Generation of silicone poly-HIPES with controlled pore sizes via reactive emulsion stabilization

Macrocellular silicone polymers are obtained after solidification of the continuous phase of a PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) emulsion, which contains PEG (polyethylene glycol) drops of sub-millimetric dimensions. Coalescence of the liquid template emulsion is prohibited by a reactive blending approach. We investigate in detail the relationship between the interfacial properties and the emulsion stability, and we use micro- and millifluidic techniques to generation macro-cellular polymers with controlled structural properties over a wider range of cell-sizes (0.2-2mm) and volume fractions of the continuous phase (0.1-40%). This approach could easily be transferred to a wide range of polymeric systems

Paid and unpaid work in Rosario : the unequal distribution of time between men and women

El presente trabajo estudia los patrones de uso del tiempo de la población de la ciudad de Rosario en base a la Encuesta de Uso del Tiempo y Voluntariado del año 2010, realizada utilizando la metodología del “diario de actividades" del día anterior. Por un lado, se evidenció la existencia de una fuerte división sexual del trabajo en la que los varones dedican más tiempo al trabajo realizado para el mercado que las mujeres, y en la que las mujeres destinan casi tres veces más tiempo que los varones al trabajo no remunerado (doméstico y de cuidados). En segundo lugar se comprobó la existencia de una doble jornada femenina a partir del hecho de que las mujeres trabajan (remunerada y no remuneradamente) una mayor cantidad de horas que los varones, y se verificó que las mujeres trabajan más horas pero ganan menos, principalmente dado que su mayor carga de trabajo no recibe ninguna remuneración. Por último, a partir del análisis en función del nivel de ingresos se aprecia una desigualdad adicional intra-mujeres, siendo que aquellas que viven en hogares de menores ingresos dedican una mayor cantidad de tiempo al trabajo no remunerado que aquellas de hogares de mayores ingresos.This paper studies the time-use patterns of the local people of Rosario city based on the Time Use Survey and Volunteer of 2010, carried out using the methodology of the “daily activities" of the previous day. The study shows the existence of a strong sexual division of labor in which men spend more time on paid work than women, and where women spend nearly three times longer on unpaid work (domestic and care). Added to this, it is confirmed the existence of a female second shift from the fact that women work (paid and unpaid) a greater number of hours than men, and it was found that women work more hours but earn less than men do, mainly as most part of their work gets no financial rewards. Finally, the analysis based on the level of income shows an unequal situation between women since those living in lower-income households spend a greater amount of time on unpaid work than those from higher income households.Fil: Ganem, Javier. Universidad Nacional de RosarioFil: Giustiniani, Patricia. Universidad Nacional de RosarioFil: Peinado, Guillermo. Universidad Nacional de Rosari

Crises and bail-outs of banks and countries: Interconnections, analogies, differences

During the last decade or so a number of banking crises has occurred in both industrial and developing countries. Bank unsoundness is the focus of deep concerns for its possible interactions with macroeconomic instability. The potential size and severity of sovereign debt crises in integrated financial markets were highlighted by the outbreak of the Mexican crisis at the end of 1994. Subsequently, in a number of international bodies policy makers have undertaken to consider various avenues and arrangements to prevent, anticipate and resolve sovereign debt crises. In the second half of 1997, East Asia's turmoil testified to the interdependence between currency devaluations, stockmarket crashes, and banks' insolvencies. After a general discussion of financial crises and bank runs, the paper discusses the prototype case of banks for which both established economic doctrine and the practical experience of policy makers and regulators offer clearer indications. Then it turns to countries exploring interactions, analogies and differences with the case of banks. Fundamental differences remain between the cases of financial intermediaries and nations. Ultimately the decision of a sovereign state to default or suspend its debt-service payments is largely a voluntary one and the safeguards against moral hazard built into domestic bankruptcy codes cannot be applied to it. Important consequences follow in terms of international co-ordination and the function of the "lender of last resort"

The potential response of the hydrate reservoir in the South Shetland Margin, Antarctic Peninsula, to ocean warming over the 21st century

In the South Shetland Margin (SSM), Antarctic Peninsula, a bottom-simulating reflector indicates the presence of hydrate between ca. 500 and 3000 m water depth (mwd). The cold seabed temperatures allow hydrate stability at shallower water depths. During the past five decades, the Antarctic Peninsula has been warming up faster than any other part of the Southern Hemisphere, and long-term ocean warming could affect the stability of the SSM hydrate reservoir at shallow waters. Here, we model the transient response of the SSM hydrate reservoir between 375 and 450 mwd to ocean warming for the period 1958–2100. For the period 1958–2010, seabed temperatures are given by oceanographic measurements in the area, and for 2010–2100 by two temperature scenarios represented by the observed trends for the periods 1960–2010 (0.0034°C y−1) and 1980–2010 (0.023°C y−1). Our results show no hydrate-sourced methane emissions for an ocean warming rate at the seabed of 0.0034 °C y−1. For a rate of 0.023°C y−1, emissions start in 2028 at 375 mwd and extend to 442 mwd at an average rate of about 0.91 mwd y−1, releasing ca. 1.13×103 mol y−1 of methane per metre along the margin by 2100. These emissions originate from dissociation at the top of the hydrate layer, a physical process that steady-state modelling cannot represent. Our results are speculative on account of the lack of direct evidence of a shallow water hydrate reservoir, but they illustrate that the SSM is a key area to observe the effects of ocean warming-induced hydrate dissociation in the coming decades

A crustal seismic profile across Sicily

A crustal reflection seismic profile, more than 100 km long, was recorded across central Sicily, from the Tyrrhenian shore to the Sicily Channel, to understand the deep structures and the collision mechanisms between Europe and Africa and the subsequent geodynamic evolution. The profile was acquired using explosive sources and 240 active channels recorded by a Sercel 408-XL, 24 bits A/D converter, with a 12 km spread and a 24-fold coverage. The data were processed following a non-conventional procedure in order to preserve the relative amplitudes of the reflections and to better investigate the Sicily deep structures down to the Moho. The main highlighted structures are the dramatic flexure of the Iblean crust, the huge, deeper than expected, trough of Caltanissetta consisting of deep seated thrusts and nappes, and the imbricate thrust system of rigid bodies characterizing the northern Maghrebian chain. We designed an ad hoc acquisition and processing in order to highlight these main geological features in the seismic stacked section. Moreover, the deepest parts of the Caltanissetta trough are imaged for the first time, and its bottom is now fixed at more than 7 s TWT. The giant crustal wedge flexuring the Iblean foreland and the Moho geometries are examinated

Minimal residual disease detection with tumor-specific CD160 correlates with event-free survival in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

In chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the detection of minimal residual disease (MRD) correlates with outcome in the trial setting. However, MRD assessment does not guide routine clinical management and its assessment remains complex. We incorporated detection of the B cell, tumor-specific antigen CD160 to develop a single-tube, flow cytometry assay (CD160FCA) for CLL MRD to a threshold of 10(−4) to 10(−5). One hundred and eighty-seven patients treated for CLL were enrolled. Utilizing the CD160FCA methodology, there was a high level of comparison between blood and bone marrow (R=0.87, P<0.001). In a validation cohort, CD160FCA and the international standardised approach of the European Research Initiative on CLL group demonstrated high concordance (R=0.91, P<0.01). Patients in complete remission (CR) and CD160FCA negative had longer event-free survival (EFS) (63 vs 16 months, P<0.01) and prolonged time to next treatment (60 vs 15 months, P<0.001) vs MRD positive patients; with a median time to MRD positivity of 36 months. In multivariate analysis, CD160FCA MRD detection was independently predictive of EFS in patients in CR and even predicted EFS in the good-risk cytogenetic subgroup. CD160FCA offers a simple assay for MRD detection in CLL and gives prognostic information across different CLL risk groups

Bank competition and efficiency in the FYR Macedonia.

This paper assesses the degree of competition and relative efficiency of the FYR Macedonia’s banking system – a sector which has undergone a substantial amount of change since the mid-1990s. In general, the results indicate that competition in the banking sector remains relatively weak and that improvements in bank efficiency have been limited to date. However, the presence of a small number of “pocket banks”, which may pursue different objectives than those of standard banking businesses, suggest that these results should be interpreted with caution