The labour market in the Basque Country: University Employment Centers

This project is a study of the Labour Market in the Basque Country. First of all, we have analysed the position of the Basque Country in the European Union employment situation by gender and age. Secondly, we have studied the educational level of the Basque Country from the European Union perspective. Thirdly, we have showed the importance of labour orientation in educational level, especially in higher education. Finally, the design of new employment policies to promote the creation of jobs and stability of the labour market depends on: new industries and university employment policies.

Chemical recycling of municipal packaging waste by pyrolysis

[EN]The present doctoral thesis centers on studying pyrolysis as a chemical recycling technique for rejected packaging waste fractions coming from separation and sorting plants. The pyrolysis experiments have been carried out in a lab-scale installation equipped with a 3.5 L semi-batch reactor and a condensation and collection system for the liquids and gases generated. In the present thesis, an experimental study on the conventional pyrolysis process applied to the aforementioned waste fractions has been conducted, as well as the study of non-conventional or advanced pyrolysis processes such as catalytic and stepwise pyrolysis. The study of the operating parameters has been carried out using a mixed plastics simulated sample, the composition of which is similar to that found in real fractions, and subsequently the optimized process has been applied to real packaging waste. An exhaustive characterization of the solids, liquids and gases obtained in the process has been made after each experiment and their potential uses have been established. Finally, an empirical model that will predict the pyrolysis yields (% organic liquid, % aqueous liquid, % gases, % char, % inorganic solid) as a function of the composition of the initial sample has been developed. As a result of the experimental work done, the requirements have been established for an industrial packaging waste pyrolysis plant that aims to be sufficiently versatile as to generate useful products regardless of the nature of the raw material.

Number of prior episodes and the presence of depressive symptoms are associated with longer length of stay for patients with acute manic episodes

Background: Few studies have analyzed predictors of length of stay (LOS) in patients admitted due to acute bipolar manic episodes. The purpose of the present study was to estimate LOS and to determine the potential sociodemographic and clinical risk factors associated with a longer hospitalization. Such information could be useful to identify those patients at high risk for long LOS and to allocate them to special treatments, with the aim of optimizing their hospital management. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study recruiting adult patients with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, text revision (DSM-IV-TR) criteria) who had been hospitalized due to an acute manic episode with a Young Mania Rating Scale total score greater than 20. Bivariate correlational and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to identify independent predictors of LOS. Results: A total of 235 patients from 44 centers were included in the study. The only factors that were significantly associated to LOS in the regression model were the number of previous episodes and the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score at admission (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Patients with a high number of previous episodes and those with depressive symptoms during mania are more likely to stay longer in hospital. Patients with severe depressive symptoms may have a more severe or treatment-resistant course of the acute bipolar manic episode.

Internacionalización de la producción en las factorías navales

[ES] La internacionalización de la producción de las factorías navales viene impulsada por las posibilidades que las nuevas técnicas de construcción abren a la desagregación de los procesos productivos. Además, los avances experimentados en las tecnologías de la información y comunicación reducen los inconvenientes de la deslocalización de actividades en distintos centros ubicados en áreas geográficas distantes. Asimismo, el abaratamiento de los costes de transporte resta importancia a los escollos del desplazamiento de las partes del buque entre los distintos puntos de construcción. Pese a ello, en el sector naval, cuyo mercado objetivo habitual es de ámbito mundial, la internacionalización de la producción resulta ser una práctica menos frecuente.

Automatismos y racionalidad en la toma de decisiones para sustituir a un deportista en momentos decisivos

[ES] Cada vez más el deporte-espectáculo se está abriendo paso como objeto de estudio en los centros de investigación avanzada, como consecuencia de la necesidad de gestionar los altos presupuestos de las entidades deportivas.

Los grupos de interés y la presión medioambiental

[ES] Uno de los motivos de mayor peso que inducen a las organizaciones a la implantación de sistemas de gestión medioambiental es la presión ejercida por los grupos de interés. La investigación aporta resultados sobre cuál es la influencia de los grupos de interés sobre la gestión medioambiental. Con este fin hemos analizado 142 centros de negocio españoles, poseedores de los certificados ISO 14000 y/o EMAS, estableciendo la relación de los grupos de interés y su influencia con el modo en que se realiza en dichas organizaciones la gestión medioambiental.

La construcción del discurso homofóbico en la Europa cristiana medieval

[ES]En este artículo se pasa revista y se analizan los distintos factores que contribuyeron a la construcción de un discurso homofóbico por parte de la sociedad europea a partir del siglo XIII. Se centra la atención especialmente en la homosexualidad masculina.

Enriching the content provided by cultural catalogues with data from institutional repositories

[EN] This paper is an outcome of the ERASMUS IP program called TOPCART, there are more information about this project that can be accessed from the following item:

Association between dietary phylloquinone intake and peripheral metabolic risk markers related to insulin resistance and diabetes in elderly subjects at high cardiovascular risk

Background: Vitamin K has been related to glucose metabolism, insulin sensitivity and diabetes. Because inflammation underlies all these metabolic conditions, it is plausible that the potential role of vitamin K in glucose metabolism occurs through the modulation of cytokines and related molecules. The purpose of the study was to assess the associations between dietary intake of vitamin K and peripheral adipokines and other metabolic risk markers related to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: Cross-sectional and longitudinal assessments of these associations in 510 elderly participants recruited in the PREDIMED centers of Reus and Barcelona (Spain). We determined 1-year changes in dietary phylloquinone intake estimated by food frequency questionnaires, serum inflammatory cytokines and other metabolic risk markers. Results: In the cross-sectional analysis at baseline no significant associations were found between dietary phylloquinone intake and the rest of metabolic risk markers evaluated, with exception of a negative association with plasminogen activator inhibitor-1. After 1-year of follow-up, subjects in the upper tertile of changes in dietary phylloquinone intake showed a greater reduction in ghrelin (-15.0%), glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (-12.9%), glucagon-like peptide-1 (-17.6%), IL-6 (-27.9%), leptin (-10.3%), TNF (-26.9%) and visfatin (-24.9%) plasma concentrations than those in the lowest tertile (all p<0.05). Conclusion: These results show that dietary phylloquinone intake is associated with an improvement of cytokines and other markers related to insulin resistance and diabetes, thus extending the potential protection by dietary phylloquinone on chronic inflammatory diseases.

Celiac disease in the Mediterranean area

Background: The World Gastroenterology Organization recommends developing national guidelines for the diagnosis of Celiac Disease (CD): hence a profile of the diagnosis of CD in each country is required. We aim to describe a cross-sectional picture of the clinical features and diagnostic facilities in 16 countries of the Mediterranean basin. Since a new ESPGHAN diagnostic protocol was recently published, our secondary aim is to estimate how many cases in the same area could be identified without a small intestinal biopsy. Methods: By a stratified cross-sectional retrospective study design, we examined clinical, histological and laboratory data from 749 consecutive unselected CD children diagnosed by national referral centers. Results: The vast majority of cases were diagnosed before the age of 10 (median: 5 years), affected by diarrhea, weight loss and food refusal, as expected. Only 59 cases (7.8%) did not suffer of major complaints. Tissue transglutaminase (tTG) assay was available, but one-third of centers reported financial constraints in the regular purchase of the assay kits. 252 cases (33.6%) showed tTG values over 10 times the local normal limit. Endomysial antibodies and HLA typing were routinely available in only half of the centers. CD was mainly diagnosed from small intestinal biopsy, available in all centers. Based on these data, only 154/749 cases (20.5%) would have qualified for a diagnosis of CD without a small intestinal biopsy, according to the new ESPGHAN protocol. Conclusions: This cross-sectional study of CD in the Mediterranean referral centers offers a puzzling picture of the capacities to deal with the emerging epidemic of CD in the area, giving a substantive support to the World Gastroenterology Organization guidelines.

Association between CASP8-652 6N Del Polymorphism (rs3834129) and Colorectal Cancer Risk: Results from a Multi-Centric Study

The common 2652 6N del variant in the CASP8 promoter (rs3834129) has been described as a putative low-penetrance risk factor for different cancer types. In particular, some studies suggested that the deleted allele (del) was inversely associated with CRC risk while other analyses failed to confirm this. Hence, to better understand the role of this variant in the risk of developing CRC, we performed a multi-centric case-control study. In the study, the variant 2652 6N del was genotyped in a total of 6,733 CRC cases and 7,576 controls recruited by six different centers located in Spain, Italy, USA, England, Czech Republic and the Netherlands collaborating to the international consortium COGENT (COlorectal cancer GENeTics). Our analysis indicated that rs3834129 was not associated with CRC risk in the full data set. However, the del allele was under-represented in one set of cases with a family history of CRC (per allele model OR = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.69-0.90) suggesting this allele might be a protective factor versus familial CRC. Since this multi-centric case-control study was performed on a very large sample size, it provided robust clarification of the effect of rs3834129 on the risk of developing CRC in Caucasians.

Does training policy help to attract, retain and develop valuable human resources? Analysis from the Mondragon case

This is an electronic version of the accepted paper in the journal:Advances in the Economic Analysis of Participatory and Labor-Managed Firms. Volumen. 12

Energías renovables en edificación: aplicación al abastecimiento de energía eléctrica y climatización

[ES]Este documento tiene el objeto de presentar el uso de las energías renovables en la edificación actual, para ello se analizaran las energías que hay en el mercado, sus beneficios y sus posibles aplicaciones en viviendas, naves industriales, polideportivos, centro comerciales, etc. Para lograr alcanzar todas estas competencias se hará mayor hincapié en el uso de estas nuevas tecnologías en abastecimientos de energía eléctrica y climatización, teniendo en cuenta que no todas las energías renovables son aplicables a la edificación y que no todas las energías tienen las mismas utilidades. El trabajo se lleva a cabo dentro de los trabajos de fin de grado de la escuela técnica superior de ingeniería de Bilbao (ETSIB), más concretamente se refiere al trabajo tipo TFG.3. El trabajo también consta de los apartados descargo de costes y planificación, donde se analiza el desglose de los gastos empleados para la realización de esta memoria y el tiempo elaboración para el mismo. Para concluir es añaden anexos, en los cuales se explican varias de las Normas que se manejan en la actualidad y también se incluyen algunos catálogos de productos comerciales y sus dispositivos para colocar en el edificio.

Informazio-iturrien garrantzia berrikuntza teknologikoko jardueretarako

[EU]Gaur egunean bizi dugun krisi ekonomiko, produkzio ereduen transformazio eta globalizazioko testuinguruan, ikerketa, garapena eta berrikuntza (I+G+b) ezinbesteko faktoreak bilakatu dira herrialdeen hazkunde eta enpresen lidergo zein biziraupenerako. Berritasunaren bilatze horretan, egungo merkatuan enpresek etengabe egin beharreko egokitzapen teknologikoak direla eta, berrikuntza teknologikoak, hau da, produktuan edo prozesuan berritzeak, berebiziko garrantzia du. Gainera, oro har, lehiakortasunik ez galtzeko informazio estrategikoaren jabe izatea enpresentzat funtsezkoa bada ere, berrikuntza jarduerak aurrera eramateko oraindik ere gailentasun handiagoa dauka. Informazio estrategikoa iturri ezberdinetatik jaso daiteke eta horietako bakoitzari ematen zaion garrantzia ezberdina da. Lan honen helburua erlazio hori aztertzearena izanik, ondoriozta dezakegu, alde batetik, produktuan zein prozesuan berritzen duten enpresek, berrikuntza teknologikoak aurrera eramateko garaian, enpresa barnetik jasotako informazioari ematen diotela garrantzi gehien. Eta bestaldetik, instituzio publikoetatik, hau da, unibertsitate edo goi-ikasketetako zentroetatik, ikerketako erakunde publikoetatik edota zentro teknologikoetatik jasotako informazioari garrantzi gutxi ematen zaiola.

Systematic Studies on 3d- and 4f-Metal Containing Polyoxometalates Suitable for Organic Derivatization

232 p.