Exploring the Interplay between CAD and FreeFem++ as an Energy Decision-Making Tool for Architectural Design

The energy modelling software tools commonly used for architectural purposes do not allow a straightforward real-time implementation within the architectural design programs. In addition, the surrounding exterior spaces of the building, including the inner courtyards, hardly present a specific treatment distinguishing these spaces from the general external temperature in the thermal simulations. This is a clear disadvantage when it comes to streamlining the design process in relation to the whole-building energy optimization. In this context, the present study aims to demonstrate the advantages of the FreeFem++ open source program for performing simulations in architectural environments. These simulations include microclimate tests that describe the interactions between a building architecture and its local exterior. The great potential of this mathematical tool can be realized through its complete system integration within CAD (Computer-Aided Design) software such as SketchUp or AutoCAD. In order to establish the suitability of FreeFem++ for the performance of simulations, the most widely employed energy simulation tools able to consider a proposed architectural geometry in a specific environment are compared. On the basis of this analysis, it can be concluded that FreeFem++ is the only program displaying the best features for the thermal performance simulation of these specific outdoor spaces, excluding the currently unavailable easy interaction with architectural drawing programs. The main contribution of this research is, in fact, the enhancement of FreeFem++ usability by proposing a simple intuitive method for the creation of building geometries and their respective meshing (pre-processing). FreeFem++ is also considered a tool for data analysis (post-processing) able to help engineers and architects with building energy-efficiency-related tasks

On the Influence of Shade in Improving Thermal Comfort in Courtyards

This study analyzes the thermal performance of courtyards in traditional buildings in the city center of Córdoba (South of Spain), one of them displaying a shading component, to determine the influence of this precise element. The courtyards have been monitored simultaneously during a summer period when temperatures during the day reached over 45 °C. The obtained data was contrasted, and we confirmed that the shading element provided an improvement of the thermal performance of the courtyard which doubled the thermal leap between outdoor and inside the courtyard temperatures when the shading element was installed, in comparison to the courtyard without shade. Therefore, the tempering effect of courtyards can be significantly improved by means of using these simple elements

Business plan: supply chain consulting company for SMEs focused on the development and implementation of apps

Este documento presenta el plan de negocio de CMJ Consultores, que pretende evaluar la factibilidad del sector, el mercado objetivo, la capacidad técnica y operativa, la viabilidad económica y el componente de sostenibilidad para la creación de una empresa de consultoría empresarial y desarrollo de aplicaciones tecnológicas, enfocadas a los procesos de la cadena de abastecimiento para pequeñas y medianas empresas (Pymes) en Colombia. La idea se origina en la experiencia del autor de más de 7 años en el mercado de la consultoría empresarial, donde se ha dedicado a estudiar a las empresas y en participar en programas de transformación digital especialmente en procesos relacionados con la Cadena de Abastecimiento. Se pretende partir de la esencia de la consultoría que existe hoy en día y ofrecer servicios integrales que transformen digitalmente las cadenas de abastecimiento de las Pymes, que permitan resolver los principales problemas que tienen de competitividad para aumentar sus mercados, por medio del desarrollo e implementación de aplicaciones tipo APPS a precios realmente accesibles para este mercado objetivo.This document presents the business plan of CMJ Consultores, which aims to assess the feasibility of the sector, the target market, technical and operational capacity, economic viability and the sustainability component for the creation of a business consulting and application development company. technologies, focused on the processes of the supply chain for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Colombia. The idea originates in the author's experience of more than 7 years in the business consulting market, where he has dedicated himself to studying companies and participating in digital transformation programs especially in processes related to the Supply Chain. The aim is to start from the essence of the consultancy that exists today and to offer integral services that digitally transform the supply chains of SMEs, that allow them to solve the main problems they have of competitiveness to increase their markets, through the development and implementation of APPS type applications at really accessible prices for this target market.Magister en Gerencia de la Cadena de Abastecimient

Juegos y deportes autóctonos en la escuela

Los juegos y deportes autóctonos constituyen un elemento pedagógico excelente para ser utilizado en la escuela, tanto como contenido dentro del área de educación física, como estrategia metodológica. Además los juegos y deportes autóctonos constituyen una fuente antropológica destacada como parte de nuestro acervo cultural el cual debemos conocer, difundir y mantener.Grado en Educación Primari

Using MOOCs as a research approach and as contributors to local knowledge

This project shows the results of a research focused on instructional design of a MOOC course to be used as a tool to increase knowledge in a local environment. The objective is to generate knowledge based on the distributed shared. It was designed through a Delphi study. Students were requested to submit a final project related to the local area. The material received feed a repository that serves to expand and spread research and knowledge

CTX-M Enzymes: Origin and Diffusion

CTX-M β-lactamases are considered a paradigm in the evolution of a resistance mechanism. Incorporation of different chromosomal blaCTX-M related genes from different species of Kluyvera has derived in different CTX-M clusters. In silico analyses have shown that this event has occurred at least nine times; in CTX-M-1 cluster (3), CTX-M-2 and CTX-M-9 clusters (2 each), and CTX-M-8 and CTX-M-25 clusters (1 each). This has been mainly produced by the participation of genetic mobilization units such as insertion sequences (ISEcp1 or ISCR1) and the later incorporation in hierarchical structures associated with multifaceted genetic structures including complex class 1 integrons and transposons. The capture of these blaCTX-M genes from the environment by highly mobilizable structures could have been a random event. Moreover, after incorporation within these structures, β-lactam selective force such as that exerted by cefotaxime and ceftazidime has fueled mutational events underscoring diversification of different clusters. Nevertheless, more variants of CTX-M enzymes, including those not inhibited by β-lactamase inhibitors such as clavulanic acid (IR-CTX-M variants), only obtained under in in vitro experiments, are still waiting to emerge in the clinical setting. Penetration and the later global spread of CTX-M producing organisms have been produced with the participation of the so-called “epidemic resistance plasmids” often carried in multi-drug resistant and virulent high-risk clones. All these facts but also the incorporation and co-selection of emerging resistance determinants within CTX-M producing bacteria, such as those encoding carbapenemases, depict the currently complex pandemic scenario of multi-drug resistant isolates

Construcción de un instrumento con escalas de comportamiento para la evaluación la calidad docente en modalidades blended learning

The assessment of teaching quality in blended learning modalities has become a key element in the context of higher education. However, current evaluation systems present certain limitations. Behavioral scales overcome many of these limitations, offering an alternative for this task. This study describes the process of constructing an assessment instrument with behavioral scales to evaluate university teachers in blended learning modalities, following the BARS (Behavioral Anchored Rating Scales) methodology. The design process included interviews and surveys involving a total of 477 students, as well as a panel of professors who were experts in this teaching modality. The behavioral scales in the final instrument highlight the importance of certain particularly significant teaching-related aspects of blended learning models, namely: teacher-student communication; learning resources; course design; and the teacher’s technical competencies. The authors conclude that the final instrument provides clear and unambiguous feedback, enables the teacher to take specific corrective measures, and reinforces the formative purpose of evaluation in these modalities.La evaluación de la calidad docente en modalidades de enseñanza blended learning se ha convertido en un elemento clave en el contexto de la Educación Superior. Sin embargo, los sistemas de evaluación actuales presentan ciertas limitaciones. Las escalas de comportamiento permiten superar muchas de estas limitaciones, postulándose como una alternativa adecuada para esta tarea. El presente trabajo describe el proceso de construcción de un instrumento de medición con escalas de comportamiento para la evaluación de la calidad docente en modalidades blended learning siguiendo la metodología BARS (Behavioral Anchored Rating Scales). Su diseño, mediante entrevistas y encuestas, involucra a un total de 477 estudiantes, así como a un panel de docentes expertos en este modelo de enseñanza. Las escalas de comportamiento en el instrumento final resaltan la importancia de ciertos aspectos docentes propios de las modalidades blended learning. Los más notables son los siguientes: la comunicación profesor-alumno, los recursos de aprendizaje, el diseño del curso y las competencias técnicas del docente. Los autores concluyen que el instrumento final proporciona al profesorado una retroalimentación clara y libre de ambigüedades, lo cual permite la adopción de medidas correctoras e impulsa el fin formativo de la evaluación en estas modalidades

Physical and hydraulic properties of porous concrete

[Abstract:] The work presented includes a review of the state of art of porous concrete. Its purpose is to evaluate the potential use of porous concrete in constructions where the level of surface runoff justifies it. A review of the literature presented here has been necessary where parameters of special consideration have been defined in the dosage of permeable mixtures. The study includes the definition of porous concrete in terms of its main components: cement, coarse aggregate, water, additives, and sand, in little or no quantity, to cause the generation of an effective content of interconnected voids that allow rapid storm drainage. Given the reports of variables of high incidence in the mechanical behavior of porous concrete (resistance/permeability relationship), an investigation is warranted to synthesize the effects of the variables in the preparation of the mixture: water–cement ratio, granulometry, and morphology of the aggregates, compaction pressure, and curing techniques, among others. Likewise, the protocols for the characterization of porous concrete and additional aspects relevant to support the experimental phase are exposed, constituting a reference or anchor point for developing technologies associated with the manufacture of this material and the possibilities of its implementation in constructions

Antibiotics as selectors and accelerators 1 of diversity in the mechanisms of resistance: from the resistome to genetic plasticity in the β-lactamases world

Antibiotics and antibiotic resistance determinants, natural molecules closely related to bacterial physiology and consistent with an ancient origin, are not only present in antibiotic-producing bacteria. Throughput sequencing technologies have revealed an unexpected reservoir of antibiotic resistance in the environment. These data suggest that co-evolution between antibiotic and antibiotic resistance genes has occurred since the beginning of time. This evolutionary race has probably been slow because of highly regulated processes and low antibiotic concentrations. Therefore to understand this global problem, a new variable must be introduced, that the antibiotic resistance is a natural event, inherent to life. However, the industrial production of natural and synthetic antibiotics has dramatically accelerated this race, selecting some of the many resistance genes present in nature and contributing to their diversification. One of the best models available to understand the biological impact of selection and diversification are β-lactamases. They constitute the most widespread mechanism of resistance, at least among pathogenic bacteria, with more than 1000 enzymes identified in the literature. In the last years, there has been growing concern about the description, spread, and diversification of β-lactamases with carbapenemase activity and AmpC-type in plasmids. Phylogenies of these enzymes help the understanding of the evolutionary forces driving their selection. Moreover, understanding the adaptive potential of β-lactamases contribute to exploration the evolutionary antagonists trajectories through the design of more efficient synthetic molecules. In this review, we attempt to analyze the antibiotic resistance problem from intrinsic and environmental resistomes to the adaptive potential of resistance genes and the driving forces involved in their diversification, in order to provide a global perspective of the resistance problem

Intent Profile Strategy for Virtual Power Plant Participation in Simultaneous Energy Markets With Dynamic Storage Management

The emergence of distributed energy resources in the electricity system involves new scenarios in which domestic consumers can be aggregated in virtual power plants to participate in energy markets. In this paper, a reconfigurable hierarchical multi-time scale framework is developed by combining the concepts of dynamic storage virtualization and intent profiling with model predictive control. The combined implementation of these concepts allows the simultaneous weighted participation in different energy markets, not only according to some aggregators’ criteria, but also to several risk factors. In a first stage, the framework optimizes the strategy for bidding in day-ahead market whereas the second one consists of a control stage to mitigate deviations and potential penalties. The smart management of individual storage virtualization enables the participation in the demand-response program, which improves the forecasted economical profit related to the day-ahead participation. The changes in the schedule are performed considering new potential penalties. The framework is reconfigurable at every sample time at control stage. This enables to make dynamic participations depending on node availability or system peaks. The proposed case studies cover day-ahead and demand-response participations, but the framework is open to other multi-service configurations. The results have been assessed with satisfactory conclusions.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación - Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) PID2019-104149RB-I00/10.13039/50110001103