Measuring total social income of a stone pine afforestation in Huelva (Spain)

We apply an experimental ecosystem accounting approach aimed at estimating the contribution of ecosystem services to total social income accrued from a Stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) forest as the result of afforestation in Huelva Province, Spain. The study encompasses private market products such as timber, pine cones, and forest conservation intermediate services; and non-market final services that include private amenities and public services such as landscape, free-access recreation and carbon sequestration services. We show how the total income of each single product is distributed amongst the factorial rewards to labor, and environmental and manufactured assets. Private products account for 46% of the average total income that the Stone pine forest would yield over its rotation, while public services comprise the remaining 54%. Our results also suggest that the production of public non-market services would offset the government compensation payments to support Stone pine afforestation and management. Finally, the results show that, on average, 7% of the estimated total income would be captured by the current System of National Accounts for forestry if applied to our case study (including only the net value added from timber and pine cone production and from plantation investment) and that 14% of this income would be dislocated into the government institutional accounts

Spatial valuation of forests' enviromental assets: an application to Andalusian Silvopastoral farms

We develop a model that estimates spatially allocated environmental asset values for the simultaneous provision of seven ecosystem services. We examine the effect of heterogeneous spatial and economic factors on asset figures, and identify potential forestry abandonment problems when continuing with forestry activity becomes unprofitable for the landowner. Our results show a relevant spatial variability according to forest species distribution and structure. We examine potential trade-offs among silvopastoral provisioning services, water, and carbon sequestration services. Results forecast the abandonment of forestry activity and quantify the significant impact of discount rates and prices on asset values

Diferenciación estratégica de la empresa Chester en el simulador de negocios CAPSIM

Trabajo en el que se describen las decisiones y el resultado de la estrategia implementada por Chester, empresa del simulador de negocios CAPSTONE. En el primer capítulo se presenta un marco teórico sobre estrategia conformado por casos y teorías que brindan herramientas eficaces la para solución de problemáticas. El segundo capítulo describe la industria de fabricación de sensores en la que se desenvuelve el simulador CAPSTONE, la planeación estratégica de la organización, donde se analizan factores internos y externos que la afectan, la misión, visión y la estructura organizacional, así como su estrategia general. Del capítulo tres al seis se analizan los resultados obtenidos durante la gestión de la empresa de los periodos del año 2018 hasta el 2026, en las áreas investigación y desarrollo, finanzas, producción, recursos humanos, mercadotecnia y calidad evaluadas a través del Balanced Scorecard, que refleja el cumplimiento de la estrategia planteada por la organización. En el séptimo capítulo se presentan las conclusiones del ejercicio con la estrategia utilizada, su implementación, desarrollo, ajuste y recapitulación de aprendizaje obtenido

Diferenciación estratégica de la empresa Chester en el simulador de negocios CAPSIM

Trabajo en el que se describen las decisiones y el resultado de la estrategia implementada por Chester, empresa del simulador de negocios CAPSTONE. En el primer capítulo se presenta un marco teórico sobre estrategia conformado por casos y teorías que brindan herramientas eficaces la para solución de problemáticas. El segundo capítulo describe la industria de fabricación de sensores en la que se desenvuelve el simulador CAPSTONE, la planeación estratégica de la organización, donde se analizan factores internos y externos que la afectan, la misión, visión y la estructura organizacional, así como su estrategia general. Del capítulo tres al seis se analizan los resultados obtenidos durante la gestión de la empresa de los periodos del año 2018 hasta el 2026, en las áreas investigación y desarrollo, finanzas, producción, recursos humanos, mercadotecnia y calidad evaluadas a través del Balanced Scorecard, que refleja el cumplimiento de la estrategia planteada por la organización. En el séptimo capítulo se presentan las conclusiones del ejercicio con la estrategia utilizada, su implementación, desarrollo, ajuste y recapitulación de aprendizaje obtenido

In vitro validation of biomedical polyester-based scaffolds: Poly(lactide-co-glycolide) as model-case

Monitoring and understanding the in vitro behaviour of polyester based scaffolds both comprising the study of the hydrolytic degradation and the cell seeding viability is essential to ensure the desired functionality, according to a given biomedical purpose. As a model case to compare the performance of techniques to monitor the in vitro behaviour, poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) scaffolds were chosen. The in vitro hydrolytic degradation of PLGA scaffolds was carried out in water and phosphate buffered saline (PBS). The evolution of the mass loss, the molar mass, the thermal properties and the surface morphology were monitored. The hydrolytic degradation media was correspondingly evaluated by means of the study of the pH, the amount of acid released and the conductivity. In addition, the in vitro biocompatibility regarding the cell culture viability was studied under physiological conditions. The cellular adhesion, cellular ability to proliferate on the scaffold, the scaffold inflammatory profile and the effect of the scaffold degradation compounds on the cells were assessed. A comparative analysis of the exploited techniques in terms of promptness of identification, depth of knowledge, simplicity of obtaining results and cost of the technique was implemented. The results showed that, depending on the balance between the interest in ascertaining the trigger of degradation or deep into the knowledge of the causes and effects of cell culture viability, an appropriate plan of analysis of the validation of polyester-based scaffolds could be designed

Predicting site index from climate and soil variables for cork oak (Quercus suber L.) stands in Portugal

Site productivity, assessed through site index, was modelled using partial least squares regression as a function of soil and climatic variables. Two alternative models were developed: a full model, considering all available explanatory variables, and a reduced model, considering only variables that can be obtained without digging a soil pit. The reduced model was used for mapping the site index distribution in Portugal, on the basis of existing digital cartography available for the whole country. The developed models indicate the importance of water availability and soil water holding capacity for site index value distribution. Site index was related to climate, namely evaporation and frost, and soil characteristics such as lithology, soil texture, soil depth, thickness of the A horizon and soil classification. The variability of the estimated values within the map (9.5–16.8 m with an average value of 13.4 m) reflects the impact of soil characteristics on the site productivity estimation. These variables should be taken into consideration during the establishment of new plantations of cork oak, and management of existing plantations. Results confirm the potential distribution of cork oak in coastal regions. They also suggest the existence of a considerable area, located both North and South of the Tagus river, where site indices values of medium (]13;15]) to high (]15;17]) productivity classes may be expected. The species is then expected to be able to have good productivity along the northern coastal areas of Portugal, where presently it is not a common species but where, according to historical records, it occurred until the middle of the sixteenth century. The present research focused on tree growth. Cork growth and cork quality distribution needs to be further researched through the establishment of long term experimental sites along the distribution area of cork oak, namely in the central and northern coastal areas of the countryinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Multifunctional natural forest silviculture economics revised: Challenges in meeting landowners’ and society’s wants: A review

Aim of study: This paper objective focuses on the contribution of multifunctional natural forest silviculture, incorporating both private and public product managements, to forest and woodland economics. Area of study: Spain and California (USA) Material and methods: This conceptual article has developed a critical revision of the existing literature on the main economic issues for the multifunctional natural forest silviculture in the last decades. Main results: Multifunctional natural silviculture has secular roots as a local practice, but as a science of the natural environment applied to the economic management of forest lands it is still in the process of maturation. Timber silviculture remains the central concern of forest economics investment in scientific publications. By contrast, silvicultural modeling of the natural growth of firewood, browse and other non-timber forest products from trees and shrubs receives scant attention in scientific journals. Even rarer are publications on multifunctional natural silviculture for forest and woodland managements, including environmental services geared to people’s active and passive consumption. Under this umbrella, private environmental self-consumption is represented by the amenities enjoyed by private non-industrial landowners. As for environmental public products, the most relevant are carbon, water, mushrooms, recreation, landscape and threatened biodiversity. Research highlights: This paper is a good example for the conceptual research on forestry techniques and economic concepts applied to multifunctional silviculture in Mediterranean areas of Spain and California. The combination of technical knowledge and private and public economic behaviors definitively contributes to the multifunctional management of natural forest systems

Muscle synergies in cycling after incomplete spinal cord injury: correlation with clinical measures of motor function and spasticity

Background: After incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI), patients suffer important sensorimotor impairments, such as abnormal locomotion patterns and spasticity. Complementary to current clinical diagnostic procedures, the analysis of muscle synergies has emerged as a promising tool to study muscle coordination, which plays a major role in the control of multi-limb functional movements.Objective: Based on recent findings suggesting that walking and cycling share similar synergistic control, the analysis of muscle synergies during cycling might be explored as an early descriptor of gait-related impaired control. This idea was split into the following two hypotheses: (a) iSCI patients present a synergistic control of muscles during cycling; (b) muscle synergies outcomes extracted during cycling correlate with clinical measurements of gait performance and/or spasticity.Methods: Electromyographic (EMG) activity of 13 unilateral lower limb muscles was recorded in a group of 10 healthy individuals and 10 iSCI subjects during cycling at four different cadences. A non-negative matrix factorization (NNMF) algorithm was applied to identify synergistic components (i.e., activation coefficients and muscle synergy vectors). Reconstruction goodness scores (VAF and r(2)) were used to evaluate the ability of a given number of synergies to reconstruct the EMG signals. A set of metrics based on the similarity between pathologic and healthy synergies were correlated with clinical scales of gait performance and spasticity.Results: iSCI patients preserved a synergistic control of muscles during cycling. The similarity with the healthy reference was consistent with the degree of the impairment, i.e., less impaired patients showed higher similarities with the healthy reference. There was a strong correlation between reconstruction goodness scores at 42 rpm and motor performance scales (TUG, 10-m test and WISCI II). On the other hand, the similarity between the healthy and affected synergies presented correlation with some spasticity symThis study was funded by the Spanish Ministry for Science and Innovation, in the framework of the project HYPER (CONSOLIDER-INGENIO 2010) "Hybrid Neuroprosthetic and Neurorobotic Devices for Functional Compensation and Rehabilitation of Motor Disorders" (Ref. CSD2009-00067) and the Spanish project ASSOCIATE (Ref. DPI2014-58431-C4-1-R).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Inter-Rater Variability in the Evaluation of Lung Ultrasound in Videos Acquired from COVID-19 Patients

12 páginas, 7 figuras, 1 tablaLung ultrasound (LUS) allows for the detection of a series of manifestations of COVID-19, such as B-lines and consolidations. The objective of this work was to study the inter-rater reliability (IRR) when detecting signs associated with COVID-19 in the LUS, as well as the performance of the test in a longitudinal or transverse orientation. Thirty-three physicians with advanced experience in LUS independently evaluated ultrasound videos previously acquired using the ULTRACOV system on 20 patients with confirmed COVID-19. For each patient, 24 videos of 3 s were acquired (using 12 positions with the probe in longitudinal and transverse orientations). The physicians had no information about the patients or other previous evaluations. The score assigned to each acquisition followed the convention applied in previous studies. A substantial IRR was found in the cases of normal LUS (κ = 0.74), with only a fair IRR for the presence of individual B-lines (κ = 0.36) and for confluent B-lines occupying 50% (κ = 0.50). No statistically significant differences between the longitudinal and transverse scans were found. The IRR for LUS of COVID-19 patients may benefit from more standardized clinical protocols.This research was partially funded by CDTI (Spanish acronym: Centre for Industrial Tech- nological Development), funding number COI-20201153. Partially supported by the Google Cloud Research Credits program with the funding number GCP19980904, by the project RTI2018-099118- A-I00 founded by MCIU/AEI/FEDER UE and by the European Commission–NextGenerationEU, through CSIC’s Global Health Platform (PTI Salud Global)