Estudio Comparativo de los Efectos del Tipo de Forraje y de la Proporción Forraje - Concentrado sobre la Fermentación Ruminal en Cabras y en Fermentadores de Flujo Simple Continuo.

Los fermentadores de flujo continuo (FFC) permiten el estudio de la fermentación ruminal de forma más simple y menos costosa que los ensayos in vivo. Sin embargo, las comparaciones directas rumen – FFC son escasas y las existentes se han llevado a cabo con fermentadores de flujo doble continuo y ganado vacuno (Hannah et al., 1986; Mansfield et al., 1995; Muetzel et al., 2008). La información relativa a pequeños rumiantes es escasa (Carro et al., 2009; Molina et al., 2009) y los diferentes estudios han empleado ingestas variables entre 10,5 (Muetzel et al., 2008) y 90 (Slyter y Rumsey, 1991) g de materia seca (MS)/día/L de volumen efectivo del fermentador. Dado el efecto del pH sobre la fermentación ruminal (Calsamiglia et al., 2008) su estudio parece esencial en lo que a la simulación in vitro se refiere. El objetivo del presente trabajo es comparar los efectos del tipo de forraje (F) y de la relación forraje:concentrado (F:C) sobre la fermentación ruminal en el rumen de caprino y en fermentadores de flujo simple continuo (FFSC). Además, se analiza el efecto del pH utilizando suministrando a los FFSC 30 ó 45 g MS/día

Digital Image Classication of Land Cover.

Classication of land cover represents a quite standard example of natural fuzzy boundaries between phenomena: many classes show in nature internal gradual diferences in species, health, age, moisture, as well other factors. It is unrealistic to establish a line between diferent classes, assuming homogeneous diferent phenomena in each side. In this paper we consider the unsupervised algorithm presented in Amo et al. [2], applied to a real image in Sevilla province (south Spain). As expected, image is easier to be understood taking into account few fuzzy classes and all their transition zones, rather than assuming a large family of crisp classes showing no structure between those classes

A multi-stakeholder participatory study identifies the priorities for the sustainability of the small ruminants farming sector in Europe

The European small ruminants (i.e. sheep and goats) farming sector (ESRS) provides economic, social and environmental benefits to society, but is also one of the most vulnerable livestock sectors in Europe. This sector has diverse livestock species, breeds, production systems and products, which makes difficult to have a clear vision of its challenges through using conventional analyses. A multi-stakeholder and multi-step approach, including 90 surveys, was used to identify and assess the main challenges for the sustainability of the ESRS to prioritize actions. These challenges and actions were identified by ESRS experts including farmers, cooperatives, breeding associations, advisers and researchers of six EU countries and Turkey. From the 30 identified challenges, the most relevant were economy-related challenges such as ‘uncertainty of meat and milk prices’, ‘volatility of commodity prices’, ‘low farm income’, ‘high subsidy dependency’ and ‘uncertainty in future changes in subsidies’ resulting in ‘a sector not attractive to young farmers’. Most of these challenges were beyond the farmer''s control and perceived as difficult to address. Challenges were prioritized using an index, calculated by multiplying the relevance and the feasibility to address measures. The identified challenges had a similar priority index across the whole sector with small differences across livestock species (sheep vs goats), type of products (meat vs dairy) and intensification levels (intensive vs semi-intensive vs extensive). The priorities were different, however, between socio-geographical regions (Southern vs Central Europe). Some of the top prioritized challenges were linked to aspects related to the production systems (‘low promotion of local breeds’ and ‘slow adaptability of high producing breeds’) and market practices (‘unfair trade/lack of traceability’). The majority of the priority challenges, however, were associated with a deficient knowledge or training at farm level (‘poor business management training’, ‘lack of professionalization’, ‘slow adoption of innovations’), academia (‘researchers do not address real problems’) and society as a whole (‘low consumer education in local products’, ‘low social knowledge about farming’, ‘poor recognition of farming public services’). Thus, improved collaboration among the different stakeholders across the food chain with special implication of farmers, associations of producers, academia and governments is needed to facilitate knowledge exchange and capacity building. These actions can contribute to make ESRS economically more sustainable and to adapt the production systems and policy to the current and future societal needs in a more region-contextualized framework

Effects of topography and basins on seismic wave amplification: the Northern Chile coastal cliff and intramountainous basins

During earthquakes, structural damage is often related to soil conditions. Following the 2014 April 1 Mw 8.1 Iquique earthquake in Northern Chile, damage to infrastructure was reported in the cities of Iquique and Alto Hospicio. In this study, we investigate the causes of site amplification in the region by numerically analysing the effects of topography and basins on observed waveforms in the frequency range 0.1–3.5 Hz using the spectral element method. We show that topography produces changes in the amplitude of the seismic waves (amplification factors up to 2.2 in the frequency range 0.1–3.5 Hz) recorded by stations located in steep areas such as the ca. 1-km-high coastal scarp, a remarkable geomorphological feature that runs north–south, that is parallel to the coast and the trench. The modelling also shows that secondary waves—probably related to reflections from the coastal scarp—propagate inland and offshore, augmenting the duration of the ground motion and the energy of the waveforms by up to a factor of three. Additionally, we find that, as expected, basins have a considerable effect on ground motion amplification at stations located within basins and in the surrounding areas. This can be attributed to the generation of multiple reflected waves in the basins, which increase both the amplitude and the duration of the ground motion, with an amplification factor of up to 3.9 for frequencies between 1.0 and 2.0 Hz. Comparisons between real and synthetic seismic waveforms accounting for the effects of topography and of basins show a good agreement in the frequency range between 0.1 and 0.5 Hz. However, for higher frequencies, the fit progressively deteriorates, especially for stations located in or near to areas of steep topography, basin areas, or sites with superficial soft sediments. The poor data misfit at high frequencies is most likely due to the effects of shallow, small-scale 3-D velocity heterogeneity, which is not yet resolved in seismic images of our study region

Respuesta del balance simpático-parasimpático de la variabilidad de la frecuencia cardíaca durante una semana de entrenamiento aeróbico en ciclistas de ruta

ResumenObjetivoDescribir la respuesta del balance simpático-parasimpático después una semana de entrenamiento de volumen aeróbico en ciclistas de ruta.MétodosEl estudio fue basado en un diseño transversal no experimental. Una muestra no aleatoria de cinco ciclistas hombres. Todos participan en la categoría «Todo Competidor» del circuito nacional (27.0±1.9 años, 170.0±6.6cm, 66.0±4.3kg). Los sujetos fueron evaluados durante seis días con un entrenamiento aeróbico (108.4±49.5km por día). Cada día se les midió el balance autonómico a través del cociente baja frecuencia/alta frecuencia, en reposo e inmediatamente posterior al entrenamiento.ResultadosLos valores del intervalo RR (1205.9±35.2–993.7±61.2 basal y postentrenamiento respectivamente) muestran diferencia significativa (p<0.05). Los valores del cociente baja frecuencia/alta frecuencia (0.861±0.090-3.067±0.590 basal y postentrenamiento respectivamente) reflejan que existe una activación del balance autonómico inmediatamente terminado el entrenamiento (p<0.05). La potencia de la HF del balance autonómico (2567±697-926±367 basal y postentrenamiento respectivamente) refleja una disminución significativa apenas termina el entrenamiento y comienza la recuperación (p<0.05).ConclusionesLos resultados de este estudio muestran un aumento significativo en la respuesta del balance autonómico del cociente baja frecuencia/alta frecuencia posterior al entrenamiento. Además, una disminución significativa de la potencia de la banda de alta frecuencia durante la recuperación que puede implicar aumento de la actividad de la respuesta parasimpática. Estos cambios podrían ayudar al control y diseño de programas de entrenamiento de forma individualizada para el ciclismo en ruta, además de ser una herramienta barata y no invasiva.AbstractObjectiveTo describe the response of the sympathetic-parasympathetic balance after a week of aerobic training volume in road cyclists.MethodsThe study was based on a non experimental transectional design. A non-random sample of five cyclists men. All participates in category “All competitors” of the national circuit (27.0±1.9 years, 170.0±6.6cm, 66.0±4.3kg). Subjects were evaluated for six days with aerobic training (108.4±49.5km per day). Each day the autonomic balance through the ratio LF/HF was measured, at rest and immediately after training.ResultsMean values of RR (1205.9±35.2 to 993.7±61.2 at baseline and post-training respectively) interval show significant difference (p<0.05). The values of the ratio Low Frequency/High Frequency (0.861±0.090 to 3.067±0.59 at baseline and post-training respectively) show that there is an activation of the autonomic balance immediately completed the training (p<0.05). The High Frequency power of autonomic balance (2567±697 to 926±367 at baseline and post-training respectively), shows a significant decline straight after training and start recovery (p<0.05).ConclusionsThe results of this study show a significant increase in the response of the autonomic balance of the ratio Low Frequency/High Frequency after training. Furthermore, a significant decrease in power of the High Frequency band during recovery may involve and increased activity of the parasympathetic response. These changes can help to the control and design of individual training programs for road cycling as well as being an inexpensive and non-invasive tool

Shock Transmission and Coupling with External Stock Markets: Assymetric Effects and Structural Break

In this article, we analyze the effects of shock transmissions from selected advanced financial markets—Tokyo, New York, Paris and Frankfurt— to Santiago de Chile and Sao Paulo (Bovespa) as a control. This research focuses on the recent financial crises of 2007 and 2008 where the transmission flowed from the developed world towards emerging markets, such as Chile. Our analysis incorporates the transmission effects in mean, variance and covariance. For the mean equation, we implemented a non-restricted VAR model. For the variance component, we modeled a specification with asymmetric effects. The covariance and correlation effects are estimated using a conditional dynamic asymmetric model based on the dynamic conditional correlation model of Engle, testing for the possibility of long run structural breaks in correlations between financial markets. We found strong evidence of structural breaks increasing correlations during the recent financial crisis. Our results are consistent with international evidence.

Estudio comparativo de la composición química del aceite esencial de Calycolpus moritzianus (Myrtaceae) proveniente de cinco regiones de Norte de Santander.Colombia

Los Aceites Esenciales (AEs) fueron obtenidos a partir de hojas de la especie Calycolpus moritzianus, recolectada en cinco                  egiones del departamento Norte de Santander: Chinácota, Ocaña, Pamplonita, Salazar y Toledo, por el método Destilación-Extracción con Solvente Simultánea (DES). El análisis cualitativo de los constituyentes volátiles mayoritarios    del AE, se realizó por la técnica de Cromatografía de Gases de Alta Resolución (CGAR), utilizando el Detector de Ionización de Llama (FID) y el Detector Selectivo de Masas (MSD). Se logró la identificación de treinta y dos (32) compuestos, destacándose por su abundancia el Limoneno (17-38%), el 1,8-Cineol o Eucaliptol (12- 43.3%),el α-Pineno (2.3-5.6%), el β-Cariofileno (0.1-8.9%), α-Terpineol (0.2-5.5%) y el Guaiol (0.3- 20.2%), los cuales varían su concentración relativa según la región de procedencia. El análisis cuantitativo de los componentes volátiles mayoritarios se realizó empleando la técnica de normalización, estandarización externa e interna y finalmente, con los datos obtenidos se efectuó el respectivo análisis estadístico de los componentes principales (PCA)

Multiferroic behavior in the new double-perovskite Lu2_2MnCoO6_6

We present a new member of the multiferroic oxides, Lu$_2$MnCoO$_6$, which we have investigated using X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, specific heat, magnetization, electric polarization, and dielectric constant measurements. This material possesses an electric polarization strongly coupled to a net magnetization below 35 K, despite the antiferromagnetic ordering of the $S = 3/2$ Mn$^{4+}$ and Co$^{2+}$ spins in an $\uparrow \uparrow \downarrow \downarrow$ configuration along the c-direction. We discuss the magnetic order in terms of a condensation of domain boundaries between $\uparrow \uparrow$ and $\downarrow \downarrow$ ferromagnetic domains, with each domain boundary producing a net electric polarization due to spatial inversion symmetry breaking. In an applied magnetic field the domain boundaries slide, controlling the size of the net magnetization, electric polarization, and magnetoelectric coupling