Sub-national public debt in Spain political economy issues and the role of fiscal rules and decentralization

Sub-sovereign public debt in Spain more than doubled over the period 2007-2011 leading to growing concerns on its sustainability and the potential negative spillovers for general government public finance consolidation targets, in particular by rating agencies and international organizations, in the context of the more general public debt crisis suffered by the euro area. Spain offers an interesting case study to understand the fundamental determinants of sub-sovereign debt for a number of reasons. Firstly, the country has witnessed successive waves of fiscal decentralization that have increased the amount of public services provided directly by sub-national governments in a framework of increased fiscal co-responsibility (fiscal autonomy). Secondly, this decentralization process took place in a period in which a number of supra-national and national fiscal rules were put in place in the country. Thirdly, while fiscal rules provide some explicit coordination among the different levels of government, there is also a high degree of market-imposed discipline, as most regional government’s debt is regularly scrutinized by rating agencies. Within this framework, we analyze the evolution and the determinants of sub-sovereign public debt, focusing on regional government debt determinants, including of liabilities accounted for outside the extant definition of EDP public debt. Among the set of determinants we pay special attention to institutional factors (fiscal decentralization, fiscal autonomy, fiscal rules) and market discipline. We do so by estimating empirical models in which we exploit the pool structure of our data (17 regions, over the period 1995-2010) within a GMM econometric approac

Multi-GPU Development of a Neural Networks Based Reconstructor for Adaptive Optics

Aberrations introduced by the atmospheric turbulence in large telescopes are compensated using adaptive optics systems, where the use of deformable mirrors and multiple sensors relies on complex control systems. Recently, the development of larger scales of telescopes as the E-ELT or TMT has created a computational challenge due to the increasing complexity of the new adaptive optics systems. The Complex Atmospheric Reconstructor based on Machine Learning (CARMEN) is an algorithm based on artificial neural networks, designed to compensate the atmospheric turbulence. During recent years, the use of GPUs has been proved to be a great solution to speed up the learning process of neural networks, and different frameworks have been created to ease their development. The implementation of CARMEN in different Multi-GPU frameworks is presented in this paper, along with its development in a language originally developed for GPU, like CUDA. This implementation offers the best response for all the presented cases, although its advantage of using more than one GPU occurs only in large networks

Inhibitory effects of pharmacological doses of melatonin on aromatase activity and expression in rat glioma cells

Melatonin exerts oncostatic effects on different kinds of neoplasias, especially on oestrogen-dependent tumours. Recently, it has been described that melatonin, on the basis of its antioxidant properties, inhibits the growth of glioma cells. Glioma cells express oestrogen receptors and have the ability to synthesise oestrogens from androgens. In the present study, we demonstrate that pharmacological concentrations of melatonin decreases the growth of C6 glioma cells and reduces the local biosynthesis of oestrogens, through the inhibition of aromatase, the enzyme that catalyses the conversion of androgens into oestrogens. These results are supported by three types of evidence. Firstly, melatonin counteracts the growth stimulatory effects of testosterone on glioma cells, which is dependent on the local synthesis of oestrogens from testosterone. Secondly, we found that melatonin reduces the aromatase activity of C6 cells, measured by the tritiated water release assay. Finally, by (RT)–PCR, we found that melatonin downregulates aromatase mRNA steady-state levels in these glioma cells. We conclude that melatonin inhibits the local production of oestrogens decreasing aromatase activity and expression. By analogy to the implications of aromatase in other forms of oestrogen-sensitive tumours, it is conceivable that the modulation of the aromatase by pharmacological melatonin may play a role in the growth of glioblastomas

CARMENES input catalogue of M dwarfs IV. New rotation periods from photometric time series

Aims. The main goal of this work is to measure rotation periods of the M-type dwarf stars being observed by the CARMENES exoplanet survey to help distinguish radial-velocity signals produced by magnetic activity from those produced by exoplanets. Rotation periods are also fundamental for a detailed study of the relation between activity and rotation in late-type stars. Methods. We look for significant periodic signals in 622 photometric time series of 337 bright, nearby M dwarfs obtained by long-time baseline, automated surveys (MEarth, ASAS, SuperWASP, NSVS, Catalina, ASAS-SN, K2, and HATNet) and for 20 stars which we obtained with four 0.2-0.8 m telescopes at high geographical latitudes. Results. We present 142 rotation periods (73 new) from 0.12 d to 133 d and ten long-term activity cycles (six new) from 3.0 a to 11.5 a. We compare our determinations with those in the existing literature; we investigate the distribution of P rot in the CARMENES input catalogue,the amplitude of photometric variability, and their relation to vsin i and pEW(Halfa); and we identify three very active stars with new rotation periods between 0.34 d and 23.6 d.Comment: 34 pages, 43 figures, 2 appendix table

Obesity associated risk using Edmonton staging in bariatric surgery

Con una prevalencia de obesidad mórbida del 1,2% en población española, los criterios de indicación para Cirugía Bariátrica (CB) no consideran comorbilidades ni estado funcional. Es necesaria una aproximación diagnóstica capaz de predecir mortalidad y sustentar criterios de priorización terapéutica. Objetivo: Aplicar la propuesta Edmonton como sistema de estadiaje clínico para la clasificación de pacientes en lista de espera de CB. Método: Se recogen datos de 81 pacientes (2011 – 2013), tras protocolo prequirúrgico. Se registra peso, talla, IMC, cintura, determinaciones bioquímicas, TA, presencia de enfermedad hepática, renal, osteoarticular, síndrome apnea-hipopnea del sueño (SAHS) y reflujo gastroesofágico. Se aplica a cada persona la propuesta de estadiaje de Edmonton, con 10 variables. Resultados: 67% mujeres. Edad media: 47 años, 18% con edad inferior a 30 años. IMC medio: 47 (37-67), 90% IMC > de 40. El 34% de los pacientes presentan SHAS y el 25% enfermedad por reflujo. Un 9% asocia IMC > 45, disglucosis- diabetes mellitus y SAHS. Aplicando el modelo de Edmonton, nueve pacientes (11%) se sitúan en el rango de mayor riesgo (estadío 3), 70% en rango de riesgo elevado (estadío 2), y 15 pacientes (18%), están incluidos en la condición de bajo riesgo. Ningún paciente se situaba en estadio 0, sin factores de riesgo asociados a obesidad. Conclusiones: El estadiaje de Edmonton nos aporta información sobre la presencia y extensión de co-mobilidades, que apoye la toma de decisiones terapéuticas. La capacidad predictiva de mortalidad de la propuesta de Edmonton podría ser útil para establecer criterios de priorización quirúrgicaWith a prevalence of Morbid Obesity of 1,2% of the Spanish population, the current criteria for Bariatric Surgery do not classify patients taking into consideration co-morbidities or functional status. We need new staging systems useful in predicting mortality and able to support prioritizing treatments. Aim: Applying Edmonton staging system to patients awaiting Bariatric Surgery. Method: Data collected from 81 patients from 2011- 2013 after pre-surgery protocol. Weight, height, waist, BMI, biochemical parameters and blood pressure are registered. Also taken down are hepatic, renal, osteoarticular diseases, sleep-apnea syndrome and/or gastro-oesophageal reflux, if present. Edmonton staging of ten variables is applied to each patient. Results: 81 patients: 67% women, average age 47y, 18% below 30y. Average BMI of 47, 90% of patients have a BMI >40. 34% of patients show sleep-apnea syndrome and 25% gastro-oesophageal reflux. 9% of the patients have a BMI >45, diabetes mellitus and sleep-apnea syndrome. Applying the Edmonton Staging, nine patients (11%) are in the highest risk range (stage 3), 70% are in the high-risk range (stage 2) and 15 patients (18%) are included in the low-risk range. No patient was found to be in stage 0 without obesity risk factors. Conclusions: The Edmonton staging system provides us with information on presence or extent of co-morbidities that guide decision making in individuals. The mortality- predictive ability of Edmonton proposal could help to assist in determining the urgency of Bariatric Surgery and establish better criteria to prioritize these group of patient

High-Level Modular Autopilot Solution for Fast Prototyping of Unmanned Aerial Systems

Article number 9291382A redundant fast prototyping autopilot solution for unmanned aerial systems has been developed and successfully tested outdoors. While its low-level backbone is executed in a Raspberry Pi R 3 + NAVIO2 R with a backup autopilot, the computational power of an Intel R NUC mini-computer is employed to implement complex functionalities directly in Simulink R , thus including in-flight debugging, tuning and monitoring. Altogether, the presented tool provides a flexible and user-friendly high-level environment with enhanced computational capabilities, which drastically reduces the prototyping timespans of complex algorithms –between 50% and 75%, according to our long and proven experience in aerial robotics–, while preventing incidents thanks to its redundant design with a human-in-the-loop pilot on the reliable PX4. Three typical outdoor cases are carried out for validation in real-life scenarios, all mounted in a DJI c F550 platform. Full integration results and telemetry for more than 50 hours of outdoor flight tests are provided.Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad DPI2017-89790-RPrograma Horizonte 2020. Unión Europea 779411Programa Horizonte 2020. Unión Europea 87147