Недержавні пенсійні фонди як елемент соціально-інвестиційної інфраструктури ринку

Розкрито теоретичні засади недержавного пенсійного забезпечення. Проаналізовано стан та розвиток недержавних пенсійних фондів як важливої ланки фінансової системи та елементу соціально-інвестиційної інфраструктури фінансового ринку. На основі динаміки основних показників діяльності недержавних пенсійних фондів України упродовж 2014-2016 рр. визначено тенденції у розвитку недержавного пенсійного забезпечення. Розглянуто структуру діючих недержавних пенсійних фондів (відкритих, корпоративних, професійних), їх територіальний розподіл. Проаналізовано динаміку активів та напрями їх інвестування. (Theoretical foundations of the non-state pension provision are revealed. Development of the state and non-state pension funds as an important part of the fi nancial system and an element of the social and investment infrastructure of the fi nancial market are analyzed. Trends in the development of non-state pension provision are identified; they are based on the dynamics of the main indicators of the activity of non-state pension funds of Ukraine during 2014-2016. The structure of existing non-state pension funds (open, corporate, professional), their territorial distribution is considered. The dynamics of assets and directions of their investment are analyzed.

Occupational markers and pathology of the castrato singer Gaspare Pacchierotti (1740\u20131821)

Following the birth of modern opera in Italy in 1600, the demand for soprano voices grew up and the prepuberal castration was carried out to preserve the young male voice into adult life. Among the castrati, Gaspare Pacchierotti was probably one of the most famous. The remains of Pacchierotti were exhumed for the first time in 2013, for a research in the reconstruction of his biological profile, to understand the secrets behind his sublime voice and how the castration influenced the body. All the findings discovered, through anthropological and Computed Tomography analyses, are consistent both with the occupational markers of a singer and with the hormonal effects of castration. The erosion of cervical vertebrae, the insertion of respiratory muscles and muscles of the arms can be an effect of the bodily position and exercise during singing. The hormonal effect of castration were related to osteoporosis and to the disorders of spine

New Interpretation of Galileo\u2019s Arthritis and Blindness

Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) complained of several disorders during his life, the most important of which were chronic arthritic pains and bilateral blindness. These symptoms might result from an immune rheumatic disease, namely reactive arthritis (urethritis, uveitis, arthritis), when Galileo started suffering with an episode of fever in June 1593. Padua University owns the fifth lumbar vertebra of the great scientist and we performed a series of anthropological and radiographic analyses on it. The anthropological measurements showed that the shape of the vertebra was normal as to exclude significant diseases. The study through radiography and Computed Tomography showed only a mild arthrosis documented by small osteophytosis. Eventually the disease evolved into blindness with a pannus restricting the pupils (uveitis). These findings support the occurrence of reactive arthritis. Alternatively to urethral infection, Galileo could have suffered from Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in 1593, which was complicated by reactive arthritis a couple of weeks later. Thereafter he complained several episodes of recurrent arthritis, which eventually culminated into uveitis and bilateral blindness

Locally optimal unstructured finite element meshes in 3 dimensions

This paper investigates the adaptive finite element solution of a general class of variational problems in three dimensions using a combination of node movement, edge swapping, face swapping and node insertion. The adaptive strategy proposed is a generalization of previous work in two dimensions and is based upon the construction of a hierarchy of locally optimal meshes. Results presented, both for a single equation and a system of coupled equations, suggest that this approach is able to produce better meshes of tetrahedra than those obtained by more conventional adaptive strategies and in a relatively efficient manner

Factors and mechanisms affecting University-Industry interactions: evidence from Southern Italy

This paper aims to identify and analyze factors, motivations and mechanisms affecting collaborative forms of university-industry interactions in the context of the metropolitan area of Naples (Southern Italy). This work presents the results of a study designed and implemented through a partnership between University of Naples Federico II (UNF) and the Industrial Association of Naples (UIN). We used data retrieved from 88 firms that had interacted at least once with at least one Department of the University of Naples Federico II in the last 3 years. Firms belonged to different sectors and to different size categories, thus results will cover interactions activities based on those two elements. Results obtained during the field research were used to understand mechanisms and motives adopted by firms to collaborate with universities

Recombinant protein expression system in cold loving microorganisms

Soluble and functional proteins are of high demand in modern biotechnology. Although many recombinant proteins have been successfully obtained from common prokaryotic and eukaryotic hosts, these systems result to be often unproductive due to the peculiar properties of the protein to be produced. Incorrect folding of the nascent polypeptide chains is one of the main problems occurring during heterologous protein production in bacteria. Since formation of inclusion bodies often impairs the recombinant production of valuable proteins, many experimental approaches have been explored to minimize this undesirable effect [1, 2]. Expression of "difficult" proteins has also been carried out by lowering the temperature at the physiological limit allowed for the growth of mesophilic host organisms (between 15 and 18°C for Escherichia coli). Lowering the temperature, in fact, has a pleiotropic effect on the folding process, destabilising the hydrophobic interactions needed for intermediates aggregation [3]. On the basis of the above considerations, a rational alternative to mesophilic organisms is the use of naturally cold-adapted bacteria as hosts for protein production at low temperature (even at around 0°C)

Optimal Point Placement for Mesh Smoothing

We study the problem of moving a vertex in an unstructured mesh of triangular, quadrilateral, or tetrahedral elements to optimize the shapes of adjacent elements. We show that many such problems can be solved in linear time using generalized linear programming. We also give efficient algorithms for some mesh smoothing problems that do not fit into the generalized linear programming paradigm.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures. A preliminary version of this paper was presented at the 8th ACM/SIAM Symp. on Discrete Algorithms (SODA '97). This is the final version, and will appear in a special issue of J. Algorithms for papers from SODA '9

Networks mobilized to access key resources at early stages of biotech firms: a comparative analysis in two moderately innovative countries

This paper investigates the networking behaviour of biotechnology start-ups in peripheral locations. The aim is to understand whether the conditions found in this type of environment introduce some specificities in the networking process, namely in network building and early mobilization to access key resources. The paper compares biotechnology start-ups in Portugal and in Southern Italy, focusing on relationships with research organizations and on the relevance assumed by international connections, and investigating the role played by entrepreneurs’ personal networks. The research identified some common features that diverge from the typical biotechnology start-up behaviour and can be regarded as firms’ adaptive responses to the conditions faced. Notwithstanding the frequent presence of close connections with local research organizations—that often play functions that go much beyond that of a knowledge source—the local environment is a lesser determinant for a substantial proportion of firms than would be expected in start-ups. A distinctive feature of these firms is an extensive reliance on foreign sources, for different purposes and from the very early stages. Entrepreneurs’ personal networks are found to be instrumental, both to identify and obtain knowledge in the vicinity and to support the establishment of more complex distant relationships

From Uyghurs to Kashgaris (and back?)

China and Pakistan share a common border, formally established in 1963, and a close friendship which, to a certain extent, is a direct consequence of that agreement. Somewhat surprisingly the two countries managed to maintain - and even improve - their friendly ties in spite of several events which might have undermined the basis of their friendship. Particularly, since September 11, 2001, China has condemned various incidents in its Muslim province of Xinjiang as connected to the global jihad, often holding Pakistan-based Uyghur militants responsible and accusing Islamabad of not doing enough to prevent violence from spreading into Chinese territory. Within a scenario of growing insecurity for the whole region, in this paper I show how China’s influence in Pakistan goes well beyond the mere government-to-government level. Particularly, I address the hitherto unstudied case of the Uyghur community of Pakistan, the Kashgaris, a group of migrants who left Xinjiang over the course of the last century. This paper, based on four months of fieldwork in Pakistan, aims principally at offering an overview of the history and current situation of the Uyghur community of Pakistan. It thus first examines the migration of the Uyghur families to Pakistan according to several interviews with elder members of the community. Secondly, it addresses some recent developments within the community, and focuses particularly on the influence China is exercising over it since the creation of the Overseas Chinese Association in 2003. Eventually, it suggests that since the opening of the Karakoram Highway in 1982 a variety of factors - among which figures primarily this recent Chinese interest - have caused an important political divide within the community, and brought to a re-definition of the Kashgaris’ identity vis-à-vis both Xinjiang and Pakistan