Incentives and uncertainty: an empirical analysis of the impact of demand on innovation

demand, product innovation, process innovation

Habakkuk revisited: a history friendly model of American and British technology in the nineteenth century

This paper presents a History Friendly Model which addresses the issue of the bifurcation in technological styles between US and Britain during the nineteenth century. The model aims at gaining a better understanding of the micro-dynamics that gave rise to different patterns of innovation in the two countries. In particular, we suggest that different demand patterns might be an explanation for the faster diffusion of capital intensive technologies in the US. Simulation results confirm this hypothesis, although only when we jointly control for the role of technological opportunities

Atlas and Informative System of the Lagoon of Venice: updated tools for a higher management efficiency in Natura 2000 sites

La laguna di Venezia è un ecosistema complesso per comprendere il quale è necessario integrare dati ed informazioni provenienti da discipline diverse raccolti da differenti Enti ed Istituti di ricerca. L’Osservatorio Naturalistico della Laguna, del Comune di Venezia, nasce fondamentalmente per raccogliere queste informazioni ed organizzarle affinché possano essere fruibili sia dai vari Servizi e Direzioni dell’Amministrazione Comunale, sia dalle istituzioni scientifiche e dai cittadini. Per questo motivo è stato prodotto l’Atlante della Laguna, una raccolta di 103 mappe tematiche, ciascuna delle quali è corredata da una scheda esplicativa, suddivise in 5 sezioni: Geosfera, Biosfera, Antroposfera, Ambiti di Tutela e Analisi Integrate. L’Atlante rappresenta solo un primo passo verso la diffusione e la validazione dei dati ambientali. Attualmente si sta realizzando un Sistema Informativo della Laguna (SIL) che metterà a disposizione di vari utenti le informazioni, le elaborazioni ed i materiali raccolti dall’Osservatorio durante le sue attività (in parte già sintetizzati nell’Atlante). Il passo successivo sarà la raccolta e la diffusione delle informazioni e dei dati che altri soggetti proprietari vorranno inserire nel SIL, attraverso appositi protocolli di scambio. I vantaggi di un Sistema Informativo rispetto ad un volume cartaceo sono molteplici e noti, e vanno dall’aggiornabilità del dato alla possibilità di elaborarlo secondo necessità contingenti. L’utilizzo di questi strumenti per la gestione delle aree umide è esemplificato attraverso un caso studio: la Valutazione di Incidenza dell’area utilizzata per il tiro al piattello localizzata a Campalto (Venezia), attività dismessa ormai da diversi anni.The lagoon of Venice is a complex ecosystem that can be understood only by the integration of data and information with a multidisciplinary approach. The ‘Osservatorio Naturalistico della Laguna’ of Venice Municipality has been created with the aim of gathering and organizing all kinds of information, so that it can be used by administrators, scientific institutions and citizens. For this reason, the Lagoon Atlas was produced. The Atlas is composed by 103 tematic maps, each accompanied by an explicatory schedule, subdivided into 5 sections: Geosphere, Biosphere, Anthroposphere, Protection and Integrated Analysis. The Atlas represents a first step towards the distribution and validation of environmental data. An Informative System of the Lagoon (SIL) is currently under construction, and this will allow to obtain all kind of information, elaboration and materials gathered by the Osservatorio during its activities (already partially summarized in the Atlas). The next step will be to gather and distribute information and data that other subjects will include in the SIL, through specific protocols of exchange. The advantages of using an Informative System rather than paper materials are obvious, spanning from the possibility to update data to the possibility of elaborating them according to the needs. The use of these tools for wetland management is exemplified by a case study: the assessment of projects in the area of Campalto (Venice), that in the past was used for shooting

Modeling the inter-annual variability of salinity in the lagoon of Venice in relation to the water framework directive typologies

The Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) requires member states to classify and enhance the ecological quality of water bodies in accordance with their type. To estimate the effect on type of the natural variability of lagoons, we applied a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model to the lagoon of Venice. The model calculated the mean annual spatial distributions of two variables: salinity and residence time. The standard deviation of salinity was also included, in order to estimate the variation of salinity values around the mean, which is associated with the instability of the mean salinity value. A highly detailed numerical grid was calibrated and high-frequency tributary discharge data were used. The simulations, under realistic forcing conditions, are based on the years 2003 and 2005. The former was characterized by low precipitation, around 30% less than the typical value. A comparison of model results and measurements shows the high reliability of the model in reproducing the spatial distribution and temporal evolution of salinity. We found strong inter-annual variation in salinity, standard deviation of salinity and residence time. The effect on the typing process is that the most representative types shift from one category to another. On the basis of the spatial patterns of the variables and their superposition, we identi fi ed types that described the bulk of the lagoon. This numerical tool offers support for lagoon management on various levels, in terms of both WFD requirements and other applications, by: (1) providing unbiased and objective zoning indications for the basin; (2) evaluating the response of water quality elements; (3) establishing the reference status of a water body; and (4) establishing a hierarchical division of a lagoon that can be used to select an appropriate number of sampling stations for monitoring