Acceptance of nanotechnology applications and satisfaction with food-related life in southern Chile

Given the increasing use of nanotechnology in food production and packaging, its acceptance was evaluated in Temuco, Chile, and different consumer segments were identified. Different brands of sunflower oil were used at different prices as a case study. A structured questionnaire was applied to 400 supermarket shoppers. It was determined that brand was more important than nanotechnology application in packaging and food, and more important than price. The consumers preferred an average priced oil with a manufacturer's brand with nanoparticles to reduce cholesterol, and packaging with nanoparticles to increase the shelf life of the product and to prevent the growth of microorganisms. Three consumer segments were distinguished by the cluster analysis. The largest segment (44%) preferred the oil without nanotechnology. The second (35.2%) preferred the oil with nanotechnology in the food and the packaging, and the greatest preference was for packaging with nanoparticles extension in the shelf life of the product. The third segment (20.8%) had similar behavior, but it showed greater preference for the oil with nanoparticles that reduced cholesterol and for the packaging that prevented the growth of bacteria and viruses. The segments differed in terms of their satisfaction with food-related life and lifestyle. It was found that over 50% of the participants preferred oil with nanotechnology applications.

Acceptance of a food of animal origin obtained through genetic modification and cloning in South America: a comparative study among university students and working adults

AbstractWith the aim of comparing the acceptance of milk obtained from cloned, genetically modified (GM) and conventionally bred cows among working adults and university students, and identifying and characterizing typologies among both subsamples in terms of their preferences, a survey was applied to 400 people in southern Chile, distributed using a simple allocation among the subsamples. Using a conjoint analysis, it was found that consumers preferred milk from a conventional cow. Using a cluster analysis, in both subsamples two segments sensitive to production technology were identified. Rejection of cloning was greatest among university students, whereas a higher proportion of working adults rejected GM. The segments differed in terms of area of residence, knowledge about GM, and milk consumption habits. Contrary to what was expected, no differences were found according to education, gender or degree of satisfaction with food-related life.

[Kirja-arvostelu]

Kirjallisuusarvostelu

Mutação G20210A no gene da protrombina, fator V de Leiden e anticorpos anticardiolipina não influenciam a sobrevida do enxerto renal após o transplante

INTRODUÇÃO: Complicações tromboembólicas são importantes fatores de risco para perda do enxerto e pior evolução após o transplante renal. Pacientes com defeito trombofílico apresentam maior risco de complicações tromboembólicas. Foram analisados, entre receptores de transplante renal, a prevalência de defeito trombofílico e o risco atribuído a esta condição para a perda do enxerto e para o desenvolvimento de tromboses intravasculares. MÉTODOS: Estudo do tipo coorte incluindo 388 receptores adultos analisados quanto à presença de trombofilia de acordo com a pesquisa de anticorpos anticardiolipina (aCL) por ELISA e das mutações G1691A no gene do fator V (FV) e G20210A no gene da protrombina (PT) por PCR multiplex. RESULTADOS: Defeito trombofílico foi identificado em 25,8% dos pacientes. As taxas de sobrevida de 2 anos do enxerto foram semelhantes entre os pacientes com e sem defeito trombofílico (94% versus 94%, p = 0,53), bem como a sobrevida dos enxertos livres de tromboses intravasculares (97% versus 97%, p = 0,83). Pacientes com defeito trombofílico apresentaram prevalência de tromboses intravasculares semelhante à do grupo-controle (3% versus 3,5%, p = 0,82). O transplante renal anterior foi associado a maior risco de perda de enxerto (OR 20,8, p < 0,001) e de ocorrência de tromboses intravasculares (OR 6,8, p = 0,008). CONCLUSÕES: As prevalências das mutações FV G1691A e PT G20210A na população estudada foram semelhantes às da população geral não transplantada, e a prevalência de anticorpos aCL superou a observada entre os indivíduos sadios. Não houve associação entre os marcadores de trombofilia estudados e a sobrevida em médio prazo do transplante renal.

Transnationaaliset ja kääntyvät hyvinvointivaltiot

Kirjallisuusarvostelu

Fatores de risco associados à lesão renal aguda em pacientes tratados com polimixina B em um hospital terciário

Resumo Introdução: O uso de polimixinas foi praticamente abandonado nos anos 1970 devido as altas taxas de nefropatia. Entretanto, foram reintroduzidas na prática médica devido a sua ação contra bactérias gram negativas resistentes a carbapenemicos. A literatura recente sugere uma taxa de nefropatia mais baixa do que a historicamente reportada. Objetivo: Determinar a incidência de nefropatia associada ao uso de polimixina utilizando os critérios de RIFLE. Métodos: Foi realizada coorte retrospectiva de todos pacientes adultos que receberam polimixina B no Hospital Nossa Senhora da Conceição de dezembro de 2010 até março de 2011. Resultados: 61 pacientes (43%) preencheram os critérios de rifle para injúria renal e 28 (13,7%) necessitaram de diálise. Preditores independentes para nefrotoxicidade foram hipotensão (OR, 2.79; CI 1.14-5.8; p = 0.006) e uso concomitante de vancomicina (OR, 2.86; CI, 1.27-6.4; p = 0.011). Conclusão: Nessa coorte retrospectiva, nefrotoxicidade (definida pelos criterios de RIFLE) ocorreu em 43% dos pacientes tratados com polimixina B. O uso concomitante de vancomicina e hipotensão foram fatores de risco independentes para desenvolvimento de nefropatia. Mais estudos são necessarios, particularmente com polimixina B, para esclarecer se as caracteristicas dessa droga e da colistina são sobreponíveis.

Protestanttista etiikkaa, sosiaalista pääomaa ja luottamusta

Kirjallisuusarvostelu

Institutionaaliset logiikat ja niistä rakentuva monimuotoisuus: Vaikutukset PK-yrityksen budjetointiprosessiin

Tämän tutkielman tavoitteena on analysoida institutionaalisien logiikoiden vaikutuksia yrityksen budjetointiin. Analyysi huomioi myös tilanteelliset tekijät, joilla saattaa olla vaikutuksia siihen, kuinka logiikat muovaavat budjetointiprosessia. Tutkielmassa pyritään etsimään vastauksia kolmeen tutkimuskysymykseen: mitkä logiikat vaikuttavat case-yrityksen budjetointiprosessiin, kuinka nämä eri logiikat muokkaavat budjetoinnin käytäntöjä organisaatiossa, joka kokee institutionaalista monimuotoisuutta ja kuinka tilanteellinen tekijä heijastuu logiikoihin. Tutkielma toteutetaan toiminta-analyyttisena tutkimuksena. Empiirisen aineiston case-yritys on suomalainen kuluttajatuotteita valmistava sekä myyvä PK-yritys, jonka palveluksessa tutkija on toiminut koko tutkielman ajan. Yrityksestä käytetään nimeä Delectus Oy. Budjetoinnin on todettu olevan yksi tutkituimmista laskentatoimen alueista. Sen lisäksi että budjetoinnin ja useimpien laskentatoimen elementtien välille on tunnistettavissa yhteys, on budjetointia hyödynnetty moniin käyttötarkoituksiin kuten suunnitteluun, seurantaan, kontrollointiin, resurssien allokointiin, keskusteluun sekä sosiaalisiin normeihin mukautumiseen. Tämän tutkielman näkökulma budjetointiin pohjautuu sosiaaliseen perspektiiviin. Tutkielmassa budjetoinnin käyttötarkoitukset jaotellaan instrumentaalisiin ja symbolisiin tapoihin. Perinteiset institutionaaliset teoriat ovat tarkastelleet organisaatioita toisiaan lähentyvinä entiteetteinä käytäntöjen valossa. Tämä tutkielma jatkaa kuitenkin neoinstitutionaalisten teorioiden uudempaa suuntausta, jossa huomion keskiössä ovat organisatorinen heterogeenisyys ja käytännönvaihtelut. Tutkielma soveltaa institutionaalisten logiikoiden teoreettista viitekehystä yksityisen yrityksen tasolla. Keskeisinä johtopäätöksinä voidaan ensinnäkin pitää viitekehyksen soveltuvuutta mikrotasolle. Tästä osoituksena neljän eri logiikan paljastuminen case-yrityksessä. Toinen keskeinen johtopäätös vahvistaa jo kirjallisuudessa vallitsevaa käsitystä toimijoiden keskeisestä roolista logiikoiden yhdistelijänä, mikä edelleen mahdollistaa budjetoinnin hybridikäytäntönä. Hybridikäytännöllä viitataan budjetoinnin erilaisiin käyttötarkoituksiin ja se voidaan nähdä organisaation vastaukseksi institutionaaliseen monimuotoisuuteen. Kolmantena johtopäätöksenä voidaan todeta case-yrityksen budjetointiprosessin ja tilanteellisen tekijän välillä vallitsevan löyhä kytkös. Tilanne on tulkittavissa sekä ratkaisuna että riskinä

Probabilistic Assignments of Identical Indivisible Objects and Uniform Probabilistic Rules.

We consider a probabilistic approach to the problem of assigning k indivisible identical objects to a set of agents with single-peaked preferences. Using the ordinal extension of preferences, we characterize the class of uniform probabilistic rules by Pareto efficiency, strategy-proofness, and no-envy. We also show that in this characterization no-envy cannot be replaced by anonymity. When agents are strictly risk averse von-Neumann-Morgenstern utility maximizers, then we reduce the problem of assigning k identical objects to a problem of allocating the amount k of an infinitely divisible commodity.

Efficient Priority Rules

We study the assignment of indivisible objects with quotas (houses, jobs, or offices) to a set of agents (students, job applicants, or professors). Each agent receives at most one object and monetary compensations are not possible. We characterize efficient priority rules by efficiency, strategy-proofness, and reallocation-consistency. Such a rule respects an acyclical priority structure and the allocations can be determined using the deferred acceptance algorithm.

Resource-Monotonicity for House Allocation Problems

We study a simple model of assigning indivisible objects (e.g., houses, jobs, offices, etc.) to agents. Each agent receives at most one object and monetary compensations are not possible. We completely describe all rules satisfying efficiency and resource-monotonicity. The characterized rules assign the objects in a sequence of steps such that at each step there is either a dictator or two agents who “trade” objects from their hierarchically specified “endowments.”

Consistent House Allocation

In practice we often face the problem of assigning indivisible objects (e.g., schools, housing, jobs, offices) to agents (e.g., students, homeless, workers, professors) when monetary compensations are not possible. We show that a rule that satisfies consistency, strategy-proofness, and efficiency must be an efficient generalized priority rule; i.e. it must adapt to an acyclic priority structure, except -maybe- for up to three agents in each object's priority ordering.