Tres notas y algunas reflexiones: Canícula

Reseña y crítica de la película del director Álvaro García-Capelo "Canícula" presentada en el Festival de Cine de San Sebastián de 2002

Measuring Intermediary Determinants of Early Childhood Health: A Composite Index Comparing Colombian Departments

In recent years there has been growing interest in composite indicators as an efficient tool of analysis and a method of prioritizing policies. This paper presents a composite index of intermediary determinants of child health using a multivariate statistical approach. The index shows how specific determinants of child health vary across Colombian departments (administrative subdivisions). We used data collected from the 2010 Colombian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) for 32 departments and the capital city, Bogotá. Adapting the conceptual framework of Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH), five dimensions related to child health are represented in the index: material circumstances, behavioural factors, psychosocial factors, biological factors and the health system. In order to generate the weight of the variables, and taking into account the discrete nature of the data, principal component analysis (PCA) using polychoric correlations was employed in constructing the index. From this method five principal components were selected. The index was estimated using a weighted average of the retained components. A hierarchical cluster analysis was also carried out. The results show that the biggest differences in intermediary determinants of child health are associated with health care before and during delivery

Good practices applied in lignite mining activity: mine restorations compatible with the environment that modify the mining landscape of Val de Ariño (Teruel)

La explotación de lignito en la provincia de Teruel ha sido una actividad industrial de primera magnitud y generadora de riqueza durante un periodo importante de nuestra historia más reciente. Así en la denominada Cuenca Oliete Norte o también conocida como Cuenca Andorra-Alloza-Ariño, se encuentra el Val de Ariño, enun territorio donde confluyen un conjunto de características del subsuelo y de la corteza terrestre, que definen una geología de unos terrenos especiales que configuran un yacimiento de lignito de grandes proporciones. Hoy observamos un paisaje antrópico, modificado por la actividad humana, que ha sido modelado, estructurado, recuperado, restaurado, donde hubo una actividad extractiva frenética. Un paisajeplagado de minas, tanto de interior como a cielo abierto, de aquí que el carbón ha grabado su impronta en el paisaje. Restos de minas y las restauraciones realizadas, dibujan escenografías y vertientes policromas donde no falta ningún color. En el Plan Nacional de Patrimonio Industrial de 2011, en su anexo V, se recoge un catálogomínimo, en el que se relacionan una serie de elementos o lugares a preservar, seleccionados por TICCIH-España. Entre ellos figura: “Las minas de carbón y el paisaje minero del Val de Ariño”, de manera que este lugar se contempla como un conjunto patrimonial excepcional, de vital importancia para el futuro de la zona.The exploitation of lignite in the province of Teruel, has been an industrial activity of first magnitude and generator of wealth during an important period of our recent history. Thus,the so called Cuenca Oliete Norte, also known as Cuenca Andorra-Alloza-Ariño, is home to the Val de Ariño, a territory where the special characteristics of the subsoil and the terrestrial crust define a geology of special terrains that form a deposit of lignite of great proportions. Today we observe an anthropic landscape, modified by the human activity, that has been modeled, structured, recovered, restored, where a frenzied extraction took place, plagued by subterranean and open-airmining activity. From here the coal has engraved its imprint on the landscape, as well as remains of the mines and the restorations carried out, drawings and polychromatic slopes. In the catalogue of elements or sites to be preserved selected by TICCIH-Spain, contained in the Annex V of the 2011 National Industrial Heritage Plan, the next reference is found: "The coal mines and themining landscape of the Val de Ariño". That is a proof that the place is already considered to be of exceptional heritage value and of vital importance for the future of the area.Peer Reviewe

Análisis de ciclo de vida de un edificio modular industrializado

Treballs Finals del Màster d’Energies Renovables i Sostenibilitat Energètica, Facultat de Física, Universitat de Barcelona, Curs: 2014-2015, Tutores: Mercè Segarra i Camila BarrenecheEn la actualidad podemos encontrar un gran número de viviendas debido al gran volumen de construcción que ha existido durante los últimos años. La producción de edificios está muy concentrada en los países de ingresos altos, correspondiendo el 30% de la producción total mundial a países europeos de ingresos altos1. La edificación se divide en cuatro actividades dependiendo de su finalidad: residencial, no residencial, comercial y rehabilitación y mantenimiento, siendo el residencial el más importante de la construcción. La construcción es un sector que afecta de manera muy nociva al medioambiente, ya sea mediante su transformación al edificar o produciendo y consumiendo sus recursos para producir los materiales. Con tal de reducir el impacto sobre el medio ambiente es importante que las empresas del sector utilicen materiales con un ciclo de vida más respetuoso con el medio ambiente y elaboren edificios con diseños más adaptados con el entorno. Una de las alternativas para llevar a cabo la transición a una construcción de desarrollo sostenible es la construcción prefabricada..

Optimal Inverse Beta (3,3) Transformation in Kernel Density Estimation

A double transformation kernel density estimator that is suitable for heavy-tailed distributions is presented. Using a double transformation, an asymptotically optimal bandwidth parameter can be calculated when minimizing the expression of the asymptotic mean integrated squared error of the transformed variable. Simulation results are presented showing that this approach performs better than existing alternatives. An application to insurance claim cost data is included

High efficiency cathodes for SOFCs prepared by spray-pyrolysis

In recent years, lowering the operating temper-ature of the Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) to the intermediate temperature range (500-700 ºC) has become the main challenge for this technology. The electrolyte resistance might be substantially reduced by using thin film electrolytes. However, the cathode polarization resitance is responsible for much of the loss in performance at low temperatures. Thus, the development of cathode materials with high electro-catalytic activity for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is essential for this technology. Lanthanum strontium manganite La1-xSrxMnO3- (LSM) is the cathode material most widely used in SOFCs. However, LSM exhibits high activation energy for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and poor ionic conductivity, limiting its application at high temperatures. Alternative mixed ionic-electronic conductors, such as La1-xSrxCo1-yFeyO3-δ (LSCF) and GdBaCo2O5+x (GBC) has been investi-gated, exhibiting better performances in the inter-mediate temperature range [1]. The performance of these electrodes might be improved at reduced temperature by extending the triple phase bounda-ry length at which gas, electrode and electrolyte phases are simultaneously in contact, serving as the predominant site for the electrochemical reac-tions. To date, the preparation of electrodes via wet infiltration of a cation solution into a porous electrolyte backbone is one of the most effective methods to increase the TPB area and to improve the efficiency of the cathodes, despite the limitations of this process for large-scale manufacturing of SOFCs. In this contribution an alternative preparation method based on spray-pyrolisis deposition into an electrolyte backbone is proposed, which posses a series of advantages with respect to the classical wet infiltration process, including easy industrial implementation, preparation in one single deposition/thermal step as well as low cost [2]. The most widely used cathodes in SOFCs technology were prepared by this alternative method process: La1-xSrxMnO3- and La0.6Sr0.4Co1-yFeyO3-δ (y = 0-2) series. The electrodes were deposited on porous Ce0.8Gd0.1O1.95 (CGO) backbones at 250 ºC by conventional spray pyrolysis from an aqueous precursor solution of metal nitrates. The structure, microstructure and electrochemical properties of these materials have been investigated by X-ray diffraction, field-emission SEM (Fig. 1.a) and im-pedance spectroscopy in symmetrical cells. The values of polarization resistance (Fig. 1.b) are ex-tremely low, ranging from 0.40 cm2 for LSM to 0.07 cm2 for LSCF0.2 at 600 ºC in air, compared to those previously reported in the literature for commercial electrolytes deposited at high tempera-ture, e.g. 25 cm2 for LSM.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech