This paper studies the economic effects of the US National Park System, the largest national conservation entity in the world. We assemble a new dataset on the history of the system, and show that ...parks increase overall employment and income in the local economy. The data allows us to study several specific mechanisms. Economic effects appear to be driven by visitors, and they cannot be explained by direct government spending on park budgets or by various substitution effects. Our findings provide evidence relevant to conservation policy in the US and elsewhere.
•Paper presents event study estimates of the economic impacts of the US National Park System.•Introduces a new dataset on the history of the system.•Finds that parks increase local employment and income.•This is driven by visitors and large multiplier effects.
One of the key drivers for the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is non-prudent antibiotic (AB) use, which results in selection pressure towards relevant bacteria. Community ...pharmacists have pivotal roles in facilitating the prudent use of ABs that have been demonstrated by several studies worldwide. The aim of our present study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of community pharmacists related to AB use and infectious diseases in Hungary. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was performed among community pharmacists in Hungary with the use of an anonymous, structured and pilot-tested questionnaire. Data collection ran between January 2016 and January 2018; n = 339 community pharmacists nationwide were approached with our questionnaire, out of which 192 filled out our survey. Hungarian pharmacists have appropriate knowledge regarding ABs and antimicrobial therapy, and they realize the public health impact of the growing AMR. Twenty-five percent of participants admitted to giving out non-prescription ABs at least once in the last year. The age and presence of board-certified specializations were shown to be significant factors of self-perceived knowledge and professional attitudes. Educational strategies and interventions specifically aimed at focusing on identified shortcomings and changing certain attitudes could substantially improve AB dispensing and AB use, in addition to minimizing resistance.
This paper measures firm-level inefficiencies in input use among manufacturing firms in Ghana by explicitly estimating their production function. I find that the fraction of undercapitalized firms is ...46%, but overall firms use 77% more capital and 40% less labor than would be optimal. Underutilization of labor is especially prevalent among firms with a unionized workforce. Firms with formal loans and firms with more human capital are closer to their efficient capital stock. The findings suggest large potential gains in value added from adjusting input use in the optimal direction.
•We study the incentives of internet providers (ISP) to slow down content that competes with their own services.•Using a survey experiment, we measure consumers’ willingness to pay for speed on the ...video on-demand market.•Consumers attach high value to download speed when choosing how to view specific content.•Counterfactual analyses highlight an ISP’s incentive to engage in vertical foreclosure.
Proponents of Net Neutrality rules argue that these regulations prevent internet service providers (ISP) from slowing down content that competes with some of their own services (vertical foreclosure). To study these incentives, we measure consumers’ willingness to pay for speed on the video on-demand market. We use a survey experiment to estimate a differentiated-product demand system for choosing how to view specific content. We establish a necessary condition for ISPs to have an incentive for vertical foreclosure: consumers respond to reduced speeds by substituting to a service offered by the ISP. We also show that by eliminating vertical foreclosure, Net Neutrality could provide incentives for ISPs to compete on prices.
•Hail net offsetting the negative effects caused by heat and drought stress in apple production.•Integrating the effects of hail net on the water supply and some of the parameters of photosynthesis ...of apple orchard.•Differences between the response of Golden Reinders and Early Gold varieties on the effect of hail net.
Apple production accounts for 60–65 % of all fruit production in Hungary, as one of the most important areas of the fruit production sector. Extreme weather conditions in the continental climate can cause significant problems in apple production. The most important solutions to decrease their effects are irrigation and hail net. In addition to protection against hail damage, the hail net has effect on microclimatic factors, its shading effect has a positive effect on the growth of fruit trees and it reduces the risk of sunburn and transpiration. The aim of our research was to evaluate the effect of hail net on the water balance of Early Gold and Golden Reinders microclimatic factors on the basis of thermal imaging, water potential measurement, canopy dry matter content and to analyze the effect on pigment content. The research was carried out on a weekly basis in July and August 2019 at the Horticultural Unit of Pallag, University of Debrecen, Hungary. Based on our results, the air temperature was 2.91 % lower (p = 0.150) and the relative humidity was 3.16 % higher (p = 0.0001) under the hail net. Results also revealed that the foliage temperature was 7.28 % lower (p = 0.006), the water potential value of the foliage was 20.80 % higher (p = 0.399) under the hail net, while the dry matter content of the leaf was 4.76 % lower than in orchards outside the hail net. Canopy chlorophyll concentration was 10.24 % (p = 0.066) higher and carotenoid values were also higher (16.24 %, p = 0.004) in hail net protected circumstances. Based on the results, the hail net has a favorable effect on the water balance of apple orchards and pigment content of apple leaves through microclimatic conditions, partially offsetting the negative effects caused by summer heat and drought stress.
This paper analyzes South Africa's Free Basic Water Policy, under which households receive a free water allowance equal to the World Health Organization's recommended minimum. I estimate residential ...water demand, evaluate the welfare effects of free water, and provide optimal price schedules derived from a social planner's problem. I use a data set of monthly metered billing data for 60,000 households for 2002-2009 from a particularly disadvantaged suburb of Pretoria, with rich price variation across 20 different nonlinear tariff schedules. I find that the free allowance acts as a lump-sum subsidy, without large effects on water consumption. However, it is possible to reallocate the current subsidy to form an optimal tariff without a free allowance, which would increase welfare while leaving the water provider's profit unchanged. This optimal tariff would also reduce the number of households consuming low quantities of water, a desirable policy goal according to the WHO.
Abstract
Who are “protest voters” and do they affect elections? We study this question using the introduction of a pure protest option (“None Of The Above” (NOTA)) on Indian ballots. Using structural ...estimation, we find that in elections without NOTA, most protest voters simply abstain. Protest voters who turn out scatter their votes among many candidates and consequently have little impact on election results. From a policy perspective, NOTA may be an effective tool to increase political participation, and can attenuate the electoral impact of compulsory voting.
The challenge on carbon nanotubes is still the subject of many research groups. While in the first years the focus was on the new synthesis methods, new carbon sources and support materials, ...recently, the application possibilities are the principal arguments of the studies. The three main synthesis methods discussed in this review are the arc discharge, the laser ablation and the chemical vapour deposition (CVD) with a special regard to the latter one. In the early stage of the nanotube production the first two methods were utilized mainly for the production of SWNTs while the third one produced mainly MWNTs. The principle of CVD is the decomposition of various hydrocarbons over transition metal supported catalyst. Single-walled (SWNT), multi-walled (MWNT) and coiled carbon nanotubes are produced. In some case, interesting carbonaceous materials are formed during the synthesis process, such as bamboo-like tubes, onions, horn-like structures. In this paper, we refer to the progresses made in the field of the synthesis techniques of carbon nanotubes in the last decade.
Sepsis is accompanied by a less-known mismatch between hemodynamics and mitochondrial respiration. We aimed to characterize the relationship and time dependency of microcirculatory and mitochondrial ...functions in a rodent model of intraabdominal sepsis. Fecal peritonitis was induced in rats, and multi-organ failure (MOF) was evaluated 12, 16, 20, 24 or 28 h later (n = 8/group, each) using rat-specific organ failure assessment (ROFA) scores. Ileal microcirculation (proportion of perfused microvessels (PPV), microvascular flow index (MFI) and heterogeneity index (HI)) was monitored by intravital video microscopy, and mitochondrial respiration (OxPhos) and outer membrane (mtOM) damage were measured with high-resolution respirometry. MOF progression was evidenced by increased ROFA scores; microcirculatory parameters followed a parallel time course from the 16th to 28th h. Mitochondrial dysfunction commenced with a 4-h time lag with signs of mtOM damage, which correlated significantly with PPV, while no correlation was found between HI and OxPhos. High diagnostic value was demonstrated for PPV, mtOM damage and lactate levels for predicting MOF. Our findings indicate insufficient splanchnic microcirculation to be a possible predictor for MOF that develops before the start of mitochondrial dysfunction. The adequate subcellular compensatory capacity suggests the presence of mitochondrial subpopulations with differing sensitivity to septic insults.
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