Running Lean

Running Lean ha merecido ser la primera de una colección de libros comercializados por la famosa editorial O’Reilly— dedicada a emprendedores e innovadores y especializada en la metodología Lean Startup. No en vano uno de sus reclamos publicitarios es que Eric Ries actúa como su coordinador.Reseña del libro Running Lean de Ash Maurya, por José María Berenguer. O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol ( California), 2012, 207 págs

COVID-19, Gender Housework Division and Municipality Size in Spain

The COVID-19 health crisis brought with it an increase in the workload on family members due to the restriction of services and the suspension of formal and informal care networks. Numerous studies have analyzed how home confinement have affected different gender gaps, including the gender gap related to chores within the home. This research aims to contribute to the existing literature from the perspective of gender geography by introducing the variable municipality size in the analyses. Our research in the case of Spain shows the COVID-19 health crisis to have had a significant impact on gender gaps, albeit to varying degrees. Women, especially those living in small municipalities, experienced a widening of the gap related to care and domestic workload during confinement. The study of the distribution of the more burdensome chores between genders shows an even more imbalanced scenario to the detriment of women. However, following the end of confinement, the situation improved. Although the imbalance against women remains, the gap with respect to the pre-pandemic situation has been reduce

La evaluación del primer curso del Grado en Turismo según la opinión del alumnado

El proyecto tiene como objetivo realizar el seguimiento del primer curso del Grado en Turismo a partir de la implementación de las guías docentes, investigación que se inició en el curso académico 2010-2011, coincidiendo con la implantación de dicha titulación en la Universidad de Alicante. En particular, el presente estudio aborda, a partir de un sistema de encuestas, el análisis de la opinión del alumnado matriculado en el curso 2013-2014, con el propósito de completar la serie de datos relativa a los cursos anteriores. De este modo, se efectúa el correspondiente estudio estadístico y con los resultados obtenidos se elabora un diagnóstico representativo de la trayectoria seguida hasta el momento, cuando se completa el primer ciclo de los estudios del Grado en Turismo y está más cerca la acreditación de la titulación. Por supuesto, como desde que se inició esta investigación, el fin último es mejorar en todo lo posible las guías docentes en cuanto instrumentos eficaces que puedan asegurar el óptimo rendimiento académico de los estudiantes

Problemática y acciones de marketing en el sector de las artes escénicas de la Comunitat Valenciana

El sector de las artes escénicas atraviesa una delicada situación en la actualidad. La masiva pérdida de espectadores le está afectando gravemente, entre otros muchos factores. Analizar esta situación resulta pues imprescindible con el objetivo final de señalar las posibles líneas de acción que permitan reactivarlo. Con este propósito se desarrolló una doble investigación, una de naturaleza cualitativa y otra de tipo cuantitativo. En primer lugar, se reunió a un grupo de representantes de las principales empresas del sector, tanto compañías teatrales como empresas de exhibición, para realizar sendas dinámicas de grupo. A partir de ahí se llevó a cabo una investigación a través de encuesta autoadministrada, mediante cuestionario estructurado, para cuantificar los resultados obtenidos en la sesión relativa a los problemas del sector. La investigación de mercados desarrollada permitió obtener tanto una amplia lista de problemas como una serie de potenciales soluciones, principio fundamental de la planificación estratégica de marketing

Levels of dioxin-like PCBs in low-volume serum samples of male patients attending fertility clinics

An accurate and easy method for the extraction, cleanup, and HRGC-HRMS analysis of dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) in low-volume serum samples (1 mL) was developed. Serum samples were extracted several times using n-hexane and purified by acid washing. Recovery rates of labeled congeners ranged from 70 to 110 % and the limits of detection were below 1 pg/g on lipid basis. Although human studies are limited and contradictory, several studies have shown that DL-PCBs can have adverse effects on the male reproductive system. In this way, the present method was applied to 21 serum samples of male patients attending fertility clinics. The total levels obtained for the patients ranged from 6.90 to 84.1 pg WHO-TEQ/g lipid, with a mean value of 20.3 pg WHO-TEQ/g lipid. The predominant PCBs (the sum of PCB 118, 156, and 105) contributed 67 % to the mean concentration of total DL-PCBs in the samples analyzed.Support for this work was provided by the CTQ2013-41006-R project from the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Spain), the PROMETEOII/2014/007 project from the Valencian Community Government (Spain), and the Chair of Human Fertility of the University of Alicante (Spain)

On the integral degree of integral ring extensions

Let A ¿ B be an integral ring extension of integral domains with fields of fractions K and L, respectively. The integral degree of A ¿ B, denoted by dA(B), is defined as the supremum of the degrees of minimal integral equations of elements of B over A. It is an invariant that lies in between dK(L) and µA(B), the minimal number of generators of the A-module B. Our purpose is to study this invariant. We prove that it is sub-multiplicative and upper-semicontinuous in the following three cases: if A ¿ B is simple; if A ¿ B is projective and finite and K ¿ L is a simple algebraic field extension; or if A is integrally closed. Furthermore, d is upper-semicontinuous if A is noetherian of dimension 1 and with finite integral closure. In general, however, d is neither sub-multiplicative nor upper-semicontinuous.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Optimization of the Analytical Method for Dioxin-Like PCBs in Low Volume Samples of Human Serum of Patients Facing Fertility Problems

Several studies indicate that human semen quality and fertility have declined over the last decades. According to the estimation of World Health Organization about 8% of couples at the global level experience some forms of infertility problem during their reproductive lives. This percentage means that 50 to 80 million people have problems with fertility. Several lifestyle-related (obesity, smoking) and environmental (exposure to traffic exhaust fumes, dioxins, combustion products) factors appear to negatively affect human fertility, emphasizing the importance of environmental/lifestyle impacts throughout the life course.Support for this work was provided by: Ministry of Education and Science (Spain) (CTQ2008-05520 project); Valencian Community Government (Spain) (PROMETEO/2009/043/FEDER and ACOMP2011/224 projects); Chair Human Fertility of University of Alicante

Radical Addition of Dihydroquinoxalin-2-ones to Trifluoromethyl Ketones under Visible-Light Photoredox Catalysis

A visible-light photocatalytic radical addition reaction of dihydroquinoxalin-2-ones to trifluoromethyl ketones has been established using Ru(bpy)3Cl2 as photocatalyst, acetonitrile as solvent, and HP Single Blue LED as the source of light. The reaction provides a straightforward approach to the synthesis of dihydroquinoxalin-2-ones bearing a trifluoromethyl-substituted tertiary alcohol moiety in moderate to good yields under mild conditions