MAKING TECHNOLOGIES WORK IN RURAL COMMUNITIES: THE CASE OF FLATBED DRYER APPROPRIATION IN STO. DOMINGO, NUEVA ECIJA, PHILIPPINES

This paper aimed to explain how rice farmers in Sto. Domingo, Nueva Ecija, Philippines managed to properly appropriate flatbed dryers. It also sought to describe the modes of appropriation offlatbed dryers: adoption, adaptation, and peer/group learning.  Data were gathered through a survey among 131 rice farmers and key informant interviews. Findings revealed that the rice farmers experimented and modified the features of flatbed dryers to better adapt the technology to their needs. The rice farmers have encountered problems in using the technology but have managed to employ adaptation strategies to address these problems which resulted to peer/group learning among them

Evaluación del Proyecto Epikouros de Inserción Sociolaboral de Inmigrantes

El proyecto Epikouros del Ayuntamiento de Barcelona representa un modelo de servicio específico de orientación para la inserción sociolaboral dirigido a personas procedentes de la inmigración exterior y con situación socioeconómica deficitaria. El proyecto pretendía responder a las necesidad peculiares que estas personas tienen en su proceso de inserción sociolaboral en la ciudad de Barcelona. Su finalidad fue acercar a los colectivos, asociaciones y personas inmigrantes los distintos servicios de inserción sociolaboral normalizados del Ayuntamiento de Barcelona, a la vez que facilitar la coordinación y adaptación de éstos a las necesidades diferenciales que tiene esta población. El proyecto atendió a un total de 235 personas inmigrantes

Diversidad y Multiculturalidad

Esta ponencia se enmarca en la línea de anteriores trabajos nuestros, en los que se ha intentado ofrecer el panorama general de la investigación llevada a cabo en el campo de la diferenciación educativa, y, más en concreto de la educación intercultural. En «Diseños y metodologías de investigación desde la perspectiva de la educación intercultural » (Bartolomé, 1992), tras una breve clarificación de términos asociados a la educación multicultural, analizábamos los principales métodos de investigación y campos de estudio que se habían desarrollado a lo largo de este siglo en el ámbito mundial. En «Modelos de investigación en la intervención educativa diferencial» (Bartolomé, Cabrera, F., Espín, J., Marín, M.A., Del Rincón, D. y Rodríguez, M., 1993) nos centrábamos en un marco más amplio, intentando abordar el estado de la investigación en ese momento en cada una de las áreas temáticas, al tiempo que profundizábamos en los principales problemas metodológicos hallados

Fishery Resource Enhancement: An Overview of the Current Situation and Issues in the Southeast Asian Region

The total global production from capture fisheries has plateaued since the mid 90s. This stagnation in production or reduced productivity of the world's coastal and marine wild fisheries is caused by overfishing and degradation of habitats through coastal development and destructive fishing methods. Reports have shown that if the current fishing trends continue, all of the commercial fisheries will have collapsed by 2050. To boost production, scientists, fisheries managers, government agencies, and NGOs have been looking at ways of enhancing fish stocks. Replenishing depleted stocks may be done by regulating fishing effort, restoring degraded nursery and spawning habitats or through resource enhancement. Resource enhancement using individuals reared in aquaculture facilities or seed stocks abundant in the wild is becoming a popular method of supplementing depleted stocks. It is one of the many strategies that could help address the decreasing fisheries production in the wild. A brief history of resource enhancement, the aquatic species released in the different countries in the region, the reasons for releasing stocks, and the issues involved, are discussed briefly in this paper. Among the main reasons for resource enhancement are to increase production or enhance stocks and increase food supply and/or family income. Other reasons include protection of endemic and maintenance of endangered species, rehabilitation of degraded natural habitats and for recreation fisheries, among others. Age or size of seeds, seed quality, genetics, governance, economics, biodiversity conservation, politics, and the introduction of exotics are among the resource enhancement issues identified in the region

SEAFDEC/AQD stock enhancement initiatives: release strategies

The Aquaculture Department of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC/AQD) started its Stock Enhancement Program more than a decade ago with the first stock enhancement initiative on the mud crab Scylla spp. funded by the European Commission. This was followed by another stock enhancement program in 2005 supported by the Government of Japan Trust Fund. In preparation for its implementation, a Regional Technical Consultation on Stock Enhancement of Species Under International Concern was convened in Iloilo City, Philippines in July 2005 to identify species for stock enhancement. During the meeting, seahorses Hippocampus spp., giant clam Tridacna gigas, abalone Haliotis asinina, and sea cucumbers Holothuria spp. were among the priority species for stock enhancement work. Stock enhancement, restocking and ranching are management approaches involving the release of wild or hatchery-bred organisms to enhance, conserve or restore fisheries. This paper reports SEAFDEC/AQD release activities and some of the release strategies that have been established for mud crabs, giant clams and abalone

Determinación del precio en un mercado de competencia perfecta : problemas y ejercicios resueltos

1 archivo PDF (220 páginas)Material que contiene una amplia gama de problemas y ejercicios resueltos relativos a la teoría del consumidor, producción y del comportamiento empresarial en condiciones de competencia perfecta, ejercicios que abarcan el contenido completo de la Unidad de Enseñanza Aprendizaje de Microeconomía 1 correspondiente al cuarto trimestre de la Licenciatura en Economía de la UAM-Azcapotzalco

Philippine Aquatic Wildlife Rescue and Response Manual Series: Marine Turtles

This manual addresses the lack of information materials on how to deal with marine turtle encounters in the Philippine seas to ensure that the proper treatment and intervention is provided. The manual also responds to the Comprehensive Action Plan for Threatened, Charismatic, and Migratory Species of the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME), which has been identified as the first priority seascape the Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI). The Tri-National Committee of the SSME developed the Comprehensive Action Plans (CAP) that identified seven Key Result Areas (KRAs) to improve the status of marine turtles in the SSME, as follows: (a) Identify best practices in minimizing threats to marine turtle populations and their habitats; (b) Develop and implement nesting habitats and management programs to maximize hatchling production and survival; (c) Provide recommendations on specific features or criteria in marine protected area (MPA) design and MPA network design in relation to the protection and management of marine turtles in SSME waters; (d) Undertake initiatives to promote reduction of incidental capture and mortality of marine turtles; (e) Conduct turtle population habitat research and monitoring protocols; (f) Develop guidelines for MPA network design for marine turtles; and (g) Publish information to promote best practices and successes for marine turtle conservation. This manual is an important step to address gaps and issues on threatened marine wildlife in the Philippines to better protect and conserve marine biodiversity in the Coral Triangle.The publication of this book is made possible through the collaboration of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Biodiversity Management Bureau (DENR-BMB), Marine Wildlife Watch of the Philippines (MWWP), and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) through its Adaptation to Climate Change in Coastal Areas Project (ACCCoast). This project is part of the Internationale Klimaschutzinitiative (IKI). The German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag (http://www.international-climate-initiative.com)

Genetics of Resistance to the Rust Fungus Coleosporium ipomoeae in Three Species of Morning Glory (Ipomoea)

We examined the genetic basis of resistance to the rust pathogen Coleosporium ipomoea in three host species: Ipomoea purpurea, I. hederacea, and I. coccinea (Convolvulaceae). In crosses between resistant and susceptible individuals, second-generation selfed offspring segregated in ratios that did not differ statistically from the 3∶1 ratio indicative of single-gene resistance with the resistant allele dominant. One out of three crosses between resistant individuals from two different populations revealed that resistance loci differed in the two populations, as evidenced by the production of susceptible individuals among the S2 generation. These results suggest that gene-for-gene interactions contribute substantially to the dynamics of coevolution in this natural pathosystem. They also suggest that evolution of resistance to the same pathogen strain may involve different loci in different Ipomoea populations

Chronic non-specific low back pain - sub-groups or a single mechanism?

Copyright 2008 Wand and O'Connell; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Background: Low back pain is a substantial health problem and has subsequently attracted a considerable amount of research. Clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of a variety of interventions for chronic non-specific low back pain indicate limited effectiveness for most commonly applied interventions and approaches. Discussion: Many clinicians challenge the results of clinical trials as they feel that this lack of effectiveness is at odds with their clinical experience of managing patients with back pain. A common explanation for this discrepancy is the perceived heterogeneity of patients with chronic non-specific low back pain. It is felt that the effects of treatment may be diluted by the application of a single intervention to a complex, heterogeneous group with diverse treatment needs. This argument presupposes that current treatment is effective when applied to the correct patient. An alternative perspective is that the clinical trials are correct and current treatments have limited efficacy. Preoccupation with sub-grouping may stifle engagement with this view and it is important that the sub-grouping paradigm is closely examined. This paper argues that there are numerous problems with the sub-grouping approach and that it may not be an important reason for the disappointing results of clinical trials. We propose instead that current treatment may be ineffective because it has been misdirected. Recent evidence that demonstrates changes within the brain in chronic low back pain sufferers raises the possibility that persistent back pain may be a problem of cortical reorganisation and degeneration. This perspective offers interesting insights into the chronic low back pain experience and suggests alternative models of intervention. Summary: The disappointing results of clinical research are commonly explained by the failure of researchers to adequately attend to sub-grouping of the chronic non-specific low back pain population. Alternatively, current approaches may be ineffective and clinicians and researchers may need to radically rethink the nature of the problem and how it should best be managed

Neck pain and anxiety do not always go together

Chronic pain and psychosocial distress are generally thought to be associated in chronic musculoskeletal disorders such as non-specific neck pain. However, it is unclear whether a raised level of anxiety is necessarily a feature of longstanding, intense pain amongst patient and general population sub-groups. In a cohort of 70 self-selected female, non-specific neck pain sufferers, we observed relatively high levels of self-reported pain of 4.46 (measured on the 11 point numerical pain rating scale (NRS-101)) and a longstanding duration of symptoms (156 days/year). However, the mean anxiety scores observed (5.49), fell well below the clinically relevant threshold of 21 required by the Beck Anxiety Inventory. The cohort was stratified to further distinguish individuals with higher pain intensity (NRS>6) and longer symptom duration (>90 days). Although a highly statistically significant difference (p = 0.000) was subsequently observed with respect to pain intensity, in the resulting sub-groups, none such a difference was noted with respect to anxiety levels. Our results indicate that chronic, intense pain and anxiety do not always appear to be related. Explanations for these findings may include that anxiety is not triggered in socially functional individuals, that individual coping strategies have come into play or in some instances that a psychological disorder like alexithymia could be a confounder. More studies are needed to clarify the specific role of anxiety in chronic non-specific musculoskeletal pain before general evidence-driven clinical extrapolations can be made