An institutional approach to the role of cost accounting in regulated markets: the case of the royal soap factory of Seville (1515-1692)

Regulated markets and state-owned monopolies characterized the economies of many Southern European and Latin American territories around the end of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Strikingly, however, investigation into the functioning of cost accounting in such contexts has been widely neglected in accounting research. In this paper, we examine the role of early cost systems in regulated markets by focusing on the case of the soap production and distribution monopoly in the City of Seville (Spain). In 1423, the King of Castille granted the soap monopoly to the Duke of Alcalá as a reward for his war achievements, but the decision on the price of soap rested in the hands of the local government. Disputes between the Duke of Alcalá and the local government (the parties) about the fair price of a pound of soap were resolved through tests that replicated the soap production process and determined its cost through complex calculations. Drawing on the insights of institutional sociology, we found that the test and its accompanying cost calculations constituted an institution that legitimized the parties both in the public opinion and before the King. Further, our data revealed that the parties engaged in active agency before the King of Spain to shape in their favor the constitutive elements of the institution, such as the use of purpose-purchased or stored materials in the soap test; incorporation into the total cost the rents that would have been earned if the factory buildings were leased; and the salaries of some employees (i.e., slaves, factory administrator and priest)

AN INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH TO THE ROLE OF COST ACCOUNTING IN REGULATED MARKETS: THE CASE OF THE ROYAL SOAP FACTORY OF SEVILLE (1515-1692)

Regulated markets and state-owned monopolies characterized the economies of many Southern European and Latin American territories around the end of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Strikingly, however, investigation into the functioning of cost accounting in such contexts has been widely neglected in accounting research. In this paper, we examine the role of early cost systems in regulated markets by focusing on the case of the soap production and distribution monopoly in the City of Seville (Spain). In 1423, the King of Castille granted the soap monopoly to the Duke of Alcalá as a reward for his war achievements, but the decision on the price of soap rested in the hands of the local government. Disputes between the Duke of Alcalá and the local government (the parties) about the fair price of a pound of soap were resolved through tests that replicated the soap production process and determined its cost through complex calculations. Drawing on the insights of institutional sociology, we found that the test and its accompanying cost calculations constituted an institution that legitimized the parties both in the public opinion and before the King. Further, our data revealed that the parties engaged in active agency before the King of Spain to shape in their favor the constitutive elements of the institution, such as the use of purpose-purchased or stored materials in the soap test; incorporation into the total cost the rents that would have been earned if the factory buildings were leased; and the salaries of some employees (i.e., slaves, factory administrator and priest).

Beltrami flow structure in a diffuser. Quasi-cylindrical approximation

We determine the flow structure in an axisymmetric diffuser or expansion region connecting two cylindrical pipes when the inlet flow is a solid body rotation with a uniform axial flow of speeds Omega and U, respectively. A quasi-cylindrical approximation is made in order to solve the steady Euler equation, mainly the Bragg-Hawthorne equation. As in our previous work on the cylindrical region downstream [R Gonz\'alez et al., Phys. Fluids 20, 24106 (2008); R. Gonz\'alez et al., Phys. Fluids 22, 74102 (2010), R Gonz\'alez et al., J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 296, 012024 (2011)], the steady flow in the transition region shows a Beltrami flow structure. The Beltrami flow is defined as a field v_B that satisfies omega_B=nabla v_B= gamma v_B, with gamma = constant. We say that the flow has a Beltrami flow structure when it can be put in the form v = U e_z + Omega r e_theta + v_B, being U and Omega constants, i.e it is the superposition of a solid body rotation and translation with a Beltrami one. Therefore, those findings about flow stability hold. The quasi-cylindrical solutions do not branch off and the results do not depend on the chosen transition profile in view of the boundary conditions considered. By comparing this with our earliest work, we relate the critical Rossby number vartheta_cs (stagnation) to the corresponding one at the fold vartheta_cf [J. D. Buntine et al., Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A 449, 139 (1995)].Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Diagnóstico, manejo y evolución materno fetal de embarazadas y puerperas que conviven con VIH, atendiendas en el Hospital Alemán Nicaragüense, período comprendido entre Enero 2014 a Dicembre 2015

En Nicaragua ha sido prioridad para el ministerio de salud lograr erradicar la transmisión vertical del VIH, por lo que ha implementado programas de atención especiales en las diversas unidades de salud, con el fin de lograrlo. El objetivo del estudio era determinar el comportamiento en relación al diagnóstico, evolución y prevención de la trasmisión vertical en embarazadas y puérperas con VIH, atendidas en el Hospital Alemán Nicaragüense, período comprendido entre enero 2014 y a diciembre 2015. El tipo de estudio fue una serie de casos. Se realizó revisión de 28 expedientes de pacientes embarazadas con VIH, que se atendían en el programa y clínica de atención a pacientes. Y que se les dio seguimiento en el hospital. El grupo etario más afectado lo constituyo la población menor de 26 a 34 años, el 39.3% de la muestra estudiada, orientando a una pandemia que afecta en su mayoría a personas jóvenes con vida sexual activa. El nivel educativo que más predomino fue la primaria en un 50%. De las principales conductas de riesgo de las pacientes embarazadas con VIH, predomino en un 100% el no uso de preservativo. Otro factor que predomino fue el inicio temprano de la vida sexual, con un 57% que iniciaran antes de los 15 años, edad promedio de 15 años. En su mayoría las pacientes del estudio fueron captadas, ingresadas e iniciaron la TARV entre las 7 a 13 semanas de gestación, el 96.2% se diagnosticó A1 Y A2. El esquema más usado fue AZT/3TZ/EFV con un 57%. Con respecto al estado nutricional, el 75% de las pacientes eran eutróficas, un 14% presentaron desnutrición, de este grupo el 78% presento complicaciones maternas y fetales. El 40% presentaron restricción de crecimiento intrauterino como principal resultado perinatal negativo. La patología medica que se presentó con mayor frecuencia fue la infección de vías urinarias, con un 10.5%. Se concluye que el VIH afecta con mayor frecuencia a mujeres jóvenes en vida sexual activa, con bajo nivel educativo, sin uso de preservativos. El inicio tardío de tratamiento antirretroviral favorece a presentar efectos adversos, siendo los más frecuente fue la restricción del crecimiento intrauterino y la infección de vías urinarias

Precios, espíritu de beneficios y sistemas de costes

Actualmente se considera que fueron condiciones de gran competencia las que propiciaron la aparición de los primeros sistemas de costes; su objetivo sería mejorar la eficiencia mediante la reducción de costes. Este artículo presenta evidencia original relativa a las Reales Almonas de Sevilla (1525-1692), una empresa que operaba en régimen de monopolio, que cuestiona estas hipotésis. Así, la dura competencia no fue condición para la aparición de los primeros sistemas de costes; en empresas monopolísticas, el objetivo del sistema sería la determinacion de precios y no la mejora de la eficiencia. Por último, se sostiene que los primeros sistemas de costes tuvieron un papel importante en la difusión del espíritu capitalista

Wide-field compensation of monochromatic eye aberrations: expected performance and design trade-offs

Contiene: fórmulas y 6 ilustraciones.The optical quality of the human eye varies across the visual field. Hence an exact compensation of the eye aberration for a given field point can give rise to a less-than-optimum compensation in neighboring field regions. We have studied some aspects of this problem and present here an approach to design wide-field (,10°) optically thin correcting elements, e.g., phase plates, deformable mirrors, and liquid-crystal displays. Their expected performance is assessed using actual eye aberration data. Particular attention is given to the design of elements providing a minimum averaged rms residual aberration and those providing a nearly uniform rms residual aberration across a given field.Work supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología, Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica (I 1 D 1 I), DPI2002-04370-C02. - This paper was published in Journal of the Optical Society of America A, and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/abstract.cfm?URI=josaa-20-1-1. Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.Peer reviewe