Math is in the air

Las matemáticas están presentes en todos los aspectos de nuestra vida, ¿pero somos conscientes de ello? La propuesta es una charla innovadora, que de forma amena y divertida, permita acercar las matemáticas de una manera visual y atractiva a estudiantes y público general. Para alcanzar este objetivo, se ha diseñado la charla combinando dos tipos de contenidos. Por un lado, referencias históricas sobre la evolución de las matemáticas desde sus orígenes como una mera herramienta para contar hasta la complejidad actual, que las hace imprescindibles para el desarrollo del conocimiento científico y para el avance de la sociedad. La otra vertiente de la charla se centra en ofrecer una visión de las matemáticas ligada a nuestra vida cotidiana partiendo de correlaciones llamativas con nuestras vivencias cotidianas. Así, se tratan temas como los vínculos de las matemáticas con nuestra percepción de la belleza, el uso de la estadística para ganar en los juegos de azar, su importancia en la búsqueda del amor o cómo la presencia de patrones matemáticos en la música pop. Nuestra intención es despertar en los asistentes la curiosidad por las matemáticas, mostrando su cara más desconocida, descubriendo los fascinantes aspectos que oculta esta maravillosa rama del conocimiento

Math mystery box: learning mathematics by playing

Nadie pone en duda la importancia de las matemáticas en el día a día, sin embargo, la didáctica en este ámbito ha sido una de las que menos ha evolucionado. Muchos docentes, desarrollan la asignatura empleando un modelo basado en la repetición de ejercicios, resultando en el tedio de los alumnos y causando una falta de motivación. Se propone una herramienta basada en la gamificación, integrada en una metodología de resolución de problemas, e incorpora un reto a resolver empleando los conocimientos matemáticos adquiridos y construyendo algunos nuevos. Consiste en un conjunto de cajas, unas dentro de otras, cerradas mediante candados, en las que se incluyen pistas. Únicamente la resolución de la anterior dará acceso a la siguiente. Para lograr el reto, los estudiantes deberán colaborar, favoreciendo el aprendizaje cooperativo. Deberán decodificar mensajes empleando técnicas antiguas, resolver sistemas de ecuaciones cuyas soluciones les permitirán abrir cajas fuertes y revelar mensajes ocultos empleando luz ultravioleta, de forma que la resolución se encuentra inmersa en una aventura de conocimiento. Así se redescubre el juego que nunca debería abandonarse y se propone una forma divertida de aprender matemáticas, evitando la falsa creencia de que “después del instituto éstas no sirven para nada"

Una estrategia integral de análisis de la educación en geología en la Educación Secundaria Obligatoria : contextos formales y no-formales

La percepción que como docentes tenemos de la paulatina pérdida de peso y de interés hacia las ciencias debe corroborarse con herramientas de análisis que ofrezcan resultados fiables y tangibles. En el caso de la geología esto es especialmente importante, ya que el creciente reconocimiento social contrasta con su baja aceptación en el ámbito educativo. Para ello se ha desarrollado una estrategia que analiza tres ámbitos diferenciados: el profesorado, las actitudes del alumnado y el tratamiento de la geología en los centros de interpretación. La principal aportación de este trabajo es el desarrollo y validación de metodologías de análisis específicas e independientes para cada uno de los tres ámbitos. Los resultados de la aplicación en el País Vasco ofrecen claves interesantes para futuras intervenciones educativas

PLANIFICACION FISCAL DE LA TRANSMISION INTERGENERACIONAL DE LA EMPRESA FAMILIAR

El principal objetivo del trabajo es, con el fin de realizar una planificación fiscal óptima, observar los aspectos fiscales que deben tener en cuenta las empresas familiares ante la posibilidad de transmitir su empresa a futuras generaciones. El trabajo de investigación se compone de dos partes, una conceptual y otra analítica. La parte conceptual se basa, en primer lugar, en explicar el término de Empresa Familiar para, posteriormente, estudiar su relevancia e importancia en la economía española. La parte analítica consistirá en analizar la planificación fiscal que deben tener en cuenta este tipo de empresas haciendo referencia a dos tributos: el Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio y el Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones. Para realizar el análisis del Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones nos vamos centrar en la normativa estatal y aragonesa. En definitiva, el trabajo tiene como finalidad profundizar en la siguiente pregunta ¿qué beneficios fiscales ostentan las empresas familiares aragonesas para su transmisión intergeneracional?<br /

Is it compatible with breastfeeding? www.e-lactancia.org: analysis of visits, user profile and most visited products

Introduction One of the factors to influence abandoning breastfeeding is mothers’ use of medications. The www.e-lactancia.org website is a reliable source in Spanish and English for online free-access information about the compatibility of medications with breastfeeding. The aim of this study was to analyse the search profiles, and groups and products, searched the most on this website. Materials and methods A retrospective and descriptive study of the e-lactancia.org website during 2014–2018. Google Analytics was used for data collection. The following variables were analysed: number of users and queries; professional profile; country; language; users’ and groups’ access modes/devices; most searched products. Results We found 16,821.559 users and 63,783.866 pages. Of users, 62.7 % were “mother/father”, and 31.9 % were health professionals. Visits came mostly from: Spain (25.86 %); Mexico (16.87 %); Argentina (7.99 %); Chile (7.31 %). The preferred access mode and device were organic searches (62.1 %) and mobile phones (73.4 %), respectively. Phytotherapy (14.4 %), antibacterial agents (12.3 %) and NSAIDs (12.3 %) were the most searched groups, and ibuprofen (6.25 %) was the most popular product. Conclusion Users and consultations in e-lactation increased significantly during the study period. Mothers/fathers were the main website users, followed by health professionals. The main consulted groups were antibacterial agents, NSAIDs and systemic phytotherapy. Ibuprofen, paracetamol and amoxicillin stood out as the most consulted products. These results revealed increase Internet resources use to solve parents and health professionals’ breastfeeding doubts. Future research should study how users (parents, health professionals) interact with this information

Trajectories of alcohol consumption during life and the risk of developing breast cancer

Background Whether there are lifetime points of greater sensitivity to the deleterious effects of alcohol intake on the breasts remains inconclusive. Objective To compare the influence of distinctive trajectories of alcohol consumption throughout a woman's life on development of breast cancer (BC). Methods 1278 confirmed invasive BC cases and matched (by age and residence) controls from the Epi-GEICAM study (Spain) were used. The novel group-based trajectory modelling was used to identify different alcohol consumption trajectories throughout women's lifetime. Results Four alcohol trajectories were identified. The first comprised women (45%) with low alcohol consumption (= 15 g/day), never having a low alcohol consumption. Comparing with the first trajectory, the fourth doubled BC risk (OR 2.19; 95% CI 1.27, 3.77), followed by the third (OR 1.44; 0.96, 2.16) and ultimately by the second trajectory (OR 1.17; 0.86, 1.58). The magnitude of BC risk was greater in postmenopausal women, especially in those with underweight or normal weight. When alcohol consumption was independently examined at each life stage, >= 15 g/day of alcohol consumption in adolescence was strongly associated with BC risk followed by consumption in adulthood. Conclusions The greater the alcohol consumption accumulated throughout life, the greater the risk of BC, especially in postmenopausal women. Alcohol consumption during adolescence may particularly influence BC risk.This study was funded by the Fundacion Cientifica Asociacion Espanola Contra el Cancer (AECC) (Scientific Foundation of the Spanish Association against Cancer 2006 & 2016) (Marina Pollan), Sociedad Espanola de Oncologia Medica (SEOM) (Spanish Society of Medical Oncology) (Miguel Martin), Scholarship 'Contrato de atraccion de talento' from Community of Madrid (Carolina Donat-Vargas), Fundacion Cerveza y Salud 2005 (Beer and Health Foundation 2005) (Miguel Martin) and Federacion de Asociaciones de Mujeres con Cancer de Mama (FECMA) (Spanish Federation of Associations of Women with Breast Cancer) (Miguel Martin, Marina Pollan)

Primary breast cancer and health related quality of life in Spanish women: The EpiGEICAM case-control study

This study evaluates the impact of breast cancer (BC) in health related quality of life (HRQL) and in psychological distress (PD) during the initial phases of the disease and looks for contributing factors. A multicentric case-control study, EpiGEICAM, was carried out. Incident BC cases and age- and residence- matched controls were included. Clinical, epidemiological, HRQL (SF-36) and PD information (GHQ-28) was collected. We used multivariable logistic regression models to estimate OR of low HRQL and of PD in cases compared to controls, and to identify factors associated with low HRQL and with PD. Among 896 BC cases and 890 control women, cases had poorer scores than both, the reference population and the control group, in all SF-36 scales. BC women with lower education, younger, active workers, never smokers, those with comorbidities, in stage IV and with surgical treatment had lower physical HRQL; factors associated with low mental HRQL were dissatisfaction with social support, being current smoker and having children. Cases had a fivefold increased odds of PD compared to controls. Managing comorbidities and trying to promote social support, especially in younger and less educated women, could improve well-being of BC patients

Prenatal Metals Exposure and pre-adolescents’ Emotional and Behavioral Problems

Emotional and behavioral problems during childhood raise the risk of subsequent developmental of mental disorders. Our aim was to study the association between maternal metal and trace element concentrations during gestation and these problems in 9 year-old children. The study sample comprised Spanish mother-child pairs in the INMA project (n = 1003). Metals and trace elements (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Tl and Zn) were measured in urine samples collected during pregnancy. Inorganic As metabolites were speciated in a subsample (n = 729). Emotional and behavioral problems were assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) composed of three scales: internalizing, externalizing and total problems. Sociodemographic, dietary and exposure to other environmental pollutants were obtained through questionnaires. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in brain- and metabolism-related genes APOE, BDNF, GSTP1, and PON1 were determined in cord blood. Multivariate negative binomial models were used. The interaction with sex and genotypes was evaluated including interaction terms. A multi-element analysis was carried out by a principal component analysis. Higher concentrations of Cu, monomethylarsonic acid, and Pb during pregnancy were associated with an increased incidence ratio risk (IRR) between 4.6 and 7.5% for internalizing and externalizing problems for all three CBCL scales in the children. Increasing Mo, Ni and Co concentrations were associated with higher IRR for internalizing problems (up to 8%), and Cd for externalizing problems (6.7%). Modifications by sex and genotypes were found for several associations. Multi-element analysis associated multiple metals and trace elements (Ni, Cu, Se, Cd and Pb) with higher internalizing problems.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. We are grateful to all the participants and their families for taking part in this study. We also appreciate the generous contribution in the study of all INMA members. A full roster of the INMA Project researchers can be found at http://www.proyectoinma.org/presentacion-inma/listado-investigadores/en_listado-investigadores.html. This study was supported by grants from Spanish government through the Ministry of Universities under the grant CAS21/00008 and grant for the requalification of the Spanish University, financed by the European Union, NextGeneration EU, Instituto de Salud Carlos III [FIS-FEDER: 13/1944, 16/1288, 17/00663 and 19/1338; FIS-FSE: 17/00260; Miguel Servet-FSE: MSII20/0006, FIS-PI06/0867, FIS-PI09/00090, CPII18/00018], CIBERESP, Department of Health of the Basque Government (2005111093, 2009111069, 2013111089, 2015111065), Generalitat Valenciana [BEST/2020/059, AICO/2020/285 and CIAICO/2021/132] and the Provincial Government of Gipuzkoa (DFG06/002, DFG08/001 and DFG15/221 and DFG 89/17). We also acknowledge support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the State Research Agency through the “Centro de Excelencia Severo Ochoa 2019–2023” Program (CEX2018-000806-S), and support from the Generalitat de Catalunya through the CERCA Program.Peer reviewe

Contribution of cardio-vascular risk factors to depressive status in the PREDIMED-PLUS Trial. A cross-sectional and a 2-year longitudinal study

Background Cardio-vascular disease and depression are thought to be closely related, due to shared risk factors. The aim of the study was to determine the association between cardio-vascular risk (CVR) factors and depressive status in a population (55-75 years) with metabolic syndrome (MetS) from the PREDIMED-Plus trial. Methods and findings Participants were classified into three groups of CVR according to the Framingham-based REGICOR function: (1) low (LR), (2) medium (MR) or (3) high/very high (HR). The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) was used to assess depressive symptoms at baseline and after 2 years. The association between CVR and depressive status at baseline (n = 6545), and their changes after 2 years (n = 4566) were evaluated through multivariable regression models (logistic and linear models). HR women showed higher odds of depressive status than LR [OR (95% CI) = 1.78 (1.26, 2.50)]. MR and HR participants with total cholesterol <160 mg/mL showed higher odds of depression than LR [OR (95% CI) = 1.77 (1.13, 2.77) and 2.83 (1.25, 6.42) respectively)] but those with total cholesterol ¿280 mg/mL showed lower odds of depression than LR [OR (95% CI) = 0.26 (0.07, 0.98) and 0.23 (0.05, 0.95), respectively]. All participants decreased their BDI-II score after 2 years, being the decrease smaller in MR and HR diabetic compared to LR [adjusted mean±SE = -0.52±0.20, -0.41 ±0.27 and -1.25±0.31 respectively). MR and HR participants with total cholesterol between 240-279 mg/mL showed greater decreases in the BDI-II score compared to LR (adjusted mean±SE = -0.83±0.37, -0.77±0.64 and 0.97±0.52 respectively). Conclusions Improving cardiovascular health could prevent the onset of depression in the elderly. Diabetes and total cholesterol in individuals at high CVR, may play a specific role in the precise response.The PREDIMED-Plus trial was supported by the European Research Council through a grant to MAM (Advanced Research Grant 2013-2018; 340918). The project was also supported by the official funding agency for biomedical research of the Spanish Government (ISCIII) through the Fondo de Investigación para la Salud (FIS), which is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (four coordinated FIS projects), who awarded grants to JS and JV (PI13/00673, PI13/00492, PI13/00272, PI13/01123, PI13/00462, PI13/00233, PI13/02184, PI13/00728, PI13/01090, PI13/01056, PI14/01722, PI14/00636, PI14/00618, PI14/00696, PI14/01206, PI14/01919, PI14/00853, PI14/01374, PI16/00473, PI16/00662, PI16/01873, PI16/01094, PI16/00501, PI16/00533, PI16/00381, PI16/00366, PI16/01522, PI16/01120, PI17/00764, PI17/01183, PI17/00855, PI17/01347, PI17/00525, PI17/01827, PI17/00532, PI17/00215, PI17/01441, PI17/00508, PI17/01732 and PI17/00926). The International Nut&Dried Fruit Council-FESNAD also provided funding through a grant to MAM (201302), and Recercaixa also awarded a grant to JS (2013ACUP00194). The Department of Health, Generalitat de Cataluña by the calls 'Acció instrumental de programes de recerca orientats en lámbit de la recercaila innovació en salut' and 'Pla estrategic de recerca i innovació en salut (PERIS),' also awarded a grant to FF (SLT006/17/00246). This research was also partially funded by: Consejería de Salud de la Junta de Andalucía (PI0458/2013, PS0358/2016, PI0137/2018); Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2017/017); SEMERGEN, CIBEROBN, FEDER and ISCIII (CB06/03); EU-H2020 Grants (Eat2beNICE/h2020-sfs-2016-2, ref.728018; PRIME/h2020-SC1-BHC-2018-2020, ref: 847879)

Longitudinal association of dietary acid load with kidney function decline in an older adult population with metabolic syndrome

Background: Diets high in acid load may contribute to kidney function impairment. This study aimed to investigate the association between dietary acid load and 1-year changes in glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR). Methods: Older adults with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome (mean age 65 ± 5 years, 48% women) from the PREDIMED-Plus study who had available data on eGFR (n = 5,874) or UACR (n = 3,639) at baseline and after 1 year of follow-up were included in this prospective analysis. Dietary acid load was estimated as potential renal acid load (PRAL) and net endogenous acid production (NEAP) at baseline from a food frequency questionnaire. Linear and logistic regression models were fitted to evaluate the associations between baseline tertiles of dietary acid load and kidney function outcomes. One year-changes in eGFR and UACR were set as the primary outcomes. We secondarily assessed ≥ 10% eGFR decline or ≥10% UACR increase. Results: After multiple adjustments, individuals in the highest tertile of PRAL or NEAP showed higher one-year changes in eGFR (PRAL, β: -0.64 ml/min/1.73 m2; 95% CI: -1.21 to -0.08 and NEAP, β: -0.56 ml/min/1.73 m2; 95% CI: -1.13 to 0.01) compared to those in the lowest category. No associations with changes in UACR were found. Participants with higher levels of PRAL and NEAP had significantly higher odds of developing ≥10% eGFR decline (PRAL, OR: 1.28; 95% CI: 1.07-1.54 and NEAP, OR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.03-1.50) and ≥10 % UACR increase (PRAL, OR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.04-1.46) compared to individuals with lower dietary acid load. Conclusions: Higher PRAL and NEAP were associated with worse kidney function after 1 year of follow-up as measured by eGFR and UACR markers in an older Spanish population with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome. Keywords: albuminuria; chronic kidney disease (CKD); dietary acid load; glomerular filtration rate (GFR); kidney function; net endogenous acid production (NEAP); potential renal acid load (PRAL); renal nutrition