The University of Lima (Spanish: Universidad de Lima) is a private nonprofit university in Lima, Peru. It was founded in 1962 and it is considered one of the most prestigious and remembered universities in Peru. The decision to create the University of Lima was made in the early 1960s by a group of university professors, along with commerce and industry representatives gathered in the Civil Association PRODIES (Promotion of Industrial Development through Higher Education). It was after two years of effort that they managed to start it. It officially started operating on 25 April 1962. At the beginning only had with 120 students in a small campus in the Jesús María District. Due to the university's quick growth, the campus in the Monterrico area of Surco was inaugurated to serve the university's space needs.Today, the University of Lima has over 20,000 students, 13 majors, a postgraduate school, a general studies program and a scientific research institute, international relations, along with many services for students, faculty, and the community at large.
Calcium carbonate derived from scallop shells (SCC) represents a sustainable mineral filler for asphalt applications, offering environmental benefits through the valorisation of marine by-products generated by aquaculture and seafood-processing activities in Peru and other coastal countries. Hydrated lime (HL) is widely used to enhance adhesion and moisture resistance in asphalt mixtures; however, in Peru its acquisition and commercialisation are subject to administrative controls due to its regulated status. In this study, SCC was obtained through a physical processing route and evaluated against commercially available HL at the asphalt mastic (binder–filler) scale. Both fillers were characterised using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). FTIR and TGA confirmed the chemical stability and thermal resistance of SCC under typical asphalt production temperatures, while SEM revealed compact granular particles favourable for binder–filler interaction within the asphalt mastic. The higher alkalinity of HL was associated with stronger chemical affinity, favouring adhesion and moisture resistance, whereas SCC exhibited high purity and a stable calcite structure, providing a physically compatible and thermally stable filler phase. Rheological characterisation of asphalt mastics using multiple stress creep recovery (MSCR) and Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) tests showed that SCC produced lower non-recoverable compliance (Jnr) and higher elastic recovery (R), indicating improved resistance to permanent deformation, while HL exhibited superior fatigue performance under cyclic loading. Overall, this study establishes a binder- and mastic-level predictive basis for assessing the mechanical behaviour of SCC-filled systems within a circular economy framework.
In this study, removal of nicotine, highly toxic and persistent environmental contaminant, was successfully conducted using activated carbons prepared via chemical activation with KOH from shrimp shell, a byproduct of the food industry. The activation process yielded activated carbons with an exceptionally developed porous texture, exhibiting, in the best case, a surface area of nearly 2000 m2/g and a surface enriched with diverse oxygenated functional groups, as confirmed by XPS and FTIR analyses. Nicotine adsorption studies demonstrated that the adsorption process was more favorable at near-neutral pH values (pH = 8) and higher temperatures. Kinetic and thermodynamic analyses, combined with material characterization, revealed that the adsorption process is governed by both physical and chemical interactions between the adsorbate and the adsorbent, being overall spontaneous and endothermic. The Sips isotherm model closely fits the adsorption data, highlighting the heterogeneity of the activated carbon surface. Under these conditions, adsorption was studied at three different temperatures, with the highest temperature (45 degrees C) exhibiting the most significant adsorption capacity, slightly below 500 mg/g. In addition, column adsorption tests demonstrated the high efficiency of activated carbons in nicotine removal, making shrimp head shells a promising carbon precursor for use as a raw material in preparing activated carbons for use as nicotine adsorbents for industry.
Peru is located within the seismically active “Pacific Ring of Fire” and therefore is constantly affected by the dynamic interaction of the Nazca and South American Plates. Due to its location, over the past centuries, devastating earthquakes have hit the country, generating substantial economic and human losses, leading to a constant need to overcome and enhance human safety and building integrity through advanced strategies to mitigate seismic risk. This practice has worldwide been cataloged as “Disaster Risk Reduction Management”, which involves a deeper comprehension and representation of the seismic hazard for the assessment of the existing buildings and infrastructure, which often deviates from the practices behind seismic design standards. In this study, a novel approach is proposed to assess seismic hazards at a city-size level. It employs uniform hazard spectra calculated through a comprehensive probabilistic hazard assessment framework. The methodology considered a vast earthquake catalog comprising 22,399 events, 33 earthquake source models derived from previous research, six ground motion prediction models, and five return periods, applied to 25 cities. To address the uncertainties associated with the correctness and accuracy of the results, they were evaluated using a rigorous selection criterion through a logic tree-based weighting system. This accounts for soil classification and fault activity clustered by inter-slab, crustal and intra-slab earthquakes. The findings revealed the specific fault segments influencing the seismic activity for every analyzed city, and also determined if they were in proximity or within the same seismic hazard zone stated within the design standard. This approach can be extended looking forward towards establishing a more reliable seismic hazard comprehension based on local activity, offering valuable insights for the performance-based assessments of existing structures and for the formulation of preparedness policies.
This mixed-methods study investigates the prevalence, attitudes, psychological predictors, and usage reasons of traditional and alternative medicine in Peru. A representative national sample (N = 805) reported their experiences with 16 unconventional medical techniques, alongside psychometric measures of pseudoscientific beliefs, ideological traditionalism, and trust in the medical profession. Traditional medicine was more widely used, while alternative medicine elicited more favorable attitudinal responses. Pseudoscientific beliefs predicted greater endorsement of both modalities, with traditionalism specifically linked to traditional medicine. To enrich the psychometric findings, we applied natural language processing techniques to 2716 usage reasons extracted from spontaneous open-ended responses, revealing distinct rhetorical patterns: alternative medicine was more often justified through pseudoscientific and biomedical-sounding arguments, whereas traditional medicine drew on cultural, spiritual, and experiential narratives. Network and co-occurrence analyses confirmed that both modalities follow distinctive general combinatory logics of justification. However, subgroups mixing traditional and alternative medicine also emerged, such as spiritually oriented practices and techniques pivoting traditionalist conceptions. These findings reflect the interplay between global health discourses and local belief systems. Overall, this study highlights the value of integrating cultural and linguistic analyses to understand public engagement with unconventional health practices.
The effect of environmental exposures on self-reported health has gained attention in the literature in recent years. Rising temperatures have become a public health concern due to climate change and urbanisation at a global scale. Findings vary strongly across regions, highlighting the need for further evidence to inform data-driven decisions. This study aimed to assess the impact of land surface temperature (LST) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among adults in Lima, Peru. We assessed 700 randomly selected adults using structured interviews covering HRQOL, sociodemographic factors, behavioural habits, and non-communicable disease (NCD) prevalence, between December 2023 and January 2024. LST was derived from satellite-based data. We detected no association between LST and self-reported health for most of the exposure timeframes. However, we observed an association between spring and summer mean temperature for reporting perfect health and reporting problems in the usual activity and anxiety or depression dimension, respectively. These findings demonstrate the complex interplay of LST as an environmental exposure and HRQOL in urban settings. Insights from this study can optimise public health policies and interventions aimed at promoting healthy behaviours, improving environmental conditions, and enhancing population well-being. Further research should investigate the observed associations across diverse geographic settings and develop targeted strategies to improve HRQOL in the context of rising global temperatures.
