SIMALL: Emotional BDI Model for Customer Simulation in a Mall

Modeling customer behavior and exploring the motivations that drive their actions within a shopping mall is the subject of study in multiple works, which has generated new theories in marketing and related areas. However, seen from a computational perspective, the modeling of this system is complex given its emergent behavioral nature. In this paper, we propose a decision support model through a simulation implemented with multi-agent systems emphasizing the emotional BDI model and fuzzy logic decision making. This simulator is used to recognize improvement opportunities for businesses operation within a shopping mall. © 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG

Prevalence, risk factors, and identification of Salmonella spp. in stray dogs of northwest Mexico

Salmonellosis has a worldwide relevance in aspects associated with public health, as only in 2009 were reported 93.8 million cases in humans. The objective of the study was to establish the prevalence, risk factors and bacteriological and molecular identification of Salmonella spp in stray dogs in urban, rural and coastal areas of Mexicali, a city in northwest Mexico. From May 2014 to February 2015, 385 dogs were tested. Sampling was performed by rectal swab and conventional bacteriological techniques were applied, for later implementation of the API 20E system and molecular identification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The data were analysed statistically by means of descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression modelling. A prevalence of 6.27% was obtained in the dogs examined, the samples obtained were characterised to subspecies (Salmonella enterica subspecies enterica and Salmonella enterica subspecie arizonae). The geographical region with the highest prevalence in the study was the coast (10%), followed by the rural area (8.57%) and the urban area (5.8%), however, no significant statistical differences were detected. There was significant difference in the prevalence by age of dogs under one year (P<0.05). The identification of Salmonella in dogs from northwest Mexico could correspond to serovars of zoonotic importance indicating a potential risk for the population

Synchrony Matters More than Species Richness in Plant Community Stability at a Global Scale

The stability of ecological communities is critical for the stable provisioning of ecosystem services, such as food and forage production, carbon sequestration, and soil fertility. Greater biodiversity is expected to enhance stability across years by decreasing synchrony among species, but the drivers of stability in nature remain poorly resolved. Our analysis of time series from 79 datasets across the world showed that stability was associated more strongly with the degree of synchrony among dominant species than with species richness. The relatively weak influence of species richness is consistent with theory predicting that the effect of richness on stability weakens when synchrony is higher than expected under random fluctuations, which was the case in most communities. Land management, nutrient addition, and climate change treatments had relatively weak and varying effects on stability, modifying how species richness, synchrony, and stability interact. Our results demonstrate the prevalence of biotic drivers on ecosystem stability, with the potential for environmental drivers to alter the intricate relationship among richness, synchrony, and stability.National Science Foundation DEB-8114302, DEB8811884, DEB-9411972, DEB-0080382, DEB-0620652, DEB-1234162, DEB0618210National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network DEB-1042132Institute on the Environment DG-0001-13Agency of the Czech Republic GACR16-15012SCzech Academy of Sciences RVO 67985939Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid 2017-T2/AMB-5406Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBS/E/C/000J030

Functional trait effects on ecosystem stability: assembling the jigsaw puzzle

Under global change, how biological diversity and ecosystem services are maintained in time is a fundamental question. Ecologists have long argued about multiple mechanisms by which local biodiversity might control the temporal stability of ecosystem properties. Accumulating theories and empirical evidence suggest that, together with different population and community parameters, these mechanisms largely operate through differences in functional traits among organisms. We review potential trait-stability mechanisms together with underlying tests and associated metrics. We identify various trait-based components, each accounting for different stability mechanisms, that contribute to buffering, or propagating, the effect of environmental fluctuations on ecosystem functioning. This comprehensive picture, obtained by combining different puzzle pieces of trait-stability effects, will guide future empirical and modeling investigations.This study is the result of an international workshop financed by the Valencian government in Spain (Generalitat Valenciana, reference AORG/2018/) and was supported by Spanish Plan Nacional de I+D+i (project PGC2018-099027-B-I00). E.V. was supported by the 2017 program for attracting and retaining talent of Comunidad de Madrid (no. 2017-T2/ AMB-5406)

Prevalence and distribution of intestinal parasites in stray dogs in the northwest area of Mexico

Zoonotic parasitic infections are a major global public and veterinary health problem and widespread among stray dogs. The objective of this study was to establish the prevalence of intestinal parasites in stray dogs in the urban, rural and coastal areas of Mexicali County in northwest Mexico. In 2014, from January to December, 380 stray dogs were captured. The entire small intestine, cecum and faeces samples were collected and examined by using simple zinc sulfate flotation and Lugol’s solution staining. Data were statistically analysed. Overall, about 21.5% of examined dogs were found positive for intestinal parasites. Toxocara canis was the most frequent detected parasite, with a prevalence of 7.1%, followed by Toxascaris leonina (5.5%), Cystoisospora spp. (5.0%), Taenia spp. (3.9%) and Dipylidium caninum (2.8%). Dogs were more frequently found to be infected with a single genus of intestinal parasite (18.7%) than co-infected (2.8%). Intestinal parasites were more prevalent in samples from the coastal area (25%) than in those from the rural (24.4%) and urban (20.6%) areas, however, only statistical association was found between capture area and specific intestinal parasitic infection. There were significant differences in the prevalence of taeniasis among two age groups (P<0.01). A seasonal peak of prevalence for intestinal parasitic infections was found during spring (P<0.05), corresponding with a seasonal peak of prevalence of T. canis (P<0.05). The wide range of isolated parasites indicated that people residing in this area are at risk of exposure to these potentially hazardous zoonotic pathogens

Total absorption gamma-ray spectroscopy study of the β-decay of 186Hg

7 pags., 9 figs., 1 tab.The Gamow-Teller strength distribution of the decay of Hg into Au has been determined for the first time using the total absorption gamma spectroscopy technique and has been compared with theoretical QRPA calculations using the SLy4 Skyrme force. The measured Gamow-Teller strength distribution and the half-life are described by mixing oblate and prolate configurations independently in the parent and daughter nuclei. In this theoretical framework the best description of the experimental beta strength is obtained with dominantly prolate components for both parent Hg and daughter Au. The approach also allowed us to determine an upper limit of the oblate component in the parent state. The complexity of the analysis required the development of a new approach in the analysis of the X-ray gated total absorption spectrum.This work was supported by Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad under grants FPA2011-24553, FPA2014-52823-C2-1-P, FPA2017-83946-C2-1-P, FPA2017-87568-P, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación grants PID2019-104714GB-C21 and RTI2018-098868-B-100, program Severo Ochoa (SEV-2014-0398), ENSAR (grant 262010) and by the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 654002. S.E.A.O. thanks the support of CPAN Consolider-Ingenio 2010 Programme CSD2007-00042 grant. E.G. acknowledges support from TÜBITAK 2219 Abroad Research Fellowship Programme. R.B.C. acknowledges support by the Max-Planck-Partner group. Support from the technical staff and engineers of ISOLDE-CERN is acknowl- edged. W.G. acknowledges the support of STFC (UK) council grant ST/P005314/1. V.G. acknowledges the support of the National Science Center, Poland, under Contract No. 2019/35/D/ST2/02081. This work was also supported by the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund of Hungary, financed under the K18 funding scheme with Projects No. K 128729 and NN128072. P.S. acknowledges support from MCI/AEI/FEDER, UE (Spain) under grant PGC2018-093636-B-I0

México y Jalisco en la coyuntura : segundo semestre de 1998

Análisis de coyuntura sobre los principales sucesos del segundo semestre de 1998 en Jalisco y México. El caso del FOBAPROA, la seguridad pública, los derechos humanos, las elecciones efectuadas en el período y las estrategias de los partidos políticos en Jalisco son analizados por autores diversos. Se estudia también el caso de la industria electrónica en Guadalajara y la relación de los grupos de la sociedad civil con el gobierno.ITESO, A.C

México y Jalisco en la coyuntura : primer semestre de 1998

Análisis de coyuntura sobre los principales sucesos del primer semestre de 1997 en Jalisco, a nivel político, económico y social: la situación en el estado de los tres principales partidos políticos (PAN, PRI y PRD), la cuestión laboral, los derechos humanos y el problema de abastecimiento de agua en la zona metropolitana de Guadalajara.ITESO, A.C

Conocimientos sobre la tuberculosis en usuarios del transporte masivo en Santiago de Cali, Colombia

Knowledge about Tuberculosis (TB) is limited among the general population of Cali, the second city in Colombia with the highest burden of TB. Here, we sought to determine the level of knowledge about TB among users of the public transportation system of the city. We conducted a cross-sectional study using a structured questionnaire to collect information in 12 main stations of the transport system. Data were collected in a working day of March 2017. Out of 193 interviewed users, 80% answered to have limited knowledge about TB. However, most of the participants identified coughing as a symptom of TB (74.6%) and recognized that TB is a contagious disease (75.1%) that could be transmitted by the air (61.7%). Seventy percent of participants knew that TB is a curable disease. On the other hand, there were misconceptions regarding TB transmission and the identification of other classical symptoms of TB was limited. Understanding the level of knowledge about TB among the general population is key to design communicative and educational strategies to control and prevent this disease.Poco se conoce sobre los conocimientos sobre tuberculosis (TB) en Cali, segunda ciudad colombiana con mayor carga de la enfermedad. Esta investigación buscó determinar el grado de conocimientos sobre TB en usuarios del transporte masivo. Se realizó un estudio descriptivo de corte transversal aplicando un cuestionario a usuarios de 12 estaciones principales del sistema de transporte público en un día laboral de marzo de 2017. De 193 encuestados, el 80% manifestó conocer poco o nada sobre TB. La mayoría identificó la tos como síntoma (74,6%) y refirió que es una enfermedad contagiosa (75,1%), transmitida por aire (61,7%) y curable (70,5%). No es tan frecuente la identificación de otros síntomas y hay concepciones erróneas sobre la transmisión. Identificar los conocimientos de la población acerca de la enfermedad permite orientar estrategias comunicativas y educativas para prevenir y controlar la TB, dirigidas al público que converge en el sistema de transporte masivo.&nbsp

MS4A2-rs573790 Is Associated With Aspirin-Exacerbated Respiratory Disease: Replicative Study Using a Candidate Gene Strategy

Aspirin exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) is a set of diseases of the unified airway, and its physiopathology is related to disruption of the metabolism of arachidonic acid (AA). Genetic association studies in AERD had explored single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) in several genes related to many mechanisms (AA metabolism, inflammation, drug metabolism, etc.) but most lack validation stages in second populations. Our aim is to evaluated whether contribution to susceptibility of SNPs reported in other populations are associated with AERD in Mexican Mestizo patients. We developed a replicative study in two stages. In the first, 381 SNPs selected by fine mapping of associated genes, (previously reported in the literature), were integrated into a microarray and tested in three groups (AERD, asthma and healthy controls -HC-) using the GoldenGate array. Results associated to risk based on genetic models [comparing: AERD vs. HC (comparison 1, C1), AERD vs. asthma (C2), and asthma vs. HC (C3)] were validated in the second stage in other population groups using qPCR. In the first stage, we identified 11 SNPs associated with risk in C1.The top SNPs were ACE-rs4309C (p = 0.0001) and MS4A2-rs573790C (p = 0.0002). In C2, we detected 14 SNPs, including ACE-rs4309C (p = 0.0001). In C3, we found MS4A2-rs573790C (p = 0.001). Using genetic models, C1 MS4A2-rs57370 CC (p = 0.001), and ACE-rs4309 CC (p = 0.002) had associations. In C2 ACE-rs4309 CC (p = 0.0001) and C3 MS4A2-rs573790 CC (p = 0.001) were also associate with risk. In the second stage, only MS4A2-rs573790 CC had significance in C1 and C3 (p = 0.008 and p = 0.03). We concluded that rs573790 in the MS4A2 gene is the only SNP that supports an association with AERD in Mexican Mestizo patients in both stages of the study