First record of Biremis circumtexta (Bacillariophyceae) for Tucumán, Argentina

En el presente trabajo se da a conocer el primer registro de Biremis circumtexta (Bacillariophyceae) para Tucumán, Argentina y de datos fisicoquímicos del ambiente lótico estudiado. Se amplía el área de distribución de esta especie para Argentina.This paper presents the first record of Biremis circumtexta (Bacillariophyceae) for Tucumán, Argentina, and the physicochemical data of the studied lotic environment. The range of this species is extended for new areas in Argentina.Fil: Taboada, María de Los Ángeles. Fundacion Miguel Lillo. Direccion de Botanica. Instituto de Ficologia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Martínez de Marco, Silvia N.. Fundacion Miguel Lillo. Direccion de Botanica. Instituto de Ficologia; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Limnología del Noroeste Argentino; ArgentinaFil: Tracanna, Beatriz Concepcion. Fundacion Miguel Lillo. Direccion de Botanica. Instituto de Ficologia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Supervision of milk coagulation with scatter red LED light

For cheese production clotting time is prederteminated using a proteolytic enzyme titulation test (Chamorro and Losada 2002). Thus an expert operator decides the optimum cutting time (always delayed compared to clotting time) based on his own subjective evaluation of textural and visual properties of the curd (Castillo et al. 2000). Expert judgment usually gives acceptable results, yet variability in the optimal assessment of cutting time leads to affects further cheese processing operations (pressing and ripening). The aforementioned reasons suggest the importance of an objective and non-destructive method to determinate optimal cutting time, which would allow indeed the automatic supervision of the cheese clotting process. The goal of this work is a prospective study for the supervision of milk coagulation with scatter red LED light

Solar Neutrinos Before and After KamLAND

We use the recently reported KamLAND measurements on oscillations of reactor anti-neutrinos, together with the data of previously reported solar neutrino experiments, to show that: (1) the total 8B neutrino flux emitted by the Sun is 1.00(1.0 \pm 0.06) of the standard solar model (BP00) predicted flux, (2) the KamLAND measurements reduce the area of the globally allowed oscillation regions that must be explored in model fitting by six orders of magnitude in the Delta m^2-tan^2 theta plane, (3) LMA is now the unique oscillation solution to a CL of 4.7sigma, (4) maximal mixing is disfavored at 3.1 sigma, (5) active-sterile admixtures are constrained to sin^2 eta<0.13 at 1 sigma, (6) the observed ^8B flux that is in the form of sterile neutrinos is 0.00^{+0.09}_{-0.00} (1 sigma), of the standard solar model (BP00) predicted flux, and (7) non-standard solar models that were invented to completely avoid solar neutrino oscillations are excluded by KamLAND plus solar at 7.9 sigma . We also refine quantitative predictions for future 7Be and p-p solar neutrino experiments.Comment: Published version, includes editorial improvement

Real-world outcomes of sipuleucel-T treatment in PROCEED, a prospective registry of men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

BackgroundThe large registry, PROVENGE Registry for the Observation, Collection, and Evaluation of Experience Data (PROCEED)(NCT01306890), evaluated sipuleucel-T immunotherapy for asymptomatic/minimally symptomatic metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).MethodsPROCEED enrolled patients with mCRPC receiving 3 biweekly sipuleucel-T infusions. Assessments included overall survival (OS), serious adverse events (SAEs), cerebrovascular events (CVEs), and anticancer interventions (ACIs). Follow-up was for ≥3&nbsp;years or until death or study withdrawal.ResultsIn 2011-2017, 1976 patients were followed for 46.6&nbsp;months (median). The median age was 72&nbsp;years, and the baseline median prostate-specific antigen level was 15.0&nbsp;ng/mL; 86.7% were white, and 11.6% were African American. Among the patients, 1902 had 1 or more sipuleucel-T infusions. The median OS was 30.7&nbsp;months (95% confidence interval [CI], 28.6-32.2&nbsp;months). Known prognostic factors were independently associated with OS in a multivariable analysis. Among the 1255 patients who died, 964 (76.8%) died of prostate cancer (PC) progression. The median time from the first infusion to PC death was 42.7&nbsp;months (95% CI, 39.4-46.2&nbsp;months). The incidence of sipuleucel-T-related SAEs was 3.9%. The incidence of CVEs was 2.8%, and the rate per 100 person-years was 1.2 (95% CI, 0.9-1.6). The CVE incidence among 11,972 patients with mCRPC from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare database was 2.8%; the rate per 100 person-years was 1.5 (95% CI, 1.4-1.7). One or more ACIs (abiraterone, enzalutamide, docetaxel, cabazitaxel, or radium 223) were received by 77.1% of the patients after sipuleucel-T; 32.5% and 17.4% of the patients experienced 1- and 2-year treatment-free intervals, respectively.ConclusionsPROCEED provides contemporary survival data for sipuleucel-T-treated men in a real-world setting of new life-prolonging agents, which will be useful in discussing treatment options with patients and in powering future trials with sipuleucel-T. The safety and tolerability of sipuleucel-T in PROCEED were consistent with previous findings

Robust signatures of solar neutrino oscillation solutions

With the goal of identifying signatures that select specific neutrino oscillation parameters, we test the robustness of global oscillation solutions that fit all the available solar and reactor experimental data. We use three global analysis strategies previously applied by different authors and also determine the sensitivity of the oscillation solutions to the critical nuclear fusion cross section, S_{17}(0), for the production of 8B. The favored solutions are LMA, LOW, and VAC in order of g.o.f. The neutral current to charged current ratio for SNO is predicted to be 3.5 +- 0.6 (1 sigma), which is separated from the no-oscillation value of 1.0 by much more than the expected experimental error. The predicted range of the day-night difference in charged current rates is (8.2 +- 5.2)% and is strongly correlated with the day-night effect for neutrino-electron scattering. A measurement by SNO of either a NC to CC ratio > 3.3 or a day-night difference > 10%, would favor a small region of the currently allowed LMA neutrino parameter space. The global oscillation solutions predict a 7Be neutrino-electron scattering rate in BOREXINO and KamLAND in the range 0.66 +- 0.04 of the BP00 standard solar model rate, a prediction which can be used to test both the solar model and the neutrino oscillation theory. Only the LOW solution predicts a large day-night effect(< 42%) in BOREXINO and KamLAND. For the KamLAND reactor experiment, the LMA solution predicts 0.44 of the standard model rate; we evaluate 1 sigma and 3 sigma uncertainties and the first and second moments of the energy spectrum.Comment: Included predictions for KamLAND reactor experiment and updated to include 1496 days of Super-Kamiokande observation

Population policies and education: exploring the contradictions of neo-liberal globalisation

The world is increasingly characterised by profound income, health and social inequalities (Appadurai, 2000). In recent decades development initiatives aimed at reducing these inequalities have been situated in a context of increasing globalisation with a dominant neo-liberal economic orthodoxy. This paper argues that neo-liberal globalisation contains inherent contradictions regarding choice and uniformity. This is illustrated in this paper through an exploration of the impact of neo-liberal globalisation on population policies and programmes. The dominant neo-liberal economic ideology that has influenced development over the last few decades has often led to alternative global visions being overlooked. Many current population and development debates are characterised by polarised arguments with strongly opposing aims and views. This raises the challenge of finding alternatives situated in more middle ground that both identify and promote the socially positive elements of neo-liberalism and state intervention, but also to limit their worst excesses within the population field and more broadly. This paper concludes with a discussion outling the positive nature of middle ground and other possible alternatives

The Politics and Materiality of Coordination: Philippine Village Leaders Responding to the Spread of a Global Plant Disease in Banana

Leadership is the process of directing and influencing, and it involves taking actions and producing change, in both informal and formal settings. In the Philippines, there are village leaders elected in a political position. Barangays (villages) are the smallest political administrative unit in the country and are led by a barangay captain. This paper investigates leadership, not only as an exclusive result of politics and social structures, but relates it to the problem-solving practices and managing interdependencies modified by a global plant disease in banana. The Philippine banana industry caters to both domestic and export markets, making it an important economic commodity. A virulent global plant disease in banana, Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 (Foc TR4), is threatening the producers in Philippine villages. Case studies of village leaders examine their actions in relation to nonconstituents, particularly with the Foc threat. Settings were four villages where export-oriented banana companies were present, mingling with local players. The common denominators in all these villages were the presence of export-oriented banana plantation and recorded incidence of Foc. The village leaders’ handling of the gravity and importance of problem still leaned largely on how their political influencers perceived the problem. The multinational companies, on the other hand, were not able to fully articulate the importance of the problem to the village leaders. These companies kept much of their researches and studies to themselves and shared only what was necessary. As a result, the village did not have complete information on how to treat or understand the problem

Coordination and Risk in the Philippine Banana Industry: Conditions for Responding to Panama Disease

Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense Tropical Race 4 is a disease that traverses political, economic, geographical, and social boundaries and confronts the fragmented and highly polarized banana industry. Furthermore, the nature of TR4 has many uncertainties and unknowns. This paper investigated conditions for coordination in responding to TR4 risk. A qualitative case study of two villages in Davao del Norte, a major producing area in the Philippines with TR4 occurrence, was done to provide a contextual and in-depth analysis. Results showed that there was coordination between actors with longer working or personal relationships. They shared a common language for identifying problems and defining risks and communicate beyond the boundaries of their own organizations. There were visible signs of alliances between private and public domains in their handling of TR4 uncertainties. Actors have an urgency to react to TR4 impacts by accommodating multiple solutions. The enabling conditions for coordination identified were long-term relations forged outside the organizations/industry alliances and examination and the recognition of unknown TR4 characteristics, thus forging emerging research and information sharing. The constraints included polarization rooted from unequal access to land, blaming, and the isolated experiments and advocacy for single solutions. In conclusion, there was low coordination in responding to disease risk because of the blaming and diversities in solutions. However, there was an emerging coordination that built on social relations and deliberate efforts to bring parties together from the public and private sectors. The industry has to adapt, settle, and manage its differences to collectively address the banana disease risk