An empirical contribution to development theory: a covariance structure model for development as freedom

This Thesis examines the empirical validity of Sen’s development theory. In his seminal work “Development as Freedom” Sen postulated a theoretical conceptualization of development which constitutes a paradigm shift towards a fundamental understanding of the determinants and causal relationships that explain development. A deconstruction of Sen’s development theory leads to five core tenets on which his theoretical conceptualization rests. These five pillars are translated onto testable hypothesis which are incorporated into a 2nd order recursive Covariance Structure Model (CSM) that allows scientific examination through hypothesis testing. Sen’s hypothesized core tenets are as follows: 1. Development is seen as an integrated multi-dimensional construct. Evaluative assessments of development require a broadening of the informational basis, and cannot be viewed only on the basis of one sole indicator (i.e. income per capita or gross domestic product). 2. Instrumental freedoms (i.e institutional structure) directly enhance substantive freedoms (i.e societal capabilities). 3. Substantive freedoms are derived from five different types of instrumental freedoms. 4. The expansion of freedoms is the primary end of development. 5. The existence of interlinkages between different kinds of instrumental freedoms. A database comprising 5 measured variables in the economic dimension, 5 in the social dimension, and 6 in the political dimension, for 154 countries (for all levels of income) for the average period from 1990 - 1994 was put together. The resulting empirical covariance matrix from the data was subjected to scientific hypothesis testing against the CSM. The results provide strong empirical evidence in support of Sen\u27s development as freedom theory. The clear implication is that Sen\u27s paradigm shift in development theory calls for a total rethinking on the socio-economic front of policy making, and that, once and for all, scholars in long-term growth and in political economy, policy makers, and world financial institutions alike should seriously consider an in-depth review, if not totally abandon, the unidimensional dominant perspective that for far too long now has negatively impacted and slowed down economic growth around the world

Octopus maya white body show sex-specific transcriptomic profiles during the reproductive phase, with high differentiation in signaling pathways

White bodies (WB), multilobulated soft tissue that wraps the optic tracts and optic lobes, have been considered the hematopoietic organ of the cephalopods. Its glandular appearance and its lobular morphology suggest that different parts of the WB may perform different functions, but a detailed functional analysis of the octopus WB is lacking. The aim of this study is to describe the transcriptomic profile of WB to better understand its functions, with emphasis on the difference between sexes during reproductive events. Then, validation via qPCR was performed using different tissues to find out tissue-specific transcripts. High differentiation in signaling pathways was observed in the comparison of female and male transcriptomic profiles. For instance, the expression of genes involved in the androgen receptor-signaling pathway were detected only in males, whereas estrogen receptor showed higher expression in females. Highly expressed genes in males enriched oxidation-reduction and apoptotic processes, which are related to the immune response. On the other hand, expression of genes involved in replicative senescence and the response to cortisol were only detected in females. Moreover, the transcripts with higher expression in females enriched a wide variety of signaling pathways mediated by molecules like neuropeptides, integrins, MAPKs and receptors like TNF and Toll-like. In addition, these putative neuropeptide transcripts, showed higher expression in females' WB and were not detected in other analyzed tissues. These results suggest that the differentiation in signaling pathways in white bodies of O. maya influences the physiological dimorphism between females and males during the reproductive phase

Pigmentation and production of vitamins in mango (Mangifera indica L.)

Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is the fifth most cultivated vegetable in the world. One way to classify the mango is according to the color of the peel, they are classified as green, yellow and red. Color is a visual attribute that defines consumer preference in some countries. This diversity of pigmentation is defined by families of genes that code for the production of proteins, which lead to biosynthetic pathways responsible for the production of vitamins and their precursors. In Mexico there is a wide range of colors in the native mango germplasm, which could represent an important source of antioxidants, pigments and would bring benefits for the human health of Mexicans, through the consumption of fresh fruit, or commercial / industrial exploitation of these. According to the literature, this diversity of colors represents a genetic wealth that could be exploited in the genetic improvement programs of the species in the country, to generate new varieties with desirable characteristics in the national and international market. In order to gather and discuss information that contributes to understanding the biochemical and genetic processes that determine said pigmentation and the production of vitamins in mango, this review makes a description of the main genes involved and the biosynthetic pathways of the most common pigments, considering the impact on human health when consuming them, and highlighting the challenges and opportunities that could arise from the use of pigments from Mexican germplasm.Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is the fifth most cultivated plant in the world. One way to classify mango is according to the color of the skin; mangoes are classified as green,  yellow and red. Color is a visual attribute that defines consumer preference in some countries. This pigmentation diversity is defined by families of genes that encode for protein production, which lead to biosynthetic pathways responsible for the production of vitamins and vitamin precursors. In Mexico there is a wide range of colors in the native mango germplasm, which could represent an important source of antioxidants, pigments and would bring benefits to the human health of Mexicans, through the consumption of the fresh fruits, or the commercial/industrial exploitationof these. According to the literature, this diversity of colors represents a genetic richness that could be exploited in the genetic breeding programs of the species in the country, to generate new varieties with desirable characteristics in the national and international market. In order to gather and discuss information that contributes to the understanding of the biochemical and genetic processes that determine such pigmentation and the production of vitamins in mango, this review describes the main genes involved and the biosynthetic pathways of the most common pigments, considering the impact on human health when they are consumed, and highlighting the challenges and opportunities that could be derived from the utilization of pigmentsfrom the Mexican germplasm

Analysis of jitter influence in fast frequency measurements

This paper presents a theoretical analysis of possible jitter impact in application of numeric criterion for fastmeasurement of frequency by coincidence principle. The primary goal is the generation of a signal containing a known amount of each jitter components. This signal was used for testing signals with regular pulse trains. Initially, jitter components are analyzed and modeled individually. Next, sequences for combining different kinds of jitter are modeled, simulated and evaluated. Jitter model simulation in Matlab is utilized to show the independence of frequencymeasurement results on the total jitter present in the reference and desired pulse trains independently. A good agreement between previously introduced theory of fastmeasurement of frequency and simulation in jitter presence is verified; these results allows to engineers use the numeric criterion for fastmeasurement of frequency in spite to interactions among jitter components in various applications for frequency domain sensors

Acoustically Levitated Whispering-Gallery Mode Microlasers

Acoustic levitation has become a crucial technique for contactless manipulation in several fields, particularly in biological applications. However, its application in the photonics field remains largely unexplored. In this study, we implement an affordable and innovative phased-array levitator that enables stable trapping in the air of micrometer dye-doped droplets, thereby enabling the creation of microlasers. For the first time, this paper presents a detailed performance of the levitated microlaser cavity, supported by theoretical analysis concerning the hybrid technology based on the combination of whispering-gallery modes and acoustic fields. The pressure field distribution inside the acoustic cavity is numerically solved and qualitatively matched with the schlieren deflectometry technique. The optical lasing features of the levitated microlasers are highly comparable with those devices based On-a-Chip registering maximum Q-factors of ~ 105, and minimum lasing thresholds ~ 150 nJ cm−2. The emission comb is explained as a sum of multiple individual-supported whispering-gallery modes. The use of novel touchless micrometric lasers, produced with an acoustic levitator brings new technological opportunities based on photonic-acoustic technological platforms

Developmental Reaction Norms for Water Stressed Seedlings of Succulent Cacti

Succulent cacti are remarkable plants with capabilities to withstand long periods of drought. However, their adult success is contingent on the early seedling stages, when plants are highly susceptible to the environment. To better understand their early coping strategies in a challenging environment, two developmental aspects (anatomy and morphology) in Polaskia chichipe and Echinocactus platyacanthus were studied in the context of developmental reaction norms under drought conditions. The morphology was evaluated using landmark based morphometrics and Principal Component Analysis, which gave three main trends of the variation in each species. The anatomy was quantified as number and area of xylem vessels. The quantitative relationship between morphology and anatomy in early stages of development, as a response to drought was revealed in these two species. Qualitatively, collapsible cells and collapsible parenchyma tissue were observed in seedlings of both species, more often in those subjected to water stress. These tissues were located inside the epidermis, resembling a web of collapsible-cell groups surrounding turgid cells, vascular bundles, and spanned across the pith. Occasionally the groups formed a continuum stretching from the epidermis towards the vasculature. Integrating the morphology and the anatomy in a developmental context as a response to environmental conditions provides a better understanding of the organism's dynamics, adaptation, and plasticity

Images of Betelgeuse with VLTI/MATISSE across the Great Dimming

From Nov. 2019 to May 2020, the red supergiant star Betelgeuse experienced an unprecedented drop of brightness in the visible domain called the Great Dimming event (GDE). Large atmospheric dust clouds and large photospheric convective features are suspected to be responsible for it. To better understand the dimming event, we used mid-infrared long-baseline spectro-interferometric measurements of Betelgeuse taken with the Very Large Telescope Interferometer/Multi AperTure mid-Infrared SpectroScopic Experiment (VLTI/MATISSE) instrument before (Dec. 2018), during (Feb. 2020), and after (Dec. 2020) the GDE. We present data in the 3.98-4.15 µm range to cover SiO spectral features molecules as well as adjacent continuum. We have employed geometrical models, image reconstruction, as well as radiative transfer models to monitor the spatial distribution of SiO over the stellar surface. We find a strongly inhomogeneous spatial distribution of SiO that appears to be looking very different between our observing epochs, indicative of a vigorous activity in the stellar atmosphere. The contrast of our images is small in the pseudo-continuum for all epochs, implying that our MATISSE observations support both cold spot and dust cloud model