Globalization and the Symphony of the New (Post-modern) World: From Westphalia to Maastricht…passing by Washington DC

Taking on the challenge of understanding and explaining the Symphony of (today’s) New World in realistic terms (not realist), this essay aims to analyse the Post-Cold war era by devising a multi-conceptual framework that combines different theoretical contributions not yet linked in a fully explanatory way. This paper suggests two inter-related analytical contexts (or background melodies) to understand Dvorak´s "New World”. First, the socio-economic structural context that falls under the controversial category of Globalization and, second, the post-modern political structural context that is built on Robert Cooper’s threefold analysis (Pre-modern, Modern and Post-modern) of today’s world [Cooper, R: 1997, 1999]. Lastly, the closing movement (allegro con fuoco) enters the normative arena to assess American foreign policy options in the light of the theoretical framework devised in the first part of the essay.

Why did modern trade fairs appear?

According to our interpretation, modern trade fairs started in Europe during the FirstWorld War and in its immediate aftermath. With the closing of trade movements duringthe war, many cities had to resort to the old medieval tradition of providing especialpermits to traders to guarantee them personal protection during their trade meetings.During the tough post war crisis many more cities typically industrial districts-discovered in the creation of trade fairs a powerful competitive tool to attract markettransactions. We compare these developments with the remote origins of fairs, as, inboth cases, trade fair development is a reaction to the closing of free markets under thepressure of political violence.

Variation of grain nitrogen content in relation with grain yield in old and modern Spanish wheats grown under a wide range of agronomic conditions in a Mediterranean region

Wheat yield and grain nitrogen concentration (GNC; mg N/g grain) are frequently negatively correlated. In most growing conditions, this is mainly due to a feedback process between GNC and the number of grains/m2. In Mediterranean conditions, breeders may have produced cultivars with conservative grain set. The present study aimed at clarifying the main physiological determinants of grain nitrogen accumulation (GNA) in Mediterranean wheat and to analyse how breeding has affected them. Five field experiments were carried out in north-eastern Spain in the 2005/06 and 2006/ 07 growing seasons with three cultivars released at different times and an advanced line. Depending on the experiment, source-sink ratios during grain filling were altered by reducing grain number/m2 either through pre-anthesis shading (unshaded control or 0.75 shading only between jointing and anthesis) or by directly trimming the spikes after anthesis and before the onset of the effective grain filling period (un-trimmed control or spikes halved 7–10 days after anthesis). Grain nitrogen content (GN content ; mg N/grain) decreased with the year of release of the genotypes. As the number of grains/m2 was also increased by breeding there was a clear dilution effect on the amount of nitrogen allocated to each grain. However, the increase in GN content in old genotypes did not compensate for the loss in grain nitrogen yield (GNY) due to the lower number of grains/m2. GN content of all genotypes increased (increases ranged from 0.13 to 0.40 mg N/grain, depending on experiment and genotype) in response to the post-anthesis spike trimming or pre-anthesis shading. The degree of source-limitation for GNA increased with the year of release of the genotypes (and thus with increases in grain number/m2) from 0.22 (mean of the four manipulative experiments) in the oldest cultivar to 0.51 (mean of the four manipulative experiments) in the most modern line. It was found that final GN content depended strongly on the source-sink ratio established at anthesis between the number of grains set and the amount of nitrogen absorbed at this stage. Thus, Mediterranean wheat breeding that improved yield through increases in grain number/m2 reduced the GN content by diluting a rather limited source of nitrogen into more grains. This dilution effect produced by breeding was further confirmed by the reversal effect produced by grain number/m2 reductions due to either pre-anthesis shading or post-anthesis spike trimming.

The relevance of post-match LTC: why has the Spanish labor market become as volatile as the US one?

We present a Search and Matching model with heterogeneous workers (entrants and incumbents) that replicates the stylized facts characterizing the US and the Spanish labor markets. Under this benchmark, we find the Post-Match Labor Turnover Costs (PMLTC) to be the centerpiece to explain why the Spanish labor market is as volatile as the US one. The two driving forces governing this volatility are the gaps between entrants and incumbents in terms of separation costs and productivity. We use the model to analyze the cyclical implications of changes in labor market institutions affecting these two gaps. The scenario with a low degree of workers’ heterogeneity illustrates its suitability to understand why the Spanish labor market has become as volatile as the US one.

Efectes de la post-descàrrega del plasma en teixits de llana i poliamida6

Els teixits de llana presenten l’inconvenient de feltrar (encongir) degut a la presència d’escates i a les característiques hidrofòbiques de la seva superfície. Els tractaments amb plasma (gas ionitzat) són una alternativa ecològica als tractaments tradicionals d’anti feltratge de la llana. També són una innovació en el camp de les fibres sintètiques ja que incrementen la hidrofìlia i/o la rugositat. Malgrat les seves avantatges, l’elevat cost de la maquinària de plasma de baixa temperatura existent per a la indústria tèxtil ha frenat la seva aplicació. Basant-se en estudis preliminars, s’ha avaluat l’efecte de la post-descàrrega del plasma sobre l’encongiment dels teixits de llana, així com els seus efectes en la modificació de la morfologia superficial de llana i poliamida 6.

The generic Hanna Neumann conjecture and post correspondence problem

"Vegeu el resum a l'inici del document del fitxer adjunt."

Dualizing complexes-The modern way

We give a survey of some recent results on Grothendieck duality. We begin with a brief reminder of the classical theory, and then launch into an overview of some of the striking developments since 2005.

Emissions distribution in post-Kyoto international negotiations: a policy

An abundant scientific literature about climate change economics points out that the future participation of developing countries in international environmental policies will depend on their amount of pay offs inside and outside specific agreements. These studies are aimed at analyzing coalitions stability typically through a game theoretical approach. Though these contributions represent a corner stone in the research field investigating future plausible international coalitions and the reasons behind the difficulties incurred over time to implement emissions stabilizing actions, they cannot disentangle satisfactorily the role that equality play in inducing poor regions to tackle global warming. If we focus on the Stern Review findings stressing that climate change will generate heavy damages and policy actions will be costly in a finite time horizon, we understand why there is a great incentive to free ride in order to exploit benefits from emissions reduction efforts of others. The reluctance of poor countries in joining international agreements is mainly supported by historical responsibility of rich regions in generating atmospheric carbon concentration, whereas rich countries claim that emissions stabilizing policies will be effective only when developing countries will join them.Scholars recently outline that a perceived fairness in the distribution of emissions would facilitate a wide spread participation in international agreements. In this paper we overview the literature about distributional aspects of emissions by focusing on those contributions investigating past trends of emissions distribution through empirical data and future trajectories through simulations obtained by integrated assessment models. We will explain methodologies used to elaborate data and the link between real data and those coming from simulations. Results from this strand of research will be interpreted in order to discuss future negotiations for post Kyoto agreements that will be the focus of the next. Conference of the Parties in Copenhagen at the end of 2009. A particular attention will be devoted to the role that technological change will play in affecting the distribution of emissions over time and to how spillovers and experience diffusion could influence equality issues and future outcomes of policy negotiations.

Edward Cullen: el nuevo concepto de vampiro

El vampiro, como esa parte de sombra del inconsciente, evoluciona de diablo a ángel como se manifiesta en Crepúsculo de Stephenie Meyer. Para analizar este proceso, se traza el paso del vampiro moderno al post-moderno a través de tres figuras básicas: Drácula, Lestat y Edward Cullen, con la ayuda de los conceptos de Jung de sombra y héroe, y la teoría del cerebro triuno de McLean. Sangre, alma y sexo se desarrollan con este nuevo concepto de vampiro que comienza a revelar su reflejo para dejar de ser la sombra que fue exponiendo su evolución hacia la figura del héroe.

Implementación de aplicaciones y herramientas de post-procesamiento de imágenes médicas vía web

Con la creciente generación de resonancias magnéticas, los servicios de radiología necesitan aplicaciones que les faciliten el trabajo de acceso remoto a los datos y a las herramientas que utilicen para la extracción de datos para realizar sus diagnósticos. El objetivo de este proyecto es el de estudiar e integrar en la plataforma web del grupo de Imagen Médica del PIC llamada PICNIC (PIC NeuroImaging Center) un conjunto de aplicaciones para el estudio y procesamiento de neuroimagen con la implementación de herramientas software en la plataforma grid del PIC.

La Primavera Àrab, primera gran crisi de l’acció exterior Post-Lisboa: la visibilitat, l’eficàcia i la coherència del nou marc institucional a prova

La reforma de Lisboa va establir un nou marc institucional en l'àmbit l'Acció Exterior de la Unió Europea. Un nou marc que ha de permetre a la UE consolidar-se com a actor global en el nou panorama internacional. S'espera que els canvis de Lisboa corregeixin algunes de les deficiències que la política exterior europea havia mostrat en crisis anteriors, mancances de visibilitat, eficàcia i coherència. Un any després de la seva entrada en vigor, les revoltes dels països àrabs durant la primavera de 2011 són la primera gran crisi que l'Acció Exterior post-Lisboa ha d'afrontar i l'oportunitat per avaluar si s'ha aconseguit corregir aquestes mancances del passat.