Social Networks in Labor Markets

Research in sociology and economics point to important role for social networks in labor markets. Social contacts mediate propagation of rich and reliable information among indi- viduals and thus help workers find jobs and employers find employees. Recent theoretical advances show that for agents connected through networks employment is positively cor- related across time and agents, unemployment exhibits duration dependence, and inequal- ity can persist. Recent empirical findings underscore nonlinearities in social interactions and potentially important effects of self-selection. Socioeconomic characteristics can explain substantial spatial dependence in unemployment.networks, labor markets, social connections, unemployment, proximity, spatial dependence, information networks, neighborhoods and jobs

Rereading American masculinities: re-visions of the American myth of self-made manhood in Richard Ford’s fiction

Instituto de la Mujer (España

To Be or Not To Be (a Man): Is That the Question? Men and/in Feminist Literary Criticism

[Abstract] While the question of men and/in feminism has long been subject to different (and often opposed) views and opinions, the more specific issue of men in feminist literary criticism remains largely unexplored. Nevertheless, the question of men in feminism is not exactly the same as the question of men in feminist literary criticism. As Toril Moi indicates, “while the latter is an interesting and relevant problem in its own right, it is strange, to say the least, not to find a single discussion of the difference between these two questions.” This paper thus sets out to address the particular subject of men and/in feminist literary criticism. While acknowledging the diversities within –and disagreements between– male and female feminisms, it posits that men can and should get involved in feminist literary theory, arguing that (female) feminism could be widened and enriched by new male feminist critical perspectives

The Sex or the Death of the Author? Rethinking the Relevance of “Maleness” to (Feminist) Literature and Literary Criticism

[Abstract] The relevance/irrelevance of the sex of the author to textual analysis remains one of the most controversial debates within contemporary literary theory, in general, and feminist literary criticism, in particular. On the one hand, the relevance of knowledge about the author to knowledge about the text has been diminished repeatedly in the twentieth century by formalist, Marxist, and poststructuralist scholarship. On the other hand, other (feminist) scholars have insisted that the sex of the author cannot be ignored, as it helps account for the text’s content and/or style. After presenting the two sides of the argument, the paper highlights some of the dangers of “de-gendering” literature, showing the relevance of the sex of the author to textual criticism. Nevertheless, it argues that it is neither possible nor desirable to lump all (male) writers into one single category, as male fiction is far from static and monolithic, constituting a varied, changing, complex and often contradictory (fictional) gender construct. The paper thus concludes underlining the feminist potential of a number of male-authored texts, ranging from Samuel Richardson’s Clarissa to Henry James’s The Bostonians, among others

FES rehabilitation platform with real-time control and performance feedback.

Osteoporosis after spinal cord injury is associated with low-trauma fractures, and consequently with increased risk of morbidity and mortality. The loss of bone mass density (BMD) due to paraplegia can be reduced through cyclical electrically-induced muscle contractions. Here we propose an FES control system based on posture switching, that induces transient loading of the lower limbs during a set of standing postures. This aims to produce an increased, evenly distributed BMD, whilst minimising FES-induced muscle fatigue. Here we describe the design and assessment of the FES exercising platform, comprising a controllable multi-channel electrical stimulator and an instrumented standing frame. The platform supports standing and postural shifting, provides real-time human-in-the-loop FES control with on-line feedback to the user. The platforms is used to investigate the effect of regular exercise on the distribution of BMD in people with paraplegia

Diseño didáctico-organizativo de los créditos europeos (ECS). Descripción de un caso

El cambio en educación es el contexto de partida de la presente aportación. Especialmente el que se está produciendo en la secular institución universitaria a partir de la entrada en vigor de las prescripciones europeas: declaraciones de Bolonia y Praga. El espacio común europeo de la educación superior presenta, además, una serie de innovaciones de naturaleza pedagógica que serán foco especial de nuestra atención. Los planteamientos de corte más paidocéntrico y la revisión de las prácticas docentes universitarias se describen teórica y conceptualmente. Finalmente, se presenta de manera operativa im estudio de caso particular donde se aplican a una situación real las prescripciones generales de Bolonia, remarcando las variables de tipo didáctico-organizativo

Translocation of an Intrauterine Contraceptive Device: Incidental Finding in the Rectosigmoid Colon

The presence of an intrauterine device (IUD) within the colon is rare. Complications have been reported with IUDs among which uterine perforation. Translocation of IUDs to the uterine cavity, to the bladder and also through the wall of the bowel, and sigmoid colon has been reported. We believe there may be a case that surgeons should know the result of despite being a priori gynaecological complication. This paper reports on a case of colon perforation by an IUD

The Oxidative State of Chylomicron Remnants Influences Their Modulation of Human Monocyte Activation

Chylomicron remnants (CMRs) contribute directly to human monocyte activation in vitro, by increasing reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and cell migration. In this study, the effects of the oxidative state of CMR on the degree of monocyte activation was investigated. CMR-like particles (CRLPs) were prepared in three different oxidative states, normal (CRLPs), protected from oxidation by incorporation of the antioxidant, probucol (pCRLPs), or oxidised with CuSO4 (oxCRLPs). Lipid accumulation and ROS production were significantly increased in primary human monocytes incubated with CRLPs, whilst secretion on monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 was reduced, but oxCRLPs had no additional effect. In contrast, pCRLPs were taken up by monocytes to a lesser extent and had no significant effect on ROS or MCP-1 secretion. These studies suggest that the oxidative state of CMRs modulates their stimulation of the activation of peripheral blood human monocytes and that dietary antioxidants may provide some protection against these atherogenic effects