The University of Sonora (Universidad de Sonora, abbreviated as Unison) is a public university in the northwestern state of Sonora, Mexico that has a strong research program. The university was founded in 1942 and is considered the main cultural and educational driver in the state. The university motto is "El saber de mis hijos hará mi grandeza" ("The knowledge of my children will be my greatness"). It is the largest university of Sonora with about 30,000 students (about 28,000 for undergraduate studies and 2,000 for postgraduate studies) distributed in five campuses.Dr. Enrique Velázquez Contreras started his tenure as the University Rector in June 2017 for a period of four years (renewable). Under his leadership the university has prepared its Strategic Initiative putting special emphasis on the Internationalization of its academic and research programs..
In this study, ZnO/RE2O3 (RE = Nd, Yb) composites were prepared using the thermal decomposition method. The neodymium concentration was fixed at 2 mol
Boswellia serrata is a medicinal plant traditionally used to treat inflammatory conditions and this study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of B. serrata dry extract (BSDE) in treating gastric ulcers and ulcerative colitis. Chronic gastric ulcers were induced using 80
Protein-based films are promising biodegradable materials, but their performance is often limited by structural instability during storage. In this study, blend films were developed from myofibrillar proteins of giant squid (Dosidicus gigas) and whey protein concentrate (WPC) to improve functional properties and evaluate stability during three months of storage. The effects of plasticizer type (glycerol or sorbitol) and WPC concentration (5-15%) on film structure and performance were analyzed using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), optical measurements, solubility, and water vapor transmission rate (WVTR). FT-IR revealed a transition from alpha-helix to beta-sheet structures, indicating stronger protein-protein interactions, particularly in sorbitol-plasticized films. This structural organization improved barrier properties, reducing WVTR from 44.2 g & centerdot;m-2 & centerdot;d-1 in squid protein films to 18.9 g & centerdot;m-2 & centerdot;d-1 in films containing WPC. Light transmittance analysis showed that all films acted as effective UV barriers, with transmission starting near 350 nm. At this wavelength, transmittance ranged from 5-17% in sorbitol-plasticized films to 33-46% in glycerol-plasticized films. Increasing WPC concentration also reduced film solubility, indicating the formation of a more compact protein matrix. During three months of storage, FT-IR spectra revealed changes in the Amide A and Amide III bands associated with plasticizer migration and increased protein-protein interactions. Transparency increased during storage, indicating progressive structural reorganization, while the UV barrier properties remained stable. These results demonstrate that blending squid and whey proteins, particularly with sorbitol as plasticizer, produces biodegradable films with improved barrier properties and good structural stability during storage, highlighting their potential for sustainable food packaging applications.
The paper discusses a class of discrete-time zero-sum stochastic games where the objective of players is to control a large population of N interacting objects (e.g., agents, particles, data, etc.). Objects can be classified according to their characteristics within a finite or countable set. At each stage, once the players select actions, the objects move randomly among the classes under a transition law that depends on an unknown parameter. The fact that N is too large makes it almost impossible to apply standard procedures. Hence, the game problem is studied following a mean-field approach. That is, a zero-sum game model 𝒢ℳ_N , where the states are the proportions of objects in each class, is introduced. Next we study the mean-field limit as N→∞ to obtain a new game model 𝒢ℳ , independent of N, which is easier to analyze than 𝒢ℳ_N . By applying suitable estimation and control processes on 𝒢ℳ , we construct a pair of strategies, and our objective is to prove that it is nearly optimal in the original game model 𝒢ℳ_N .
The present work proposes an approximating scheme to compute approximate solutions for a class of average cost Markov decision processes with unbounded costs and weakly continuous kernel. The approximations rely on function approximating schemes that can be represented as positive linear operators that gives exact representation to the constant functions. This allows to see the approximated model as a perturbation of the original model and to derive performance bounds for the approximate optimal stationary policies among other things. The bounds are given in terms of the primitive data of the model and the accuracy of the function approximating scheme that is used. It is assumed that the model satisfies a growth condition, a contraction property expressed as a Lyapuov condition and some standard continuity/compactness conditions.
