About International Reserve Adequacy: The Case of Chile

Under a flexible exchange rate regime, international reserves contribute to reducing the risk of a financial crisis, and allow the monetary authority to intervene exceptionally in the exchange market. However, holding reserves is costly. In this paper, we analyze several issues concerning the adequate level of Chilean international reserves. First we compare the level of Chile's international reserves with those of different sets of countries, using various indicators. We then analyze empirically some of the benefits and costs of holding reserves. Our results show that Chile's international reserves are high when measured with respect to GDP or M2, but they are in line with those of countries of similar characteristics when measured as a fraction of short-term residual debt. On the other hand, given the low risk of the Chilean economy, marginal changes in reserves have a very low impact on both the probability of a financial crisis and the sovereign spread of the country. Finally, as the sovereign spread has decreased over the last years, so too has the cost of reserves. In fact, over the past few years Chile's cost of reserves as a fraction of GDP has been considerably lower than the cost of other emerging economies.

Ingested insecticide to control Aedes aegypti: developing a novel dried attractive toxic sugar bait device for intra-domiciliary control

© 2020 The Author(s). Background: Illnesses transmitted by Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika comprise a considerable global burden; mosquito control is the primary public health tool to reduce disease transmission. Current interventions are inadequate and insecticide resistance threatens the effectiveness of these options. Dried attractive bait stations (DABS) are a novel mechanism to deliver insecticide to Ae. aegypti. The DABS are a high-contrast 28 inch2 surface coated with dried sugar-boric acid solution. Aedes aegypti are attracted to DABS by visual cues only, and the dried sugar solution elicits an ingestion response from Ae. aegypti landing on the surface. The study presents the development of the DABS and tests of their impact on Ae. aegypti mortality in the laboratory and a series of semi-field trials. Methods: We conducted multiple series of laboratory and semi-field trials to assess the survivability of Ae. aegypti mosquitoes exposed to the DABS. In the laboratory experiments, we assessed the lethality, the killing mechanism, and the shelf life of the device through controlled experiments. In the semi-field trials, we released laboratory-reared female Ae. aegypti into experimental houses typical of peri-urban tropical communities in South America in three trial series with six replicates each. Laboratory experiments were conducted in Quito, Ecuador, and semi-field experiments were conducted in Machala, Ecuador, an area with abundant wild populations of Ae. aegypti and endemic arboviral transmission. Results: In the laboratory, complete lethality was observed after 48 hours regardless of physiological status of the mosquito. The killing mechanism was determined to be through ingestion, as the boric acid disrupted the gut of the mosquito. In experimental houses, total mosquito mortality was greater in the treatment house for all series of experiments (P \u3c 0.0001). Conclusions: The DABS devices were effective at killing female Ae. aegypti under a variety of laboratory and semi-field conditions. DABS are a promising intervention for interdomiciliary control of Ae. aegypti and arboviral disease prevention.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

Local Optimal Sets and Bounded Archiving on Multi-objective NK-Landscapes with Correlated Objectives

The properties of local optimal solutions in multi-objective combinatorial optimization problems are crucial for the effectiveness of local search algorithms, particularly when these algorithms are based on Pareto dominance. Such local search algorithms typically return a set of mutually nondominated Pareto local optimal (PLO) solutions, that is, a PLO-set. This paper investigates two aspects of PLO-sets by means of experiments with Pareto local search (PLS). First, we examine the impact of several problem characteristics on the properties of PLO-sets for multi-objective NK-landscapes with correlated objectives. In particular, we report that either increasing the number of objectives or decreasing the correlation between objectives leads to an exponential increment on the size of PLO-sets, whereas the variable correlation has only a minor effect. Second, we study the running time and the quality reached when using bounding archiving methods to limit the size of the archive handled by PLS, and thus, the maximum size of the PLO-set found. We argue that there is a clear relationship between the running time of PLS and the difficulty of a problem instance.Comment: appears in Parallel Problem Solving from Nature - PPSN XIII, Ljubljana : Slovenia (2014

Response to sequential treatment schedules in childhood epilepsy Risk for development of refractory epilepsy

AbstractPurposeTo investigate response to sequential treatment schedules and risk of development of refractory epilepsy in childhood.MethodsAll children younger than 14 years with two or more unprovoked seizures seen at our hospital between 1994 and 2004 were included and prospectively followed. “Seizure control” was defined as a 2-year seizure-free interval without further recurrences except those related to attempts of medication withdrawal and “refractory epilepsy” as failure of >2 drugs plus >1 seizure/month for ≥18 months.Results343 Patients were included, 191 males and 152 females. Mean age at diagnosis was 4y 10 mo (SD 3 year 10 month). Mean follow-up period was 76.2 mo (SD 35.2). The probability of achieving “seizure control” was 70% and 86% at 5 and 10 years. 59% of patients were “controlled” with the first drug used. Among patients failing the first, second and third therapeutic regimen due to lack of efficacy, 39%, 23% and 12% respectively were finally “controlled” with subsequent treatment schedules Risk of development of refractory epilepsy was 8% and 12% at 6 and 10 years.ConclusionAfter failing a first drug, a significant proportion of children can still be controlled with subsequent therapeutic schedules. Only a small proportion develops refractory epilepsy

Local Optimal Sets and Bounded Archiving on Multi-objective NK-Landscapes with Correlated Objectives

The properties of local optimal solutions in multi-objective combinatorial optimization problems are crucial for the effectiveness of local search algorithms, particularly when these algorithms are based on Pareto dominance. Such local search algorithms typically return a set of mutually nondominated Pareto local optimal (PLO) solutions, that is, a PLO-set. This paper investigates two aspects of PLO-sets by means of experiments with Pareto local search (PLS). First, we examine the impact of several problem characteristics on the properties of PLO-sets for multi-objective NK-landscapes with correlated objectives. In particular, we report that either increasing the number of objectives or decreasing the correlation between objectives leads to an exponential increment on the size of PLO-sets, whereas the variable correlation has only a minor effect. Second, we study the running time and the quality reached when using bounding archiving methods to limit the size of the archive handled by PLS, and thus, the maximum size of the PLO-set found. We argue that there is a clear relationship between the running time of PLS and the difficulty of a problem instance.Comment: appears in Parallel Problem Solving from Nature - PPSN XIII, Ljubljana : Slovenia (2014

Estudio descriptivo retrospectivo de la fractura de cadera en un área de salud de la Comunidad Valenciana

Se presenta un estudio descriptivo de la fractura de cadera osteoporótica en el área de Salud 20 de la Comunidad Valenciana durante el año 2007. Se incluyó una serie consecutiva de 239 pacientes que sufrieron fractura de fémur proximal. Se diseñó una base de datos recogiendo información clínica como la edad, sexo, tipo de fractura y lateralidad, antecedentes personales, datos referidos al accidente, al ingreso y estancia, así como al tratamiento.A descriptive study of osteoporotic hip fracture in the Health area 20 of the Valencian Community in 2007. We included a consecutive series of 239 patients undergoing proximal femoral fracture. We created a database collecting clinical information such as age, sex, type of fracture and handedness, personal history, referred to the accident data, entry and stay, and treatment

Multipurpose Monte Carlo simulator for photon transport in turbid media

Proceeding of: 2009 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium Conference Record (NSS/MIC), Orlando, Florida, 25-31 October 2009Monte Carlo methods provide a flexible and rigorous solution to the problem of light transport in turbid media, which enable approaching complex geometries for a closed analytical solution is not feasible. The simulator implements local rules of propagation in the form of probability density functions that depend on the local optical properties of the tissue. This work presents a flexible simulator that can be applied in multiple applications related to optical tomography. In particular, unlike previous codes, the simulator explicitly supports fluorescent-tissues and variance reduction and code parallelization techniques are implemented in order to speed up the execution with fluorochrome-labelled agents. The simulator is validated with simple geometries for which an analytical solution exists, as well as with an experimental polyester resin based optical phantom.This work was supported in part by the Ministry of Science and Innovation under projects TEC2008-06715 and TEC2007-64731/TCM and by the EU’s 7th Frame Programme under contract HEALTH-F5-2008-20179

Estudio comparativo entre las técnicas de David y las Convencionales para realizar Anestesias Intraorales

Con este estudio se buscó demostrar que la técnica anestésica de David resulta tan eficaz  como las técnicas convencionales y pueden evitarse riesgos de accidentes innecesarios tanto para el operador como para el paciente.La investigación clínica experimental se realizó con pacientes que concurrieron a la clínica de la Cátedra de Cirugía II Dento-Maxilar. La muestra de 160, fue dividida en dos grupos de 80 sujetos cada uno: un grupo experimental y un grupo control. Al primero se lo dividió en dos sugrupos de 40 personas cada uno. A unos se les realizó la técnica de David en el Maxilar y al otro, la misma técnica, pero en la Mandíbula. Al grupo testigo se le realizó lo mismo pero con la técnica convencional.En el grupo estudio, fue necesario repetir una vez la nueva técnica en el Maxilar, y dos veces en la mandíbula. Al interrogatorio, 16 (20%) pacientes manifestaron adormecida o anestesiada la zona antes de los 10 (diez) minutos y los otros 64 (80%) después de los 10 (diez) minutos.En el grupo control no se debió repetir la técnica en el maxilar y sí 3 veces en la mandíbula, y al interrogatorio, 14 (17,5%) manifestaron anestesiada o adormecida la zona antes de los 10 minutos y los 66 (82,5%) restantes después de los 10 minutos. Con respecto a la prueba de sensibilidad con el explorador: de los pacientes del grupo de estudio, solo 2 (2,5%) manifestaron insensibilidad antes de los 10 minutos y los 78 (97,5%) restantes sintieron la insensibilidad después de los 10 minutos. En el grupo control los resultados fueron los siguientes: los 80 (100%) sintieron insensibilidad después de los 10 minutos.Se concluyó que no existe diferencia significativa entre ambas técnicas

Validación del método de elaboración tradicional del extracto de vainilla (Vanilla planifolia A.) en la Sierra de Otontepec

El objetivo del trabajo fue evaluar el método de elaboración tradicional de los extractos elaborados con refino artesanal, procedentes de la región de la Sierra de Otontepec Veracruz, con el propósito de conocer sus características y generar información para determinar las ventajas de la concentración de vainillina que presenta cada una de las muestras analizadas. Se obtuvieron los perfiles químicos y se identificaron compuestos   químicos   utilizando   columnas   cromatografías   además   del   perfil   químico   general, encontrando que el contenido de alcohol en los extractos, que elaboran los productores cuenta únicamente con el 14% de alcohol y lo mencionado en la NMX-FF-074-1996 dice que no debe ser menor del 30% por lo que no cumple con este requisito. Con respecto al contenido de vainillina los contenidos variaron de 348 a un 8,447 % (pm) por lo que cumplen con la Norma Oficial Mexicana que señala que el contenido mínimo de los extractos debe ser de 2,49 % en adelante, por lo tanto los extractos regionales se encuentran dentro de los parámetros y son aptos para su venta