Determinants of credit risk: a multiple linear regression analysis of Peruvian municipal savings banks

In order to identify the determinants that influence the credit risk of Peruvian municipal savings banks, this quantitative research uses a nonexperimental design and a longitudinal sample to analyze monthly data corresponding to macroeconomic variables and microfinance institutions? internal variables from 2011 to 2020. Using multiple linear regression, the results show that the interest rate, unemployment rate, and liquidity ratio positively influence the credit risk of Peruvian municipal savings banks; the study also shows that gross domestic product, efficiency of administrative expenses, solvency, and coverage of provisions exert a negative influence on credit risk. It is concluded that seven of the eight independent variables studied influence the credit risk of Peruvian municipal savings banks; only the inflation variable does not significantly influence credit risk

Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph Observations of Magellanic Cloud Planetary Nebulae: the nature of dust in low metallicity circumstellar ejecta

We present 5 - 40 micron spectroscopy of 41 planetary nebulae (PNe) in the Magellanic Clouds, observed with the Infrared Spectrograph on board the Spitzer Space Telescope. The spectra show the presence of a combination of nebular emission lines and solid-state features from dust, superimposed on the thermal IR continuum. By analyzing the 25 LMC and 16 SMC PNe in our sample we found that the IR spectra of 14 LMC and 4 SMC PNe are dominated by nebular emission lines, while the other spectra show solid-state features. We observed that the solid-state features are compatible with carbon-rich dust grains (SiC, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), etc.) in most cases, except in three PNe showing oxygen-rich dust features. The frequency of carbonaceous dust features is generally higher in LMC than in SMC PNe. The spectral analysis allowed the correlations of the dust characteristics with the gas composition and morphology, and the properties of the central stars. We found that: 1) all PNe with carbonaceous dust features have C/O>1, none of these being bipolar or otherwise highly asymmetric; 2) all PNe with oxygen-rich dust features have C/O<1, with probable high mass progenitors if derived from single-star evolution (these PNe are either bipolar or highly asymmetric); 3) the dust temperature tracks the nebular and stellar evolution; and 4) the dust production efficiency depends on metallicity, with low metallicity environments not favoring dust production.Comment: The Astrophysical Journal, in pres

Peru-China international trade and its effect on inclusive economic growth in Peru 2000-2019

From 2000 to 2019, trade between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Peru grew at an average annual rate of 22%, however, income and wealth inequality in Peru remained the same. The aim of this study is to understand the effect of trade between Peru and China on the inclusive economic growth of Peru from 2000 to 2019. The method used was the correlation of variables, and a linear regression between Peru and China trade and several indicators of inclusive economic growth in the Peruvian economy was performed using the Ordinary Least Squares model. The results suggest that there is sufficient statistical evidence to support that inclusive economic growth may depend on increased trade between Peru and China; the study show that if trade growth between Peru and China fluctuates by $1 million per year, labor income will increase by$10.3 per capita in the Economically Active Population (EAP). Moreover, for every 1% increase in trade between Peru and China, GDP per capita increases by 0.1057% and labor productivity increases by 0.0681740%. The variables poverty, vulnerable employment, GINI index and life expectancy at birth were not significant factors

Estudio del efecto del tamaño en la estructura cristalina de nanopartículas de CoFe2O4

Se estudió como afecta el tamaño de nanopartículas de ferrita de cobalto en el desorden cristalino por efecto de superficie. Las nanopartículas se obtuvieron por el método de coprecipitación de sales. Para controlar el tamaño realizaron diferentes tratamientos térmicos posteriores a la síntesis. La estructura cristalina y la morfología se evaluaron por medio de Difracción de rayos-X y Microscopía Electrónica de Transmisión de Alta Resolución. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran en forma cuantitativa, cómo la variación en la relación superficie/volumen es responsable de las deformaciones presentes en las nanoestructuras.Fil: Menchaca Nal, Sandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; ArgentinaFil: Londoño Calderon, Cesar Leandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; ArgentinaFil: Pardo Saavedra, D. C.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Pampillo, L. G.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Socolovsky, Leandro Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Martinez Garcia, Ricardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; Argentin

Morfological study of pore widening process in anodized alumina films

Se estudiaron las características morfológicas del proceso de ensanchamiento de poros en películas de alúmina (Al2O3) nanoporosa. El montaje experimental involucra un set-up de bajo costo que utiliza aluminio comercial. El procedimiento comprende una serie de pretratamientos, un proceso de doble anodizado, y finaliza con la inmersión de la nanoestructura porosa inicialmente fabricada, en una solución acuosa de ácido sulfúrico durante diferentes intervalos de tiempo, que conduce a un ensanchamiento de poros. Se estudió la morfología de las muestras obtenidas por microscopia electrónica de barrido, y sus principales propiedades (tamaño, distribución de tamaño de poros, circularidad y porosidad) se evaluaron en función del tiempo de ensanchamiento. Los resultados obtenidos sugieren una dependencia de la morfología con el tiempo de exposición de las nanoestructuras fabricadas. Estos resultados abren la posibilidad de fabricar nanoporos con propiedades ajustables y de bajo costo.We studied the morphological characteristics of the process of widening of pores in films of nanoporous alumina (Al2O3). The experimental setup involves a set-up that uses low cost commercial aluminum. The process comprises a series of pre-treatments, a double anodizing process, and ends with the immersion of the porous nanostructure (originally manufactured) in an aqueous solution of sulfuric acid, for different time intervals (pore widening). The morphology of the obtained samples was studied by scanning electron microscopy, and its main properties (size, pore size distribution, roundness and porosity) were evaluated as a function of the widening time. The results suggest a dependency of the exposure time with the morphology of the nanostructures fabricated. These results open the possibility of fabricating nanopores with adjustable properties and in an inexpensive way.Fil: Pardo Saavedra, D. C.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingenieria. Departamento de Fisica. Laboratorio de Sólidos Amorfos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Londoño Calderon, Cesar Leandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; Argentina; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Menchaca Nal, Sandra. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; Argentina; ArgentinaFil: Pampillo, Laura Gabriela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingenieria. Departamento de Fisica. Laboratorio de Sólidos Amorfos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Martinez Garcia, Ricardo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologia En Polimeros y Nanotecnologia; Argentina; ArgentinaFil: Socolovsky, Leandro Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Tecnologías y Ciencias de la Ingeniería; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ingenieria. Departamento de Fisica. Laboratorio de Sólidos Amorfos; Argentin

Treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism does not affect bone mass as determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, peripheral quantitative computed tomography and quantitative bone ultrasound in Spanish women.

INTRODUCTION: The results of studies examining the influence of subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) and levothyroxine (L-T4) replacement therapy on bone have generated considerable interest but also controversy. The present research aims to evaluate the effects of L-T4 treatment on different skeletal sites in women. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A group of 45 premenopausal (mean age: 43.62 ±6.65 years) and 180 postmenopausal (mean age: 59.51 ±7.90 years) women with SCH who were undergoing L-T4 replacement therapy for at least 6 months were compared to 58 pre- and 180 postmenopausal women with SCH (untreated) matched for age. The mean doses of L-T4 were 90.88 ±42.59 µg/day in the premenopausal women and 86.35 ±34.11 µg/day in the postmenopausal women. Bone measurements were obtained using quantitative bone ultrasound (QUS) for the phalanx, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for the lumbar spine and hip, and peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) for the non-dominant distal forearm. RESULTS: No differences were observed between patients and untreated controls in these bone measurements except in the bone mineral density (BMD) of the spine (p = 0.0214) in postmenopausal women, which was greater in treated women than in untreated controls. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that adequate metabolic control through replacement treatment with L-T4 in pre- and postmenopausal women does not affect bone mass

Determinación de residuos de paraquat en lechuga y repollo cultivados en Lepaterique mediante HPLC-DAD

Determination of residues of the herbicide paraquat in lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and cabbage (Brassica oleracea) produced in the community of La Brea, Lepaterique and marketed in the city of Tegucigalpa was carried out in October and November of 2017, through the application of high performance liquid chromatography with detector of diode array (HPLC-DAD) in less than 6 minutes, with a reverse phase separation mechanism using a C18 surface porous column and a mixture of 0.1 M orthophosphoric acid (pH 3.0) with acetonitrile in proportion of 3:1 as mobile phase. The method is based on extraction with an ultrasonic bath using water as an extractive solvent and the subsequent application of solid phase extraction (SPE) with weak ion exchange (WCX) sorbent. The different parameters of the extraction (extractor solvent, sonication time, cleaning solvent and elution solvent) were evaluated to optimize the efficiencyof the extraction process. Validation of the method was carried out by fortifying samples at 0.05 and 1mg Kg-1, with three replicates (n = 3) for each concentration, determining linearity, accuracy (expressed as percent recovery), detection limits (LOD) and quantification (LOQ). The limit of detection of the method was 0.025 mg Kg-1, which is below the maximum residue limit (MRL) established by the Codex Alimentarius (0.07 mg Kg-1) for leafy vegetables. The acquired samples were analyzed following the validated method, without finding paraquat residues in a total of 10 samples of each vegetable.La determinación de residuos del herbicida paraquat en lechuga (Lactuca sativa) y repollo (Brassica oleracea) producidos en la comunidad de La Brea, Lepaterique y comercializados en la ciudad de Tegucigalpa fue llevada a cabo en los meses de octubre y noviembre de 2017, mediante la aplicación de cromatografía líquida de elevada resolución con detector de arreglo de diodos (HPLC-DAD) en menos de 6 minutos, con un mecanismo de separación de fase reversa empleando una columna superficialmente porosa C18 y una mezcla de ácido orto fosfórico al 0.1 M (pH 3,0) con acetonitrilo en proporción de 3:1 como fase móvil. El método se basa en la extracción con baño ultrasónico utilizando agua como solvente extractor y la subsecuente aplicación de la extracción en fase sólido (SPE) con sorbente de intercambio iónico débil (WCX). Los diferentes parámetros de la extracción (solvente extractor, tiempo de sonicación, solvente de limpieza y solvente de elución) fueron evaluados para optimizar la eficiencia del proceso de extracción. La validación del método fue llevada a cabo mediante la fortificación de muestras a 0.05 y 1mg Kg-1, con tres replicas (n=3) para cada concentración, determinando la linealidad, exactitud (expresada como porcentaje de recuperación), límites de detección (LOD) y cuantificación (LOQ). El límite de detección del método fue de 0.025 mg Kg-1, el cual se encuentra por debajo del límite máximo de residuo (MRL) que establece el Codex Alimentarius (0.07 mg Kg-1) para vegetales de hoja. Las muestras adquiridas fueron analizadas siguiendo el método validado, sin encontrar residuos de paraquat en un total de 10 muestras de cada vegetal

A search for substellar members in the Praesepe and sigma Orionis clusters

(Abridged). We have conducted deep photometric searches for substellar members of the Praesepe (0.5-1 Gyr) and sigma Orionis (3 Myr) star clusters using the Sloan i' and z' filters, the 3.5-m and the 5-m Hale telescopes on the Calar Alto and Palomar Observatories, respectively. The total area surveyed was 1177 arcmin^2 (Praesepe) and 1122 arcmin^2 (sigma Orionis) down to 5-sigma detection limits of i'= 24.5 and z'= 24 mag, corresponding to masses of 50-55 M_Jup (Praesepe) and 6 M_Jup (sigma Orionis). Besides recovering previously known cluster members reported in the literature, we have identified new photometric candidates in both clusters whose masses expand the full range covered by our study. In sigma Orionis, follow-up NIR photometry has allowed us to confirm the likely cluster membership of three newly discovered planetary-mass objects. The substellar mass function of sigma Orionis, which is complete from the star-brown dwarf borderline down to 7 M_Jup, keeps rising smoothly with a slope of alpha = 0.6^{+0.5}_{-0.1}. Very interestingly, one of the faintest Praesepe candidates for which we have also obtained follow-up JHK photometry nicely fits the expected optical and infrared photometric sequence of the cluster. From its colors, we have estimated its spectral type in the L4-L6 range. If confirmed as a true Praesepe member, it would become the first L-type brown dwarf (50-60 M_Jup) identified in an intermediate-age star cluster. Our derivation of the Praesepe mass function depends strongly on the cluster age. For the youngest possible ages (500-700 Myr), our results suggest that there is a deficit of Praesepe brown dwarfs in the central regions of the cluster, while the similarity between the Praesepe and sigma Orionis mass functions increases qualitatively for models older than 800 Myr.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A. Figures 1, 7, and 9-12 are available in jpeg forma

Cancer Survivors\u27 Self-Efficacy and Spirituality Outcomes Following a Holistic Integrative Intervention

Cancer treatments often negatively impact health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) for cancer survivors (CS), ignoring the multi-dimensional nature of the human experience of cancer and its impact on mental and spiritual domains. A holistic integrative approach was implemented on a heterogenous population of cancer survivors during the COVID epidemic with the goal of improving their overall well-being by looking beyond physical functioning. PURPOSE: To examine the relationship between spirituality and self-efficacy of cancer survivors of all types of cancer following a holistic intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Subjects were recruited via network partners and self-referral. Subjects were eligible to participate if they were cancer survivors of any type at any stage of cancer treatment; subjects were ineligible to participate if they presented with any absolute contraindications to exercise testing as per ACSM guidelines. For 16 weeks, subjects were asked to participate in three 75-minute sessions of therapeutic yoga-based with loving kindness meditation per week. Psychosocial support text messages were sent daily to subjects based on their motivational state to encourage participation in these health enhancing behaviors. Data was collected through numerous channels including BlueJay Mobile Telehealth medicine application. RESULTS: A total of 29 survivors provided informed consent. The average age of the subjects was 58.9 years, 25 female survivors and 4 male survivors; 11 of the 29 self-reported as Latino/ Hispanic. The 29 subjects were survivors of the following primary cancers: breast cancer (n=21), cervical cancer (n=2), ovarian cancer (n=1), prostate cancer (n=1), sarcoma (n=1), lymphoma (n=1), thyroid cancer (n=1), or leukemia (n=1). There is a positive association between how confident a cancer survivor feels towards performing exercise in various situations and the amount of social support they receive from their family (p\u3c.001) and friends (p\u3c.001). The individual’s confidence to overcome the obstacle to exercise and their level of hope are associated with the support they receive from loved ones. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that to improve exercise behavior in adult cancer survivors, one should incorporate social support to strengthen barriers self-efficacy to improve outcome expectations. To further understand these associations, longitudinal research is needed and should include more survivors