The wage gap between immigrant and native workers in Spain: an analysis using matched employer-employee data

The fact that Spain has witnessed a sharp increase in the number of immigrants over the past decade has generated considerable interest, particularly as regards wages earned by immigrants in host industries. We analyze whether controlling for both observable and unobservable characteristics of employers —in addition to individual variables and the economic context— makes any difference as regards the debate regarding the existence of wage differences between immigrant and native workers in Spain. As we show, doing this considerably reduces (or even eliminates) the inequalities found in previous research, thereby questioning the results attained by previous studies on this issue.Immigration, salaries, assimilation.

Proyecto de gestión de un servicio de cirugía general en un hospital de nueva creación. Análisis del funcionamiento

Un servicio clínico es un conjunto funcional definido por la actividad asistencial que realiza dentro de los conocimientos y técnicas de una especialidad concreta. Los responsables de los Servicios hospitalarios reciben la denominación de Jefes de Servicio. La especialidad de Cirugía General y del Aparato Digestivo (CGD) abarca varios ámbitos de aplicación, destacando toda la patología quirúrgica de los siguientes aparatos, órganos y sistemas: digestivo, endocrino, mama, abdomen, piel y partes blandas, cabeza y cuello. Un Servicio hospitalario de CGD cumple con todas aquellas funciones asistenciales, organizativas, docentes, investigadoras y de gestión relacionadas con dicha especialidad. La gestión clínica como elemento teórico se sustenta en el análisis de la información y busca especialmente la eficiencia en las actuaciones sanitarias. La puesta en práctica de las teorías de la gestión no siempre es fácil; dichas teorías no sirven de igual manera para todos los hospitales. Las peculiaridades de los dirigentes, de los profesionales y de los pacientes hacen que se tengan que adaptar ciertos parámetros en los que se basa la gestión clínica. Los criterios en que se basa la gestión de un servicio médico son los siguientes: proyecto bien estructurado y realizable, perfil del jefe de unidad, liderazgo, conocimientos en gestión, perfil de los facultativos, conocimientos de la especialidad y habilidades técnicas, motivación y satisfacción de los profesionales, etc. En Sanidad a los profesionales les corresponde ser efectivos y a los directivos ser eficientes, ya que se introduce el concepto del coste. Ese nuevo cambio en el paradigma obliga a conocer y colaborar en la gestión e intentar ser eficientes. En la actualidad al Jefe de Unidad se le exigen conocimientos de la especialidad y de gestión. El jefe debe asumir la parte correspondiente de la responsabilidad y de los riesgos de la gestión, pero respaldado por la dirección. Destaca la importancia del equipo sanitario y no sanitario con el que se trabaja. Es vital la implicación en los objetivos comunes y el grado de satisfacción es importante en el trabajo diario. En el año 2007 la Presidencia de la Comunidad de Madrid decidió que se pusieran en marcha 6 nuevos hospitales con el fin de facilitar la asistencia a los pacientes. Su cartera de servicios no sería completa, para lo cual necesitarían de hospitales de referencia. Estos hospitales nacieron como Empresas Públicas y, además, con una gestión mixta, que consistía en que la parte sanitaria era responsabilidad de la Consejería de Sanidad y la no sanitaria era gestionada por los equipos de las empresas constructoras del centro. La creación de una Unidad de CGD dentro de un nuevo proyecto de asistencia sanitaria especializada constituye una situación que puede presentar un cierto grado de complejidad, ya que debe integrar una gran cantidad de factores..

Morphological grounds for the obligate aerial respiration of an aquatic snail: functional and evolutionary perspectives

The freshwater caenogastropod family Ampullariidae is emerging as a model for a variety of studies, among them, the evolution of terrestriality. A common character of the family is that all its members bear a lung while retaining the ancestral gill. This ensures that many ampullariids are able to inhabit poorly oxygenated waters, to bury in the mud during estivation, and to temporarily leave the water, in some species for oviposition. To these characters Pomacea canaliculata (Caenogastropoda, Ampullariidae) adds that is an obligate air-breather. In a recent paper, we showed the gill epithelium of P. canaliculata has a set of characteristics that suggest its role for oxygen uptake may be less significant than its role in ionic/osmotic regulation and immunity. We complement here our morphological investigation on the respiratory organs of P. canaliculata by studying the lung of this species at the anatomical (3D reconstructions of the blood system and nerve supply), histological and ultrastructural levels. The circulation of the gill and the lung are interconnected so that the effluence of blood from the gill goes to the lung where it completes oxygenation. Besides that, we found the lung cavity is lined by a pavement epithelium that encloses an anastomosing network of small blood spaces resting over a fibromuscular layer, which altogether form the respiratory lamina. The pavement cells form a blood-gas barrier that is 80–150 nm thick and thus fulfils the requirements for an efficient gas exchanger. Tufts of ciliary cells, together with some microvillar and secretory cells, are interspersed in the respiratory lamina. Rhogocytes, which have been proposed to partake in metal depuration and in the synthesis of hemocyanin in other gastropods, were found below the respiratory lamina, in close association with the storage cell tissue. In light of these findings, we discuss the functional role of the lung in P. canaliculata and compare it with that of other gastropods. Finally, we point to some similarities in the pattern of the evolution of air dependence in this family.Fil: Rodríguez, Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Prieto, Guido Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología; Argentina. Ruhr Universität Bochum; AlemaniaFil: Vega, Israel Aníbal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Castro Vazquez, Alfredo Juan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin

Functional and evolutionary perspectives on gill structures of an obligate air-breathing, aquatic snail

Ampullariids are freshwater gastropods bearing a gill and a lung, thus showing different degrees of amphibiousness. In particular, Pomacea canaliculata (Caenogastropoda, Ampullariidae) is an obligate air-breather that relies mainly or solely on the lung for dwelling in poorly oxygenated water, for avoiding predators, while burying in the mud during aestivation, and for oviposition above water level. In this paper, we studied the morphological peculiarities of the gill in this species. We found (1) the gill and lung vasculature and innervation are intimately related, allowing alternation between water and air respiration; (2) the gill epithelium has features typical of a transporting rather than a respiratory epithelium; and (3) the gill has resident granulocytes within intraepithelial spaces that may serve a role for immune defence. Thus, the role in oxygen uptake may be less significant than the roles in ionic/osmotic regulation and immunity. Also, our results provide a morphological background to understand the dependence on aerial respiration of Pomacea canaliculata. Finally, we consider these findings from a functional perspective in the light of the evolution of amphibiousness in the Ampullariidae, and discuss that master regulators may explain the phenotypic convergence of gill structures amongst this molluscan species and those in other phyla.Fil: Rodríguez, Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Prieto, Guido Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología; ArgentinaFil: Vega, Israel Aníbal. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Castro Vazquez, Alfredo Juan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin

Functional and evolutionary perspectives on gill structures of an obligate air-breathing, aquatic snail

Ampullariids are freshwater gastropods bearing a gill and a lung, thus showing different degrees of amphibiousness. In particular, Pomacea canaliculata (Caenogastropoda, Ampullariidae) is an obligate air-breather that relies mainly or solely on the lung for dwelling in poorly oxygenated water, for avoiding predators, while burying in the mud during aestivation, and for oviposition above water level. In this paper, we studied the morphological peculiarities of the gill in this species. We found (1) the gill and lung vasculature and innervation are intimately related, allowing alternation between water and air respiration; (2) the gill epithelium has features typical of a transporting rather than a respiratory epithelium; and (3) the gill has resident granulocytes within intraepithelial spaces that may serve a role for immune defence. Thus, the role in oxygen uptake may be less significant than the roles in ionic/osmotic regulation and immunity. Also, our results provide a morphological background to understand the dependence on aerial respiration of Pomacea canaliculata. Finally, we consider these findings from a functional perspective in the light of the evolution of amphibiousness in the Ampullariidae, and discuss that master regulators may explain the phenotypic convergence of gill structures amongst this molluscan species and those in other phyla.Fil: Rodríguez, Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Prieto, Guido Ignacio. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología; ArgentinaFil: Vega, Israel Aníbal. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Biología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Castro Vazquez, Alfredo Juan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin

Assessment of the kidney and lung as immune barriers and hematopoietic sites in the invasive apple snail Pomacea canaliculata

Knowledge on the immune system of Pomacea canaliculata is becoming increasingly important, because of this gastropod's role as intermediate host and vector of Angiostrongylus cantonensis, the etiologic agent of eosinophilic meningitis in humans and domestic animals. Immune defenses of this gastropod comprise both humoral and cellular components, but they may also involve organs that act as immune barriers to prevent the spread of alien molecules and organisms. Both the kidney and lung are here shown to serve this function, because of (1) their positions in blood circulation, (2) the intricate architecture of their blood spaces, and (3) the proliferative and nodulation reactions of hemocytes to an immune challenge. However, these organs differ in that only the kidney shows permanent hemocyte aggregations. Microcirculation in the kidney was found to flow through an intricate vascular bed containing the permanent aggregations, which occurred either as hemocyte islets anchored by cytoplasmic projections of the renal epithelium or as perivascular accretions. Within 96 h of the injection of yeast cells, hemocyte nodules were formed both in the kidney and lung. Moreover, cell proliferation in renal hemocyte islets was measured by bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation. The proportion of BrdU positive nuclei increased 48 h after injection. Signs of nodule regression (apoptotic bodies, lipofuscin-like deposits) and a decrease in the proportion of BrdU positive nuclei were found at 96 h. In addition, the area of renal hemocyte islets was significantly increased 96 h after injection. Nevertheless, the high complexity of the small vascular chambers that constitute the lung's respiratory lamina would also facilitate hemocyte-antigen contacts, required to elicit cellular aggregation, and hence, nodulation. To our knowledge, this paper includes the first quantitative indication of hemocyte proliferation after an immune challenge among Caenogastropoda.Fil: Rodríguez, Cristian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Prieto, Guido Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Vega, Israel Aníbal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Castro Vazquez, Alfredo Juan. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin

UV Raman spectroscopy of group IV nanocrystals embedded in a SiO2 matrix

Nanostructures of both Ge nanocrystals formed by thermal oxidation of SiGe layers, and SiGe nanocrystals formed by crystallization of amorphous SiGe nanoparticles deposited by LPCVD have been analyzed by Raman spectroscopy. The nanostructures are formed on a silicon substrate. Raman spectra have been acquired with visible (514.5 nm) and UV (325 nm) excitation lines. When the amount of material is very small, as it has happens in these nanostructures, the visible line is not able to excite the characteristic peaks of the Ge or SiGe in the Raman spectrum; instead the Si second order spectrum of the substrate appears and it can be misinterpreted by attributing it to the Ge–Ge band associated with the nanocrystals. In this work, the use of UV excitation has been demonstrated to enhance the sensitivity respect to the conventional visible excitation, allowing the characteristic peaks of the Ge or SiGe nanocrystals to appear in the spectrum. We attributed this effect to the resonance effects

Enhanced Signal Micro-Raman Study of SiGe Nanowires and SiGe/Si Nanowire Axial Heterojuntions Grown Using Au and Ga-Au Catalysts

Producción CientíficaMicroRaman spectroscopy was used for the characterization of heterostructured SiGe/Si nanowires. The NWs were grown with alloyed AuGa catalysts droplets with different Ga compositions aiming to make more abrupt heterojunctions. The heterojunctions were first characterized by TEM; then the NWs were scanned by the laser beam in order to probe the heterojunction. The capability of the MicroRaman spectroscopy for studying the heterojunction is discussed. The results show that the use of catalysts with lower Ge and Si solubility (AuGa alloys) permits to achieve more abrupt junctions.Junta de Castilla y León (programa de apoyo a proyectos de investigación – Ref. VA302U13

Electromagnetic field enhancement effects in group IV semiconductor nanowires. A Raman spectroscopy approach

Semiconductor nanowires (NWs) are the building blocks of future nanoelectronic devices. Furthermore, their large refractive index and reduced dimension make them suitable for nanophotonics. The study of the interaction between nanowires and visible light reveals resonances that promise light absorption/scattering engineering for photonic applications. Micro-Raman spectroscopy has been used as a characterization tool for semiconductor nanowires. The light/nanowire interaction can be experimentally assessed through the micro-Raman spectra of individual nanowires. As compared to both metallic and dielectric nanowires, semiconductor nanowires add additional tools for photon engineering. In particular, one can grow heterostructured nanowires, both axial and radial, and also one could modulate the doping level and the surface condition among other factors than can affect the light/NW interaction. We present herein a study of the optical response of group IV semiconductor nanowires to visible photons. The study is experimentally carried out through micro-Raman spectroscopy of different group IV nanowires, both homogeneous and axially heterostructured (SiGe/Si). The results are analyzed in terms of the electromagnetic modelling of the light/nanowire interaction using finite element methods. The presence of axial heterostructures is shown to produce electromagnetic resonances promising new photon engineering capabilities of semiconductor nanowires.Junta de Castilla y Le on (Projects VA293U13 and VA081U16) and Spanish Government (CICYT MAT2010-20441-C02 (01 and 02) and ENE 2014-56069-C4-4-R). J. L. Pura was granted by the FPU programme (Spanish Government) (FPU14/00916)

On the limitations of deep learning for statistical downscaling of climate change projections : the transferability and the extrapolation issues

Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have become one of the state-of-the-art techniques for downscaling climate projections. They are being applied under Perfect-Prognosis (trained in a historical period with observations) and hybrid approaches (as Regional Climate Models (RCMs) emulators), with satisfactory results. Nevertheless, two important aspects have not been, to our knowledge, properly assessed yet: (1) their performance as emulators for other Earth System Models (ESMs) different to the one used for training, and (2) their performance under extrapolation, that is, when applied outside of their calibration range. In this study, we use UNET, a popular CNN, to assess these two aspects through two pseudo-reality experiments, and we compare it with simpler emulators: an interpolation and a linear regression. The RCA4 regional model, with 0.11° resolution over a complex domain centered in the Pyrenees, and driven by the CNRM-CM5 global model is used to train the emulators. Two frameworks are followed for the training: predictors are taken (1) from the upscaled RCM and (2) from the ESM. In both frameworks, the performance of the UNET when applied for other ESMs different to the one used for training is considerably worse, indicating poor generalization. For the linear method a similar deterioration is seen, so this limitation does not seem method specific but inherent to the task. For the second experiment, the emulators are trained in present and evaluated in future, under extrapolation. While averaged aspects such as the mean values are well simulated in future, significant biases (up to 5°C) appear when assessing warm extremes. These biases are larger by UNET than those produced by the linear method. This limitation suggests that, for variables such as temperature, with a marked signal of change and a strong linear relationship with predictors, simple linear methods might be more appropriate than the sophisticated deep learning techniques