Search results for "trade"

Impact of Trade Area Environment on Bank’s Comparative Advantages

2004

This paper analyzes the relationship between the comparative advantages of bank branches and the trade area environment. Bank branches are points of sale whose trade environment influences their activities and performance. Comparative advantages are defined, for each output mix, by the strict dominance of a production technology in a specific trade area over the production technologies of other environments. Using Shephard’s output distance functions on a sample of 728 bank branches, we compare the production technologies for different output mixes and different trade environments. We show that none of the production technologies strictly dominates the others and none of them is strictly do…

From EFTA to EC/EU and Back to EFTA? The European Economic Area (EEA) As a Possible Scenario for the UK-EU Relations After Brexit

2018

Brexit is announced to take place and it appears, that the most probable scenario for the UK is the “Norway-Option”, i.e., to (again) become a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and join the EEA. The chapter identifies the major claims of the leave-campaign to analyse, whether by doing so, the Brexit proponents will achieve what they campaigned for. Furthermore, the paper explains the functioning of the EEA, exploring the potential changes for the UK, the EU, and the EEA/EFTA.

Co–Co and Co–Fe cyano-bridged pentanuclear clusters based on a methylpyrazinyl-diamine tetradentate ligand: spin crossover and metal substitution eff…

2017

A pentanuclear [CoII3CoIII2] cluster complex has been developed by a solvothermal synthesis. Its highly stable metal-mixed Fe–Co derivatives display robust spin crossover (T1/2 = 268 K) controlled by the degree of substitution.

Conflicting objectives in production forests pose a challenge for forest management

2017

Conflicts among different ecosystem services have been shown to be common and potentially exacerbated by management interventions. In order to improve the sustainability of natural resource use, the occurrence of these conflicts and the effects that management actions have on them need to be understood. We studied the conflicts between ecosystem services and the potential to solve them by management choices in boreal production forests. Our study area consisted of nearly 30,000 forest stands which were simulated for 50 years into the future under alternative management scenarios. The study included four ecosystem services – timber production, bilberry production, carbon storage, and pest re…

2018

Climatically controlled allocation to reproduction is a key mechanism by which climate influences tree growth and may explain lagged correlations between climate and growth. We used continent-wide datasets of tree-ring chronologies and annual reproductive effort in Fagus sylvatica from 1901 to 2015 to characterise relationships between climate, reproduction and growth. Results highlight that variable allocation to reproduction is a key factor for growth in this species, and that high reproductive effort ('mast years') is associated with stem growth reduction. Additionally, high reproductive effort is associated with previous summer temperature, creating lagged climate effects on growth. Con…

Managing boreal forests for the simultaneous production of collectable goods and timber revenues

2016

Timber Production is an economically important provisioning ecosystem service in forests, but is often in conflict with the provision of other ecosystem services. In multifunctional forestry, the production of timber and non-timber ecosystem services should coexist in the same landscape. To this end, we explored the capacity of a boreal landscape to simultaneously produce collectable goods − bilberry (Vaccimium myrtillus L.), cowberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) and cep (Boletus edulis Bull.) − alongside timber revenues. We also identified optimal forest management plans to achieve this. Furthermore, we analyzed trade-offs between collectable good yields and timber production, as well as bet…

The Legal International Wildlife Trade Favours Invasive Species Establishment: The Monk and Ring-Necked Parakeets in Spain

2018

The international wildlife trade is a lucrative business. Although a huge variety of animal groups are trafficked, the Psittaciformes (parrots) are amongst the most traded avian groups. Deliberate or accidental releases of imported parrots have led to the establishment of feral populations in many countries. Far from their native habitats, parrots may cause economic and ecological damage, and may even favour the transmission of zoonotic diseases. Despite this, the links between numbers of imported individuals and the establishment of non-native populations is not well known. In this study, we analysed data on imports of two well-known invasive parrots, the Monk Parakeet Myiopsitamonachus an…

Vertebrate defense against parasites: Interactions between avoidance, resistance, and tolerance

2017

Hosts can utilize different types of defense against the effects of parasitism, including avoidance, resistance, and tolerance. Typically, there is tremendous heterogeneity among hosts in these defense mechanisms that may be rooted in the costs associated with defense and lead to trade‐offs with other life‐history traits. Trade‐offs may also exist between the defense mechanisms, but the relationships between avoidance, resistance, and tolerance have rarely been studied. Here, we assessed these three defense traits under common garden conditions in a natural host–parasite system, the trematode eye‐fluke Diplostomum pseudospathaceum and its second intermediate fish host. We looked at host ind…

Ancient DNA reveals the Arctic origin of Viking Age cod from Haithabu, Germany

2017

Knowledge of the range and chronology of historic trade and long-distance transport of natural resources is essential for determining the impacts of past human activities on marine environments. However, the specific biological sources of imported fauna are often difficult to identify, in particular if species have a wide spatial distribution and lack clear osteological or isotopic differentiation between populations. Here, we report that ancient fish-bone remains, despite being porous, brittle, and light, provide an excellent source of endogenous DNA (15-46%) of sufficient quality for whole-genome reconstruction. By comparing ancient sequence data to that of modern specimens, we determine …

Long-Term Prophylactic Antibiotic Treatment: Effects on Survival, Immunocompetence and Reproduction Success of Parasemia plantaginis (Lepidoptera: Er…

2016

Hundreds of insect species are nowadays reared under laboratory conditions. Rearing of insects always implicates the risk of diseases, among which microbial infections are the most frequent and difficult problems. Although there are effective prophylactic treatments, the side effects of applied antibiotics are not well understood. We examined the effect of prophylactic antibiotic treatment on the overwintering success of wood tiger moth (Parasemia plantaginis) larvae, and the postdiapause effect on their life-history traits. Four weeks before hibernation larvae were treated with a widely used antibiotic (fumagillin). We monitored moths' survival and life-history traits during the following …