Visualisation of Perception of Experiential Activities in Business and Administration and Economy

This paper explores how to incorporate information visualization tools into qualitative studies to represent the underlying structure of knowledge. Information visualization plays a key role in many areas such as decision-making, data mining, market studies, or knowledge management. A case of experiential learning was developed for Quantitative Techniques in Business and Administration and Economy Degrees at the University of Granada, Spain. The goal is to analyze the opinion of students (n = 227) on the development of the activity through information visualization techniques. The gathered information was subjected to a categorization process to unify and homogenize the responses. After a term-clumping process, a co-word analysis using the VosViewer software is used to analyze the relationships among terms and provide the network maps. Results display the main associations and clusters of terms used when assessing the experiential activity, using qualitative techniques. In conclusion, the strengths of data visualization enabling a better understanding of data for qualitative studies are established

Copper microlocalisation and changes in leaf morphology, chloroplast ultrastructure and antioxidative response in white lupin and soybean grown in copper excess

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10265-013-0583-1The microlocalisation of Cu was examined in the leaves of white lupin and soybean grown hydroponically in the presence of 1.6 (control) or 192 μM (excess) Cu, along with its effect on leaf morphology, (ultra)structure and the antioxidative response. The 192 μM dose led to a reduction in the total leaf area and leaf thickness in both species, although more strongly so in white lupin. In the latter species it was also associated with smaller spongy parenchyma cells, and smaller spaces between them, while in the soybean it more strongly reduced the size of the palisade parenchyma and epidermal cells. Energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis showed that under Cu excess the metal was mainly localised inside the spongy parenchyma cells of the white lupin leaves, and in the lower epidermis cell walls in those of the soybean. Cu excess also promoted ultrastructural chloroplast alterations, reducing the photosynthetic capacity index and the green area of the leaves, especially in the soybean. Despite this, soybean appeared to be more tolerant to Cu excess than white lupin, because soybean displayed (1) lower accumulation of Cu in the leaves, (2) enhanced microlocalisation of Cu in the cell walls and (3) greater levels of induced total -SH content and superoxide dismutase and catalase activities that are expected for better antioxidative responsesFunding for this study was provided by the Spanish MCyT (project CTM 2010-21922-C02-02/TECNO), the Autonomous Community of Madrid (project S2009/AMB-1478) and the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (project POII10-0211-5015

Capability of cross-hole electrical configurations for monitoring rapid plume migration experiments

Cross-hole electrical resistivity tomography is a useful tool in geotechnical, hydrogeological or fluid/gas plume migration studies. It allows better characterization of deep subsurface structures and monitoring of the involved processes. However, due to the large amount of possible four-electrode combinations between boreholes, the choice of the most efficient ones for rapid plume migration experiments (real-time monitoring), becomes a challenge. In this work, a numerical simulation to assess the capabilities and constraints of the most common cross-hole configurations for real-time monitoring is presented. Four-electrode configurations, sensitivity, dependence on the body location and amount of data were taken into account. The analysis of anomaly detection and the symmetry of the sensitivity pattern of cross-hole configurations allowed significant reduction of the amount of data and maintaining the maximum potential resolution of each configuration for real-time monitoring. The obtained results also highlighted the benefit of using the cross-hole AB-MN configuration (with both current - or potential - electrodes located in the same borehole) combined with other configurations with complementary sensitivity pattern

Land CSEM Simulations and Experimental Test Using Metallic Casing in a Geothermal Exploration Context: Vallès Basin (NE Spain) Case Study

Controlled-source electromagnetic (CSEM) measurements are complementary data for magnetotelluric (MT) characterization although its methodology on land is not sufficiently developed and tested as in marine environments. Acquiring expertise in CSEM is crucial for surveys in places where MT cannot be performed due to high levels of cultural noise. To acquire that expertise, we perform CSEM experiments in the Vallès fault [Northeast (NE), Spain], where MT results have been satisfactory and allow us to verify the CSEM results. The Vallès basin is relevant for potential heat generation because of the presence of several geothermal anomalies and its nearby location in urban areas. In this article, we present the experimental setup for that region, a 2-D joint MT+CSEM inverse model, several 3-D CSEM simulations in the presence of metallic casing, and its comparison with real data measurements. We employ a parallel and high-order vector finite element algorithm to discretize the governing equations. By using an adapted meshing strategy, different scenarios are simulated to study the influence of the source position/direction and the conductivity model in a metallic casing presence. An excellent agreement between the simulated data and analytical/real field data demonstrates the feasibility of study metallic structures in realistic configurations. Our numerical results confirm that metallic casing strongly influences electromagnetic (EM) responses, making surface measurements more sensitive to resistivity variations near the metallic structure. It could be beneficial getting higher signal-to-noise ratios and sensitivity to deep targets. However, such a casing effect depends on the input model (e.g., conductivity contrasts, frequency, and geometry)

Chemical composition of Medieval stained glasses from the Cathedral of León (Spain)

A selection of glass samples from the stained glass windows of León Cathedral (Spain) dating from Medieval and Renaissance times has been chemically characterized. The techniques used for this characterization were X-ray diffraction, inductively coupled plasma. X-ray fluorescence and flame photometry. The analyses indicate that the samples are potash-lime glass, with the Medieval glass having a low alumina concentration. This fact has given rise to its deterioration throughout history due to environmental conditions

On the detectability of Teide volcano magma chambers (Tenerife, Canary Islands) with magnetotelluric data

Tenerife has been the subject of numerous studies covering a wide range of fields. Many studies have been focused on characterising the magmatic plumbing system. Even so, a controversy still exists regarding the location and size of the current magma chambers. Several magnetotelluric (MT) surveys have been carried out in the island, but no conductivity anomalies associated with the chambers have been detected. We report the results of a set of tests conducted against the 3-D resistivity model of the island, to determine the characteristics of the detectable chambers with the MT data. The most remarkable results indicate that the MT dataset is incompatible with a large-scale mafic reservoir located at shallower depths than 8 km b.s.l. However, shallower phonolitic chambers smaller than 3 x 3 x 1 km(3) could be undetected by the existing MT sites and new data should be acquired to confirm or not their existence. This new information is essential in volcanic islands like Tenerife, since many volcanic hazards are related to the size and depth of the sources of magma. Additionally, a joint interpretation of the obtained results together with other information is summarised in a hypothetical model, allowing us to better understand the internal structure of the island

A layer stripping approach for monitoring resistivity variations using surface magnetotelluric responses

The resolution of surface-acquired magnetotelluric data is typically not sufficiently high enough in monitoring surveys to detect and quantify small resistivity variations produced within an anomalous structure at a given depth within the subsurface. To address this deficiency we present an approach, called "layer stripping", based on the analytical solution of the one-dimensional magnetotelluric problem to enhance the sensitivity of surface magnetotelluric responses to such subtle subsurface temporal variations in resistivity within e.g. reservoirs. Given a well-known geoelectrical baseline model of a reservoir site, the layer stripping approach aims to remove the effect of the upper, unchanging structures in order to simulate the time-varying magnetotelluric responses at depth. This methodology is suggested for monitoring all kinds of reservoirs, e.g. hydrocarbons, gas, geothermal, compress air storage, etc., but here we focus on CO2 geological storage. We study one-dimensional and three-dimensional resistivity variations in the reservoir layer and the feasibility of the method is appraised by evaluating the error of the approach and defining different detectability parameters. The geoelectrical baseline model of the Hontomín site (Spain) for CO2 geological storage in a deep saline aquifer is taken as our exemplar for studying the validity of the 1D assumption in a real scenario. We conclude that layer stripping could help detect resistivity variations and locate them in the space, showing potential to also sense unforeseen resistivity variations at all depths. The proposed approach constitutes an innovative contribution to take greater advantage of surface magnetotelluric data and to use the method as a cost-effective permanent monitoring technique in suitable geoelectrical scenarios

Spreading versus biomass production by colonies of the fish pathogen Flavobacterium psychrophilum: role of the nutrient concentration

Colonies of the fish pathogen Flavobacterium psychrophilum have gliding motility in media with low agar concentrations. Although gliding motility, particularly in Flavobacterium johnsoniae, has been well-studied, little is known about its regulation by environmental factors. The work described here shows that the ability of F. psychrophilum to spread over surfaces depends on nutrient availability. In fact, as the nutrient contents of the medium decreased, spreading was favored and the diameter of the colonies increased. Macroscopy examination revealed modifications in colony morphology as nutrient depletion increased: from a dense and defined colony to the formation of microcolonies inside a general colony structure. Additionally, colony expansion dynamics and population density across the colony radius varied inversely with bacterial biomass production. Motility was an immediate response when bacteria were transferred from a rich to a more diluted medium. Our results suggest that, when nutrients are limiting, F. psychrophilum activates a specific growth mode that enables it to colonize surfaces by means of gliding motility. The use of diluted media allowed the differentiation, among previously isolated F. psychrophilum non-gliding mutants, of those completely unable to glide and those with only partially impaired gliding ability. [Int Microbiol 2009; 12(4):207-214

Improving the modeling of geomagnetically induced currents in Spain

Vulnerability assessments of the risk posed by geomagnetically induced currents (GICs) to power transmission grids benefit from accurate knowledge of the geomagnetic field variations at each node of the grid, the Earth's geoelectrical structures beneath them, and the topology and relative resistances of the grid elements in the precise instant of a storm. The results of previous analyses on the threat posed by GICs to the Spanish 400 kV grid are improved in this study by resorting to different strategies to progress in the three aspects identified above. First, although at midlatitude regions the source fields are rather uniform, we have investigated the effect of their spatial changes by interpolating the field from the records of several close observatories with different techniques. Second, we have performed a magnetotelluric (MT) sounding in the vicinity of one of the transformers where GICs are measured to determine the geoelectrical structure of the Earth, and we have identified the importance of estimating the MT impedance tensor when predicting GIC, especially where the effect of lateral heterogeneities is important. Finally, a sensitivity analysis to network changes has allowed us to assess the reliability of both the information about the network topology and resistances, and the assumptions made when all the details or the network status are not available. In our case, the most essential issue to improve the coincidence between model predictions and actual observations came from the use of realistic geoelectric information involving local MT measurements

On the observation of magnetic events on broad-band seismometers

The objective of this contribution is to get new insights into the effects of magnetic field variations of natural and anthropogenic origin on broad-band seismic stations. Regarding natural sources of magnetic perturbations, we have investigated if the Sudden Storm Commencements (SSC) cataloged during the 24th solar cycle (2008-2019) can be systematically identified in broad-band seismic stations distributed worldwide. The results show that the 23 SSC events with a mean amplitude above 30 nT and most of those with lower energy but still clearly identified in the magnetometer detection network can be observed at broad-band stations' network using a simple low-pass filter. Although the preliminary impulse of those signals is usually stronger at stations located at high latitudes, major SSC are observed at seismic stations distributed worldwide. Regarding anthropogenic sources, we focus on the short period seismic signals recorded in urban environments which are correlated with the activity of the railway transportation system. We have analyzed collocated measurements of electric field and seismic signals within Barcelona, evidencing that significant changes in the electric field following the activity of the transportation systems can be attributed to leakage currents transmitted to the soil by trains. During space weather events, electric currents in the magnetosphere and ionosphere experience large variations inducing telluric currents near the Earth surface, which in turn generate a secondary magnetic field. In the case of underground trains, leakage currents are transmitted to the soil, which in turn can result in local variations in the magnetic field. The observed signals in modern seismometers can be related to the reaction of the suspension springs to these magnetic field variations or to the effect of the magnetic field variations on the force transducers used to keep the mass fixed