Opposition strategies and patterns of consensus in the Spanish Parliament

[spa] Este trabajo analiza el comportamiento de los partidos políticos en la arena parlamentaria, llevando a cabo un análisis de la votación final de las leyes y de las enmiendas presentadas por los grupos parlamentarios en el Parlamento español. Los resultados ilustran que los factores institucionales, como el tipo de gobierno y las asimetrías en la información y recursos de los grupos, influencian de manera significativa las estrategias de oposición y la dinámica de consenso parlamentario. El conflicto es siempre más elevado durante los gobiernos de mayoría absoluta, independientemente de la estrategia de oposición que se considere. La actividad de los grupos de tamaño más reducido, y en especial de aquellos sin experiencia parlamentaria previa, rara vez se centran en iniciativas de oposición asociadas con una elevada fricción institucional, como la presentación de enmiendas con texto alternativo. Su agenda está mucho más concentrada, con la atención centrada en menos asuntos que los grandes grupos.[cat] Aquest treball analitza el comportament dels partits polítics en l'àmbit parlamentari, portant a terme una anàlisi de la votació final de les lleis i de les esmenes presentades pels grups parlamentaris al Parlament espanyol. Els resultats il·lustren que els factors institucionals, com el tipus de govern i les asimetries en la informació i recursos dels grups, influencien de manera significativa les estratègies d'oposició i la dinàmica de consens parlamentari. El conflicte és sempre més elevat durant els governs de majoria absoluta, independentment de l'estratègia d'oposició que es consideri. L'activitat dels grups de mida més reduïda, i especialment d'aquells sense experiència parlamentària prèvia, poques vegades se centren en iniciatives d'oposició associades amb una elevada fricció institucional, com la presentació d'esmenes amb text alternatiu. La seva agenda està molt més concentrada, amb l'atenció centrada en menys assumptes que els grups grans.[eng] This paper analyzes party behavior in the parliamentary arena by undertaking an analysis of the final vote for legislation and the amending activity of parliamentary groups in the Spanish parliament. Results illustrate that institutional factors, like the type of government and asymmetries in the resources and information of groups, significantly affect opposition strategies and patterns of parliamentary consensus. Conflict is always higher during absolute majority governments, regardless of the opposition strategy considered. The activity of small groups, and especially those without previous parliamentary experience, is rarely focused on opposition initiatives associated with high institutional friction, like amendments with alternative text proposal. Its agenda is much more concentrated, with attention focused on few topics, than that of big groups

La agencia y la regulación de la cooperación al desarrollo de la Generalitat de Cataluña

El presente artículo analiza los cambios en la regulación de la política de cooperación al desarrollo de la Generalitat de Catalunya. A través del análisis de sus instrumentos y de la creación nuevas estructuras institucionales, como la Agencia Catalana de Cooperación al Desarrollo, se busca entender cuáles son los aspectos que han cambiado significativamente en el diseño de la política. El horizonte de análisis es de más de dos décadas, a partir de 1986, cuando se aprueba la primera partida presupuestaria de cooperación al desarrollo, denominada Ayuda al Tercer Mundo. El análisis se basa en el enfoque de la regulación de las políticas públicas

Adaptación de las cepas de Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans y Leptospirillum ferrooxidans en el concentrado de esfalerita de residuos mineros

One of the main characteristics of the microorganisms used in the leaching process is their capacity to adapt to aggressive environments, characterized by a notable presence of heavy metals. In this study the adaptation of the strains Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans and Leptospirillum ferrooxidans was evaluated on a sphalerite concentrate from mining waste. In the adaptation tests, the energy source (ferrous sulphate) was gradually replaced by percentages of mineral pulp, ending with subcultures without the addition of an external energy source. The results show that the strains A. ferrooxidans and A. thiooxidans are more resistant to high concentrations of sphalerite, compared to the strain of L. ferrooxidans, since, in the case of this strain, it was necessary to repeat some tests (8% of pulp), since a deficient development was evident. This was associated with factors such as the decrease of the Fe+2 energy source, the increase of the pulp density, the accumulation of toxic metals and secondary products of the dissolution of minerals and the increase of the pH.Una de las principales características de los microorganismos empleados en el proceso de lixiviación, es su capacidad de adaptación a ambientes agresivos, caracterizados por una notable presencia de metales pesados. En  este  estudio  se  evaluó  la  adaptación  de  las  cepas  Acidithiobacillus  ferrooxidans,  Acidithiobacillus  thiooxidans  y  Leptospirillum  ferrooxidans,  sobre  un  concentrado  de  esfalerita,  proveniente  de  residuos  mineros. En los ensayos de adaptación, se suplementó paulatinamente la fuente de energía (sulfato ferroso) cambiándola por porcentajes de pulpa mineral, finalizando con subcultivos sin adición de fuente de energía externa.  Los resultados muestran que las cepas A. ferrooxidans y A. thiooxidans son más resistentes a altas concentraciones de esfalerita, frente a la cepa de L. ferrooxidans, puesto que, en el caso de esta cepa, fue necesario repetir algunos ensayos (8% de pulpa), ya que era evidente un desarrollo deficiente. Lo anterior se asoció con factores como la disminución de la fuente energética Fe+2, el aumento de la densidad de pulpa, la acumulación de metales tóxicos y productos secundarios de la disolución de los minerales y el aumento del pH

Divergence and convergence of policy priorities among sub-national units in federal systems: the cases of Canada and Spain

The study of policy dynamics at the sub-national level in federal systems is getting growing attention by scholars of comparative politics and agenda- setting. These studies analyze to what extent the political agendas of regional governments are converging or diverging over time, focusing on: institutional factors (e.g., formal rules defining issue jurisdiction, type of government, intergovernmental arrangements), preferences (mostly of political parties), and agenda capacity (Hooghe et al. 2008). This constitutes an important change from previous analysis on comparative federalism, which traditionally focused on institutions as explanatory variable, providing a static outlook on the vertical distribution of authority between levels of government (Wibbels 2003). It also constitutes an important change in relation to another set of studies (Filippov et al. 2004; Wibbels 2006; Aldrich 1995) that pay attention to party politics and policy preferences, but still deal mainly with the relationship between the national and regional governments as a whole (e.g., Constantelos 2010). Finally, analyses of issue prioritization at the sub-national level (and the relations with the national and supranational level of governance) also make a ontribution to the policy [...]

Updating known distribution models for forecasting climate change impact on endangered species

To plan endangered species conservation and to design adequate management programmes, it is necessary to predict their distributional response to climate change, especially under the current situation of rapid change. However, these predictions are customarily done by relating de novo the distribution of the species with climatic conditions with no regard of previously available knowledge about the factors affecting the species distribution. We propose to take advantage of known species distribution models, but proceeding to update them with the variables yielded by climatic models before projecting them to the future. To exemplify our proposal, the availability of suitable habitat across Spain for the endangered Bonelli’s Eagle (Aquila fasciata) was modelled by updating a pre-existing model based on current climate and topography to a combination of different general circulation models and Special Report on Emissions Scenarios. Our results suggested that the main threat for this endangered species would not be climate change, since all forecasting models show that its distribution will be maintained and increased in mainland Spain for all the XXI century. We remark on the importance of linking conservation biology with distribution modelling by updating existing models, frequently available for endangered species, considering all the known factors conditioning the species’ distribution, instead of building new models that are based on climate change variables only.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación and FEDER (project CGL2009-11316/BOS

Resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases in Venezuela as a regional public health threat in the Americas

Venezuela’s tumbling economy and authoritarian rule have precipitated an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Hyperinflation rates now exceed 45,000%, and Venezuela’s health system is in free fall. The country is experiencing a massive exodus of biomedical scientists and qualified healthcare professionals. Reemergence of arthropod-borne and vaccine-preventable diseases has sparked serious epidemics that also affect neighboring countries. In this article, we discuss the ongoing epidemics of measles and diphtheria in Venezuela and their disproportionate impact on indigenous populations. We also discuss the potential for reemergence of poliomyelitis and conclude that action to halt the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases within Venezuela is a matter of urgency for the country and the region. We further provide specific recommendations for addressing this crisis. © 2019 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). All rights reserved

Trichuris vulpis (Froelich, 1789) Infection in a Child: A Case Report

We present a human infection with the canine whipworm, Trichuris vulpis, in a child suffering from rhinitis with a diagnosis of rhinitis. T. vulpis eggs resemble those of T. trichiura but they can be differentiated based on their morphological features and egg size, using micrometry with an ocular micrometer. T. vulpis eggs measured an average of 90 µm by 44 µm (range 86-99 µm by 38-47 µm). Prevalence of hookworms (28.1%), Toxocara canis (11.8%), and Trichuris vulpis (3.5%) was found in 292 fecal samples of dogs collected at the peri-domicile, which showed that the risk of infection was not only fortuitous. The treatment of canine whipworm infections is similar to that of T. trichiura infection. We recommend differentiation of the 2 species for their epidemiological and prevention implications

Mapping the availability of bushmeat for consumption in Central African cities

The trade of bushmeat from rural areas to supply burgeoning cities is a major conservation and livelihood concern. Using a whole-city sampling strategy we mapped the distribution and numbers of meat outlets in the Kinshasa-Brazzaville metropolitan area, two neighboring capital cities in Central Africa. We show that both cities differ in the number and density of meat outlets, with more in Brazzaville per area sampled and inhabitants. The number of meat outlets is related to human population densities and primarily concentrated along the banks of the Congo River, in the more affluent areas of the cities. Across the two cities, roughly 22% of all sampled markets (50% in Brazzaville and 19% in Kinshasa) and 24% of all visited restaurants (24% in each city) were selling bushmeat during our survey. Despite the relatively low number of establishments offering bushmeat for sale, extrapolated to the entire area and population of both cities, we expect the overall amounts of wild animal meats consumed per annum to be significantly high. We suggest that the supply of such amounts of wild animal meat will strongly impact the animal populations sourcing these cities. Our data also indicate that the number of domestic meat outlets may be adequate to supply urban dwellers with sufficient animal protein

A Broad Assessment of Factors Determining Culicoides imicola Abundance: Modelling the Present and Forecasting Its Future in Climate Change Scenarios

Bluetongue (BT) is still present in Europe and the introduction of new serotypes from endemic areas in the African continent is a possible threat. Culicoides imicola remains one of the most relevant BT vectors in Spain and research on the environmental determinants driving its life cycle is key to preventing and controlling BT. Our aim was to improve our understanding of the biotic and abiotic determinants of C. imicola by modelling its present abundance, studying the spatial pattern of predicted abundance in relation to BT outbreaks, and investigating how the predicted current distribution and abundance patterns might change under future (2011–2040) scenarios of climate change according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. C. imicola abundance data from the bluetongue national surveillance programme were modelled with spatial, topoclimatic, host and soil factors. The influence of these factors was further assessed by variation partitioning procedures. The predicted abundance of C. imicola was also projected to a future period. Variation partitioning demonstrated that the pure effect of host and topoclimate factors explained a high percentage (>80%) of the variation. The pure effect of soil followed in importance in explaining the abundance of C. imicola. A close link was confirmed between C. imicola abundance and BT outbreaks. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to consider wild and domestic hosts in predictive modelling for an arthropod vector. The main findings regarding the near future show that there is no evidence to suggest that there will be an important increase in the distribution range of C. imicola; this contrasts with an expected increase in abundance in the areas where it is already present in mainland Spain. What may be expected regarding the future scenario for orbiviruses in mainland Spain, is that higher predicted C. imicola abundance may significantly change the rate of transmission of orbiviruses