Rethinking the Political Economy of Decentralization: How Elections and Parties Shape the Provision of Local Public Goods

Decentralization is among the most important global trends of the new century, yet there is still no consensus on how to design political institutions to realize its benefits. In this paper, we investigate the political conditions under which decentralization will improve the delivery of public goods. We begin by incorporating insights from political science and economics into a rigorous and formal extension of the “decentralization theorem”. Our extension assumes inter-jurisdictional spillovers and suggests that the interaction of democratic decentralization (popularly elected sub-national governments) and party centralization (the power of national party leaders over subnational office-seekers) will produce the best outcomes for public service delivery. To test this argument empirically, we make use of a new dataset of sub-national political institutions created for this project. Our analyses, which allow us to examine educational outcomes in more than 125 countries across more than 25 years, provide support for our theoretical expectations

Simulation of Single Crystalline CdZnTe Solidification Process

Single crystals of Cd1-xZnxTe (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.1) (CZT/CdZnTe) are used in manufacture of gamma and X-ray detectors and as substrates for epitaxial growth of HgCdTe. Computer simulation for the solidification of CZT was performed using finite elements. The simulation results indicate that a lower translation speed of the quartz ampoule within the Bridgman furnace determines a lower concavity of the liquid interface which assures a good crystalline quality. When the rate is 3.32 mm/h the concavity is 58% greater than for a speed of 0.50 mm/h. It was experimentally found that when growing at low speed, 1.66 mm/h, the process is more stable and improves the crystalline quality due that only two grains were generated in CZT ingots. Meanwhile a faster growth speed- 3.32 mm/h- generates a large amount of grains in the CZT ingot.Fil: Martinez, Ana Maria. Provincia de Misiones. Comite de Desarrollo E Innovacion Tecnologica; ArgentinaFil: Rosenberger, Mario Roberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnológico Nordeste. Instituto de Materiales de Misiones; ArgentinaFil: Trigubo, Alicia Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Unidad de Investigación y Desarrollo Estratégicos Para la Defensa; Argentina. Universidad Tecnologica Nacional; ArgentinaFil: D'elia, Raul Luis. Ministerio de Defensa. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas para la Defensa; ArgentinaFil: Heredia, Eduardo Armando. Ministerio de Defensa. Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas Para la Defensa; Argentin

Assessment of Agricultural Practices in Maize Crops (Zea mays) Based on Elemental Profile and Chemometrics Analysis

In this work the effects produced by two treatments onmaize crop samples have been studied. Analysis of maize grain based on twotypes of agronomical conditions was performed on: (a) lots treated withdifferent fertilizers and (b) lots with different crop density. Analysis wascarried out by microwave induced plasma with optical emission spectrometry (MIPOES) and included the quantification of 11 elements: Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg,Mn, Ni, P, Pb and Zn. With the purpose of understand the effect of agriculturalpractices on elemental profile, principal components analysis (PCA) and clusteranalysis (CA) were used as chemometrics tools, finding a correct grouping ofeach crop based on the type of treatment. The obtained models can be useful toevaluate agricultural strategies, as well as for determining potential yieldsin maize crops.Fil: Zaldarriaga Heredia, Jorgelina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Moldes, Carlos Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Savio, Marianela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Azcarate, Silvana Mariela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Gil, Raul Andres. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Química de San Luis. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Química de San Luis; ArgentinaFil: Camiña, José Manuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; Argentin

Phenology, productivity, and chemical characterization of Jatropha curcas L. as tool for selecting non-toxic elite germplasm

A phenological, physical and chemical descriptive study was carried out on six germplasms of Jatropha curcas L. collected from different areas of Mexico. From these six germplasms, elite germplasms that are better adaptable, with high seed, oil and protein yield, and low levels of phorbol esters were identified. The thermal constant (2570 ± 9) and seed weight (0.695 ± 0.065 g) were similar in all the six germplasms. The average plant height was 1.47 ± 0.25 m after one year of evaluation. Variation in the number of inflorescences (0 to 22) and seed yield (27.35 ± 22.65 g) per plant, and fruit per cluster (2.9 ± 2.2) was considerable. Kernel oil and crude protein contents were 57 ± 3% and 26 ± 2%, respectively. Germplasms India and Isla (Veracruz) had the highest levels of phorbol esters (5.982 and 2.070 mg·g-1, respectively). The reproductive stage and phorbol esters content were critical in selecting elite germplasms. Based on our results, we were able to select three elite germplasms.Key words: Jatropha curcas, elite germplasm, accumulated degree days (ADD), yield, oil, protein, phorbol esters

Plan estratégico 2022-2026 de la empresa Mobile-T Inc.

El objetivo de este plan consistió en formular la estrategia de negocio para Mobile-T EE. UU., proyectada a 5 años, desde el 2022 hasta el 2026. La presente investigación permite aplicar los conocimientos adquiridos en el MBA como aporte académico en una empresa fabricante de teléfonos inteligentes mediante la revisión de su modelo de negocio y la propuesta de un plan estratégico. Considerando los resultados de rentabilidad obtenidos por la empresa Mobile-T durante los años 2017 a 2021, señalados en líneas anteriores, es necesario formular un plan estratégico que contribuya a mejorar su competitividad dentro del mercado en la industria de hardware tecnológico, almacenamiento y periféricos estadounidenses; por lo tanto, trazar líneas estratégicas para el período 2022 a 2026 es fundamental con el fin de reorientar los objetivos existentes y delinear planes de acción más efectivos, sin obviar la misión y visión empresariales. La empresa Mobile-T Inc. posee una posición consolidada en el mercado de las comunicaciones y equipos inteligentes, lo cual se demuestra con los índices de venta y preferencia de los clientes; sin embargo, el campo de las tecnologías emergentes, en la actualidad, está siendo dominado por las empresas Apple, Samsung y Xiaomi, relegando a Mobile-T en escalafones inferiores. Por ello, en esta categoría de ofertas, la empresa sustenta sus ganancias con las exportaciones a Europa y Asia, razón por la cual se ha considerado un plan estratégico para consolidar la posición de Mobile-T Inc. en el mercado estadounidense en cuanto a tecnología de vanguardia

Identification of germline monoallelic mutations in IKZF2 in patients with immune dysregulation

Helios, encoded by IKZF2, is a member of the Ikaros family of transcription factors with pivotal roles in T-follicular helper, NK- and T-regulatory cell physiology. Somatic IKZF2 mutations are frequently found in lymphoid malignancies. Although germline mutations in IKZF1 and IKZF3 encoding Ikaros and Aiolos have recently been identified in patients with phenotypically similar immunodeficiency syndromes, the effect of germline mutations in IKZF2 on human hematopoiesis and immunity remains enigmatic. We identified germline IKZF2 mutations (one nonsense (p.R291X)- and 4 distinct missense variants) in six patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, immune thrombocytopenia or EBV-associated hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. Patients exhibited hypogammaglobulinemia, decreased number of T-follicular helper and NK cells. Single-cell RNA sequencing of PBMCs from the patient carrying the R291X variant revealed upregulation of proinflammatory genes associated with T-cell receptor activation and T-cell exhaustion. Functional assays revealed the inability of HeliosR291X to homodimerize and bind target DNA as dimers. Moreover, proteomic analysis by proximity-dependent Biotin Identification revealed aberrant interaction of 3/5 Helios mutants with core components of the NuRD complex conveying HELIOS-mediated epigenetic and transcriptional dysregulation.Peer reviewe

Measurement of electroweak WZ boson production and search for new physics in WZ + two jets events in pp collisions at √s=13TeV

A measurement of WZ electroweak (EW) vector boson scattering is presented. The measurement is performed in the leptonic decay modes WZ→ℓνℓ′ℓ′, where ℓ,ℓ′=e,μ. The analysis is based on a data sample of proton-proton collisions at √s=13 TeV at the LHC collected with the CMS detector and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb−1. The WZ plus two jet production cross section is measured in fiducial regions with enhanced contributions from EW production and found to be consistent with standard model predictions. The EW WZ production in association with two jets is measured with an observed (expected) significance of 2.2 (2.5) standard deviations. Constraints on charged Higgs boson production and on anomalous quartic gauge couplings in terms of dimension-eight effective field theory operators are also presented

Heterozygous Variants in KMT2E Cause a Spectrum of Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Epilepsy.

We delineate a KMT2E-related neurodevelopmental disorder on the basis of 38 individuals in 36 families. This study includes 31 distinct heterozygous variants in KMT2E (28 ascertained from Matchmaker Exchange and three previously reported), and four individuals with chromosome 7q22.2-22.23 microdeletions encompassing KMT2E (one previously reported). Almost all variants occurred de novo, and most were truncating. Most affected individuals with protein-truncating variants presented with mild intellectual disability. One-quarter of individuals met criteria for autism. Additional common features include macrocephaly, hypotonia, functional gastrointestinal abnormalities, and a subtle facial gestalt. Epilepsy was present in about one-fifth of individuals with truncating variants and was responsive to treatment with anti-epileptic medications in almost all. More than 70% of the individuals were male, and expressivity was variable by sex; epilepsy was more common in females and autism more common in males. The four individuals with microdeletions encompassing KMT2E generally presented similarly to those with truncating variants, but the degree of developmental delay was greater. The group of four individuals with missense variants in KMT2E presented with the most severe developmental delays. Epilepsy was present in all individuals with missense variants, often manifesting as treatment-resistant infantile epileptic encephalopathy. Microcephaly was also common in this group. Haploinsufficiency versus gain-of-function or dominant-negative effects specific to these missense variants in KMT2E might explain this divergence in phenotype, but requires independent validation. Disruptive variants in KMT2E are an under-recognized cause of neurodevelopmental abnormalities