An Evaluation of the 1997 Fiscal Decentralization Reform in Mexico: The Case of the Health Sector

This paper studies the impact of the health decentralization of funds and responsibilities that took place in Mexico in 1997 on state level health outcomes. It renders two main results. First, the magnitude of transfers from the federal government to states failed to take into account state-specific needs; instead, transfers were mainly determined by the pre-reform health expenditures of the federal government in each state. Second, decentralization did not boost the advances in health outcomes already achieved under the centralized health sector regime. We conclude by discussing plausible reasons for the disappointing impact of decentralization on health outcomes.Fiscal decentralization, federalism, health.

A VLA search for young protostars embedded in dense cores

Four dense cores, L1582A, L1689A, B133 and B68, classified as prestellar in terms of the absence of detectable NIR emission, are observed at radio wavelengths to investigate whether they nurture very young protostars. No definite young protostars were discovered in any of the four cores observed. A few radio sources were discovered close to the observed cores, but these are most likely extragalactic sources or YSOs unrelated to the cores observed. In L1582A we discovered a weak radio source near the centre of the core with radio characteristics and offset from the peak of the submillimeter emission similar to that of the newly discovered protostar in the core L1014, indicating a possible protostellar nature for this source. This needs to be confirmed with near- and/or mid-infrared observations (e.g. with Spitzer). Hence based on the current observations we are unable to confirm unequivocally that L1582A is starless. In L1689A a possible 4.5-sigma radio source was discovered at the centre of the core, but needs to be confirmed with future observations. In B133 a weak radio source, possibly a protostar, was discovered at the edge of the core on a local peak of the core submm emission, but no source was detected at the centre of the core. Thus, B133 is probably starless, but may have a protostar at its edge. In B68 no radio sources were discovered inside or at the edge of the core, and thus B68 is indeed starless. Four more radio sources with spectral indices characteristic of young protostars were discovered outside the cores but within the extended clouds in which these cores reside. Conclusions: We conclude that the number of cores misclassified as prestellar is probably very small and does not significantly alter the estimated lifetime of the prestellar phase.Comment: Accepted by A&

Searching for coronal radio emission from protostars using Very-Long-Baseline Interferometry

In order to directly study the role of magnetic fields in the immediate vicinity of protostars, we use Very-Long-Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), aiming at the detection of non-thermal centimetric radio emission. This is technically the only possibility to study coronal emission at sub-AU resolution. We performed VLBI observations of the four nearby protostars HL Tau, LDN 1551 IRS5, EC 95, and YLW 15 in order to look for compact non-thermal centimetric radio emission. For maximum sensitivity, we used the High Sensitivity Array (HSA) where possible, involving the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), the phased Very Large Array (VLA), as well as the Arecibo, Green Bank, and Effelsberg radio telescopes. While all four protostars were detected in VLA-only data, only one source (YLW 15 VLA 2) was detected in the VLBI data. The possibility of non-detections due to free-free absorption, possibly depending on source geometry, is considered. For YLW 15 VLA 2, the prospects for an accurate orbit determination appear to be good.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in A&

An evaluation of the 1997 fiscal decentralization reform in Mexico: The case of the health sector

This paper studies the impact of the health decentralization of funds and responsibilities that took place in Mexico in 1997 on state level health outcomes. It renders two main results. First, the magnitude of transfers from the federal government to states failed to take into account state-specific needs; instead, transfers were mainly determined by the pre-reform health expenditures of the federal government in each state. Second, decentralization did not boost the advances in health outcomes already achieved under the centralized health sector regime. We conclude by discussing plausible reasons for the disappointing impact of decentralization on health outcomes

Simultaneous X-ray and radio observations of Young Stellar Objects in NGC 1333 and IC 348

Young Stellar Objects (YSOs) and in particular protostars are known to show a variety of high-energy processes. Observations in the X-ray and centimetric radio wavelength ranges are thought to constrain some of these processes, e.g., coronal-type magnetic activity. There is a well-known empirical correlation of radio and X-ray luminosities in active stars, the so-called Guedel-Benz relation. Previous evidence whether YSOs are compatible with this relation remains inconclusive for the earliest evolutionary stages. The main difficulty is that due to the extreme variability of these sources, simultaneous observations are essential. Until now, only few YSOs and only a handful of protostars have been observed simultaneously in the X-ray and radio range. To expand the sample, we have obtained such observations of two young clusters rich in protostars, NGC 1333 and IC 348. While the absolute sensitivity is lower for these regions than for more nearby clusters like CrA, we find that even in deep continuum observations carried out with the NRAO Very Large Array, the radio detection fraction for protostars in these clusters is much lower than the X-ray detection fraction. Very few YSOs are detected in both bands, and we find the radio and X-ray populations among YSOs to be largely distinct. We combine these new results with previous simultaneous Chandra and VLA observations of star-forming regions and find that YSOs with detections in both bands appear to be offset toward higher radio luminosities for given X-ray luminosities when compared to the Guedel-Benz relation, although even in this sensitive dataset most sources are too weak for the radio detections to provide information on the emission processes. The considerably improved sensitivity of the Expanded Very Large Array will provide a better census of the YSO radio population as well as better constraints on the emission mechanisms.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

A predictive model of inappropriate use of medical tests and medications in bronchiolitis

Few studies have identified predictors of inappropriate use of medications and medical tests in bronchiolitis. This study aimed to look for potential factors associated with the inappropriate use of medications and tests in bronchiolitis. A retrospective study that included all infants under two years of age in tertiary center admitted due to bronchiolitis from January 2015 to December 2018. We defined a composite score as the main outcome variable. 1930 patients were included. The most prescribed medications were nebulized hypertonic saline in 1789 patients (92.6%), albuterol (56%), and β-lactam antibiotics (26.4%). The medical tests more commonly ordered were hemogram (95.9%), chest X-rays (92.2%) and C-reactive protein (79.8%). After controlling for potential confounders, it was found that the length of hospital stay increases the risk of the inappropriate use of medications and tests (OR 1.29; CI 95% 1.01-1.65), whereas fever (OR 0.22; CI 95% 0.06-0.71) and leukocytosis (> 15,000/μL) (OR 0.09; CI 95% 0.03-0.32) at admission decrease the risk of the inappropriate use of medications and tests. Inappropriate use of diagnostic tests and drugs for bronchiolitis was a highly prevalent outcome in our population. Patients with longer hospitalizations, absence of fever and a normal white blood cell count at admission, were at increased risk of inappropriate use of medications and medical tests

Efectividad del EDTA al 17% y EDTA en gel al 10% en la erosión destinaria del conducto radicular, in vitro

El propósito del presente estudio fue determinar la diferencia de la efectividad del EDTA al 17% y EDTA en gel al 10%, en la erosión dentinaria del conducto radicular, in vitro. El estudio estuvo constituido por una muestra de 46 premolares unirradiculares; los cuales fueron seleccionados a través de un método no probabilístico, por conveniencia. Los dientes fueron instrumentados e irrigados con hipoclorito al 4.25% y como irrigación final EDTA al 17% y EDTA al 10 % en gel respectivamente luego lavados con suero fisiológico. Posteriormente los dientes fueron cortados de forma longitudinal y luego observados en el microscopio electrónico los tercios medio y apical los cuales fueron valorados por los criterios de Torabinejad. Se empleó la prueba no paramétrica de independencia de criterios utilizando la distribución chi cuadrado o prueba exacta de Fisher con un nivel de significancia del 5% (p < 0.05). Se concluyò que existe diferencia estadísticamente significativa al comparar la efectividad de erosión en el tercio medio del EDTA al 17% vs el EDTA gel al 10% mas no existe diferencia estadísticamente significativa al comparar la efectividad de erosión en los tercios apicales entre cada producto.The purpose of this study was to determine the difference in effectiveness of 17% EDTA and EDTA gel 10% in root canal dentin erosion in vitro. The study consisted of a sample of 46 single-rooted premolars; which they were selected through a non-probabilistic method, for convenience. The teeth were instrumented, irrigated with 4.25% hypochlorite and final irrigation 17% EDTA and 10% EDTA gel in respectively then washed with saline. Subsequently the teeth were longitudinally cut into shapes and then observed under the electron microscope the middle and apical thirds of which were valued by Torabinejad criteria. nonparametric test of independence criteria was employed using the chi-squared distribution or Fisher's exact test with a significance level of 5% (p <0.05). Thus it concluded that there is statistically significant difference when comparing the effectiveness of erosion in the middle third of EDTA 17% vs 10% EDTA gel but there is no statistically significant difference when comparing the effectiveness of erosion in the apical thirds difference between each difference.Tesi

Long-range order and low-energy magnetic excitations in CeRu2Al10

The nature of the unconventional ordered phase occurring in CeRu2Al10 below T0 = 27 K was investigated by neutron scattering. Powder diffraction patterns show clear superstructure peaks corresponding to forbidden (h + k)-odd reflections of the Cmcm space group. Inelastic neutron scattering experiments further reveal a pronounced magnetic excitation developing in the ordered phase at an energy of 8 meV.Comment: 5 pages; 4 figure

De Augusta Emerita a Olisipo: proposta de traçado para o primeiro troço da via XII do Itinerário de Antonino

Apresentam-se as propostas de traçado para a entrada no território português das três vias romanas mencionadas no Itinerário de Antonino, roteiro viário do século III d.C. Conjugando diversas fontes e metodologias de análise, apontam-se os troços viários ainda conservados

AER Auditory Filtering and CPG for Robot Control

Address-Event-Representation (AER) is a communication protocol for transferring asynchronous events between VLSI chips, originally developed for bio-inspired processing systems (for example, image processing). The event information in an AER system is transferred using a highspeed digital parallel bus. This paper presents an experiment using AER for sensing, processing and finally actuating a Robot. The AER output of a silicon cochlea is processed by an AER filter implemented on a FPGA to produce rhythmic walking in a humanoid robot (Redbot). We have implemented both the AER rhythm detector and the Central Pattern Generator (CPG) on a Spartan II FPGA which is part of a USB-AER platform developed by some of the authors.Commission of the European Communities IST-2001-34124 (CAVIAR)Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC-2003-08164-C03-0