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The recent reforms of the euro zone are best explained in three steps: (a) member states' preferences were determined by national governments on the basis of their economic interests, which are interpreted through a distinct set of ideas, (b) the diverging preferences among member states translated into a straightforward intergovernmental bargaining setting, and (c) the European Commission maintained a leading role throughout the process of negotiating policy outcomes. On the interstate bargaining level, all major reform proposals were negotiated between two opposing groups of member states: one advocating for fiscal discipline and the other asking for more burden sharing and transfers. In this intergovernmental bargaining setting, the Commission was influential in policy negotiations and in turning the political compromises into reform outcomes. Taken together, the politics of euro zone reform were shaped by the conflict among two opposing coalitions of member states and the influential role of the Commission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we investigated two cases of regions that used expansionary fiscal policies in recent years to increase short-term economic activity: The European Monetary Union and Brazil. Using impulse response functions, we estimated the effects of fiscal stimuli in a New-Keynesian framework provided by the Markov-switching dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (MSDSGE) model. We produced a set of regime-dependent results that suggest that 1) economic policies should be analyzed from a coordination perspective and 2) the selected cases need to make better use of fiscal instruments and to make more accommodative public debt decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In light of the renewed popularity of Hegemonic Stability Theory (HST) in the context of governance debates in the aftermath of the 2007–2008 crisis, this paper revisits, from a conceptual angle, the shaky basis upon which the theory draws a causal link between hegemony and stability. The paper is a critique of HST as a theory of hegemony that contains an underdeveloped concept of hegemony only defined ex post, highlighting that it is precisely this hollow conceptualization that has allowed for the perceived compatibility between US power and stability at a point in time (the Bretton Woods years) to be erroneously generalized into a causal relationship. The paper also shows, via the example of Germany in the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), how inattention to the conceptual content of HST has permitted the heedless extension of a problematic understanding of hegemony through stability to cases of regional hegemony. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What exactly do we need in order to enjoy the cognitive benefit that is supposed to be provided by an explanation? Some philosophers (most notably Khalifa in Philos Sci 79(1):15–37, 2012, Episteme 10(1):1–17, 2013, Eur J Philos Sci 5(3):377–385, 2015, Understanding, explanation, and scientific knowledge, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2017) would say that all that we need is to know the explanation. Others (e.g. Newman in Int Stud Philos Sci 26(1):1–26, 2012; Strevens in Stud Hist Philos Sci Part A 44(3):510–515, 2013) would say that achieving understanding with the help of an explanation requires more than that, that it requires a grasping or an understanding of the explanation. My aim in this paper is to come up with a new answer to this problem by exploring the shortcomings of the received view of understanding. In my view, besides having (at least) testimonial knowledge of an explanation, obtaining explanatory understanding requires full cognitive access to the explanation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Clinicians relay on patients' histories, which are subjective and can be inaccurate. • In EMU, we compared patients' subjective spell duration to the objective duration. • In 100 spells, 73% of patients over-estimated the duration of their spells. • There were no differences by age, sex, seizure location or type (epileptic vs none) • One exception is that patients with generalized seizures had accurate estimation. • This study emphasizes the importance of not relying on patient-reported estimations. • For diagnosis, we recommend to patients to actually time or videotape their spells. Clinicians rely heavily on patient histories to make medical diagnoses, most of which are inherently subjective and prone to inaccuracies. The aim of this study is to compare the subjective versus objective duration of spells through a retrospective chart review of patients admitted to the epilepsy monitoring unit at our tertiary care medical center. One hundred patients were analyzed. Differences in the accuracy of subjective estimations versus objective duration were compared by age, sex, focal versus generalized, location (frontal versus non-frontal), and spell type (focal aware versus impaired awareness and epileptic versus non-epileptic). Our data show that patients are poor subjective estimators, with 73% of patients overestimating the duration of their spells. We did not find differences in estimated duration by age, sex, seizure location or spell type. A notable exception was patients with generalized convulsive seizures, who accurately reported spell duration to within 17 s. This is likely because these seizures are stereotypical, and patients/family time them. Moreover, patients with non-epileptic spells were worse estimators of their spell duration than those with epileptic spells. In addition, although the prefrontal lobe plays a role in time estimation, we did not find that patients with frontal lobe seizures were worse estimators than those with non-frontal seizures, but invasive monitoring can more precisely localize seizures within areas of the frontal lobe responsible for time estimation. Our data emphasize the importance of not relying solely on patient-reported time estimation in diagnosing and developing treatment plans and instead instructing patients to time their spells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rolling Stock (1002-7602) is the property of Rolling Stock Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Rolling Stock (1002-7602) is the property of Rolling Stock Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) is considered a versatile farm species whose main by-products are meat and oil. At present, there is lack of information on the value of the meat of laying females at the end of their reproductive cycle which hampers the development of a specific market. To fill this gap, the present research aimed at studying the mineral composition, fatty acid profile, cholesterol level, selected physicochemical parameters and sensory quality of the meat of laying females at the end of their reproductive life cycles was carried out. The study should extend the knowledge on the application of this type of meat in food products as well as the available nutritional information on the muscles of female emus slaughtered at the end of their reproductive lives. The research material consisted of eight females slaughtered at the age of 15 years, at the end of their reproductive period. Following exsanguination, plucking and evisceration, the carcasses were cooled at 4°C for 24 h. After this time, five muscles were separated from both halfs of the carcases. The results showed that meat from 15-year-old females is of satisfactory nutritional quality. The rich mineral composition, high protein content, and low intramuscular fat and cholesterol contents deserve special emphasis. For this reason, the meat can be recommended for formulating healthy diets for humans. Its trading development is therefore expectable.

European integration is associated with the idea of an 'ever closer Union', achieved in part through 'integration-through-crisis'. However, while crises have led to higher regulatory pressure, responses to these crises have not always taken the form of stronger commitments and legally binding rules. Based on the study of three policy areas recently affected by crises, this article aims at analysing why in one of these policies (migration) more soft rules have been adopted, while the two other policies have evolved towards a greater use of hard law (budget monitoring, cybersecurity). Three potential explanations are analysed: the intensity of crises impacting political systems; the quality of prior norms and their (perceived) implementation; the entrepreneurship and heterogeneity of the coalition. Although all of these factors have explanatory powers, the capacity of policy entrepreneurs to build a large coalition appears to be the central explanation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extant diversity of the avian clade Palaeognathae is composed of the iconic flightless ratites (ostriches, rheas, kiwi, emus, and cassowaries), and the volant tinamous of Central and South America. Palaeognaths were once considered a classic illustration of diversification driven by Gondwanan vicariance, but this paradigm has been rejected in light of molecular phylogenetic and divergence time results from the last two decades that indicate that palaeognaths underwent multiple relatively recent transitions to flightlessness and large body size, reinvigorating research into their evolutionary origins and historical biogeography. This revised perspective on palaeognath macroevolution has highlighted lingering gaps in our understanding of how, when, and where extant palaeognath diversity arose. Towards resolving those questions, we aim to comprehensively review the known fossil record of palaeognath skeletal remains, and to summarize the current state of knowledge of their evolutionary history. Total clade palaeognaths appear to be one of a small handful of crown bird lineages that crossed the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary, but gaps in their Paleogene fossil record and a lack of Cretaceous fossils preclude a detailed understanding of their multiple transitions to flightlessness and large body size, and recognizable members of extant subclades generally do not appear until the Neogene. Despite these knowledge gaps, we combine what is known from the fossil record of palaeognaths with plausible divergence time estimates, suggesting a relatively rapid pace of diversification and phenotypic evolution in the early Cenozoic. In line with some recent authors, we surmise that the most recent common ancestor of palaeognaths was likely a relatively small-bodied, ground-feeding bird, features that may have facilitated total-clade palaeognath survivorship through the K-Pg mass extinction, and which may bear on the ecological habits of the ancestral crown bird.

(from the introduction...)Finance and financial markets were at the heart of the global economic crisisthat began in August 2007. Despite having subsided elsewhere by 2010, the global crisisleft an ongoing legacy of turbulence in the euro zone. My argument in this essay is thatthe euro zone’s continuing turmoil, like that of the world economy in 2007‐09, is rootedin financial vulnerabilities that were not well envisioned in the defenses set up by EMU’sarchitects. If the euro is to survive, EMU’s institutions must evolve to overcome thesevulnerabilities. The necessary changes will have profound effects on the future shape of EMU, effects significant enough to require changes in EU political arrangementsalongside more technical financial reforms.

Background: Guidelines on epilepsy monitoring unit (EMU) standards have been recently published. We aimed to survey Canadian EMUs to describe the landscape of safety practices and compare these to the recommendations from the new guidelines., Methods: A 34-item survey was created by compiling questions on EMU structure, patient monitoring, equipment, personnel, standardized protocol use, and use of injury prevention tools. The questionnaire was distributed online to 24 Canadian hospital centers performing video-EEG monitoring (VEM) in EMUs. Responses were tabulated and descriptively summarized., Results: In total, 26 EMUs responded (100% response rate), 50% of which were adult EMUs. EMUs were on average active for 23.4 years and had on average 3.6 beds. About 81% of respondents reported having a dedicated area for VEM, and 65% reported having designated EMU beds. Although a video monitoring station was available in 96% of EMUs, only 48% of EMUs provided continuous observation of patients (video and/or physical). A total of 65% of EMUs employed continuous heart monitoring. The technologist-to-patient ratio was 1:1-2 in 52% of EMUs during the day. No technologist supervision was most often reported in the evening and at night. Nurse-to-EMU-patient ratio was mostly 1:1-4 independent of the time of day. Consent forms were required before admission in 27% of EMUs., Conclusion: Canadian EMUs performed decently in terms of there being dedicated space for VEM, continuous heart monitoring, and adequate nurse-to-patient ratios. Other practices were quite variable, and adjustments should be made on a case-by-case basis to adhere to the latest guidelines.

In the almost 27 years since the signing of the Treaty of Maastricht (ToM), the EMU has transformed into a complex institution, the complexity and powers of which have exceeded even the most promising predictions. Over the years, EU actors have developed a substantial dependent relationship, where asymmetric power plays a crucial role; in fact, asymmetry and asymmetric power have become the unifying glue for economic integration. The main purpose of this study is to analyze and evaluate the importance of asymmetric power in order to understand dynamics and change in the EMU and to determine through which mechanism the economic integration process has been asymmetrically promoted. As we will argue, within the EMU, there seems to exist a specific feedback loop mechanism, through which the dominance of powerful MS is reproduced in the way policy is proposed within contemporary EMU politics. The reproduction of asymmetric power within the EMU plays a key role in shaping the system of governance and in decision-making, and through economic integration, appropriate dynamics have been created to diffuse and reproduce asymmetric power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article traces the complex path that Martin Feldstein followed, for more than twenty years, in his principled critique of the European common currency project. Involved in the debate on the euro from its early stages to the tumultuous times of the sovereign debt crisis and the resulting recession, author of numerous articles in the academic and popular press, drawing his arguments from economics and political economy, he contributed to the development of an American vision on monetary unification in the EU. Studying this extended body of literature proves to be an interesting way to explore the sinuous discussion on the euro from the theoretical, applied and public-debate perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Video‐electroencephalographic (EEG) monitoring is an essential tool in epileptology, conventionally carried out in a hospital epilepsy monitoring unit. Due to high costs and long waiting times for hospital admission, coupled with technological advances, several centers have developed and implemented video‐EEG monitoring in the patient's home (home video‐EEG telemetry [HVET]). Here, we review the history and current status of three general approaches to HVET: (1) supervised HVET, which entails setting up video‐EEG in the patient's home with daily visiting technologist support; (2) mobile HVET (also termed ambulatory video‐EEG), which entails attaching electrodes in a health care facility, supplying the patient and carers with the hardware and instructions, and then asking the patient and carer to set up recording at home without technologist support; and (3) cloud‐based HVET, which adds to either of the previous models continuous streaming of video‐EEG from the home to the health care provider, with the option to review data in near real time, troubleshoot hardware remotely, and interact remotely with the patient. Our experience shows that HVET can be highly cost‐effective and is well received by patients. We note limitations related to long‐term electrode attachment and correct camera placing while the patient is unsupervised at home, and concerns related to regulations regarding data privacy for cloud services. We believe that HVET opens significant new opportunities for research, especially in the field of understanding the many influences in seizure occurrence. We speculate that in the future HVET may merge into innovative new multisensor approaches to continuously monitoring people with epilepsy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current study, we examined adult neurogenesis throughout the brain of the common ostrich (Struthio camelus) and emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) using immunohistochemistry for the endogenous markers PCNA which labels proliferating cells, and DCX, which stains immature and migrating neurons. The distribution of PCNA and DCX labelled cells was widespread throughout the brain of both species. The highest density of cells immunoreactive to both markers was observed in the olfactory bulbs and the telencephalon, especially the subventricular zone of the lateral ventricle. Proliferative hot spots, identified with strong PCNA and DCX immunolabelling, were identified in the dorsal and ventral poles of the rostral aspects of the lateral ventricles. The density of PCNA immunoreactive cells was less in the telencephalon of the emu compared to the common ostrich. Substantial numbers of PCNA immunoreactive cells were observed in the diencephalon and brainstem, but DCX immunoreactivity was weaker in these regions, preferentially staining axons and dendrites over cell bodies, except in the medial regions of the hypothalamus where distinct DCX immunoreactive cells and fibres were observed. PCNA and DCX immunoreactive cells were readily observed in moderate density in the cortical layers of the cerebellum of both species. The distribution of putative proliferating cells and immature neurons in the brain of the common ostrich and the emu is widespread, far more so than in mammals, and compares with the neognathous birds, and suggests that brain plasticity and neuronal turnover is an important aspect of cognitive brain functions in these birds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The changing environment that the Euro has brought to its member countries could have fuelled the deteriorating effect that net capital inflows potentially have on their cost competitiveness. This paper uses a difference-in-differences (DID) approach to assess the effect of the Euro on the relationship between capital inflows, as measured by current account imbalances, and unit labour costs over the period 1993-2007. The sample used consists of annual data for 24 developed economies, comprising both the first EA12 countries as well as non-EA countries, with the latter used as the comparison group in the analysis. We find that the Euro seems to have amplified the deteriorating effect of capital inflows on costs. This finding suggests that the Eurozone should monitor cumulative current account imbalances, the associated inflows of capital, and the potential vulnerability of each country to the detrimental effects that capital inflows may have on their economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We document how, over 1996–2008, large capital inflows in Southern Europe coincided with broad-based growth of the nontradable sector, extending beyond the construction and real estate sectors. We then present a tractable two-sector, two-region ('North' and 'South') model of a monetary union, in which we show how the sharp, permanent, fall in Southern real interest rates that occurred in the run-up to EMU can explain the Southern consumption boom, wage growth, growth of the nontradable sector, and deteriorating external position. Upward pressure on the EMU-wide interest rate induces an opposite process in North. Consequently, both real exchange rates and external positions of the two regions diverge. Including a third country with a flexible exchange rate vis-à-vis the euro amplifies the effects of monetary integration in South, while dampening them in North. We confirm the key model predictions using a panel-BVAR for the euro area and investigates various policy reforms to facilitate the ongoing rebalancing process in the eurozone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the continental scale, ecological research effort is not spatially uniform. We used a century-long bibliometric database of the journal Emu – Austral Ornithology to index the spatial patterns in bird research in Australia (from articles with explicit study locations). Studies have been concentrated in Tasmania and the southwest, southeast and coastal parts of the mainland. Large spatial gaps exist in ornithological study, which are similar to those identified by Arnold Robert McGill in his 1948 review paper (McGill 1948). Pre-1948 only 9.4% of articles [n = 2,107] fell within the gaps mapped by McGill in 1948, indicating that his mapping was largely accurate. These gaps have largely persisted; only 11.2% of the 1,498 articles published since 1948 came from within those gaps. We present a complementary spatial gap analysis, which focuses on studies of areas with broadly similar biogeographies (Interim Biogeographical Regions of Australia (IBRAs)). Of 85 mainland IBRAs (of 89 defined), five have no bird studies from within them (368,380 km2; 4.9% of Australia), and 34 have less than 10 studies (3,335,498 km2; 43.9%). We intersect IBRAs with McGill's gaps and show that some IBRAs within McGill's gaps are now better-studied, but 64.8% of the area within the McGill gaps boundaries comprises IBRAs where there have been no post-1948 studies in Emu. We also present an updated map of key geographical gaps in the study of Australian birds, which apparently remain extensive 60 years after they were first identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Finance' has become the most salient part of the European project. For better or worse, it has been the EU's major field of experimentation for institutional innovations, and also the protagonist of its major tensions. Such tensions pervade the Monetary Union, the Banking Union, and the framework for fiscal stability and budgetary coordination, and, in important occasions or respects, have ignited inter-court conflicts, exposed some accountability gaps, and made more difficult than desirable cooperation towards a common policy and mutual understanding, albeit in the diversity, at the inter-governmental level. It need not be like this. All those shortcomings can be overcome without major statutory reform, with a more imaginative use of the tools already in place, and (crucially) a change in the practice of dialogue between institutions and bodies, both from a vertical perspective (notably, courts, but also parliaments and governments) and a horizontal one (between political, administrative and judicial levels of accountability). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the EMU effect on trade for the eleven early joiners and Greece relying for the first time on data that include both international and intra‐national trade flows, in line with all the microfoundations of the structural gravity model of trade. We find that the overall EMU impact on trade is positive between its members and, specially, for trade between members and non‐members. Interestingly, we further show that the effect of the EMU on bilateral trade remarkably differs across countries. For Ireland, Belgium–Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal and Austria, we find robust evidence that EMU has boosted trade both with other members and with third countries, while for Finland, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the results suggest that only trade with third countries has been enhanced by the EMU. Greece is the only country that shows a negative impact in trade with other EMU members and no effect in trade with non‐members. Finally, the results across countries according to the direction of the trade flows (exports versus imports) do not show significant differences in any case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A magyar gazdaságpolitika előtt álló egyik legaktuálisabb kihívás a közös valuta átvétele időpontjának meghatározása. A tanulmány ennek a komplex kérdéskörnek a közgazdasági és politikai gazdaságtani elemzését végzi el, térségi összefüggésben tárgyalva a hazai trendeket. Kiindulópontként leszögezhető, hogy az euró bevezetése várhatóan 0,5–1 százalékpont addicionális többletet generálna a reál GDP hosszú távú növekedési üteméhez a kelet-közép-európai országokban. A közös valutára kitűzött jelenlegi 2010-es hivatalos céldátum technikailag tartható hazánk számára, hiszen 5 évre a közös valuta bevezetésétől nem állt jobban a maastrichti konvergenciakritériumok tekintetében a jelenlegi eurózóna-tagok jelentős része sem. Az írás sorra veszi az euró bevezetése időpontjának halogatása melletti szokásos érveket és ellenérveket annak fényében, hogy a globalizált pénzügyi piacok és a masszív spekulációs tevékenység mellett inkább önveszélyes, mint hatásos fegyver egy kis, nyitott ország számára a pénzügypolitikai autonómia fenntartása. Az euróövezethez történő csatlakozás sikeres levezénylése szempontjából kulcsfontosságúnak ígérkezik az erős politikai elkötelezettség mind az új tagok, mind az uniós intézmények részéről, ami szükséges lehet a népszerűtlennek ígérkező konszolidációs intézkedések meghozatalához. A tanulmány végkövetkeztetése szerint a pénzügyi stabilitás elérése sokkal könnyebb lehet a közös valutát használó országként, ebből következik, hogy az eurót nem célszerű a felzárkózás gátjaként interpretálnunk, hanem lehetőségként a felzárkózás gyorsítására. Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) kód: E42, E58, F33

The core objective of this paper is to determine the main political and economic conditions and challenges related to the possible evolution of the integration process in the euro area toward fiscal federalism and fiscal union as a way to increase the capacity of the area to cope with future economic and financial crises. The issue of a separate budget for this area is of particular interest in this article. The idea of such a budget has recently become the subject of lively public debate in the European Union and has been a factor in encouraging the European Commission to propose new solutions at the end of 2017 in the field of economic governance of the euro area, including the establishment of a European Monetary Fund. The analysis carried out in this article leads to the conclusion that under the current conditions, there is little chance of introducing such regulatory and institutional changes that would significantly increase the scale of financial transfers between the euro area member states.

(Series Information) European Papers - A Journal on Law and Integration, 2018 3(1), 67-73 | Overview | (Table of Contents) I. Introduction. - II. Genuine EMU. - III. Wrong Method. - IV. Right Direction. | (Abstract) The main problem of Economic Monetary Union (EMU) is not a weakness of parliamentary control but the lack of a strong executive. A fiscal union needs a treasury, housed within the Commission. No new parliamentary assembly is required outside the European Parliament. And no new treaty should be agreed outside the EU framework.

This article is devoted to major measures undertaken in order to reform the EU macroeconomic policy as a result of Eurozone crisis. It is a highly crucial issue for academic research due to multiple problems that occurred in the Eurozone states as a result of the 2008 world financial crisis. It is also an interesting issue for research because of the EU’s activities targeted at insuring efficiency of the EU institutions and support of problematic member states. Research objective of this article is examination of the Eurozone crisis influence on the evolution of institutional aspects of the EU macroeconomic policy. The methodological basis of this research is composed of positive economics, comparative analysis, structural and functional analysis, and theoretical aspects of rational choice institutionalism. As a result of the research, it was demonstrated that internal debates within the EU had negative impact of the Eurozone crisis, institutional reforms undertaken to solve the crisis were not finalized, but eventually the European Union managed to find solutions to solve the EMU problems in the context of macroeconomic harmonization. The practical importance of this article is determined by evaluation of the current Eurozone situation and efficiency of institutional reforms.

The aim of this research is to assess what would happen with the business cycle synchronization in the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), if all new EU member states introduced the euro. In addition, the paper aims to explore how business cycle correlations have evolved over time. The assumption is that, if business cycles in the EMU members are not correlated and the state of integration remains as it is, the ECB’s one-size-fits-all policy will require members to follow policies which are politically difficult to implement. Hence, we are analyzing whether the EMU should stop accepting new entrants in order to stop deteriorating mutual business cycle correlation. Results based on correlations of shocks between the EMU and individual countries and their sizes show that correlation of supply shocks would remain relatively high if all members introduced the euro, but low correlation of demand shocks, different sizes of shocks and transmission of shocks still remain as significant problems.

Fluorine-bearing refining slag (FBS) is used to produce axle steel for electric multiple unit vehicles. To avoid environmental pollution caused by fluorine, a fluorine-free ladle furnace slag (FFS) was designed based on an industrial FBS. The effects of main components on the physical and metallurgical properties of slag were investigated via theoretical analysis and laboratory tests. The composition range of components of the designed FFS are w(CaO) = 40–55 wt.%, w(SiO2) = 2–6 wt.%, w(Al2O3) = 30–40 wt.%, w(MgO) = 6–8 wt.%, and w(CaO)/w(Al2O3) = 1.25–1.50. Industrial-scale test results indicate that the FFS has similar deoxidation and desulfurization capabilities to industrial FBS.

This paper discusses a pathway towards achieving fiscal union in the euro area. It outlines three steps and their prerequisites. In the first step, Banking Union would be completed to increase the financial stability of the euro area. It would render the "no bailout" clause more credible and thereby allow to deal better with insolvent governments. In the second step, more centralised funds would be created in order to provide important public goods and in order to deal with large asymmetric shocks. The third step, which is currently unattainable, consists of a true federalisation of important government functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of External Economic Bulletin / Külgazdaság is the property of KOPINT Konjunktura Kutatasi Alapitvany and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

How does the prospect of accession to an international union affect a non-member-state government's incentives to implement political and economic liberalization reforms? To answer this question, we propose an informational mechanism of international union accession conditionality drawing on Bénabou and Tirole's (The Review of Economic Studies, 70, 489–520, 2003) formalization of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. In a Bayesian game of union accession between a supranational principal (e.g., EU Commission) and a national agent (e.g., the government of the target country), we find that the extrinsic bonus of post-accession transfers may on the one hand reinforce the agent's short-term incentives to meet the accession criteria but on the other hand can also "crowd out" its intrinsic motivation to liberalize and comply with the union's acquis in the long run. As a result, we expect that (i) net-recipient countries' post-accession pace of reform may decline or even turn negative over time (temporal effect), (ii) the crowding-out effect will be stronger for countries that enjoy higher levels of distributive net transfers and those that go through a lengthier negotiation period (spatial effect), and (iii) early liberalizers are ex ante more likely to be officially selected as union candidate members, accept the accession contract, and implement the required reforms. We illustrate the theoretical mechanism and dynamics of the model with anecdotal evidence from two paired comparisons in respect to the effects of economic conditionality attached to EMU accession (Greece vs. Spain) and political conditionality attached to EU accession (Hungary vs. Estonia). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) is a new poultry. In this study, we investigated the haplotype composition of mitochondrial DNA among emu populations farmed in Japan. We sequenced the D-loop region in 109 individuals, and detected four substitution sites and three haplotypes (Hap-a, -b, and -c). Hap-a was the most frequently observed haplotype in the Japanese populations. Although Hap-c was a rare haplotype in not only Japanese but also Australian populations, it was detected with high frequency in the Japanese farmed population. The AMOVA indicated that 9% of total variance was "among population". The FST value was 0.087 and genetic differentiation was significant (P<0.01). These results may contribute to conserving the genetic resources available for the Japanese emu industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This contribution looks at asymmetries in terms of French and German influence on EMU's governance reforms during the two decades since the start of EMU in 1999. Drawing on the literature dealing with the sources of power and influence in EU decision-making, this contribution investigates key moments of the evolution and reform of EMU – the establishment and reform of fiscal rules, the creation of fiscal instruments and institutions of risk mutualizing including risk sharing pillars of the Bank Union. It makes a contribution to the literature by providing an account of the asymmetry of German and French influence and power in EMU governance reforms and, most importantly, their variations over time. Furthermore, it contributes to our understanding of the lasting nature of asymmetry in EMU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study describes the persistence of an embryonal structure through to sub‐adulthood in the ostrich and emu. Mandibles from sub‐adult ostrich and emu were subjected to special staining, light microscopy and dissected to reveal and describe Meckel's cartilage. Meckel's cartilage, composed of hyaline cartilage, was present within the neurovascular canal of both species. The persistence through to sub‐adulthood of Meckel's cartilage in the ostrich and emu is a feature not previously reported in any other avian species. The proximal end of Meckel's cartilage was ossified in the region of the articular bone and the distal end was ossified in some specimens. Although this structure may ossify at a much later stage in life, the function in young and sub‐adult birds may be to dampen shockwaves along the intramandibular nerve that result from the action of pecking. In the ostrich, the M. pseudotemporalis superficialis tendon inserted onto the supra‐angular bone and Meckel's cartilage. In the emu, a small portion of the tendon was attached to the supra‐angular bone and the main part to Meckel's cartilage. The persistence of Meckel's cartilage in adult lepidosaurs, crocodilians and ratites represents an unusual shared trait between the extant members of the above groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In clinical practice, the diagnosis of focal vs generalized epilepsy dictates the management of the patient. The distinction between generalized and focal epilepsy is at times imperfect and some epilepsies have features that fall in between these two extremes. An example is the occurrence of focal interictal and focal ictal abnormalities in generalized epilepsies. As a part of the special issue on "The epileptogenic zone in pediatric epilepsy surgery", this focused narrative review will discuss different focal abnormalities seen in generalized epilepsy. An overlap of focal and generalized epileptiform abnormalities may support a continuum between focal and generalized epilepsy. When evaluating patients in the "gray zone", other factors such as ictal semiology, neuroimaging, genetic testing and functional deficits may need to be considered to reach an accurate diagnosis. Being aware of possible occurrence of focal clinical and EEG features in generalized epilepsy will help clinicians select more preferred AED (s), avoiding potential iatrogenic side effects and inappropriate consideration for epilepsy surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We search for drivers of fiscal deficits in Europe using a data panel containing annual data of 27 EU countries in the years 1991–2012. Our special focus is on the influence of fiscal rules as well as on fiscal councils, i. e. institutions that may help to reduce deficits and enforce fiscal rules by advising governments. We distinguish between internal fiscal rules and external rules that result from EMU membership. In addition, we consider the impact of "creative accounting", i. e. measures that help to circumvent fiscal rules, which we approximate by so called stock-flow-adjustments. We especially analyze the interactive influence of the mentioned variables on the budget balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]