Laboratory work were conducted to investigate the behaviors of an internal solitary wave (ISW) in a two-layer free surface fluid system in a wave flume (12m¡Ñ0.5m¡Ñ0.7m) at the National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. A series of fundamental experiments on wave generation, propagation and interaction with uniform slopes and topographic features were carried out in the flume with stratified two-layer fresh/brine water. Factors governing the experiments included the thickness ratio of the upper and lower layers H1/H2, interface difference

In this study, a month-long simulation of gravity waves over North America and North Atlantic Ocean is performed using the mesoscale model MM5 for January 2003, verified with Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit-A (AMSU-A) radiance observations in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. According to the monthly mean statistics, four regions of strong gravity wave activities are found both in the simulation and the AMSU-A observations: northwestern Atlantic, Appalachian Mountains, Rocky Mountains and Greenland, respectively. Those over the northwestern Atlantic Ocean are strongly associated with the midlatitude baroclinic jet-front systems, while the other three regions are apparently collocated with high topography. Imbalance diagnosis and numerical sensitivity experiments of a strong gravity wave event during January 18-22 show that the gravity waves are strongly linked to the unbalanced flow in the baroclinic jet-front system. The gravity waves are usually radiated from the upper tropospheric jet exit region with maximum nonlinear balance equation residual ( Δ NBE; key indicator of flow imbalance), distinctly different from other surface sources. Flow imbalance related strongly to tropopause folding and frontogenesis of the large-scale background flow. Similar wave characteristics are simulated in experiments with different microphysics and grid resolutions. The Δ NBE is again shown to be a good predictor for jet-front related gravity waves, suggesting its potential application to gravity wave parameterizations for global and climate models.

<p>This thesis investigates in what way trade flows in Europe have been altered and differ for countries belonging to a preferential trade agreement as well as a common currency area. More specifically, how exports among the European countries are affected by memberships with the European Union and the EMU. A total of 72 countries have been chosen which represents the main trading partners between the EU and the rest of the world. Out of these 72 countries, 25 represent EU members which include 12 EMU member countries.</p><p>The econometric analysis employ a gravity model with 18 variables in order to determine their impact on trade flows. This is done through a regression with a log-log equation where the dependent variable is export. The other variables included are chosen to explain export flows among the EU members as well as their trade with EMU countries and the rest of the world. Furthermore, variables representing trade affinities are included to determine whether or not they have a significant effect on trade.</p><p>The regression is divided into four time periods in order to more easily determine how the trade pattern in Europe have altered from the establishment of the EU and the EMU. The first time period represent an early state of EU membership, the second a mature state of EU membership, the third when EU was reformed and the fourth an early state of EMU membership.</p><p>The regression results illustrate that the majority of the selected variables are significant but most importantly that the trade affinity variables are proven to have an impact on trade flows. The results also show that trade has increased and that in the case of EU membership it is more profitable to join than to remain outside. Moreover, the result show in par-ticular that countries that belong to the EMU have a stronger orientation of their exports to the rest of the world then other EU countries. For the latter, the European market is of prime importance.</p>

<p>Since the end of World War II, foreign direct investment (FDI) has been leading the international financial capital flows and has tripled in 2000s over the decade earlier. With its positive effect on economic growth of host countries via spill-overs, it became a race among countries to attract multinational enterprises (MNEs) to invest in their countries. The introduction of European common currency theoretically helps reduce the transaction costs across borders with the reduction of exchange-rate uncertainties and associated costs of hedging, facilitation of international cost comparison. Moreover, mergers and acquisitions activities (M&As) account for 60-80% of FDI flows, and most MNEs engage in both export and setting up affiliates abroad, suggesting complementarity between trade and FDI. Thus reducing cross-border distance costs would encourage MNEs to increase its M&A activities abroad, resulting in more inward FDI flows in the eurozone, especially among member states. The gravity equation is used in this paper to estimate the euro effect from the dataset of inward FDI flows of 24 countries during 1993-2007 and the result confirms that common currency stimulates more intra-eurozone inward FDI flows by approximately 58%.</p>

<p>In October 2000 the Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America (IIRSA) was launched. The purpose of the IIRSA is to improve integration of the South American countries and intraregional trade between them. One of the ultimate goals is to promote sustainable growth. The purpose of this paper is to find out if a better quantity and quality of transport infrastructure increases intraregional trade in South America. It is found that the quantity of transport infrastructure increases intraregional trade. On the other hand, there is no evidence for the quality of transport infrastructure increasing intraregional trade in South America. Furthermore, this paper investigates whether economic growth can be obtained through more trade. In other words, this paper examines if trade causes growth. The results do not confirm the trade-growth causality for all countries. The difference between the existence of a trade-growth causal relationship or not could be explained by the core commodities that the different South American countries export.</p>

<p>This thesis is an assessment of the dynamics of trade affinities and how they have influenced trade flows in the European continent. The focus is how trade affinities have altered over a time span of four time periods stretching from the 1970s up to today and how these alterations have influenced globalization.</p><p>A total of 41 countries belonging to the European continent have been selected. Furthermore four variables were selected to represent trade affinities; distance, border, colony, and language. These have been selected as they are generally believed to be static and thus should not change over time. Also, this thesis aims to show the separate influence of each trade affinity as other papers usually estimate trade affinities as one collective variable.</p><p>By the use of a gravity model 9 variables are tested in order to determine their influence on trade flows. This is done through a regression with a log-log equation where the dependent variable is Export and the affinity variables are estimated as dummy variables.</p><p>The regression is divided into four time periods in order to more easily determine how the trade affinity variables have altered in influence on trade flows in Europe. The first time period represent an average of the time period 1974-1976, the second 1984-1986, the third 1994-1996 and the fourth 2004-2006.</p><p>The regression results illustrate that the majority of the selected variables are significant but most importantly that the trade affinity variables are proven to have altered over the time periods. The performance of a Wald estimation gives an indication that trade affinities are in fact dynamic although the results are not entirely significant for all variables.</p><p>Based on the results, it is apparent that trade affinities still have a significant effect on trade flows in the European continent. Although, their effects have altered to become less significant in some cases while others have become stronger they all jointly share the attributes of affecting trade. These alterations can in turn be interpreted as dependent on the globalization process of the European continent. As globalization has progressed some affinities have decreased in influence while others have regained new importance.</p>

<p>This bachelor thesis aims to estimate Sweden’s export potential towards South-Korea since initial data indicates that Sweden has from 1997 up until 2005 been exporting less to South-Korea when compared to, in general, OECD. Furthermore, South-Korea seems to be a low prioritized market for Swedish firms in the East-Asian region. As many before us, we have used a basic gravity model, including GDP and distance in kilometer has been used as explanatory variables for the observed trade value. The dummy variable land-locked, to estimate trade potential for 15 commodity groups. Sweden was set to be the exporting country, South-Korea the importing country together with all the other OECD members, which were used as points of reference.</p><p>The outcome of the gravity regression shows that distance and the dummy variable landlocked (if a country does not have access to open water) have a very strong relationship to the observed export data. However, GDP was proven to have a very weak relationship to the observed export data thus making the estimation process of trade potential for all, except one, commodity group biased.</p><p>The gravity model has been widely criticized for inflating export potential due to misspecification a problem that we experienced when running our regression. Thus, from this study no strong conclusions can be drawn concerning the trade potential from Sweden to South-Korea.</p>

Thesis (M. Sc.)--College of William and Mary. / Typescript (photocopy). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 96-100).

Relative permeabilities for three-phase flow are commonly predicted from two-phase flow measurements using empirical models. These models are usually tested against available steady state data. However, the oil flow is unsteady state during various production stages such as gas injection after water flood. Accurate measurement of oil permeability([subscript ro]) during unsteady tertiary gas flood is necessary to study macroscopic oil displacement rate under micro scale events including double drainage, coalescence and reconnection, bulk flow and film drainage. We measure the three-phase oil relative permeability by conducting unsteady-state drainage experiments in a 0.8m water-wet sandpack. We find that when starting from capillary-trapped oil, k[subscript ro] starts high and decreases with a small change in oil saturation, and shows a strong dependence on both the flow of water and the water saturation, contrary to most models. The observed flow coupling between water and oil is stronger in three-phase flow than two-phase flow, and cannot be observed in steady-state measurements. The results suggest that the oil is transported through moving gas/oil/water interfaces (form drag) or momentum transport across stationary interfaces (friction drag). We present a simple model of friction drag which compares favorably to the experimental data. We also solve the creeping flow approximation of the Navier-Stokes equation for stable wetting and intermediate layers in the corner of angular capillaries by using a continuity boundary condition at the layer interface. We find significant coupling between the condensed phases and calculate the generalized mobilities by solving co-current and counter-current flow of wetting and intermediate layers. Finally, we present a simple heuristic model for the generalized mobilities as a function of the geometry and viscosity ratio. To identify the key parameter controlling the measured excess oil flow during tertiary gasflood, we also conduct simultaneous water-gas flood tests where we control water relative permeability and let water saturation develop naturally. The measured data and pore scale calculations indicate that viscous coupling can not explain completely the observed flow coupling between oil and water. We conclude that the rate of water saturation decrease, which controls the pore scale mechanisms including double drainage, reconnection, and film drainage significantly influences the rate of oil drainage during tertiary gas flood. Finally, we present a simple heuristic model for oil relative permeability during tertiary gas flood, and also explain how Stone I and saturation-weighted interpolation should be used to predict the permeability of mobilized oil during transient tertiary gasflood. / text

This thesis describes the results of new analysis of gravity studies over West Antarctica. Set on the Siple Coast, an airborne geophysical survey was flown between 1994 and 1997 that covered the trunk of Bindschadler Ice Stream and the up-stream areas, including Whitmore Accommodation Zone and Byrd Subglacial Basin. The new gravity reduction methodology removed vertical and horizontal accelerations, the Eötvös effect, and the theoretical gravity; unlike previous analyses, this reduction did not level individual lines, preserving the high frequency data and avoiding introduction of new errors. This reduction provided the free-air gravity disturbance over the area, which was then leveled and registered by the more regional extensive GOCE satellite gravity. The processing and reduction of the data improved the high frequency signal over previous work on the data, giving better definition of small scale, short wavelength features, which works well with satellite gravity data that emphasizes the large scale, long wavelength features. The leveled free-air gravity was then processed with a FORTRAN 90 program that calculates the Bouguer disturbance based on the free-air gravity and the topography. The topography was gathered concurrently with the gravity with ice penetrating radar during the airborne survey. The Bouguer disturbances provide a crustal model of the area. The final Bouguer disturbance was also corrected for the ice above sea level, which was calculated with a simple Bouguer slab correction. Finally, a power spectrum analysis was run on a profile in the Bouguer gravity disturbance in order to complete a spectral analysis. The spectral analysis provides crustal density boundaries for a density anomaly near the surface, a mid-crustal anomaly, and the Moho boundary. The improved the high frequency content of the data allows spectral analysis down to 4 km. The differing crustal thickness from spectral analysis also shows the character and extent of the West Antarctic Rift System, the northern flank of which extends out from Marie Byrd Land and into the survey area. Bindschadler Ice Stream is located on the WARS rift floor and MacAyeal Ice Stream sits on the rift flank. / text