Soft Skills: A Comparative Analysis Between Online and Classroom Teaching

Currently the Spanish universities are making a great effort to effectively incorporate the development and assessment of generic skills in their training programs. Information and communications technologies (ICT) offer a wide range of possibilities but create uncertainty among teachers about the process and results. It is considered of interest to conduct a study to analyze the extent to which social skills like commitment, communication and teamwork are acquired by students and teachers. It seeks to ascertain the influence of the learning context, online or classroom training, in the development of these personal skills among the participants in the sample. For this study two universities have been chosen, Universidad a Distancia de Madrid (UDIMA) offering online training environment, and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) with classroom training modality. A total of 257 individuals, 230 students and 27 teachers have answered the survey called Evalsoft. This instrument was designed in the project with the same name by a research team from Universidad Complutense of Madrid (UCM). Some interesting conclusions can be highlighted: it is in the online context where there are higher levels of commitment and teamwork than in the classroom modality; teachers have higher social skills that students and these improve with age. Sex and the training program appear to influence these social skills

AATR an ionospheric activity indicator specifically based on GNSS measurements

This work reviews an ionospheric activity indicator useful for identifying disturbed periods affecting the performance of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). This index is based in the Along Arc TEC Rate (AATR) and can be easily computed from dual-frequency GNSS measurements. The AATR indicator has been assessed over more than one Solar Cycle (2002–2017) involving about 140 receivers distributed world-wide. Results show that it is well correlated with the ionospheric activity and, unlike other global indicators linked to the geomagnetic activity (i.e. DST or Ap), it is sensitive to the regional behaviour of the ionosphere and identifies specific effects on GNSS users. Moreover, from a devoted analysis of different Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) performances in different ionospheric conditions, it follows that the AATR indicator is a very suitable mean to reveal whether SBAS service availability anomalies are linked to the ionosphere. On this account, the AATR indicator has been selected as the metric to characterise the ionosphere operational conditions in the frame of the European Space Agency activities on the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay System (EGNOS). The AATR index has been adopted as a standard tool by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for joint ionospheric studies in SBAS. In this work we explain how the AATR is computed, paying special attention to the cycle-slip detection, which is one of the key issues in the AATR computation, not fully addressed in other indicators such as the Rate Of change of the TEC Index (ROTI). After this explanation we present some of the main conclusions about the ionospheric activity that can extracted from the AATR values during the above mentioned long-term study. These conclusions are: (a) the different spatial correlation related with the MOdified DIP (MODIP) which allows to clearly separate high, mid and low latitude regions, (b) the large spatial correlation in mid latitude regions which allows to define a planetary index, similar to the geomagnetic ones, (c) the seasonal dependency which is related with the longitude and (d) the variation of the AATR value at different time scales (hourly, daily, seasonal, among others) which confirms most of the well-known time dependences of the ionospheric events, and finally, (e) the relationship with the space weather events.Postprint (published version

Dialogic literary gatherings and out-of-home child care: Creation of new meanings through classic literature

Research on out-of-home child care has revealed that foster care programmes focused on educational attainment and reading have the potential to improve the academic outcomes of children in care. However, no studies have examined which elements of these programmes positively benefit children's emotional well-being. This article presents evidence of the positive effects of implementing a successful educational action, dialogic literary gatherings, in a children's residential care institution. A qualitative study using a communicative-oriented methodology was conducted and involved five participant observations and eight daily life stories with children in out-of-home care in Catalonia (Spain). The children's reflections demonstrated that reading classic books, such as Dickens' Oliver Twist, deeply influenced their feelings and self-conceptions and created new and exciting meaning in their lives

Stand types discrimination comparing machine-learning algorithms in Monteverde, Canary Islands.

Aim of study: The main objective is to determine the best machine-learning algorithm to classify the stand types of Monteverde forests combining LiDAR, orthophotography, and Sentinel-2 data, thus providing an easy and cheap method to classify Monteverde stand types.Area of study: 1500 ha forest in Monteverde, North Tenerife, Canary Islands.Material and methods: RF, SVML, SVMR and ANN algorithms are used to classify the three Monteverde stand types.  Before training the model, feature selection of LiDAR, orthophotography, and Sentinel-2 data through VSURF was carried out.  Comparison of its accuracy was performed.Main results: Five LiDAR variables were found to be the most efficient for classifying each object, while only one Sentinel-2 index and one Sentinel-2 band was valuable.  Additionally, standard deviation and mean of the Red orthophotography colour band, and ratio between Red and Green bands were also found to be suitable.  SVML is confirmed as the most accurate algorithm (0.904, 0.041 SD) while ANN showed the lowest value of 0.891 (0.073 SD).  SVMR and RF obtain 0.902 (0.060 SD) and 0.904 (0.056 SD) respectively.  SVML was found to be the best method given its low standard deviation.Research highlights: The similar high accuracy values among models confirm the importance of taking into account diverse machine-learning methods for stand types classification purposes and different explanatory variables.  Although differences between errors may not seem relevant at a first glance, due to the limited size of the study area with only three plus two categories, such differences could be highly important when working at large scales with more stand types.ADDITIONAL KEY WORDSRF algorithm, SVML algorithm, SVMR algorithm, ANN algorithm, LiDAR, orthophotography, Sentinel-2ABBREVIATIONS USEDANN, artificial neural networks algorithm; Band04, Sentinel-2 band 04 image data; BR, brezal; DTHM, digital tree height model; DTHM-2016, digital tree height model based on 2016 LiDAR data; DTM, digital terrain model; DTM-2016, digital terrain model based on 2016 LiDAR data; FBA, fayal-brezal-acebiñal; FCC, canopy cover; HEIGHT-2009, maximum height based on 2009 LiDAR data; HGR, height growth based on 2009 and 2016 LiDAR data; LA, laurisilva; NDVI705, Sentinel-2 index image data; NMF, non-Monteverde forest; NMG, non-Monteverde ground; P95-2016, height percentile 95 based on 2016 LiDAR data; RATIO R/G, ratio between Red and Green bands orthophotograph data; RED, Red band orthophotograph data; Red-SD, standard deviation of the Red band orthophotograph data; RF, random forest algorithm; SVM, support vector machine algorithm; SVML, linear support vector machine algorithm; SVMR, radial support vector machine algorithm; VSURF, variable selection using random forest.

Identificación de la Señal Mioeléctrica del Intestino Delgado Registrada en Superficie Externa Abdominal. Comparativa con Registros Internos

[EN] Intestinal motility is responsible for the functions of segmentation, mixing and transport of the chime poured from the stomach. These functions are of main importance in the processes of nutrients digestion and absorption. Intestinal contractile activity is determined by the myoelectrical activity of intestinal muscular layers. Precisely, intestinal myoelectrical activity, which is also called electroenterogram (EEnG), is the result of two components: a low frequency component (slow wave, SW) that is always present and a high frequency component (spike bursts, SB) which is associated with bowel contractions. Despite of the diagnostic significance of internal recordings of EEnG, clinical application of this technique is limited due to its invasiveness. Thus, surface recording of EEnG could be a solution for non-invasive monitoring of intestinal motility. The aim of this Ph.D. Thesis is the recording of surface electroenterogram and the identification of slow wave and spike bursts activity in order to quantify bowel motor activity in dogs. We conducted simultaneous recordings of IMA in bowel serosa and on abdominal surface of Beagle dogs in fast state. Both signals were analyzed in spectral domain and a frequency band for slow wave and spike bursts energy were determined. Likewise, the effects of abdominal layers and of possible interferences on surface recording of EEnG were also studied. For this purpose it was necessary to define new signal-to-interference and attenuation functions. We calculated different spectral parameters of surface EEnG that quantify presence and intensity of SB taking into consideration the attenuation behavior of abdominal layers and interference effects. These parameters have shown a strong correlation with bowel contractile activity. The research about surface EEnG is complemented with an analysis of signal dynamics throughout the pattern of bowel motor activity in fast state. Stationarity of the signal was evaluated in every period of contractile activity with different window-lengths. The study finishes with the definition of an algorithm that provides a variable window-length, adapting EEnG analysis to the spectral content of signal at every moment. This permits the generation of a fast non-invasive index of bowel contractile activity for future real-time applications. Three main conclusions can be deduced out of the obtained results: - It is possible to identify both bowel’s slow wave and spike bursts activity on surface recordings of EEnG. - Quantification of SB activity on surface EEnG allows non-invasive monitoring of small bowel mechanical activity. - It has been developed a new adaptive analysis method that improves intestinal motility indexes based in traditional techniques as it considers non-stationarity of EEnG.[ES] La motilidad intestinal es responsable de las funciones de segmentación, mezcla y transporte del quimo vertido desde el estómago. Estas funciones son fundamentales en los procesos de digestión y absorción de nutrientes. La actividad contráctil intestinal está determinada por la actividad mioeléctrica de las capas musculares intestinales. Concretamente, la actividad mioeléctrica intestinal, también denominada electroenterograma (EEnG), es el resultado de dos componentes: una componente de baja frecuencia que está siempre presente (onda lenta, OL); y una componente de alta frecuencia (potenciales rápidos de acción o spike bursts, SB) que está asociada directamente a las contracciones intestinales. A pesar del valor diagnóstico de los registros internos del EEnG, su aplicación clínica está limitada debido a su carácter invasivo. Por tanto, el registro en superficie del EEnG podría ser una solución a la monitorización no-invasiva de la motilidad intestinal. El objetivo de la presente tesis doctoral es el registro del electroenterograma de superficie y la identificación de la actividad de la onda lenta y de los spike bursts para la cuantificación no-invasiva de la actividad contráctil intestinal en perros. Se han llevado a cabo registros simultáneos del EEnG en la serosa intestinal y en superficie abdominal de perros Beagle en estado de ayunas. Ambas señales se han analizado en el dominio espectral para la determinación de los rangos de frecuencia en que se localiza la energía tanto de la OL como de los SB. Asimismo se ha estudiado la influencia de las capas abdominales y de posibles interferencias sobre el registro externo. Para ello ha sido necesario definir las funciones señal-interferencia y de atenuación, inéditas hasta la fecha. Teniendo en cuenta estos efectos de atenuación e interferencia, se han calculado distintos parámetros espectrales del EEnG de superficie que cuantifican la existencia e intensidad de SB. Estos parámetros han mostrado una elevada correlación con el grado de actividad contráctil intestinal interno. La investigación sobre el EEnG de superficie se complementa con un análisis de la dinámica de la señal a lo largo del patrón de motilidad intestinal en ayunas. Se ha valorado el grado de estacionariedad de la señal en cada estado de actividad contráctil para distintos anchos de ventana. El estudio finaliza con la definición de un algoritmo que proporciona un ancho de ventana variable, adaptando el análisis del EEnG al contenido espectral de la señal en cada momento. Esto permite generar un indicador no-invasivo de actividad contráctil intestinal, rápido de obtener, para futuras aplicaciones en tiempo real. De los resultados obtenidos se extraen tres conclusiones fundamentales: - Es posible identificar tanto la actividad de la onda lenta intestinal como la actividad de los potenciales rápidos de acción (SB) en el registro del EEnG de superficie. - La cuantificación de la actividad de los SB del EEnG de superficie permite la monitorización no invasiva de la actividad mecánica del intestino delgado. - Se ha desarrollado un método de análisis adaptativo que mejora los índices de motilidad intestinal basado en técnicas tradicionales, ya que tiene en cuenta la no estacionariedad del EEnG.[CA] La motilitat intestinal és responsable de les funcions de segmentació, mixtió i transport del quimo abocat des de l'estómac. Aquestes funcions són fonamentals en els processos de digestió i absorció de nutrients. L'activitat contràctil intestinal està determinada per l'activitat mioelèctrica de les capes musculars intestinals. Concretament, l'activitat mioelèctrica intestinal, també denominada electroenterograma (EEnG), és el resultat de dos components: una component de baixa freqüència que està sempre present (ona lenta, OL); i una component d'alta freqüència (potencials ràpids d'acció o spike bursts, SB) que està associada directament a les contraccions intestinals. A pesar del valor diagnòstic dels registres interns del EEnG, la seva aplicació clínica està limitada a causa de el seu caràcter invasiu. Per tant, el registre en superfície del EEnG podria ser una solució al monitoratge no-invasiu de la motilitat intestinal. L'objectiu de la present tesi doctoral és el registre de l’electroenterograma de superfície i la identificació de l'activitat de l'ona lenta i dels spike bursts per a la quantificació no-invasiva de l'activitat contràctil intestinal en gos. S'han portat a terme registres simultanis del EEnG en la serosa intestinal i en superfície abdominal de gossos Beagle en estat de dejunes. Ambdues senyals s'han analitzat en el domini espectral per a la determinació dels rangs de freqüència on es localitza l'energia tant de la OL com dels SB. Així mateix s'ha estudiat la influència de les capes abdominals i de possibles interferències sobre el registre extern. Per a això ha estat necessari desenvolupar les funcions senyal-interferència i d'atenuació inèdites fins a la data. Tenint en compte aquests efectes d'atenuació i interferència, s'han definit distints paràmetres espectrals del EEnG de superfície que quantifiquen l'existència i intensitat de SB. Aquests paràmetres han mostrat una elevada correlació amb el grau d'activitat contràctil intestinal intern. La investigació sobre el EEnG de superfície es completa amb una anàlisi de la dinàmica del senyal al llarg del patró de motilitat intestinal en dejú. S'ha valorat el grau de estacionarietat del senyal en cada estat d'activitat contràctil per a distints amples de finestra. L'estudi finalitza amb la definició d'un algorisme que proporciona un ample de finestra variable, adaptant l'anàlisi del EEnG al contingut espectral del senyal a cada moment. Això permet generar un indicador no-invasiu d'activitat contràctil intestinal, ràpid d'obtenir, per a futures aplicacions en temps real. Els resultats obtinguts permeten extreure tres conclusions fonamentals: - És possible identificar tant l'activitat de l'ona lenta intestinal com l'activitat dels potencials ràpids d’acció (SB) en el registre del EEnG de superfície. - La quantificació de l'activitat dels SB del EEnG de superfície permet el monitoratge no invasiu de l'activitat mecànica de l'intestí prim. - S'ha desenvolupat un mètode d'anàlisi adaptatiu que millora els índexs de motilitat intestinal basat en tècniques tradicionals, ja que té en compte la no-estacionarietat del EEnG.Garcia Casado, FJ. (2005). Identificación de la Señal Mioeléctrica del Intestino Delgado Registrada en Superficie Externa Abdominal. Comparativa con Registros Internos [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/135956TESI

A New Approach to Sonification of Astrophysical Data: The User Centred Design of SonoUno

Even when actual technologies present the potential to augment inclusion and the United Nations has been stablished the digital access to information as a human right, people with disabilities continuously faced barriers in their profession. In many cases, in sciences, the lack of accessible and user centred tools left behind researches with disabilities and not facilitate them to conduct front-line research by using their respective strengths. In this contribution, we discuss some hurdles and solutions relevant for using new technology for data analysis, analysing the barriers found by final users. A focus group session was conducted with nine people with and without visual impairment, using the tool sonoUno with one linear function and an astronomical data set downloaded from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. As a result of the focus group study, incorporating data analysis using sonification, we conclude that functionally diverse people require tools to be autonomous, thereby enabling precision, certainty, effectiveness and efficiency in their work, resulting in enhanced equity. This can be achieved by pursuing a user-centred design approach as integral to software development, and by adapting resources according to the research objectives. Development of tools that empower people with wide-ranging abilities to not only access data using multi-sensorial techniques, but also address the current lack of inclusion, is sorely needed.Fil: Casado, Johanna Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Pque. Centenario. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza | Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza | Universidad Nacional de San Martin. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza. ; Argentina; ArgentinaFil: Garcia, Beatriz Elena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Pque. Centenario. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza | Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza | Universidad Nacional de San Martin. Instituto de Tecnologia En Deteccion y Astroparticulas. Itedam - Subsede del Instituto de Tec. En Deteccion y Astroparticulas Mendoza. ; Argentina; ArgentinaFil: Gandhi, Poshak. University of Southampton; Reino UnidoFil: Diaz Merced, Wanda. European Gravitational Observatory; Itali

Evaluation of Bipolar, Tripolar, and Quadripolar Laplacian Estimates of Electrocardiogram via Concentric Ring Electrodes

[EN] Surface Laplacian estimates via concentric ring electrodes (CREs) have proven to enhance spatial resolution compared to conventional disc electrodes, which is of great importance for P-wave analysis. In this study, Laplacian estimates for traditional bipolar configuration (BC), two tripolar configurations with linearly decreasing and increasing inter-ring distances (TCLDIRD and TCLIIRD, respectively), and quadripolar configuration (QC) were obtained from cardiac recordings with pentapolar CREs placed at CMV1 and CMV2 positions. Normalized P-wave amplitude (NAP) was computed to assess the contrast to study atrial activity. Signals were of good quality (20-30 dB). Atrial activity was more emphasized at CMV1 (NAP similar or equal to 0.19-0.24) compared to CMV2 (NAP similar or equal to 0.08-0.10). Enhanced spatial resolution of TCLIIRD and QC resulted in higher NAP values than BC and TCLDIRD. Comparison with simultaneous standard 12-lead ECG proved that Laplacian estimates at CMV1 outperformed all the limb and chest standard leads in the contrast to study P-waves. Clinical recordings with CRE at this position could allow more detailed observation of atrial activity and facilitate the diagnosis of associated pathologies. Furthermore, such recordings would not require additional electrodes on limbs and could be performed wirelessly, so it should also be suitable for ambulatory monitoring, for example, using cardiac Holter monitors.This research was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Human Resource Development (HRD) Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP), grants number 1622481 and 1914787 to O.M.Garcia-Casado, J.; Ye Lin, Y.; Prats-Boluda, G.; Makeyev, O. (2019). Evaluation of Bipolar, Tripolar, and Quadripolar Laplacian Estimates of Electrocardiogram via Concentric Ring Electrodes. Sensors. 19(17):1-11. https://doi.org/10.3390/s19173780S1111917Roth, G. A., Johnson, C., Abajobir, A., Abd-Allah, F., Abera, S. F., Abyu, G., … Alam, K. (2017). Global, Regional, and National Burden of Cardiovascular Diseases for 10 Causes, 1990 to 2015. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 70(1), 1-25. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2017.04.052Lopez, A. D., Mathers, C. D., Ezzati, M., Jamison, D. T., & Murray, C. J. (2006). Global and regional burden of disease and risk factors, 2001: systematic analysis of population health data. The Lancet, 367(9524), 1747-1757. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(06)68770-9Bhatnagar, P., Wickramasinghe, K., Wilkins, E., & Townsend, N. (2016). Trends in the epidemiology of cardiovascular disease in the UK. Heart, 102(24), 1945-1952. doi:10.1136/heartjnl-2016-309573https://healthmetrics.heart.org/cardiovascular-disease-a-costly-burden/Leal, J., Luengo-Fernández, R., Gray, A., Petersen, S., & Rayner, M. (2006). Economic burden of cardiovascular diseases in the enlarged European Union. European Heart Journal, 27(13), 1610-1619. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehi733Wang, Y., Cuculich, P. S., Zhang, J., Desouza, K. A., Vijayakumar, R., Chen, J., … Rudy, Y. (2011). Noninvasive Electroanatomic Mapping of Human Ventricular Arrhythmias with Electrocardiographic Imaging. Science Translational Medicine, 3(98), 98ra84-98ra84. doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.3002152SippensGroenewegen, A., Peeters, H. A. P., Jessurun, E. R., Linnenbank, A. C., Robles de Medina, E. O., Lesh, M. D., & van Hemel, N. M. (1998). Body Surface Mapping During Pacing at Multiple Sites in the Human Atrium. Circulation, 97(4), 369-380. doi:10.1161/01.cir.97.4.369Kornreich, F., MacLeod, R. S., & Lux, R. L. (2008). Supplemented standard 12-lead electrocardiogram for optimal diagnosis and reconstruction of significant body surface map patterns. Journal of Electrocardiology, 41(3), 251-256. doi:10.1016/j.jelectrocard.2008.02.011Fereniec, M., Stix, G., Kania, M., Mroczka, T., & Maniewski, R. (2013). An Analysis of the U-Wave and Its Relation to the T-Wave in Body Surface Potential Maps for Healthy Subjects and MI Patients. Annals of Noninvasive Electrocardiology, 19(2), 145-156. doi:10.1111/anec.12110Lian, J., Li, G., Cheng, J., Avitall, B., & He, B. (2002). Body surface Laplacian mapping of atrial depolarization in healthy human subjects. Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing, 40(6), 650-659. doi:10.1007/bf02345304Wu, D., Tsai, H. C., & He, B. (1999). On the Estimation of the Laplacian Electrocardiogram during Ventricular Activation. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 27(6), 731-745. doi:10.1114/1.224He, B., & Cohen, R. J. (1992). Body surface Laplacian mapping of cardiac electrical activity. The American Journal of Cardiology, 70(20), 1617-1620. doi:10.1016/0002-9149(92)90471-aHe, B., & Cohen, R. J. (1992). Body surface Laplacian ECG mapping. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 39(11), 1179-1191. doi:10.1109/10.168684He, B., & Cohen, R. J. (1995). Body Surface Laplacian Electrocardiographic Mapping−A Review. Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering, 23(5-6), 475-510. doi:10.1615/critrevbiomedeng.v23.i5-6.30UMETANI, K., OKAMOTO, Y., MASHIMA, S., ONO, K., HOSAKA, H., & HE, B. (1998). Body Surface Laplacian Mapping in Patients with Left or Right Ventricular Bundle Branch Block. Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology, 21(11), 2043-2054. doi:10.1111/j.1540-8159.1998.tb01122.xBin He, Guanglin Li, & Jie Lian. (2002). A spline Laplacian ECG estimator in a realistic geometry volume conductor. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 49(2), 110-117. doi:10.1109/10.979350Besio, G., Koka, K., Aakula, R., & Weizhong Dai. (2006). Tri-polar concentric ring electrode development for Laplacian electroencephalography. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 53(5), 926-933. doi:10.1109/tbme.2005.863887Besio, W., Aakula, R., Koka, K., & Dai, W. (2006). Development of a Tri-polar Concentric Ring Electrode for Acquiring Accurate Laplacian Body Surface Potentials. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 34(3), 426-435. doi:10.1007/s10439-005-9054-8Besio, W., & Chen, T. (2007). Tripolar Laplacian electrocardiogram and moment of activation isochronal mapping. Physiological Measurement, 28(5), 515-529. doi:10.1088/0967-3334/28/5/006Prats-Boluda, G., Garcia-Casado, J., Martinez-de-Juan, J. L., & Ye-Lin, Y. (2011). Active concentric ring electrode for non-invasive detection of intestinal myoelectric signals. Medical Engineering & Physics, 33(4), 446-455. doi:10.1016/j.medengphy.2010.11.009Prats-Boluda, G., Ye-Lin, Y., Bueno-Barrachina, J., Rodriguez de Sanabria, R., & Garcia-Casado, J. (2016). Towards the clinical use of concentric electrodes in ECG recordings: influence of ring dimensions and electrode position. Measurement Science and Technology, 27(2), 025705. doi:10.1088/0957-0233/27/2/025705Zena-Giménez, V., Garcia-Casado, J., Ye-Lin, Y., Garcia-Breijo, E., & Prats-Boluda, G. (2018). A Flexible Multiring Concentric Electrode for Non-Invasive Identification of Intestinal Slow Waves. Sensors, 18(2), 396. doi:10.3390/s18020396Ye-Lin, Y., Alberola-Rubio, J., Prats-boluda, G., Perales, A., Desantes, D., & Garcia-Casado, J. (2014). Feasibility and Analysis of Bipolar Concentric Recording of Electrohysterogram with Flexible Active Electrode. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 43(4), 968-976. doi:10.1007/s10439-014-1130-5Wang, K., Parekh, U., Pailla, T., Garudadri, H., Gilja, V., & Ng, T. N. (2017). Stretchable Dry Electrodes with Concentric Ring Geometry for Enhancing Spatial Resolution in Electrophysiology. Advanced Healthcare Materials, 6(19), 1700552. doi:10.1002/adhm.201700552Lidón-Roger, J., Prats-Boluda, G., Ye-Lin, Y., Garcia-Casado, J., & Garcia-Breijo, E. (2018). Textile Concentric Ring Electrodes for ECG Recording Based on Screen-Printing Technology. Sensors, 18(1), 300. doi:10.3390/s18010300Makeyev, O., Ding, Q., & Besio, W. G. (2016). Improving the accuracy of Laplacian estimation with novel multipolar concentric ring electrodes. Measurement, 80, 44-52. doi:10.1016/j.measurement.2015.11.017Makeyev, O., & Besio, W. (2016). Improving the Accuracy of Laplacian Estimation with Novel Variable Inter-Ring Distances Concentric Ring Electrodes. Sensors, 16(6), 858. doi:10.3390/s16060858Makeyev, O. (2018). Solving the general inter-ring distances optimization problem for concentric ring electrodes to improve Laplacian estimation. BioMedical Engineering OnLine, 17(1). doi:10.1186/s12938-018-0549-6Ye-Lin, Y., Bueno-Barrachina, J. M., Prats-boluda, G., Rodriguez de Sanabria, R., & Garcia-Casado, J. (2017). Wireless sensor node for non-invasive high precision electrocardiographic signal acquisition based on a multi-ring electrode. Measurement, 97, 195-202. doi:10.1016/j.measurement.2016.11.009Prats-Boluda, G., Ye-Lin, Y., Pradas-Novella, F., Garcia-Breijo, E., & Garcia-Casado, J. (2018). Textile Concentric Ring Electrodes: Influence of Position and Electrode Size on Cardiac Activity Monitoring. Journal of Sensors, 2018, 1-9. doi:10.1155/2018/7290867Huiskamp, G. (1991). Difference formulas for the surface Laplacian on a triangulated surface. Journal of Computational Physics, 95(2), 477-496. doi:10.1016/0021-9991(91)90286-tHamilton, P. S., & Tompkins, W. J. (1986). Quantitative Investigation of QRS Detection Rules Using the MIT/BIH Arrhythmia Database. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, BME-33(12), 1157-1165. doi:10.1109/tbme.1986.325695Koka, K., & Besio, W. G. (2007). Improvement of spatial selectivity and decrease of mutual information of tri-polar concentric ring electrodes. Journal of Neuroscience Methods, 165(2), 216-222. doi:10.1016/j.jneumeth.2007.06.007Prats-Boluda, G., Ye-Lin, Y., Bueno Barrachina, J. M., Senent, E., Rodriguez de Sanabria, R., & Garcia-Casado, J. (2015). Development of a portable wireless system for bipolar concentric ECG recording. Measurement Science and Technology, 26(7), 075102. doi:10.1088/0957-0233/26/7/07510

Assessing Creativity In Engineering Students: A Comparative Between Degrees and Sudents In First And Last Year

An online open access test (CREAX self-assessment) has been used in this work so that students from degrees in engineering in the Universidad Polite¿cnica of Madrid (UPM) could self-assess their creative competence after several classroom activities. Different groups from the first year course have been statistically compared using data from their assessment. These first year students had different professors in the subject ?Technical Drawing? and belonged to several degrees in the UPM. They were as well compared regarding sex and a group of first year students was also compared to another last year group of the degree so as to observe possible differences in the achievement of this competence. Only one difference was detected concerning sex in one of the degrees. Among degrees, the higher marks obtained by students who had done specific exercises for the development of creativity in class is highlighted. Finally, a significantly high mark was observed in students during their last year of degree with respect to first year students. The tool CREAX has become very useful in the assessment of this competence in the UPM degrees in which it has been implemented

Mollusc-shell debris can mitigate the deleterious effects of organic pollution on marine sediments

1. Organic pollution is widespread in coastal areas and can have profound impacts on the seabed. Coastal sediments play an important role at a global scale in the recycling of organic matter, and this process is influenced by the habitat complexity of the sediments, among other factors. Mollusc shells are produced as a waste product from a range of anthropogenic activities, but we demonstrate that they can be used to increase the habitat complexity of sediments. 2. We studied the effect of mussel-shell debris (shell-hash) on the biogeochemical processes of marine sediments affected by organic pollution, using a mesocosm experiment simulating the bioturbation effects of macrofauna. 3. We found that shell-hash improved the ecological status of organically polluted sediments by reducing the accumulation of sulphide from anaerobic metabolic pathways. 4. Additionally, when shell-hash was present in an organically polluted sediment, there was a decrease in ammonium release to the water column, thus preventing the negative ecological consequences of eutrophication. 5. Synthesis and applications. Our study indicates that shell-hash debris can be used as a potential tool to mitigate the effects of organic enrichment on marine sediments. A density of shell-hash debris of 1900 g m-2 in the sediment can diminish toxic by-products (sulphides and ammonium) derived from the stimulation of anaerobic metabolic pathways by organic pollution, at levels that are biologically relevant. The mitigation effect of shell-hash is more pronounced in sediments where macrofauna is not present.This work has been funded by the projects: GRE14-19 from the University of Alicante, GV/2015/001 from the ‘Conselleria de Educación, Cultura y Deporte’ of the government of the Valencia region and CGL2015-70136-R from the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO/FEDER) of Spain. CS was funded by the contract ‘Juan de la Cierva’ (ref. JCI-2012-12413) from MINECO