eBiblio, e-book lending services for public libraries

Spain’s Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport has promoted an ebooks project through which Spanish public libraries acquire the licenses for the use of e-books and a computer system that manages the loans. The eBiblio platform allows users of public libraries with internet access to download and read ebooks and audiobooks. The service has been available since September of 2014 through the library networks of various cities and regions

eBiblio, servicio de préstamo de libros electrónicos en bibliotecas públicas

eBiblio, e-book lending services for public libraries. Spain’s Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport has promoted an ebooks project through which Spanish public libraries acquire the licenses for the use of e-books and a computer system that manages the loans. The eBiblio platform allows users of public libraries with internet access to download and read ebooks and audiobooks. The service has been available since September of 2014 through the library networks of various cities and regions

Pregunte: las bibliotecas responden (Ask a librarian). Virtual reference services in Spain’s public libraries

Review and development of the Spanish virtual reference service Pregunte: las bibliotecas responden (Ask a librarian). Description of main characteristics, workflows and statistical analysis. Description of the recently established chat servic

Proceso de enseñanza-aprendizajes basado en competencias

Memoria ID-070. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2013-2014

Thermal Performance Assessment of Walls Made of Three Types of Sustainable Concrete Blocks by Means of FEM and Validated through an Extensive Measurement Campaign

The thermal behavior of three different walls, made with and without by-products, is assessed by means of the Finite Element Method, aiming to evaluate its performance in terms of the sustainable construction of the blocks. Results were compared to those obtained from an experimental campaign, aiming at validation of the model. The by-products used for the blocks were “lime sludge” and “sawdust”, whose performance was compared against the traditional blocks made of concrete as a reference, aiming to demonstrate its sustainability, showing decreases of the thermal transmittance up to 10.5%. Additionally, following the same methodology, the thermal behavior of these above-mentioned blocks but now with added internal insulation made of “recycled cellulose” was assessed, showing higher decreases up to 25.5%, increasing sustainability by addressing an additional reduction in waste, so the right combination of using by-products and the insulating filler in their cavities has been revealed as a promising way of optimizing the walls, offering a relevant improvement in energy savings. Finally, when comparing the U-values of the blocks made of concrete without insulation versus those made of by-products, with insulation, improvements up to 33.3% were reached. The adaptation of the procedure through a moisture correction factor was also incorporated

Carbonate laminae recorded in a siliciclastic tidal flat colonized by microbial mats

Microbial mats in siliciclastic coastal environments are considered as non-lithifying systems that lack the potential for calcification. This work documents precipitation and preservation of well-defined, laterally continuous carbonate laminae in low-relief microbial mats from a siliciclastic supratidal flat in northern Patagonia (Paso Seco, Argentina). Petrographic, epifluorescence, and SEM-EDS studies of surficial and buried microbial mats show that they are composed of repeated sediment sequences comprised of four different types of laminae, which are, from base to top: (A) a sand and silt lamina, (B) a lamina largely composed of organic matter displaying moulds of subvertical cyanobacteria filaments, (C) a lamina composed of dense micritic carbonate, which is cut by moulds of vertical cyanobacteria filaments, and (D) a lamina composed of organic matter containing abundant horizontal cyanobacteria filaments. The formation of each different lamina is strongly controlled by the environmental conditions, characterized by episodic seawater flooding, followed by several days to weeks in which water remains covering the sediment and gradually evaporates producing a salinity increase and the precipitation of calcite, gypsum and halite. Thus, the basal sand and silt lamina forms as the result of the transport of siliciclastic grains and particles during seawater flooding. The overlying lamina B, composed of organic matter with moulds of subvertical cyanobacteria filaments, is formed when calm water conditions are recovered and organic material is produced by photosynthetic microbial activity. The following lamina C, composed of dense micritic carbonate, precipitates when the salinity of stagnant water reaches CaCO3 supersaturation. Finally, the uppermost lamina D, composed of organic matter with horizontal cyanobacteria filaments, is developed while the sediment surface is drying and gypsum and halite precipitate, although these minerals are not preserved in the sediment because they dissolve during subsequent inundations. All these observations show that well-developed, laterally-continuous carbonate laminae may be formed and preserved in a siliciclastic tidal environment if biotic and abiotic sedimentary processes closely interact to create the required conditions. The studied microbial mats increase sediment impermeability, which favours water retention in the flat and, thus, subsequent evaporation of the retained seawater. Moreover, microbial cells and EPS (extracellular polymeric substance) suspended in seawater might act as nuclei for CaCO3 precipitation, which will later settle down on the microbial mat. In addition, EPS of the microbial mats may also serve as nucleus for in situ carbonate precipitation.Fil: Maisano, Lucia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Geología; ArgentinaFil: Quijada, Isabel Emma. Universidad de Oviedo; EspañaFil: Cuadrado, Diana Graciela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Geología; ArgentinaFil: Perillo, Vanesa Liliana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia; ArgentinaFil: Pan, Jeronimo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Geología de Costas y del Cuaternario. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Geología de Costas y del Cuaternario; ArgentinaFil: Martinez, Ana María. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Química; Argentin

Inmigración y prejuicio: actitudes de una muestra de adolescentes almerienses

The aim of this research is to know the concept a sample of adolescents living in an area with many foreign workers have about two immigrant groups (Black africans and Moroccans). A sample of 712 adolescents aged 13 to 18 filled up a version of the Modern Racism Scale (McConahay et al., 1981) and an Emotion Scale. Results show low prejudice levels towards both groups. Likewise, evoked emotions, either positive or negative, are low in intensity. There are no differences between subsamples, neither in Modern Racism nor in Emotions. However, some differences are found in some variables, sex and age, which establish different prejudice levels between groups. Traditional negative emotions are positively related to Modern Racism whereas positive emotions are negatively related to it. Results are discussed in relation to the literature and previous research carried out in the same region.ResumenEl objetivo del presente trabajo es conocer la imagen que los adolescentes de una zona con alta recepción de trabajadores extranjeros tienen acerca de dos grupos de inmigrantes: subsaharianos y marroquíes. Se empleó una muestra de 712 sujetos de entre 13 y 18 años, que respondían a una versión de la Escala de Racismo Moderno (McConahay y cols., 1981) y a una escala de emociones. Los resultados muestran un bajo índice de prejuicio hacia ambos grupos. Así mismo, las emociones evocadas por los inmigrantes, tanto positivas como negativas, tienen baja intensidad. No se aprecian diferencias entre las submuestras que evaluaban a cada grupo de inmigrantes, ni en racismo moderno ni en emociones, aunque sí en ciertas variables que establecen diferencias entre los grupos en los niveles de prejuicio (sexo y edad). Las emociones negativas tradicionales se relacionan positivamente con el racismo moderno, y las emociones positivas lo hacen de forma negativa. Los resultados se discuten en relación con la literatura y con resultados obtenidos previamente en la misma zona con otras muestras.AbstractThe aim of this research is to know the concept a sample of adolescents living in an area with many foreign workers have about two immigrant groups (Black africans and Moroccans). A sample of 712 adolescents aged 13 to 18 filled up a version of the Modern Racism Scale (McConahay et al., 1981) and an Emotion Scale. Results show low prejudice levels towards both groups. Likewise, evoked emotions, either positive or negative, are low in intensity. There are no differences between subsamples, neither in Modern Racism nor in Emotions. However, some differences are found in some variables, sex and age, which establish different prejudice levels between groups. Traditional negative emotions are positively related to Modern Racism whereas positive emotions are negatively related to it. Results are discussed in relation to the literature and previous research carried out in the same region

Metodologías para la evaluación de competencias

Memoria ID-0002. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2014-2015

Scutoids are a geometrical solution to three-dimensional packing of epithelia

As animals develop, tissue bending contributes to shape the organs into complex three-dimensional structures. However, the architecture and packing of curved epithelia remains largely unknown. Here we show by means of mathematical modelling that cells in bent epithelia can undergo intercalations along the apico-basal axis. This phenomenon forces cells to have different neighbours in their basal and apical surfaces. As a consequence, epithelial cells adopt a novel shape that we term “scutoid”. The detailed analysis of diverse tissues confirms that generation of apico-basal intercalations between cells is a common feature during morphogenesis. Using biophysical arguments, we propose that scutoids make possible the minimization of the tissue energy and stabilize three-dimensional packing. Hence, we conclude that scutoids are one of nature's solutions to achieve epithelial bending. Our findings pave the way to understand the three-dimensional organization of epithelial organs.España Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología BFU2013-48988-C2-1-P and BFU2016-8079