New Ways of Learning: Teacher Training in the Use of ICTs

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have become a decisive resource in the field of education, and at the same time, an indispensable variable in the academic practice where we seek to use each one of the resources offered by Web 2.0. The objective of this article is to perform a critical analysis and review of the conceptual aspects of teacher training, the use of the ICTs and their implications in teacher's daily work, as well as in the teaching-learning process. Finally, it is concluded to highlight the importance of the creation of pedagogical dimensions that indicate the training competencies a teacher must have given the new technological tendency.Las tecnologías de la información y comunicación (TIC), se han convertido en un recurso determinante en el campo educativo, y a la vez una variable indispensable en la práctica académica donde se busca aprovechar cada uno de los recursos que nos ofrece la Web 2.0. El objetivo de este artículo es realizar un análisis y revisión crítica de los aspectos conceptuales frente a la formación del docente, en el uso de las TIC y su implicancia en su labor diaria, así como en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Se concluye en resaltar la importancia de la creación de dimensiones pedagógicas que señalen las competencias de formación, que debe presentar un docente, frente a la nueva tendencia tecnológica

Autonomy of Work and Job Satisfaction in Administrative Workers

The objective of the research was to determine the relationship between the autonomy of work and the job satisfaction of the administrative workers of a Peruvian university. The hypothetical deductive method was used, based on a non-experimental, cross-section quantitative design approach. A questionnaire was applied to 122 workers. The results allowed the researchers to determine the direct, moderate and significant correlation, with a Spearman correlation coefficient Rho = 0.651 ** and 0.626 ** and a (Bilateral) significance = 0.000 (p <.05). Therefore, it was concluded that when work autonomy is pr, the level of job satisfaction is high in workers of both sexes.La investigación tuvo como objetivo determinar la relación que existe entre la autonomía del trabajo y la satisfacción laboral de los trabajadores administrativos de una universidad peruana. Se empleó el método hipotético deductivo, basado en un enfoque cuantitativo de diseño no experimental y de corte transversal. Se aplicó un Cuestionario a 122 trabajadores. Los resultados permitieron determinar la correlación directa, moderada y significativa, con un coeficiente de correlación de Spearman Rho =0.651** y 0.626** y una significancia (Bilateral) = 0.000 (p < .05). Por lo cual se llegó a la conclusión, que cuando la autonomía del trabajo es real, el nivel de satisfacción laboral es alto, en los trabajadores de ambos sexos

Importance of Spin-Orbit Interaction for the Electron Spin Relaxation in Organic Semiconductors

Despite the great interest organic spintronics has recently attracted, there is only a partial understanding of the fundamental physics behind electron spin relaxation in organic semiconductors. Mechanisms based on hyperfine interaction have been demonstrated, but the role of the spin-orbit interaction remains elusive. Here, we report muon spin spectroscopy and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements on two series of molecular semiconductors in which the strength of the spin-orbit interaction has been systematically modified with a targeted chemical substitution of different atoms at a particular molecular site. We find that the spin-orbit interaction is a significant source of electron spin relaxation in these materials

Advances in the slow freezing cryopreservation of microencapsulated cells

Over the past few decades, the use of cell microencapsulation technology has been promoted for a wide range of applications as sustained drug delivery systems or as cells containing biosystems for regenerative medicine. However, difficulty in their preservation and storage has limited their availability to healthcare centers. Because the preservation in cryogenic temperatures poses many biological and biophysical challenges and that the technology has not been well understood, the slow cooling cryopreservation, which is the most used technique worldwide, has not given full measure of its full potential application yet. This review will discuss the different steps that should be understood and taken into account to preserve microencapsulated cells by slow freezing in a successful and simple manner. Moreover, it will review the slow freezing preservation of alginate-based microencapsulated cells and discuss some recommendations that the research community may pursue to optimize the preservation of microencapsulated cells, enabling the therapy translate from bench to the clinic

The nuclear lamina couples mechanical forces to cell fate in the preimplantation embryo via actin organization

During preimplantation development, contractile forces generated at the apical cortex segregate cells into inner and outer positions of the embryo, establishing the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm. To which extent these forces influence ICM-trophectoderm fate remains unresolved. Here, we found that the nuclear lamina is coupled to the cortex via an F-actin meshwork in mouse and human embryos. Actomyosin contractility increases during development, upregulating Lamin-A levels, but upon internalization cells lose their apical cortex and downregulate Lamin-A. Low Lamin-A shifts the localization of actin nucleators from nucleus to cytoplasm increasing cytoplasmic F-actin abundance. This results in stabilization of Amot, Yap phosphorylation and acquisition of ICM over trophectoderm fate. By contrast, in outer cells, Lamin-A levels increase with contractility. This prevents Yap phosphorylation enabling Cdx2 to specify the trophectoderm. Thus, forces transmitted to the nuclear lamina control actin organization to differentially regulate the factors specifying lineage identity

Direct exfoliation and dispersion of two-dimensional materials in pure water via temperature control

The high-volume synthesis of two-dimensional (2D) materials in the form of platelets is desirable for various applications. While water is considered an ideal dispersion medium, due to its abundance and low cost, the hydrophobicity of platelet surfaces has prohibited its widespread use. Here we exfoliate 2D materials directly in pure water without using any chemicals or surfactants. In order to exfoliate and disperse the materials in water, we elevate the temperature of the sonication bath, and introduce energy via the dissipation of sonic waves. Storage stability greater than one month is achieved through the maintenance of high temperatures, and through atomic and molecular level simulations, we further discover that good solubility in water is maintained due to the presence of platelet surface charges as a result of edge functionalization or intrinsic polarity. Finally, we demonstrate inkjet printing on hard and flexible substrates as a potential application of water-dispersed 2D materials.close1

Thermodynamics of a class of non-asymptotically flat black holes in Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton theory

We analyse in detail the thermodynamics in the canonical and grand canonical ensembles of a class of non-asymptotically flat black holes of the Einstein-(anti) Maxwell-(anti) Dilaton theory in 4D with spherical symmetry. We present the first law of thermodynamics, the thermodynamic analysis of the system through the geometrothermodynamics methods, Weinhold, Ruppeiner, Liu-Lu-Luo-Shao and the most common, that made by the specific heat. The geometric methods show a curvature scalar identically zero, which is incompatible with the results of the analysis made by the non null specific heat, which shows that the system is thermodynamically interacting, does not possess extreme case nor phase transition. We also analyse the local and global stability of the thermodynamic system, and obtain a local and global stability for the normal case for 0<\gamma<1 and for other values of \gamma, an unstable system. The solution where \gamma=0 separates the class of locally and globally stable solutions from the unstable ones.Comment: 18 pages, version accepted for publication in General Relativity and Gravitatio

Human aging is characterized by focused changes in gene expression and deregulation of alternative splicing

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordSummary: Aging is a major risk factor for chronic disease in the human population, but there are little human data on gene expression alterations that accompany the process. We examined human peripheral blood leukocyte in-vivo RNA in a large-scale transcriptomic microarray study (subjects aged 30-104years). We tested associations between probe expression intensity and advancing age (adjusting for confounding factors), initially in a discovery set (n=458), following-up findings in a replication set (n=240). We confirmed expression of key results by real-time PCR. Of 16571 expressed probes, only 295 (2%) were robustly associated with age. Just six probes were required for a highly efficient model for distinguishing between young and old (area under the curve in replication set; 95%). The focused nature of age-related gene expression may therefore provide potential biomarkers of aging. Similarly, only 7 of 1065 biological or metabolic pathways were age-associated, in gene set enrichment analysis, notably including the processing of messenger RNAs (mRNAs); [P<0.002, false discovery rate (FDR) q<0.05]. This is supported by our observation of age-associated disruption to the balance of alternatively expressed isoforms for selected genes, suggesting that modification of mRNA processing may be a feature of human aging. © 2011 The Authors. Aging Cell © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd/Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR

Adjusting for multiple prognostic factors in the analysis of randomised trials

Background: When multiple prognostic factors are adjusted for in the analysis of a randomised trial, it is unclear (1) whether it is necessary to account for each of the strata, formed by all combinations of the prognostic factors (stratified analysis), when randomisation has been balanced within each stratum (stratified randomisation), or whether adjusting for the main effects alone will suffice, and (2) the best method of adjustment in terms of type I error rate and power, irrespective of the randomisation method. Methods: We used simulation to (1) determine if a stratified analysis is necessary after stratified randomisation, and (2) to compare different methods of adjustment in terms of power and type I error rate. We considered the following methods of analysis: adjusting for covariates in a regression model, adjusting for each stratum using either fixed or random effects, and Mantel-Haenszel or a stratified Cox model depending on outcome. Results: Stratified analysis is required after stratified randomisation to maintain correct type I error rates when (a) there are strong interactions between prognostic factors, and (b) there are approximately equal number of patients in each stratum. However, simulations based on real trial data found that type I error rates were unaffected by the method of analysis (stratified vs unstratified), indicating these conditions were not met in real datasets. Comparison of different analysis methods found that with small sample sizes and a binary or time-to-event outcome, most analysis methods lead to either inflated type I error rates or a reduction in power; the lone exception was a stratified analysis using random effects for strata, which gave nominal type I error rates and adequate power. Conclusions: It is unlikely that a stratified analysis is necessary after stratified randomisation except in extreme scenarios. Therefore, the method of analysis (accounting for the strata, or adjusting only for the covariates) will not generally need to depend on the method of randomisation used. Most methods of analysis work well with large sample sizes, however treating strata as random effects should be the analysis method of choice with binary or time-to-event outcomes and a small sample size

Urinary Phthalate Metabolites in Relation to Preterm Birth in Mexico City

Background: Rates of preterm birth have been rising over the past several decades. Factors contributing to this trend remain largely unclear, and exposure to environmental contaminants may play a role. Objective: We investigated the relationship between phthalate exposure and preterm birth. Methods: Within a large Mexican birth cohort study, we compared third-trimester urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations in 30 women who delivered preterm (< 37 weeks of gestation) with those of 30 controls (≥ 37 weeks of gestation). Results: Concentrations of most of the metabolites were similar to those reported among U.S. females, although in the present study mono-n-butyl phthalate (MBP) concentrations were higher and monobenzyl phthalate (MBzP) concentrations lower. In a crude comparison before correcting for urinary dilution, geometric mean urinary concentrations were higher for the phthalate metabolites MBP, MBzP, mono(3-carboxylpropyl) phthalate, and four metabolites of di(2-ethyl-hexyl) phthalate among women who subsequently delivered preterm. These differences remained, but were somewhat lessened, after correction by specific gravity or creatinine. In multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for potential confounders, elevated odds of having phthalate metabolite concentrations above the median level were found. Conclusions: We found that phthalate exposure is prevalent among this group of pregnant women in Mexico and that some phthalates may be associated with preterm birth