The moneychanger and his wife: from scholastics to accounting

El cambista y su mujer es un cuadro de la escuela flamenca, de principios del siglo XVI, ampliamente utilizado para ilustrar la actividad económica. Existen dos versiones: una de Quentin Massys, 1514, y otra de Marinus van Reymerswaele, 1539, con cambios relevantes entre ambas. Estos cambios tienen un significado económico importante. Las interpretaciones de este cuadro y otros similares que hacen los historiadores del arte son coherentes con su visión del mundo de la economía, más que responder a un análisis objetivo del cuadro y de la historia. Así, mientras que la imagen muestra la actividad comercial y financiera como una profesión normal y respetable, la mayoría de los historiadores del arte consideran que tiene una intención satírica y moralizante. Mi conclusión es que los prejuicios de los historiadores del arte hacia la actividad comercial y financiera les conducen a una interpretación equivocada del cuadro.The Moneychanger and his Wife is a Flemish painting from the early 16th century, widely used to illustrate economic activity. There are two different versions: one by Quentin Massys, 1514, and another by Marinus van Reymerswaele, 1539. There are significant changes between the two versions, which I will argue do have an economic meaning. In the process of reviewing the different interpretations provided by art historians of this picture and other similar ones, we shall see that they are consistent with the views that most art historians share about the commercial and financial world rather than based on any objective interpretation of the painting and history. Thus, while the picture shows commercial and financial activity to be a normal, respectable occupation, most art historians see a moralizing and satirical intention. My view is that art historians’ prejudice towards commercial and financial activity leads them to a wrong interpretation of the painting.

El empresario como factor de producción

Historia del Pensamiento Económico en España. Ernest Lluch I Martín, Pedro Schwartz Girón, Luis Perdices Blas (Eds.): Actas de las III Jornadas de Historia del Pensamiento Económico en España. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas de la Universidad de Barcelona. (11-12 de diciembre de 1987)Publicad

La teoría neo-institucionalista de la empresa como metodología

En las tres últimas décadas, los economistas críticos con el carácter abstracto de la Economía neoclásica se han agrupado como "Economía neoinstitucionalista", postulando que su enfoque es complementario del análisis marginalista. A la vez, la profesión como tal ha pasado a considerar suyos los campos que tradicionalmente quedaban excluidos del análisis económico por el suspuesto del comportamiento maximizador de individuos y empresas. En este trabajo se pasa revista a la nueva situación de supuesta confluencia en la Methodenstreit, y se concluye que esa pretendida confluencia, que se manifiesta explícitamente en muchos textos, oculta diferencias importantes. Lo que es peor, la necesidad de hacer compatible el nuevo trabajo con los hábitos teóricos de la profesión hace que triunfen aquellos planteamientos que más soslayan esas diferencias, como es el caso del "ánálisis neoclásico extendido al interior de la empresa".In the last three decades, economists critica! with the abstract nature of neoclassical economics have gathered around •<New Institutional Economics .. They have proposed that their approach is a complement to the marginalist theory. At the same time, within the economics discipline itself, it is been decided to take as their fields those that traditionally were excluded from the economic theory due to the assumption of maximizing behavior on the part of both individuals and füms. This paper shows the new position of confluence in the Metbodenstreit, and it is concluded that the so-called confluence, as seen in so many texts, hides very important differences. Even worse, the necessity of making compatible this new approach within the traditions of the economics discipline itself has resulted in the triumph of positions that go around these differences as in the case of ·neoclassical analysis extended to the inside of the firm•

Robert Owen, pionero del management

: Robert Owen es estudiado hoy como por los historiadores del socialismo bajo la etiqueta de “socialista utópico”. Esto hace que identifiquemos las fábricas de New Lannark con los experimentos que llevó a cabo en su intento de establecer una nueva sociedad basada en el ideal cooperativo, como New Harmony. En este trabajo se defiende que se trata de dos experiencias muy diferentes. New Harmony fue un fracaso cuya explicación interesa a los historiadores del socialismo. En cambio, New Lannark fue un hito en la organización racional del trabajo, precisamente por su éxito también desde el punto de vista empresarial, y no solo filantrópico. La organización del trabajo puesta en práctica por Owen debido a su experiencia empresarial, merece un estudio desde el punto de vista de la historia empresarial, y la biografía de Owen hasta 1812 es la de un empresario destacado de la Revolución Industrial.Historians of socialism use to present Robert Owen under the label “utopian socialist”. For this reason, we tend to identify the New Lannark cotton mills with the experiments, such as New Harmony, that he undertook in order to set up a new society based upon the co-operative principles. It is sustained in this paper that is a wrong approach: New Harmony was a failure, of interest only for historians of socialism. But New Lannark was a remarkable success, not only from the humanitarian point of view, but also in strict business sense. The organization of work that Owen introduced in New Lannark is worth be studied from the point of view of business history, and his biography, up to 1812, is that of an important entrepreneur of the Industrial Revolution.

Modelling of n-stage Blumlein stacked lines for bipolar pulse generation

A Blumlein line is a particular Pulse Forming Line, PFL, configuration that allows the generation of high-voltage sub-microsecond square pulses, with the same voltage amplitude as the dc charging voltage, into a matching load. By stacking n Blumlein lines one can multiply in theory by n the input dc voltage charging amplitude. In order to understand the operating behavior of this electromagnetic system and to further optimize its operation it is fundamental to theoretically model it, that is to calculate the voltage amplitudes at each circuit point and the time instant that happens. In order to do this, one needs to define the reflection and transmission coefficients where impedance discontinuity occurs. The experimental results of a fast solid-state switch, which discharges a three stage Blumlein stack, will be compared with theoretical ones

Polymeric nanoparticles for drug delivery: Recent developments and future prospects

The complexity of some diseases—as well as the inherent toxicity of certain drugs—has led to an increasing interest in the development and optimization of drug-delivery systems. Polymeric nanoparticles stand out as a key tool to improve drug bioavailability or specific delivery at the site of action. The versatility of polymers makes them potentially ideal for fulfilling the requirements of each particular drug-delivery system. In this review, a summary of the state-of-the-art panorama of polymeric nanoparticles as drug-delivery systems has been conducted, focusing mainly on those applications in which the corresponding disease involves an important morbidity, a considerable reduction in the life quality of patients—or even a high mortality. A revision of the use of polymeric nanoparticles for ocular drug delivery, for cancer diagnosis and treatment, as well as nutraceutical delivery, was carried out, and a short discussion about future prospects of these systems is includedMinisterio de Ciencia e Innovación PID2019-109371GB-I0

Recensiones [Revista de Historia Económica Año VII Invierno 1989 n. 1 pp. 219-253]

Linda Newson. The Cost Of Conquest. Indian decline in Honduras under the Spanish rule e Indian survival in colonial Nicaragua (Por Pedro Pérez Herrero).-- Pedro Rodríguez Campomanes. Reflexiones sobre el comercio español a Indias. (Por Luis Perdices Blas).-- Josep Fontana y otros. El comercio libre entre España y América Latina, 1765- 1824 (Por Andrés José Moreno Mengíbar).-- David-Sven Reher. Familia, población y sociedad en la provincia de Cuenca, 1700- 1970 (Por Concepción De Castro).-- Harvey J. Graff. The labyrinths of literacy. Reflections on literacy past and present (Por Clara E. Núñez).-- Bernard Elbaum y William Lazonick (Eds.) The decline of the Brittish Economy (Por Antonio F. Cubel Montesinos).-- Antonio Gómez Mendoza. Ferrocarril y mercado interior, Vol. 1: cereales, harinas y vinos, y Vol. 2: Manufacturas textiles, materias textiles, minerales, combustibles y metales (Por James Simpson).-- Carmen Sanchís Deusa. El transporte en el País Valenciano. Carreteras y ferrocarriles (Por Javier Vidal Olivares).-- José Manuel Naredo. La economía en evolución. Historia y perspectivas de las categorías básicas del pensamiento Eeconómico (Por Manuel Santos Redondo).-- Roger Backhouse. Historia del análisis económico moderno (Por Fernando Méndez Ibisate).-- William N. Parker (Ed.). Economic History and the modern economist (Por Gabriel Tortella)Publicad

RANK links senescence to stemness in the mammary epithelia, delaying tumor onset but increasing tumor aggressiveness

Rank signaling enhances stemness in mouse and human mammary epithelial cells (MECs) and mediates mammary tumor initiation. Mammary tumors initiated by oncogenes or carcinogen exposure display high levels of Rank and Rank pathway inhibitors have emerged as a new strategy for breast cancer prevention and treatment. Here, we show that ectopic Rank expression in the mammary epithelia unexpectedly delays tumor onset and reduces tumor incidence in the oncogene-driven Neu and PyMT models. Mechanistically, we have found that ectopic expression of Rank or exposure to Rankl induces senescence, even in the absence of other oncogenic mutations. Rank leads to DNA damage and senescence through p16/p19. Moreover, RANK-induced senescence is essential for Rank-driven stemness, and although initially translates into delayed tumor growth, eventually promotes tumor progression and metastasis. We uncover a dual role for Rank in the mammary epithelia: Rank induces senescence and stemness, delaying tumor initiation but increasing tumor aggressiveness

Assessing the Biofortification of Wheat Plants by Combining a Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacterium (PGPR) and Polymeric Fe-Nanoparticles: Allies or Enemies?

Biofortification has been widely used to increase mineral nutrients in staple foods, such as wheat (Triticum aestivum). In this study, a new approach has been used by analyzing the effect of inoculation with a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium (PGPR), namely, Bacillus aryabhattai RSO25 and the addition of 1% (v/v) of organometallic Fe-containing polymeric nanoparticles (FeNPs) alone and in combination. Previously, the minimal inhibitory concentration of FeNPs for the bacterium was determined in order not to inhibit bacterial growth. All treatments had minor effects on seed germination and plant survival. Considering the physiology of plants, several photosynthetic parameters were significantly improved in individual treatments with FeNPs or the bacterium, particularly the efficiency of the photosystem II and the electron transport rate, which is indicative of a better photosynthetic performance. However, at the end of the experiment, a significant effect on final plant growth was not observed in shoots or in roots. When using FeNPs alone, earlier spike outgrow was observed and the final number of spikes increased by 20%. Concerning biofortification, FeNPs increased the concentration of Fe in spikes by 35%. In fact, the total amount of Fe per plant base rose to 215% with regard to the control. Besides, several side effects, such as increased Ca and decreased Na and Zn in spikes, were observed. Furthermore, the treatment with only bacteria decreased Na and Fe accumulation in grains, indicating its inconvenience. On its side, the combined treatment led to intermediate Fe accumulation in spikes, since an antagonist effect between RSO25 and FeNPs was observed. For this reason, the combined treatment was discouraged. In conclusion, of the three treatments tested, FeNPs alone is recommended for achieving efficient Fe biofortification in wheat.Ministry of Science and Innovation of Spain grant PID2019-109371GB-I00Junta de Andalucía (Spain) Project FQM-135University of Seville, Spain PPIT-2020/0000109