Seguiment temporal de les àrees protegides del Cap de Creus, del Montgrí i de les Illes Medes

Els fons rocosos del litoral català són d'una immensa varietat biogeogràfica. La Costa Brava i especialmentles àrees que interessen aquest estudi, presenten una morfologia molt variada amb fons de roca i desediments que ofereixen una amplíssima riquesa d'hàbitats i de comunitats d'animals i vegetals submarins. L'explotació continuada d'aquests indrets tant a nivell pesquer com turístic, ha deixat la seva empremta, especialment en les comunitats de peixos. Malgrat tot, la dinàmica de recuperació de les poblacions d'algunes espècies, com ara el mero, evidencia molt marcadament un abans i un després la implementació de mesures de protecció en aquests indrets.

Transmission electron microscopy in cell biology: sample preparation techniques and image information

Transmission electron microscopy is a proven technique in the field of cell biology and a very useful tool in biomedical research. Innovation and improvements in equipment together with the introduction of new technology have allowed us to improve our knowledge of biological tissues, to visualizestructures better and both to identify and to locate molecules. Of all the types ofmicroscopy exploited to date, electron microscopy is the one with the mostadvantageous resolution limit and therefore it is a very efficient technique fordeciphering the cell architecture and relating it to function. This chapter aims toprovide an overview of the most important techniques that we can apply to abiological sample, tissue or cells, to observe it with an electron microscope, fromthe most conventional to the latest generation. Processes and concepts aredefined, and the advantages and disadvantages of each technique are assessedalong with the image and information that we can obtain by using each one ofthem.

Proposta de turisme gastronòmic a la província de Girona

S’intueix que a la Província de Girona existeix una important oferta de recursos gastronòmics, però es percep una manca de coordinació entre els diversos agents que ho gestionen i de jerarquia sobre quins són els elements que s’han de potenciar. L’objectiu general d’aquest treball és desenvolupar una proposta de Turisme Gastronòmic a la Província de Girona a partir de la recerca dels principals atractius i d’ un anàlisis dels punts forts i dels punts febles observats

First report of the Iowa Soldiers' Monument 1890; Biennial report of the Iowa Soldiers and Sailors Monument Commission, 1894-95

This contains the first (1890),second(1892-93)and third (1894-95) biennial reports of the Iowa Soldiers and Sailors Monument Commission.

Turismo inducido por el cine: aplicación del caso a la ciudad de Barcelona

Este trabajo intenta abordar el fenómeno del turismo de cine, fenómeno que ha provocado numerosas investigaciones y trabajos acerca del papel del cine en el ámbito turístico y su capacidad de difundir y consolidar imaginarios. Algunos de estos trabajos no aportan novedad cayendo frecuentemente en repeticiones y en análisis experimentales que sólo reportan datos estadísticos pero no avanzan en la investigación de su naturaleza, más compleja de lo que a simple vista parece. Barcelona, como ciudad icónica que está de moda, está huérfana de estudios acerca del fenómeno del turismo de cine, y de los impactos que recibe procedentes del mismo. El centro de interés y de estudio turístico gira sobre todo en torno al turismo cultural, de negocios y de cruceros, tal vez porque sus impactos son más directos y el turista potencial está más identificado. Se parte de la base que primeramente debemos analizar la situación que vive la producción cinematográfica en la ciudad – fuente indispensable para que los diferentes proyectos cinematográficos puedan realizarse y así permitir la aparición de nuevas películas – que darán lugar a su posterior influencia y beneficios, ya conocidos y esperados. Una vez se tiene la "materia prima", se trata de comprobar si Barcelona la aprovecha – y por lo tanto se realizan las acciones y esfuerzos necesarios para que así suceda – como herramienta de promoción turística por parte de las Administraciones Públicas, en la medida de lo posible atendiendo a los numerosos estudios que tratan el tema

Destination image of Girona: an online text-mining approach

The main objective of this Master Thesis is to discover more about Girona’s image as a tourism destination from different agents’ perspective and to study its differences on promotion or opinions. In order to meet this objective, three components of Girona’s destination image will be studied: attribute-based component, the holistic component, and the affective component. It is true that a lot of research has been done about tourism destination image, but it is less when we are talking about the destination of Girona. Some studies have already focused on Girona as a tourist destination, but they used a different type of sample and different methodological steps. This study is new among destination studies in the sense that it is based only on textual online data and it follows a methodology based on text-miming. Text-mining is a kind of methodology that allows people extract relevant information from texts. Also, after this information is extracted by this methodology, some statistical multivariate analyses are done with the aim of discovering more about Girona’s tourism image

M-protein and other intrinsic virulence factors of Streptococcus pyogenes are encoded on an ancient pathogenicity island.

BACKGROUND: The increasing number of completely sequenced bacterial genomes allows comparing their architecture and genetic makeup. Such new information highlights the crucial role of lateral genetic exchanges in bacterial evolution and speciation. RESULTS: Here we analyzed the twelve sequenced genomes of Streptococcus pyogenes by a naïve approach that examines the preferential nucleotide usage along the chromosome, namely the usage of G versus C (GC-skew) and T versus A (TA-skew). The cumulative GC-skew plot presented an inverted V-shape composed of two symmetrical linear segments, where the minimum and maximum corresponded to the origin and terminus of DNA replication. In contrast, the cumulative TA-skew presented a V-shape, which segments were interrupted by several steep slopes regions (SSRs), indicative of a different nucleotide composition bias. Each S. pyogenes genome contained up to nine individual SSRs, encompassing all described strain-specific prophages. In addition, each genome contained a similar unique non-phage SSR, the core of which consisted of 31 highly homologous genes. This core includes the M-protein, other mga-related factors and other virulence genes, totaling ten intrinsic virulence genes. In addition to a high content in virulence-related genes and to a peculiar nucleotide bias, this SSR, which is 47 kb-long in a M1GAS strain, harbors direct repeats and a tRNA gene, suggesting a mobile element. Moreover, its complete absence in a M-protein negative group A Streptococcus natural isolate demonstrates that it could be spontaneously lost, but in vitro deletion experiments indicates that its excision occurred at very low rate. The stability of this SSR, combined to its presence in all sequenced S. pyogenes sequenced genome, suggests that it results from an ancient acquisition. CONCLUSION: Thus, this non-phagic SSR is compatible with a pathogenicity island, acquired before S. pyogenes speciation. Its potential excision might bear relevance for vaccine development, because vaccines targeting M-protein might select for M-protein-negative variants that still carry other virulence determinants.

Quantitative genetics of learning ability and resistance to stress in Drosophila melanogaster.

Even though laboratory evolution experiments have demonstrated genetic variation for learning ability, we know little about the underlying genetic architecture and genetic relationships with other ecologically relevant traits. With a full diallel cross among twelve inbred lines of Drosophila melanogaster originating from a natural population (0.75 < F < 0.93), we investigated the genetic architecture of olfactory learning ability and compared it to that for another behavioral trait (unconditional preference for odors), as well as three traits quantifying the ability to deal with environmental challenges: egg-to-adult survival and developmental rate on a low-quality food, and resistance to a bacterial pathogen. Substantial additive genetic variation was detected for each trait, highlighting their potential to evolve. Genetic effects contributed more than nongenetic parental effects to variation in traits measured at the adult stage: learning, odorant perception, and resistance to infection. In contrast, the two traits quantifying larval tolerance to low-quality food were more strongly affected by parental effects. We found no evidence for genetic correlations between traits, suggesting that these traits could evolve at least to some degree independently of one another. Finally, inbreeding adversely affected all traits.

Premsa gratuïta, un model de comunicació local = Free press, a local communication model

The relationship between non-institutional free press and local communication is quite particular since this type of press forms a very characteristic model of local communication, showing that advertising suffices to finance an information product addressed to a fairly well-defined readership as long as this product has a good advertising sales department and an effective distribution in its operating area. This paper discusses the present situation of the free press in Catalonia, where this phenomenon has been quite prominent. It points out the main features of this type of press and makes a review of its history, which runs from the euphoria of its early years and its expansion and consolidation, to the current crisis

La Imatge gràfica de Platja d’Aro: anàlisi i evolució

Aquest treball té el seu origen en un projecte que la Comissió del Centenari de la Costa Brava encarregà a la Dra. Dolors Vidal i al Sr. Antoni Monturiol (conservador del Museu d’Art de Girona i especialista en cartellisme), amb la finalitat de recollir i analitzar documentació gràfica sobre la imatge turística dels diferents municipis que integren la Costa Brava, aprofitant aquesta celebració per tal de revitalitzar-la i projectar-la a nivell internacional

Lake Restoration 2007 Report and 2008 Plan, December 28, 2007

The Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Lake Restoration Program focuses on restoring impaired lakes to improve the quality of life for Iowans. Communities are rallying around their water resources as they seek population growth and economic success. Communities of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, Storm Lake, Crystal Lake, Creston and Clear Lake are obvious examples, but other communities including Lake View and Brighton are identifying the importance of lakes for their futures as well. The distribution and nature of Vision Iowa grants, Community Attraction and Tourism grants, and now, Great Places, all further emphasize the importance of water to community, quality of life and economic growth.

Lake Restoration 2008 Report and 2009 Plan, December 30, 2008

The Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Lake Restoration Program focuses on restoring impaired lakes to improve the quality of life for Iowans. Communities are rallying around their water resources as they seek population growth and economic success. Communities of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, Storm Lake, Crystal Lake, Creston and Clear Lake are obvious examples, but other communities including Lake View and Brighton are identifying the importance of lakes for their futures as well. The distribution and nature of Vision Iowa grants, Community Attraction and Tourism grants, and now, Great Places, all further emphasize the importance of water to community, quality of life and economic growth.

Lake Restoration 2009 Report and 2010 Plan, December 30, 2009

The Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Lake Restoration Program focuses on restoring impaired lakes to improve the quality of life for Iowans. Communities are rallying around their water resources as they seek population growth and economic success. Communities of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, Storm Lake, Crystal Lake, Creston and Clear Lake are obvious examples, but other communities including Lake View and Brighton are identifying the importance of lakes for their futures as well. The distribution and nature of Vision Iowa grants, Community Attraction and Tourism grants, and now, Great Places, all further emphasize the importance of water to community, quality of life and economic growth.

Lake Restoration 2010 Report and 2011 Plan, December 30, 2010

The Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Lake Restoration Program focuses on restoring impaired lakes to improve the quality of life for Iowans. Communities are rallying around their water resources as they seek population growth and economic success. Communities of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, Storm Lake, Crystal Lake, Creston and Clear Lake are obvious examples, but other communities including Lake View and Brighton are identifying the importance of lakes for their futures as well. The distribution and nature of Vision Iowa grants, Community Attraction and Tourism grants, and now, Great Places, all further emphasize the importance of water to community, quality of life and economic growth.

Lake Restoration 2011 Report and 2012 Plan, December 30, 2011

The Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Lake Restoration Program focuses on restoring impaired lakes to improve the quality of life for Iowans. Communities are rallying around their water resources as they seek population growth and economic success. Communities of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, Storm Lake, Crystal Lake, Creston and Clear Lake are obvious examples, but other communities including Lake View and Brighton are identifying the importance of lakes for their futures as well. The distribution and nature of Vision Iowa grants, Community Attraction and Tourism grants, and now, Great Places, all further emphasize the importance of water to community, quality of life and economic growth.