The asset/liability structure of the Philippine banks and non-bank financial institutions in 2000s : a preliminary study for financial access analyses

Based on the consolidated statements data of the universal/commercial banks (UKbank) and non-bank financial institutions with quasi-banking licenses, this paper presents a keen necessity of obtaining data in detail on both sides (assets and liabilities) of their financial conditions and further analyses. Those would bring more adequate assessments on the Philippine financial system, especially with regard to each financial subsector's financing/lending preferences and behavior. The paper also presents a possibility that the skewed locational and operational distribution exists in the non-UKbank financial subsectors. It suggests there may be a significant deviation from the authorities' (the BSP, SEC and others) intended/anticipated financial system in the banking/non-bank financial institutions' real operations.

Small-scale variation of vegetation in a mixed forest understorey is partly controlled by the effect of overstory composition on litter accumulation

We investigated how richness and composition of vascular plant species in the understory of a mixed hardwood forest stand varied with respect to the abundance and composition of the overstory. The stand is in central Spain and represents the southernmost range of distribution of several tree and herbaceous species in Europe. Understory species were identified in 46 quadrats (0.25 m2) where variables litter depth and light availability were measured. In addition, we estimated tree density, basal area, and percent basal area by tree species within 6-m-radius areas around each plot. Species richness and composition were studied using path analysis and scale-dependent geostatistical methods, respectively. We found that the relative abundance of certain trees species in the overstory was more important than total overstory abundance in explaining understory species richness. Richness decreased as soil litter depth increased, and soil litter increased as the relative proportion of Fagus sylvatica in the overstory increased, which accounted for a negative, indirect effect of Fagus sylvatica on richness. Regarding understory species composition, we found that some species distributed preferentially below certain tree species. For example, Melica uniflora was most frequent below Fagus sylvatica and Quercus petraea while the increasing proportion of Q. pyrenaica in the overstory favored the presence of Cruciata glabra, Arenaria montana, Prunus avium, Conopodium bourgaei, Holcus mollis, Stellaria media and Galium aparine in the understory. Overall, these results emphasize the importance of individual tree species in controlling the assemblage and richness of understory species in mixed stands. We conclude that soil litter accumulation is one way through which overstory composition shapes the understory community.

Recubrimientos autolubricantes cuasicristalinos tipo composite depositados mediante proyección térmica para aplicaciones espaciales y de alta temperatura

Los recubrimientos lubricantes sólidos son requeridos para reducir la fricción y prevenir el desgaste en componentes que operan a altas temperaturas o en vacío (vehículos espaciales, industria química, motores diésel, turbinas aeronáuticas y de generación de energía…). Los lubricantes líquidos pierden sus características cuando las condiciones de presión, temperatura o ambientales son severas (oxidación, inestabilidad térmica, volatilidad,…), por ejemplo los aceites minerales convencionales se descomponen a temperaturas próximas a 200 ºC. Por tanto, la única manera de poder conseguir una adecuada lubricación a temperaturas extremas es por medio de sólidos, que cada vez más, se aplican en forma de recubrimientos. Estos recubrimientos podrían ser empleados en componentes de vehículos espaciales reutilizables, donde se pueden alcanzar, en la reentrada en la atmósfera, temperaturas de 700 ºC (bisagras, rodamientos, articulaciones y zonas de sellado en las superficies de control, y rodamientos de las turbobombas y las cajas de engranajes). Dichos recubrimientos también deberían ser capaces de proporcionar una lubricación efectiva a bajas temperaturas para las operaciones en tierra, para las operaciones de arranque en frío, incluso en el espacio. El conjunto de requisitos que tendrían que satisfacer las capas tribológicas relacionadas con estas condiciones extremas es muy diverso, lo que hace que el concepto de capas tipo composite (aquéllas constituidas por varios componentes) sea, en principio, muy adecuado para estas aplicaciones. Recubrimientos composite proyectados térmicamente constituidos por una matriz dura y conteniendo lubricantes sólidos pueden ser una buena solución desde el punto de vista tribológico. El “Lewis Research Centre” de la NASA ha estado desarrollando recubrimientos autolubricantes tipo composite, constituidos por la combinación de materiales duros como el carburo de cromo, junto con lubricantes sólidos como plata o la eutéctica de fluoruros de calcio y bario, en una matriz de NiCr, para su uso en aplicaciones terrestres a alta temperatura. Estos recubrimientos han sido aplicados mediante proyección térmica, siendo denominados como series PS100, PS200, PS300 y PS400, reduciendo de forma significativa el coeficiente de fricción y mejorando la resistencia al desgaste en un amplio margen de temperaturas. Otra nueva familia de materiales con comportamiento tribológico prometedor son las aleaciones cuasicristalinas (QC). Presentan características muy atractivas: alta dureza, baja fricción, alto límite elástico de compresión... Son muy frágiles como materiales másicos, por lo que se intentan aplicar en forma de recubrimientos. Se pueden depositar mediante proyección térmica. Algunos de estos materiales cuasicristalinos, como AlCoFeCr, poseen coeficientes de dilatación próximos al de los materiales metálicos, alta estabilidad térmica, baja conductividad térmica y una elevada resistencia a la oxidación y a la corrosión en caliente. En esta tesis se han desarrollado recubrimientos tipo composite conteniendo cuasicristales como componente antidesgaste, NiCr como componente tenaz, y Ag y la eutéctica de BaF2-CaF2, como lubricantes sólidos. Estos recubrimientos han sido depositados con diferentes composiciones (denominadas TH100, TH103, TH200, TH400, TH600…) mediante distintos procesos de proyección térmica: plasma en aire (PS), plasma en baja presión (LPPS) y combustión a alta velocidad (HVOF). Los recubrimientos se han generado sobre el sustrato X-750, una superaleación base níquel, endurecible por precipitación, con muy buena resistencia mecánica y a la oxidación hasta temperaturas de 870 ºC y, además, es empleada en aplicaciones aeroespaciales e industriales. Los recubrimientos han sido caracterizados microestructuralmente en INTA (Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial), mediante SEM-EDS (Scanning Electronic Microscopy-Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy) y XRD (X-Ray Diffraction), y tribológicamente mediante medidas de microdureza y ensayos en tribómetro POD (Pin On Disc) para determinar los coeficientes de fricción y de desgaste. Los recubrimientos han sido ensayados tribológicamente a alta temperatura en INTA y en vacío en AMTTARC (Aerospace and Space Materials Technology Testhouse – Austrian Research Centres), en Seibersdorf (Austria). Se ha estudiado la influencia de la carga normal aplicada, la velocidad lineal y el material del pin. De entre las diferentes series de recubrimientos cuasicristalinos tipo composite desarrolladas, dos de ellas, TH100 y TH103 han presentado una excelente calidad microestructural (baja porosidad, distribución uniforme de fases…) y se han mostrado como excelentes recubrimientos antidesgaste. Sin embargo, estas capas presentan un pobre comportamiento como autolubricantes a temperatura ambiente, aunque mejoran mucho a alta temperatura o en vacío. Los resultados del trabajo presentado en esta tesis han proporcionado nuevo conocimiento respecto al comportamiento tribológico de recubrimientos autolubricantes cuasicristalinos tipo composite depositados por proyección térmica. Sin embargo, dichos resultados, aunque son muy prometedores, no han puesto de manifiesto el adecuado comportamiento autolubricante que se pretendía y, además, como ocurre en cualquier trabajo de investigación, durante el desarrollo del mismo siempre aparecen nuevas dudas por resolver. Se proponen nuevas líneas de trabajo futuro que complementen los resultados obtenidos y que puedan encaminar hacia la obtención de un recubrimiento que mejore su comportamiento autolubricante. ABSTRACT Solid lubricant coatings are required to reduce friction and prevent wear in components that operate at high temperatures or under vacuum (space vehicles, chemical industry, diesel engines, power generation turbines and aeronautical turbines, for instance). In these cases neither greases nor liquid lubricants can be employed and the only practicable approach to lubrication in such conditions is by means of solids. These are increasingly applied in the form of coatings which should exhibit low shear strength, whilst maintaining their chemical stability at extremes temperatures and in the space environment. In the space field, these coatings would be employed in re-usable space plane applications, such as elevon hinges, where temperatures of 700 ºC are reached during re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere. These coatings should also be capable of providing effective lubrication at lower temperatures since “cold start” operation may be necessary, even in the space environment. The diverse and sometimes conflictive requirements in high temperature and space-related tribological coatings make the concept of composite coatings highly suitable for these applications. Thermal-sprayed composites containing solid lubricants in a hard matrix perform well tribologically. NASA‘s Lewis Research Centre had developed self-lubricating composite coatings for terrestrial use, comprising hard materials like chromium carbide as well as solid lubricant additives such as silver and BaF2-CaF2 eutectic on a Ni-Cr matrix. These coatings series, named PS100, PS200, PS300 and PS400, are applied by thermal spray and significantly reduce friction coefficients, improving wear resistance over a wide temperature range. Quasicrystalline alloys (QC) constitute a new family of materials with promising tribological behaviour. Some QC materials exhibit a combination of adequate antifriction properties: low friction coefficient, high hardness and high yield strength under compression, and can be easily produced as coatings on top of metallic and non-metallic materials. Among these QC alloys, AlCoFeCr has high hardness (700 HV0.1), a thermal expansion coefficient close to that of metals, high thermal stability, low thermal conductivity and good oxidation and hot corrosion resistance. However most QC materials have the disadvantage of being very brittle. In order to take advantage of the excellent tribological properties of QCs, thick composite lubricant coatings were prepared containing them as the hard phase for wear resistance, Ag and BaF2-CaF2 eutectic as lubricating materials and NiCr as the tough component. These coatings were deposited in different composition mixtures (named TH100, TH103, TH200, TH400, TH600…) by different thermal spray processes: air plasma spray (PS), low pressure plasma spray (LPPS) and high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF), on X-750 substrates. X-750 is an age-hardenable nickel-base superalloy with very good strength and a good resistance to oxidising combustion gas environments at temperatures up to about 870 ºC and it is widely used in aerospace and industrial applications. Coatings have been characterized microstructurally, at INTA (National Institute for Aerospace Technology), by means of SEM-EDS (Scanning Electronic Microscopy- Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy) and XRD (X-Ray Diffraction), and tribologically by microhardness measurements and pin-on-disc testing to determine friction coefficients as well as wear resistance. The coatings were tested tribologically at high temperature at INTA and under vacuum at AMTT-ARC (Aerospace and Space Materials Technology Testhouse – Austrian Research Centres), in Seibersdorf (Austria). Different loads, linear speeds and pin materials were studied. TH100 and TH103 QC alloy matrix composite coatings were deposited by HVOF with excellent microstructural quality (low porosity, uniform phase distribution) and showed to be excellent wear resistant coatings. However these QC alloy matrix composite coatings are poor as a self-lubricant at room temperature but much better at high temperature or in vacuum. The results from the work performed within the scope of this thesis have provided new knowledge concerning the tribological behavior of self-lubricating quasicrystalline composite coatings deposited by thermal spraying. Although these results are very promising, they have not shown an adequate self-lubricating behavior as was intended, and also, as in any research, the results have in addition raised new questions. Future work is suggested to complement the results of this thesis in order to improve the selflubricating behaviour of the coatings.

Inconsistencies in Guidelines for Visual Health Surveillance of VDT Workers

Objectives: In Europe, 25% of workers use video display terminals (VDTs). Occupational health surveillance has been considered a key element in the protection of these workers. Nevertheless, it is unclear if guidelines available for this purpose, based on EU standards and available evidence, meet currently accepted quality criteria. The aim of this study was to appraise three sets of European VDT guidelines (UK, France, Spain) in which regulatory and evidence-based approaches for visual health have been formulated and recommendations for practice made. Methods: Three independent appraisers used an adapted AGREE instrument with seven domains to appraise the guidelines. A modified nominal group technique approach was used in two consecutive phases: first, individual evaluation of the three guidelines simultaneously, and second, a face-to-face meeting of appraisers to discuss scoring. Analysis of ratings obtained in each domain and variability among appraisers was undertaken (correlation and kappa coefficients). Results: All guidelines had low domain scores. The domain evaluated most highly was Scope and purpose, while Applicability was scored minimally. The UK guidelines had the highest overall score, and the Spanish ones had the lowest. The analysis of reliability and differences between scores in each domain showed a high level of agreement. Conclusions: These results suggest current guidelines used in these countries need an update. The formulation of evidence-base European guidelines on VDT could help to reduce the significant variation of national guidelines, which may have an impact on practical application.

Subsidence activity maps derived from DInSAR data: Orihuela case study

A new methodology is proposed to produce subsidence activity maps based on the geostatistical analysis of persistent scatterer interferometry (PSI) data. PSI displacement measurements are interpolated based on conditional Sequential Gaussian Simulation (SGS) to calculate multiple equiprobable realizations of subsidence. The result from this process is a series of interpolated subsidence values, with an estimation of the spatial variability and a confidence level on the interpolation. These maps complement the PSI displacement map, improving the identification of wide subsiding areas at a regional scale. At a local scale, they can be used to identify buildings susceptible to suffer subsidence related damages. In order to do so, it is necessary to calculate the maximum differential settlement and the maximum angular distortion for each building of the study area. Based on PSI-derived parameters those buildings in which the serviceability limit state has been exceeded, and where in situ forensic analysis should be made, can be automatically identified. This methodology has been tested in the city of Orihuela (SE Spain) for the study of historical buildings damaged during the last two decades by subsidence due to aquifer overexploitation. The qualitative evaluation of the results from the methodology carried out in buildings where damages have been reported shows a success rate of 100%.

A public-professional web-bridge for vaccines and vaccination: User concerns about vaccine safety

Vacunas.org (http://www.vacunas.org), a website founded by the Spanish Association of Vaccinology offers a personalized service called Ask the Expert, which answers any questions posed by the public or health professionals about vaccines and vaccination. The aim of this study was to analyze the factors associated with questions on vaccination safety and determine the characteristics of questioners and the type of question asked during the period 2008–2010. A total of 1341 questions were finally included in the analysis. Of those, 30% were related to vaccine safety. Questions about pregnant women had 5.01 higher odds of asking about safety (95% CI 2.82–8.93) than people not belonging to any risk group. Older questioners (>50 years) were less likely to ask about vaccine safety compared to younger questioners (OR: 0.44, 95% CI 0.25–0.76). Questions made after vaccination or related to influenza (including H1N1) or travel vaccines were also associated with a higher likelihood of asking about vaccine safety. These results identify risk groups (pregnant women), population groups (older people) and some vaccines (travel and influenza vaccines, including H1N1) where greater efforts to provide improved, more-tailored vaccine information in general and on the Internet are required.