Diálogo entre cooperación internacional y política fiscal

El papel de la cooperación internacional destinada a combatir la pobreza es relevante como acción complementaria a las políticas económicas nacionales, reconociendo en la política fiscal uno de sus instrumentos correctivos. La cooperación internacional, en su función de acción complementaria a las políticas económicas nacionales, resulta valiosa en la lucha contra la pobreza. En el presente análisis, considerando que la política fiscal es uno de los instrumentos correctivos de la desigualdad social, se presentan los resultados de un estudio comparativo sobre las reformas fiscales en las regiones de la OCDE y de América Latina. Asimismo, se identifican las condiciones para una política fiscal adecuada para el citado fin

A fatal and unusual genital mutilation in an elderly man as a result of sharp force injuries and domestic dog predation

Cases of genital amputation require a careful investigation, since they may be the result of self-inflicted injuries, assaults, animal predation, or post-mortem body mutilation. In the present case, an 81-year-old man affected by liver cirrhosis and dementia and suffering from sexual disinhibition was found lying half-naked and unconscious in his courtyard; profuse bleeding in the perineal area and the absence of the external genitalia were observed. The victim was transferred to hospital and underwent surgical emergency treatment, but he died 2 days later. No sharp tools were found on the scene. Moreover, the autopsy did not reveal any defense or tentative wound on the body and no blood stains on the hands of the victim. Several linear scratches were detected close to the edges of the wound; according to the surgical report, these scratches were clean-cut in the lower part and crenated and infiltrated by blood in the cranial part. Although the medical history of the man could be consistent with self-mutilation, it was not possible to rule out the involvement of other people, including the possibility of an attempt by his relatives to cover up what may have been a self-amputation. Furthermore, the victim’s dog vomited parts of the man’s genitalia while being transported to a dog shelter. Similar cases have rarely been published in the current forensic literature

Accidental death in a jack-knife position

Postural (or "positional") asphyxia occurs due to a person being in a prolonged abnormal body position that prevents adequate breathing. Its diagnosis is based on several criteria, in particular the exclusion of involvement of other people and other causes of death. This case report is about a 73-year-old woman whose body was found in a jack-knifed position by her son. She was on the floor, wedged into the space between the legs and seat of a chair. The man attempted unsuccessfully to extricate her from that position and called for medical assistance. The rescuers took pictures of the scene before freeing the victim from the chair and providing unsuccessful resuscitation. External examination disclosed abrasions on the thighs and the back of the victim, which corresponded to parts of the chair, ecchymoses on the upper limbs (ascribed to the gripping attempts), conjunctival petechiae, facial congestion and swelling. Autopsy disclosed brain and lung congestion and edema and atherosclerotic coronary disease without acute cardiac lesions. All these considerations contributed to the cause of death being determined as being due to postural asphyxia. Keywords: Postural asphyxia, Positional asphyxia, Jack-knife position, Death scene investigatio

Finanzas públicas municipales

El estudio enmarcado en el ámbito de las Finanzas Públicas Comparadas y Subnacionales, presenta un análisis cuantificado de capacidad tributaria y su concepto asociado de esfuerzo tributario, a fin de determinar la posición relativa de los municipios de la provincia de Santa Fe, mediante la construcción de prorrateadores, identificando los efectos sobre el sistema de las transferencias vigentes, considerando los determinantes de las transferencias desde un enfoque normativo y positivo. Los resultados obtenidos permiten conocer una problemática poco explorada de las finanzas subnacionales y que definitivamente enriquecen el conocimiento en materia de federalismo fiscal.Facultad de Ciencias Económica

EcoJogical-economic modelling and implications of land use change and wetlands extent on freshwater fisheries: the case of Lake Victoria (East Africa)

Watershed degradation and the conversion of wetlands to alternative uses affect water quality, having profound implications for the freshwater ecosystem and fisheries of Lake Victoria. Through dynamic simulations using the Ecopath approach we show that eutrophication may explain the sudden upsurge of the introduced Nile perch during the 1980s. During these years an important trigger of change was an abrupt shift in primary productivity due to an external shock, probably related to an El Nino-ENSO event. The Nile perch population explosion during the 1980s caused a profound transformation ofthe fishing industry leading to a dramatic increase in fishing effort. Our equilibrium analysis from the base values of an Ecopath mo~l for year 1989 depicts an overfishing situation. To quantify the combined effect of eutrophication and fishing effort on the-aggregate fish stock and fishery we specify and estimate a biomass dynamics model, which embeds a measure of phytoplankton biomass as an environmental variable. We found that in a eutrophic state, which for the Kenyan waters of Lake Victoria was above an estimated chlorophyll-a concentration threshold of 17.11 mg m-3 , a further increase in phytoplankton biomass would cause a decrease in aggregate fish stock biomass and landings respectively. We then model the relation between land use change and water quality, considering the nutrient retention function of wetlands. First, we identify catchment-based indicators, in particular price indicators and wetland extent, which may anticipate changes in ,. environmental variables driving stock assessment models. We then study both nutrient loading and wetland reclamation externalities to the fishery sector, focusing on the Yala swamp, one of the largest wetlands in the Kenyan basin of Lake Victoria. Finally we propose a spatially distributed land use tax as policy instrument for reaching the desired objective of changing farmers' behaviour and maximising the total economic benefit to society

Finanzas públicas municipales

El estudio enmarcado en el ámbito de las Finanzas Públicas Comparadas y Subnacionales, presenta un análisis cuantificado de capacidad tributaria y su concepto asociado de esfuerzo tributario, a fin de determinar la posición relativa de los municipios de la provincia de Santa Fe, mediante la construcción de prorrateadores, identificando los efectos sobre el sistema de las transferencias vigentes, considerando los determinantes de las transferencias desde un enfoque normativo y positivo. Los resultados obtenidos permiten conocer una problemática poco explorada de las finanzas subnacionales y que definitivamente enriquecen el conocimiento en materia de federalismo fiscal.Facultad de Ciencias Económica

La narrativa de Andrés Rivera: poética del pentimento

El punto de partida es un dato: la obra de Andrés Rivera comenzó a divulgarse raudamente en la década de los 90, cuando hacía más de treinta años que su primera novela se había publicado y había conseguido el reconocimiento de Ricardo Piglia, Juan José Saer, Beatriz Sarlo, María Teresa Gramuglio, entre otros escritores y críticos destacados.1 A sus 86 años, este narrador, que además cuenta con una prolífica producción, es considerado uno de los mejores escritores argentinos contemporáneos. Esta investigación es también un homenaje. No es necesario seguir el camino deductivo que nos impone el dato, pero puede resumirse la conclusión en el hecho de que el nombre de Andrés Rivera no haya ocupado, en su debido momento, el lugar preponderante que se merece en las historias literarias. Tal vez la actitud indiferente, casi siempre inflexible, y la sincera modestia que Rivera manifiesta frente a todo acto que celebre la obra literaria como un objeto trascendental, contribuya a esta situación. Sus apreciaciones sobre la literatura, sobre la función de toda obra literaria remiten siempre a la idea de que ninguna obra puede cambiar el rumbo de la historia, como tampoco a nadie puede cambiarle la vida después de haber leído un libro de ficción. Nos parece, sin embargo, y nos decantaríamos por ello, que se debe en mayor medida a la conducta íntegra que este escritor mantiene y la honradez perseverante que expresa en sus declaraciones, sin importarle a quién o a qué voces literarias autorizadas puedan incomodar sus tajantes palabras. Esta actitud del escritor puede comprobarse en cada una de las entrevistas que se le han realizado hasta el momento: su ideología es siempre la misma..

A charred body inside a burning car with a garden hose connected to the exhaust pipe: Post-mortem self-immolation, a complex or a complicated suicide after the ingestion of alcohol? The importance of an interdisciplinary approach

The analysis of charred bodies represents a serious challenge for forensic pathologists, and an interdisciplinary approach is often the only way to determine the cause and manner of death. We present an unusual case in which the charred body of a 61-year-old man was found inside his burning vehicle. In order to determine cause and manner of death, an interdisciplinary team was employed, with experts in forensic pathology, forensic radiology, toxicology and fire investigations. Post-mortem computed tomography, autopsy and toxicology ruled out the presence of trauma injury and detected signs of vital exposure to fire and blood alcohol levels. On the other hand, according to fire investigations, the fire started inside the car and partially burned fragments of a garden hose were found along the right side of the car. A suicide could therefore be hypothesized, with the man having attempted to poison himself with the car's exhaust fumes and having set the car on fire. The death was consistent with a complicated suicide in which the victim, in a state of reduced capability, accidentally set his car on fire and was unable to escape. The hypothesis of a complex suicide, with the car having been set deliberately on fire, could not, however, be ruled out

Diets, stress, and disease in the Etruscan society: isotope analysis and infantile skeletal palaeopathology from Pontecagnano (Campania, southern Italy, 730–580 BCE)

Susceptibility to morbidity and mortality is increased in early life, yet proactive measures, such as breastfeeding and weaning practices, can be taken through specific investments from parents and wider society. The extent to which such biosocialcultural investment was achieved within 1st millennium BCE Etruscan society, of whom little written sources are available, is unkown. This research investigates life histories in non-adults and adults from Pontecagnano (southern Italy, 730–580 BCE) in order to track cross-sectional and longitudinal breastfeeding and weaning patterns and to characterize the diet more broadly. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of incrementally-sampled deciduous and permanent dentine (n = 15), bulk bone collagen (n = 38), and tooth enamel bioapatite (n = 21) reveal the diet was largely based on C3 staple crops with marginal contributions of animal protein. Millet was found to play a role for maternal diet and trajectories of breastfeeding and feeding for some infants and children at the site. The combination of multiple isotope systems and tissues demonstrates exclusive breastfeeding was pursued until 0.6 years, followed by progressive introduction of proteanocius supplementary foods during weaning that lasted between approximately 0.7 and 2.6 years. The combination of biochemical data with macroscopic skeletal lesions of infantile metabolic diseases and physiological stress markers showed high δ15Ndentine in the months prior to death consistent with the isotopic pattern of opposing covariance.Introduction Etruscan society during the Orientalizing period (730–580 BCE) Bulk and sequential stable isotope analysis Materials and methods Archaeological site and selection of human and fauna osteological remains for stable isotope analysis Osteological and palaeopathological analysis Stable isotope analysis of collagen containing tissues Stable isotope analysis of tooth enamel bioapatite Statistics and data modelling Results δ15N and δ13C of faunal and human bulk bone collagen in the Orientalizing Etruscan individuals of Chiancone II Validity of weaning age estimation using the WARN model δ15N and δ13C of incremental dentine in the Orientalizing Etruscan nonadults of Chiancone II δ13C and δ18O of tooth enamel bioapatite in the Orientalizing Etruscan non-adults of Chiancone II Discussion Isotopic insights from bone collagen δ13C and δ15N and tooth enamel bioapatite δ13C and δ18O into adult and non-adult Etruscan diets Breastfeeding and weaning in Etruscan society and childhood stress from δ13C and δ15N incremental dentine data Conclusion

A synthesis of past, current and future research for protection and management of papyrus (Cyperus papyrus L.) wetlands in Africa

Papyrus wetlands (dominated by the giant sedge Cyperus papyrus L.) occur throughout eastern, central and southern Africa and are important for biodiversity, for water quality and quantity regulation and for the livelihoods of millions of people. To draw attention to the importance of papyrus wetlands, a special session entitled ‘‘The ecology of livelihoods in papyrus wetlands’’ was organized at the 9th INTECOL Wetlands Conference in Orlando, Florida in June 2012. Papers from the session, combined with additional contributions, were collected in a special issue of Wetlands Ecology and Management. The current paper reviews ecological and hydrological characteristics of papyrus wetlands, summarizes their ecosystem services and sustainable use, provides an overview of papyrus research to date, and looks at policy development for papyrus wetlands. Based on this review, the paper provides a synthesis of research and policy priorities for papyrus wetlands and introduces the contributions in the special issue. Main conclusions are that (1) there is a need for better estimates of the area covered by papyrus wetlands. Limited evidence suggests that the loss of papyrus wetlands is rapid in some areas; (2) there is a need for a better understanding and modelling of the regulating services of papyrus wetlands to support trade-off analysis and improve economic valuation; (3) research on papyrus wetlands should include assessment of all ecosystem services (provisioning, regulating, habitat, cultural) so that trade-offs can be determined as the basis for sustainable management strategies (‘wise use’); (4) more research on the governance, institutional and socio-economic aspects of papyrus wetlands is needed to assist African governments in dealing with the challenges of conserving wetlands in the face of growing food security needs and climate change. The papers in the special issue address a number of these issues