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  • Comment By: Aixa Aleman-Diaz
    hace 16 años

    My name is Aixa Aleman-Diaz. I understand that there are have been some problems when trying to access the links to complete the online surveys. If you are interested, please contact me by email aixamari@eden.rutgers.edu to receive the surveys by email and complete them and send them back to me by email. I apologize for the inconvenience! Also, for your information I will include the questions below. Questions about you Were you born in Puerto Rico? Yes ___ No ____ Did you reside permanently for the first 18 years in Puerto Rico? Yes ___ No ____ How old are you? Please select the one that best describe your age. 18 years or under _______ 18-25 years old _______ 26-35 years old _______ 36-45 years old ________ 46-55 years old ________ 56-65 years old ________ 65 years old or more________ General Information 1-Do you believe that beaches are an important element in your daily life? Yes ___ No ____ 1a. Explain why yes or why no ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2- How many times per month do you visit for at least 1 hour the beach for recreation or leisure? None ________ 1-2 times ________ 3-4 times ________ 7-15 times ________ 16-30 times ________ 31-50 times ________ 51-80 times ________ More than 81 times ________ Other_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2a. When? Please you can select more than one alternative. Winter (December-February ________ Spring (March-May) ________ Summer (June-August) ________ Fall (September-November) ________ General questions 3-Do you know what does public access to a beach means? Yes ___ No ____ 3a. If your answer is YES, what do you mean? Access (or lack of) access ________ Civil rights _________ 4. Do you know if there are existing rights or laws for public access to the beach in Puerto Rico? Yes ___ No ____ 4a. If you do understand that there are existing rights or laws for public access to the beach, what is your understanding of the rights for public access to beaches? Or how do you define them? General ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Individual/Personal ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Corporate/Development/Coastal Development. etc ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What do you know about the beaches of Puerto Rico? 5. What is the percent (%) of Puerto Ricos’ coast that you consider as adequate for the use as beaches? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. How many beaches Puerto Rico have? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Is Puerto Rico an archipelago? Yes ___ No ____ 7a. If your answer is YES, please indicate how many islands are. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 8. How many beaches have physical development and/or recreational infrastructure for beach users? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  • hace 16 años

    This is a great and very necessary discussion. What I am going to do is to put the Arecibo issue on a rotating yellow box in the cover (instead of the banner as it is right now), and include a link to this discussion. That way people can participate in this discussion and make an educated decision on how they would like to contribute (or not) based on the points raised in this forum.

  • hace 16 años

    I think it's ridiculous for the government of Puerto Rico to spend $3MM in a research facility which has been determined a non-priority by the astronomy community and which throughout its history has had little impact on the scientific output of the island. If CienciaPR wants to promote the development of science and research in Puerto Rico through fundraisers the focus should be on convincing the local government and the people of Puerto Rico that it is worthwhile to invest in the research infrastructure of the UPR system. The bond amount of $3MM could be used to add four to five research labs in the UPR-Mayaguez campus, which is largely ignored in the research infrastructure plans of the UPR and government (e.g., the metro area is getting a "Molecular Sciences" building and a "Knowledge Corridor" - see the current issue of Scientific American for more information - and yet there are no plans to add research space in UPRM). These labs would provide adequate research space to UPR scientists and engineers who have been successful in competing for federal research funds but face a crisis in terms of lab and office space. These are the scientists who are working hard to move science and research forward in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico does not need "majestic pillars ... symbolizing the prominence of Puerto Rico in the human quest for knowledge", it needs a serious attitude toward investing in the science and research infrastructure of the UPR system, which mission is to advance knowledge in PR.

  • hace 16 años

    La respuesta a qué hacer con el Observatorio tiene varios componentes. Se debe completar un proceso de vision 2020 (me gusta el doble sentido) y determinar qué trabajo científico se hará con el instrumento para entonces y cuales serían los costos de esto. Lamentablemente una falla de la presente administración fue la de no elaborar esta visión hace tres años cuando era necesaria, ANTES de las determinaciones del comité SR de NSF que pasó sentencia. NO es cierto que el Observatorio esté científicamente obsoleto, podría contribuír buenas cosas por los próximos 10 o más años, pero es necesario continuar con el desarrollo de nueva instrumentación, incluyendo el radar planetario que es único en su clase. Luego se tendría que reevaluar la relacion del Observatorio con la academia en PR (es decir UPR) y si la idea es contribuír a su operación con algunos fondos locales, entonces determinar como beneficia a la comunidad científica y estudiantil, y establecer programas formales de investigacion y trabajo con programas de ciencia, ingeniería y computación Como ícono de la ciencia en PR el Observatorio de Arecibo puede contribuír a la educación científica en la Isla (como lo ha estado haciendo), pero el desarrollo de un programa formal sería importante. Lamentablemete acaba de renunciar el que quedaba dirigiendo estos esfuerzos (yo era el otro componente del equipo), otro paso hacía atrás por parte del Observatorio. Ciertamente, un consorcio de instituciones interesadas (nacionales e internacionales) podrían revivir al Observatorio, pero no será fácil. Mientras Cornell sea el que administra no veo la salida, ya que no han hecho nada en los pasados tres años para resolver la crisis, y han hecho caso omiso de los reclamos de muchos en Arecibo (que como pago han sido despedidos o perseguidos), que ciertamente les han alertado de la pésima situacion. Ademas de los 30 que se despidieron por la alegada falta de fondos, luego han renunciado 29 empleados adicionales, algunos muy expertos dificiles de reemplazar. Es fácil destruir y dificil construir. Tampoco han habido indicios por parte de NSF que todo esto les importe, y por el presente siguen insistiendo que solamente tendrán cuatro millones luego del 2010, lo cual es una sentencia de muerte. En resumen, hasta que no se establezca un plan de recuperacion liderado por personas comprometidas con esta causa, y se disponga de los fondos necesarios para realizarlo (>12 millones al año) no se realizará, y cuanto más tiempo pase más dificil será la recuperación y mas fácil el argumento para cerrarlo, ya que estamos resbalando hacia una profecía que se autocumple (por decirlo de algún modo). De paso, NO se resolverá el problema vendiendo camisetas y solicitando donativos.

  • hace 16 años

    Este artículo debe ser de interés: http://www.cienciapr.org/news_view.php?id=836

  • Comment By: Roland Blasini
    hace 16 años

    Altschuler: Ante todo le felicito por sus expresiones PUBLICAS, son bien pocos quienes se atreven comentar sobre el "timo" montado que lo que pasa alli. NO todo es lo que aparenta ser a simple vista y especialmente en Puerto Rico. Quedo de usted Cordialmente

  • hace 16 años

    Como científicos y puertorriqueños interesados en que el observatorio permanezca funcional, ¿qué se podría hacer entonces para ayudar?

  • hace 16 años

    No dudo que el posible cierre del Observatorio para el 2010 sería una pérdida para todos. Pero es necesario que se sepan algunas verdades ocultas. La administración del Observatorio y Cornell trataron mal a los puertorriqueños que trabajaban allí, incluyendo el despido de la primera y única puertorriqueña en los 40 años de historia del Observatorio en ocupar un puesto del plantel científico de astronomía. Ahora se le pide apoyo al gobierno con la excusa de pintar torres por dos millones. La pintura de las torres es un gasto no necesario, me consta que sería botar el dinero en algo que es merament estético. Mientras tanto sigue el éxodo de científicos y técnicos, se afecta negativamente lo que queda de las operaciones y pronto tambien cesarán las operaciones educacionales que tanto contribuyeron a la educación en Puerto Rico. Yo soy el primero en querer rescatar al Observatorio pero no bajo la presente administración que es la responsable en gran medida de la crisis. Daniel R. Altschuler Pasado director del Observatorio

  • hace 16 años

    Breakdown of the $3M PR bond. To be voted on in November. Contact your representative now! (http://www.camaraderepresentantes.org/) (http://www.senadopr.us/) * Approximately $2,000,000 will be used to clean and paint the three concrete towers that support the suspension cables that hold up the telescope platform. The cleaning and painting will be done under contract by a painting contractor based in Puerto Rico using local labor. Each tower is approximately 300-feet tall and 36-feet wide at the base. Once painted a brilliant white, the three towers will make an inspiring sight for visitors and tourists coming to the Observatory, visible many kilometers from the Observatory gate. Bronze plaques attached to each tower will highlight the People of Puerto Rico as the source of funds that made this maintenance of these majestic pillars possible, symbolizing the prominence of Puerto Rico in the human quest for knowledge and exploration of the universe. * Approximately $400,000 will be used to paint the cables suspending the telescope platform over the 1000 foot diameter reflecting surface. This is an essential maintenance task, preserving the long-term structural integrity of the telescope system. The process involves acquisition of modern, safety certified mobile scaffolds that travel along the cables for painting access. A painting contractor based in Puerto Rico using local labor will do the painting under contract. Bronze plaques attached to each of three cable tie-down edifices will highlight the People of Puerto Rico as the source of funds for this maintenance, symbolizing the strength and resolve of those people in the endeavor to understand the near-earth space environment, and to protect all humanity from threats within that environment. * Approximately $600,000 will be used to renew the Observatory high power auxiliary electrical system. This system supplies as much as 3 megawatts of electrical power for a new generation of extremely high power scientific instruments coming on-line in the next few years. The work will be done under contract to commercial vendors based on the island. The project will enhance and ensure the unique ability of Arecibo Observatory to determine the strike probability, and to image the shapes, of Earth-crossing objects for two generations to come.

  • hace 16 años

    Ninguno de los dos. No era propaganda. Son una serie de reportes serios hechos por compañías de inversión que le interesa saber el futuro biomédico de PR. Son hechos, no rumores. Como yo dije, y usted menciona, "growing competition from generic medications" es uno de los factores principales, y eso se debe a que las patentes caducan en estos años. Hay otros factores pero el asunto de las patentes es el principal.

  • Comment By: Roland Blasini
    hace 16 años

    Puerto Rico siempre ha sido y es usado como parte de los que incursionan en la investigacion y desarrollo – utilizando su poblacion – en sus “embelecos” poco etico y sin importales el impacto a la salud de los seres humano. Considero que ya es tiempo de otro destape . El codigo en propuestas (numero) - Grant code 'MDA904' - que aparecen en propuestas universitarias y del sector privado, como National Science Foundation, National Health Institute, etc, NO son de NADA inocentes – son financiadas por - National Security Agency. It’s about time everyone be educated on the reality of facts!

  • Comment By: Roland Blasini
    hace 16 años

    Did you read the AP wire story or company press release; rather than go by hear say or petty spin propaganda? The plant had been in operation for 36 years, plus the closure is the result of reduced demand for the medication, declining sales and the most important reality not discussed which is the growing competition from generic medication.

  • hace 16 años

    Por lo que he escuchado, y esto es completamente anegdótico, se debe a una serie de factores, pero principal entre ellos está el que a muchas de ellas se les vencen las patentes en estos años. Eso quiere decir que pierden los derechos exclusivos de manufactura de ese medicamento, por lo cual no tienen que manufacturar tanto porque otros competidores generarán esos medicamentos como genéricos (más baratos), probablemente en sitios donde la mano de obra sea más barata. Eso da paso a que las farmacéuticas reduzcan operaciones en sus fábricas en Puerto Rico. Los estudios que he visto indican que este es sólo el comienzo porque muchas patentes vencerán entre ahora y el 2012. Si no entran patentes nuevas (y ahora mismo no las hay), el sector de manufactura en PR podría ver una reducción severa en los próximos cinco años. Aunque esto lo convierten en un issue político partidista, no lo es. Realemente es un issue de política pública que concierne a toda la comunidad boricua de cualquioer ideología. El sector de la manufactura es importantísimo en la economía de PR, y ante este panorama PR va a tener que examinar sus ventajas competitivas y generar nuevos modelos económicos. Yo personalmente creo que le conviene apostarle más a la industria de investigación y desarrollo.

  • hace 16 años

    Se le acabó el pan de piquito a Watson. Los jóvenes cientificos, queden avisados: porque una persona tenga talento en elucidar estructuras moleculares no quiere decir que tenga sabiduría. Del NY Times: James Watson Retires After Racial Remarks "James D. Watson, the eminent biologist who ignited an uproar last week with remarks about the intelligence of people of African descent, retired today as chancellor of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island and from its board. In a statement, he noted that, at 79, he is “overdue” to surrender leadership positions at the lab, which he joined as director in 1968 and served as president until 2003. But he said the circumstances of his resignation “are not those which I could ever have anticipated or desired.” Dr. Watson, who shared the 1962 Nobel Prize for describing the double-helix structure of DNA, and later headed the American government’s part in the international Human Genome Project, was quoted in The Times of London last week as suggesting that, overall, people of African descent are not as intelligent as people of European descent. In the ensuing uproar, he issued a statement apologizing “unreservedly” for the comments, adding “there is no scientific basis for such a belief.” But Dr. Watson, who has a reputation for making sometimes incendiary off-the-cuff remarks, did not say he had been misquoted. Within days, the Cold Spring board had relieved him of the administrative responsibilities of the chancellor’s job. In that position, a spokesman for the laboratory said, he was most involved with educational efforts and fund-raising. Rockefeller University has cancelled a lecture Dr. Watson was to have given Wednesday at a ceremony honoring him and “The Double Helix,” the book he wrote about the elucidation of DNA. “There were some members of the university community who had expressed reservations about Dr. Watson coming here to speak after the controversy over his remarks in the U.K.,” Joseph Bonner, Rockefeller’s director of communications, said today. He said that just as its president, Paul Nurse, had decided to cancel the event, Dr. Watson called to suggest the same thing. Dr. Watson will receive the prize, the Lewis Thomas Award, at another time not yet set. The university gives the prize annually to scientists whose books bridge the gap between the laboratory and the wider world. In the years after he left Harvard to direct the laboratory, Dr. Watson transformed it from a small facility into a world-class institution prominent in research on cancer, plant biology, neuroscience and computational biology, the board said in announcing his retirement. Bruce Stillman, who succeeded him as president, said today that he had created an “unparalleled” research environment at the laboratory. In his statement, Dr. Watson said the work of the Human Genome Project, an international effort which deciphered the chemical contents of human genes, had opened the door to work on many diseases, particularly illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, ailments he said have afflicted members of his family. He also referred to his Scots and Irish forebears, saying their lives were guided by faith in reason and social justice, “especially the need for those on top to help care for the less fortunate.”

  • Comment By: Marcos Lopez
    hace 16 años

    Creo que aunque quizas Irlanda esta haciendo lo suyo para atraer industrias a Europa, Puerto Rico esta adoptando un enfoque interesante con lo de BioIsla y esas cosas. Solo espero que los adelantos tecnologicos ayuden a reducir el tiempo burocratico de obetncion de licencias y permisos y que el gobierno adopte una politica de ayuda para establecer nuevas empresas. Nosotros desde los 60's cambiamos la agricultura por la manufactura. Ahora estamos tratando de incursionar en la investigacion y desarrollo. Tenemos amplios competidores, pero se que tenemos el corazon para poder dar la pelea y hacer algo chevere.

  • Comment By: Roland Blasini
    hace 16 años

    En la página del The World Bank aparece un enlace que compara las economías de los diferentes países y naciones del mundo. Las economías están clasificadas en términos de su facilidad para hacer negocios, de 1 a 178, de mejor a peor. Puerto Rico ocupa el puesto 28 en facilidad en hacer negocios y el puesto 135 en manejo de licencias. Aquí está la página: http://espanol.doingbusiness.org/economyrankings/ ------------------------------------ Lo sabran los "genios" en Fomento y La Fortaleza?

  • hace 16 años

    Mas información sobre la reunión caribeña de la Asociación Americana para el Avanze de las Ciencias (AAAS, por sus siglas en inglés) que se llevará acabo el 20 de octubre en la Interamericana de Bayamón. La AAAS es una de las organizaciones internacionales científicas más grandes del mundo y es la que publica la revista "Science"... ******************* http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2007/1003caribbean.shtml AAAS Caribbean Division Holds 2007 Annual Meeting in Bayamón, Puerto Rico The Caribbean Division of AAAS will hold its 2007 Annual Meeting in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, bringing together top scientists, students, teachers, and the public for a wide range of programs addressing regional and global issues. The one-day meeting, to be held 20 October at the InterAmerican University, Bayamón Campus, is being organized in recognition of Waldemar Adam, a chemist and professor emeritus at the University of Puerto Rico, for his contribution to Puerto Rican science and the understanding of bioluminescence. Caribbean Division President Margarita Irizarry-Ramírez said that the meeting provides one of the few opportunities for scientists in the Caribbean to communicate with the public on issues particular to the region including conservation, Caribbean marine biology, and Puerto Rican math and science education. "Puerto Rico is a hub of science in the Caribbean and this meeting provides a venue for scientists representing a broad spectrum of disciplines throughout the region to come together in addressing their common concerns," said Irizarry-Ramírez, a biochemistry professor at the University of Puerto Rico's Medical Sciences Campus. [Registration for the Caribbean Division Annual Meeting will be on site in Puerto Rico. For those participants outside Puerto Rico who wish to participate in the meeting, the division will accept emails directed toward Division President Irizarry-Ramírez stating an intent to attend.] The meeting will open with a panel discussion on Puerto Rican science with Waldemar Adam and Margarita Irizarry-Ramírez, along with Daniel Altschuler, a professor of physics at the University of Puerto Rico and former director of the Arecibo Observatory, and Ariel Lugo, a biologist and director of the International Institute of Tropical Forestry (IITF) at the United States Forest Service stationed in Puerto Rico. Following the panel discussion, the public, students and teachers will participate in the Science Day Workshops, on a variety of topics going from how to extract strawberry's DNA to the use of bioinformatics' tools and the interpretation of forensic evidence. Irizarry-Ramírez expects more than 300 participants for the workshops, which are taught by graduate students from the University of Puerto Rico(UPR) and faculty from UPR and the Institute of Forensic Science. "These programs allow the graduate students to serve as role models to the children and hopefully foster the younger generation's interest in becoming scientists," said Irizarry-Ramírez. Later in the morning, three lectures comprising the Karst Symposium will address issues of ecological importance to scientists in the islands comprising the Major Antilles (Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico) including arthropod biodiversity in the Mona Island Reserve in Puerto Rico and how the islands' unique plants provide habitat for a large diversity of animals. Besides its Annual Meeting, the Caribbean Division also sponsors other scientific meetings including the Puerto Rico Neuroscience Conference and offers fellowships for students and scientists that need travel money to present their work in conferences outside Puerto Rico. The four regional divisions of AAAS—Caribbean, Pacific, Arctic, and Southwestern and Rocky Mountain (SWARM)—serve as regional networks for scientists, organizing meetings on regional issues and promoting publications from scientists active within the division. The Caribbean is the youngest division, with its charter dating to 1985. The Pacific Division's origins date to 1915, followed by SWARM in 1920, and the Arctic Division in 1951. The Caribbean Division currently has more than 500 members throughout Puerto Rico, Central America, islands of the Caribbean Basin, Venezuela, and southern Mexico. All AAAS members in good standing residing within the specified boundaries of a regional division are automatically considered members of that regional division. Members residing outside a division's boundaries can become a member with the approval of the division president. AAAS will send staff from its Washington, D.C., headquarters to the Puerto Rico meeting this month with special membership offers and to answer questions about membership.

  • Comment By: Idalia Massa, Ph.D.
    hace 16 años

    This is good!!!

  • Reply to: Monos en Lajas
    hace 16 años

    Erythrocebus patas Ver siguiente pagina para mas informacion: http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/patas_monkey

  • Comment By: Pedro J Torres
    Reply to: Monos en Lajas
    hace 16 años

    Aca en UGA una compañera estudia dispersion de enfermedades por medio de mamíferos y le interesaría saber mas sobre esta especie. No he encontrado nada en busquedas por pata, militar, rojo, etc... Alguien sabe el nombre científico??????????? Gracias

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