Trade, Wages and Employment: an empirical analysis

En utilisant les données sur 459 industries manufacturées au cours de la période 1958-2005, ce papier examine à la fois la relation entre mondialisation, salaires relatifs et emplois et le changement dans la structure de l'emploi. Nous trouvons que l'outsourcing accroît séparément les écarts de salaire et d'emploi

Memory in autism spectrum disorder: a meta-analysis of experimental studies

To address inconsistencies in the literature on memory in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), we report the first ever meta-analysis of short-term (STM) and episodic long-term (LTM) memory in ASD, evaluating the effects of type of material, type of retrieval and the role of inter-item relations. Analysis of 64 studies comparing individuals with ASD and typical development (TD) showed greater difficulties in ASD compared to TD individuals in STM (Hedges’ g=-0.53 [95%CI -0.90; -0.16], p=.005, I²=96%) compared to LTM (g=-0.30 [95%CI -0.42; -0.17], p<.00001, I²=24%), a small difficulty in verbal LTM (g=-0.21, p=.01), contrasting with a medium difficulty for visual LTM (g= -0.41, p=.0002) in ASD compared to TD individuals. We also found a general diminution in free recall compared to cued recall and recognition (LTM, free recall: g=-0.38, p<.00001, cued recall: g=-0.08, p=.58, recognition: g=-0.15, p=.16; STM, free recall: g=-0.59, p=.004, recognition: g=-0.33, p=.07). We discuss these results in terms of their relation to semantic memory. The limited diminution in verbal LTM and preserved overall recognition and cued recall (supported retrieval) may result from a greater overlap of these tasks with semantic long-term representations which are overall preserved in ASD. By contrast, difficulties in STM or free recall may result from less overlap with the semantic system or may involve additional cognitive operations and executive demands. These findings highlight the need to support STM functioning in ASD and acknowledge the potential benefit of using verbal materials at encoding and broader forms of memory support at retrieval to enhance performance

Crecimiento y condición de juveniles de lenguado (Solea solea L.) como indicadores de calidad de hábitat en áreas de cría costeras y estuáricas del Golfo de Vizcaya con énfasis en zonas expuestas al vertido del Erika

Indicators of growth and condition were used to compare the habitat quality of nurseries of juvenile sole (Solea solea L.) in the Bay of Biscay, based on one survey in 2000. The four biological indicators are poorly correlated with each other, suggesting that no single measure may give an adequate description of fish health and of its habitat’s quality. Growth indicators showed significant differences between northern and southern areas. Juveniles from the two southernmost nurseries, the Gironde estuary and the Pertuis Antioche, displayed significant lower otolith increment widths and mean sizes. These differences were inversely related to water temperature and unrelated to genetic or age differences, and are unlikely to be due to limiting trophic conditions in the nurseries. Hence, they may be considered in terms of differences in habitat quality and potential anthropogenic impacts. Condition indices do not show this north-south pattern but highlight low condition values in the Pertuis Antioche. Short-term and fluctuating biochemical indicators such as RNA/DNA ratios appeared to be unreliable over a long-term study, while morphometric indices seemed to be relevant, complementary indicators as they integrate the whole juvenile life-history of sole in the nurseries. The growth and condition indices of juveniles in September 2000 from nursery grounds exposed to the Erika oil spill in December 1999 were relatively high. These results lead us to suggest that there was no obvious impact of this event on the health of juvenile sole and on the quality of the exposed nursery grounds a few months after the event.Se usaron indicadores de crecimiento y condici&oacute;n de lenguados juveniles (Solea solea L.) para comparar la calidad del h&aacute;bitat de &aacute;reas de cr&iacute;a en el Golfo de Vizcaya basados en un muestreo de 2000. Los cuatro indicadores biol&oacute;gicos mostraron bajas correlaciones entre s&iacute;, lo que sugiere que no existe una medida &uacute;nica para describir adecuadamente el estado de los peces y la calidad de su h&aacute;bitat. Los indicadores de crecimiento mostraron diferencias significativas entre las &aacute;reas septentrionales y meridionales. Los juveniles de las &aacute;reas situadas m&aacute;s al sur: el estuario del Garona y Pertuis Antioche mostraron incrementos de otolitos y tama&ntilde;os medios significativamente inferiores. Estas diferencias est&aacute;n inversamente relacionadas con la temperatura del agua, pero no con diferencias gen&eacute;ticas o de edad, y no es probable que se deba a una condici&oacute;n tr&oacute;fica limitante en las &aacute;reas de cr&iacute;a. Por tanto, pueden considerarse en t&eacute;rminos de calidad del h&aacute;bitat y el potencial impacto antropog&eacute;nico. Los &iacute;ndices de condici&oacute;n no muestras este patr&oacute;n norte-sur sino que destacan los bajos valores de condici&oacute;n en Pertuis Antioche. Los indicadores bioqu&iacute;micos variables de corto t&eacute;rmino como las relaciones RNA/DNA no parecieron fiables para estudios de mayor escala, mientras que los &iacute;ndices morfom&eacute;tricos parecen ser relevantes y complementarios ya que integran toda el per&iacute;odo juvenil de la vida de los lenguados en sus &aacute;reas de cr&iacute;a. Los valores de crecimiento y condici&oacute;n de juveniles en septiembre de 2000 en &aacute;reas de cr&iacute;a expuestas al vertido de crudo del Erika en diciembre de 1999 fueron relativamente elevadas. Estos resultados sugieren que no hubo un impacto obvio de este evento sobre la salud de los juveniles de lenguado ni en la calidad de las &aacute;reas de cr&iacute;a expuestas transcurridos unos pocos meses despu&eacute;s del vertido

Behaviour and transportation of silver nanoparticles in an aerobic wastewater treatment pilot plant

Investigating the behaviour, fate and transport of Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is of great importance due to their presence in many consumer products and its potential to be toxic to environmental organisms. In this study, the transformation and fate of Ag-NPs was assessed using a multi-method characterisation approach, prior-to, during and post-aeration in the pilot sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and over a 21 day period in SBR. Synthesized 10 nm citrate and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) coated Ag-NPs were spiked into OECD synthetic sewage (OECDss) media and it constituents and in the (OECDss + activated sludge (AS) media. Ag-NPs show agglomeration, dissolution and changes in surface chemistry at all measured time points i.e., at 0 hrs, at 24 hrs, at 45 hrs (during aeration) and at 48 hrs (during settling) and indicated that 80% of the citrate and PVP Ag-NPs could be removed in the form of Ag2S, AgCl and Silver Phosphate-NPs. More than 50% of Ag-NPs accumulated within the sludge over a 21 day period (with no addition of fresh AS), and this occurred via physical adsorption on the surface of the AS flocs. This work demonstrates that Ag-NPs in wastewater can undergo a range of transformation processes, which include oxidation, dissolution, agglomeration, precipitation in an SBR pilot plant

Homogeneous gold catalysis using complexes recovered from waste electronic equipment

Despite the greater awareness of elemental sustainability and the benefits of the circular economy concept, much waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) is still destined for landfill. Effective methods for valorizing this waste within our society are therefore imperative. In this contribution, two gold(III) complexes obtained as recovery products from WEEE and their anion metathesis products were investigated as homogenous catalysts. These four recovery products were successfully applied as catalysts for the cyclization of propargylic amides and the condensation of acetylacetone with o-iodoaniline. Impressive activity was also observed in the gold-catalyzed reaction between electron-rich arenes (2-methylfuran, 1,3-dimethoxybenzene, and azulene) and α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds (methyl vinyl ketone and cyclohexenone). These recovered compounds were also shown to be effective catalysts for the oxidative cross-coupling reaction of aryl silanes and arenes. When employed as Lewis acid catalysts for carbonyl-containing substrates, the WEEE-derived gold complexes could also be recovered at the end of the reaction and reused without loss in catalytic activity, enhancing still further the sustainability of the process. This is the first direct application in homogeneous catalysis of gold recovery products sourced from e-waste

Environmental determinism of year to year recruitment variability of European eel in a small coastal catchment, the Frémur river, north-west France

The influence of environmental factors (mainly the river flow) on the year-to-year variability of European eel Anguilla anguilla fluvial recruitment in a small coastal River (north-west France) was examined. A comprehensive survey of catches from fixed traps at two weirs located at 4·5 km (Pont es Omnes Dam) and 6·0 km (Bois Joli Dam) above the river mouth was carried out between 1997 and 2004. Young pigmented elvers (mean ± s.d. total length, 133·7 ± 29·6 mm) were recruited in eel-passes from February to October, but the main runs followed a modal curve from April to September with a peak centred in May to June. Catches varied greatly between years, from 381 to 26 765 elvers. For each trap, a positive linear relationship between monthly mean river flow that preceded the maximal intensity of captures and annual total catches was observed. These relationships explained 73·1% (P <0.01) and 89·0% (P <0.001) of the year-to-year variability of the recruitment observed in the Pont es Omnes and Bois Joli traps respectively. A significant increase in river flow at the beginning of the migration peak would thus trigger a greater proportion of A. anguilla settled in the estuary and in the downstream zone of the Fremur River to begin their freshwater colonization. The physicochemical roles of changes in river discharge in stimulating upstream migration are discussed. It is concluded that fluvial recruitment in the Fremur River is mainly determined by environmental factors

Exploring the Event-Related Potentials' Time Course of Associative Recognition in Autism

Behavioral data on episodic recollection in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) point limited relational memory functioning. However, the involvement of successive memory processes in the profile of episodic memory in ASD needs more study. Here, we used event-related potentials (ERP) to investigate the time course of episodic recollection with an associative recognition paradigm with picture pairs. Twenty-two participants with ASD and 32 with typical development (TD), all right-handed, were included. Behavioral results confirmed difficulties in correctly recognizing identical pairs in the ASD relative to TD group. We found an unexpected amplitude decrement on the P2 (220-270 msec) and FN400 (350-470 msec) potentials, suggesting diminished priming and familiarity effects in the ASD relative to TD group. However, ERP data revealed that the recognition of associative information relies on the same electrophysiological process (old/new effect in the 600-700-msec late positive component) in ASD participants as in TD ones, with a parietal extension in the ASD group. These results suggest that the electrophysiological processes of associative recognition are qualitatively similar in individuals with and without ASD but may differ quantitatively. This difference may be driven by the reduced early processing of picture pairs that may in turn lead to their diminished integration into the semantic memory system, being partially compensated by a greater involvement of associative memory during the recollection process. Other studies would be useful to go further in identifying these cognitive processes involved in atypical recognition in ASD and their neural substrates. LAY SUMMARY: We identified diminished performance on the associative recognition of picture pairs in adolescents and young adults with autism when compared to typical development. Electrophysiological data revealed qualitative similarities but quantitative differences between-group, with diminished priming and familiarity processes partially compensated by an enhanced parietal recollection process