Historical background of the factors of attribution of civil liability, starting with Napoleon's Civil Code of 1804 and its reception in the Colombian Civil Code of 1873. The special case of the objective regime for hazardous activities

Gaius' inclusion of the figure of quasi-crime had a great impact on the subsequent conception of the glosadors and the natural law regarding civil liability; the difficulties in differentiating this figure from crime contributed to the subjective conception of responsibility, embodied in Napoleon's Civil Code. French doctrine and jurisprudence created an objective liability factor based on the risk of the fact of things. This did not happen in the same way in Colombia; Don Andrés Bello's code was not a copy of the French Code, its author took into account other sources and did not incorporate into the code a general rule of responsibility for the fact of things. In light of the historical account of the receipt of the factors for attribution of civil liability, it is impossible in Colombia to support the theory of risk in article 2356 CC col

La compétence organisationnelle chez Cuisines Laurier

Les entreprises s’inscrivent dans un espace-temps caractérisé par une concurrence qui croît en étendue et en vitesse, ce qui exacerbe la pression sur les dirigeants et les employés. Pour assurer la persistance de leur entreprise, ces derniers doivent élever sans cesse sa capacité de réussir, sa compétence organisationnelle. Les chercheurs qui s’intéressent au monde des entreprises n’ont pas manqué de le noter et ont élaboré différentes conceptions de cette compétence ou de phénomènes qui lui sont associés, comme l’apprentissage organisationnel, les capacités organisationnelles ou les capacités dynamiques d’une organisation. Comment les membres d’une organisation s’y prennent-ils pour en assurer la compétence? Voilà la question à laquelle je tente de répondre à mon tour. Je fais d’abord un examen critique de travaux liés à cette question, puis je propose un cadre conceptuel prenant appui en partie sur la théorie de la structuration et sur les concepts de communauté de praticiens et d’apprentissage expérientiel. Suit un cadre opératoire dans lequel je justifie le choix d’une étude de cas, je caractérise l’entreprise étudiée, une manufacture d’armoires de cuisine et de vanités de salle de bain, et j’indique comment je m’y suis pris pour récolter les matériaux pendant un séjour de près de six mois dans cette entreprise, et comment j’ai exploité ces matériaux. Que ce soit dans leurs activités de tous les jours ou face à des situations nouvelles, les dirigeants et employés de l’entreprise, parfois de façon individuelle mais plus souvent de façon collective, mobilisent différentes propriétés structurelles de l’entreprise et, chaque fois qu’ils le jugent utile, n’hésitent pas à modifier ou à abandonner certaines d’entre elles, ou à en créer de nouvelles afin d’élever leur capacité d’atteindre les objectifs qu’ils se fixent, notamment en ce qui a trait à la qualité des rapports humains, au climat de travail, au volume de production, à sa qualité, à la productivité ou au rendement financier. Cette entreprise réussit en mobilisant ses membres, en favorisant l’expérimentation, l’apprentissage et la production de connaissances nouvelles qu’elle intègre ensuite dans ses protocoles et ses routines, créant un cycle qui élève sans cesse son niveau de compétence.Businesses today exist in an environment characterized by endlessly expanding competition, the speed and scope of which are increasing the pressure on both managers and employees. In order to guarantee their long term existence, businesses must continually strive to improve their capacity for success and their organizational competence. Researchers interested in the business world have not failed to notice this and have elaborated different conceptions of this competence or its related phenomena such as organizational learning, organizational capabilities or the dynamic capabilities of an organization. How do the members of an organization go about ensuring the competence of their organization? This is the question I am trying to answer. First, I will make a critical examination of the existing research linked to this question. Then, I will propose a conceptual framework partly based on structuration theory and on the concepts of community of practice and experiential learning. An operational framework will follow in which I justify the choice of a case study, characterize the firm studied, a manufacturer of kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, indicate how I came to gather materials during a stay of close to six months in this business, and how I exploited these materials. Whether in their daily activities or when facing new situations, managers and employees of the firm, sometimes in an individual manner but most often in a collective manner, will mobilize different structural properties of the firm. When considered useful, they will not hesitate to modify or abandon any of these structural properties or create new ones in order to increase their capabilities of achieving their objectives, particularly in matters concerning human relations, the work climate, production output and quality, productivity and financial returns. This firm succeeds in mobilizing its members, in encouraging experimentation, learning and production of new knowledge which is integrated into its protocols and routines, thus creating a cycle that constantly increases its level of competence

Apuntes sobre la economía informal: caso Medellín, primera parte

La economía informal tiene tantos desarrollos conceptuales que apuntan a su definición como nombres se han tomado para llamarle. La medición del fenómeno también carece de homogeneidad metodológica; se presentan, además, críticas a los métodos utilizados según sus características. Los estudios realizados, aun los mas actuales, si bien han avanzado en el tratamiento conceptualdel fenómeno, carecen de revisión empírica, ya que someten sus criterios a metodologías descriptivas del fenómeno o utilizan, para el caso de su medición, datos derivados de las cuentas o estadísticas nacionales realizadas por entes gubernamentales, que si bien son organismos especializados paraesto, desprenden sus estudios de la cuantificación del fenómeno de encuestas realizadas para otros fines, razón por la cual carecen de metodologías específicas para cuantificarlo. El objetivo es, por tanto, derivar de la revisión de las metodologías empleadas para medir el fenómeno de laeconomía informal, la que garantice una medición precisa de la economía informal en el municipio de Medellín y realizar una descripción cualitativa de este fenómeno: Economía informal, informalidad, sector formal, sector informal, cuentasnacionales, mercado laboral

Release kinetics of multi-nutrients from volcanic rock mining by-products: evidences for their use as a soil remineralizer

Great quantities of stone by-products are stored alongside different exploiting mines in south Brazil, which are becoming an unsustainable environmental issue. Powder materials of andesite and dacite rocks were obtained from two mining companies of Southern Brazil. The particle size classification of the materials was determined by sieving. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique was used to identify the mineral phases of the by-products and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) was applied to determine their chemical compositions. The concentrations of calcium (Ca), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (P) and silicon (Si) released by the by-products were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). Dissolution rates of andesite and dacite rocks were measured in Milli-Q water, and in solutions of 0.1 mol L−1 citric acid, and Milli-Q water acidified with 0.5 mol L−1 acetic acid, as a function of reaction times at 24–96 h (short-term), and at 96–5760 h (long-term). The solutions were agitated continuously on a mechanical rotatory shaker at room temperature. The parabolic diffusion, simplified Elovich, and power function models were applied at both time slots of solid-solution reaction. The results indicated that the relationships of quantity of released multi-nutrients were well described by power equation: ln qt = ln a + b ln t. Dissolution rates were obtained based on the release of Ca, K, Mg, P and Si at a steady state under far from equilibrium conditions. Dissolution rates of both by-products were not affected, within the experimental uncertainty, by Milli-Q water. Although the by-products dissolution rates were unaffected by Milli-Q water, its rates are increased along the time. The dissolution of the by-products minerals was significantly affected by the pH of the solutions. The multi-elements release by both by-products in 0.1 mol L−1 citric acid solution was significantly larger than another solutions, indicating that exchangeable cations were readily available in citric acid solution. The results obtained from power function model in two reaction time intervals can contribute to estimate the multi-nutrients-supplying power of by-products to soil. The present study provides both to solving an environmental issue associated with Brazilian rock exploitation and to create an alternative for soil fertilization and a more sustainable agriculture

Mecanismos Internos de Gobierno Corporativo en Empresas Familiares

El propósito del presente artículo es contribuir con el análisis de las empresas familiares, debido a que, en los últimos años, se ha incrementado la cantidad de empresas de origen familiar, producto del surgimiento de nuevas necesidades que deben ser atendidas. Los estudios han demostrado que, si una empresa familiar quiere tener éxito en el tiempo, debe contar con una estructura de control y gestión centrada en los dos ámbitos (empresa y familia). De esto se desprende la importancia de implementar el Gobierno Corporativo (GC) a través de diferentes mecanismos. En ese sentido, se realizó una revisión de la literatura a través de una recopilación de fuentes bibliográficas relacionados con el tema a investigar para conocer la posición de los diferentes autores. En esta etapa, se identificó a la Junta General de Accionistas (JGA), al Directorio, al Equipo de Alta Administración (EAA), al Consejo Familiar, al Protocolo Familiar, a las Reuniones Familiares, a la Asamblea Familiar y al Comité de Auditoría como mecanismos del GC en empresas familiares. De acuerdo con la investigación, los autores coinciden en que los mecanismos más relevantes en el ámbito empresarial son el Directorio y el EAA. Estos se encargarán de realizar el control empresarial a través de la definición de los planes estratégicos a corto, mediano y largo plazo. A su vez, tomarán decisiones en beneficio de la familia empresaria. Por el lado familiar, se desarrollará el Consejo Familiar y el Protocolo Familiar, lo que permitirá velar por los intereses de la familia, mitigar los conflictos entre los miembros de esta y preservar la Unidad Familiar. En conclusión, el presente artículo trata de contribuir con la implementación de un modelo de Sistema de GC para empresas familiares de segunda generación.The purpose of this article is to contribute to the analysis of family businesses, because, in recent years, the number of family businesses has increased, as a result of the emergence of new needs that must be addressed. Studies have shown that if a family business wants to be successful over time, it must have a control and management structure focused on both areas (business and family). From this it is the importance of implementing Corporate Governance (CG) through different mechanisms. In this sense, a review of literature was carried out through a compilation of bibliographic sources related to the topic to be investigated in order to know the position of the different authors. At this stage, the General Shareholders' Meeting (GSM), Board of Directors, Senior Management Team (SMT), Family Council, Family Protocol, Family Meetings, Family Assembly and Audit Committee were identified as CG mechanisms in family businesses. According to the research, authors agree that the most relevant mechanisms in the business sphere are the Board of Directors and the SMT. These will be in charge of carrying out business control through the defining the short, medium and long-term strategic plans. In turn, they will make decisions for the benefit of the business family. On the family side, the Family Council and the Family Protocol will be developed, which will ensure the interests of the family, mitigate conflicts between members of the family and preserve the Family Unit. In summary, this article tries to contribute to the implementation of a model of a CG System for second-generation family businesses.Trabajo de Suficiencia Profesiona

Are children playgrounds safe play areas? Inorganic analysis and lead isotope ratios for contamination assessment in recreational (Brazilian) parks

In city playgrounds, there is a potential risk of harming children’s health by contamination coming from anthropogenic activities. With the aim to determinate the sources and the risk of hazardous elements, soil samples were collected in 19 selected playgrounds of different urban and rural areas from the Rio Grande do Sul state (Brazil). The concentration of 23 metals and metalloids and lead isotopic ratios were determined by ICP-MS. The methodology proposed here, firstly, classified the parks according to the average metal content by means of the NWACs (Normalized-and-Weighted Average Concentrations) and assess the contamination risk determining the Contamination Factors (CFs). Finally, statistical tools (correlation analysis and principal component analysis) were used to identify the most important contamination sources. The statistical tools used, together with lead isotopic composition analysis of the samples, revealed that coal combustion is the main source of contamination in the area. Vegetation was identified as a barrier for the contamination coming from the city. Nonetheless, some of the soils present a possible toxicological risk for humans. In fact, Cr, Sb, and Pb concentrations were higher than the Residential Intervention Values (VIRs) defined by the Environmental Protection Agency of the State of São Paulo, also in Brazil