We explored peer acceptance and friendships during adolescence, and their relationship with subsequent changes in the level of adolescents' academic achievement. Participants were 447 students (51% girls) aged from 11 to 16 years. The students completed sociometric assessments of their peer acceptance and friendships during the autumn semester (Time 1). Academic achievement data were also obtained from students' report-card grades at Time 1 as well as during the spring semester (Time 2) of the same academic year. Regression analysis indicated that peer acceptance positively predicted subsequent academic achievement. This relationship was also moderated by age, with the effect of peer acceptance on subsequent academic achievement being greater during early adolescence than in midadolescence. This research deepens understanding of the mechanisms by which positive peer relationships influence adolescents' academic achievement.

(TIC), en pro de mejorar la provisión de servicios, el acercamiento y las relaciones de la administración pública con los ciudadanos. Por esta razón, en este artículo se analiza cómo las TIC e Internet son utilizadas por parte del gobierno central en la prestación de servicios públicos. Realizada la revisión bibliográfica-documental, se concluye que el gobierno electrónico es una herramienta tecnológica con la potencialidad de incluir social, política y económicamente a los ciudadanos, por este hecho, el reto de la administración pública es involucrar a éstos en las actividades de la gestión pública. El Gobierno Electrónico Nacional está compuesto por soluciones institucionales y e-servicios que en su gran mayoría son soluciones que, de manera aislada, las instituciones públicas han desarrollado con anterioridad, además de una nueva institucionalidad con una planeación estratégica inicial y base legal que le permite iniciar su desarrollo y reflexión. Finalmente, si bien es cierto que existe un aumento del Indice de Desarrollo del Gobierno Electrónico (EGDI) en este último periodo bianual, éste es una oportunidad de mejora para la Administración Pública Nacional. AbstractIn order to improve the Public Administration service delivery, approach, and relations with citizens, the Ecuadorian central government administration has developed activities based on information and communication technologies (ICTs). Therefore, this article presents an analysis of the way ICTs and Internet are used by the central government to deliver public services. Once the bibliographic and documentary review is finished, the conclusion is that the electronic government is a technological tool with the potential of including citizens from the social, political, and economical point of view. Hence, the challenge of public administrations is to involve citizens in the government administration activities; the national electronic government is composed of institutional solutions and e-services mostly are solutions in isolation public institutions have developed previously, besides a new institutional framework with an initial strategic planning and legal basis that allows you to start your development and reflection. Finally, while it is true that there is an increase in e-government development index (EGDI) in the last two-year period, the electronic government is an improvement opportunity for the National Public Administration.

Data of the commercial parameters of Pleurotus ostreatus and Pleurotus djamor were analyzed using the data mining technique: K-means clustering algorithm. The parameters evaluated were: biological efficiency, crop yield ratio, productivity rate, nutritional composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities in the production of fruit bodies of 50 strains of Pleurotus ostreatus and 50 strains of Pleurotus djamor, cultivated on the most representative agricultural wastes from the province of Guayas: 80% sugarcane bagasse and 20% wheat straw (M1), and 60% wheat straw and 40% sugarcane bagasse (M2). The database of the parameters obtained in experimental procedures was grouped into three clusters, providing a visualization of the strains with a higher relation to each parameter (vector) measured.

In this research, a dataset of growth performances and nutritional composition of juvenile Litopenaeus vannamei after being fed two diets that include aquaculture binder with sardine for 7 weeks was analyzed using data mining techniques: the K-Means Clustering Algorithm and PCA Biplot, to have a visualization of each parameter (vector) measured. The parameters evaluated were: weight gain, specific growth rate, feed efficiency, protein efficiency ratio, survival percent, moisture content, crude protein, crude lipid, and ash content. Data mining tools showed the juvenile Litopenaeus vannamei fed with mixture 2 (pellets mixed with the binder of sardine subproducts) presented the highest growth performances and nutritional composition, 23 juvenile L. vannamei shrimps showed higher relation with crude protein and crude lipid, 30 L. vannamei shrimps presented higher relation with ash, and 37 juvenile L. vannamei shrimps showed higher relation with ash and moisture. The results obtained in experimental procedures indicate that the use of a binder of sardine subproducts in shrimp diets improves the commercial parameters, improving the aquaculture field.

Agriculture is one of the main sectors of Ecuador’s economy, and the principal agricultural product for exportation is cocoa. Flour samples of two mixtures were taken: a total of 50 samples of 85% cocoa bean shell (harvested from a farm) mixed with 15% soy flour (Mixture 1) and 50 samples of 75% cocoa bean shell (harvested from a farm) mixed with 25% soy flour (Mixture 2). The parameters evaluated were: moisture, protein, fat, carbohydrates, ash, total dietary fiber (TDF), and biological activity. Multivariate statistical techniques, such as PCA biplots and GGE biplots, were used to present each parameter (vector) measured. The biplot techniques suggested that the flour samples corresponding to Mixture 1 indicated the most significant values of nutritional and commercial properties. The results suggest that the use of mixtures of cocoa bean shell flour with soy flour can be used as ingredients to produce new foods.

Productivity of parental and hybrid strains of Lentinula edodes cultivated with two mixtures of agricultural wastes (mixture 1: peat moss, banana leaves, oak sawdust, millet seed, cotton seed hull and CaCO3, and mixture 2: wheat straw, oak sawdust, cotton seed hull and CaCO3), the chemical composition of the fruit bodies and also the antioxidant activities of hexanic extracts of the mushrooms were evaluated. The strains of Lentinula edodes (LEN97 and LEN954XLEC241) cultivated on both mixtures produced fruit bodies with highest protein contents since 16.71 to 17.10%. The hybrid strain of Lentinula edodes strain (LEN954XLEC241) cultivated on both mixtures showed the highest biological efficiencies since 74.61 to 82.80% and production rates between 1.21 and 1.30%, and also their hexanic extracts presented the highest antioxidant effects ranged from 8.01 to 9.84 mg mL- 1. The use of hybrid strain of Lentinula edodes can be used to improve the production of this genera.

El cantón Milagro, se caracteriza por contar con un sector empresarial de potencial desarrollo, pero que requiere de aportes y apoyos de instituciones que le permitan acceder a oportunidades de crecimiento que le permitan consolidarse. Para esto, es importante conocer el momento actual por el que viven estas empresas, cuales son sus características primordiales y la relación de variables que permitan describir en términos generales, sus fortalezas y debilidades como sector, tomando como referencia que en el 2010, el Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas y Censos, levantó los datos de la actividad empresarial mediante la realización del censo económico. En el presente artículo, se pretende a partir de los resultados del censo económico describir la actividad empresarial y con esta descripción, plantear el desarrollo local, argumentando las posibilidades que se tienen mediante la colaboración entre las instituciones públicas y privadas. Aspecto considerado es el desarrollo sostenible mediante la creación de eslabonamientos productivos que fomenten la actividad agroindustrial, fomentando la agregación de valor a productos como el cacao, las flores, la caña de azúcar, el banano, entre otros. Se plantea la necesidad de infraestructura, y prestación de servicios como son el diseño de productos, provisión de energía eléctrica, centros de capacitación de recursos humanos, asignación de suelos, acceso a la información, apoyo a la comercialización, fortalecimiento al desarrollo de marcas locales, centros de apoyo a la comercialización, apoyo a la difusión y publicidad, logística de transporte y servicios de reciclaje como actividades necesarias para el fomento del desarrollo local.

En la Ciudad de Milagro, existe un lugar denominado por sus asistentes, como la " Zona Rosa ", ubicado en la Av. Quito entre 17 de septiembre y Panigón. La asistencia de jóvenes es masiva especialmente los fines de semanas, convirtiéndose en el lugar preferido para mezclar diversión, a lo que se suma el consumo de bebidas alcohólicas. La presente investigación es de tipo exploratoria y pretende dar a conocer estadísticas de interés, buscan do que cada lector encuentre la conclusión adecuada para este fenómeno social, por ello se generaran más de una apreciación al respecto y en el mismo sentido será dable que los estudiosos inicien otras  investigaciones más complejas sobre la realidad del sector.