Non-Normality as a Predictor of Participation in Bullying: Valuation in Victims and Aggressors

Bullying is related to several variables, including diversity and variables that place the victim outside of normality. However, it is not easy to find a single meaning of normality. The present study has two main objectives: to find out whether victims are evaluated as non-normal and to find out whether aggressors are evaluated as non-normal. A cross-sectional, correlational, and quantitative study was designed, focusing on a representative sample of secondary school students from the Community of Madrid. The sample consisted of 2076 participants and was constructed using a stratified, proportional, and random sampling technique. To gather this information, a questionnaire was constructed. It includes a first section where sociodemographic and normality information is collected, and a second section made up of the Defensor del pueblo-UNICEF Bullying Questionnaire. The reliability and consistency of the questionnaire are acceptable (Cronbach’s alpha 0.91). For the comparison of means between groups, a Student’s t-test was applied, and the correlation between variables was calculated by applying the bivariate correlation test. Results show that victims are evaluated as non-normal while aggressors are perceived as normal. This implies that the risk of being involved in bullying situations as a victim can be predicted. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Experimental simulation of simultaneous vision

Purpose. To present and validate a prototype of an optical instrument that allows experimental simulation of pure bifocal vision. To evaluate the influence of different power additions on image contrast and visual acuity. Methods. The instrument provides the eye with two superimposed images, aligned and with the same magnification, but with different defocus states. Subjects looking through the instrument are able to experience pure simultaneous vision, with adjustable refractive correction and addition power. The instrument is used to investigate the impact of the amount of addition of an ideal bifocal simultaneous vision correction, both on image contrast and on visual performance. The instrument is validated through computer simulations of the letter contrast and by equivalent optical experiments with an artificial eye (camera). Visual acuity (VA) was measured in four subjects (age: 34.3 ± 3.4 years; spherical error: -2.1 ± 2.7 diopters [D]) for low and high contrast letters and different amounts of addition. Results. The largest degradation in contrast and visual acuity (~25%) occurred for additions around ±2 D, while additions of ±4 D produced lower degradation (14%). Low additions (1-2 D) result in lower VA than high additions (3-4 D). Conclusions. A simultaneous vision instrument is an excellent tool to simulate bifocal vision and to gain understanding of multifocal solutions for presbyopia. Simultaneous vision induces a pattern of visual performance degradation, which is well predicted by the degradation found in image quality. Neural effects, claimed to be crucial in the patients' tolerance of simultaneous vision, can be therefore compared with pure optical effects. Copyright 2013 The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Inc.Supported by Spanish Government Grant FIS2011-25637 and European Advanced Grant ERC-2011-AdG-294099 to SM.Peer Reviewe

Participación en la interacción profesor-alumnos al resolver un problema con apartados de distintos dominios cognitivos en primaria

La interacción en las aulas es de interés en Educación Matemática, por ejemplo, referido a la participación de los alumnos cuando resuelven problemas conjuntamente con el profesor en el aula de Primaria. Rosales et al. (2008) muestran que es escasa cuando resuelven problemas rutinarios, aunque aumenta en los no rutinarios (Sánchez et al., 2014). Analizamos la participación en la interacción profesor-alumnos cuando resuelven juntos un problema con tres apartados (adaptado de TIMSS 2007, IEA, 2011) ubicados en los dominios de conocimiento, aplicación y razonamiento

Modelo de simulación de sistemas de drenaje operados por bombeo

[ES] Se describe un modelo matemático que simula el funcionamiento de sistemas de drenaje operados por bombeo teniendo en cuenta la forma de trabajo de las bombas, según sus curvas de operación y el flujo transitorio en los conductos del sistema. Se comentan las posibles formas de utilizar el modelo en la solución de algunos problemas.Sánchez Bribiesca, JL.; Fuentes Maníes, ÓA.; Gracia Sánchez, J. (1994). Modelo de simulación de sistemas de drenaje operados por bombeo. Ingeniería del Agua. 1(3):19-30. https://doi.org/10.4995/ia.1994.2641SWORD193013Dolz J. y Gómez M. (1994) Problemática del drenaje de aguas pluviales en zonas urbanas y del estudio hidráulico de las redes de colectores. Ingeniería del Agua Vol 1. No 1, España.Sánchez B. J.L. y Fuentes M. O.A. (1966) Método alternativo para la evaluación de efectos transitorios en canales. Publicación No 46 de la Comisión Federal de Electricidad, México.Sánchez B. J.L, Fuentes M. O.A. y Gracia S.J. 0(1994) Diseño hidráulico de sistemas de drenaje operados por bombeo. Publicación interna del Instituto de Ingeniería, UNAM, México

Lean mass explains the association between muscular fitness and bone outcomes in 13-year-old boys

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this record AIM: This study investigated the associations between fitness indices and bone outcomes in young males. METHODS: Data were collected between autumn and winter 2014-2015 on 121 males with a mean age of 13.1 ± 0.1 years: 41 swimmers, 37 footballers, 29 cyclists and 14 nonathletes. Participants were recruited from athletic clubs and schools across South West England. Lean mass, areal bone mineral density and hip structural estimates were measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. The relationships between bone outcomes and the vertical jump, standing long jump and the 20-m shuttle run test were analysed using three regression models: model 1 was adjusted by age and stature, model 2 added vigorous physical activity and model 3 then added lean mass. RESULTS: The boys' performance in the vertical jump and standing long jump was positively associated with the majority of bone outcomes in models 1 and 2, but most of these disappeared in model 3. The 20-m shuttle run test was positively associated with most bone outcomes in all three models. Lean mass played a key role in the association between muscular fitness and bone outcomes. CONCLUSION: Vigorous physical activity did not explain the associations between fitness and bone outcomes, but lean mass did.European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013

Multifaceted biological insights from a draft genome sequence of the tobacco hornworm moth, Manduca sexta

Manduca sexta, known as the tobacco hornworm or Carolina sphinx moth, is a lepidopteran insect that is used extensively as a model system for research in insect biochemistry, physiology, neurobiology, development, and immunity. One important benefit of this species as an experimental model is its extremely large size, reaching more than 10 g in the larval stage. M. sexta larvae feed on solanaceous plants and thus must tolerate a substantial challenge from plant allelochemicals, including nicotine. We report the sequence and annotation of the M. sexta genome, and a survey of gene expression in various tissues and developmental stages. The Msex_1.0 genome assembly resulted in a total genome size of 419.4 Mbp. Repetitive sequences accounted for 25.8% of the assembled genome. The official gene set is comprised of 15,451 protein-coding genes, of which 2498 were manually curated. Extensive RNA-seq data from many tissues and developmental stages were used to improve gene models and for insights into gene expression patterns. Genome wide synteny analysis indicated a high level of macrosynteny in the Lepidoptera. Annotation and analyses were carried out for gene families involved in a wide spectrum of biological processes, including apoptosis, vacuole sorting, growth and development, structures of exoskeleton, egg shells, and muscle, vision, chemosensation, ion channels, signal transduction, neuropeptide signaling, neurotransmitter synthesis and transport, nicotine tolerance, lipid metabolism, and immunity. This genome sequence, annotation, and analysis provide an important new resource from a well-studied model insect species and will facilitate further biochemical and mechanistic experimental studies of many biological systems in insect

Physical activity and bone health in schoolchildren: the mediating role of fitness and body fat

This is the final version of the article. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.BACKGROUND: The relationship between physical activity (PA) and bone health is well known, although the role of percent body fat (%BF) and fitness as confounders or mediators in this relationship remains uncertain. OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the association between PA and bone mineral content (BMC) is mediated by %BF and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF). METHODS: In this cross sectional study, BMC, total %BF (by DXA), vigorous PA (VPA), CRF, age and height were measured in 132 schoolchildren (62 boys, aged 8-11 years). ANCOVA was used to test differences in BMC by %BF, CRF and VPA, controlling for different sets of confounders. Simple mediation analyses and serial multiple mediation analyses were fitted to examine whether the relationship between PA and BMC is mediated by %BF and fitness. RESULTS: Children with high %BF had higher total body BMC than their peers after controlling for all sets of confounders. Children with good CRF or VPA had significantly less total body BMC after controlling for age and sex but in children with good CRF this inverse relation disappeared after adjusting by %BF. %BF and CRF both act as a full mediator in the association between VPA and BMC, after inclusion of the potential confounders in the models. CONCLUSION: Fitness and %BF seem to have a mediator role on the relationship between physical activity and bone mass.This study was funded by grant numbers PII1I09-0259-9898 and POII10-0208-5325 from the Ministry of Education and Science - Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, and Ministry of Health (FIS grant number PI081297). Additional funding was provided by the Research Network on Preventative Activities and Health Promotion (RD06/0018/0038)

Hygienization and control of Diplodia seriata fungus in vine pruning waste composting and its seasonal variability in open and closed systems

After the ban on sodium arsenite, waste management alternatives to the prevalent burning method, such as the hygienization and biodegradation in solid phase by composting, are required for the pruned material from grapevines affected by various fungi. In this work the dynamics of a fungus associated with vine decay (Diplodia seriata) during the composting process of a mixture of laying hen manure and vine pruning waste (2:1 w/w) have been investigated in an open pile and a discontinuous closed biodigester. Through the optimization of the various physical–chemical parameters, hygienization of the infected waste materials was attained, yielding class-A organo-mineral fertilizers. Nevertheless, important differences in the efficiency of each system were observed: whereas in the open pile it took 10 days to control D. seriata and 35 additional composting days to achieve full inactivation, in the discontinuous biodigester the fungus was entirely inactivated within the first 3–7 days. Finally, the impact of seasonal variability was assessed and summer temperatures shown to have greater significance in the open pile

Multiple approaches at admission based on lung ultrasound and biomarkers improves risk identification in COVID-19 patients

Background: Risk stratification of COVID-19 patients is fundamental to improving prognosis and selecting the right treatment. We hypothesized that a combination of lung ultrasound (LUZ-score), biomarkers (sST2), and clinical models (PANDEMYC score) could be useful to improve risk stratification. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study designed to analyze the prognostic value of lung ultrasound, sST2, and PANDEMYC score in COVID-19 patients. The primary endpoint was in-hospital death and/or admission to the intensive care unit. The total length of hospital stay, increase of oxygen flow, or escalated medical treatment during the first 72 h were secondary endpoints. Results: a total of 144 patients were included; the mean age was 57.5 ± 12.78 years. The median PANDEMYC score was 243 (52), the median LUZ-score was 21 (10), and the median sST2 was 53.1 ng/mL (30.9). Soluble ST2 showed the best predictive capacity for the primary endpoint (AUC = 0.764 (0.658–0.871); p = 0.001), towards the PANDEMYC score (AUC = 0.762 (0.655–0.870); p = 0.001) and LUZ-score (AUC = 0.749 (0.596–0.901); p = 0.002). Taken together, these three tools significantly improved the risk capacity (AUC = 0.840 (0.727–0.953); p = 0.001). Conclusions: The PANDEMYC score, lung ultrasound, and sST2 concentrations upon admission for COVID-19 are independent predictors of intra-hospital death and/or the need for admission to the ICU for mechanical ventilation. The combination of these predictive tools improves the predictive power compared to each one separately. The use of decision trees, based on multivariate models, could be useful in clinical practice. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/)

Holocene alluvial sequence in the val de zaragoza (Los Monegros) in the palaeoenvironmental context of the ebro basin (Ne Spain)

Flat-bottomed valleys formed by Holocene fills are the most characteristic landforms in the center of the Ebro basin. This paper analyzes, within a regional framework, a small fluvial basin located in the north of the Alcubierre Range. Three Holocene morphosedimentary units (H1-H3) and a sub-functional level (H4) are identified. These units are representative of the regional geomorphological evolutionary process in the Ebro basin. New chronological insights on climate and landscape management are provided by a study of the Bastarás weir, a construction made for water flow management during the Little Ice Age (LIA). The integration of Val de Zaragoza radiocarbon datings into the regional framework enables the authors to identify the main formation stages, as well as the influence of climatic and human factors on its evolution. The intensification of human pressure in the territory is reflected in a progressive increase in sediment accumulation rates in the valleys, peaking during Roman times and the Little Ice Age. Los valles de fondo plano formados por rellenos holocenos constituyen los paisajes más característicos del sector central de la cuenca del Ebro. En este trabajo se analiza una pequeña cuenca fluvial localizada en el norte de la Sierra de Alcubierre, en la que se han identificado tres unidades morfosedimentarias holocenas (H1-H3) y un nivel subfuncional (H4), que son representativos de la evolución geomorfológica regional de la Cuenca del Ebro. Uno de los aspectos más relevantes del valle lo constituye el azud de Bastarás, construcción realizada durante la Pequeña Edad del Hielo para el aprovechamiento del agua, que aporta nuevos datos cronológicos sobre dicha época y acerca de la gestión del territorio. La integración de las dataciones radiocarbónicas obtenidas en la Val de Zaragoza en un marco regional ha permitido precisar las principales etapas de formación de los valles de fondo plano, así como la importancia de los factores climáticos y humanos en su evolución. La intensificación de la presión humana sobre el territorio queda reflejada en un progresivo aumento en las tasas de acumulación de sedimentos en los valles, alcanzando sus picos máximos en Época Romana y en la Pequeña Edad del Hielo