Far distant, far distant: Orwell, my father & Catalonia

Reflections on the current situation in Catalonia with reference to George Orwell's Homage to Catalonia and James Maley's experiences with the International Brigades in 1937, dramatized in the play, From the Calton to Catalonia, by John & Willy Maley

Carles Puigdemont gambled and failed. The consequences will live on

This is an accepted manuscript of an article published in The Guardian on 06/11/2017, available online: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/nov/06/catalonia-carles-puigdemont-belgium The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version.By heading to Belgium, the president of Catalonia missed his chance to stand up to Madrid – and to show himself as a leader sticking to his principle

Hospitalizations due to rotavirus gastroenteritis in Catalonia, Spain, 2003-2008

BACKGROUND: Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis among young children in Spain and worldwide. We evaluated hospitalizations due to community and hospital-acquired rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) and estimated related costs in children under 5 years old in Catalonia, Spain. RESULTS: We analyzed hospital discharge data from the Catalan Health Services regarding hospital admissions coded as infectious gastroenteritis in children under 5 for the period 2003-2008. In order to estimate admission incidence, we used population estimates for each study year published by the Statistic Institut of Catalonia (Idescat). The costs associated with hospital admissions due to rotavirus diarrhea were estimated for the same years. A decision tree model was used to estimate the threshold cost of rotavirus vaccine to achieve cost savings from the healthcare system perspective in Catalonia. From 2003 through 2008, 10655 children under 5 years old were admitted with infectious gastroenteritis (IGE). Twenty-two percent of these admissions were coded as RVGE, yielding an estimated average annual incidence of 104 RVGE hospitalizations per 100000 children in Catalonia. Eighty seven percent of admissions for RVGE occurred during December through March. The mean hospital stay was 3.7 days, 0.6 days longer than for other IGE. An additional 892 cases of presumed nosocomial RVGE were detected, yielding an incidence of 2.5 cases per 1000 child admissions. Total rotavirus hospitalization costs due to community acquired RVGE for the years 2003 and 2008 were 431,593 and 809,224 €, respectively. According to the estimated incidence and hospitalization costs, immunization would result in health system cost savings if the cost of the vaccine was 1.93 € or less. At a vaccine cost of 187 € the incremental cost per hospitalization prevented is 195,388 € (CI 95% 159,300; 238,400). CONCLUSIONS: The burden of hospitalizations attributable to rotavirus appeared to be lower in Catalonia than in other regions of Spain and Europe. The relatively low incidence of hospitalization due to rotavirus makes rotavirus vaccination less cost-effective in Catalonia than in other areas with higher rotavirus disease burden

Endesa Pavilion

Material of interest and material used: Timber, solar panels Properties of material: Wood was chosen as the primary material for the project due its organic qualities as an exhaustible natural resource as well as its easy workability. Ultimately, the pavilion is shielded from solar radiation in the summer months and then consumes solar radiation throughout the winter. Indirect sunlight produces a subtle ambiance in the interior. Designed to be fabricated using CNC machines, mathematical equations determined the precise orientation of the panels for the most beneficial solar penetration.https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/bcs/1027/thumbnail.jp

Kemunculan Gerakan All-Okinawa Terkait Proyek Relokasi Pangkalan Militer Amerika Serikat Mcas Futenma Di Henoko (Tahun 1995-2014)

Gerakan Sosial muncul dalam sebuah negara disebabkan oleh adanya diskriminasi atau perlakuan tidak adil terhadap kelompok, kaum, etnis minoritas tertentu. Gerakan Sosial menjadi sorotan internasional ketika permasalah yang terjadi melibatkan campur tangan asing. Okinawa, salah satu wilayah di Jepang yang memiliki kepasitas pangkalan militer Amerika Serikat yang sangat besar sejak akhir Perang Dunia II hingga saat ini. Namun, selain menjadi pusat keberadaan pangkalan militer Amerika Serikat, Okinawa juga disebut sebagai “The Galapagos of the East” dikarenakan keindahan dan warisan alam melimpah dengan keanekaragaman flora dan fauna langka. Adanya proyek pemindahan MCAS Futenma ke Henoko sebagai solusi dari kasus kriminalitas tahun 1995 sebagai dampak keberadaan pangkalan militer Amerika Serikat di Okinawa, telah membangkitkan amarah penduduk Okinawa untuk bersama menolak proyek pembangunan pangkalan militer AS pengganti di Henoko yang merupakan rumah bagi dugong dan ribuan biota laut yang dilindungi. Hal inilah yang kemudian memunculkan semangat “All-Okinawa” untuk bergabung demi kesejahteraan penduduk Okinawa yang telah lama diabaikan oleh Pemerintah Jepang. Permasalah Okinawa terkait proyek relokasi Henoko bukan hanya sekedar permasalah Domestik, namun juga permasalah internasional

Macroeconomic Effects of Catalan Fiscal Deficit with the Spanish State (2002-2010) (?)

Catalonia yearly contributes to the Spanish State solidarity interterritorial redistribution funds: in 2001 a 8’9% of Catalan GDP, considering the difference between what the Spanish State collect in taxes and what it expends and invests in Catalonia. Because of these yearly fiscal deficit with Spain, Catalonia is loosing its capacity to grow faster and the opportunity to converge more quickly with the EU core regions. In this paper, using a VAR model it is simulated which could be the Catalan GDP growth in the period 2002-2010, if there were a reduction of the yearly Catalan contribution to the Spanish State: the results obtained show that Catalan GDP would easily reach at 2010 the GDP per capita level of the most developed EU regions.

Descriptive and spatial epidemiology of bovine cysticercosis in North-Eastern Spain (Catalonia).

From March 2005 to December 2007, 284 animals from 67 cattle farms (24 dairy and 43 beef) affected by bovine cysticercosis were detected in the region of Catalonia (North-Eastern Spain). Dairy farms were almost twice more likely to be affected than beef farms (OR=1.79, 95% CI=1.08-2.96, p<0.05), and infected premises have a statistically significant (p<0.05) larger number of animals when compared to uninfected farms in Catalonia. The geographical distribution of the infected farms was evaluated and two statistically significant clusters were identified. The most likely cluster was located in the western part of the study region, with 8 out of 10 farms infected. Epidemiological investigations revealed that the 8 farms belonged to the same company. The secondary cluster was located in Eastern Catalonia with 12 infected farms out of 167 cattle farms. No epidemiological links were found among the 12 infected premises. A questionnaire, based on the EFSA risk assessment, was used to assess the most likely route of introduction into each affected farm. Water supply for animals was the route with the highest score in 41.8% of the cases

Balancing language planning and language rights: Catalonia's uneasy juggling act

In the 1980s, language planning in Catalonia was carried out against a background of general consensus that major language recovery measures were needed in order to improve the linguistic and sociolinguistic situation of Catalan. Demographic and social conditions favoured language reforms aimed at making Catalan the official language of the autonomous region of Catalonia, promoting its use in public and in the education system. Non-Catalans, too, supported these language policies as the use of Castilian (Spanish) was not restricted. This paper discusses the language planning measures resulting from the 1998 Law of Catalan. Catalonia seems to have reached a point where language recovery and language promotion come up against an evolving sociolinguistic situation marked by changed demographic conditions and social attitudes. The debate about the 1998 Law of Catalan demonstrates that popular consensus can no longer be relied upon. Instead, conflicting views are being voiced as the promotion of Catalan above Castilian has come to be seen as an infringement of the language rights of non-Catalans. Public discourse has become more polemical, bipartisan and politicised. The question arises as to how far a region within a multilingual member state of the EU can go in promoting monolingual language policies

Environmental sustainability in the mining sector: evidence from Catalan companies

This paper examines the adoption of environmental practices in small and medium sized companies inthe surface mining industry in Catalonia (Spain). To fulfill this aim, a survey of 41 items concernint environmental management systems and environmentally sustainable practices has been conducted. Results show that companies have committed themselves to environmental and sustainable issues. The majority of companies claim to understand the effects of their activities on the environment and they care for responsible access and management of natural resources. Restoration plans and the annual waste declaration are mandatory in Catalonia, and rational resources exploitation practices have been adopted by a high percentage of mines. Finally, some examples of good environmentally sustainable practices are introduced.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft