Spain 2011 pension reform

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the impact of the Spanish pension reform enacted in 2011. We use an accounting model with heterogeneous agents and overlapping generations in order to project revenues and expenditures of the pension system for the next four decades. Specifically, we analyze the impact of changes in the replacement rate, in the period of calculation and the delay of the retirement age. We obtain results under two alternative migration scenarios: (i) a combination of the latest figures released by the INE, which forecast a reduced annual immigration net flow of some 70,000 persons; and (ii) a revised scenario featuring a more generous hypothesis concerning this net flow. We demonstrate that the results show that these three changes instigated by the reform could imply a savings of about 3 percentage points of GDP in 2051. However, we couldn’t include in the evaluation the sustainability factor (that transform the Spanish system in a defined contribution scheme) that will start in 2027 due to the lack of details in the text of the Reform. Finally, we analyze the changes in average pensions by gender, skill, and nationalit

Predicción de la frescura del aceite de oliva virgen extra durante el almacenamiento mediante espectroscopía de fluorescencia

Virgin olive oil quality relates to flavor and unique health benefits. Some of these properties are at the most desirable level when the oil is just extracted, since it is not a product that improves with age. On the contrary, the concentrations of many compounds change during its shelf-life. These changes reveal the aging of the oil but do not necessarily mean decay in sensory properties, so in some cases an aged oil from healthy olives may be better qualified than a fresh one from olives affected by fermentation. The aim of this work is to analyze different methodologies proposed for assessing the quality of virgin olive oil with implications in freshness and aging of the oil, and to highlight the possibilities of rapid spectrofluorimetric techniques for assessing oil freshness by checking the evolution of pigments during storage. The observed change in the selected spectral features and mathematical modelling over time was compared with the accepted model for predicting the amount of pyropheophytin a, which is based on isokinetic studies. The best regression was obtained for 655 nm (adjustedR2 = 0.91) wavelength, which matches the distinctive band of pigments. The two mathematical models described in this study highlight the usefulness of pigments in the prediction of the shelf-life of extra virgin olive oil.La calidad del aceite de oliva virgen está relacionada con su flavor y sus beneficios únicos para la salud. Algunas de estas propiedades se encuentran en el nivel más deseable cuando el aceite está recién extraído, ya que no es un producto que mejore con el tiempo. Por el contrario, las concentraciones de muchos compuestos cambian a lo largo de la vida útil. Estos cambios revelan el envejecimiento del aceite, pero no implican necesariamente la alteración de las propiedades sensoriales, por lo que en algunos casos un aceite envejecido procedente de aceitunas sanas puede presentar mejor calidad que uno fresco procedente de aceitunas afectadas por procesos de fermentación. El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar diferentes metodologías propuestas para evaluar la calidad del aceite de oliva virgen con implicaciones en la frescura y el envejecimiento del aceite, destacando las posibilidades de las rápidas técnicas espectrofluorométricas para evaluar la frescura del aceite verificando la evolución de los pigmentos durante el almacenamiento. El cambio observado en las características espectrales seleccionadas y su modelado matemático a lo largo del tiempo se comparó con el modelo aceptado para predecir la cantidad de pirofeofitina a, que se basa en estudios isocinéticos. Los dos modelos matemáticos descritos en este estudio pusieron de manifiesto la utilidad de los pigmentos en la predicción de la vida útil del aceite de oliva virgen extra. La mejor regresión se obtuvo para 655 nm (R2 -ajustado = 0,91), longitud de onda que coincide con la banda distintiva de pigmentos.Secretaría de Estado de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación de España-AGL2015-69320-

Predicción de la frescura del aceite de oliva virgen extra durante el almacenamiento mediante espectroscopía de fluorescencia

Virgin olive oil quality relates to flavor and unique health benefits. Some of these properties are at the most desirable level when the oil is just extracted, since it is not a product that improves with age. On the contrary, the concentrations of many compounds change during its shelf-life. These changes reveal the aging of the oil but do not necessarily mean decay in sensory properties, so in some cases an aged oil from healthy olives may be better qualified than a fresh one from olives affected by fermentation. The aim of this work is to analyze different methodologies proposed for assessing the quality of virgin olive oil with implications in freshness and aging of the oil, and to highlight the possibilities of rapid spectrofluorimetric techniques for assessing oil freshness by checking the evolution of pigments during storage. The observed change in the selected spectral features and mathematical modelling over time was compared with the accepted model for predicting the amount of pyropheophytin a, which is based on isokinetic studies. The best regression was obtained for 655 nm (adjustedR2 = 0.91) wavelength, which matches the distinctive band of pigments. The two mathematical models described in this study highlight the usefulness of pigments in the prediction of the shelf-life of extra virgin olive oil.La calidad del aceite de oliva virgen está relacionada con su flavor y sus beneficios únicos para la salud. Algunas de estas propiedades se encuentran en el nivel más deseable cuando el aceite está recién extraído, ya que no es un producto que mejore con el tiempo. Por el contrario, las concentraciones de muchos compuestos cambian a lo largo de la vida útil. Estos cambios revelan el envejecimiento del aceite, pero no implican necesariamente la alteración de las propiedades sensoriales, por lo que en algunos casos un aceite envejecido procedente de aceitunas sanas puede presentar mejor calidad que uno fresco procedente de aceitunas afectadas por procesos de fermentación. El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar diferentes metodologías propuestas para evaluar la calidad del aceite de oliva virgen con implicaciones en la frescura y el envejecimiento del aceite, destacando las posibilidades de las rápidas técnicas espectrofluorométricas para evaluar la frescura del aceite verificando la evolución de los pigmentos durante el almacenamiento. El cambio observado en las características espectrales seleccionadas y su modelado matemático a lo largo del tiempo se comparó con el modelo aceptado para predecir la cantidad de pirofeofitina a, que se basa en estudios isocinéticos. Los dos modelos matemáticos descritos en este estudio pusieron de manifiesto la utilidad de los pigmentos en la predicción de la vida útil del aceite de oliva virgen extra. La mejor regresión se obtuvo para 655 nm (R2 -ajustado = 0,91), longitud de onda que coincide con la banda distintiva de pigmentos.Secretaría de Estado de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación de España-AGL2015-69320-

L'excepcional orgue (1756-1835) d'Antoni Boscà per al convent de Sant Agustí nou de Barcelona

L'any 1756, la imminent finalització del nou complex conventual de Sant Agustí al Raval barceloní obligà els frares a acordar la construcció d'un orgue monumental que havia de ser capaç d'omplir de música un dels temples més grans de la ciutat. El conegut orguener Antoni Boscà en va ser l'autor, i va dissenyar un dels exemplars més innovadors i espectaculars de la seva factoria. Els orgueners més famosos de l'època a Barcelona van treballar en el seu manteniment fins que fou destruït totalment el maig de 1835.In 1756 the imminent completion of the new conventual complex of Sant Agustí in Barcelona's Raval quarter obliged the monks to commission the building of a large organ that could fill one of the city's biggest churches with music. The well-known organ maker Antoni Boscà would be its builder, designing one of the most innovative and spectacular instruments of his career. The most celebrated organ makers of the times in Barcelona worked on its maintenance until it was completely destroyed in May of 1835

Global diversity and distribution of aerobic anoxygenic phototrophs in the tropical and subtropical oceans

The aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic (AAP) bacteria are common in most marine environments but their global diversity and biogeography remain poorly characterized. Here, we analyzed AAP communities across 113 globally-distributed surface ocean stations sampled during the Malaspina Expedition in the tropical and subtropical ocean. By means of amplicon sequencing of the pufM gene, a genetic marker for this functional group, we show that AAP communities along the surface ocean were mainly composed of members of the Halieaceae (Gammaproteobacteria), which were adapted to a large range of environmental conditions, and of different clades of the Alphaproteobacteria, which seemed to dominate under particular circumstances, such as in the oligotrophic gyres. AAP taxa were spatially structured within each of the studied oceans, with communities from adjacent stations sharing more taxonomic similarities. AAP communities were composed of a large pool of rare members and several habitat specialists. When compared to the surface ocean prokaryotic and picoeukaryotic communities, it appears that AAP communities display an idiosyncratic global biogeographical pattern, dominated by selection processes and less influenced by dispersal limitation. Our study contributes to the understanding of how AAP communities are distributed in the horizontal dimension and the mechanisms underlying their distribution across the global surface ocean.Versión del edito

Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Spanish version of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons-Foot and Ankle Module (AAOS-FAMsp)

Background The current study performed a cross-cultural adaptation to Spanish and examined the internal and external validation of the AAOS-FAM questionnaire. Methods A direct translation (English to Spanish) and a reverse translation (Spanish to English) were performed by two independent professional native translators. Cronbach’s α coefficients were calculated to analyse the internal consistency of the measure. The factor structure and construct validity were analysed after extraction by maximum likelihood (EML); extraction was necessary if the following three requirements were met: accounting for ≥10 % of variance, Eigenvalue >1.0 and a scree plot inflexion point. The standard error of measurement and minimal detectable change 90 (MDC90) were calculated. Criterion validity was calculated by analysing the correlation between the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons-Foot and Ankle Module (Spanish version) (AAOS-FAMsp) and Spanish versions of the questionnaires FFI and FHSQ. Results Regarding internal consistency, Cronbach’s α was 0.877, and in the test-retest analysis, the ICC ranged between 0.899 and 0.942. Error measures were calculated by MDC90 and SEM, which showed values of 3.444 and 1.476 %, respectively. The analysis demonstrated a goodness of fit chi-squared value of 803.166 (p p r = 0.206 (p r = 0.665 (p Conclusions The results indicate that AAOS-FAMsp has satisfactory psychometric properties, facilitating the inclusion of Spanish-speaking individuals into both research and clinical practice

Nonlinear response of single-molecule nanomagnets: equilibrium and dynamical

We present an experimental study of the {\em nonlinear} susceptibility of Mn$_{12}$ single-molecule magnets. We investigate both their thermal-equilibrium and dynamical nonlinear responses. The equilibrium results show the sensitivity of the nonlinear susceptibility to the magnetic anisotropy, which is nearly absent in the linear response for axes distributed at random. The nonlinear dynamic response of Mn$_{12}$ was recently found to be very large and displaying peaks reversed with respect to classical superparamagnets [F. Luis {\em et al.}, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 92}, 107201 (2004)]. Here we corroborate the proposed explanation -- strong field dependence of the relaxation rate due to the detuning of tunnel energy levels. This is done by studying the orientational dependence of the nonlinear susceptibility, which permits to isolate the quantum detuning contribution. Besides, from the analysis of the longitudinal and transverse contributions we estimate a bound for the decoherence time due to the coupling to the phonon bath.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, resubmitted to Phys. Rev. B with minor change