Ansiedad y percepción de riesgo de contagio entre mexicanos socialmente distanciados durante la pandemia por COVID-19

In January 2020, Chinese scientists isolated a novel virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). On January 30th, The World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency. In March, Mexican Health Authorities announced the National Healthy Distance Campaign. This novel policy encourages residents of Mexico to stay at home during the social distancing stage to prevent the spread of the virus.The aim of this study was to evaluate the anxiety and the perception of risk of contagion through six weeks of follow-up during the National Healthy Distance Campaign in Mexico related to the COVID-19 epidemic. This study was empirical, exploratory and longitudinal. 27 Mexican people participated in the study, aged 18-59 years (M=35.4, SD=11.6). Two contextualized instruments were sent by email to participants to evaluate the anxiety levels and perception of risk of contagion for six weeks. Results indicate that anxiety levels were mild trough six weeks of follow-up. Likewise, results in the second survey indicate that perception of risk of contagion levels were moderate. For further studies on this subject, six hypotheses were developed regarding the following topics: content information and information overload, adaptation process, social perception of risk, preventive behaviors, and positive and negative effects of being social distanced.En enero de 2020, los científicos en China lograron aislar un nuevo virus que causa la enfermedad por coronavirus 2019 (COVID-2019). El 30 de enero, la Organización Mundial de la Salud, declaró una emergencia pública. En marzo, las autoridades sanitarias mexicanas anunciaron la Jornada Nacional de Sana Distancia (JNSD). Esta nueva campaña, pide que los residentes en México se queden en casa durante esta etapa para detener los contagios. El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar los niveles de ansiedad y percepción de riesgo de contagio durante seis semanas de seguimiento durante la JNSD relacionada ala epidemia de COVID-19 entre mexicanos. El estudio fue empírico, exploratorio y longitudinal. 27 participantes entre 18 y 59 años respondieron dos instrumentos (M=35.4, SD=11.6). Se enviaron dos instrumentos por email para evaluar los niveles de ansiedad y percepción de riesgo de contagio durante seis semanas. Los resultados indicaron que los niveles de ansiedad fueron leves durante las seis semanas. Asimismo, los resultados en la segunda encuesta indicaron que la percepción de riesgo de contagio fue moderada. Los dos resultados en promedio presentaron una correlación positiva moderada (r=72). Se desarrollaron seis hipótesis que pueden explicar los resultados de acuerdo con los siguientes temas: contenido sobre carga de la información, proceso de adaptación, percepción social de riesgo, conductas preventivas y efectos positivos y negativos de estar socialmente distanciad

Diversidad de la flora arvense presente en parcelas de pequeños agricultores, previstas para policultivos en cinco municipios de Boyacá

 Abstract Introduction- The most critical impact of weeds is the negative effect on cultivated plants exerted through competition for limited resources and allelopathies. Studies have demonstrated the dominance of weeds in crops and have established ecological methods for good integrated management.     Objective-. To characterize the diversity of weed species in 60 smallholder farms in five municipalities of Boyacá, planned for polycultures. Methodology-. The research was carried out in 60 farms in five municipalities of the Department: Aquitania, Belén, Garagoa, Panqueba and Soatá, in each one two plots of 0.5 ha were sampled where the weeds present were determined in two frames of 1m2.   Results-. The presence of 109 species of weeds located in 93 genera and 38 botanical families was observed, being the most representative Poaceae with 18 species, Asteraceae with 15 species and Fabaceae with 9. The families Amarantaceae Apiaceae, Lamiaceae, Oxalidaceae, Poligonaceae and Solanaceae were represented by 4 species. The farms were grouped into 3 or 4 groups in each municipality according to the biodiversity indicators of the weeds, while the municipalities formed three groups.  Conclusions- From the point of view of their agricultural importance, the species most frequently present in the municipalities were: P. clandestinum, Sonchus oleraceus L, Trifolium repens and Rumex crispus. In general, species richness at the farm level was low, equity medium and dominance high, while at the municipal level were observed high species richness, medium indicators of diversity and equity and low dominanceIntroducción- El impacto más crítico de las arvenses es el efecto negativo sobre las plantas cultivadas ejercido a través de la competencia por recursos limitados y las alelopatías. Objetivo-. Caracterizar la diversidad de especies de arvenses en 60 fincas de pequeños agricultores de cinco municipios de Boyacá previstos para policultivos. Metodología-. La investigación se desarrolló en 60 fincas de cinco municipios del Departamento: Aquitania, Belén, Garagoa, Panqueba y Soatá, en cada una se muestrearon dos parcelas de 0,5 ha donde se determinó en dos marcos de 1m2 las arvenses presentes. Resultados-. Se observó la presencia de 109 especies de arvenses ubicadas en 93 géneros y en 38 familias botánicas, siendo las más representativas Poaceae con 18 especies, Asteraceae con 15 especies y Fabaceae con 9. Las familias Amarantaceae Apiaceae, Lamiaceae, Oxalidaceae, Poligonaceae y Solanaceae estuvieron representadas por 4 especies. Las fincas se agruparon en 3 o 4 grupos en cada municipio de acuerdo a los indicadores de biodiversidad de las arvenses, mientras que los municipios formaron tres grupos.  Conclusiones- Desde el punto de vista de su importancia agrícola las especies que con más frecuencia estuvieron presentes en los municipios fueron:  P. clandestinum, Sonchus oleraceus, Trifolium repens y Rumex crispus. En general la riqueza de especies a nivel de finca fue baja, la equidad media y la dominancia alta, mientras que a nivel municipal se apreció una alta riqueza de especies, indicadores medios de diversidad y equidad, y baja dominancia

Influence of delay time on regularity estimation for voice pathology detection

The employment of nonlinear analysis techniques for automatic voice pathology detection systems has gained popularity due to the ability of such techniques for dealing with the underlying nonlinear phenomena. On this respect, characterization using nonlinear analysis typically employs the classical Correlation Dimension and the largest Lyapunov Exponent, as well as some regularity quantifiers computing the system predictability. Mostly, regularity features highly depend on a correct choosing of some parameters. One of those, the delay time �, is usually fixed to be 1. Nonetheless, it has been stated that a unity � can not avoid linear correlation of the time series and hence, may not correctly capture system nonlinearities. Therefore, present work studies the influence of the � parameter on the estimation of regularity features. Three � estimations are considered: the baseline value 1; a � based on the Average Automutual Information criterion; and � chosen from the embedding window. Testing results obtained for pathological voice suggest that an improved accuracy might be obtained by using a � value different from 1, as it accounts for the underlying nonlinearities of the voice signal

Characterizing visual asymmetries in contrast perception using shaded stimuli.

Previous research has shown a visual asymmetry in shaded stimuli where the perceived contrast depended on the polarity of their dark and light areas (Chacón, 2004). In particular, circles filled out with a top-dark luminance ramp were perceived with higher contrast than top-light ones although both types of stimuli had the same physical contrast. Here, using shaded stimuli, we conducted four experiments in order to find out if the perceived contrast depends on: (a) the contrast level, (b) the type of shading (continuous vs. discrete) and its degree of perceived three-dimensionality, (c) the orientation of the shading, and (d) the sign of the perceived contrast alterations. In all experiments the observers' tasks were to equate the perceived contrast of two sets of elements (usually shaded with opposite luminance polarity), in order to determine the subjective equality point. Results showed that (a) there is a strong difference in perceived contrast between circles filled out with luminance ramp top-dark and top-light that is similar for different contrast levels; (b) we also found asymmetries in contrast perception with different shaded stimuli, and this asymmetry was not related with the perceived three-dimensionality but with the type of shading, being greater for continuous-shading stimuli

Synthesis of a SAPO-34-based catalyst with high selectivity to light olefins and resistance to coke formation

L'éthylène et le propylène sont des produits largement utilisés dans l'industrie pétrochimique pour la fabrication de produits à valeur-ajouté tels les polymères. Cependant, leur production actuelle repose sur des technologies inefficaces et énergivores utilisant des combustibles fossiles comme matière première. Comme alternatif, la conversion du méthanol en oléfines (MTO) en utilisant des acides solides microporeux comme catalyseur représente une approche majeure pour la réduction de la demande énergétique et leur empreinte de carbone. En outre, le méthanol peut être fabriqué grâce à la gazéification de sources durables, ouvrant ainsi la possibilité de développer des alternatives « vertes ». Dans l'industrie, la SAPO-34 est utilisée pour la production d'oléfines de qualité polymère en raison de sa sélectivité exceptionnelle. Cependant, le catalyseur subit une désactivation à cause du dépôt de coke, se formant à une cadence relativement rapide. Cette porte, donc, sur la fabrication et les essais pour la réaction de MTO d'une SAPO-34 de type hiérarchique, composée d'une structure micro- et mésoporeuse. Dans la littérature, cette nouvelle configuration améliore la sélectivité vis-à-vis des oléfines légères, car elle réduit le temps de séjour des produits et leurs réactions secondaires Tout d'abord, un traitement alcalin utilisant du NaOH a été exploré pour la formation d'une structure secondaire dans une SAPO-34 commerciale, qui présentait une structure microporeuse conventionnelle. L'effet du traitement sur les propriétés physico-chimiques a été étudié et des échantillons ont été testés dans l'accumulation de coke en utilisant le DME comme source de carbone. Ensuite, les effets de la température (300 et 500°C) pour la réaction MTO ont été étudiés en utilisant une SAPO-34 extrudée comme catalyseur. Un processus d'extrusion a été adapté pour permettre le test de différents catalyseurs dans un réacteur à lit-fixe. Les réactions ont été effectuées dans des conditions similaires soit une teneur en eau (80% en poids), une vitesse spatiale en poids d'heure (WHSV, 1.21-1.40 h-1) et une masse de catalyseur extrudée (30 g par expérience). Ensuite, une SAPO-34 a été synthétisée en utilisant une méthode basée sur les organosilanes et teste pour la réaction MTO. Cette dernière méthode a conduit à des résultats positifs pour la fabrication d'une SAPO-34 hiérarchique, contrairement à la méthode de traitement alcalin, et son test à la température optimale (450°C) a conduit à une sélectivité remarquable pour les oléfines légères de 79.1% (sur une base de carbone), tout en minimisant la formation de coke (7.7%) et de propane (1.6%). La sélectivité plus élevée a été attribuée à la suppression des réactions secondaires, en particulier celles impliquant le propylène. En fin, autres paramètres tels que l'incorporation de métaux et le gaz de dilution sont suggérés pour stimuler davantage la sélectivité en oléfines légères

Non uniform embedding based on relevance analysis with reduced computational complexity: application to the detection of pathologies from biosignal recordings

Nonlinear analysis tools for studying and characterizing the dynamics of physiological signals have gained popularity, mainly because tracking sudden alterations of the inherent complexity of biological processes might be an indicator of altered physiological states. Typically, in order to perform an analysis with such tools, the physiological variables that describe the biological process under study are used to reconstruct the underlying dynamics of the biological processes. For that goal, a procedure called time-delay or uniform embedding is usually employed. Nonetheless, there is evidence of its inability for dealing with non-stationary signals, as those recorded from many physiological processes. To handle with such a drawback, this paper evaluates the utility of non-conventional time series reconstruction procedures based on non uniform embedding, applying them to automatic pattern recognition tasks. The paper compares a state of the art non uniform approach with a novel scheme which fuses embedding and feature selection at once, searching for better reconstructions of the dynamics of the system. Moreover, results are also compared with two classic uniform embedding techniques. Thus, the goal is comparing uniform and non uniform reconstruction techniques, including the one proposed in this work, for pattern recognition in biomedical signal processing tasks. Once the state space is reconstructed, the scheme followed characterizes with three classic nonlinear dynamic features (Largest Lyapunov Exponent, Correlation Dimension and Recurrence Period Density Entropy), while classification is carried out by means of a simple k-nn classifier. In order to test its generalization capabilities, the approach was tested with three different physiological databases (Speech Pathologies, Epilepsy and Heart Murmurs). In terms of the accuracy obtained to automatically detect the presence of pathologies, and for the three types of biosignals analyzed, the non uniform techniques used in this work lightly outperformed the results obtained using the uniform methods, suggesting their usefulness to characterize non-stationary biomedical signals in pattern recognition applications. On the other hand, in view of the results obtained and its low computational load, the proposed technique suggests its applicability for the applications under study

Wealth and consumption inequeality: an interquantile analysis

[Abstract] The purpose of this paper is to analyze the changes in wealth and consumption inequality in Spain and estimate the consumption effects of housing and financial wealth.The estimations are made using micro-data from the Spanish Survey of Household Finances (2002–2014) applying cross-section, panel and interquartile techniques. The findings of this paper suggest that there was an increase in wealth inequality during the period under analysis and a reduction in consumption inequality. Also, the authors find a significant positive effect of wealth on consumer expenditure. Disaggregating by asset type, the value of the main residence is the category with the highest estimated effect on consumption, whereas the remaining types of assets, although still positive and generally significant, have more modest effects on consumption. However, the estimated coefficients and their significance can change substantially depending on the phase of the economic cycle and the position of the household in the income distribution.These results provide new empirical evidence on the effects of household wealth changes on their consumption behavior, the differences depending on the household's position in the distribution and the fluctuations of these estimated coefficients throughout a period of profound economic upheavals.Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria, Xunta de Galicia (ED481A-2016/356) e o Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (Project CSO2017-86178-R)

Acoustic analysis of the unvoiced stop consonants for detecting hypernasal speech

Speakers having evidence of a defective velopharyngeal mechanism produce speech with inappropriate nasal resonance (hypernasal speech). Voice analysis methods for the detection of hypernasality commonly use vowels and nasalized vowels. However, to obtain a more general assessment of this abnormality it is necessary to analyze stops and fricatives. This study describes a method for hipernasality detection analyzing the unvoiced Spanish stop consonants /k/ and /p/, as well. The importance of phonemeby- phoneme analysis is shown, in contrast with whole word parametrization which may include irrelevant segments from the classification point of view. Parameters that correlate the imprints of Velopharyngeal Incompetence (VPI) over voiceless stop consonants were used in the feature estimation stage. Classification was carried out using a Support Vector Machine (SVM), obtaining a performance of 74% for a repeated cross-validation strategy evaluation

Política monetaria y distribución del ingreso: evidencia empírica para la UE-15

This paper presents an empirical research on how monetary policy can affect income distribution. After describing the channels through which monetary policy may have an impact on income distribution, we perform a panel analysis of 15 EU (European Union) countries covering the period 1995-2014. The results provide evidence of a significant positive relationship between real interest rates and income inequality measured as the Gini coefficient. However, this relationship only becomes significant in the medium term but not in the short term. Our findings call for greater attention by central bankers to the redistributive effects of monetary policyEste artículo presenta una investigación empírica sobre cómo la política monetaria puede afectar a la distribución del ingreso. Tras describir los canales a través de los cuales la política monetaria puede tener un impacto en la distribución de la renta, se realiza un análisis para un panel de 15 países de la UE (Unión Europea) que abarca el período 1995-2014. Los resultados evidencian una relación positiva significativa entre los tipos de interés reales y la desigualdad de ingresos medida como el coeficiente de Gini. Sin embargo, esta relación sólo es significativa a medio plazo, pero no a corto plazo. Nuestros resultados plantean que los bancos centrales tengan en consideración los efectos redistributivos de la política monetari

Caring fathers in Europe: Toward universal caregiver families?

Increasingly, men are challenging the assumption that care is a feminine task and are involving themselves in childcare and the care of dependent adults. However, this does not necessarily have consequences for their work, as they very rarely make costly adaptations in their working lives. In this study, we propose a definition of a man in care (MIC) as a working father who, in order to meet care needs, has adapted his working life in a way that potentially entails a financial penalty. We analyze the prevalence of men in care among men living with children below the age of 15 across the EU-27 plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and the UK using recent representative data (the European Labour Survey and its 2018 ad hoc module on work-life balance). We find that although the number of men engaging in costly work adaptations is still very low when compared to their female counterparts, the characteristics of these men can be clearly outlined: they have a non-manual occupation (managers excluded), they have temporary contracts or are self-employed, they are partnered to women who hold jobs of 40 or more hours a week and have a high educational attainment, and they work in family-friendly companies. Also, at the context level, the prevalence of MIC is clearly related to gender equality and values. However, we do not find evidence of any country having reached the universal caregiver model proposed by Nancy Fraser, including those with more advanced gender and welfare regimes