Do Public Transfers Crowd Out Private Transfers? Evidence from a Randomized Experiment in Mexico

Private transfers, Crowding-out, Public programmes

The measurement of low- and high-impact in citation distributions: technical results

This paper introduces a novel methodology for comparing the citation distributions of research units working in the same homogeneous field. Given a critical citation level (CCL), we suggest using two real valued indicators to describe the shape of any distribution: a highimpact and a low-impact measure defined over the set of articles with citations above or below the CCL. The key to this methodology is the identification of a citation distribution with an income distribution. Once this step is taken, it is easy to realize that the measurement of lowimpact coincides with the measurement of economic poverty. In turn, it is equally natural to identify the measurement of high-impact with the measurement of a certain notion of economic affluence. On the other hand, it is seen that the ranking of citation distributions according to a family of low-impact measures, originally suggested by Foster et al. (1984) for the measurement of economic poverty, is essentially characterized by a number of desirable axioms. Appropriately redefined, these same axioms lead to the selection of an equally convenient class of decomposable high-impact measures. These two families are shown to satisfy other interesting properties that make them potentially useful in empirical applications, including the comparison of research units working in different fields.

Inequality for wage earners and self-employed : evidence from panel data

In this paper we study the evolution of income inequality for employees and self-employed workers. We highlight the importance of separately analyze these different sources of income to gain a broader understanding of inequality. Using Spanish panel data on income and consumption from the ECPF for the period 1987-96, we decompose income shocks into a permanent and a transitory component. We find that there are noticeable differences in the evolution of income inequality, as well as in the relative importance of the permanent and transitory components across these groups. Our results points that the evolution of inequality can be basically explained by movements in the transitory component of income for the self-employed, while for the employees it is mainly driven by the permanent component, specially at the end of the period. Given these disparities, it seems that these two sources of income should be studied separately and that different policies are suitable for each group.

A Study on Frequency Reconfigurable Antennas for Applications in Frequency Agile Radio and mm-Wave.

As the current technologies in mobile communications are constantly growing it is becoming a necessity for researchers to investigate and deliver novel, versatile and agile devices providing adaptive performance in order to fulfil the ever changing requirements for communication engineering standards in the next and currently developing generation of mobile communications known as 5G. The current technologies in adaptive antennas have provided optimal numbers using comprehensive technologies that are compatible with the past generations of mobile communications. However, the increasing amounts of data exchanged by mobile devices nowadays require multiple services to be covered by reduced number of devices. In order to overcome this inconvenience, the use of reconfigurable antennas, specifically frequency reconfigurable antennas introduce an adaptive and innovative concept for versatile devices with applications in radio agility that overcomes the limitations of the current devices that are unable to cover multiple services by a single antenna. Two different kinds of frequency reconfigurable antennas are discussed in this work. The design, simulations, manufacture, and measurements for the discussed antennas are developed in this thesis. The first discussed designs are three prototypes of 1×2 triple-slotted antennas with different positions in the board. These boards offered independent frequency tuning using varactor-loaded slots that are electrically tunable by voltages from 0 – 25 V offering a fully tunable frequency range from 0.57 GHz and up to 2.73 GHz. The commented antennas offered independent metrics for frequency response and radiation patterns as well as good agreement between simulations and measurements. Moreover, the three slot antenna prototypes were object of a study in diversity metrics as they present spatial diversity schemes. The simulated and measured diversity parameters observed agreed on optimal numbers for frequencies above 750 MHz for the three prototypes with correlations well below 0.3 and diversity gains near the ideal value of 10 dB which allows reduction of required power in multi-antenna systems and determines its capacity to operate in MIMO systems for 5G. The second kind of antennas discussed in this is a dielectric resonant antenna (DRA) designed to operate at 28 GHz using bioplastics with relatively low dielectric constants and filled by different materials in order to achieve frequency reconfiguration including electrically tunable substances such as graphene oxide covering a frequency range from 26.3 GHZ to 28.3 GHz presenting good agreement between measured and simulated reflection coefficients and radiation patterns

Perception of Student-Teachers Regarding Self-Regulated Learning

In this chapter of the book we have described and analyzed what student-teachers understand by self-regulated learning, what they do when applying the different phases of this process and what are the difficulties, they have to regulate their learning. Student-teachers participating in the study are pre-service teachers who are trained to work in the school system as secondary school teachers. The sample consisted of 60 student-teachers from a university in southern Chile. The main findings show that students relate the concept of self-regulated learning mainly with the general organization prior to the study and with the regulation of their emotions. Regarding the process of self-regulated learning, it is suggested that the planning and execution phase are incipient because there is: (i) lack of strategic planning in the planning phase, (ii) lack of motivational self-control processes, which influences the lack of regulation as: disorganization and uncontrolled emotions, (iii) absence of self-records that allow them to compare and monitor the execution of the study. Additionally, it is proposed conceptual model includes components that represent: (i) the understanding of the concept of self-regulation of learning, (ii) development of the process of self-regulation of learning, (iii) lack of regulation and (iv) external agent’s antiregulation of learning

EFHB is a Novel Cytosolic Ca2+ Sensor That Modulates STIM1-SARAF Interaction

Background/Aims: STIM1 and Orai1 are the key components of store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE). Among the proteins involved in the regulation of SOCE, SARAF prevents spontaneous activation of SOCE and modulates STIM1 function. Methods: Cytosolic Ca2+ mobilization was estimated in fura-2-loaded cells using an epifluorescence inverted microscope. STIM1 interaction with Orai1, EFHB (EF-hand domain family member B, also known as CFAP21) and SARAF was detected by immunoprecipitation followed by Western blotting using specific antibodies. The involvement of EFHB in the translocation of NFAT to the nucleus was detected by confocal microscopy. Results: Here, we report the identification of EFHB as a new SOCE regulator. EFHB interacts with STIM1 upon store depletion and dissociates through a Ca2+-dependent mechanism. RNAi-mediated silencing as well as overexpression studies revealed that EFHB plays a relevant role in the interaction of STIM1 and Orai1 upon store depletion, the activation of SOCE and NFAT translocation from the cytosol to the nucleus. Silencing EFHB expression abolished the dissociation of SARAF from STIM1, which indicates that EFHB might play an important role in the dynamic interaction between both proteins, which is relevant for the activation of Orai1 channels upon Ca2+ store depletion and their subsequent modulation via slow Ca2+-dependent inactivation. Conclusion: Our results indicate that EFHB is a new SOCE regulator that modulates STIM1-SARAF interaction

Low NKp30, NKp46 and NKG2D expression and reduced cytotoxic activity on NK cells in cervical cancer and precursor lesions

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Persistent high risk HPV infection can lead to cervical cancer, the second most common malignant tumor in women worldwide. NK cells play a crucial role against tumors and virus-infected cells through a fine balance between activating and inhibitory receptors. Expression of triggering receptors NKp30, NKp44, NKp46 and NKG2D on NK cells correlates with cytolytic activity against tumor cells, but these receptors have not been studied in cervical cancer and precursor lesions. The aim of the present work was to study NKp30, NKp46, NKG2D, NKp80 and 2B4 expression in NK cells from patients with cervical cancer and precursor lesions, in the context of HPV infection.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>NKp30, NKp46, NKG2D, NKp80 and 2B4 expression was analyzed by flow cytometry on NK cells from 59 patients with cervical cancer and squamous intraepithelial lesions. NK cell cytotoxicity was evaluated in a 4 hour CFSE/7-AAD flow cytometry assay. HPV types were identified by PCR assays.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We report here for the first time that NK cell-activating receptors NKp30 and NKp46 are significantly down-regulated in cervical cancer and high grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HGSIL) patients. NCRs down-regulation correlated with low cytolytic activity, HPV-16 infection and clinical stage. NKG2D was also down-regulated in cervical cancer patients.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results suggest that NKp30, NKp46 and NKG2D down-regulation represent an evasion mechanism associated to low NK cell activity, HPV-16 infection and cervical cancer progression.</p

Cuerpo extraño inusual en recto como causa de obstrucción intestinal, Reporte de un caso.

The rectum, the penultimate portion of the large intestine, tends to be of special interest due to so-called anorectal emergencies, which are defined as “a wide variety of conditions that share common symptoms, such as anorectal pain or bleeding, which may require immediate management." These emergencies are considered a public health problem that result in a large economic expense, time, medications, days of working life and culmination of quality of life. The presence of a foreign body in the rectum constitutes a challenge for the surgeon. This pathology shows a wide predisposition for the male gender with a peak in its presentation between 20 and 40 years, being the main etiology of a sexual nature, which is why patients often tend to avoid seeking help for fear of being judged. We present the case of a 33-year-old man, with a history of chronic alcoholism, in the process of rehabilitation admitted to a clinic, where he was referred for presenting abdominal pain, vomiting on numerous occasions, and inability to evacuate for 3 days. , in addition to transanal bleeding in a mild to moderate amount, fetid, dark liquid, a simple and contrast-enhanced tomography is performed, showing the presence of impaction at the level of the rectal ampulla of apparent "bird bones", which is corroborated after directed questioning and rectal exploration with extraction of some pieces. He is admitted to the operating room where the foreign body is extracted under regional anesthesia and instrumentation, he is hospitalized and managed with laxatives, he is discharged after 4 days due to improvement.El recto, la penúltima porción del intestino grueso, tiende a ser de especial interés debido a las denominadas urgencias anorrectales, las cuales se definen como “una amplia variedad de enfermedades que comparten síntomas en común, como son dolor anorrectal o sangrado, las cuales pueden requerir de manejo inmediato”. Estas urgencias, son consideradas un problema de salud pública que derivan en un gran gasto económico, tiempo, medicamentos, días de vida laboral y afectan la calidad de vida. La presencia de un cuerpo extraño en el recto constituye un reto para el cirujano. Esta patología muestra una amplia predisposición por el género masculino con un pico en su presentación entre los 20 y 40 años, siendo la principal etiología de índole sexual por lo que muchas veces los pacientes tienden a evitar el buscar ayuda por miedo a ser juzgados. Se presenta el caso de un hombre de 33 años de edad, con antecedente de alcoholismo crónico, en proceso de rehabilitación internado en una clínica, de donde es referido por presentar dolor abdminal, vòmito en numerosas ocasiones e incapacidad para evacuar de 3 días de evolución, además de sangrado transanal en cantidad leve a moderada, fétida, líquida oscura, se realiza tomografía simple y contrastada que muestra la presencia de impactación a nivel de ámpula rectal de aparentes ”huesos de pollo”, el cual se corrobora tras el interrogatorio dirigido y la exploración rectal con extracción de algunas piezas. Es ingresado a sala de quirófano donde se extrae bajo bloqueo regional y con instrumentación el cuerpo extraño, es hospitalizado y manejado con laxantes, se egresa a los 4 días por mejoría