Combined Effects of the North Atlantic Oscillation and the Arctic Oscillation on Sea Surface Temperature in the Alborán Sea

We explored the possible effects of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Arctic Oscillation (AO) on interannual sea surface temperature (SST) variations in the Albora´n Sea, both separately and combined. The probability of observing mean annual SST values higher than average was related to NAO and AO values of the previous year. The effect of NAO on SST was negative, while that of AO was positive. The pure effects of NAO and AO on SST are obscuring each other, due to the positive correlation between them. When decomposing SST, NAO and AO in seasonal values, we found that variation in mean annual SST and mean winter SST was significantly related to the mean autumn NAO of the previous year, while mean summer SST was related to mean autumn AO of the previous year. The one year delay in the effect of the NAO and AO on the SST could be partially related to the amount of accumulated snow, as we found a significant correlation between the total snow in the North Albora´n watershed for a year with the annual average SST of the subsequent year. A positive AO implies a colder atmosphere in the Polar Regions, which could favour occasional cold waves over the Iberian Peninsula which, when coupled with precipitations favoured by a negative NAO, may result in snow precipitation. This snow may be accumulated in the high peaks and melt down in spring-summer of the following year, which consequently increases the runoff of freshwater to the sea, which in turn causes a diminution of sea surface salinity and density, and blocks the local upwelling of colder water, resulting in a higher SST.CGL2009-11316 (Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain, and FEDER

Modern energy consumption and economic modernisation in Latin America and the Caribbean between 1890 and 1925

In the absence of comparable macroeconomic indicators for most of the Latin American economies before the 1930s, the apparent consumption of energy is used in this paper as a proxy of the degree of modernisation of Latin America and the Caribbean. This paper presents an estimate of the apparent consumption per head of modern energies (coal, petroleum and hydroelectricity) for 30 countries of Latin American and the Caribbean for 1890 to 1925, multiplying the number of countries for which energy consumption estimates were previously available. As a result, the paper provides the basis for a quantitative comparative analysis of modernisation performance beyond the few countries for which historical national accounts are available in Latin America.Energy consumption, economic modernisation, Latin America

Gene Expression Response to Sea Lice in Atlantic Salmon Skin: RNA Sequencing Comparison Between Resistant and Susceptible Animals

Sea lice are parasitic copepods that cause large economic losses to salmon aquaculture worldwide. Frequent chemotherapeutic treatments are typically required to control this parasite, and alternative measures such as breeding for improved host resistance are desirable. Insight into the host–parasite interaction and mechanisms of host resistance can lead to improvements in selective breeding, and potentially novel treatment targets. In this study, RNA sequencing was used to study the skin transcriptome of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) parasitized with sea lice (Caligus rogercresseyi). The overall aims were to compare the transcriptomic profile of skin at louse attachment sites and “healthy” skin, and to assess differences in gene expression response between animals with varying levels of resistance to the parasite. Atlantic salmon pre-smolts were challenged with C. rogercresseyi, growth and lice count measurements were taken for each fish. 21 animals were selected and RNA-Seq was performed on skin from a louse attachment site, and skin distal to attachment sites for each animal. These animals were classified into family-balanced groups according to the traits of resistance (high vs. low lice count), and growth during infestation. Overall comparison of skin from louse attachment sites vs. healthy skin showed that 4,355 genes were differentially expressed, indicating local up-regulation of several immune pathways and activation of tissue repair mechanisms. Comparison between resistant and susceptible animals highlighted expression differences in several immune response and pattern recognition genes, and also myogenic and iron availability factors. Components of the pathways involved in differential response to sea lice may be targets for studies aimed at improved or novel treatment strategies, or to prioritize candidate functional polymorphisms to enhance genomic selection for host resistance in commercial salmon breeding programs

Nivel de conocimiento sobre higiene bucodental y protésica en cuidadores de ELEAM en la región de Valparaíso, Chile 2016

Tesis (Cirujano Dentista)... la información obtenida en el presente estudio, que tiene como propósito valorar el nivel de conocimiento sobre higiene oral en cuidadores de adultos mayores residentes en ELEAM de la región de Valparaíso, Chile 2016, permitirá orientar estrategias para que los cuidadores se actualicen y adquieran nuevos conocimientos o habilidades, y se motiven para desarrollar intervenciones preventivas orientadas a mejorar la salud bucal y la salud general de esta población

Shape index, Brouwer degree and Poincaré-Hopf theorem

In this paper we study the relationship of the Brouwer degree of a vector field with the dynamics of the induced flow. Analogous relations are studied for the index of a vector field. We obtain new forms of the Poincaré-Hopf theorem and of the Borsuk and Hirsch antipodal theorems. As an application, we calculate the Brouwer degree of the vector field of the Lorenz equations in isolating blocks of the Lorenz strange set.Depto. de Álgebra, Geometría y TopologíaFac. de Ciencias MatemáticasFALSEMinisterio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidadesunpu

Ice morphology modification and solute recovery improvement by heating and annealing during block freeze-concentration of coffee extracts

Several treatments on ice blocks can be applied during block freeze-concentration to increase the solute recovery from the ice. In the present study, the changes in the ice block’s temperature and the application of annealing during the block freeze-concentration of aqueous coffee extracts were studied. The ice block was subjected to heating and annealing prior to the thawing stage. The effect of coolant temperature during ice block heating (T = -10 and -5 °C) and the application of annealing (+, -) on solute recovery and ice structure morphology was evaluated. The use of annealing during block freeze-concentration modified the ice crystal morphology and increased the solute recovery only when it is applied at the highest temperature. In general, the annealing process increased the size and circularity of the ice crystals, consequently improving the solute recovery. Thus, annealing can be used to increase the solute recovery during block freeze-concentration.Postprint (published version

Linear stability analysis of an electron-radiative ablation front

Double ablation fronts develop in moderate-Z ablators where the absorption of radiation energy and electron heat fluxes occurs a two different locations (the two ablation fronts) [1]. Recent work has indicated that double ablation fronts in brominated plastic foils significantly improve the hydrodynamic stability properties by reducing the growth of the Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) instability [2]. In this work, we describe –for the first time- the linear stability analysis of the so-called electron-radiative ablation front [1]. This study includes the Rayleigh-Taylor, the Darrius-Landau and the thermal self-focussing instabilities

A Multi-state model for the analysis of functional decline and mortality of frail elderly patients

L’objectiu d’aquest estudi, que correspon a un projecte de recerca sobre la pèrdua funcional i la mortalitat de persones grans fràgils, és construir un procés de supervivència predictiu que tingui en compte l’evolució funcional i nutricional dels pacients al llarg del temps. En aquest estudi ens enfrontem a l’anàlisi de dades de supervivència i mesures repetides però els mètodes estadístics habituals per al tractament conjunt d’aquest tipus de dades no són apropiats en aquest cas. Com a alternativa utilitzem els models de supervivència multi-estats per avaluar l’associació entre mortalitat i recuperació, o no, dels nivells funcionals i nutricionals considerats normals. Després d’estimar el model i d’identificar els factors pronòstics de mortalitat és possible obtenir un procés predictiu que permet fer prediccions de la supervivència dels pacients en funció de la seva història concreta fins a un determinat moment. Això permet realitzar un pronòstic més precís de cada grup de pacients, la qual cosa pot ser molt útil per als professionals sanitaris a l’hora de prendre decisions clíniques.The aim of this study, corresponding to a research project on functional decline and mortality of frail elderly patients, is to build a predictive survival process which takes into account the functional and nutritional evolution of the patients over time. We deal with both survival data and repeated measures but the usual statistical methods for the joint analysis of longitudinal and survival data are not appropriate in this case. As an alternative we use the multi-state survival model approach to evaluate the association between mortality and the recovery, or not, of normal functional and nutritional levels. Once the model is estimated and the prognostic factors of mortality identified, a predictive process is computed which allows predictions to be made of a patient’s survival based on their history at a given time. This provides a more exact estimate of the prognosis for each group of patients which may be very helpful to clinicians in the making of decisionsEl objetivo de este estudio, correspondiente a un proyecto de investigación sobre la pérdida funcional y la mortalidad de ancianos frágiles, es construir un proceso de supervivencia predictivo que tenga en cuenta la evolución funcional y nutricional de los pacientes a lo largo del tiempo. En este estudio nos enfrentamos al análisis de datos de supervivencia y medidas repetidas pero los métodos estadísticos habituales para el tratamiento conjunto de este tipo de datos no son apropiados en este caso. Como alternativa utilizamos los modelos de supervivencia multi-estados para evaluar la asociación entre mortalidad y recuperación, o no, de los niveles funcionales y nutricionales considerados normales. Despuésde estimar el modelo y de identificar los factores pron ́osticos de mortalidad es posible obtener un proceso predictivo que permite hacer predicciones de la supervivencia de los pacientes en función de su historia concreta hasta un determinado momento. Esto permite realizar un pronóstico más preciso de cada grupo de pacientes, lo cual puede ser muy útil para los profesionales sanitarios en la toma de decisiones clínicas