The intelligibility of cleft palate speech with and without dental prosthesis

This paper discusses a study to investigate the possibility of quantifying and analyzing the speech of cleft palate subjects.

Censos, capellanías y élites: aspectos sociales del crédito en Quito colonial [primera mitad del siglo XVIII] (Estudios)

Contiene: 1. Los "censos y el litigio por la rebaja de intereses. 2. Las capellanías: una empresa al servicio de la reproducción familiar. 3. Los "censualistas" quiteños y la naturaleza informal del sistema de crédito. 4. Las dimensiones políticas del crédito.

La objetividad del fiscal en el Sistema Penal Acusatorio

El fiscal en sus actuaciones debe ser lo más objetivo posible para ello debe extender la investigación no sólo a las circunstancias de cargo sino también a las que sirvan de descargo del procesado y si éstas, determinan su inocencia deberá abstenerse de acusarlo. La objetividad del fiscal se da también en la etapa del juicio, en la audiencia de juzgamiento, ante el tribunal de garantías penales, donde se presenta la prueba, que debió ser anunciada previamente en la audiencia preparatoria del juicio y de formulación del dictamen. En el presente trabajo estudiamos diferentes temas relacionados con las funciones del fiscal dentro del sistema penal acusatorio, como su rol de director de la investigación, la reserva, objetividad y estrategias de la misma, la imparcialidad del fiscal, conclusión de la investigación, audiencia preparatoria del juicio y de formulación del dictamen que reemplaza a la preliminar, investigación que contiene las últimas reformas al Código de Procedimiento Penal, publicadas en el Suplemento del Registro Oficial No. 555 de 24 de marzo del 2009. Todo esto lo abordamos en los dos primeros capítulos para que el lector tenga conocimientos sobre lo que realiza el fiscal en las etapas de instrucción e intermedia y con ello pueda comprender de una mejor manera sobre su desempeño profesional en la etapa del juicio en donde debe utilizar al igual que el resto de sujetos procesales, destrezas, técnicas y habilidades para practicar el examen, contra examen, objeciones y alegatos. Finalizamos esta investigación con una serie de conclusiones y recomendaciones que servirán de aporte para que la actuación del fiscal sea más objetiva, transparente y con ello no se violenten derechos.

La reparación en clave de diversidad cultural: un desafío para la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos

¿Cómo aplica la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos criterios de diversidad cultural en las reparaciones destinadas a pueblos indígenas? El autor parte de esta interrogante y plantea que, en materia de reparaciones, no se deben aplicar los mismos criterios para un pueblo indígena que para una comunidad no indígena, pues, de acuerdo al contexto, circunstancias y desarrollo sociohistórico, es necesario un reconocimiento diferente para cada caso, en razón de las situaciones de dominación, subordinación, desigualdad y exclusión que caracterizan la relación de los pueblos indígenas con el resto de la so ciedad, por lo que requieren de una satisfacción distinta cuando han sufrido violaciones de derechos humanos. Este libro aborda las tensiones que se producen entre las nociones de universalidad de los derechos humanos y relativis mo cultural, en el ámbito de las reparaciones, y destaca la importancia de considerar la cosmovisión y características propias de los pueblos indígenas, con la finalidad de dis poner reparaciones justas y adecuadas. Se utilizan, para ello, los casos contenciosos de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, en materia de pueblos indígenas.

Uncertainties in future projections of extreme precipitation in the Indian monsoon region

Uncertainties in changes to the spatial distribution and magnitude of the heaviest extremes of daily monsoon rainfall over India are assessed in the doubled CO2 climate change scenarios in the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report. Results show diverse changes to the spatial pattern of the 95th and 99th subseasonal percentiles, which are strongly tied to the mean precipitation change during boreal summer. In some models, the projected increase in heaviest rainfall over India at CO2 doubling is entirely predictable based upon the surface warming and the Clausius–Clapeyron relation, a result which may depend upon the choice of convection scheme. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society and Crown Copyright

Subseasonal extremes of precipitation and active-break cycles of the Indian summer monsoon in a climate-change scenario

Changes to the behaviour of subseasonal precipitation extremes and active-break cycles of the Indian summer monsoon are assessed in this study using pre-industrial and 2 × CO2 integrations of the Hadley Centre coupled model HadCM3, which is able to simulate the monsoon seasonal cycle reasonably. At 2 × CO2, mean summer rainfall increases slightly, especially over central and northern India. The mean intensity of daily precipitation during the monsoon is found to increase, consistent with fewer wet days, and there are increases to heavy rain events beyond changes in the mean alone. The chance of reaching particular thresholds of heavy rainfall is found to approximately double over northern India, increasing the likelihood of damaging floods on a seasonal basis. The local distribution of such projections is uncertain, however, given the large spread in mean monsoon rainfall change and associated extremes amongst even the most recent coupled climate models. The measured increase of the heaviest precipitation events over India is found to be broadly in line with the degree of atmospheric warming and associated increases in specific humidity, lending a degree of predictability to changes in rainfall extremes. Active-break cycles of the Indian summer monsoon, important particularly due to their effect on agricultural output, are shown to be reasonably represented in HadCM3, in particular with some degree of northward propagation. We note an intensification of both active and break events, particularly when measured against the annual cycle, although there is no suggestion of any change to the duration or likelihood of monsoon breaks. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society

Learning a procedural task: effectiveness of multimedia presentations

Three experiments investigated the effectiveness of presenting procedural information through different media and their combinations. Experiment 1 examined the effectiveness of text, line drawings, text and line drawings, video. and video stills for learning a first aid task. The results showed an advantage of text and line drawings and of the video presentation over the other three conditions for both bandaging performance and answering questions about the task. Experiment 2 showed that the beneficial effect of the combination of text and pictures could not be accounted for simply in terms of a dual coding explanation. Rather, the effectiveness of the media and their combinations was influenced by the extent to which they conveyed action information. Finally, Experiment 3 showed no evidence of a contiguity effect: text and pictures were as effective when presented together on the same screen as when they were presented separately. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Preparation and properties of gallaborane, GaBH6: structure of the gaseous molecule H2Ga(μ-H)2BH2 as determined by vibrational, electron diffraction, and ab initio studies, and structure of the crystalline solid at 110 K as determined by x-ray diffraction``

Gallaborane (GaBH6, 1), synthesized by the metathesis of LiBH4 with [H2GaCl]n at ca. 250 K, has been characterized by chemical analysis and by its IR and 1H and 11B NMR spectra. The IR spectrum of the vapor at low pressure implies the presence of only one species, viz. H2Ga(μ-H)2BH2, with a diborane-like structure conforming to C2v symmetry. The structure of this molecule has been determined by gas-phase electron diffraction (GED) measurements afforced by the results of ab initio molecular orbital calculations. Hence the principal distances (rα in Å) and angles ( α in deg) are as follows: r(Ga•••B), 2.197(3); r(Ga−Ht), 1.555(6); r(Ga−Hb), 1.800(6); r(B−Ht), 1.189(7); r(B−Hb), 1.286(7); Hb−Ga−Hb, 71.6(4); and Hb−B−Hb, 110.0(5) (t = terminal, b = bridging). Aggregation of the molecules occurs in the condensed phases. X-ray crystallographic studies of a single crystal at 110 K reveal a polymeric network with helical chains made up of alternating pseudotetrahedral GaH4 and BH4 units linked through single hydrogen bridges; the average Ga•••B distance is now 2.473(7) Å. The compound decomposes in the condensed phases at temperatures exceeding ca. 240 K with the formation of elemental Ga and H2 and B2H6. The reactions with NH3, Me3N, and Me3P are also described.

Biodiversity of Collembola in urban soils and the use of Folsomia candida to assess soil 'quality'

The effects of metal contamination on natural populations of Collembola in soils from five sites in the Wolverhampton area ( West Midlands, England) were examined. Analysis revealed that metal concentrations were elevated above background levels at all sites. One location in particular (Ladymoor, a former smelting site) was highly contaminated with Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn at more than 20 times background levels. Biodiversity indices ( Shannon - Weiner, Simpson index, Margalef index, alpha index, species richness, Shaneven ( evenness) and Berger - Parker dominance) were calculated. Of these indices, estimates of species richness and evenness were most effective at highlighting the differences between the Collembola communities. Indeed, the highest number of species were found at the most contaminated site, although the Collembola population also had a comparatively low evenness value, with just two species dominating. The number of individuals per species were allocated into geometric classes and plotted against the cumulative number of species as a percentage. At Ladymoor, there were more geometric classes, and the slope of the line was shallower than at the other four sites. This characteristic is a feature of polluted sites, where a few species are dominant and most species are rare. The Ladymoor soil also had a dominance of Isotomurus palustris, and was the only site in which Ceratophysella denticulata was found. Previous studies have shown that these two species are often found in sites subject to high metal contamination. Survival and reproduction of the "standard'' test springtail, Folsomia candida (Willem), were determined in a 4 week exposure test to soils from all five sites. Mortality was significantly increased in adults and reproduction significantly lower in the Ladymoor soil in comparison to the other four sites. This study has shown that severe metal contamination can be related to the population structure of Collembola in the field, and performance of F. candida ( in soils from such sites) in the laboratory.

Identification of mutations conferring insecticide-insensitive AChE in the cotton-melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover

We have identified two mutations in the ace1 gene of Aphis gossypii that are associated with insensitivity of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) to carbamate and organophosphate insecticides. The first of these, S431F (equivalent to F331 in Torpedo californica), is associated with insensitivity to the carbamate insecticide pirimicarb in a range of A. gossypii clones. The S431F mutation is also found in the peach-potato aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer), and a rapid RFLP diagnostic allows the identification of individuals of both aphid species with a resistant genotype. This diagnostic further revealed the presence of S431 in several other pirimicarb-susceptible aphid species. The serine at this position in the wild-type enzyme has only been reported for aphids and provides a molecular explanation of why pirimicarb has a specific aphicidal action. A less specific insensitivity to a wide range of carbamates and organophosphates is associated with a second mutation, A302S (A201 in T. californica).