469 research outputs found
Achieving competence-based curriculum in Engineering Education in Spain
5 tables, 5 figures, 10 pagesThe fact of placing competences and outcomes
learning at the heart of the academic activity means overhauling the curricular architecture of higher education in Europe. Some universities have undergone important transformations moving toward a competence-based learning environment, while others maintain traditional curriculum
packaged formats. In the realm of the European Higher Education Area, this paper examines the use of competence-based initiatives in curricular development for engineering degrees with special focus to the Spanish case. Although the concept of
competence and competence-based learning has a long history in education and training research, these terms are still very diffuse and demand a clear conceptualization. In the first part
of this paper, we provide a conceptual overview and a critical reflection of competences as implemented in a wide range of settings, including its origins, key concepts, and definitions. Next, we discuss the purposes, principles, pitfalls, and processes that enable defining a map of competences within engineering
education. Lastly, we present a pilot project involving curriculum development and faculty enhancement within a competence-based learning initiative in Electronic Engineering.This work was supported in part by the Program of European Convergence (Universidad Politécnica de Valencia) and developed within the Project of Adaptation to the European Higher Education in the School of Design Engineering.Peer reviewe
Equilibration of Concentrated Hard Sphere Fluids
We report a systematic molecular dynamics study of the isochoric
equilibration of hard-sphere fluids in their metastable regime close to the
glass transition. The thermalization process starts with the system prepared in
a non-equilibrium state with the desired final volume fraction {\phi} but with
a prescribed non-equilibrium static structure factor S_0(k; {\phi}). The
evolution of the {\alpha}- relaxation time {\tau}{\alpha} (k) and long-time
self-diffusion coefficient DL as a function of the evolution time tw is then
monitored for an array of volume fractions. For a given waiting time the plot
of {\tau}{\alpha} (k; {\phi}, tw) as a function of {\phi} exhibits two regimes
corresponding to samples that have fully equilibrated within this waiting time
({\phi} \leq {\phi}(c) (tw)), and to samples for which equilibration is not yet
complete ({\phi} \geq {\phi}(c) (tw)). The crossover volume fraction {\phi}(c)
(tw) increases with tw but seems to saturate to a value {\phi}(a) \equiv
{\phi}(c) (tw \rightarrow \infty) \approx 0.582. We also find that the waiting
time t^(eq)_w({\phi}) required to equilibrate a system grows faster than the
corresponding equilibrium relaxation time, t^(eq)({\phi}) \approx 0.27 \times
[{\tau}{\alpha} (k; {\phi})]^1.43, and that both characteristic times increase
strongly as {\phi} approaches {\phi}^(a), thus suggesting that the measurement
of equilibrium properties at and above {\phi}(a) is experimentally impossible
Mobile Application for Noise Pollution Monitoring through Gamification Techniques
Full data coverage of urban environments is crucial to monitor the status of the area to detect, for instance, trends and detrimental environmental changes. Collecting observations related to environmental factors such as noise pollution in urban environments through classical approaches implies the deployment of Sensor Networks. The cost of deployment and maintenance of such infrastructure might be relatively high for local and regional governments. On the other hand recent mass-market mobile devices such as smartphones are full of sensors. For instance, it is possible to perform measurements of noise through its microphone. Therefore they become low-cost measuring devices that many citizens have in their pocket. In this paper we present an approach for gathering noise pollution data by using mobile applications. The applications are designed following gamification techniques to encourage users to participate using their personal smartphones. In this way the users are involved in taking and sharing noise pollution measurements in their cities that other stakeholders can use in their analysis and decision making processes
Phenomenology of a three-family model with gauge symmetry SU(3)_c X SU(4)_L X U(1)_X
We study an extension of the gauge group SU(3)_c X SU(2)_L X U(1)_Y of the
standard model to the symmetry group SU(3)_c X SU(4)_L X U(1)_X (3-4-1 for
short). This extension provides an interesting attempt to answer the question
of family replication in the sense that models for the electroweak interaction
can be constructed so that anomaly cancellation is achieved by an interplay
between generations, all of them under the condition that the number of
families must be divisible by the number of colours of SU(3)_c. This method of
anomaly cancellation requires a family of quarks transforming differently from
the other two, thus leading to tree-level flavour changing neutral currents
(FCNC) transmitted by the two extra neutral gauge bosons and
predicted by the model. In a version of the 3-4-1 extension, which does not
contain particles with exotic electric charges, we study the fermion mass
spectrum and some aspects of the phenomenology of the neutral gauge boson
sector. In particular, we impose limits on the mixing angle and on the
mass scale of the corresponding physical new neutral gauge boson , and
establish a lower bound on the mass of the additional new neutral gauge boson
. For the analysis we use updated precision electroweak data at
the Z-pole from the CERN LEP and SLAC Linear Collider, and atomic parity
violation data. The mass scale of the additional new neutral gauge boson
is constrained by using updated experimental inputs from neutral meson mixing
in the analysis of the sources of FCNC in the model. The data constrain the
mixing angle to a very small value of O(0.001), and the lower bounds on
and on are found to be of O(1 TeV) and of O(7 TeV),
repectively.Comment: 22 pages, 6 tables, 1 figure. To appear in J. Phys. G: Nuclear and
Particle Physic
Blue SHG enhancement by silver nanocubes photochemically prepared on a RbTiOPO4 ferroelectric crystal
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Blue SHG enhancement by silver nanocubes photochemically prepared on a RbTiOPO4 ferroelectric crystal, which has been published in final form at http://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201401603. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived VersionsSilver nanocubes with low size dispersion have been selectively photo-deposited on the positive surface of a periodically poled RbTiOPO 4 ferroelectric crystal. The obtained nanocubes show preferential orientations with respect to the substrate suggesting ep itaxial growth. The plasmonic resonances supported by the nanocubes are exploited to enhance blue SHG at the domain wallsThis work has been supported by the Spanish Government under
projects MAT2010–17443, MAT2011–29255-C02–02 and MAT2013–
43301-R, Comunidad de Madrid under grant S2009/1756 and Generalitat
de Catalunya under project 2009SGR23
Effects of the Addition of Ortho
The synthetic tetrapyrrole macrocycles, such as porphyrins (H2P) and phthalocyanines (H2Pc), exhibit interesting physicochemical properties suitable to be used in modern technology. For many applications, those species should be trapped or fixed inside graphite, hydrotalcites, silica, TiO2, or polymers. Methodologies for the optimization of the properties of porphyrins, trapped or fixed inside polymers, have been barely developed. Our research works in the development of methodologies for the optimization of incorporation and display of properties of tetrapyrrole macrocycles inside inorganic, polymeric, or hybrid networks. This paper shows some results about the effect of the spatial disposition of the amine (–NH2) groups attached on the periphery of substituted tetraphenylporphyrins, on the Nylon 66 structure and on the display of the physicochemical properties of the trapped macrocycles. Nylon 66 was synthesized from adipoyl chloride and hexamethylenediamine in presence of tetraphenylporphyrins substituted with –NH2 groups localized at the ortho- or para-positions of the phenyls. Cobalt complexes formation was used to quantify the amount of porphyrins in the polymer fibers. Characterization results show that the spatial position of amine groups of the porphyrins has important structural and textural effect on the Nylon 66 fibers and on the fluorescence of the porphyrins integrated into the fibers
Characterization of Actinobacterial Communities from Arauca River Sediments (Colombia) Reveals Antimicrobial Potential Presented in Low Abundant Isolates
Q3Artículo original181-194Introduction:
New strategies have been arisen to set a rapid and effective screening for selection of microorganism with bioactive potential. This study suggests that combination of physicochemical pretreatments and taxonomic dereplication of microbial collections through MALDI-TOF MS, facilitates the detection of low abundance actinobacteria with potential as a source of antimicrobial agents.
Material and Methods:
An unstudied microbial community from a tropical river sediment in Colombian Orinoquía is described, applying an extended cultivation strategy using physicochemical pretreatments, biological screenings and taxonomic dereplication through MALDI-TOF MS approach.
Results:
Actinobacteria-like isolates (790) were growth and their antimicrobial activity was assessed against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, extended-spectrum β-lactamase Klebsiella pnumoniae, and clinical isolates of Cladosporium cladosporioides and Epicoccum nigrum. Seventy-eight isolates, belonging to the Streptomycetaceae family according to 16S rDNA analysis were found to have antimicrobial activity and were categorized as low abundance actinobacteria by MALDI-TOF MS.
Conclusion:
The results suggest that combination of physicochemical pretreatments and taxonomic dereplication of microbial collections through MALDI-TOF MS, facilitates the detection of low abundance actinobacteria with potential as a source of antimicrobial agents
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