In the absence of a tractable theory of quantum gravity, quantum matter field effects have been so far computed by treating gravity at the Background Field Approximation. The principle aim of this paper is to investigate the validity of this approximation which is not specific to gravity. To this end, for reasons of simplicity and clarity, we shall compare the descriptions of thermal processes ...

The study identifies and analyses the factors that influenced the adoption of new technologies in SMEs. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have been used as proxy of new technologies. The findings of the study suggest that industry-specific characteristics such as skilland export-intensiveness have bearings on the type of ICT adoption. The size of operation measured in terms of s...

Data table in which a single set of individuals is described by several groups of variables are frequently encountered. In the factor analysis framework, taking into account different groups of variables in a unique analysis firstly raises the problem of balancing the different group. This problem being solved, beyond classical outputs from factor analysis, it is necessary to have at one’s disp...

We compare, using data envelopment analysis (DEA), the performance of Islamic and conventional banks prior to, during and immediately after the 2008 financial crisis (2004-2009). There is no significant difference in mean efficiency between conventional and Islamic banks when efficiency is measured relative to a common frontier. A meta-frontier analysis (MFA), new to the banking context, howeve...

This paper presents SIAP's first attempt to develop methods to measure the non-economic impact of the arts. The best data available on individual participation--periodic surveys of public participation in the arts by the National Endowment for the Arts--provided a wealth of data on individual behavior and attitude, but the few attempts to link these data to larger social contexts focused on the...

Using a dynamic general equilibrium model, the paper provides a quantitative assessment of the impact of the Multifiber Agreement dismantling on unemployment in Tunisia. The specification of intertemporal behavior of households and firms permits the analysis of the effects of the shock on consumption and investment in the long run. By including a multisectoral model of efficiency wages, the mod...

Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPPIV) is mainly vectorially targeted to the apical surface in MDCK cells. BFA was found to abolish the apical targeting of DPPIV. This BFA effect could be achieved under conditions where the ER to Golgi transport and the total surface expression of DPPIV were essentially unaffected. BFA executed its effect during the transport from the trans-Golgi network (TGN) to the ...

Programmer/Analyst Lara Hilton, BA Database Manager Shannon Rhodes, MFA Research Assistant Hsien Seow, BS Staff Assistant Cony Rolón, BA Director Paul G. Shekelle, MD, PhD Senior Statistician/Co-Director Sally C. Morton, PhD Project Manager/Policy Analyst Margaret Maglione, MPP Reviewers Sydney Dy, PhD Ronda Hughes, PhD, MHS, RN Richard Mularski, MD Lisa Shugarman, PhD Virginia Sun, RN Anne M. ...

Material flow analysis (MFA) is a useful tool to predict the flows of engineered nanomaterials (ENM) to the environment. The quantification of release factors is a crucial part of MFA modeling. In the last years an increasing amount of literature on release of ENM from materials and products has been published. The purpose of this review is to analyze the strategies implemented by MFA models to...

While affordances have been intensively studied, the mechanisms according to how their activation is modulated by context are poorly understood. We investigated how the Agent׳s reach-to-grasp movement towards a target-object (e.g. a can) is influenced by the other׳s interaction with a second object (manipulative/functional) and by his/her eye-gaze communication. To manipulate physical context w...