Le sultanat d'Oman en quête d'un second souffle

The sudden slump in oil production since 2001 has only heightened the question of an alternative to an economy based on oil revenues, whereas the sultanate had undergone exponential development over the three preceding decades. From this standpoint, the policy of Omanizing the labor force conditions all other issues, as it is not merely an economic matter, but instead deeply alters the social fabric that remained intact during the era of prosperity, thereby questioning the very legitimacy of Oman’s economic model. Omani society is currently experiencing a rise in frustrations reflected in a resurgence of particularist prejudices and demands. Alongside this phenomenon is an exacerbation of inequality, particularly due to the enmeshment of economic and decisionmaking powers in the hands of the oligarchy that has benefited from these revenues since 1970. To what extent do the changes Oman is going through today harbor a threat for the stability of a regime considered to be one of the most stable in the region

Oman’s mediatory efforts in regional crises

publication-status: PublishedOman’s role in facilitating the conclusion of the Iran-P5+1 nuclear deal in November 2013 and its announcement a few weeks later that it would not join a proposed Gulf union can be understood within a recent history of conciliatory efforts intended to promote negotiated solutions to regional crises. Oman has always perceived political instability in the Gulf and West Asia as a factor threatening the country’s own internal stability. This perception of political vulnerability also explains the sultanate’s determination to prevent foreign actors from interfering in its internal affairs. The price for this independent foreign policy towards its neighbours has been the country’s unquestioned political and military dependence on Britain and the U.S. Given Oman’s strategic importance to the security of the entire Gulf, controlling as it does the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately one-third of the world’s seaborne trade in crude petroleum passed in 2013, Britain and the U.S. have shared Muscat’s aversion for any disruption of its internal status quo and wish to prevent any contamination of Omani territory by unwanted foreign influence

State-business relations in the smaller gulf monarchies -- the role of business actors in the decision-making process

The Arab monarchies of the Gulf have been undergoing striking socio-economic changes caused by the ending of the rent-based welfare state model on which they had largely relied since the 1950s. In this perspective, this paper aims at examining the comparative role of local business communities in affecting the orientations and the outcomes of the policies implemented during the period of high oil prices in the 2000s. This paper pays a special attention to the impact of the Arab Spring on the state-business relations in two of the smaller Gulf monarchies (Bahrain and Oman)

Ruling Families and Business Elites in the Gulf Monarchies: Ever Closer?

Project: Middle East and North Africa Programme, Future Trends in the GCCThis is the final version of the article. Available from Chatham House via the URL in this record.Summary The pre-eminent role of nationalized oil and gas resources in the six Gulf monarchies has resulted in a private sector that is highly dependent on the state. This has crucial implications for economic and political reform prospects. All the ruling families – from a variety of starting points – have themselves moved much more extensively into business activities over the past two decades. Meanwhile, the traditional business elites’ socio-political autonomy from the ruling families (and thus the state) has diminished throughout the Gulf region – albeit again from different starting points and to different degrees today. The business elites’ priority interest in securing and preserving benefits from the rentier state has led them to reinforce their role of supporter of the incumbent regimes and ruling families. In essence, to the extent that business elites in the Gulf engage in policy debate, it tends to be to protect their own privileges. This has been particularly evident since the 2011 Arab uprisings. The overwhelming dependence of these business elites on the state for revenues and contracts, and the state’s key role in the economy – through ruling family members’ personal involvement in business as well as the state’s dominant ownership of stocks in listed companies – means that the distinction between business and political elites in the Gulf monarchies has become increasingly blurred. Under current uncertain political and economic conditions, existing patterns of clientelism and the business sector’s dependence on the state will not undergo significant changes. In these circumstances, the business elites are unlikely to become drivers of political reform. In the context of persistently low oil prices, growing tensions related to the definition of the new social contract and the content of structural reforms in the Gulf monarchies are likely to provoke renewed popular frustrations and considerable turmoil.This research was supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (grant no. ES/J012696/1)

Association between time to reperfusion and outcome is primarily driven by the time from imaging to reperfusion

Background and Purpose A progressive decline in the odds of favorable outcome as time to reperfusion increases is well known. However, the impact of specific workflow intervals is not clear.; Methods We studied the mechanical thrombectomy group (n=103) of the prospective, randomized REVASCAT (Randomized Trial of Revascularization With Solitaire FR Device Versus Best Medical Therapy in the Treatment of Acute Stroke due to Anterior Circulation Large Vessel Occlusion Presenting Within Eight Hours of Symptom Onset) trial. We defined 3 workflow metrics: time from symptom onset to reperfusion (OTR), time from symptom onset to computed tomography, and time from computed tomography (CT) to reperfusion. Clinical characteristics, core laboratory-evaluated Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Scores (ASPECTS) and 90-day outcome data were analyzed. The effect of time on favorable outcome (modified Rankin scale, 0-2) was described via adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for every 30-minute delay.; Results Median admission National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale was 17.0 (14.0-20.0), reperfusion rate was 66%, and rate of favorable outcome was 43.7%. Mean (SD) workflow times were as follows: OTR: 342 (107) minute, onset to CT: 204 (93) minute, and CT to reperfusion: 138 (56) minute. Longer OTR time was associated with a reduced likelihood of good outcome (OR for 30-minute delay, 0.74; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59-0.93). The onset to CT time did not show a significant association with clinical outcome (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.67-1.12), whereas the CT to reperfusion interval showed a negative association with favorable outcome (OR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.54-0.95). A similar subgroup analysis according to admission ASPECTS showed this relationship for OTR time in ASPECTS<8 patients (OR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.35-0.9) but not in ASPECTS8 (OR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.68-1.44).; Conclusions Time to reperfusion is negatively associated with favorable outcome, being CT to reperfusion, as opposed to onset to CT, the main determinant of this association. In addition, OTR was strongly associated to outcome in patients with low ASPECTS scores but not in patients with high ASPECTS scores.; Clinical Trial Registration URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01692379.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Dynamics of the Interaction Between Ceria and Platinum During Redox Processes

The work is focused on understanding the dynamics of the processes which occur at the interface between ceria and platinum during redox processes, by investigating an inverse catalytic model system made of ceria epitaxial islands and ultrathin films supported on Pt(111). The evolution of the morphology, structure and electronic properties is analyzed in real-time during reduction and oxidation, using low-energy electron microscopy and spatially resolved low-energy electron diffraction. The reduction is induced using different methods, namely thermal treatments in ultra-high vacuum and in H2 as well as deposition of Ce on the oxide surface, while re-oxidation is obtained by exposure to oxygen at elevated temperature. The use of two different epitaxial systems, continuous films and nanostructures, allows determining the influence of platinum proximity on the stabilization of the specific phases observed. The factors that limit the reversibility of the observed modifications with the different oxidation treatments are also discussed. The obtained results highlight important aspects of the cerium oxide/Pt interaction that are relevant for a complete understanding of the behavior of Pt/CeO2 catalysts

Periodicity and Atomic Ordering in Nanosized Particles of Crystals

Evidence is presented that nanosized particles of crystals do not necessarily adopt a periodic atomic structure as their bulk counterparts do and/or as predicted by theory. As an example, 1.6-nm Au particles grown inside a dendrimeric host are studied and found to possess a heavily disordered, metallic glass-type structure. The nanoparticle&apos;s structure evolves toward the face-centered-cubic-type lattice of bulk Au only upon removal of solvent. The results show that periodicity, which rules the structure and properties of bulk crystals, is less of a constraint at the nanoscale level and, therefore, may be used as tunable parameter in nanotechnology research

Transfer to the Local Stroke Center vs Direct Transfer to Endovascular Center of Acute Stroke Patients with Suspected Large Vessel Occlusion in the Catalan Territory (RACECAT): study protocol of a cluster randomized within a cohort trial

Rationale: Optimal pre-hospital delivery pathways for acute stroke patients suspected to harbor a large vessel occlusion (LVO) have not been assessed in randomized trials. Aim: To establish whether stroke subjects with RACE scale based suspicion of LVO evaluated by Emergency Medical Services in the field, have higher rates of favorable outcome when transferred directly to an Endovascular Center (EVT-SC), as compared to the standard transfer to the closest Local Stroke Center (Local-SC).Design: Multicenter, superiority, cluster randomized within a cohort trial with blinded endpoint assessment. Procedure: Eligible patients must be 18 or older, have acute stroke symptoms and not have an immediate life threatening condition requiring emergent medical intervention. They must be suspected to have intracranial LVO based on a pre-hospital RACE scale of ≥5, be located in geographical areas where the default health authority assigned referral stroke center is a non-thrombectomy capable hospital, and estimated arrival at a thrombectomy capable stroke hospital in less than 7 hours from time last seen well. Cluster randomization is performed according to a pre-established temporal sequence (temporal cluster design) with 3 strata: day/night, distance to the EVT-SC and week/week-end day. Study outcome: The primary endpoint is the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score at 90 days. The primary safety outcome is mortality at 90 days. Analysis: The primary endpoint based on the modified intention-to-treat population is the distribution of modified Rankin Scale scores (mRS) at 90 days analyzed under a sequential triangular design. The maximum sample size is 1754 patients, with two planned interim analyses when 701 (40%) and 1227 patients have completed follow-up. Hypothesized common odds ratio is 1.35.The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The trial is sponsored by the nonprofit foundation Fundació Privada Ictus Malaltia Vascular, beneficiary of an unrestricted grant by Medtronic. Trial sponsor: Fundació Privada Ictus Malaltia Vascular. Elisabeth Ortínez ([email protected]). Study sponsor and funders do not participate in the study design, collection, management, analysis and interpretation of data, writing of the report or the decision to submit results for publication

Covid-19: la malinterpretación de los datos de la pandemia daña la confianza del público

Postprint (published version