How Is Convergent Mobility Consistent with Rising Inequality? A Reconciliation in the Case of Argentina

[Excerpt] This is a paper on earnings mobility in Argentina during the macroeconomic growth and contractions that have characterized that nation’s economy from 1996 to the present. Since 1996, real GDP growth has fluctuated widely. For most of the 1990s, Argentina was seen as a model of successful policymaking. Having pegged its exchange rate to the dollar under a currency board type arrangement in 1991, Argentina had succeeded in ending hyperinflation, reducing inflation rates to single-digit levels. Greater economic stability attracted foreign investment inflows, contributing to an acceleration in economic growth; indeed, even as lenders withdrew their financing in East Asia in 1997, capital inflows continued to Argentina. Then, Argentina entered into a prolonged recession. The combination of the hard peg of the local currency to the U.S. dollar and excessive borrowing led to an unsustainable fiscal situation and, ultimately, to the collapse of the economy at the end of 2001 (See Figure 1). Gross Domestic Product fell by 13.5 percent from the second quarter of 2001 to the second quarter of 2002, and the share of the population in poverty reached 58 percent in October 2002, versus 38 percent in October 2001, according to the official moderate poverty line. This paper addresses the distributional consequences of these macroeconomic events. (Note: Here and throughout the paper, “distribution of income” means the entire density or cumulative distribution function; it does not mean “inequality.”) Who benefited the most from Argentine economic growth? Who lost the most in economic decline? Are those who started rich getting richer in growth periods and losing more in recessionary periods, or is it the other way around? Are the answers to these questions the same for all measures of initial advantage

Earnings Mobility in Times of Growth and Decline: Argentina from 1996 to 2003

In recent years, the economy of Argentina has experienced both rapid economic growth and severe economic decline. In this paper, we use a series of one-year long panels to study who gained the most in pesos when the economy grew and who lost the most in pesos when the economy contracted. To answer these questions, we test two hypotheses both unconditionally and conditionally. The ?divergence of earnings? hypothesis holds that in any given year, the highest earning individuals are those who experienced the largest earnings gains or the smallest earnings losses in pesos. The ?symmetry of gains and losses? hypothesis holds that those groups that gained the most in pesos when the economy grew are those that lost the most in pesos when the economy contracted. Both hypotheses are decisively rejected in the data. Rather, we find that it is the lowest income individuals and groups who gain the most in pesos, whether in good times or in bad. Thus, the panel data analysis performed in this paper presents a picture of economic growth that is much more pro-poor than one gets from cross sectional inequality comparisons.finance, growth, inequality, Argentina, survey, gains, losses

The Mauritanian labor market through the lens of the 2004 national household survey

This paper provides a snapshot of Mauritania’s labor market using data from the 2004 national household survey. The results show that the labor market is characterized by lower participation rates, lower employment-to-population rates, and relatively higher unemployment rates than in neighboring countries. The non poor fare better in the labor market than the poor. Although the labor force participation of the poor is higher than that of the non poor, the poor display a higher unemployment rate and a lower employment rate than the non poor. The data also suggest a negative correlation between wage employment and poverty. Substantial differences in labor market indicators emerge when disaggregating the analysis by gender and age-group. Female non-participation is extremely high. Women systematically earn less than men independently of their sector and type of employment and controlling for other factors, such as education. Young adults face considerable difficulties in entering the labor market: more than half of the population aged 15-24 is neither studying nor participating in the labor force. As gender disparities remain important for similar levels of education, more work is needed to understand whether cultural factors may prevent women from entering the labor market. Concerning young adults, future poverty reduction strategies need to pay more explicit attention to the promotion of employment through informed labor market policies.Labor Markets,Population Policies,Rural Poverty Reduction,Labor Policies,

Labor market policy research for developing countries : recent examples from the literature - what do we know and what should we know?

This paper documents recent advances of research on labor market institutions, behavior, and policies in developing countries and makes suggestions for future research. The four areas of research analyzed are: i) theoretical and empirical implications of employment protection legislation on labor outcomes; ii) the issue of shifting from job to worker protection, namely, the different alternatives to severance pay: unemployment insurance and unemployment insurance savings accounts and their application to developing countries; iii) the effect of active labor market programs, particularly of training, on labor market outcomes; and iv) the causes and consequences of informality in the labor market, with special emphasis on the efforts to model the informal sector. The focus of the four sections is on theoretical and empirical work on published in the last five to seven years, and each one concludes with new directions for future research.Labor Markets,Labor Policies,Labor Standards,Population Policies,Political Economy

Genomic studies of the evolution of haptophytes and dinoflagellates with emphasis on the chromalveolate hypothesis

All photosynthetic eukaryotes rely, partially or totally, on their plastids to live. The plastids, which ultimately are highly modified cyanobacteria, were acquired through a process of primary, secondary, or tertiary endosymbiosis. Four photosynthetic lineages, including haptophytes, dinoflagellates, cryptophytes, and heterokonts, contain secondary plastids with chlorophyll c as a main photosynthetic pigment. These four lineages were grouped together, along with their heterotrophic relatives, on the basis of their pigmentation and called chromalveolates by Cavalier-Smith. However, the phylogenetic relationships among these algae are unknown and the chromalveolate hypothesis remains very controversial. This study focuses on increasing the amount of genomic data from a poorly studied chromalveolate lineage, the haptophytes, and understanding plastid evolution in chromalveolates. Both the chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes of the haptophyte <em>Emiliania huxleyi</em> were sequenced and examined to describe basic genomic properties, as well as perform comparative studies. Phylogenetic analyses, including data acquired from haptophytes, support a monophyletic chl c containing plastid clade derived from the red algae, after the divergence of Cyanidiales, with the cryptophyte plastid basal or sister to the haptophyte plastid. In addition, phylogenetic analyses using mitochondrial data suggest a relationship of haptophytes and cryptophytes. The chromalveolate clade as a whole is not recovered nor rejected by the data. Analysis of an EST project from the heterotrophic dinoflagellate <em>Crypthecodinium cohnii</em> indicates that <em>C. cohnii</em> is not only derived from a photosynthetic ancestor, but very likely retains a non-photosynthetic plastid. Analyses of putative gene function suggest that heme biosynthesis, non-mevalonate isoprenoid biosynthesis, amino-acid metabolism, and Fe-S cluster assembly may occur in the plastid. These observations are also consistent with the chromalveolate hypothesis, which proposes that several major groups of eukaryotes, including alveolates, haptophytes, cryptophytes, and heterokonts, may form a monophyletic group with a photosynthetic common ancestor, and that nonphotosynthetic members are secondarily so

Implementacion de un sistema scada para el tanque de recuperacion de condensados del generador de vapor clayton en la empresa caribbean eco soaps.

Implementar un sistema SCADA que optimice el funcionamiento del generador de vapor marca Clayton de la empresa Caribbean Eco Soaps ejerciendo control sobre las variables principales del tanque de condensados en dicho sistema. La implementación de un sistema SCADA para el tanque de recuperación de condensados del generador de vapor Clayton en la empresa Caribbean Eco Soaps es una necesidad visible que posee la empresa en mención, la cual al ser suplida potenciará uno de sus procesos más importantes, que es la generación de vapor. Si bien es cierto que la labor en la que se va a trabajar se desarrolla a cabo, vale la pena destacar que teniendo control y supervisión sobre las variables más importantes en la recuperación de condensados y la alimentación de agua en el generador, se optimizarán recursos tan valiosos como el agua, se protegerán equipos y a su vez se alargará su vida útil, se tendrá conocimiento del estado real del proceso para una mejor toma de decisiones, entre muchas ventajas más. El recurso del agua, que lamentablemente es cada vez más escaso y por ende costoso, se va a aprovechar de forma adecuada con la puesta en marcha del proyecto, pues se va a controlar la cantidad de líquido que ingresa en tanque de condensados. Equipos como los motores de las bombas booster alargaran su vida útil, pues la carga de trabajo no se concentrara en un solo equipo, sino que de forma automática el sistema equiparará cargas al distribuir equitativamente las horas de trabajo para cada motor. Por medio de las herramientas que incluye el proyecto, el operador conocerá aún más el proceso en el cual trabaja a diario al poder visualizar las variables del mismo, lo cual se traduce en una mejor toma de decisiones al momento de presentarse alguna dificultad que este atentando 22 directa o indirectamente contra no solo este, sino cualquiera de los otros procesos relacionados en las plantas de producción. El rendimiento del generador de vapor se optimizará notablemente porque al ejercer control sobre la temperatura del agua que ingresa, se mejoran las características físico-químicas debido a que al mantener el agua en la temperatura sugerida por el fabricante, se reduce la cantidad de oxigeno que repercutiría negativamente al acortar la vida útil de partes importantes del generador, como es el serpentín de calentamiento. Finalmente, con la ejecución del proyecto, se avanza notablemente en la integración de los procesos llevados a cabo en la compañía porque se obtienen datos que no eran ni observables ni mucho menos manipulables y aparte de ello con los herramientas propias de un sistema SCADA es posible realizar trazabilidad, almacenar información y supervisarla en sitios tan remotos como se imagin

Hospital de Apoyo para el Distrito de San Juan de Lurigancho

Esta tesis se origina viendo el problema dentro del distrito de San Juan de Lurigancho, que uno de los distritos de mayor población de Lima Metropolitana, con más de 1 millón de habitantes, que se encuentra en constante crecimiento poblacional y que posee un déficit de infraestructura hospitalaria. El Hospital de San Juan de Lurigancho, en la actualidad de Nivel II-2, es el único que proporciona atenciones de Salud y que no se abastece para la cantidad de habitantes existentes, por la precariedad de infraestructura, por equipos inoperativos y deficientes. Esto conlleva a que cada año se reporta altos grados de porcentaje de población insatisfecha por falta de atenciones los cuales deben desplazarse hacia otros establecimientos de salud lejanos. Según lo expuesto, la propuesta de “Hospital de Apoyo para el Distrito de San Juan de Lurigancho” se desarrollará como Establecimiento de Salud Local y de apoyo al Hospital existente, de acuerdo a la “Norma Técnica Categorías de Establecimientos de Salud” realizado por el Ministerio de Salud, se encuentra dentro de la Categoría II-1. Correspondientes a la categoría II-1, el proyecto se desarrolla con las siguientes Unidades Productoras de Servicios de Salud (UPSS): Consulta Externa, Emergencia, Hospitalización, Centro Obstétrico, Centro Quirúrgico, Medicina de Rehabilitación Diagnóstico por Imágenes, Patología Clínica, Farmacia, Centro de Hemoterapia y Banco de Sangre, Nutrición y Dietética, y Central de Esterilización

Effects of Mindfulness and Holotropic Breathwork on the Rehabilitation of Adolescents Who Use Psychoactive Substance Users: A Pilot Study

This pilot study aims to compare the effects of mindfulness and holotropic breathwork treatments on adolescents in the rehabilitation process for psychoactive substance use. Participants comprised 18 female adolescents aged 15–18 admitted to the Fundación Grupo de Apoyo, affiliated with the Colombian Family Welfare Institute. The Fundación is dedicated to rehabilitation from, detoxification from, and prevention of psychoactive substance use. The study utilizes a mixed methods approach with an exploratory design. Heart rate is used as an important indicator of psychological well-being and overall cardiovascular health, and the mean pretest/posttest heart rates of the control and experimental groups are compared quantitatively. The effects of both treatments on the study population are described qualitatively. The results show a reduction in heart rate in the mindfulness group compared to the control. The narratives of the participants and the institution’s workers show positive changes in emotional regulation and coping, better communication, and a reduction in stress and anxiety or the desire to use, as a result of both experimental treatments

Cut foliage: potentiality of native Argentine ferns as new ornamental crops

The cut foliage constitutes an important part of the floricultural production since it represents a fundamental element in flower arrangements, and ferns are the complementary elements most used by florists. In Argentina, there is native material that has not been yet domesticated and could have suitable characteristics for foliage use. The objective of the work was to determine the potential use of 15 native ferns as cut foliage through quality parameters and vase life, generating a scoring system that allows a classification list. Morphological descriptors such as petiole length, length and width of the blade, planes in which the fronds are arranged, brightness, consistency, abundance of spores and presence of pests were taken into account. Also, the production of fronds of six selected species with good scores was recorded. The results showed that it is feasible to consider the commercial production of Pityrogramma calomelanos, Niphidium crassifolium, Campyloneurum nitidum, Blechnum austrobrasilianum and Pteris denticulata by the quantity of fronds obtained and their quality, represented by their size. Campyloneurum nitidum excelled for its vase life of more than 26 days and frond production of 273.61 fronds m-2 at second year cultivation. Pteris denticulata produces 179.44 fronds m-2 but vase life was only 7 days.As folhagens de corte constituem um segmento importante da floricultura, pois representam um elemento fundamental nos arranjos florais, sendo as samambaias os elementos complementares mais utilizados pelos floristas. Na Argentina, existe material nativo, ainda não domesticado, que poderia apresentar características adequadas para o uso como folhagem de corte. O objetivo do trabalho foi determinar o potencial de utilização de 15 samambaias nativas como folhagem de corte por meio de parâmetros de qualidade e vida de vaso, gerando um sistema de pontuação que permite uma lista de classificação. Foram considerados descritores morfológicos como comprimento do pecíolo, comprimento e largura da lâmina, planos de disposição das frondes, brilho, consistência, abundância de esporos e presença de pragas. Além disso, foi registrada a produção de frondes de seis espécies selecionadas com boas pontuações. Os resultados mostraram que é viável considerar a produção comercial de Pityrogramma calomelanos, Niphidium crassifolium, Campyloneurum nitidum, Blechnum austrobrasilianum e Pteris denticulata pela quantidade de folhas obtidas e sua qualidade, representada pelo tamanho. Campyloneurum nitidum se destacou por sua vida de vaso superior a 26 dias e pela produção de 273,61 folhas m-2 no segundo ano de cultivo. Pteris denticulata produziu 179,44 folhas m-2, porém a sua vida de vaso foi de apenas 7 dias.Fil: Facciuto, Gabriela Rosa. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Floricultura; ArgentinaFil: Pannunzio, Maria Julia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Floricultura; ArgentinaFil: Puerta, Analia Veronica. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Floricultura; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez, Marcela Ines. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; Argentin

Computer Vision Based General Object Following for GPS-denied Multirotor Unmanned Vehicles

The motivation of this research is to show that visual based object tracking and following is reliable using a cheap GPS-denied multirotor platform such as the AR Drone 2.0. Our architecture allows the user to specify an object in the image that the robot has to follow from an approximate constant distance. At the current stage of our development, in the event of image tracking loss the system starts to hover and waits for the image tracking recovery or second detection, which requires the usage of odometry measurements for self stabilization. During the following task, our software utilizes the forward-facing camera images and part of the IMU data to calculate the references for the four on-board low-level control loops. To obtain a stronger wind disturbance rejection and an improved navigation performance, a yaw heading reference based on the IMU data is internally kept and updated by our control algorithm. We validate the architecture using an AR Drone 2.0 and the OpenTLD tracker in outdoor suburban areas. The experimental tests have shown robustness against wind perturbations, target occlusion and illumination changes, and the system's capability to track a great variety of objects present on suburban areas, for instance: walking or running people, windows, AC machines, static and moving cars and plants