Assessment of Virgin Olive Oil Adulteration by a Rapid Luminescent Method

The adulteration of virgin olive oil with hazelnut oil is a common fraud in the food industry, which makes mandatory the development of accurate methods to guarantee the authenticity and traceability of virgin olive oil. In this work, we demonstrate the potential of a rapid luminescent method to characterize edible oils and to detect adulterations among them. A regression model based on five luminescent frequencies related to minor oil components was designed and validated, providing excellent performance for the detection of virgin olive oil adulteration

The sea of Galicia sustains a large part of the fishing economy

[Resumo] Galicia está bañada polo mar ao longo de 1200 km. Non é de extrañar entón que a pesca sexa a base da súa economía, chegando a constituir ata o 52% do emprego total pesqueiro en España e ata o 10% no conxunto da UE. O Turismo mariñeiro en Galicia pretende poñer en valor a grande riqueza patrimonial relacionada co mar e coa pesca tradicional. Ambientarte levou a cabo proxectos de formación de guías intérpretes con profesionais do mar para facer visitas guiadas con turistas, así como proxectos ligados a difusión do importante Patrimonio cultural mariñeiro.[Abstract] Galicia is bathed by the sea along 1200 km. It´s not surprising therefore that fishing is the basis of its economy, creating up to 52 % of the employment in the fishing industry in Spain and up to 10 % in the whole of the European Union. Marine tourism in Galicia aims to add value to (put in value) the rich heritage associated with the sea and with the traditional fishing. Ambientarte carried out training projects for guides- interpreters with sea-workers to make guided tours with tourists, and projects linked to the dissemination of the importance of cultural marine heritage as well

European Union Cohesion Policy: Socio‑Economic Vulnerability of the Regions and the COVID‑19 Shock

The European Union Cohesion Policy for the period 2021–2027 focuses on five goals to make the European Union smarter, greener, more connected, more social and closer to citizens. However, a macroeconomic index is proposed as the predominant criterion for allocating the Structural Funds among regions. In this paper, we hypothesise that it is possible to take into account new, complementary criteria that better reflect citizens’ quality of life. To that end, we build a composite index of socio-economic vulnerability for the 233 regions. The results show that following our multidimensional approach for allocating the Structural Funds, there are remarkable differences in the maps of priority regions. In addition, the COVID- 19 pandemic represents a threat to well-being. Are all regions equally exposed to COVID-19 in terms of their socio-economic vulnerability? To address this issue, we estimate multilevel models which indicate that country characteristics interact with regions’ characteristics to alter patterns of vulnerability. More specifically, increases in government expenditures in education and an improvement in political stability would reduce the regional vulnerability or foster the capacity for resilience, whereas increases in poverty would be associated with greater vulnerability. Likewise, more vulnerable regions would be the most exposed to the negative socio-economic effects of COVID-19. However, it is remarkable that several regions of Sweden and Finland would be among the group of regions whose socio-economic vulnerability would be the most negatively affected.Universidad de Granada/CBUAproject ERDF-University of Granada B-SEJ-242.UGR2

Improving People’s Self-Reported Experience with the Health Services: The Role of Non-Clinical Factors

The main aim of this study was to analyse the association between non-clinical factors and the self-reported experience of people with the main health services of the Spanish public healthcare system. Specifically, we analysed whether factors such as the treatment received from health staff, the confidence transmitted to the patient by the doctor, or waiting time for a diagnostic test had an influence on people reporting a more satisfactory experience with primary, specialised, and hospital care services. We used cross-sectional microdata from the Spanish Healthcare Barometer survey of 2015 comprising a sample of 7800 individuals. We applied a probit-adapted ordinary least squares estimation, which is one of the most widely used methods in recent studies on subjective well-being. Our findings suggest that individuals’ interaction with non-clinical factors was positively correlated with the overall health services experience. Treatment received from health staff was one of the most relevant factors to ensure that individuals report a more satisfactory experience with primary care. Time devoted by physicians to each patient and waiting time for a non-emergency admission were the most correlated factors in specialised and hospital care services, respectively. This study could have implications for public policies. First, it shows policy-makers the influence of non-clinical factors when individuals rate their overall experience with the main health services in Spain. Second, it identifies the key factors where the health system could reallocate more public resources to improve people’s experience and thus the health system responsiveness

Dealing with weighting scheme in composite indicators: An unsupervised distance-machine learning proposal for quantitative data

There is increasing interest in the construction of composite indicators to benchmark units. However, the mathematical approach on which the most commonly used techniques are based does not allow benchmarking in a reliable way. Additionally, the determination of the weighting scheme in the composite indicators remains one of the most troubling issues. Using the vector space formed by all the observations, we propose a new method for building composite indicators: a distance or metric that considers the concept of proximity among units. This approach enables comparisons between the units being studied, which are always quantitative. To this end, we take the P2 Distance method of Pena Trapero as a starting point and improve its limitations. The proposed methodology eliminates the linear dependence on the model and seeks functional relationships that enable constructing the most efficient model. This approach reduces researcher subjectivity by assigning the weighting scheme with unsupervised machine learning techniques. Monte Carlo simulations confirm that the proposed methodology is robust.European Commission European Commission Joint Research Centre 813234ERDF-Universidad de Granada B-SEJ-242-UGR20Ministry of Science and Innovation, Spain (MICINN) Spanish Government PID2019-105708RBUniversidad de Granada/CBU

CircNNTSR: An R Package for the Statistical Analysis of Circular, Multivariate Circular, and Spherical Data Using Nonnegative Trigonometric Sums

The statistical analysis of circular, multivariate circular, and spherical data is very important in different areas, such as paleomagnetism, astronomy and biology. The use of nonnegative trigonometric sums allows for the construction of flexible probability models for these types of data to model datasets with skewness and multiple modes. The R package CircNNTSR includes functions to plot, fit by maximum likelihood, and simulate models based on nonnegative trigonometric sums for circular, multivariate circular, and spherical data. For maximum likelihood estimation of the models for the three different types of data an efficient Newton-like algorithm on a hypersphere is used. Examples of applications of the functions provided in the CircNNTSR package to actual and simulated datasets are presented and it is shown how the package can be used to test for uniformity, homogeneity, and independence using likelihood ratio tests

La educación social y la web 2.0: Nuevos espacios de innovación e interacción social en el Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior

La Educación Social en el Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES) requiere de nuevos procesos de enseñanza y aprendizaje para ubicarse en el escenario del desarrollo de la sociedad del conocimiento y la información. Para ello, las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TICs), y especialmente las prácticas formativas de corte socio-constructivista e investigador que utilicen aplicaciones web 2.0, jugarán un papel muy significativo en la innovación y la mejora de la Educación Social. El presente trabajo realiza una aproximación conceptual al concepto de web 2.0 y analiza las implicaciones didácticas de la segunda generación web en el proceso de convergencia con Europa en materia de Educación Superior.Social Education at European Higher Education Area requires new teaching and learning processes to be located on the knowledge and information society scene. For that purpose, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) - especially social-constructivism and researcher formative practices using web 2.0 applications- will play a significant role in the innovation and improvement Social Education. This article analyzes didactic implications through a conceptual approximation about web 2.0 and the second generation in the convergence process with Europe in terms on Higher Education

Sums of Independent Circular Random Variables and Maximum Likelihood Circular Uniformity Tests Based on Nonnegative Trigonometric Sums Distributions

The circular uniform distribution on the unit circle is closed under summation, that is, the sum of independent circular uniformly distributed random variables is also circular uniformly distributed. In this study, it is shown that a family of circular distributions based on nonnegative trigonometric sums (NNTS) is also closed under summation. Given the flexibility of NNTS circular distributions to model multimodality and skewness, these are good candidates for use as alternative models to test for circular uniformity to detect different deviations from the null hypothesis of circular uniformity. The circular uniform distribution is a member of the NNTS family, but in the NNTS parameter space, it corresponds to a point on the boundary of the parameter space, implying that the regularity conditions are not satisfied when the parameters are estimated by using the maximum likelihood method. Two NNTS tests for circular uniformity were developed by considering the standardised maximum likelihood estimator and the generalised likelihood ratio. Given the nonregularity condition, the critical values of the proposed NNTS circular uniformity tests were obtained via simulation and interpolated for any sample size by the fitting of regression models. The validity of the proposed NNTS circular uniformity tests was evaluated by generating NNTS models close to the circular uniformity null hypothesis.Comment: 34 pages, 5 figure

Trace elements and C and N isotope composition in two mushroom species from a mine-spill contaminated site

Fungi play a key role in the functioning of soil in terrestrial ecosystems, and in particular in the remediation of degraded soils. The contribution of fungi to carbon and nutrient cycles, along with their capability to mobilise soil trace elements, is well-known. However, the importance of life history strategy for these functions has not yet been thoroughly studied. This study explored the soil-fungi relationship of two wild edible fungi, the ectomycorrhizal Laccaria laccata and the saprotroph Volvopluteus gloiocephalus. Fruiting bodies and surrounding soils in a mine-spill contaminated area were analysed. Isotope analyses revealed Laccaria laccata fruiting bodies were 15N-enriched when compared to Volvopluteus gloiocephalus, likely due to the transfer of 15N-depleted compounds to their host plant. Moreover, Laccaria laccata fruiting bodies δ13C values were closer to host plant values than surrounding soil, while Volvopluteus gloiocephalus matched the δ13C composition to that of the soil. Fungal species presented high bioaccumulation and concentrations of Cd and Cu in their fruiting bodies. Human consumption of these fruiting bodies may represent a toxicological risk due to their elevated Cd concentrations

Factores predictores de la percepción de la salud y calidad de vida. Estudio de una cohorte de ancianos

Introducción: El envejecimiento de la población es uno de los mayores triunfos de la humanidad y también, uno de nuestros mayores desafíos. A escala mundial, la proporción de personas mayores de 60 años o más, aumentó del 9% en 1994 al 12% en 2014, y se espera que alcance el 21% en 2050. Supondrá casi 2.000 millones en ese año, de las cuales cerca de un 85% vivirá en los actuales países en desarrollo, sobre todo en zonas urbanas, lo que repercutirá en los ámbitos económico, político y social y en los sistemas de salud. Las personas mayores son el grupo de población de más rápido crecimiento en el mundo. En 2014, la tasa de crecimiento anual de la población de mayores de 60 años casi triplicó la tasa de crecimiento de la población en su conjunto constituyendo uno de nuestros mayores retos. Objetivos: Objetivo Principal: Determinar los factores predictores de la percepción de la salud y calidad de vida en una cohorte de personas mayores de 65 años del Ayuntamiento de Ourense.Objetivos secundarios: Para ello vamos a realizar en dicha cohorte estudiada por nosotros hace ocho años, un análisis de las modificaciones en la valoración funcional multidimensional que nos permita: 1. Conocer los cambios producidos en las variables que se asocian a la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud en las personas mayores de 65 años no institucionalizadas de la ciudad de Ourense entre 2001 y 2009. 2. Determinar el nivel de discapacidad para las actividades de la vida diaria y riesgo de dependencia de la población estudiada en este periodo 3. Conocer el uso, demanda y consumo de los diferentes servicios (mantenimiento básico, sanitarios, sociales y de sostenimiento)