Shades of Dispossession: Neoliberalism and the Social Production of Credibility, In Machu Picchu, Peru

This dissertation ethnographically examines the inconsistencies experienced by district residents in the historic and nature Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, over the Peruvian government\u27s drive to implement neoliberal policies. Heritage conservation in the southern Peruvian Andes is increasingly shaped by current neoliberal policies. The people who live in the district of Machu Picchu live in a protected area that gives the state expropriating powers to claim the land as a public good. The central problem is that under neoliberalism, a public asset is used for private gain at the expense of residents. Inhabitants experience changing juridical relationships as a contradiction between the neoliberal claim of a free market, and the hand of the government creating conditions that select some over others. My inquiry focuses on the actions of a mobilization formed out of small-middle scale entrepreneurs\u27 operating in a tourism economy. I explore the intersection between governance and the market economy through the lens of dispossession, and I argue that by reframing public goods in neoliberal terms, the stage was set for dispossessing inhabitants. Heritage conservation and economic structural adjustment involve incompatible forms of credibility that either justify the takings of rights, civil-status and the public resources accommodating larger capital investments, or discredit the legitimacy of governing authorities

Computation of Eigenvalues for Nonlocal Models by Spectral Methods

The purpose of this work is to study spectral methods to approximate the eigenvalues of nonlocal integral operators. Indeed, even if the spatial domain is an interval, it is very challenging to obtain closed analytical expressions for the eigenpairs of peridynamic operators. Our approach is based on the weak formulation of eigenvalue problem and we consider as orthogonal basis to compute the eigenvalues a set of Fourier trigonometric or Chebyshev polynomials. We show the order of convergence for eigenvalues and eigenfunctions in $L^2$-norm, and finally, we perform some numerical simulations to compare the two proposed methods

A space-time discretization of a nonlinear peridynamic model on a 2D lamina

Peridynamics is a nonlocal theory for dynamic fracture analysis consisting in a second order in time partial integro-differential equation. In this paper, we consider a nonlinear model of peridynamics in a two-dimensional spatial domain. We implement a spectral method for the space discretization based on the Fourier expansion of the solution while we consider the Newmark-$\beta$ method for the time marching. This computational approach takes advantages from the convolutional form of the peridynamic operator and from the use of the discrete Fourier transform. We show a convergence result for the fully discrete approximation and study the stability of the method applied to the linear peridynamic model. Finally, we perform several numerical tests and comparisons to validate our results and provide simulations implementing a volume penalization technique to avoid the limitation of periodic boundary conditions due to the spectral approach

Numerical Methods for the Nonlocal Wave Equation of the Peridynamics

In this paper we will consider the peridynamic equation of motion which is described by a second order in time partial integro-differential equation. This equation has recently received great attention in several fields of Engineering because seems to provide an effective approach to modeling mechanical systems avoiding spatial discontinuous derivatives and body singularities. In particular, we will consider the linear model of peridynamics in a one-dimensional spatial domain. Here we will review some numerical techniques to solve this equation and propose some new computational methods of higher order in space; moreover we will see how to apply the methods studied for the linear model to the nonlinear one. Also a spectral method for the spatial discretization of the linear problem will be discussed. Several numerical tests will be given in order to validate our results

At the root of the wood wide web: self recognition an nonself incompatibility in mycorrhizal networks.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are mutualistic symbionts living in the roots of 80% of land plant species, and developing extensive, below-ground extraradical hyphae fundamental for the uptake of soil nutrients and their transfer to host plants. Since AM fungi have a wide host range, they are able to colonize and interconnect contiguous plants by means of hyphae extending from one root system to another. Such hyphae may fuse due to the widespread occurrence of anastomoses, whose formation depends on a highly regulated mechanism of self recognition. Here, we examine evidences of self recognition and non-self incompatibility in hyphal networks formed by AM fungi and discuss recent results showing that the root systems of plants belonging to different species, genera and families may be connected by means of anastomosis formation between extraradical mycorrhizal networks, which can create indefinitely large numbers of belowground fungal linkages within plant communities

Changes in soil aggregation and glomalin-related soil protein content as affected by the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal species Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are key organisms of the soil/plant system, influencing soil fertility and plant nutrition, and contributing to soil aggregation and soil structure stability by the combined action of extraradical hyphae and of an insoluble, hydrophobic proteinaceous substance named glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP). Since the GRSP extraction procedures have recently revealed problems related to co-extracting substances, the relationship between GRSP and AM fungi still remains to be verified. In this work the hypothesis that GRSP concentration is positively correlated with the occurrence of AM fungi was tested by using Medicago sativa plants inoculated with different isolates of Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices in a microcosm experiment. Our results show that (i) mycorrhizal establishment produced an increase in GRSP concentration – compared to initial values – in contrast with non-mycorrhizal plants, which did not produce any change; (ii) aggregate stability, evaluated as mean weight diameter (MWD) of macroaggregates of 1–2 mm diameter, was significantly higher in mycorrhizal soils compared to non-mycorrhizal soil; (iii) GRSP concentration and soil aggregate stability were positively correlated with mycorrhizal root volume and weakly correlated with total root volume; (iv) MWD values of soil aggregates were positively correlated with values of total hyphal length and hyphal density of the AM fungi utilized. The different ability of AM fungal isolates to affect GRSP concentration and to form extensive and dense mycelial networks, which may directly affect soil aggregates stability by hyphal enmeshment of soil particles, suggests the possibility of selecting the most efficient isolates to be utilized for soil quality improvement and land restoration programs

Análise quantitativa de rna mensageiros, proteínas e atividades enzimáticas no estudo da rede de regulação controlada pelo gene Opaco-2

The Opaque-2 (O2) gene encodes a transcriptional activator specifically expressed for grain development of maize. o2 mutants have an opaque and chalky kernel, with a decrease in zein storage protein content, and an increase in the proportions of lysine and tryptophan. In this review, we present recent results investigating genetic properties of the O2 network, using transcriptome and proteome approaches, associated with measurements of activities of enzymes of the aspartate pathway and lysine degradation. The structural polymorphism at the O2 locus was investigated by RFLP in a collection of 51 maize inbred lines. Most polymorphic sites were found outside the coding regions. We then searched for relationships between RFLP polymorphism and (i) mRNA abundance of O2 and of known or suspected target genes, (ii) activity of SDH and (iii) amount of zein isoforms. Polymorphic restriction sites in the 5' upstream regions of the O2 gene were found associated with O2 mRNA abundance (three sites) and the amount of two 19 kDa alpha-zein isoforms (two sites). One restriction site on the 3' side of the O2 gene was found associated with Lor/Sdh mRNA abundance. Our results indicate relationships between polymorphism at the O2 locus and the expression of some of its target genes. Evidence of these associations has to be confirmed on larger samples, and the analysis of the O2 gene sequence should allow more precise testing of the actual involvement of O2 polymorphism in its own transcriptional expression, and in the expression of its target genes.O gene Opaco-2 (O2), expresso especificamente no grão de milho, transcreve para um fator de transcrição da família "leucine-zipper". Mutantes o2 apresentam grãos opacos, redução na quantidade de zeínas e aumento na proporção de lisina e triptofano. Genes cuja expressão é controlada diretamente pelo O2 são conhecidos (alfa-zeínas de 22 kDa, beta-zeínas de 14 kDa, b-32 e cyPpdk1). Nesta revisão, nós apresentamos resultados da caracterização genética de genes relacionados com o O2, através de abordagens de transcritoma, proteoma e de atividades enzimáticas da via metabólica do aspartato e da degradação da lisina. O polimorfismo do locus O2 foi avaliado utilisando-se a técnica de RFLP em 51 linhagens de milho. A maioria dos polimorfismos foi observada nas regiões não codificadoras da proteína. Análises de correlação foram realizadas entre os polimorfismos de RFLP e (i) quantidade de RNAm do O2, cyPpdk, Lor/Sdh e Ahas (ii) quantidade de isoformas de zeínas e (iii) atividade da enzima SDH. Sítios polimórficos foram correlacionados com a quantidade de RNAm do próprio O2, do gene Lor/Sdh e com a quantidade de duas isoformas de a-zeinas de 19 kDa. Nossos resultados indicam a presença de relações entre o polimorfismo do locus O2 e o nível de expressão de genes sob o seu controle. A utilização de um maior número de linhagens e o uso de dados de seqüência do O2 permitirá uma análise precisa da conseqüência do polimorfismo deste fator de transcrição sobre o controle do seu próprio nível de expressão e dos genes por ele controlados

A single polyploidization event at the origin of the tetraploid genome of Coffea arabica is responsible for the extremely low genetic variation in wild and cultivated germplasm

The genome of the allotetraploid species Coffea arabica L. was sequenced to assemble independently the two component subgenomes (putatively deriving from C. canephora and C. eugenioides) and to perform a genome-wide analysis of the genetic diversity in cultivated coffee germplasm and in wild populations growing in the center of origin of the species. We assembled a total length of 1.536 Gbp, 444 Mb and 527 Mb of which were assigned to the canephora and eugenioides subgenomes, respectively, and predicted 46,562 gene models, 21,254 and 22,888 of which were assigned to the canephora and to the eugeniodes subgenome, respectively. Through a genome-wide SNP genotyping of 736 C. arabica accessions, we analyzed the genetic diversity in the species and its relationship with geographic distribution and historical records. We observed a weak population structure due to low-frequency derived alleles and highly negative values of Taijma's D, suggesting a recent and severe bottleneck, most likely resulting from a single event of polyploidization, not only for the cultivated germplasm but also for the entire species. This conclusion is strongly supported by forward simulations of mutation accumulation. However, PCA revealed a cline of genetic diversity reflecting a west-to-east geographical distribution from the center of origin in East Africa to the Arabian Peninsula. The extremely low levels of variation observed in the species, as a consequence of the polyploidization event, make the exploitation of diversity within the species for breeding purposes less interesting than in most crop species and stress the need for introgression of new variability from the diploid progenitors

High Voltage System for the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

The CMS electromagnetic calorimeter (ECAL) is made of about 75000 lead tungstate crystals. The 61200 crystals of the barrel part are read by avalanche photodiodes (APD) with internal amplification of the signal. Since the gain strongly depends on the bias voltage, the APDs require a very stable power supply system. To preserve the high energy resolution of the calorimeter, a stability of the bias voltage of the order of 10^-4 is required over several months, a typical interval between absolute calibrations of the full read-out chain with physics events. This paper describes the High Voltage power supply system developed for CMS ECAL and its performances as measured in laboratory tests and during test-beam operations of several modules of the calorimeter

Prognostic Factors for Overall Survival In Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Patients: A Multicentric Cohort Study by the Italian CML GIMEMA Network

An observational prospective study was conducted by the CML Italian network to analyze the role of baseline patient characteristics and first line treatments on overall survival and CML-related mortality in 1206 newly diagnosed CML patients, 608 treated with imatinib (IMA) and 598 with 2nd generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors (2GTKI). IMA-treated patients were much older (median age 69 years, IQR 58-77) than the 2GTKI group (52, IQR 41-63) and had more comorbidities. Estimated 4-year overall survival of the entire cohort was 89% (95%CI 85.9-91.4). Overall, 73 patients (6.1%) died: 17 (2.8%) in the 2GTKI vs 56 (9.2%) in the IMA cohort (adjusted HR=0.50; 95% CI=0.26-0.94), but no differences were detected for CML-related mortality (10 (1.7%) vs 11 (1.8%) in the 2GTKIs vs IMA cohort (sHR=1.61; 0.52-4.96). The ELTS score was associated to CML mortality (high risk vs low, HR=9.67; 95%CI 2.94-31.74; p<0.001), while age (per year, HR=1.03; 95%CI 1.00-1.06; p=0.064), CCI (4-5 vs 2, HR=5.22; 95%CI 2.56-10.65; p<0.001), ELTS score (high risk vs low, HR=3.11; 95%CI 1.52-6.35, p=0.002) and 2GTKI vs IMA (HR=0.26; 95%CI 0.10-0.65, p=0.004) were associated to an increased risk of non-related CML mortality. The ELTS score showed a better discriminant ability than the Sokal score in all comparisons