Trade relations between Brazil and the United States are old and date back to Brazil's independence. The United States has always been an important trade partner, however, its weight in the Brazilian ...trade baskethas been reduced in parallel with the intensification of international fragmentation of production and the growing emphasis of Brazil's partnership with China. The aim of the article is to present a comparative analysis of the insertion of Brazil and the United States in international trade and thetrade relationship between them in the recent period (2005-2016). Statistical analysis using COMTRADE data provides that the main Brazilian export products to the United States have a higher degree of technological sophistication than the standard for theworld. The results also point to a greater concentration on exports than on imports from Brazil and a trend towards growth in the degree of their concentration. Brazil has a much greater specialization in products with low technological intensity, but a greater presence of products with more technological intensity in exports to the United States, which reveals the importance of their relationshipin the recent period.
El "food craving" (FC) es un deseo incontrolable por ingerir alimentos en específico, se activa durante la fase de abstinencia de alimentos azucarados, salados y grasos. Se ha encontrado que se ...relaciona con obesidad (OB) y con trastornos del comportamiento de la alimentación, además de ser un factor negativo para la adherencia al tratamiento de la OB. Los Food Cravings Questionnaires Trait (T-rasgo) y State (S-estado) son instrumentos validados, que miden rasgo-estado, son confiables, y con consistencia interna alta (alfa>0,90). El objetivo de esta investigación fue analizar diferencias entre sujetos normopeso (NP) y OB, en puntajes del FCQ Trait y State, y en la expresión génica de DRD2, TAS1R2, TAS1R3 y el TAS2R43. Se trató de un estudio correlacional, transversal de casos y controles, muestreo no probabilístico, y a conveniencia; con 20 sujetos NP y 20 sujetos OB, de ambos sexos entre 18-45 años, residentes de la Ciudad de México y del Estado de México. Se evaluaron el IMC, el FC y la expresión génica. Se encontraron diferencias significativas (p <0,05) en expresión relativa del TAS1R2, y correlación positiva entre el FCQ y expresión del TAS1R2 en OB; también se encontró que el FCQ-T y FCQ-S predicen la expresión génica de TAS1R2 y TAS2R43 en hombres, y en mujeres del TAS1R2, TAS2R43 y el DRD2. Esta investigación ayuda a comprender la asociación del FC, con el receptor del gusto dulce (TAS1R2), evidenciando el enlace con componentes moleculares, y su posible relación con adicción a alimentos azucarados. Palabras clave: "food craving"; FCQ-Trate y FCQ- State; expresión de genes; obesidad. Food craving (FC) is an uncontrollable desire to eat specific foods, and it is activated during the withdrawal phase of eating foods, commonly sugary, salty or fatty. Comorbidity has been found with obesity (OB) and eating behavior disorders, as well as being a negative factor for adherence to OB treatments. Trait and State Food-Cravings Questionnaires, are validated instruments, that measure trait and state; both are reliable, with high internal consistency (alpha> 0.90). The objective, was to analyze differences in normal weight and obese subjects, in scores of the FCQ Trait and State, and their correlation with gene expression DRD2, TAS1R2, TAS1R3 and TAS2R43. It was a correlational, cross-sectional study of cases and controls, non-probabilistic sampling, and at convenience; n= 40 adults, both sexes between 18-45 years, 20 normal weight and 20 obese, from Mexico City and the State of Mexico. BMI, gene expression and FC were evaluated. Significant differences were found (p <0.05) in relative expression of TAS1R2, and positive correlation between FCQ and TAS1R2 expression in obese; in turn we found that FCQ-T and FCQ-S predict gene expression of TAS1R2 and TAS2R43 in men, and in women of TAS1R2, TAS2R43 and DRD2. This research offers new perspectives to understand the association between FC with the sweet taste receptor (TAS1R2), evidencing the link with molecular components, which together influence the explanation of the development of addiction to sugary foods in OB. Key words: food craving; FCQ-Trate & FCQ-State; gene expression; obesity.
Železničná osobná doprava je optimálnym prepravným systémom pre obsluhu významných sústredených prepravných prúdov. Napriek množstvám výhod tohto systému, jeho dlhodobý úpadok znamenal postupnú ...rezignáciu na úlohu železnice ako nosného dopravného systému a jej transformáciu na podporný systém počas prepravných špičiek pre čoraz nosnejšiu autobusovú dopravu. Cieľom predkladaného príspevku je na základe objektívnych kritérií identifikovať zmysluplné (perspektívne) linky železničnej osobnej dopravy a určiť, koľko vlakov vo verejnom záujme, odkiaľ, kam a kedy má na nich premávať a aké majú byť vzájomné prestupy v uzloch. Tento plán bude vychádzať z plánu dopravnej obslužnosti a bude spracovaný na celoštátnej úrovni a mal by slúžiť ako pilotný základ objednávky výkonov vo verejnom záujme v železničnej doprave v SR. Východiskom optimálneho stavu (do roku 2030) je následná konsolidácia železničnej osobnej dopravy na všetkých perspektívnych tratiach do podoby, zodpovedajúcej príkladom dobrej praxe na úrovni európskeho štandardu. Nevyhnutným predpokladom pre realizáciu tohto optimálneho stavu je investičný rozvoj týchto železničných tratí. Príspevok je súčasťou riešenia projektu VEGA č. 1/0837/21 “Priestorové a časové aspekty politiky súdržnosti EÚ: skúsenosti a perspektívy”.
Práca ja zameraná na aplikácie teórie grafov do leteckej dopravy – aké sú možnosti využitia a aplikácie grafov v leteckej doprave. Zaoberá sa analýzou, skúmaním a následne riešením aplikácie teórie ...grafov do leteckej dopravy pri plánovaní a optimalizácií letových ciest a toku letovej prevádzky. Pojednáva o jednotlivých vybraných metód použiteľných pri výpočte grafov. Cieľom práce je poukázať na možnú aplikáciu oboru teórie grafov do leteckej dopravy súvisiace s optimalizáciami letových tratí a toku letovej prevádzky.
We investigated the independent and in- teractive effects of dietary starch concentration and feed- ing management regimen on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and prevalence of liver ...abscesses in finish- ing beef cattle.
Beef steers (n = 720) were assigned to 48 pens in a randomized complete block de- sign, with treatments arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial (12 pens per treatment). Factors were finishing diets with ei- ther low (49.1%; CON) or high (64.4%; HOT) starch con- centrations and feeding management regimens designed for consistent feed delivery (REG) or randomized varia- tions (ERR) in both feed quantity (85% followed by 115% of the previous 4-d average randomly once per week) and delivery time (randomly delayed for 1, 2, 3, or 4 h twice per week).
No interactions between diet and feeding management regimen were detected for growth performance, carcass outcomes, or liver abscess prevalence. Steers fed HOT had greater liver abscess fre- quency (55.1% vs. 33.4%) and a greater proportion of liver scars (46.7% vs. 34.0%) compared with CON. Steers consuming HOT also had less final BW, ADG, DMI, hot carcass weight, marbling score, and calculated YG versus CON. Feeding management regimen did not affect liver abscess frequency, growth performance, or carcass merit.
Feeding a high- starch diet increased liver abscess prevalence and de- creased growth and affected carcass outcomes. In contrast, erratic feeding management did not affect liver or produc- tion outcomes.
(1) Background: This work characterizes the sensitivity of magnetic resonance-based Relaxivity Contrast Imaging (RCI) to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)-induced changes in myofiber ...microstructure. Transverse Relaxivity at Tracer Equilibrium (TRATE), an RCI-based parameter, was evaluated in the lower extremities of ALS patients and healthy subjects. (2) Methods: In this IRB-approved study, 23 subjects (12 ALS patients and 11 healthy controls) were scanned at 3T (Philips, The Netherlands). RCI data were obtained during injection of a gadolinium-based contrast agent. TRATE, fat fraction and T2 measures, were compared in five muscle groups of the calf muscle, between ALS and control populations. TRATE was also evaluated longitudinally (baseline and 6 months) and was compared to clinical measures, namely ALS Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) and Hand-Held Dynamometry (HHD), in a subset of the ALS population. (3) Results: TRATE was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in ALS-affected muscle than in healthy muscle in all muscle groups. Fat fraction differences between ALS and healthy muscle were statistically significant for the tibialis anterior (p = 0.01), tibialis posterior (p = 0.004), and peroneus longus (p = 0.02) muscle groups but were not statistically significant for the medial (p = 0.07) and lateral gastrocnemius (p = 0.06) muscles. T2 differences between ALS and healthy muscle were statistically significant for the tibialis anterior (p = 0.004), peroneus longus (p = 0.004) and lateral gastrocnemius (p = 0.03) muscle groups but were not statistically significant for the tibialis posterior (p = 0.06) and medial gastrocnemius (p = 0.07) muscles. Longitudinally, TRATE, averaged over all patients, decreased by 28 ± 16% in the tibialis anterior, 47 ± 18% in the peroneus longus, 25 ± 19% in the tibialis posterior, 29 ± 14% in the medial gastrocnemius and 35 ± 18% in the lateral gastrocnemius muscles between two timepoints. ALSFRS-R scores were stable in two of four ALS patients. HHD scores decreased in three of four ALS patients. (4) Conclusion: RCI-based TRATE was shown to consistently differentiate ALS-affected muscle from healthy muscle and also provide a quantitative measure of longitudinal muscle degeneration.
Mercury (Hg) solubility and reactivity in soils at two extremely contaminated ancient small scale cinnabar roasting sites in the surroundings of the Hg mining area of Idrija (Slovenia) were ...determined in order to assess the mobility of Hg in the aqueous phase and to evaluate the extent of leaching of Hg into Idrijca River and further downstream. Water leaching experiments were performed on soil and SOM (soil organic matter) samples from historical roasting sites Pšenk and Frbejžene trate. The determined concentrations of leachable Hg in soil samples from the studied areas range from 16 to exceptionally high concentration of 18,000μg/kg, representing 0.0002 to 1.1% of total Hg in these samples, while in SOM samples leachable Hg concentrations range between 13.3 and 6000μg/kg, which corresponds to 0.0017–0.074% of total Hg determined in SOM. The soluble Hg concentrations in investigated soil profiles range from 183 to 18,000μg/kg (0.038–1.7% of total Hg). On the average, more than 90% of soluble Hg occurs in a non-reactive complex bound form, suggesting the preferential binding of Hg to humic matter. Soluble Hg in studied soil profiles generally increases with depth. The obtained results show that Hg is effectively transported to deeper soil layers, mainly as soluble organic complexes. It is estimated that there is still about 10kg of soluble Hg stored in soils of the investigated roasting sites, which is continuously leached to surface waters and deeper into the soil.
•Water leaching experiments were performed on soil and SOM samples.•Total soluble, complex-bound and reactive Hg was defined.•Extremely high concentrations (up to 18,000μg/kg) of soluble Hg were determined.•More than 90% of soluble Hg occurs in a non-reactive complex bound form.•We estimate that soluble Hg stored in soils is mobilized to the groundwater.
In per-title encoding, to optimize a bitrate ladder over spatial resolution, each video segment is downscaled to a set of spatial resolutions, and they are all encoded at a given set of bitrates. To ...find the highest quality resolution for each bitrate, the low-resolution encoded videos are upscaled to the original resolution, and a convex hull is formed based on the scaled qualities. Deep learning-based video super-resolution (VSR) approaches show a significant gain over traditional upscaling approaches, and they are becoming more and more efficient over time. This paper improves the per-title encoding over the upscaling methods by using deep neural network-based VSR algorithms. Utilizing a VSR algorithm by improving the quality of low-resolution encodings can improve the convex hull. As a result, it will lead to an improved bitrate ladder. To avoid bandwidth wastage at perceptually lossless bitrates, a maximum threshold for the quality is set, and encodings beyond it are eliminated from the bitrate ladder. Similarly, a minimum threshold is set to avoid low-quality video delivery. The encodings between the maximum and minimum thresholds are selected based on one Just Noticeable Difference. Our experimental results show that the proposed per-title encoding results in a 24% bitrate reduction and 53% storage reduction compared to the state-of-the-art method.
In the initial period of mining activities in the Idrija basin (the16
th and the first half of the17
th centuries), Hg ore processing was performed at various small-scale roasting sites in the woods ...surrounding Idrija, by roasting ore in earthen vessels. The recovery rate of this method was very low; about half of Hg was lost, causing soil contamination and considerable amounts of waste material that could potentially leach Hg into the surrounding environment. The main aims of present geochemical study were to determine the contents, vertical distribution and speciation of Hg in soils at the roasting site at Frbejžene trate in order to verify the extreme pollution of ancient Hg ore roasting sites in the Idrija area and to establish their significance in the wider spatial contamination of soils and aquatic systems. Soil sampling was performed at the area of the former roasting site. The organic matter-rich surface soil layer (SOM) and underlying mineral soil were sampled at 63 sampling locations. Mercury speciation was performed using Hg thermo-desorption-AAS to distinguish cinnabar from potentially bioavailable forms. The results indicate extremely high Hg concentrations with a maximum of 37,000
mg/kg in SOM and 19,900
mg/kg in mineral soil. The established Hg median in soil was 370
mg/kg and in SOM 96.3
mg/kg. Spatial distributions of Hg in SOM and soil showed very high Hg contents in the central area and decreased rapidly with distance. The results of Hg thermo-desorption measurements indicated the presence of cinnabar (HgS) and Hg bound to organic or mineral soil matter. A significant portion (35–40%) of Hg in the investigated soil and SOM samples was comprised of non-cinnabar compounds, which are potentially bioavailable. It has been shown that soils contain high amounts of potentially transformable non-cinnabar Hg, which is available for surface leaching and runoff into the surrounding environment. Therefore, contaminated soils and roasted residues at the studied area are important for persistent Hg release into the aquatic ecosystem.
► Extreme mercury soil contamination as a result of small scale ore roasting activity. ► Hg contents above 10,000
mg/kg determined in several soil and SOM samples. ► About 40% of Hg in investigated soil and SOM samples are potentially bioavailable.
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