The Marketisation and Privatisation of Education through the EU’s “New Generation” Free Trade Agreements? A Case Study of the Possible Consequences of Including Education into the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership

Significant positive and negative consequences across the entire spectrum of issues are expected from the much debated Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). This study investigates thoroughly the potential consequences for the education sector based on primary sources of the EU’s objectives and reflections for the TTIP negotiations. It approaches the possible consequences from the perspective of normative legitimacy and in particular how accountability standards differ significantly between the public and private sectors. In the education case the different accountability standards have critical implications for the universal provision of quality education. The study shows that at this still rather early stage of the negotiations on services in TTIP the EU generally continues the approach adopted since the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) with the inclusion of privately funded education services. This causes uncertainty as to how the concepts of respectively public and private education will be interpreted with potentially critical consequences of gradual but constantly increasing levels of marketisation and privatisation. Ultimately, the very public nature of education could be at stake. Importantly, the new disciplines and rules intended to be included in TTIP will considerably deepen and extend the scope of how education may be impacted via its possible inclusion in TTIP

Perus Sandhedskommission En undersøgelse af sammenhængen mellem implementering af sandhedskommissionens anbefalinger og processen for retfærdighed, forsoning og demokratisering i forbindelse med en sandhedskommission

Sandhedskommissioner er blevet populære mekanismer for postkonfliktfyldte samfund til at gøre op med voldsomme konflikter. I Peru valgtes også denne metode for at bearbejde den 20 år lange konflikt. Ved at analysere det peruanske tilfælde vil jeg undersøge sammenhængen mellem implementeringen af sandhedskommissionens institutionsanbefalinger og sandhedskommissionens mål. Til at analysere den peruanske konflikt og politiske kontekst har jeg anvendt mig af dels postkolonial/poststrukturel teori, som betoner hvordan koloniale tankesæt lever videre og er afgørende for udviklingen i de såkaldte "postkoloniale" samfund. I den peruanske sandhedskommissionsrapport konkluderes at, af de ca. 70.000 dræbte og forsvundne i konflikten, tilhører majoriteten marginaliserede etniske dele af det peruanske samfund. Og dels benytter jeg mig af procesteori til at analysere sandhedskommissionens mål af retfærdighed, forsoning og demokrati. Min konklusion ud fra det peruanske tilfælde er, at implementeringen af sandhedskommissionens anbefalinger er helt nødvendig for at skabe en proces for retfærdighed, forsoning og demokratisering

The Postprandial Glycaemic and Hormonal Responses Following the Ingestion of a Novel, Ready-to-Drink Shot Containing a Low Dose of Whey Protein in Centrally Obese and Lean Adult Males: A Randomised Controlled Trial

Purpose: Elevated postprandial glycaemia [PPG] increases the risk of cardiometabolic complications in insulin-resistant, centrally obese individuals. Therefore, strategies that improve PPG are of importance for this population. Consuming large doses of whey protein [WP] before meals reduces PPG by delaying gastric emptying and stimulating the secretion of the incretin peptides, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide [GIP] and glucagon-like peptide 1 [GLP-1]. It is unclear if these effects are observed after smaller amounts of WP and what impact central adiposity has on these gastrointestinal processes. Methods: In a randomised-crossover design, 12 lean and 12 centrally obese adult males performed two 240 min mixed-meal tests, ~5–10 d apart. After an overnight fast, participants consumed a novel, ready-to-drink WP shot (15 g) or volume-matched water (100 ml; PLA) 10 min before a mixed-nutrient meal. Gastric emptying was estimated by oral acetaminophen absorbance. Interval blood samples were collected to measure glucose, insulin, GIP, GLP-1, and acetaminophen. Results: WP reduced PPG area under the curve [AUC0–60] by 13 and 18.2% in the centrally obese and lean cohorts, respectively (both p <0.001). In both groups, the reduction in PPG was accompanied by a two-three-fold increase in GLP-1 and delayed gastric emptying. Despite similar GLP-1 responses during PLA, GLP-1 secretion during the WP trial was ~27% lower in centrally obese individuals compared to lean (p = 0.001). In lean participants, WP increased the GLP-1ACTIVE/TOTAL ratio comparative to PLA (p = 0.004), indicative of reduced GLP-1 degradation. Conversely, no treatment effects for GLP-1ACTIVE/TOTAL were seen in obese subjects. Conclusion: Pre-meal ingestion of a novel, ready-to-drink WP shot containing just 15 g of dietary protein reduced PPG in lean and centrally obese males. However, an attenuated GLP-1 response to mealtime WP and increased incretin degradation might impact the efficacy of nutritional strategies utilising the actions of GLP-1 to regulate PPG in centrally obese populations. Whether these defects are caused by an individual’s insulin resistance, their obese state, or other obesity-related ailments needs further investigation. Clinical Trial Registration: ISRCTN.com, identifier [ISRCTN95281775]. https://www. isrctn.com/

Inorganic molecular sieves: Preparation, modification and industrial application in catalytic processes

[EN] The increasing environmental concern and promotion of “green processes” are forcing the substitution of traditional acid and base homogeneous catalysts by solid ones. Among these heterogeneous catalysts, zeolites and zeotypes can be considered as real “green” catalysts, due to their benign nature from an environmental point of view. The importance of these inorganic molecular sieves within the field of heterogeneous catalysis relies not only on their microporous structure and the related shape selectivity, but also on the flexibility of their chemical composition. Modification of the zeolite framework composition results in materials with acidic, basic or redox properties, whereas multifunctional catalysts can be obtained by introducing metals by ion exchange or impregnation procedures, that can catalyze hydrogenation–dehydrogenation reactions, and the number of commercial applications of zeolite based catalysts is continuously expanding. In this review we discuss determinant issues for the development of zeolite based catalysts, going from zeolite catalyst preparation up to their industrial application. Concerning the synthesis of microporous materials we present some of the new trends moving into larger pore structures or into organic free synthesis media procedures, thanks to the incorporation of novel organic templates or alternative framework elements, and to the use of high-throughput synthesis methods. Post-synthesis zeolite modification and final catalyst conformation for industrial use are briefly discussed. In a last section we give a thorough overview on the application of zeolites in industrial processes. Some of them are well established mature technologies, such as fluid catalytic cracking, hydrocracking or aromatics alkylation. Although the number of zeolite structures commercially used as heterogeneous catalysts in these fields is limited, the development of new catalysts is a continuous challenge due to the need for processing heavier feeds or for increasing the quality of the products. The application of zeolite based catalysts in the production of chemicals and fine chemicals is an emerging field, and will greatly depend on the discovery of new or known structures by alternative, lower cost, synthesis routes, and the fine tuning of their textural properties. Finally, biomass conversion and selective catalytic reduction for conversion of NOx are two active research fields, highlighting the interest in these potential industrial applications.The authors acknowledge financial support from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (project Consolider-Ingenio 2010 MULTICAT).Martínez Sánchez, MC.; Corma Canós, A. (2011). Inorganic molecular sieves: Preparation, modification and industrial application in catalytic processes. Coordination Chemistry Reviews. 255(13-14):1558-1580. doi:10.1016/j.ccr.2011.03.014S1558158025513-1

Fundamental equilibrium exchange rate: a case study of the Finnish Markka

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the Fundamental Equilibrium Exchange Rate (FEER) for the Finnish economy and to derive a relationship between the current account and the real exchange rate in the macroeconomic equilibrium.FEER is defined as the real exchange rate which delivers a sustainable current account balance when the economy is growing at its equilibrium (non-inflationary) rate.The results emphasize the effects of the collapse of the Finnish-Soviet trade in 1991 on both the equilibrium rate of output and the equilibrium exchange rate.The assessment of the exchange rate situation prevailing in late 1994 points to the conclusion that there may be emerging conflicts in Finland between the targets of external and internal balance, unless structural reforms or the recovery of the international economy move the fundamentals from their present position

Incidence and Survival of Patients with Small Intestinal Neuroendocrine Tumours in a Danish NET Center

Introduction. Small intestinal neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) have increased in incidence during the past decades. In recent years, new promising treatment modalities have been introduced. The aim of the present study was to characterize and compare patients with small intestinal NET seen in the periods 1994–2003 (group 1) and 2004–2011 (group 2) to demonstrate changes in incidence and survival in the two time periods. Patients and Methods. There were 52 NET patients in group 1 and 109 patients in group 2. Results. The incidence of small intestinal NET was 0.3/100.000/year in period 1 and 0.7/100.000/year in period 2. There was no difference in median chromogranin A levels (8709 versus 2381 pmol/L, P=0.107), presence of liver metastases (56% versus 44%), clinical symptoms (flushing/diarrhea), or Ki67 index (2% versus 2%), between the two time periods. The 5-year survival rate in the two time periods was similar, 64.7%, and 77.0%, respectively, (P=0.23). Conclusion. We observed an increase in the incidence of small intestinal NET during the period from January 1994 to December 2011, but we were not able to demonstrate an improved survival during the same time period

Quantifying frequency containment reserve using cross-entropy frequency-constrained contingency-state-analysis model

With the increasing penetration of converter-interfaced generators, the frequency containment reserve (FCR) from conventional generators keeps going down, leading to a potential risk of frequency instability under contingencies. Consequently, Converter-interfaced generators are required to provide FCR and participate in the corrective rescheduling. Nevertheless, how to assess the FCR and quantify the adequacy of FCR under contingencies is a big challenge in modern new power system. To address this challenge, a cross-entropy-based frequency-constrained contingency-state-analysis (FC-CSA) model is proposed in this paper. Notably, both frequency control (FC) of units (i.e., conventional synchronous generators and converter-interfaced generators), and under frequency load shedding (UFLS) are incorporated in the primary frequency response. Then a unified system frequency response (SFR) function representing frequency dynamic is derived. This SFR function is extracted and reformulated as a group of mixed-integer linear constraints and participates in the traditional CSA model. Moreover, a set of frequency dynamic indexes, i.e., Expectation of UFLS risk, Expectation of FCR from conventional and converter-interfaced generators, is extended to depict the FCR that the power system requires. These indexes are calculated by the FC-CSA in a cross-entropy-based monte carlo simulation (CE-MCs). Case studies on a modified IEEE 6-bus test system and IEEE 118-bus test system are carried out to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed FC-CSA model.</p