Passing to the limit in maximal slope curves: from a regularized Perona-Malik equation to the total variation flow

We prove that solutions of a mildly regularized Perona-Malik equation converge, in a slow time scale, to solutions of the total variation flow. The convergence result is global-in-time, and holds true in any space dimension. The proof is based on the general principle that "the limit of gradient-flows is the gradient-flow of the limit". To this end, we exploit a general result relating the Gamma-limit of a sequence of functionals to the limit of the corresponding maximal slope curves.Comment: 19 page

Slow time behavior of the semidiscrete Perona-Malik scheme in dimension one

We consider the long time behavior of the semidiscrete scheme for the Perona-Malik equation in dimension one. We prove that approximated solutions converge, in a slow time scale, to solutions of a limit problem. This limit problem evolves piecewise constant functions by moving their plateaus in the vertical direction according to a system of ordinary differential equations. Our convergence result is global-in-time, and this forces us to face the collision of plateaus when the system singularizes. The proof is based on energy estimates and gradient-flow techniques, according to the general idea that "the limit of the gradient-flows is the gradient-flow of the limit functional". Our main innovations are a uniform H\"{o}lder estimate up to the first collision time included, a well preparation result with a careful analysis of what happens at discrete level during collisions, and renormalizing the functionals after each collision in order to have a nontrivial Gamma-limit for all times.Comment: 42 page

Fiscal Federalism and Endogenous Lobbies' Formation

We study lobbying behavior by firms in a two-region economy, with either centralized or decentralized provision of profit-enhancing local public goods. Firms compete either in the market, lobbying for public good provision once entered in a market, or for the market, lobbying to gain ccess to it. When firms compete in the market, we show that lobbying is unambiguously less disruptive or social welfare under decentralization. Moreover, foreign rather than domestic private nterests may be more powerful in a.ecting regional policies. On the contrary, when firms compete or the market, lobbying is mostly e.ective under decentralization, since local firms always end p forming a local monopoly. However, we show that an institutional setting in which competencies re split between the center and the periphery may dominate either full centralization or full ecentralization or both.fiscal federalism, lobbying, private interests

Impact of M&A on the R&D process. An empirical analysis of the role of technological and market relatedness, The

While the impact of M&A on R&D and innovation examined at the aggregate level left inconclusive evidence, we find that at the level of the R&D process both the technological and the market relatedness between the target and the acquirer are helpful dimensions to identify effects. Using information on 31 in-depth cases of individual M&A deals we show that technological relatedness between M&A partners directly affects the inputs and organizational structure of the R&D process. M&A partners that operate in the same technological fields tend to reduce their R&D effort and rationalize the R&D process after the M&A compared to firms active in complementary technological fields that merge. These firms will furthermore face less technological competition in the technology market, but risk creating a more bureaucratic R&D process with a less motivated workforce. Market relatedness between partners, while having comparable aggregate effects on the R&D process, operates on different dimensions of the R&D process. Former rivals that engage in a M&A are significantly less likely to expand into new R&D fields or leverage their technological competences across the products and markets of the new entity. Non-rival firms that join forces, in contrast, significantly increase R&D output and productivity through these activities.M&A; R&D; scale and scope; market relatedness; technological relatedness;

Ground state and excitation dynamics in Ag doped helium clusters

We present a quantum Monte Carlo study of the structure and energetics of silver doped helium clusters AgHe$_n$ for $n$ up to 100. Our simulations show the first solvation shell of the Ag atom to be composed by roughly 20 He atoms, and to possess a structured angular distribution. Moreover, the electronic $^2$P$_{1/2}\leftarrow ^2$S$_{1/2}$ and $^2$P$_{3/2}\leftarrow ^2$S$_{1/2}$ electronic transitions of the embedded silver impurity have been studied as a function of the number ofhelium atoms. The computed spectra show a redshift for $n\leq 15$ and an increasing blueshift for larger clusters, a feature attributed to the effect of the second solvation shell of He atoms. For the largest cluster, the computed excitation spectrum is found in excellent agreement with the ones recorded in superfluid He clusters and bulk. No signature of the direct formation of proposed AgHe$_2$ exciplex is present in the computed spectra of AgHe$_{100}$.Comment: 4 Pages, 3 Figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Fiscal Federalism and Endogenous Lobbies' Formation

We study lobbying behavior by firms in a two-region economy, with either centralized or decentralized provision of profit-enhancing local public goods. Firms compete either in the market, lobbying for public good provision once entered in a market, or for the market, lobbying to gain ccess to it. When firms compete in the market, we show that lobbying is unambiguously less disruptive or social welfare under decentralization. Moreover, foreign rather than domestic private nterests may be more powerful in a.ecting regional policies. On the contrary, when firms compete or the market, lobbying is mostly e.ective under decentralization, since local firms always end p forming a local monopoly. However, we show that an institutional setting in which competencies re split between the center and the periphery may dominate either full centralization or full ecentralization or both

Community Collaboration and Venture Capital Finance

Do entrepreneurial ventures that adopt open business model (i.e., ?Open source?) obtain a different quality of VC financing, and receive a different level of VC governance and monitoring post investment? We conduct the analysis on a sample of 514 software entrepreneurial ventures that received VC funding in 6,555 different deals extracted from VentureXpert. The data indicate entrepreneurial ventures with open business model receive funding from VCs that are more highly industry-specialized; more experienced, had greater IPO success, raised more capital and are more connected in syndication network. Also, they are monitored more intensively through more frequent staged investment rounds

IL-27, but not IL-35, inhibits neuroinflammation through modulating GM-CSF expression

IL-27 and IL-35 are heterodimeric cytokines, members of the IL-12 family and considered to have immunomodulatory properties. Their role during neuroinflammation had been investigated using mutant mice devoid of either one of their subunits or lacking components of their receptors, yielding conflicting results. We sought to understand the therapeutic potential of IL-27 and IL-35 delivered by gene therapy in neuroinflammation. We constructed lentiviral vectors expressing IL-27 and IL-35 from a single polypeptide chain, and we validated in vitro their biological activity. We injected IL-27 and IL-35-expressing lentiviral vectors into the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of mice affected by experimental neuroinflammation (EAE), and performed clinical, neuropathological and immunological analyses. Both cytokines interfere with neuroinflammation, but only IL-27 significantly modulates disease development, both clinically and neuropathologically. IL-27 protects from autoimmune inflammation by inhibiting granulocyte macrophages colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) expression in CD4+ T cells and by inducing program death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression in both CNS-resident and CNS-infiltrating myeloid cells. We demonstrate here that IL-27 holds therapeutic potential during neuroinflammation and that IL-27 inhibits GM-CSF and induces pd-l1 mRNA in vivo