Rent-seeking measurement in coal mining by means of labour unrest: an application of the distance function

We propose a method based on the distance function to empirically estimate the social cost arising from rent seeking behaviour in declining industries. Due to import competition, the factors of a particular industry undergo losses in real income, and have incentives to seek protection. In the case of declining industries, workers play a central role and the losses in output due to strikes are used to quantify the social cost of rent seeking. In our model, strikes are considered as a “bad” input into the production process. We apply our approach to the case of Spanish coal mining. We have estimated a system of equations formed by the input distance function and cost share equations using annual data over the period 1974-1997. This procedure has allowed us to calculate the cost that strikes have imposed on the sectorProduction theory; rent seeking; input distance function; shadow prices; coal sector

Human rights: the dark side of the fight against organised crime

An in-depth analysis of judicial decisions on money laundering and confiscation of proceeds of crime issued by European national courts and by the European Court of Human Rights in the last decade has been carried out from a human rights, legal guarantees and criminal law basic principles’ perspective. The undertaken study has revealed the violation of the right to property, of the proportionality principle and the infringement of basic principles of substantive and procedural criminal law systems. The most relevant ones have to do with the punishment of money laundering committed through negligence, non-conviction based confiscation and a too-far reaching interpretation of the notion of ‘proceeds of crime’.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

“Comiso de ganancias de origen delictivo vs. derechos humanos y libertades fundamentales”

Casi todo en la vida tiene un lado brillante y un lado oscuro. El decomiso de las ganancias, efectos e instrumentos del delito no es una excepción… Este trabajo propone dirigir la mirada hacia el lado oscuro en lo tocante a los derechos humanos a través del caso Paulet v. UThe United KinddomUniversidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Notas sobre especies del género "Cladonia" de Bosnia-Herzegovina y Croacia

Field studies in the south of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia have revealed six lichen species new to Bosnia-Herzegovina: Cladonia cervicornis, C. conista, C. phyllophora, C. pulvinella, C. subcariosa and C. subrangiformis. Two species are new to Croatia: C. cryptochlorophaea and C. humilis.Se aportan seis novedades para Bosnia y Herzegovina: Cladonia cervicornis, C. conista, C. phyllophora, C. pulvinella, C. subcariosa y C. subrangiformis y dos nuevas especies para Croacia: C. cryptochlorophaea y C. humili

Distribution of sea-air CO 2 fluxes in the Patagonian Sea: Seasonal, biological and thermal effects

Sea-air CO2 fluxes (FCO2) in the Patagonian Sea (PS) were studied using observations collected in 2000-2006. Based on the PS frontal structures and the thermal and biological contributions to FCO2 we present a regional subdivision between distinct regimes that provide new insights on the processes that control these fluxes. The coastal regime (CR) is a net source of atmospheric CO2 (4.9 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1) while the open shelf regime (SHR) is a net CO2 sink (-6.0 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1). The interface between these two regions closely follows the location of along-shore fronts. In addition, based on the nature of the processes that drive the FCO2, the PS is subdivided between northern (NR) and southern (SR) regions. Both, NR and SR are CO2 sinks, but the CO2 uptake is significantly higher in NR (-6.4 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1) than in SR (-0.5 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1). The data reveal a strong seasonality in FCO2. The mean CO2 capture throughout the PS in austral spring is -5.8 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1, reaching values lower than -50 x 10-3mol.m-2.d-1 in NR, while in winter FCO2 is close to equilibrium in SR. The analysis of the biological and thermal effects (BE and TE, respectively) on seasonal pCO2 variability indicates that regions of CO2 emission are dominated by the TE while regions of CO2 uptake are dominated by the BE. Our results indicate that the biological pump is the dominant process determining the sea-air CO2 flux in the PS.Fil: Kahl, Lucía Carolina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ciencias de la Atmósfera y los Océanos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa. Armada Argentina. Servicio de Hidrografía Naval. Departamento Oceanografía; ArgentinaFil: Bianchi, Alejandro A.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ciencias de la Atmósfera y los Océanos; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa. Armada Argentina. Servicio de Hidrografía Naval. Departamento Oceanografía; ArgentinaFil: Osiroff, Ana Paula. Ministerio de Defensa. Armada Argentina. Servicio de Hidrografía Naval. Departamento Oceanografía; ArgentinaFil: Pino, Diana Ruiz. Universite Pierre et Marie Curie; FranciaFil: Piola, Alberto Ricardo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ciencias de la Atmósfera y los Océanos; Argentina. Ministerio de Defensa. Armada Argentina. Servicio de Hidrografía Naval. Departamento Oceanografía; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

The noni anthraquinone damnacanthal is a multi-kinase inhibitor with potent anti-angiogenic effects

Este es el manuscrito que fue aceptado y que finalmente se publicó en Cancer Letters con el DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2016.10.037The natural bioactive compound damnacanthal inhibits several tyrosine kinases. Herein, we show that -in fact- damancanthal is a multi kinase inhibitor. A docking and molecular dynamics simulation approach allows getting further insight on the inhibitory effect of damnacanthal on three different kinases: vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2, c-Met and focal adhesion kinase. Several of the kinases targeted and inhibited by damnacanthal are involved in angiogenesis. Ex vivo and in vivo experiments clearly demonstrate that, indeed, damnacanthal is a very potent inhibitor of angiogenesis. A number of in vitro assays contribute to determine the specific effects of damnacanthal on each of the steps of the angiogenic process, including inhibition of tubulogenesis, endothelial cell proliferation, survival, migration and production of extracellular matrix remodeling enzyme. Taken altogether, these results suggest that damancanthal could have potential interest for the treatment of cancer and other angiogenesisdependent diseases.Supported by grants BIO2014-56092-R (MINECO and FEDER), P12-CTS-1507 (Andalusian Government and FEDER) and funds from group BIO-267 (Andalusian Government). The "CIBER de Enfermedades Raras" is an initiative from the ISCIII (Spain). JAGV had the financial support of Vicerrectorado de Investigación y Transferencia (University of Málaga, Spain). The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript

Novel whitening approaches in functional settings

Whitening is a critical normalization method to enhance statistical reduction via reparametrization to unit covariance. This article introduces the notion of whitening for random functions assumed to reside in a real separable Hilbert space. We compare the properties of different whitening transformations stemming from the factorization of a bounded precision operator under a particular geometrical structure. The practical performance of the estimators is shown in a simulation study, providing helpful insights into their optimization. Computational algorithms for the estimation of the proposed whitening transformations in terms of basis expansions of a functional data set are also provided.Ministry of Science and Innovation, Spain (MICINN) Instituto de Salud Carlos III Spanish Government PID2020-113961GB-I00Methusalem, Vlaamse regerin

Some relationships between intrinsic and extrinsic invariants of submanifolds in generalized S-space-forms

We establish some inequalities of Chen’s type between certain intrinsic invariants (involving sectional, Ricci and scalar curvatures) and the squared mean curvature of submanifolds tangent to the structure vector fields of a generalized S-space-form and we discuss the equality cases of them. We apply the obtained results to slant submanifolds.Plan Andaluz de Investigación (Junta de Andalucía)Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deport

Situaciones estresantes y vulnerabilidad a las lesiones deportivas : un estudio con deportistas de equipo

El objetivo de este estudio es analizar la influencia de sucesos vitales y circunstancias deportivas estresantes en el riesgo de lesiones de deportistas practicantes de deportes colectivos con oposición directa. Ciento sesenta y ocho deportistas participaron en la investigación. Al comienzo de la temporada deportiva los sujetos cumplimentaron un cuestionario de sucesos vitales y un informe de lesiones sufridas durante la última temporada deportiva. Posteriormente, a lo largo de todo el período de competición se recogió información sobre la presencia de diversas circunstancias deportivas potencialmente estresantes y se registraron las lesiones padecidas por los sujetos participantes. Los resultados indican la influencia de acontecimientos vitales y circunstancias estresantes deportivas en el aumento de la vulnerabilidad a las lesiones, especialmente cuando ambas variables son medidas en relación al mismo período temporal.The aim of this study is to analyse the effects of life events and stressful sport situations on the risk of sport injuries in athletes practising team sports against other teams. One hundred and sixty-eight athletes took part in the investigation. The subjects completed a questionnaire on life events and a report on injuries sustained during the previous sport season at the beginning of the sports season. Subsequently, information on potentially stressful sport situations and injuries sustained by the participants was gathered throughout the entire competition period. Results indicate the effects of life events and stressful sport situations on increased vulnerability to injuries, especially when both variables are related to the same temporary period