Spazio allo Spazio

“Spazio allo Spazio", active since 2010, involves students aged 5 to 20. This educational project was launched by a group of Italian teachers from the Lower Secondary School Fermi in Villasanta who believed Space exploration could be an efficient way to convey the idea that the extraordinary experience of the astronaut, who on the International Space Station must acquire new skills and be able to dominate a challenging and unpredictable context, similar to a disabled person's routine in daily life. This was a winning choice because gradually international institutions promoted similar initiatives. The central theme of space exploration is used to promote values of sustainability, equity and diversity, allowing students to become acquainted with the world of astronauts while facing subjects related to integration and disability. Several national and international universities and institutions, at the forefront of scientific research, have contributed to this project. The main topics of the project are: 1) Space exploration: the astronaut's experience is the starting point for lessons, cultural exchanges, lectures and interdisciplinary strategies to raise awareness about humans in space, the international cooperation for the International Space Station, physical training, technical, scientific and cultural preparation. 2) Career orientation: meetings with experts in different fields, from Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics to Arts and Physical Education, help students achieve better knowledge of themselves, their potential and limits acquiring skills in scientific research methodology in a multilingual environment. 3) Inclusion: as astronauts experience the limits of gravity and disability in Space, students can face their limits, through experiences of adapted physical activity, addressing issues related to the integration and insertion of people with different skills in school and society. 4) Team building: starting from the example of collaboration which takes place in space missions and scientific research, students are encouraged to experience teamwork. This is true for the teachers too, thanks to the strengthening of cooperative teaching, in the sharing of resources and good practices as well as in the implementation of innovative forms of communication and multimedia documentation. The project aims at making students able to face new and more advanced educational challenges and cognitive objectives, developing work strategies by transferring already tested approaches and processes to new situations. This is noticeable in the more self-conscious choices that former students have made about their future. An example is illustrated by an ex-student who directed his training path in the Science and Engineering fiel

Relationship between previously approved courses and performance of students in the course of Basic Animal Immunobiology

El curso de IAB pertenece al primer cuatrimestre del segundo año del nuevo plan de estudios de la carrera de Ciencias Veterinarias de la UNLP. La aprobación del curso es por promoción o con una evaluación final integradora (EFI). Como pre-requisito, los alumnos deben haber aprobado las actividades presenciales obligatorias (APOs) de 6 cursos. Para rendir la EFI, se deben tener aprobados todos los cursos de primer año, lo que sin embargo no es obligatorio para cursar. Considerando que la aprobación de cursos correlativos previos influye en la formación, comprensión y mejor utilización del tiempo de estudio, el objetivo del presente trabajo fue determinar si los conocimientos adquiridos en los mismos podían afectar el desempeño de los estudiantes durante la promoción del curso IAB.Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria

Evaluation of basic immunobiology topics and their relationship with approval of a basic animal immunobiology course

El objetivo del presente trabajo es evaluar el aprendizaje de contenidos básicos de inmunobiología a través de una evaluación diagnóstica administrada al inicio y al final del curso IAB, y relacionar dichos resultados con la posibilidad de aprobar por promoción. Se confeccionó un cuestionario con 12 preguntas sobre inmunidad innata, inmunidad adaptativa e inmunodiagnóstico, el cual fue administrado en la primera y última actividad presencial del curso.Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria

Comparison of student performance in Basic Animal Immunobiology course between years 2009 and 2010

El curso de IAB pertenece al primer cuatrimestre del segundo año del plan 406 de la Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias (UNLP). La aprobación del curso es por promoción o con una evaluación final integradora (EFI). Como pre-requisito, los alumnos deben haber desarrollado las actividades presenciales obligatorias (APO) de 7 cursos (Biología celular, Histología, Embriología, Biofísica, Bioquímica, Microbiología, Bioestadística).Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria

Monitoring of the first cohorts of Basic Animal Immunobiology corresponding to 406 study programme

El curso de IAB se dicta en el primer cuatrimestre del segundo año de la carrera de Ciencias Veterinarias, con una carga horaria de 5 hs. presenciales por semana, 70 hs totales. El mismo pertenece al plan de estudios 406 vigente desde hace cuatro años en la Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, UNLP. La modalidad de aprobación del curso es por promoción con una nota mayor o igual a 7 o por una evaluación final integradora. La metodología utilizada es un taller de discusión en grupos no mayores de 8 alumnos.Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria

Youth plus experience: the discovery of 51 Pegasi b

In 1995, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz announced they discovered 51 Pegasi b, the first planet ever found around a star other than the Sun. This discovery turned out to be a milestone of recent astronomy, as it opened up a new field of research that is growing impressively these days. However, 51 Pegasi b has surprising properties as compared to the planets of the Solar System, as it is a giant planet on a very close-in orbit around its parent star. Hence, its discovery was unexpected and its actual existence did not go unchallenged. In the following years, a passionate debate sprang up, and finally astronomers accepted it, but at the price of a deep revision of our understanding of how planetary systems are formed and evolve. In the present paper, we reconstruct the dynamics of the discovery of 51 Pegasi b and the first exoplanets, the quarrel that arose among astronomers and the final acceptance of the existence of planets with unexpected characteristics. This remarkable story is recounted by means of published literature as well as interviews with several of its main protagonists

Robot Choreographies: Artificial Evolution between Novelty and Similarity

In this paper we introduce a novel fitness function for evolutionary art, which generates sequences of movements--i.e. robot choreographies--based on similarity to an inspiring repertoire. Similarityis counterbalanced by a novelty mechanisms, which makes it possible to sample unexplored areas ofthe choreography space. The approach is discussed together with preliminary results achieved in thecontext of N\u14d theatre. This work is a first step towards the development of a computational creativitysystem that can incorporate diverse generative mechanisms and can exploit information theoretic andcomplexity measures both for the generation and assessment of the choreographies produce

Composition and Workability of Plastic Fractions Recovered from Commingled Waste Discarded by a Composting Plant

This paper deals with the recovery of plastic fractions from waste discarded by an industrial composting plant that processes the organic fraction of municipal solid waste. Polymeric fractions (PE, PP and PET) were sorted from this discarded waste using a NIR separator. The polymeric fractions were then washed to remove residual contaminants and characterized with the aim of assessing their composition. A process of pelletizing and injection molding suitable for producing specimens made of 100% of these recovered materials was set up. The tensile strength and stiffness, as well as the microstructure of the recycled plastics, were investigated. The mechanical features of samples fully made of recycled PE and PP were like those characteristic of virgin polymers. Samples made of PET did not show completely satisfactory properties, as they displayed rather poor elastic modulus and ductility

Evolution of the Svalbard annual snow layer during the melting phase

Understanding and monitoring the evolution of annual snow is an important aspect of cryosphere research. Changes in physical proprieties such as hardness, presence of melt layers, or the shape and size of crystals can completely modify the robustness, propriety and quality of the snow. Evaluating these changes can inform the study and prediction of avalanches. The annual snow layer is also a sink for several compounds and elements. In the polar environment, many compounds can be accumulated during winter depositions, especially during the polar night. During the spring, the combination of solar radiation and the melting of annual snow can release these compounds and elements into the atmosphere and groundwater. An in-depth investigation of the evolution of the first meter of the annual snow layer was conducted in the glacier of Austre Brøggerbreen, Svalbard, between the 27th of March and the 31st of May, in concomitance with the start of the melting phase. The present monitoring study mainly aimed to evaluate changes in the thermal profile and water content during the formation of a new ice layer as well as the re-allocation of the total dissolved salts in the different snow layers.Understanding and monitoring the evolution of annual snow is an important aspect of cryosphere research. Changes in physical proprieties such as hardness, presence of melt layers, or the shape and size of crystals can completely modify the robustness, propriety and quality of the snow. Evaluating these changes can inform the study and prediction of avalanches. The annual snow layer is also a sink for several compounds and elements. In the polar environment, many compounds can be accumulated during winter depositions, especially during the polar night. During the spring, the combination of solar radiation and the melting of annual snow can release these compounds and elements into the atmosphere and groundwater. An in-depth investigation of the evolution of the first meter of the annual snow layer was conducted in the glacier of Austre Broggerbreen, Svalbard, between the 27th of March and the 31st of May, in concomitance with the start of the melting phase. The present monitoring study mainly aimed to evaluate changes in the thermal profile and water content during the formation of a new ice layer as well as the re-allocation of the total dissolved salts in the different snow layer