Las chicas sólo quieren divertirse? Sexualidad, embarazo y maternidad en las adolecentes de Bolivia

Este estudio busca cuantificar actividad sexual, embarazo y maternidad adolescente en Bolivia utilizando la Encuesta de Demografía y Salud más reciente. Los resultados descriptivos sugieren que la actividad sexual, el embarazo y la maternidad adolescente son más prevalentes entre aquellas jóvenes que tienen mayor probabilidad de ser vulnerables y socialmente excluidas. Además, la alta tasa de incidencia de embarazos no deseados entre adolescentes bolivianas sugiere que es necesario introducir acciones del gobierno para prevenir embarazos adolescentes. Por último, los resultados de las estimaciones indican que no sólo los factores socioeconómicos y demográficos, sino también los resultados esperados de la maternidad adolescente, los factores de fertilidad regionales, y el conocimiento sobre --y uso de--métodos de planificación familiar están significativamente relacionados a la probabilidad de embarazo/maternidad adolescente.

Minority Enrollments at Public Universities of Diverse Selectivity Levels under Different Admission Regimes: The Case of Texas

This study describes how minority enrollment probabilities respond to changes in admission policies from affirmative-action to merit-only programs and then to percentage plans when the demographic composition of the potential pool of applicants is also shifting. It takes advantage of admission policy changes that occurred in the state of Texas with the Hopwood and HB588 decisions and of a unique administrative dataset that includes applications, admissions, and enrollments for three public universities of different selectivity levels. The findings suggest that the elimination of affirmative action and the introduction of the Top 10% plan had differential effects on minority enrollment probabilities as well as on application behavior depending on the selectivity level of the postsecondary institution. In particular, Hopwood is related to shifts in minority enrollments from selective institutions to less selective ones as the cascading hypothesis predicts. And although the Top 10% plan seems to have helped increased minority enrollment probabilities at the selective college as the upgrading hypothesis predicts, once the increases in minority shares among high-school graduates are taken into account, we find that the Top 10% plan can no longer be related to improvements in minority representation at selective universities.

Complementarity in time between hydro, wind and solar energy resources in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in Southern Brazil

This work studies the complementarity between hydro, wind and solar photovoltaic energy in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Brazil is a country highly dependent on hydro energy; however, the existent plants are not being able to cover the energy demand in recent years. In this context, the state of Rio Grande do Sul becomes important because of its potential for wind and solar photovoltaic energy, having complementarity between water, wind and solar photovoltaic schemes when hydroelectric reservoirs are at their lowest levels. This study aims to survey the complementarity of various parts of Rio Grande do Sul by proposing mathematical dimensionless ratios, focusing on intra-annual period to carry out a mapping of the entire state. It also analyses the ability to provide power supply throughout the year, through the stabilization of the energy supply, which depends on an adequate scale for photovoltaic, wind power and hydroelectric harnessing. According to the results obtained, the regions with the best complementarity indexes for deployment of a hybrid system in relation to water and wind power were the Metropolitan Region of Porto Alegre and the Southeast region, and the same regions also presented the best results for the complementarity between hydro and solar photovoltaic. Regarding wind and solar photovoltaic energy, the state’s northeast region presented the best results. Finally, the Northeast region of the state also presented the best results for the three energies together

Educational Outcomes of Postsecondary Occupational Students

This Brief discusses a research study that was conducted to determine the rates of degree completion of community college occupational students compared with other types of postsecondary students, and to identify factors that might explain those differences. Much of the existing literature on college persistence and completion is focused on baccalaureate students and pays little attention to students in community colleges, and even fewer studies consider differences by students’ program of study. Therefore, it is important to investigate whether students in occupational programs in community colleges persist in postsecondary education and attain degrees at similar rates as their academic and baccalaureate peers

New species of Tetradiplosis (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) inducing galls on Prosopis caldenia (Fabaceae) in Argentina

Two new species of Tetradiplosis inducing galls on Prosopis caldenia are described from Argentina: Tetradiplosis panghitruz Martínez n. sp. and Tetradiplosis rayen Martínez n. sp. Tetradiplosis panghitruz induces multilocular galls on vegetative stems, whereas T. rayen induces unilocular galls containing multiple larvae on the rachis of the developing inflorescences. The adult male, female, pupa and larva are described and illustrated for both species. A key to the known species of the genus is provided.Fil: Martinez, Juan Jose. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Entomología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Corro Molas, Barbara Mariana. Universidad Nacional de la Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ciencias Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Alfonso, Graciela L.. Universidad Nacional de la Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ciencias Naturales; Argentin

Institutional Responses to State Merit Aid Programs: The Case of Florida Community Colleges

This study estimates the effects of a state merit aid program on community colleges by using the introduction of the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship program as a natural experiment. It examines the effects of the program in terms of institutional aid, tuition pricing, and as a re-sorting mechanism for high ability students. The results suggest that community colleges do not increase students' charges to capture additional revenues, nor do they substitute state aid for institutional aid. Contrary to what was expected, institutions apparently use the scholarship program as an "ability marker" to provide additional financial aid to high ability students. Although we find no statistical evidence that the community college system is losing high ability students, there is strong support for heterogeneity in the program effect across institutions that depends on measures of the level of competition within each college's educational marketplace

Blockchain Technology for Secure Accounting Management: Research Trends Analysis

The scope of blockchain technology, initially associated with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, is greater due to the multiple applications in various disciplines. Its use in accounting lies mainly in the fact that it reduces risks and the eventuality of fraud, eliminates human error, promotes efficiency, and increases transparency and reliability. This means that different economic sectors assume it as a recording and management instrument. The aim is to examine current and emerging research lines at a global level on blockchain technology for secure accounting management. The evolution of the publication of the number of articles between 2016 and 2020 was analyzed. Statistical and mathematical techniques were applied to a sample of 1130 records from the Scopus database. The data uncovered a polynomial trend in this period. The seven main lines of work were identified: blockchain, network security, information management, digital storage, edge computing, commerce, and the Internet of Things. The ten most outstanding emerging research lines are detected. This study provides the past and future thematic axes on this incipient field of knowledge, which is a tool for decision-making by academics, researchers, and directors of research investment program

Photocatalytic Decomposition of Metoprolol and Its Intermediate Organic Reaction Products: Kinetics and Degradation Pathway

High purity metoprolol prepared by neutraliza-tion of an aqueous solution of metoprolol tartrate is efficiently mineralized to CO2 and water by photocatalysis with TiO2, UV light and a constant flow rate of oxygen. Since the tartrate anions were eliminated, all the HO•generated by photocatalysis reacted efficiently with the aromatic part of the medication. The reaction pathway includes two routes of degradation. The first one includes the transformation of metoprolol to hydroquinone via formation of 4-(2-methoxyethyl)phenol, 2-(4-hydroxyphe-nyl)ethanol and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde. Metoprolol is also degraded directly to hydroquinone. Then, this aro-matic compound is oxidized to 1,2,4-benzenetriol, which is rapidly oxidized to low molecular weight organic acids before being completely mineralized to CO2 and water. Kinetic studies indicated that the initial reaction rate of the degradation of metoprolol, 4-(2ethoxyethyl)phenol, 2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethanol and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde is described by the LH-HW model