• Journal of English Language & Literature
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• v.58 no.6
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• pp.1119-1142
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• 2012

This article examines how Cuban-American writer Cristina García interweaves all possible experiences of Cubans through Dreaming in Cuban in terms of Bakhtin's concepts of heteroglosssia, hybridization, and the chronotope. In so doing, it reaffirms the applicability of these concepts as tools for interpreting speech genres while reevaluating and reexamining the novel in terms of Bakhtinian narratology. García identifies a sociopolitical cacophony in both America and Cuba from an open-minded perspective, striving to maintain a balance between them despite undesirable experiences with her patriotic mother and individuals in the Miami community where she worked as a journalist. In practice, she projects sociopolitical ideas onto her heroines' depictions, representing their consciousnesses in a process of interaction with others. In particular, García allows her three generations of heroines, Celia del Pino, her daughters Lourdes and Felicia, and her granddaughter Pilar Puente to live as staunchly political figures. In this way, García creates a unique novelistic situation by opposing or juxtaposing all aspects of her heroines and pitting them in a dynamic interaction with their environments. As they repeatedly tease, contradict, refute, and do battle with each other, her heroines expose various problems with the sociopolitical ideologies in both the Cuban and American contexts. García succeeds in her attempt by introducing Bakhtin's model of the "becoming" hero and depicting her heroines in dynamic interaction without her own interference. In particular, the devouring inner monologues of Pilar and her Cuban aunt Felicia are presented as the products of their extraordinarily developed self-consciousnesses, through which García attempts a multilateral approach of showing, rather than telling, her heroines' interactive inner worlds as well as introducing sociopolitical contexts. Generic factors such as epistles, diary entries, and ads copy are hybridized into Celia's and Lourdes' stories, serving the heroines' interactive contexts while filling in the many narrative gaps that result from the approach to Cuban and American history. The Bakhtinian perspective permits the interpretation that this generic hybridization enables García to cover narrative gaps resulting from the expansion of chronotopes.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.569-588
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• 2017

The aim of this paper is to present a method to obtain the dynamic response of a wind turbine tower in time domain by means of the generation of time series and to estimate the associated fatigue damage by means of a Rainflow counting algorithm. The proposed method is based on assuming the vortex shedding is a bidimensional phenomena and on following a classical modal superposition method to obtain the structure dynamic response. Four different wind turbine tower geometric configurations have been analyzed in a range of usual wind velocities and covering extreme wind velocities. The obtained results have shown that, depending on the turbulence intensity and the mean wind velocity, there are tower geometric configurations more advantageous from the fatigue load standpoint. Consequently, the presented model can be utilized to define assembly strategies oriented to fatigue damage minimization.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.9
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• pp.1309-1316
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• 2015

In this paper, weight, carcass dressing, weights of the primary cuts, weights of the physical components of the primary cuts, and weights of the main commercial cuts of 66 $Purun{\tilde{a}}$ animals, of which 33 were bulls and 33 were steers were evaluated. These animals, with an average age of 19 months at the beginning of the experiment, were finished in a feedlot system during 116 days, and were fed with diets containing three levels of concentrate (0.8%, 1.1%, and 1.4% of body weight). The concentrate was formulated with 25% soybean meal, 73% ground corn grain, 1% of a mineral mix, and 1% of limestone. The interaction between sexual groups and the concentrate level was not significant for any of the variables. Likewise, no effect of the concentrate level was detected on the same variable traits. The bulls demonstrated higher hot carcass weights (265.1 vs 221.7 kg) and a higher proportion of forequarter (38.4% vs 36.1%) however the steers presented with higher proportions of side (19.7% vs 18.5%) and hindquarter (44.2% vs 43.1%). The bulls produced higher yields of muscle in the three primary cuts, there by resulting in higher yields of edible portions of the carcass. The bulls also produced higher weights of tenderloin, knuckle, topside, flat, eye round, rump, and rump cover. The finishing of young bulls in feedlot is to be recommended, since the animals produce carcasses with higher amounts of edible meat and higher yields of commercial cuts, thus allowing for a better price for the carcass. Low concentrate level could be used due to the lower cost of production for farmers.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.612-619
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• 2015

Current study aimed to evaluate the performance of bulls (1/2 Purun$\tilde{a}$ vs 1/2 Canchim) slaughtered at two ages and three different weights. One hundred and thirteen bulls were divided into two slaughter ages (16 and 22 months) and three different slaughter weights (light, 422 kg; medium, 470 kg; and heavy, 550 kg). The body weight was higher for bulls slaughtered at 16 months. Daily gain, carcass weight and dressing were higher for bulls slaughtered at 16 months. Feed intake was higher for bulls slaughtered at 22 months although feed efficiency was better for bulls slaughtered at 16 months. Carcass characteristics were better for bulls slaughtered at 16 months. The percentages of muscle, fat and bone and meat characteristics were similar between two slaughter ages. Feed intake and animal performance was lower for lighter animals. Feed conversion and carcass dressing were similar in the three slaughter weights. Muscle percentage was higher for heavier animals but fat and bone percentages were lower. Slaughter weight had no effect on meat characteristics.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.244-248
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• 2021

Background: Sunburn is the main avoidable cause of skin cancer. Beach lifeguards spend many hours exposed to the effects of solar radiation during their work day, precisely at times of the year when levels of solar irradiation are highest. The aim of this study is to quantify the risk to beach lifeguards of sun exposure. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in the Western Costa del Sol, southern Spain, during the summer of 2018. The research subjects were recruited during a skin cancer prevention course for beach lifeguards. All participants were invited to complete a questionnaire on their habits, attitudes, and knowledge related to sun exposure. In addition, ten were specially monitored using personal dosimeters for three consecutive days, and the results were recorded in a photoprotection diary. A descriptive analysis (mean and standard deviation for the quantitative variables) was performed, and inter-group differences were evaluated using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: Two hundred fifteen lifeguards completed the questionnaire, and 109 met the criteria for inclusion in this analysis. The mean age was 23.8 years (SD: 5.1), 78.0% were male, 71.5% were phototype III or IV (Fitzpatrick's phototype), and 77.1% had experienced at least one painful sunburn during the previous summer. The mean daily personal ultraviolet exposure per day, the minimal erythema dose, and the standard erythema dose, in J/m², were 634.7 [standard deviation (SD): 356.2], 2.5 (SD: 1.4) and 6.35 (SD: 3.6), respectively. Conclusion: Beach lifeguards receive very high doses of solar radiation during the work day and experience correspondingly high rates of sunburn. Intervention strategies to modify their sun exposure behavior and working environment are necessary to reduce the risk of skin cancer for these workers and to promote early diagnosis of the disease.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.817-825
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• 2024

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify suitable polynomial regression for modeling the average growth trajectory and to estimate the relative development of the rib eye area, scrotal circumference, and morphometric measurements of Guzerat young bulls. Methods: A total of 45 recently weaned males, aged 325.8±28.0 days and weighing 219.9±38.05 kg, were evaluated. The animals were kept on Brachiaria brizantha pastures, received multiple supplementations, and were managed under uniform conditions for 294 days, with evaluations conducted every 56 days. The average growth trajectory was adjusted using ordinary polynomials, Legendre polynomials, and quadratic B-splines. The coefficient of determination, mean absolute deviation, mean square error, the value of the restricted likelihood function, Akaike information criteria, and consistent Akaike information criteria were applied to assess the quality of the fits. For the study of allometric growth, the power model was applied. Results: Ordinary polynomial and Legendre polynomial models of the fifth order provided the best fits. B-splines yielded the best fits in comparing models with the same number of parameters. Based on the restricted likelihood function, Akaike's information criterion, and consistent Akaike's information criterion, the B-splines model with six intervals described the growth trajectory of evaluated animals more smoothly and consistently. In the study of allometric growth, the evaluated traits exhibited negative heterogeneity (b<1) relative to the animals' weight (p<0.01), indicating the precocity of Guzerat cattle for weight gain on pasture. Conclusion: Complementary studies of growth trajectory and allometry can help identify when an animal's weight changes and thus assist in decision-making regarding management practices, nutritional requirements, and genetic selection strategies to optimize growth and animal performance.