agrarian output. In this article, methods used by historians of continental Europe have been developed and applied to the Durham Priory accounting material in order to create the first series of tithe-based production indicators for medieval England. The data are manipulated, and presented, to provide insight into long- and short-term trends in aggregate levels of arable production. The series of indicators are then used to examine the evidence for falling output in the late middle ages in the light of our understanding of demographic, economic, and climatic factors. [source] Effect of temperature on development, overwintering and establishment potential of Franklinothrips vespiformis in the UKENTOMOLOGIA EXPERIMENTALIS ET APPLICATA, Issue 2 2007Eleni Larentzaki Abstract This study investigated the effect of temperature on the development and overwintering potential of the predatory thrips Franklinothrips vespiformis (Crawford) (Thysanoptera: Aeolothripidae), a biological control agent used against glasshouse pests in continental Europe and Israel. Developmental rates increased linearly with rearing temperatures. It was estimated that 304.9 degree days, above a lower threshold temperature of 11.9 °C, were required for F. vespiformis to complete development from egg to adult eclosion. The effect of low temperatures (,5, 0, and 5 °C) was examined on adult female and larval survival. Subsequent reproductive and developmental attributes of survivors were also investigated. Lethal time experiments indicated that larval stages are more cold tolerant than adult F. vespiformis females. Surviving larvae increased their developmental times to adults with decreasing temperature and increasing exposure periods and second instars were significantly more successful than first instars in reaching adulthood. Surviving adult females decreased their oviposition rate with decreasing temperature and increasing exposure periods, and exposures to low temperatures affected the number of viable eggs produced. The results are discussed in the context of overwintering and establishment potential of F. vespiformis in the UK in the event of introducing the predatory thrips as a biological control agent against glasshouse pests. [source] Reconstructing the demise of Tethyan plants: climate-driven range dynamics of Laurus since the PlioceneGLOBAL ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2008Francisco Rodríguez-Sánchez ABSTRACT Aim Climate changes are thought to be responsible for the retreat and eventual extinction of subtropical lauroid species that covered much of Europe and North Africa during the Palaeogene and early Neogene; little is known, however, of the spatial and temporal patterns of this demise. Herein we calibrate ecological niche models to assess the climatic requirements of Laurus L. (Lauraceae), an emblematic relic from the Tethyan subtropical flora, subsequently using these models to infer how the range dynamics of Laurus were affected by Plio-Pleistocene climate changes. We also provide predictions of likely range changes resulting from future climatic scenarios. Location The Mediterranean Basin and Macaronesian islands (Canaries, Madeira, Azores). Methods We used a maximum-entropy algorithm (Maxent) to model the relationship between climate and Laurus distribution over time. The models were fitted both to the present and to the middle Pliocene, based on fossil records. We employed climatic reconstructions for the mid-Pliocene (3 Ma), the Last Glacial Maximum (21 ka) and a CO2 -doubling future scenario to project putative species distribution in each period. We validated the model projections with Laurus fossil and present occurrences. Results Laurus preferentially occupied warm and moist areas with low seasonality, showing a marked stasis of its climatic niche. Models fitted to Pliocene conditions successfully predicted the current species distribution. Large suitable areas existed during the Pliocene, which were strongly reduced during the Pleistocene, but humid refugia within the Mediterranean Basin and Macaronesian islands enabled long-term persistence. Future climate conditions are likely to re-open areas suitable for colonization north of the current range. Main conclusions The climatic requirements of Laurus remained virtually unchanged over the last 3 Myr. This marked niche conservatism imposed largely deterministic range dynamics driven by climate conditions. This species's relatively high drought tolerance might account for the survival of Laurus in continental Europe throughout the Quaternary whilst other Lauraceae became extinct. Climatic scenarios for the end of this century would favour an expansion of the species's range towards northern latitudes, while severely limiting southern populations due to increased water stress. [source] Continental Connections: Britain and Europe in the Eighteenth CenturyHISTORY, Issue 299 2005STEPHEN CONWAY The topic of empire has loomed large in recent writings on eighteenth-century Britain. This article attempts to encourage greater appreciation of Britain's multifarious connections with continental Europe in this period. It also seeks to establish that empire and Europe were seen by many Britons as complementary rather than competing areas of interest and engagement. [source] Financial Times Business School Rankings: A Nontraditional Assurance Case in Three Parts,ACCOUNTING PERSPECTIVES, Issue 1 2007Andrea B. Davies ABSTRACT The Financial Times of London (FT) is a business newspaper, with daily editions published in the United Kingdom, continental Europe, the United States, and Asia, and an estimated daily readership of 10 million people. In 1999 the FT began to publish a ranking of what it considered to be the top business schools in the world. Since their inception, these rankings have become increasingly relied upon by potential students and business school administrators worldwide. The FT's ranking is unique compared with other rankings because of its special international focus. Given the prominence of these rankings and the FT's position as a well-respected business newspaper, the question of providing assurance over the business school rankings that the FT provides is particularly challenging. [source] Shifting Paradigms of Globalization: The Twenty-first Century Transition Towards Generics in Skilled Migration from IndiaINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 5 2001Binod Khadria Globalization of human capital through international migration is no longer about global physical presence only; it is also about global applicability of skills across various fields of specialization. This marks the main characteristics of skilled migration from India to developed countries in the twenty-first century. The focus is shifting away from professionals in specific occupations, like doctors, engineers, scientists, architects, bankers, to information technology (IT) professionals embodying, in a way, more generic skills. In other words, it is the generic applicability of information and communications technology (ICT) which has led to large-scale migration of Indians skilled in IT. Moreover, the exodus comprises not only the fully trained and educated workers going abroad for employment, but also students - the semi-finished human capital - pursuing higher education in onshore as well as offshore universities of the developed countries. The new emigration is directed towards traditional host countries in the West such as the UK, Canada, and the US, but also towards newly emerging destinations in continental Europe (Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Denmark), Australasia (Australia, New Zealand), East Asia (Japan, Republic of Korea), and South-East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia). By using mainly current information and informal data as reported in the media, this article perceives emerging trends and changes in the context of the global labour market for skills, and suggests a possible framework towards evolving strategies of remedial development. [source] Modelling disease spread in a novel host: rabies in the European badger Meles melesJOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2002G. C. Smith Summary 1Although the red fox Vulpes vulpes is the main reservoir of rabies in Europe, badger Meles meles populations are known to be drastically affected. Models of badger population dynamics are combined with a fox/rabies model to examine the possibility of rabies spread in high-density badger populations, such as those found in the United Kingdom (UK). 2Although some data exist on rabies epizootiology in the badger, there are no data on badger-to-badger contact rates (either healthy or diseased animals). As a starting point consensus expert opinion was used to devise contact probabilities, and the model was found to be insensitive to reasonable variation in these rates for the density of badgers at which these estimates were made. 3Density-dependent (but not density-independent) contact probabilities simulated short chains of infections that may occur in continental Europe at low badger densities, and simulated true epizootics at higher densities. 4Another possible reason for these short chains of infections in continental Europe is a very high level of fragmentation between social groups. 5Given the high level of territorial contiguity and possible contact rates found in some parts of the UK, the model suggests that rabies is capable of spreading within the UK badger population, and a provisional map showing the likelihood of an epizootic is presented. [source] Large-scale spatio-temporal shifts in the diet of a predator mediated by an emerging infectious disease of its main preyJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 8 2009Marcos Moleón Abstract Aim, To explore the influence of an emerging infectious disease (EID) affecting a prey species on the spatial patterns and temporal shifts in the diet of a predator over a large geographical scale. We reviewed studies on the diet of Bonelli's eagles (Hieraaetus fasciatus) in order to determine the repercussions of the reduction in the density of its main prey, the rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), caused by outbreaks of rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) since 1988. Location, Western continental Europe. Methods, We compiled published and unpublished information on the diet of breeding Bonelli's eagles from Portugal, Spain and France for a 39-year study period (1968,2006). Nonparametric tests were used in order to analyse temporal shifts in diet composition and trophic diversity (H,) between the periods of ,high' (before outbreak of RHD) and ,low' rabbit density (after outbreak of RHD). A combination of hierarchical agglomerative clustering and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) analyses were used to test for the existence of geographical patterns in the diet of Bonelli's eagles in each period. Results, The diet of the Bonelli's eagle consisted of rabbit (28.5%), pigeons (24.0%), partridges (15.3%), ,other birds' (11.6%), ,other mammals' (7.1%), corvids (7.0%), and herptiles (6.4%). However, RHD had large consequences for its feeding ecology: the consumption of rabbits decreased by one-third after the outbreak of RHD. Conversely, trophic diversity (H,) increased after outbreak of RHD. At the same time, the analyses showed clear geographical patterns in the diet of the Bonelli's eagle before, but not after, RHD outbreak. Main conclusions, Geographical patterns in the diet of the Bonelli's eagle in western Europe seem to be driven mainly by spatio-temporal variation in the abundance of rabbits and, to a lesser extent, by the local (territorial) environmental features conditioning the presence and density of alternative prey species. We show that an EID can disrupt predator,prey relationships at large spatial and temporal scales through a severe decline in the population of the main prey species. Hence we argue that strict guidelines should be drawn up to prevent human-aided dissemination of ,pathogen pollution', which can threaten wildlife not only at the population and species level but also at the community and ecosystem scale. [source] Genetic differentiation and natural hybridization between the Sardinian endemic Maniola nurag and the European Maniola jurtinaJOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2007A. GRILL Abstract The Mediterranean island of Sardinia is known for its multitude of unique genetic lineages. We view one of them in a larger phylogeographic context. The endemic Sardinian Meadow Brown butterfly, Maniola nurag, is restricted to the mountainous areas of the island, whereas its widespread close relative, Maniola jurtina, also occurs on the coast. At intermediate altitudes the species' distributions overlap. There, a number of individuals exhibit phenotypic characteristics intermediate between the two species. We examined patterns of intra- and interpopulation variation in 10 M. nurag populations from Sardinia and 16 M. jurtina populations from Sardinia and continental Europe, as well as 17 intermediate individuals, sampled in 1999,2002, by means of allozyme markers, combining it with a morphometric analysis based on 18 wing-characters of 52 males. At the 15 loci studied (aldolase, aat-1, aat-2, g6pdh, gpd, idh-1, idh-2, mdh-1, mdh-2, mpi, me, leu-ala, pgi, pgm, and 6pgdh), 76 different alleles were detected, 63 of which were shared by M. nurag and M. jurtina. None of the loci was found to be alternatively fixed between the two species. In that respect, this study testifies to the difficulties that may arise when trying to identify hybrids from genotypic data. Levels of genetic variation in island populations (M. jurtina: HO = 0.137,0.189; M. nurag: HO = 0.141,0.270) were comparable to those of mainland M. jurtina (HO = 0.141,0.236). A Bayesian admixture analysis supported the hypothesis of mixed (hybrid) ancestry of individuals occurring at intermediate altitudes. Similarly, neighbour-joining and unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic averaging (UPGMA) analyses, as well as morphometrics hinted at the existence of a Maniola -hybrid zone in Sardinia at intermediate altitudes. We discuss the results in the light of the phylogeography of other Sardinian taxa with the aim to reach a general understanding of the biogeographic history of this island's endemic species. [source] Corporate governance and the returns to acquiring firms' shareholders: an international comparison,MANAGERIAL AND DECISION ECONOMICS, Issue 8 2007Dennis C. Mueller We examine the effects of mergers on the returns to acquiring companies' shareholders for a large sample of companies from both Anglo-Saxon and non-Anglo-Saxon countries over the 1980s and 1990s. With the important exception of Japan, we find similar patterns of returns across both types of countries. For a sample of 9733 acquiring companies the mean percentage gain over a short window of 21 days is 0.6%. This picture changes dramatically as the market has more time to evaluate the mergers and/or the acquiring firms. After three years, acquirers' shareholders in the United States and continental Europe lost on average 19% of their market value compared to a portfolio of non-merging firms in their size deciles and their two-digit industry, in Canada, Australia and New Zealand roughly 16%, and in the four Scandinavian countries almost 15%. Further analysis indicates that some mergers are consistent with the hypothesis that mergers generate synergies, but that a majority of mergers in Continental Europe are explained by the managerial discretion and/or hubris hypothesis. Our findings also suggest that corporate governance institutions in the United States and the other Anglo-Saxon countries lead to better investment performance than in continental Europe, when one confines one's attention to mergers. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Mitochondrial DNA and microsatellite variation in the eider duck (Somateria mollissima) indicate stepwise postglacial colonization of Europe and limited current long-distance dispersalMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2004R. Tiedemann Abstract To unravel the postglacial colonization history and the current intercolony dispersal in the common eider, Somateria mollissima, we analysed genetic variation at a part of the mitochondrial control region and five unlinked autosomal microsatellite loci in 175 eiders from 11 breeding colonies, covering the entire European distribution range of this species. As a result of extreme female philopatry, mitochondrial DNA differentiation is substantial both among local colonies and among distant geographical regions. Our study further corroborates the previous hypothesis of a single Pleistocene refugium for European eiders. A nested clade analysis on mitochondrial haplotypes suggests that (i) the Baltic Sea eider population is genetically closest to a presumably ancestral population and that (ii) the postglacial recolonization progressed in a stepwise fashion via the North Sea region and the Faroe Islands to Iceland. Current long-distance dispersal is limited. Differentiation among colonies is much less pronounced at microsatellite loci. The geographical pattern of this nuclear genetic variation is to a large extent explained by isolation by distance. As female dispersal is very limited, the geographical pattern of nuclear variation is probably explained by male-mediated gene flow among breeding colonies. Our study provides genetic evidence for the assumed prominent postglacial colonization route shaping the present terrestrial fauna of the North Atlantic islands Iceland and the Faroes. It suggests that this colonization had been a stepwise process originating in continental Europe. It is the first molecular study on eider duck populations covering their entire European distribution range. [source] Genetic variation and population structure in the endangered greater horseshoe bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinumMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 8 2000Stephen J. Rossiter Abstract Following a dramatic decline last century, the British population of the endangered greater horseshoe bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinum is highly fragmented. To examine the consequences of fragmentation and limited dispersal on patterns of genetic structure and variation, we used microsatellite markers to screen bats from around 50% of the known maternity colonies in Britain, and two areas from continental Europe. Analyses revealed that Welsh and English colonies were genetically isolated. This, and lower variability in Britain than north France, may result from either genetic drift, or the species' colonization history. Gene flow among most neighbouring colonies was not generally restricted, with one exception. These findings have important implications for the ongoing conservation management of this species. [source] Distortionary Taxation and Labour Market PerformanceOXFORD BULLETIN OF ECONOMICS & STATISTICS, Issue 2 2001Riccardo Fiorito Quarterly estimates of consumption, capital and labour tax rates are provided for six major OECD countries. We then use the ,stylized facts' methodology to evaluate the strength, sign and phase of cyclical comovements between tax rates and labour market variables. Labour taxes distort labour market de-cisions and help explain why the unemployment rate is so high in continental Europe. However, labour taxes cannot be the only determinant of diverging unemployment rates since the labour force is also reduced by higher taxes. Finally, we offer some preliminary structural evidence showing employment growth in particular to be negatively related to the taxation of labour. [source] Neo-liberalization and Incorporation in Advanced Newly Industrialized Countries: A View from South KoreaPOLITICAL STUDIES, Issue 1 2004Tat Yan Kong Historically closely associated with interventionist growth strategies, the demise of corporatism was widely predicted as neo-liberalism became the dominant economic paradigm from the late 1970s. The experience of social dialogue and social pacts in continental Europe during the 1980s and 90s, however, suggests that corporatism may have found a new economic purpose in the era of neo-liberalism. Similarly, in the developing world, the intellectual aversion to government accommodation of ,special interest groups' that accompanied the early phase of economic liberalization has given way to a more sophisticated appreciation of the economic advantages of social compromise. Using the case of South Korea, a country that recently established a social pact in support of its economic liberalization drive, this paper seeks to extend our knowledge about the compatibility between neo-liberalism and incorporation. The results contribute to the wider debate about the possibilities of diverse patterns of government,business,labour relations under ,actually existing' neo-liberalism. As one of the most advanced and successful newly industrialized countries, South Korea shares structural,institutional affinities with both advanced and developing societies. Hence, it represents an intermediate case of relevance to both the mature European and ,third wave' democracies. [source] The Cornubian Batholith: an Example of Magmatic Fractionation on a Crustal ScaleRESOURCE GEOLOGY, Issue 3 2006Bruce W. Chappell Abstract. The Cornubian Batholith comprises six major and several smaller bodies of S-type granite in southwestern England. These late-Variscan granites comprise two-mica granites, and much less abundant Li-mica granites that are restricted to one of the major bodies (St Austell) and smaller bodies. Some of these intrusive rocks are associated with major Sn mineralization. This paper is concerned with the geochemistry of the two-mica granites, which are felsic, strongly peraluminous, and have a high total alkali content and low Na:K. Rocks with very similar compositions to these granites occur elsewhere, including the Variscan granites of continental Europe, and in southeastern Australia. In detail all of the major plutons of this batholith have distinctive compositions, except for Bodmin Moor and Carnmenellis which cannot be discriminated from each other compositionally. A comparison with experimental data shows that the granites attained their major element composition under conditions of crystal-liquid equilibrium, with the final melt being saturated in H2O, at temperatures close to 770d,C and pressures about 50 MPa. That temperature estimate is in good agreement with values obtained from zircon saturation thermometry. The specific minimum-temperature composition excludes the possibility of widespread transfer of elements during hydrothermal alteration. Minor elements that are relatively very abundant are Li, B, Cs and U, while F, Ga, Ge, Rb, Sn, Ta, W and Tl are quite abundant and P is high for felsic rocks. Sr, Ba, and the trace transition metals Sc to Zn, are low, but not as low as they commonly are in very felsic granites. These trace element abundances, and the EL2O-saturation, resulted from the fractional crystallization of a melt derived by the partial melting of feldspathic greywackes in the crust. The Cornubian granites have compositions very similar to the more felsic rocks of the Koetong Suite of southeastern Australia, where a full range of granites formed at the various stages of magmatic fractionation postulated for the Cornubian granites, can be observed. The operation of fractional crystallization in the Cornubian granites is confirmed by the high P abundances in the feldspars, with P contents of the plagioclase crystals correlating with Ab-con-tent Most of the granites represent solidified melt compositions but within the Dartmoor pluton there is a significant component of granites that are cumulative, shown by their higher Ca contents. The Cornubian plutons define areas of high heat flow, of a magnitude which requires that fractionated magmas were transported laterally from their sources and concentrated in the exposed plutons. The generation of these granite plutons therefore involved magmatic fractionation during the stages of partial melting, removal of unmelted material from that melt, and fractional crystallization. During the later stages of those processes, movement of those magmas occurred on a crustal scale. [source] PATTERNS OF IRON AGE HORSE SUPPLY: AN ANALYSIS OF STRONTIUM ISOTOPE RATIOS IN TEETH,ARCHAEOMETRY, Issue 1 2009R. BENDREY This paper presents a pilot study of strontium (Sr) isotope ratios from Iron Age horse tooth enamel samples. It compares 87Sr/86Sr ratios from horse teeth to estimates for local ranges of biologically available strontium, to investigate whether horses were being bred at the sites where their remains were discovered. A horse from Middle Iron Age Rooksdown, Hampshire, was not bred at the site but, rather, came from as far away as Wales, Scotland or continental Europe. Horse teeth from Middle Iron Age Bury Hill, Hampshire, returned 87Sr/86Sr values typical of local chalkland. [source] The Commonwealth as an Economic NetworkAUSTRALIAN ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW, Issue 3 2001Paul L. Robertson Research on the economics and sociology of business networks also sheds light on the development of networks of countries. The British Commonwealth was an important global network, or group of networks, in the mid-twentieth century. Commonwealth members, including Australia and New Zealand, cooperated in the management of the Sterling Area and the Commonwealth Preference Area. Yet Commonwealth members also had links to other networks and other sources of influence including the USA, continental Europe and Japan. During the 1950s and 1960s, there was a gradual change in the network relations of Australia and New Zealand, involving a diminution in the importance of bilateral ties with Britain. [source] Detection of Lateglacial distal tephra layers in the NetherlandsBOREAS, Issue 2 2005SIWAN M. DAVIES Davies, S. M., Hoek, W. Z., Bohncke, S. J. P., Lowe, J. J., Pyne O'Donnell, S. & Turney, C. S. M. 2005 (May): Detection of Lateglacial distal tephra layers in the Netherlands. Boreas, Vol. 34, pp. 123,135. Oslo. ISSN 0300,9483. Three distal tephra layers or cryptotephras have been detected within a sedimentary sequence from the Netherlands that spans the last glacial-interglacial transition. Geochemical analyses identify one as the Vedde Ash, which represents the southernmost discovery of this mid-Younger Dryas tephra so far. This tephra was found as a distinct horizon in three different cores sampled within the basin. The remaining two tephras have not been geochemically ,fingerprinted', partly due to low concentrations and uneven distributions of shards within the sequences sampled. Nevertheless, there is the potential for tracing these tephra layers throughout the Netherlands and into other parts of continental Europe. Accordingly, the possibilities for precise correlation of Dutch palaeoenvironmental records with other continental, marine and ice-core records from the North Atlantic region are highlighted. [source] The genus Huperzia (Lycopodiaceae) in the Azores and MadeiraBOTANICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 3 2008JOSÉ ANTONIO FERNÁNDEZ PRIETO The taxonomy and nomenclature of the genus Huperzia Bernh. in the Azores and Madeira have been reviewed. Plants collected in the Azores and Madeira were characterized morphologically. The independence between two endemic species common to Madeira and the Azores Islands ,Huperzia suberecta (Lowe) Tardieu and Huperzia dentata (Herter) Holub , is clearly shown. A clear-cut morphological separation between these taxa and Huperzia selago (L.) Bernh. ex Schrank & Mart. of continental Europe is established. © 2008 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2008, 158, 522,533. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||