Search

The present study investigates molecular‐based PCR techniques to estimate the prevalence of fish pathogens in southwest Mexico where recurrent mortality in the tilapia cultures has been observed. Sample of internal organs and lesions of Nile tilapia were taken and analysed in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022 to detect bacterial pathogens using PCR. No samples were taken in 2021 due to the COVID‐19 pandemic. The real‐time PCR conditions were optimized to allow a qualitative reliable detection of the bacteria from fixed fish tissue. A total of 599 pond‐ and cage‐cultured tilapia from the southwestern Mexican Pacific (Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas states) were analysed. In this tropical region, during 2018 and 2019 water temperatures of the tilapia cultures were generally with the optimal range to grow Nile tilapia, although extreme values were recorded on some farms. Most of the tilapia sampled were apparently healthy. No Francisella sp. was detected in any sample, and Staphylococcus sp. was the most prevalent (from 0% to 64%) bacteria from the three states over time. Low prevalence of Aeromonas sp. was found, from 0% to 4.3%, although the fish pathogen Aeromonas dhakensis was not detected. Sterptococcus iniae was only detected in Chiapas in 2019 at a low prevalence (1.4%), while the major tilapia pathogen S. agalactiae was detected at a high prevalence (from 0% to 59%) in the three Mexican states. This is the first detection of these pathogenic bacteria in rural farms using real‐time PCR and constitutes a great risk for tilapia aquaculture in Mexico, as well as a potential dispersion of these pathogens to other aquaculture areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A quick count seeks to estimate the voting trends of an election and communicate them to the population on the evening of the same day of the election. In quick counts, the sampling is based on a stratified design of polling stations. Voting information is gathered gradually, often with no guarantee of obtaining the complete sample or even information in all the strata. However, accurate interval estimates with partial information must be obtained. Furthermore, this becomes more challenging if the strata are additionally study domains. To produce partial estimates, two strategies are proposed: (1) a Bayesian model using a dynamic post-stratification strategy and a single imputation process defined after a thorough analysis of historic voting information; additionally, a credibility level correction is included to solve the underestimation of the variance and (2) a frequentist alternative that combines standard multiple imputation ideas with classic sampling techniques to obtain estimates under a missing information framework. Both solutions are illustrated and compared using information from the 2021 quick count. The aim was to estimate the composition of the Chamber of Deputies in Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gravity anomaly inversion is a technique used to estimate underground density distribution using gravity data. This paper proposes a new three-dimensional (3D) gravity anomaly inversion method based on the LinkNet network. Compared with two-dimensional gravity anomaly inversion, 3D gravity anomaly inversion can determine the density distribution of the entire region below the observation surface. Additionally, compared with traditional methods, the neural network method does not require the selection of initial parameters, and several predictive models can be quickly sought during the prediction stage. The Tversky loss was used to improve the inversion accuracy of the boundary. By comparing the inversion of the fully convolutional network, UNet network, and LinkNet network proposed in this paper on simulated data, it was observed that the model reconstruction error obtained using the LinkNet network had the best fitting effect with gravity data, which were 0.3526 and 0.0521. The results reveal that this method can achieve accurate inversion. Using the San Nicolas deposit in Mexico as an example, the proposed method and the improved preconditioned conjugate gradient algorithm were compared to further illustrate the effectiveness of the algorithm. The results reveal that the position and shape trends of the geological body attained using the proposed approach are in good agreement with the drilling data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sprague's pipit (Anthus spragueii) is a passerine of North American prairies, breeding in the northern United States and southern Canada, and overwintering in the grasslands and deserts of the southern United States and northern Mexico. In recent decades, pipit populations have declined in both breeding and wintering ranges because of degradation and loss of native prairie. Previous research on this species has focused primarily on its breeding habitat and provided limited information on its wintering habitat. To help fill in these data gaps, we assessed wintering density along the Texas Gulf Coast Plain, as well as characteristics of the associated habitat. We used a distance-based line-transect sampling technique to estimate pipit densities during the winters of 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 at seven conservation sites and found Sprague's pipits at all sites. The highest number of detections and the highest density estimates were at the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge. Habitat associated with pipits included open grasslands with mixed forbs and low vertical cover. Although wildlife biologists consider pipits to be native grassland specialists in their breeding range, our analyses did not identify proportion of native grasses as an important variable. Instead, the physical structure of the vegetation (short and sparse grass cover) was most important to pipit presence. Our results suggest that habitat management to benefit wintering populations of this species should focus on vegetation structure, though native grassland cover might be important at a larger scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Records of milk production adjusted to 305 d, adult equivalent of the first lactation and two milking were used. Those come from the National Breeding in Mexico PNMG (n= 163.885), which includes records of the Holstein Association of Mexico (AHM) (n= 43.668) and National Bank of Dairy Information (BNIL) (n= 120.217). Best Linear Unbiased Predictor method was used to predict breeding values (VG) of animals. ASREML software was used with an animal model that included herd-year group-season as fixed effect and animal and residue as random effects. Averages of VG per sire were estimated weighted by the number of daughters and unweighted for PNMG, AHM and BNIL. Also, we estimated the weighted average of the sires VG of the PNMG according to their country of origin (USA, Canada, Other, Mexico). We also estimated the average of VG and phenotypic values (VF) for dairy cows. The average of VF and VG for cows PNMG, AHM and BNIL increased between 2007 and 2011. Breeders of the AHM chose sires with greater VG than the BNIL. However, breeders of BNIL used sires with high VG used more frequently. The VG for foreign sires were higher than national sires and were more commonly used by farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent Mexican government study,The Economics of Climate Change in Mexico(ECCM), which has largely influenced Mexico's stance on climate change issues and international negotiations, is critically reviewed. Whilst the importance of such government-supported national studies as a first attempt to provide estimates on the anticipated costs of climate change is recognized, there is scope to strengthen the underlying analysis. It is argued that some of the key policy recommendations of ECCM are weakly supported by its analysis, that it has some methodological weaknesses, and that there are inconsistencies with the approach adopted in the Stern Review. Furthermore, it is likely that the estimated costs severely under-represent future climate change damages in the case of Mexico, which could deter drastic mitigation and adaptation efforts. New estimates of the costs of climate change are presented based on the impact functions of two integrated assessment models. Policy relevance Due to its large influence in building a regional view of what climate change could imply for Latin America, the analysis of the ECCM highlights the need to strengthen the analysis of national climate documents to ensure they properly support national/regional policy making. The academic evaluation of national climate change documents is a necessary prerequisite for the development of sound climate policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In Mexico, as in many developing countries, no monetary estimates of road transport externalities exist. The abundant empirical evidence from the developed world appears to show such research reaching maturity. Yet, several barriers to deriving basic estimates among developing countries persist. In this study, we addressed such difficulties for the Mexican context, and by pooling the available data and using well-established methods, we calculated six categories of estimates. The results showed that road transport externalities amount to at least 59.42 (44.8–73.97) billion US dollars per year or 6.24% (4.71–7.77%) of GDP. By component, accidents represented the largest share (28%), followed by congestion (22%), greenhouse gases (21%), air pollution (13%), infrastructure (7%), and noise (9%). By vehicle type, cars had the highest costs per pkm, and buses had the highest costs per vkm. The costs of road transport externalities in Mexico ranked between those of developed and developing regions, but we found some notable differences when comparing the impacts per pkm of the four largest externalities. We discuss such differences and the policy implications of our findings. We also provide suggestions for future research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The main goal of this research is to develop and to evaluate a relationship established between Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and crop coefficient (K c) for estimating crop evapotranspiration (ETc) of table grapes vineyards (Vitis vinifera L., cvs. Perlette and Superior) in the semi-arid region of Northwest Mexico. Two consecutive growing seasons (2005 and 2006) of continuous measurements of ETc with the eddy covariance system were used to test the performance of the K c–NDVI relationship. An exponential relation relating K c to NDVI (R 2 =0.63) is proposed and tested here as the basis for calculating ETc. The obtained results indicate that the K c–NDVI approach estimates ETc reasonably well over two growing seasons. The root mean square error (RMSE) between measured and derived ETc from NDVI during 2005 and 2006 were respectively about 0.45 and 0.76mmday−1. Some discrepancies between measured and simulated ETc occurred when NDVI saturates at high values, causing the under-estimation of evapotranspiration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Irrigation scheduling of fruit trees according to the water balance showed significant differences between locations. In recent years, water status measurements such as leaf water potential have been suggested as irrigation tools in different fruit trees. The aim of this study was to adjust water potential threshold values previously studied and water application approaches that permit the estimation of irrigation requirements of olive trees based on midday stem water potential. The experiments were performed during three seasons (from 2005 to 2007) in two different locations (Badajoz and Ciudad Real) with different weather and cultural conditions. In both locations, the olive orchards were seven years old at the beginning of the experiment but had significantly different canopy development. In Ciudad Real the canopy shaded area at the beginning of the experiment was 15% and the first crop was harvested in 2003. On the other hand, the canopy shaded area of the olive orchard in the Badajoz experiment was 40% and the first crop was harvested in 2001. We therefore considered the Ciudad Real orchard as young and Badajoz as mature. Three different irrigation treatments were compared in both locations: Control treatment with traditional water balance as irrigation scheduling and two treatments in which midday stem water potential (SWP) provided the information about water management. In the midday stem water potential irrigation (WI) treatment the threshold value of SWP was −1.2MPa before the beginning of the massive pit hardening period and −1.4MPa after this date. Finally, in the deficit irrigation (DI) treatment the threshold value of SWP was −2.0MPa throughout the season. In the WI and DI treatments irrigation was applied when SWP reached the threshold value. No significant differences were found between Control and WI in any of the seasons or locations when SWP, leaf conductance, shoot and fruit growth and yield (fruit and oil) were considered. In both locations, the same SWP value in WI treatment resulted in similar water application as the Control treatment. In DI treatment, shoot growth was significantly reduced in both locations in all the seasons. The SWP in DI trees was clearly affected in both locations, while leaf conductance was only reduced in the Badajoz experiment. In the Ciudad Real experiment no significant differences between DI and the other treatments were found in fruit growth, whereas differences were found in Badajoz. However, in Ciudad Real yield in DI treatment was significantly reduced, but not in Badajoz. WI treatment was successful for non-water-stress conditions. On the other hand, DI treatment was a mild water stress treatment which reduced yield only in low covered orchards, but not in the orchards with almost maximum canopy shaded area. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper uses variation in victimization probabilities and past victimization between individuals living in the same community to shed new light on the costs of crime. I use panel data from the Mexican Family Life Survey for 2002 and 2005 and look at the impact of within-community differences in victimization risk on changes in (avoidance) behavior and time-allocation. My results from fixed effects and instrumental variable estimations point towards a number of behavioral changes, including individuals arming themselves, with marked gender differences in the reactions of individuals. Crime victims also suffer from sleep deprivation indicating welfare losses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Actualmente, el análisis de clasificación de calidad de la canal depende en gran medida de la edad del animal; sin embargo, el patrón en México es demasiado impreciso, pues sólo requiere identificar si éste es menor o mayor a 30 meses. Esta falta de precisión genera la necesidad de sistemas objetivos para medir la madurez fisiológica. El propósito de esta investigación fue estimar de manera precisa el porcentaje de osificación del cartílago en la 12ava costilla, como un indicador de madurez ósea en canales de bovino, utilizando un esquema electrónico por visión artificial. En el esquema desarrollado se aprovecha la mayor fluorescencia que genera el cartílago, en comparación con la del hueso y la grasa, sobresaliendo claramente la región del cartílago, desarrollando algoritmos de procesamiento de imágenes para analizar esta región, y estimar de manera precisa el porcentaje de osificación, y por tanto la edad fisiológica de la canal. El sistema de visión artificial desarrollado permitió evaluar la madurez ósea de una canal en menos de un segundo, y la información obtenida fue utilizada para establecer la clasificación electrónica de la canal en menos de cinco segundos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The remittances sent by Mexican migrants in the USA are relevant for recipient household at least in two senses. First, they contribute to rise income, and therefore to diminish poverty level. Second, they also contribute to regional and local economic development via the multipliers generated by the increases of the demand and of the investment in productive activities. Nonetheless, there are several estimations of household remittances magnitude. This paper analyzes the methodologies of Banco de Mexico (Mexican central bank) and those of recognized researchers. There is no consensus regarding the amount of money transferred by Mexican migrants in the USA. Consequently, the positive effects upon the recipient economy may not be conclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: One and a half years after the worst oil spill in U.S. history, we present the first quantitative assessment on the ecological impact of the spill on the salt marsh habitats along the southeastern Louisiana (LA) coast. This research combined satellite and ground data to quantify the impact of the oil and dispersant on the salt marshes in terms of their photosynthetic capacity and physiological status over a large spatial scale. Two of the most important marsh biophysical characteristics, including distribution of canopy chlorophyll content and above ground green biomass, were monitored across the southeastern LA coast during the salt marsh growing season (May–October) of 2009 (pre-spill) and 2010 (post-spill) in order to compare and isolate the spill impacted areas. The initial assessment showed that there was a significant post-spill increase in areas with reduced biomass and canopy chlorophyll (>400km2) during the 2010 growing season compared to 50–65km2 during the 2009 growing season. Phenological analysis of the post oil-spill data revealed a significant decrease in the magnitude of biomass and canopy chlorophyll during the peak of the 2010 growing season. June was consistently found to be the worst month in terms of salt marsh health across LA over the 2010 phenological cycle followed by the initial signs of recovery along the fringing marsh areas proximal to the shoreline that were first impacted by oil. Interior marsh patches exhibited persistent signs of stress towards the end of the growing season. Extensive reduction in photosynthetic activity was observed during the peak of the growing season, particularly in Plaquemines Parish and St. Bernard Parish. The products generated through this study successfully delineate the critical hotspots of marsh stress so that prioritization of areas needing immediate restoration can be performed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The present work's objective to analyze what has been done on public budgets from a gender perspective at the federal level in Mexico and what are the prospects in this regard. It seeks to highlight the progress, reflecting on the challenges and outline some ideas on how to advance implementation of these budgets considering the peculiarities of mexican budget. Regarding the latter issue, we propose to use the budget analysis, understanding such analysis not as the accounting review of spending programs and revenue for a given fiscal year, but as the examination of a series of stages, not linear, allow to understand the institutional network in Mexico to manage and estimate its income and expenses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To introduce the Hospital Standardized Mortality Ratio (HSMR) as an alternative to assess the quality of hospital care in Mexico. Material and Methods. Datasets of public hospital discharges were used as source of information. The analyses were based in a logistic model to estimate the risk of hospital death adjusting by sex, age, length of stay and main diagnosis. The HSMR is estimated dividing the observed deaths by the addition of the risk for each discharge by hospital. Results. The ISSSTE had the lowest HSMR. At state level, the best figure was obtained by the hospitals of the ISSSTE in Veracruz, while the worst performance corresponds to hospitals of the SS in Nayarit. Conclusion. Our results suggest that this indicator can be used as a suitable alternative to evaluate the performance of hospitals in terms of mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To estimate and compare direct costs per hemodialysis session in public and private units in Mexico City. Material and Methods. PAATI, a microcosting strategy, was used to determine total costs of four public and two private health hospitals in Mexico City. A "shadow study" approach was employed to collect the needed data. Charts containing the "PAATI" information for each session were developed in Microsoft Excel. Results. The average annual cost per patient undergoing hemodialysis in public units is $158 964.00 MX. The estimated cost for the care of all population estimated in need of renal replacement therapy (via hemodialysis) was estimated to be $10 921 788 072.00 MX. Conclusion. Human resources and infrastructure availability in México are very limited for nephrology, and in consequence for offering hemodialysis services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To estimate the effect of "Seguro Popular" (SP) on the incidence of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) and out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure in the medium term. Material and Methods. We used the 'Encuesta de Evaluación del SP' -SP Survey Evaluation- (2005-2008). We analyzed the SP effect on the rural cohort during two years of follow-up (2006 and 2008) and in the urban cohort during one year of follow-up (2008). Results. At the local level (regional clusters) we did not find an effect of the SP. At the household level we found a protective effect of SP on CHE and the OOP health payments in outpatient and hospitalization in rural areas; and a significant effect on the reduction of OOP health payments in outpatient services in urban zones. Conclusions. SP seems to be an effective program to protect poor household against out-of-pocket health expenditures in the medium term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The weight is an anthropometric parameter routinely used in ambulatory and hospital settings, and takes its importance, because often there are clinical conditions that impede it's taking in a traditional scale. There are equations to estimate weight. However, they have not been designed for Mexican ambulatory patients. Objective: To develop an equation to estimate weight in Mexican ambulatory patients from the Study of Health, Well Being and Aging, corresponding to Mexico city an surrounded area. Material and methods: The database of the Study of Health, Well Being and Aging of Mexico City was used, and adults of 60 years and older, who completed the anthropometric measures were included. Two groups of datasets were crated though random numbers, one for the design and the other for the validation of the equation. The equation was obtained from the first database and cross-validated in the second. Results: The equations obtained were: (0.67)* (Knee height) + (0.46)* (Mid-arm circumference) + (0.60)* (waist circumference) + (0.38)* (hip circumference) + (0.53)* (calf circumference) - (0.17)* (Age in years) - 80.01 and (0.69)* (Knee height) + (0.61)* (Mid-arm circumference) + (0.17)* (waist circumference) + (0.45)* (hip circumference) + (0.58)* (calf circumference) - (0.24)* (Age in years) - 55.9 in men and women respectively. The correlation coefficients were 0.94 y 0.92 (p < 0.001 for both). The differences between the real and estimated values were not significant. Conclusion: The equations developed in our analysis were confident and can be employed to estimate weight in ambulatory elderly. It is needed to test its validity in clinical scenarios were it is not possible to weigh patients directly in the rest of the Mexican republic and adjust to specific populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the reproducibility and validity of folate intake (FI) estimated from a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), taking into account the retention factor (RF) associated with meal preparation processes. Material and Methods: A total of 497 healthy adult participants were interviewed with a FFQ. A second interview was performed one year later of a sample of 100 randomly selected individuals who had not modified their diet during the previous year . In addition, serum folate (SF) concentrations were measured by radioimmunoassay to evaluate the validity of FI. Results: Reproducibility of IF was 0.36 and 0.34 for folate without FR and with FR, respectively. SF concentration significantly correlated with FI (0.18 with RF; 0.21 without RF, p<0.05). Conclusions: Incorporating the folate RF in estimates of FI does not improve the reproducibility and validity of those estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the study was to estimate the genetic and phenotypic trends for milk yield (MILK, n=1041), fat yield (FAT, n=487), protein yield (PROT, n=477), lactose yield (LACT, n=401), fat content (%FAT, n=487), protein content (%PROT, n=477) and lactose content (%LACT, n=401), analyzing first lactation records adjusted to 305-d, obtained between 2000 and 2006 from 10 Saanen goats flocks from Guanajuato, Mexico. Predicted breeding values (PBV) were obtained with single-trait animal models that included phantom parent groups. Genetic trends were estimated as the regression of the PBV on year of birth. Phenotypic trends were estimated as the linear regression coefficients of production records on the year of birth. The annual genetic trends for MILK, FAT, PROT and LACT were 2.99±1.06 kg, -0.21±0.09 kg, -0.10±0.04 kg and -0.19±0.09 kg, respectively (P<0.05). Annual genetic trends for %FAT, %PROT and %LACT were close to zero (P>0.05). The mean annual genetic trend for MILK was 0.32 % of the phenotypic mean. These results indicate that it is necessary to use more appropriate selection criteria, increasing the emphasis on all the production traits, including fat and protein contents in order to maximize the economic progress in this population, whose main objective is milk production for cheese yield manufacture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Con el objetivo de estimar las tendencias genéticas y fenotípicas, se analizaron registros de primera lactancia estandarizados a 305 días para producción de leche (MILK, n=1041), producción de grasa (FAT, n=487), producción de proteína (PROT, n=477), producción de lactosa (LACT, n=401), contenido de grasa (%FAT, n=487), contenido de proteína (%PROT, n=477) y contenido de lactosa (%LACT, n=401), obtenidos entre 2000 y 2006 en 10 rebaños de cabras Saanen de Guanajuato, México. Los valores genéticos aditivos predichos (VGP) se obtuvieron mediante modelos animales univariados que incluyeron grupos genéticos de progenitores fantasmas. Las tendencias genéticas se estimaron a partir de la regresión de los VGP en el año de nacimiento. Las tendencias fenotípicas se estimaron a partir de la regresión de los registros en el año de nacimiento. Las tendencias genéticas anuales para MILK, FAT, PROT y LACT fueron de 2.99±1.06 kg, -0.21±0.09 kg, -0.10±0.04 kg y -0.19±0.09 kg, respectivamente (P<0.05). Las tendencias genéticas anuales para %FAT, %PROT y %LACT fueron cercanas a cero (P>0.05). La tendencia genética anual para MILK fue de 0.32 % de la media fenotípica. Estos resultados indican que es preciso usar criterios más adecuados de selección, incrementando el énfasis en todas las características productivas, incluyendo los contenidos de grasa y proteína, para maximizar el progreso económico en esta población, cuya principal finalidad es la producción de leche para la fabricación de queso. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents an estimate of the externalities produced in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) through the impacts on health caused by secondary pollutants attributed to seven electric power plants located outside this area. An original method was developed to make possible a simplified application of the impact pathway approach to estimate the damage costs in the specified area. Our estimate shows that the annual costs attributed to secondary pollutants total 71millionUSD (min/max 20/258millionUSD). Finally, this paper discusses basic ideas on the implications for energy policy arising from this exercise in externality valuation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel method based on bilinear time–frequency representations (TFRs) is proposed to determine the time evolution of the linear stability parameters of a boiling water reactor (BWR) using neutronic noise signals. TFRs allow us to track the instantaneous frequencies contained in a signal to estimate an instantaneous decay ratio (IDR) that closely follows the signal envelope changes in time, making the IDR a measure of local stability. In order to account for long term changes in BWR stability, the ACDR measure is introduced as the accumulated product of the local IDRs. As it is shown in this paper, the ACDR measure clearly reflects major long term changes in BWR stability. Last to validate our method, synthetic and real neutronic signals were used. The methodology was tested on the Laguna Verde Unit 1, two events were reported in the Forsmark stability benchmark. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Lahars are flows composed of water and volcanic sediment which are often dangerous for people living near volcanoes. Therefore, a reliable estimation of lahar volume is needed to effectively assess the risk. This paper proposes a new method to calculate the volume of lahar sediments found in channels of volcanic landscapes. The method requires surveys of several cross-sections along a gorge, a Digital Elevation Model of the study area and measurements of the thickness of the lahar deposits. With these data and a Geographical Information System (GIS), the volume is calculated for the erosive section where deposit volume is divided into oblique parallelepipeds and the sedimentary section where deposit volume is divided into polyhedrons. This new method was applied to the 1997 and 2001 lahars that occurred in the channel of a gorge at Popocatépetl volcano, Mexico. The estimated volumes are 1.85×105 and 1.6×105 m3, respectively, which is about 40% less than those obtained by the traditional method that multiplies lahar flow-path length, sediment width and sediment depth. This observation suggests that the traditional method tends to overestimate volumes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Under some conditions, it is possible for foreign debt to lead to declines in fixed investment within a country. In those cases, economic growth will turn negative. This theoretical possibility is known as the debt overhang hypothesis. This study investigates the debt overhang hypothesis for Mexico during the period between 1980 and 2003. Parameter estimation results offer partial evidence in favor of this hypothesis and simulation results exhibit a high degree of correlation with sample historical data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El artículo presenta una estimación y un pronóstico de la demanda de activos financieros en México. Se han realizado varios estudios sobre la estimación de la función de demanda de dinero en el caso de México. El problema en este ejemplo es que la estacionalidad de los activos financieros han sufrido variaciones que pueden introducir errores en el cálculo del flujo anual.

The remittances sent by Mexican migrants in the USA are relevant for recipient household at least in two senses. First, they contribute to rise income, and therefore to diminish poverty level. Second, they also contribute to regional and local economic development via the multipliers generated by the increases of the demand and of the investment in productive activities. Nonetheless, there are several estimations of household remittances magnitude. This paper analyzes the methodologies of Banco de Mexico (Mexican central bank) and those of recognized researchers. There is no consensus regarding the amount of money transferred by Mexican migrants in the USA. Consequently, the positive effects upon the recipient economy may not be conclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Sex assessment is one of the first essential steps in human identification, in both medico-legal cases and bio-archaeological contexts. Fragmentary human remains compromised by different types of burial or physical insults may frustrate the use of the traditional sex estimation methods, such as the analysis of the skull and pelvis. Currently, the application of discriminant functions to sex unidentified skeletal remains is steadily increasing. However, several studies have demonstrated that, due to variation in size and patterns of sexual dimorphism, discriminant functions are population-specific . In this study, in order to improve sex assessment from skeletal remains and to establish population-specific discriminant functions, the diagnostic values of the carpal bones were considered. A sample of 136 individuals (78 males, 58 females) of known sex and age was analyzed. They belong to a contemporary identified collection from the Laboratory of Physical Anthropology, Faculty of Medicine, UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City). The age of the individuals ranged between 25 and 85years. Between four and nine measurements of each carpal bone were taken . Independent t-tests confirm that all carpals are sexually dimorphic. Univariate measurements produce accuracy levels that range from 61.8% to 90.8%. Classification accuracies ranged between 81.3% and 92.3% in the multivariate stepwise discriminant analysis. In addition, intra- and inter-observer error tests were performed. These indicated that replication of measurements was satisfactory for the same observer over time and between observers. These results suggest that carpal bones can be used for assessing sex in both forensic and bio-archaeological identification procedures and that bone dimensions are population specific. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]