Numerical evaluation of the Green's functions for arbitrarily shaped cylindrical enclosures and their optimization by a new spatial images method

IIn this paper, a spatial image technique is used to efficiently calculate the mixed potential Green’s functions associated with electric sources, when they are placed inside arbitrarily shaped cylindrical cavities. The technique is based on placing electric dipole images and charges outside the cavity region. Their strength and orientation are thencalculated by imposing the appropriate boundary conditions for the fields at discrete points on the metallic wall. A method for the assessment of the potentials accuracy is proposed, and several optimization techniques are presented. Three cavities are analyzed to demonstrate the usefulness of the techniques. The cutoff frequencies and potentials patterns are compared to those obtained by a standard finite elements technique, showing excellent agreement. Finally, a band-pass filter based on coupled lines is analyzed, demonstrating the practical value of the technique.This work has been developed with support from the Spanish National Project (CICYT) with reference TEC2004-04313-C02-02/TCM, and the Regional Seneca Project with reference 02972/PI/0

The Value of Natural Stones to Gain in the Cultural and Geological Diversity of Our Global Heritage.

[EN]The use of stone to build shelters was an important step in terms of ensuring buildings’ durability and security in pre-historic times. It was also an acknowledgment of power and grandeur when societies demonstrated their respect for their leaders and gods by building stone monuments. For this reason, cathedrals, churches, and other magnificent religious monuments were built around the globe; however, the importance of the stone used in their construction itself is not sufficiently appreciated as the key factor ensuring the endurance of these historic buildings. While Western countries have long used iconic buildings to promote their heritage and advance in other socio-economic aspects, including tourism, other regions are yet to take full advantage of this outlook, even though their monumental structures may be equally impressive. Those important monuments are built of stone, which were referred to as Heritage Stones by some research groups, and their recognition would showcase the cultural and geological diversity of the world. However, there are many stones of heritage importance from geographic areas that are under-represented in the scientific literature and the work of research groups. This paper presents a review of the degree of geographical diversity in the recognition of stones and their heritage value.GIR CHARROC

Administrative and Electoral Law in Ecuador and Argentina

The Argentinean and Ecuadorian Electoral Law comprises a branch of the Administrative Law and this is part of the Public Law, it is intended to make a comparative analysis between the institutions of public law in electoral matters existing in both nations; National Electoral Chamber of Argentina and the National Electoral Council and Electoral Disputes Tribunal of Ecuador, the application of the electoral resources in these legislations, establishing similarities and differences between these electoral systems for a better study, highlighting that the electoral law in Ecuador is a new matter of law that was born by the need to have independent electoral bodies of the executive powers and that the electoral justice constitutes a specialized justice compared to other bodies of the systems of administration of justice

Grain Products: Traditional and Innovative Technologies

The current knowledge regarding various cereals, their composition, and their processing methods is extensive. There is a solid understanding of the three most well-known cereals (wheat, maize, and rice), as well as for widely consumed products like bread, pasta, or beer. However, when dealing with other cereals or grains, or with less popular products, the knowledge base is not as robust, necessitating further research to establish a foundational understanding. While the characteristics required for high-quality wheat flour for breadmaking or other purposes are well understood, and in-depth knowledge has been obtained regarding the major commercial varieties and their suitability for different processes [1], the same level of understanding is lacking for other cereals, especially those used in local products or gluten-free alternatives to products traditionally made with wheat. Actions aimed at improving the quality of products intended for special groups, or the nutritional improvement of grain-based products, are also of interest.This work was funded by the FEDER Cooperación Interreg VI A Espanha—Portugal (POCTEP) 2021–2027 through the project TRANSCoLAB PLUS 0112_TRANSCOLAB_PLUS_2_P.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gender diversity in editorial boards of scientific journals. Some Earth Science case studies for a Geoethical reflection.

[EN]Any scientific area can benefit from the contributions of a diverse society. Upon reflection, many notable achievements have been made by women to the advancement of science, but they were not highlighted enough. Such was the case of Hedy Lamarr, who co-authored the development of a radio guidance system (the start of the present Wi-Fi) or Rosalind Franklin, who contributed enormously to the discovery of the structure of DNA. But they were shadowed by their male counterparts. The same happens today. The ratio male/female in most important scientific recognitions, like the Nobel prize, is very illustrative. This situation also applies to the inclusion of female research- ers in journal editorial boards, where the main process of manuscripts management takes place. Steps have been done to correct the disparity, but actions need to be reviewed. This paper aims to compare the evolution of gender diversity within the editorial boards of six quality scholarly journals dealing with Earth Sciences to see how gender diversity has been considered in the update of board panels along the years. The conclusions are that there is a long way to go to reach gender diversity, but also that the implementation of constructive changes may trigger a definitive alteration in these trends through good practices.GIR CHARROC

Efficient Calculation of the Green's Functions for Multilayered Shielded Cavities with Right Isosceles-Triangular Cross-Section

An efficient calculation of the Green’s functions inside multilayered shielded cavities with right isosceles-triangular cross-section is presented. The method is entirely developed in the spatial domain, and it is based on image theory. The idea is to use the spatial-domain Green’s functions inside a multilayered shielded square box, in order to accurately obtain the Green’s functions for the right isosceles-triangular cavity. Image theory is then used to enforce the boundary conditions along the non-equal side of the triangle. It is shown that the new algorithm is very robust, with limited computational effort. Resonance frequencies and potential patterns of a triangular cavity have been calculated and compared with those obtained by other techniques, showing very good agreement. Finally, a transversal filter inside a multilayered triangular-shaped cavity is designed, manufactured and tested using the developed technique.This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science under Grant FPU-AP2006-015 and with the Project TEC2007-67630-C03-02

Mejorando las habilidades de comprensión lectura de un texto de ficción usando mapas mentales en una clase de idioma extranjero en el grado décimo

Many foreign language students face challenges in the classroom when dealing with reading comprehension activities resulting in poor school performance. Therefore, this study aims at helping tenth-grade students in a public school located in Santander to improve their reading comprehension skills on a short fictional text by using mind maps as a learning strategy and also to help students become independent and self-directed learners. A pre-test and a post-test, as well as field notes were used to analyze students' usage of mind maps to demonstrate comprehension of a short fictional text. The results of this study showed that students benefited from the teacher's modeling of the mind maps in order to understand a short text because students were able to add more details to their mind maps after the intervention. Furthermore, the evidence indicated that mind maps benefited a student with learning impairment to improve his vocabulary and reading comprehension skills of a short reading text.Muchos estudiantes de idiomas poseen dificultades cuando realizan actividades de comprensión de lectura, lo que da lugar a resultados escolares deficientes. Por lo tanto, este estudio tiene como objetivo ayudar a los estudiantes del grado décimo en un colegio público ubicado en Santander a mejorar sus habilidades de comprensión de lectura sobre un texto de ficción corto usando mapas mentales como estrategia de aprendizaje y al mismo ayudarles a convertirse en estudiantes independientes y autónomos. Una Pre y Post prueba, así como también las notas de campo fueron usadas para analizar el uso de mapas mentales y de esta manera demostrar comprensión de un texto corto de ficción. Los resultados de este estudio indican que los estudiantes se beneficiaron de la modelación de los mapas mentales por parte del profesor ya que los estudiantes lograron entender el texto y añadir más información a sus mapas mentales después de la intervención. Adicionalmente, la evidencia indica que los mapas mentales beneficiaron a un estudiante con dificultades de aprendizaje a mejorar su vocabulario y sus habilidades de comprensión de lectura de un texto corto

A new neural network technique for the design of multilayered microwave shielded bandpass filters

In this work, we propose a novel technique based on neural networks, for the design of microwave filters in shielded printed technology. The technique uses radial basis function neural networks to represent the non linear relations between the quality factors and coupling coefficients, with the geometrical dimensions of the resonators. The radial basis function neural networks are employed for the first time in the design task of shielded printed filters, and permit a fast and precise operation with only a limited set of training data. Thanks to a new cascade configuration, a set of two neural networks provide the dimensions of the complete filter in a fast and accurate way. To improve the calculation of the geometrical dimensions, the neural networks can take as inputs both electrical parameters and physical dimensions computed by other neural networks. The neural network technique is combined with gradient based optimization methods to further improve the response of the filters. Results are presented to demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed technique for the design of practical microwave printed coupled line and hairpin filters