Web Ontologies to Categorialy Structure Reality: Representations of Human Emotional, Cognitive, and Motivational Processes

This work presents a Web ontology for modeling and representation of the emotional, cognitive and motivational state of online learners, interacting with university systems for distance or blended education. The ontology is understood as a way to provide the required mechanisms to model reality and associate it to emotional responses, but without committing to a particular way of organizing these emotional responses. Knowledge representation for the contributed ontology is performed by using Web Ontology Language (OWL), a semantic web language designed to represent rich and complex knowledge about things, groups of things, and relations between things. OWL is a computational logic-based language such that computer programs can exploit knowledge expressed in OWL and also facilitates sharing and reusing knowledge using the global infrastructure of the Web. The proposed ontology has been tested in the field of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) to check if it is capable of representing emotions and motivation of the students in this context of use.This work has been supported by the Basque Government (IT421-10 and IT722-13), the Gipuzkoa Council (FA-208/2014-B) and the University of the Basque Country (PPV12/09). It has also been supported by InDAGuS (Spanish Government TIN2012-37826-C02) and INSPIRES, the Polytechnic Institute of Research and Innovation in Sustainability, Universitat de Lleida, Spai

Do Deepfakes Adequately Display Emotions? A Study on Deepfake Facial Emotion Expression

Recent technological advancements in Artificial Intelligence make it easy to create deepfakes and hyper-realistic videos, in which images and video clips are processed to create fake videos that appear authentic. Many of them are based on swapping faces without the consent of the person whose appearance and voice are used. As emotions are inherent in human communication, studying how deepfakes transfer emotional expressions from original to fakes is relevant. In this work, we conduct an in-depth study on facial emotional expression in deepfakes using a well-known face swap-based deepfake database. Firstly, we extracted the photograms from their videos. Then, we analyzed the emotional expression in the original and faked versions of video recordings for all performers in the database. Results show that emotional expressions are not adequately transferred between original recordings and the deepfakes created from them. High variability in emotions and performers detected between original and fake recordings indicates that performer emotion expressiveness should be considered for better deepfake generation or detection. Dades primàries associades a l'article https://doi.org/10.34810/data262This work was supported by the Ministry for Science and Innovation through the State Research Agency (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033) under grant number (PID2020-117912RB-C22)

Fatores de estresse percebidos entre carreiras de enfermagem recém entradas

Objective: To determine the prevalent stress factors among new students to the Faculties of Nursing at the Faculties of Nursing at the Universities of Cadiz, Cordoba, Huelva and Seville, and the influence of socio-demographic, academic, socio-economic, orientation and health factors. Design: A descriptive, observational and cross-sectional study. Methodology: 617 first year nursing students were surveyed (with a 95.66 % response rate) by means of two questionnaires, one for socio-demographics and health, the other for the stress perceived by new students. A descriptive analysis of the stress factors was then carried out for the frequency, mean and standard deviation. The relation between factors was examined through differential analysis by means of the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis non-parametric tests. Results: The situations of greatest anxiety among new undergraduates are “taking examinations” and “the amount of work I have to do”. Consequently, the most stressful factor is “academic stress” whilst the least stressful is “feelings of loneliness”. The students who feel most stress across various factors can be identified as: over 25, women, studying outside their home province, and living in rented accommodation during the academic year. Conclusions: Starting a degree in nursing is a stressful time, and students can find their health, quality of life and academic performance negatively affected. The main determinants of stress among new undergraduates are the joint demands of examinations and workload. It would undoubtedly be enlightening to examine this issue further in order to find the possible causes of the problem and to develop strategies that can help in its prevention and so improve the students’ experience of university.Objetivo: Conocer los factores de estrés más prevalentes en el alumnado novel de las Facultades de Enfermería de las Universidades de Cádiz, Córdoba, Huelva y Sevilla, así como su relación con sus características sociodemográficas, académicas, socioeconómicas, de orientación y de salud. Diseño: Estudio observacional, descriptivo, transversal. Metodología: Se encuestó a un total de 617 estudiantes (tasa de respuesta del 95,66 %) del primer curso del grado en Enfermería. Los participantes completaron dos cuestionarios: uno sociodemográfico y de salud; y un  cuestionario de estrés percibido por alumnos noveles. Se realizó un análisis descriptivo de los factores de estrés con frecuencia, media y desviación típica. Las relaciones se examinaron con análisis diferencial a través de estudios no paramétricos U Mann-Whitney y Kruskal-Wallis. Resultados: Las situaciones que más estrés causan a los nuevos universitarios son: “hacer frente a los exámenes” y “la cantidad de trabajo que tengo que afrontar”. En consecuencia, el factor más estresante es el “estrés académico” y el menos estresante el “sentimiento de soledad”. Los estudiantes que perciben mayor estrés en varios factores son: mayores de 25 años, mujeres, el alumnado que procede de otras provincias y los que viven de alquiler durante el curso académico. Conclusiones: La entrada a la universidad produce factores de estrés en el alumnado de enfermería, que pueden afectar a su salud, su calidad de vida y su rendimiento académico. Hacer frentes a los exámenes y la alta carga académica son las principales determinantes de estrés. Sin embargo, sería conveniente indagar más en esta línea con el fin de conocer las posibles causas de este problema y poder desarrollar estrategias de prevención que mejoren la calidad de vida de estos estudiantes.Objetivo: Conhecer os fatores de estresse mais prevalentes em novos alunos das Faculdades de Enfermagem das Universidades de Cádis, Córdoba, Huelva e Sevilha, bem como sua relação com suas características sociodemográficas, acadêmicas, socioeconômicas, de orientação, educacionais e saúde. Delineamento: Estudo observacional, descritivo, transversal. Metodologia: Foram pesquisados ​​617 alunos (taxa de resposta de 95,66 %) do primeiro ano do curso de Enfermagem. Os participantes responderam a dois questionários: sociodemográfico e de saúde; e questionário de estresse percebido por alunos iniciantes. Foi realizada análise descritiva dos fatores de estresse com frequência, média e desvio padrão. Os relacionamentos foram examinados com análise diferencial por meio de estudos não paramétricos de U Mann-Whitney e Kruskal-Wallis. Resultados: As situações que mais estressam os novos estudantes universitários são “fazer exames” e “a quantidade de trabalho que tenho que enfrentar”. Conseqüentemente, o fator mais estressante é o “estresse acadêmico” e o menos estressante são os “sentimentos de solidão”. Os alunos que percebem o maior estresse em vários fatores são: maiores de 25 anos, mulheres, alunos que vêm de outras províncias e aqueles que vivem de aluguel durante o ano letivo. Conclusões: O ingresso na universidade produz fatores estressantes nos estudantes de enfermagem, que podem afetar sua saúde, sua qualidade de vida e seu desempenho acadêmico. A realização de exames e a alta carga acadêmica são apontados como os principais determinantes do estresse. No entanto, seria conveniente aprofundar as investigações nesse sentido para conhecer as possíveis causas desse problema e poder desenvolver estratégias de prevenção que melhorem a qualidade de vida desses alunos

Total and Metabolically Active Microbial Community of Aerobic Granular Sludge Systems Operated in Sequential Batch Reactors: Effect of Pharmaceutical Compounds

Two aerobic granular sludge (AGS) sequential batch reactors were operated at a mild (15 ◦C) temperature for 180 days. One of those bioreactors was exposed to a mixture of diclofenac, naproxen, trimethoprim, and carbamazepine. The AGS system, operating under pressure from emerging contaminants, showed a decrease in COD, BOD5 , and TN removal capacity, mainly observed during the first 100 days, in comparison with the removal ratios detected in the control bioreactor. After an acclimatisation period, the removal reached high-quality effluent for COD and TN, close to 95% and 90%, respectively. In the steady-state period, trimethoprim and diclofenac were successfully removed with values around 50%, while carbamazepine and naproxen were more recalcitrant. The dominant bacterial OTUs were affected by the presence of a mixture of pharmaceutical compounds, under which the dominant phylotypes changed to OTUs classified among the Pseudomonas, Gemmobacter, and Comamonadaceae. The RT-qPCR and qPCR results showed the deep effects of pharmaceutical compounds on the number of copies of target genes. Statistical analyses allowed for linking the total and active microbial communities with the physico-chemical performance, describing the effects of pharmaceutical compounds in pollution degradation, as well as the successful adaptation of the system to treat wastewater in the presence of toxic compounds

Simultaneous removal of nitrate and pesticides from contaminated groundwater using aerobic granular biomass technology

Supplementary data associated with this article can be found in the online version at doi:10.1016/j.jece.2023.109527Aerobic Granular Biomass (AGB) technology is widely used for urban and industrial wastewater treatment, however, its application in groundwater remediation, is practically unknown. A mixture of carbendazim, simazine, and diuron were amended to the nitrate-polluted synthetic groundwater at increasing concentrations to validate the ability of technology to remove both kind of pollutants, pesticides and nitrate which are commonly found in the water resources. The nitrate removal was a success with values below 0.010 g⋅L-1. The increased concentration of pesticides in the influent did not distort the pattern observed for pesticide removal. Carbendazim was almost completely eliminated, followed by simazine elimination, while diuron showed adsorption-desorption patterns during experimentation. The addition of pesticides had a drastic effect on the basal community conducted by proliferation of Hyphomicrobium and Dokdonella. The pesticide compounds had a negative effect on number of copies for fungal population, while archaeal population was unharmed, according to qPCR results. Denitrifying bacteria need 70 days as acclimatization period for achieving activity values as initial inoculum. The results obtained have shown for the first time the capacity of AGB system to treat groundwater polluted with nitrate and pesticide using low carbon load. Therefore, the results suggested the potential application of AGB technology for the purification of groundwater polluted with both nitrates and pesticidesProject LIFE16 ENV/ES/000196European LIFE Program and B-RNM-137-UGR18Programa operativo FEDER de Andalucía 2014-2020Department of Ecological and Biological Sciences of University of Tusciagroup RNM270 of Institute of Water Research (University of Granada)Barbara summaUnion-NextGenerationEUUniversidad de Granada / CBU

Raciocínio Effectual e Raciocínio Causal na Criação de Novos Negócios: Um Estudo de Caso

This article focuses on the process of new business creation, considering the effectuation approach, which explains the phenomenon of entrepreneurship in a different perspective than the traditional causal approach. Beginning with a description of the effectual approach assumptions, a case study about the subject is presented in order to explore the logic of the business creation process. The case discusses a Brazilian organization created in 1980 to produce materials and services in steel industry. Through structured interview with the entrepreneur who idealized the business, the main events in the early stages of the project are described. The results show the relationship between entrepreneur’s means available at the time of the enterprise creation and the new business design. In addition, the entrepreneur preferred a strategy of drawing instead of a decision one, and gave priority to strategic partnerships as a substitute of formal market research. All these aspects are covered by the effectual approach.Este artículo enfoca el proceso de creación de nuevos negocios a la luz del acercamiento effectuation, que explica el fenómeno del espíritu empresarial basado en postulados substancialmente diferentes a los del acercamiento causal tradicional. Después de una descripción de las presuposiciones básicas del razonamiento effectual y de las diferencias principales entre éste y el razonamiento causal, el trabajo presenta el caso del grupo Vamtec, organización de capital nacional creada en la década de 1980 y que actúa en el desarrollo, producción y comercialización de materiales y servicios para la siderurgia. A través de entrevista semi-estructurada en profundidad con el empresario que idealizó el negocio, se describen los eventos principales que ocurrieron durante las fases iniciales del proyecto. Los resultados de este estudio de caso son discutidos a seguir e inmediatamente se presentan las consideraciones finales del trabajo, entre las cuales se destaca la relación entre los medios que el emprendedor tenía en esa época y el formato del nuevo negocio, además de la preferencia para una estrategia de diseño sobre una estrategia de decisión y la priorización de sociedades estratégicas para la realización de investigaciones de mercado formales, todos estos aspectos son contemplados por el enfoque effectual.O artigo foca o processo de criação de novos negócios à luz da abordagem effectuation, que explica o fenômeno do empreendedorismo a partir de postulados substancialmente diferentes aos da abordagem causal tradicional. Depois de uma descrição dos pressupostos básicos do raciocínio effectual e das diferenças principais entre ele e o raciocínio causal, o trabalho apresenta o caso do grupo Vamtec, organização de capital nacional criada na década de 80 do século XX e que atua no desenvolvimento, produção e comercialização de materiais e serviços para a siderurgia. Através de entrevista semi-estruturada em profundidade com o empreendedor que idealizou o negócio, são descritos os principais acontecimentos que tiveram lugar durante as fases iniciais do projeto. Os resultados desse estudo de caso são discutidos na sequência e imediatamente se apresentam as considerações finais do trabalho, dentre as quais se destaca a relação entre os meios que o empreendedor dispunha na época e a formatação do novo negócio, além da preferência por uma estratégia de desenho sobre uma estratégia de decisão e a priorização de parcerias estratégicas sobre a realização de pesquisas de mercado formais, aspectos todos eles contemplados pela abordagem effectual. DOI:10.5585/riae.v10i2.171

Editorial on "Multiplex networks: Structure, dynamics and applications"

There is a wide range of systems in the real world where components cannot function independently, so that these components interact with others through different channels of connectivity and dependencies. Complex Networks theory is, in fact, the formal tool for describing and analyzing fields as disparate as sociology (social networks, acquaintances or collaborations between individuals), biology (metabolic and protein networks, neural networks) or technology (phone call networks, computers in telecommunication networks