Ichthyological ecoregions of Argentina

The Argentine Republic is situated in the southernmost portion of the American continent, occupying over 2,785,600 km2 not including the Antarctic territory. The country ranges from subtropical areas (21º46’S) to subantarctic regions (55º03’S), extending latitudinally over about 4,000 km. It possesses significant latitudinal and altitudinal variation (33º of latitudinal range, and heights from Bajo de San Julián in Santa Cruz province at 105 m below sea level, up to Mt. Aconcagua, 6,959 m over sea level), as well as two gradients of physical variability, extending in north-south and east-west directions. Owing to these features, the country presents a wide range of climates and soil types, being one of the countries with greatest diversity of biogeographical units (Lean et al., 1990, In: Bertonatti & Corcuera, 2000). There are four main hydrographic systems: Río de la Plata basin, the Atlantic and Pacific drainages, and several endorrheic systems. Within these basins, the ichthyofaunistic assemblage is well represented, with different magnitude in accordance with the different taxonomic groupings and regions considered. From an ichthyogeographic standpoint, and according to the works of Ringuelet (1975) and Arratia et al. (1983), Argentina is included in the Brasilic and Austral Subregions. The first of these is represented by two domains: the Andean Domain, comprising the southernmost portion of Titicaca Province, and the Paranensean Domain, including part of Alto Paraná and Paranoplatensean Provinces. The Austral Subregion is represented in Argentina by the Subandean-Cuyan and Patagonian Provinces. The present survey indicates that there are about 441 fish species in Argentina, distributed throughout the country; this number represents less than 10% of the total fish species occurring in the Neotropical Region. There is a recognizable trend of faunal impoverishment, both in North-South and East-West direction, reaching its maximum expression in the provinces of Tierra del Fuego (situated at approximately 52º30’S to 55ºS, and 65ºS to 68º50’W) and San Juan (approximately 28º50’S and 67ºW to 70º45’W), which have 4 and 5 fish species respectively. In north-south direction, one of the regional indicators of this phenomenon is the Salado river basin in Buenos Aires province, which constitutes the southern distributional boundary for the majority of the paranoplatensean ichthyofauna; 12 of the families occurring in the Paraná-Plata system are absent from this pauperized paranensean ichthyofaunal assemblage. Most of the continental fish fauna of Argentina belongs to the primary division of Myers (1949), while some elements are included in the secondary division and others in an amphibiotic or ‘marine penetration’ category. This ichthyofaunistic scope encompasses a wide range of morphological, biological, ecological and ethological types (benthic and pelagic, migrating and sedentary, haematophagous or parasites, annual species, inhabitants of plains or heights, estivation-adapted, etc.) inhabiting different regions within the national territory

Effectiveness of the National Program of Complementary Feeding for older adults in Chile on vitamin B12 status in older adults; secondary outcome analysis from the CENEX Study (ISRCTN48153354).

BACKGROUND: Older people are at increased risk of vitamin B12 deficiency and the provision of fortified foods may be an effective way to ensure good vitamin B12 status in later life. AIM: To evaluate the effectiveness of a vitamin B12 fortified food provided by a national program of complementary food for older people on plasma vitamin B12 levels. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A random sub-sample of 351 subjects aged 65-67 y from a large cluster randomised controlled trial provided blood samples at baseline and after 24 months of intervention. The intervention arm (10 clusters 186 participants) received a vitamin B12 fortified food designed to deliver 1.4 μg/day, while the control arm did not receive complementary food (10 clusters, 165 participants). Serum vitamin B12 and folate levels determined by radioimmunoassay were used to estimate the effect of intervention on vitamin B12 levels, adjusting for baseline levels and sex. RESULTS: Attrition at 24 months was 16.7% and 23.6% in the intervention and control arms respectively (p = 0.07). Over 24 months of intervention, mean (95% CI) serum vitamin B12 decreased from 392 (359-425) pmol/dL to 357 (300-414) pmol/dL (p < 0.07) in the intervention arm and from 395 (350-440) pmol/dL to 351 (308-395) pmol/dL in the control arm. There was no significant effect of the intervention on folate status. DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest that foods fortified with 1.4 μg/daily vitamin B12 as provided by Chile's national programme for older people are insufficient to ensure adequate vitamin B12 levels in this population. Chile has a long and successful experience with nutrition intervention programs; however, the country's changing demographic and nutritional profiles require a constant adjustment of the programs

La educación como derecho social básico ¿qué nos queda? : un análisis comparado de la política educativa argentina en los '90

Este trabajo se propone comparar el contenido dado por el Estado de Bienestar y el Estado neoliberal a un derecho social básico como es la educación, y en términos más generales a la categoría de ciudadanía. Esta comparación, creemos, será especialmente fértil ya que si bien nos acotaremos al estudio de una política especifica, ésta da cuenta de dos modelos antagónicos, no sólo de Estado, sino también de intervención social, de construcción de la ciudadanía y de distribución de ingresos. Tratamos, entonces, a las políticas educativas de estos modelos con el fin de contextualizarlas y realizar un balance de cada uno de estos momentos en lo que respecta a educación, ciudadanía y pérdida de capacidad de ejercicio real de algunos de nuestros derechos y/o desentendimiento por parte del Estado para garantizarlos.This paper we intend to compare the contents given to a social right such as education, by the Welfare State and the Neo-liberal State. In a more general scope, we intend to analyze the contents of citizenship in both cases. This comparation, we believe, will be specially fruitful, because we focus in a spcific policy, but it shows two antagonic models of the State itself, social intervention, citizenship-building and distribution of income. We work, than, in each of these models and their respective education policies, in order to explain the contexts and make a balance of citizenship and the lack of real excercise of our rights, taking into account the displacement of the State in its effective guarantee.Fil: Álvarez, Hugo Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y SocialesFil: Zsögön, María Cecilia. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y Sociale

Bioseguridad microbiológica en sala de autopsias

La autopsia es un procedimiento crítico desde el punto de vista de la exposición de riesgos para los trabajadores que la realizan. Se revisan los riesgos biológicos y su prevención, enfatizando el principio fundamental de la bioseguridad: las medidas de contención biológica. Se discuten las diferentes medidas de bioseguridad, en particular los correspondientes a la morgue incluyendo el sistema de precauciones universales, limpieza y desinfección de la sala de autopsias, manejo de los residuos y protocolos ante accidentes.Autopsy is a critical procedure related of risk exposure for the workers that perform it. We review biological hazards and their prevention, emphasizing the fundame ntal principle of biosafety: the biological containment measures. We discussed different microbiological biosafety measures related to the morgue, including the universal precautions system, cleaning and disinfection of the autopsy room, management of wast e and protocols for accidents

Un enfoque de diseño óptimo de un sistema de extracción de agua dulce en acuíferos

El agua subterránea presente en zonas costeras puede contaminarse con agua de mar cuando el volumen bombeado es superior a la recarga natural del sistema. De esta forma es posible que se produzca una intrusión salina en dichos acuíferos. Este problema puede evitarse calculando de forma apropiada el máximo caudal de agua que puede ser extraído. En tal sentido, en el presente trabajo, se desarrolla una herramienta computacional de diseño óptimo integrada con un proceso de simulación a los efectos de determinar el mayor rendimiento posible que puede tener el sistema de extracción. Tal rendimiento se mide en términos de la maximización del volumen de agua a extraer. El procedimiento de optimización está basado en una técnica de recocido simulado en combinación con el método de los elementos finitos (MEF). El modelo fue implementado en el programa de simulación por elementos finitos FlexPDE.Fil: Stoklas, Cecilia I.. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Bahía Blanca; ArgentinaFil: Cortinez, Victor Hugo. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Bahía Blanca; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Are geographical indication products fostering public goods? some evidence from Europe

Within the framework of multifunctional conceptualisation, the authors have investigated the level of public goods embedded in Agri-food geographical indication productsPostprint (published version

Recorridos iniciales hacia los trabajos finales de licenciatura

La investigación es un proceso complejo, difícil de enseñar y de aprender, ya que no es sólo aplicar una serie de técnicas de recolección y análisis de datos, sino que es fundamentalmente pensar en un problema de conocimiento y en una forma de abordarlo. Se trata de una actividad creativa que supone la construcción de nuevos conocimientos y la resolución de múltiples problemas emergentes. Los investigadores y quienes están aprendiendo a investigar apelan a pensamientos divergentes para encontrar diversas alternativas y soluciones a los problemas que surgen en las diferentes etapas del proceso. Estudiamos las actividades de investigación que desarrollan alumnos de grado desde la óptica de la creatividad, es decir analizamos procesos creativos emergentes durante dichas actividades. Consideramos que las actividades que les proponemos en el marco de asignaturas vinculadas a la Metodología de la Investigación constituyen recorridos iniciales hacia los trabajos finales de licenciatura, pues, generalmente a partir ellas los estudiantes comienzan a pensar en posibles temas, problemas y proyectos de trabajo final. Los objetivos generales del proyecto en que se encuadra esta ponencia son indagar si en las actividades de investigación de los alumnos de grado se ponen en juego procesos creativos y de qué tipo son estos procesos (Elisondo y Echevarría, 2012). En trabajos anteriores se observó cómo los estudiantes desarrollan las ideas iniciales al realizar una investigación, mediante entrevistas luego de una primera versión de su proyecto (por ejemplo, en Martínez y Zamora, en evaluación, Elisondo, en evaluación). Como continuación de ellos, en esta ponencia nos proponemos analizar las entrevistas implementadas a un grupo que cursaba una materia de la Licenciatura en Nivel Inicial, pero en esta oportunidad luego de una segunda aproximación, lo que facilitará comparar lo hallado en ambas y observar la evolución que tuvo.Fil: Echevarria, Hugo Dario. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Elisondo, Romina Cecilia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; Argentin

Ljudska univerza kot spodbudno okolje za udeležence z visoko funkcionalnim avtizmom

The aim of this article is to explore the Folk High School as a supportive environment for participants with neuropsychiatric functional impairments, primarily high-functioning autism, from the perspectives of the participants, the staff, and the principals. The participants’ perspective consisted of 21 interviews, the teachers’ perspective was observed in three focus-group interviews, and the principal’s perspective through 19 telephone interviews. Folk High School is shown to be supportive because it: (i) creates a safe and caring environment, (ii) places the individual participant at the centre of its operations, and (iii) is based on the provision and articulation of clear structures. A limited focus on the classroom and the course content is too narrow for a group of individuals with high-functioning autism. It is important to examine the relationships between different categories of workers and how they, in an interwoven symbiotic system, can provide the participants with the best possible conditions for learning.Članek se osredotoča na ljudsko izobraževanje na srednješolski ravni, ki ponuja spodbudno okolje za udeležence z nevropsihiatrično motnjo, predvsem visoko funkcionalnim avtizmom, z vidika udeležencev, zaposlenih in ravnateljev. V okviru študije je bilo izvedenih 21 intervjujev z udeleženci izobraževanja, trije intervjuji s ciljnimi skupinami učiteljev in 19 telefonskih intervjujev z ravnatelji. Ljudsko izobraževanje se je izkazalo za spodbudno, saj (i) ustvari varno in prijazno okolje, (ii) je osredinjeno na posameznika ter (iii) vzpostavi jasne strukture in oblike dela. Usmerjenost, ki je omejena zgolj na učilnico in učno vsebino, je za skupino posameznikov z visoko funkcionalnim avtizmom preveč ozka. Prav tako pa je pomembno raziskati odnos med različnimi vrstami zaposlenih in kako lahko ti kot medsebojno povezan simbiotični sistem udeležencem ponudijo najboljše možne pogoje za učenje

Aspects of the Reproductive Activity of Cypraea caputdraconis from Easter Island (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Cypraeidae)

Cypraea caputdraconis Melvill, 1888 (commonly known as pure), endemic to Easter Island, is an important mollusk in Easter Island handicrafts. Knowledge about its reproduction is necessary for sustainable management of this resource. Data presented here are from 14 monthly samples taken between 1989 and 1991. As in other species of the genus, C. caputdraconis populations sampled at Easter Island had a higher proportion of females (60.28%) than males. Females averaged slightly larger than males, but there was a large degree of size overlap between the sexes and lengths were not significantly different. Reproductive activity occurs year-round, as evidenced by the presence of all three gonadal stages at every sampling date, suggesting a reproductive cycle with continuous gametogenic activity, either lacking or with a very brief period of gonadal rest. Egg mass surveys indicate agreement between egg mass presence and gonadal maturity. Egg masses were recorded throughout the year. A decrease in the percentage of animals with egg capsules corresponded to a decrease in water temperature toward winter. Observations on behavioral sex expression in relation to brooding clearly point to the female as incubator, although in one instance a male was observed on the egg mass. The reproductive activity of the Easter Island pure may be tentatively characterized by a continuous reproductive cycle, with increased activity during spring and summer. We recommend closing this fishery during the period of peak reproductive activity to prevent overexploitation

Validation and Adaptation into Spanish of the Revised Sense of Coherence Scale (SOC-R): A Scale Associated with Life Satisfaction

This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Revised Sense of Coherence (SOC-R) in Argentina, which assesses the general ability to perceive life phenomena as connected and to balance positive and negative appraisals of life experiences. A total of 575 people participated in the study with ages between 18 and 84 years (M = 43.94, SD = 15.90) and both genders (male= 35.7 %, female= 64.3 %). A 3-factor model resulted in acceptable fit indices (NNFI = .95; CFI = .97; IFI = .97; RMSEA = .054). Results indicated an acceptable internal consistency for the subscales Manageability (ω= .73; α= .69), Reflection (ω= .89; α= .85) and Balance (ω= .70; α= .55). The adaptation into Spanish presents 13 items, as proposed by the original authors. The findings showed that the scale is valid to be used in the Argentine population