A Comparative Study of Turbulence Methods Applied to the Design of a 3D-Printed Scaffold and the Selection of the Appropriate Numerical Scheme to Simulate the Scaffold for Tissue Engineering

Current commercial software tools implement turbulence models on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques and combine them with fluid-structural interaction (FSI) techniques. There are currently a great variety of turbulence methods that are worth investigating through a comparative study in order to delineate their behavior on scaffolds used in tissue engineering and bone regeneration. Additive manufacturing (AM) offers the opportunity to obtain three-dimensional printed scaffolds (3D scaffolds) that are designed respecting morphologies and that are typically used for the fused deposition model (FDM). These are typically made using biocompatible and biodegradable materials, such as polyetherimide (PEI), ULTEM 1010 biocompatible and polylactic acid (PLA). Starting from our own geometric model, simulations were carried out applying a series of turbulence models which have been proposed due to a variety of properties, such as permeability, speed regime, pressures, depressions and stiffness, that in turn are subject to boundary conditions based on a blood torrent. The obtained results revealed that the detached eddy simulation (DES) model shows better performance for the use of 3D scaffolds in its normal operating regime. Finally, although the results do not present relevant differences between the two materials used in the comparison, the prototypes simulated in PEI ULTEM 1010 do not allow their manufacture in FDM for the required pore size. The printed 3D scaffolds of PLA reveal an elastic behavior and a rigidity that are similar to other prototypes of ceramic composition. Prototypes made of PLA reveal unpredictable variability in pore and layer size which are very similar to cell growth itself and difficult to keep constant

A methodology for the classification of gravel beaches

Beaches are highly flexible structures that can be deformed by several reasons, some natural as wind and swell and others not, as human actions. Gravel, considered as a component of the beach is not always separated from the rest of the materials. It is a part of the coastline sedimentary balance, usually with time and spatial scales much greater than those corresponding to the stretch of the coast under study. The conceptual and experimental difficulties of studying this kind of beach have meant that nowadays they are really unknown. In this paper, methodologies to classify and determinate the most important characteristics in gravel beaches are presented. The authors have studied 34 shingle beaches in the region of Alicante (Spain) from a database with their characteristics. Obtained data corresponds to the morphology of the beach, the materials that take part in its composition and the wave energy, considering its incidence, the wave height, the local period and its influence on the coastline. At the beginning, mathematical models are generated, allowing the expression of the relationships between the slope of berm and the rest of variables. To classify the beaches, a factor analysis has been used on the experimental data matrix, considering all the variables as predictive, obtaining in this way an index for beach classification with similar characteristics. Furthermore, to determine the predictive variables that allow characterizing the 34 beaches, a discriminant analysis has been applied over several sets of variables. In each case, a predictive model of cluster belonging is created, considering a discriminant function, and with the clustering function formed by different clusters. The methodologies developed in this paper will be applied later to other beaches as classification and variable selection methods

Raman Optical Activity Monitoring the Interaction of Globular Proteins with Surfactants

Protein denaturation by surfactants is related with topic as pharmaceutics, cosmetics, paints or biotechnology. This phenomenon is highly dependent on the physico-chemical properties of the denaturing agents. In this communication we report the ROA spectra of bovine serum albumin in the presence of different surfactants, which share a common hydrophobic tail, with the objerctive of correlating the structural specificities of the surfactant-protein interaction with the ROA signatures by following the protein unfolding process.In our work we propose two new groups of ROA marker bands related with the protein unfolding induced by surfactants. This work represents one of the first applications of ROA to study the interaction of a protein with surfactants, and a new proof of the ability of this chiroptical technique to see beyond that can be seen with conventional Raman spectroscopy.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Análisis de la gestión administrativa en la Unidad de Gestión Educativa Local N.° 302, Leoncio Prado

Objective: To analyze the administrative management in the Local Educational Management Unit N.° 302, Leoncio Prado. Methods. The research approach was quantitative, while the level was descriptive. A survey was applied to the principals (primary and secondary) that make up the educational staff of the province of Leoncio Prado, who formed the unit of analysis of the study. Results. In the analysis of administrative management, the results were 42.0 % or "regular". Planning yielded results of 46.1 % or "fair". Also, organization yielded results of 47.7 % or "fair". The results for management were 47.2 % or "fair". Finally, the results for control were 47.2 % or "fair". Conclusions. The analysis of the administrative management of the institution was predominantly regular, being the dimensions: planning, organization, direction and control, the ones that presented the greatest deficiencies in the management of the Local Educational Management Unit N.° 302, Leoncio Prado.Objetivo. Analizar la gestión administrativa en la Unidad de Gestión Educativa Local N.° 302, Leoncio Prado. Métodos. El enfoque de investigación fue cuantitativo, mientras que el nivel fue descriptivo. Se aplicó una encuesta a los directores (primaria y secundaria) que conforman el personal educativo de la provincia de Leoncio Prado, quienes formarón la unidad de análisis del estudio. Resultados. En análsiis de la gestión administrativa arrojó resultados del 42,0 % o “regular”. Por su parte, la planeación arrojó resultados del 46,1 % o “regular”. También, la organización arrojó resultados del 47,7 % o “regular”. Referente a la dirección esta arrojó resultados del 47,2 % o “regular”. Finalmente, los resultados del control fueron del 47,2 % o “regular”. Conclusiones. El analisis de la gestión administra de la insttución fue predominantemente regular, siendo las dimensiones: planeación, organización, dirección y control, las que presentaron mayores deficiencias en la gestión de la Unidad de Gestión Educativa Local N.° 302, Leoncio Prado

Rules, Standards, and the Internal Point of View

Large scale structure and cosmolog

Costs and benefits of automation for astronomical facilities

The Observatorio Astrof\'isico de Javalambre (OAJ{\dag}1) in Spain is a young astronomical facility, conceived and developed from the beginning as a fully automated observatory with the main goal of optimizing the processes in the scientific and general operation of the Observatory. The OAJ has been particularly conceived for carrying out large sky surveys with two unprecedented telescopes of unusually large fields of view (FoV): the JST/T250, a 2.55m telescope of 3deg field of view, and the JAST/T80, an 83cm telescope of 2deg field of view. The most immediate objective of the two telescopes for the next years is carrying out two unique photometric surveys of several thousands square degrees, J-PAS{\dag}2 and J-PLUS{\dag}3, each of them with a wide range of scientific applications, like e.g. large structure cosmology and Dark Energy, galaxy evolution, supernovae, Milky Way structure, exoplanets, among many others. To do that, JST and JAST are equipped with panoramic cameras under development within the J-PAS collaboration, JPCam and T80Cam respectively, which make use of large format (~ 10k x 10k) CCDs covering the entire focal plane. This paper describes in detail, from operations point of view, a comparison between the detailed cost of the global automation of the Observatory and the standard automation cost for astronomical facilities, in reference to the total investment and highlighting all benefits obtained from this approach and difficulties encountered. The paper also describes the engineering development of the overall facilities and infrastructures for the fully automated observatory and a global overview of current status, pinpointing lessons learned in order to boost observatory operations performance, achieving scientific targets, maintaining quality requirements, but also minimizing operation cost and human resources.Comment: Global Observatory Control System GOC

Protocol for the detection and nutritional management of high-output stomas

Introduction: An issue of recent research interest is excessive stoma output and its relation to electrolyte abnormalities. Some studies have identified this as a precursor of dehydration and renal dysfunction. A prospective study was performed of the complications associated with high-output stomas, to identify their causes, consequences and management.Materials and methods: This study was carried out by a multidisciplinary team of surgeons, gastroenterologists, nutritionists and hospital pharmacists. High-output stoma (HOS) was defined as output ≥1500 ml for two consecutive days. The subjects included in the study population, 43 patients with a new permanent or temporary stoma, were classified according to the time of HOS onset as early HOS (<3 weeks after initial surgery) or late HOS (≥3 weeks after surgery). Circumstances permitting, a specific protocol for response to HOS was applied. Each patient was followed up until the fourth month after surgery.Results: Early HOS was observed in 7 (16 %) of the sample population of 43 hospital patients, and late HOS, in 6 of the 37 (16 %) non-early HOS population. By type of stoma, nearly all HOS cases affected ileostomy, rather than colostomy, patients. The patients with early HOS remained in hospital for 18 days post surgery, significantly longer than those with no HOS (12 days). The protocol was applied to the majority of EHOS patients and achieved 100 % effectiveness. 50 % of readmissions were due to altered electrolyte balance. Hypomagnesaemia was observed in 33 % of the late HOS patients.Conclusion: The protocol developed at our hospital for the detection and management of HOS effectively addresses possible long-term complications arising from poor nutritional status and chronic electrolyte alteration

Type-II Quantum Dots with Topology Driven g-factor tunability

Trabajo presentado en el ICSNN2018: 20th International Conference on Superlattices Nanostructures and Nanodevices, celebrado en Madrid del 23 al 27 de julio de 2018Peer reviewe

Voltage tuning of exciton topology and g-factor in type-II InAs/GaAsSb quantum dots

Trabajo presentado en la DPG Conference - Geometry and Topology Controlled Nanoarchitectures, celebrada en Berlín (alemania), del 11 al 16 de marzo de 2018Peer reviewe

Integrative development of a short screening questionnaire of highly processed food consumption (sQ-HPF)

Background: Recent lifestyle changes include increased consumption of highly processed foods (HPF), which has been associated with an increased risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). However, nutritional information relies on the estimation of HPF consumption from food-frequency questionnaires (FFQ) that are not explicitly developed for this purpose. We aimed to develop a short screening questionnaire of HPF consumption (sQ-HPF) that integrates criteria from the existing food classification systems. Methods: Data from 4400 participants (48.1% female and 51.9% male, 64.9 +/- 4.9 years) of the Spanish PREDIMED-Plus (PREvention with MEDiterranean DIet) trial were used for this analysis. Items from the FFQ were classified according to four main food processing-based classification systems (NOVA, IARC, IFIC and UNC). Participants were classified into tertiles of HPF consumption according to each system. Using binomial logistic regression, food groups associated with agreement in the highest tertile for at least two classification systems were chosen as items for the questionnaire. ROC analysis was used to determine cut-off points for the frequency of consumption of each item, from which a score was calculated. Internal consistency of the questionnaire was assessed through exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and Cronbach's analysis, and agreement with the four classifications was assessed with weighted kappa coefficients. Results: Regression analysis identified 14 food groups (items) associated with high HPF consumption for at least two classification systems. EFA showed that items were representative contributors of a single underlying factor, the HPF dietary pattern (factor loadings around 0.2). We constructed a questionnaire asking about the frequency of consumption of those items. The threshold frequency of consumption was selected using ROC analysis. Comparison of the four classification systems and the sQ-HPF showed a fair to high agreement. Significant changes in lifestyle characteristics were detected across tertiles of the sQ-HPF score. Longitudinal changes in HPF consumption were also detected by the sQ-HPF, concordantly with existing classification systems. Conclusions: We developed a practical tool to measure HPF consumption, the sQ-HPF. This may be a valuable instrument to study its relationship with NCDs