Design, Implementation and Evaluation of SPOCs at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

The Universidad Carlos III de Madrid has been offering several face-to-face remedial courses for new students to review or learn concepts and practical skills that they should know before starting their degree program. During 2012 and 2013, our University adopted MOOC-like technologies to support some of these courses so that a blended learning methodology could be applied in a particular educational context, i.e. by using SPOCs (Small Private Online Courses). This paper gathers a list of issues, challenges and solutions when implementing these SPOCs. Based on these challenges and issues, a design process is proposed for the implementation of SPOCs. In addition, an evaluation is presented of the different use of the offered courses based on indicators such as the number of videos accessed, number of exercises accessed, number of videos completed, number of exercises correctly solved or time spent on the platform.Work partially funded by the RESET project under grant no. TIN2014-53199-C3-1-R (funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness), the REMEDISS project under grant no. IPT-2012-0882-430000 (funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness) and the “eMadrid” project (funded by the Regional Government of Madrid) under grant no. S2013/ICE-2715. Carlos Delgado Kloos wishes to acknowledge support from Fundación CajaMadrid to visit Harvard University and MIT in the academic year 2012-13

Computational and analytical studies of the Randic index in Erdös-Rényi models

In this work we perform computational and analytical studies of the Randic´ index R(G) in Erdös–Rényi models G(n, p) characterized by n vertices connected independently with probability p ∈ (0, 1). First, from a detailed scaling analysis, we show that R(G) = {R(G)}/(n/2) scales with the product ξ ≈ np, so we can define three regimes: a regime of mostly isolated vertices when ξ 10 (R(G) ≈ n/2). Then, motivated by the scaling of R(G), we analytically (i) obtain new relations connecting R(G) with other topological indices and characterize graphs which are extremal with respect to the relations obtained and (ii) apply these results in order to obtain inequalities on R(G) for graphs in Erdös–Rényi models.J.A.M.-B. acknowledges financial support from FAPESP (Grant No. 2019/06931-2), Brazil, and PRODEP-SEP (Grant No. 511- 6/2019.-11821), Mexico. J.M.R. and J.M.S. were supported in part by two grants from Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) (MTM2016-78227-C2-1-P and MTM2017-90584-REDT), Spain

Mean Sombor index

A Special Volume on Chemical Graph Theory in Memory of Nenad TrinajsticWe introduce a degree–based variable topological index inspired on the power (or generalized) mean. We name this new index as the mean Sombor index: SOα(G) = P uv∈E(G) [(d α u + d α v ) /2]1/α. Here, uv denotes the edge of the graph G connecting the vertices u and v, du is the degree of the vertex u, and α ∈ R\{0}. We also consider the limit cases mSOα→0(G) and SOα→±∞(G). Indeed, for given values of α, the mean Sombor index is related to well-known opological indices such as the inverse sum indeg index, the reciprocal Randic index, the first Zagreb index, the Stolarsky–Puebla index and several ´Sombor indices. Moreover, through a quantitative structure property relationship (QSPR) analysis we show that mSOα(G) correlates well with several physicochemical properties of octane isomers. Some mathematical properties of the mean Sombor index as well as bounds and new relationships with known topological indices are also discussed.J.A.M.-B. acknowledges financial support from CONACyT (Grant No. A1-S-22706) and BUAP (Grant No. 100405811VIEP2021) .E.D.M. and J.M.R. were supported by a grant from Agencia Estatal de Investigación (PID 2019-106433GBI00 / AEI / 10.13039 / 501100011033), Spain. J.M.R. was supported by the Madrid Government (Comunidad de Madrid-Spain) under the Multiannual Agreement with UC3M in the line of Excellence of University Professors (EPUC3M23), and in the context of the VPRICIT (Regional Programme of Research and Technological Innovation)

Análisis modal comparado entre modelos virtuales 2d y 3d aplicado a un Cube Sat

El siguiente trabajo presenta un análisis modal comparado entre modelos virtuales 2D y 3D, para validar la sistematización de una metodología de análisis completo de Ingeniería Asistida por Computadora, ejemplificada en la aplicación a un modelo de nano satélite tipo Cube Sat. Se detallan los requerimientos de las especificaciones técnicas, condiciones estructurales, cargas, restricciones y frecuencias de vibración, que sufre este satélite al momento de su despegue y durante su órbita. Posteriormente se aplica al Diseño Asistido por Computadora la solicitud del análisis de respuesta dinámica al modelo de su estructura principal simplificada, utilizando el Método de los Elementos Finitos. Las simulaciones incluyen el análisis dinámico de frecuencias naturales y modos de vibración libre. La comparación se lleva a cabo con las herramientas de un Sistema de Ingeniería Basada en el Conocimiento que permiten optimizar la elaboración de diseños mecánicos y reducir tiempos de solución ante nuevos retos de simulación

Proteomic Changes in Paspalum fasciculatum Leaves Exposed to Cd Stress

Background: Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal that is widely distributed in water, soil, and air. It is present in agrochemicals, wastewater, battery waste, and volcanic eruptions. Thus, it can be absorbed by plants and enter the trophic chain. P. fasciculatum is a plant with phytoremediation capacity that can tolerate Cd stress, but changes in its proteome related to this tolerance have not yet been identified. (2) Methods: We conducted a quantitative analysis of the proteins present in P. fasciculatum leaves cultivated under greenhouse conditions in mining soils doped with 0 mg kg−1 (control), 30 mg kg−1, or 50 mg kg−1. This was carried out using the label-free shotgun proteomics technique. In this way, we determined the changes in the proteomes of the leaves of these plants, which allowed us to propose some tolerance mechanisms involved in the response to Cd stress. (3) Results: In total, 329 variable proteins were identified between treatments, which were classified into those associated with carbohydrate and energy metabolism; photosynthesis; structure, transport, and metabolism of proteins; antioxidant stress and defense; RNA and DNA processing; and signal transduction. (4) Conclusions: Based on changes in the differences in the leaf protein profiles between treatments, we hypothesize that some proteins associated with signal transduction (Ras-related protein RABA1e), HSPs (heat shock cognate 70 kDa protein 2), growth (actin-7), and cellular development (actin-1) are part of the tolerance response to Cd stress

Influence of grain processing in regard to serum metabolites and enzymes for finishing bull calves

This study compared two grain processing methods that are widely used for beef cattle, grinding and steam pelleting, with respect to serum metabolic parameters: glucose, non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), serum urea nitrogen (SUN), total serum protein (TSP), albumin, L-lactate, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) and amylase. Ten Belgian Blue bull calves were allotted randomly to each of two experimental groups: PF, fed pelleted concentrate, and GF, fed ground concentrate. During the 77-day study most parameters underwent significant variation in time, increasing only numerically serum values of total protein, albumin, AST and amylase, while serum glucose, NEFA and GGT decreased numerically. Statistically significant differences were found only between groups PF and GF for creatinine (higher in group PF, in relation with its greater average body weight) and urea nitrogen, which for unknown causes fluctuated in opposite directions in the two groups throughout most of the study and attributable to changes in ruminal protein digestion. Neither serum glucose nor L-lactate were affected by treatment of grainsSupported by the Xunta de Galicia (Spain), Grant XUGA 2002/CG320S

Effects of amphetamine on development of oral candidiasis in rats

[Abstract] Experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of amphetamine (0.4 mg/kg of body weight/day) on the development of oral candidiasis in Sprague-Dawley rats. Animals were submitted to surgical hyposalivation in order to facilitate the establishment and persistence of Candida albicans infection. Treatment with drugs (placebo or amphetamine) was initiated 7 days before C. albicans inoculation and lasted until the end of the experiments, day 15 postinoculation. Establishment of C. albicans infection was evaluated by swabbing the inoculated oral cavity with a sterile cotton applicator on days 2 and 15 after inoculation, followed by plating on YEPD (yeast extract-peptone-dextrose) agar. Tissue injury was determined by the quantification of the number and type (normal or abnormal) of papillae on the dorsal tongue per microscopic field. A semiquan- titative scale was devised to assess the degree of colonization of the epithelium by fungal hyphae. Our results show that amphetamine exacerbates C. albicans infection of the tongues of rats. Significant increases in Candida counts, the percentage of the tongue’s surface covered with clinical lesions, the percentage of abnormal papillae, and the colonization of the epithelium by fungal hyphae were found in amphetamine-treated rats compared to those found in the rats injected with a placebo. The last two parameters increased in rats treated with the placebo compared to the parameters of the untreated control rats

Prevalence, demographics, and clinical characteristics of Latin American patients with spondyloarthritis

Large epidemiologic and clinical estimates of spondyloarthritis (SpA) in Latin America are not available. In this narrative review, our goal was to descriptively summarize the prevalence and features of SpA in Latin America, based on available small studies. A review of peer-reviewed literature identified 41 relevant publications. Of these, 11 (mostly based on Mexican data) estimated the prevalence of SpA and its subtypes, which varied from 0.28 to 0.9% (SpA), 0.02 to 0.8% (ankylosing spondylitis), 0.2 to 0.9% (axial SpA), and 0.004 to 0.08% (psoriatic arthritis). Demographic and/or clinical characteristics were reported in 31 of the 41 publications, deriving data from 3 multinational studies, as well as individual studies from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Data relating to treatment, disease manifestations (articular and extra-articular), and comorbidities were summarized across the countries. Available data suggest that there is a variability in prevalence, manifestations, and comorbidities of SpA across Latin America. Basic epidemiologic and clinical data are required from several countries not currently represented. Data relating to current treatment approaches, patient outcomes, and socioeconomic impact within this large geographic region are also needed