Children Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence: Association Among Battered Mothers’ Parenting Competences and Children’s Behavior

Background: Exposure to violence perpetrated on a mother by her intimate partner (IPV or intimate partner violence) has an impact on the psychosocial adjustment of her children. In addition, the violence suffered by mothers could affect parental competences. Methods: Through the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), this work analyzes the psychosocial adjustment in children between 6 and 17 years old who live with their mothers in shelters after having experienced IPV situations. It also explores the association between mothers’ parenting competences and children’s adjustment in shelters. Results: The evaluation shows a negative correlation between the quality of mothers’ care of their children during their stay in shelters and the rate of children’s behavioral problems, so that the better the parental competences of mothers, the lower the rate of behavioral problems presented by children. Conclusions: As a result of IPV, mother–child relationships can be affected. Children exposed to IPV may exhibit more externalizing behavior problems and their mothers may have difficulty demonstrating competent parenting behaviors while living in a shelter. Work should be aimed at reestablishing parenting competences in mothers and the quality of mother–child interactions while they remain in the shelters, in an effort to mitigate the psychosocial consequences of IPV for their children

Validation of Student Peer Assessment of Effective Oral Communication in Engineering Degrees

© 2018 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permissíon from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertisíng or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.[EN] Peer assessment is a form of collaborative learning in which students evaluate learning products prepared by other students. We present the results of an analysis of the assessment of oral presentations by students. A group of students solves a problem, writes a document with the solution, and makes an oral presentation in class to other students. Another group assesses the written document and oral presentation. To help students perform the assessments, two rubrics are provided along with other guidance documents that help in writing scientific documents and performing oral presentations. The rubric evaluates five factors of oral communication. The results of the student evaluations are compared with the simultaneous evaluations produced by two lecturers. When making a comparison of the global assessment between lecturers and students, we find significant differences. However, when the factor "use of auxiliary resources" is removed, these differences disappear as the factor introduces a difficult to justify dispersion. In addition, the assessment performed by students with and without the help of a rubric is compared and no significant differences are found.Meseguer Dueñas, JM.; Vidaurre, A.; Molina Mateo, J.; Riera Guasp, J.; Martínez Sala, RM. (2018). Validation of Student Peer Assessment of Effective Oral Communication in Engineering Degrees. IEEE-RITA: Latin-American Learning Technologies Journal. 13(1):11-16. https://doi.org/10.1109/RITA.2018.2801897S111613

Modelling the thermal effects on structural components of composite slabs under fire conditions

This paper presents a finite-element-based computational model to evaluate the thermal behaviour of composite slabs with a steel deck submitted to standard fire exposure. This computational model is used to estimate the temperatures in the slab components that contribute to the fire resistance according to the load-bearing criterion defined in the standards. The numerical results are validated with experimental results, and a parametric study of the effect of the thickness of the concrete on the temperatures of the slab components is presented. Composite slabs with normal or lightweight concrete and different steel deck geometries (trapezoidal and re-entrant) were considered in the simulations. In addition, the numerical temperatures are compared with those obtained using the simplified method provided by the standards. The results of the simulations show that the temperatures predicted by the simplified method led, in most cases, to an unsafe design of the composite slab. Based on the numerical results, a new analytical method, alternative to the simplified method, is defined in order to accurately determine the temperatures at the slab components and, thus, the bending resistance of the composite slabs under fire conditions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

STEMtools : una proposta per a planificar el desplegament STEM a l'escola

El desplegament de STEM als centres educatius s'orienta a l'assoliment d'uns objectius STEM (vocacions, inclusió i gènere, ciutadania) que han de ser formulats en clau educativa. Es proposen diverses vies per a desplegar aquesta formulació, anomenades STEMtools, estructurades en tres eixos (Perspectives, Metodologies i Tecnologies). La proposta ha estat desenvolupada i aplicada en el marc del Pla interdepartamental STEMcat, en el marc del programa d'innovació pedagógica STEAMcat, i s'en valora la seva utilitat i aplicacions.The development of STEM in schools aims to several STEM goals (vocations, inclusion and gender, citizenship) that canbe formulated in as educational strategies. We propose as STEMtools several strategies, that can be structured in three axes (Perspectives, Methodologies and Technologies). The proposal has been developed and applied within the framework of the STEMCat Interdepartmental Plan, within the framework of the STEAMCat pedagogical innovation program, and its usefulness and applications are assessed.El despliegue de STEM en los centros educativos se orienta al logro de unos objetivos STEM (vocaciones, inclusión y género, ciudadanía) que deben ser formulados en clave educativa. Se proponen varias vías para desplegar esta formulación, llamadas STEMtools, estructuradas en tres ejes (Perspectivas, Metodologías y Tecnologías). La propuesta ha sido desarrollada y aplicada en el marco del Plan interdepartamental STEMcat, en el marco del programa de innovación pedagógica STEAMcat, y se en valora su utilidad y aplicaciones

Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Handbook 2011

The use of lead (Pb) ammunition in the form of shot pellets has been identified as a Pb exposure risk in wildlife and their human consumers. We explore the hypothesis that Pb shot ban enforcement reduces the risk of avian Pb poisoning as well as Pb exposure in game meat consumers. We assessed compliance with a partial ban on Pb shot commencing in 2003 by examination of 937 waterbirds harvested by hunters between 2007 and 2012 in the Ebro delta (Spain). Prevalence of Pb shot ingestion was determined, as were Pb concentrations in liver and muscle tissue to evaluate the potential for Pb exposure in game meat consumers. Hunted birds with only embedded Pb shot (no steel) declined from 26.9% in 2007–08 to < 2% over the following three hunting seasons after ban reinforcement. Pb shot ingestion in mallards decreased from a pre-ban value of 30.2% to 15.5% in the post-ban period. Liver Pb levels were predominantly defined by the presence of ingested shot, whereas muscle levels were defined by the presence of both ingested and embedded shot. Only 2.5% of mallard muscle tissue had Pb levels above European Union regulations for meat (0.1 μg/g wet weight) in the 2008–09 season, when Pb shot ingestion prevalence was also at a minimum (5.1%). Effective restrictions in Pb ammunition use have a dual benefit since this reduces Pb exposure for game meat consumers due to embedded ammunition as well as reducing Pb poisoning in waterbirds

Caspase-1 genetic variation is not associated with Alzheimer's disease risk

BACKGROUND: Interleukin (IL)-1beta is a potent proinflammatory cytokine markedly overexpressed in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and also involved in development of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. Caspase-1 (CASP1), formerly called IL-1beta converting enzyme (ICE), mediates the cleavage of the inactive precursor of IL-1beta into the biologically active form. CASP1 genetic variation (G+7/in6A, rs501192) has been associated with susceptibility to myocardial infarction and cardiovascular death risk. We examined the contribution of this gene to the susceptibility for AD. METHODS: We examined genetic variations of CASP1 by genotyping haplotype tagging SNPs (htSNPs) (rs501192, rs556205 and rs530537) in a group of 628 Spanish AD cases and 722 controls. RESULTS: There were no differences in the genotypic, allelic or haplotypic distributions between cases and controls in the overall analysis or after stratification by age, gender or APOE epsilon4 allele. CONCLUSION: Our negative findings in the Spanish population argue against the hypothesis that CASP1 genetic variations are causally related to AD risk

Epistasis between intracellular cholesterol trafficking-related genes (NPC1 and ABCA1) and Alzheimer's disease risk

Aberrant cholesterol metabolism has been implicated in Alzheimer´s disease (AD). Recent findings have suggested an interaction of Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1) and ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) proteins in intracellular cholesterol transport and in maintaining cell cholesterol balance. Underexpression of NPC1 in concert with underexpression of ABCA1 would result in increased cholesterol accumulation and increased AD risk. We examined a functional polymorphism in the ABCA1 promoter region (−477, rs2422493), and four NPC1 polymorphisms in exon 6 (rs18050810), intron 20 (rs4800488), intron 22 (rs2236707), and intron 24 (rs2510344) capturing 85% of genetic variability in Hap Map CEU population, in a group of 631 Spanish AD patients and 731 controls. Subjects carrying both the ABCA1 (−477) TT genotype and the NPC1 (exon 6) GG genotype (OR = 1.89; 95% CI 1.04-3.41), NPC1 (intron 20) AA genotype (OR = 2.05; 95% CI 1.26-3.33), NPC1 (intron 22) AA genotype (OR = 2.05; 95% CI 1.18-3.58), or NPC1 (intron 24) GG genotype (OR = 1.89; 95% CI 1.16-3.07) had a higher risk of developing AD than subjects without these risk genotypes. Testing for epistatic interaction between genes in the pathway of cholesterol metabolism might be useful for predicting AD risk

Situació epidemiològica de Cryptosporidium spp. a Catalunya

Criptosporidiosi; Epidemiologia; Sistema de notificació microbiològicaCriptosporidiosis; Epidemiología; Sistema de notificación microbiológicaCryptosporidiosis; Epidemiology; Microbiological notification systemS’han analitzat els casos confirmats de Cryptosporidium spp. seguint els criteris diagnòstics descrits a Criteris diagnòstics dels microorganismes que es declaren al Sistema de notificació microbiològica de Catalunya – Actualització de 2015, declarats a l’SNMC durant l’any 2023. Se n’ha analitzat l’estacionalitat, els grups d’edat i sexe, i la distribució pel territori. D’altra banda, s’han revisat els brots de gastroenteritis aguda (GEA) per Cryptosporidium spp. notificats a l’XVEC durant l’any 2023, i se n’ha analitzat la distribució per territori, àmbit d’exposició i font de la notificació. També s’han revisat els brots de GEA d’etiologia desconeguda notificats durant el mateix període

Azure A embedded in carbon dots as NADH electrocatalyst: Development of a glutamate electrochemical biosensor

Carbon nanodots modified with azure A (AA-CDs) have been synthesized and applied as redox mediator of bioelectrocatalytic reactions. A deep characterization of AA-CDs nanomaterial has been carried out, proving the covalent attachment of azure A molecules into the carbon dots nanostructure. Disposable screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCE) have been modified with AA-CDs, through the action of chitosan polymer (Chit-AA-CDs/SPCE). The Chit-AA-CDs/SPCE electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of NADH has been proved, obtaining excellent results regarding the low oxidation potential achieved (−0.15 V vs. Ag) and low detection and quantification limits (LOD and LOQ) for NADH, 16 and 53 µM, respectively. The developed electrochemical platform has been applied for the construction of a glutamate biosensor by immobilizing L-glutamic dehydrogenase (GLDH/Chit-AA-CDs/SPCE). The morphology of GLDH/Chit-AA-CDs/SPCE platform was analysed by AFM at each different step of the electrode modification process. The resulting biosensing platform is capable of detect NADH enzymatically generated by GLDH in the presence of glutamate and NAD+. Good analytical parameters were obtained for glutamate analysis using GLDH/Chit-AA-CDs/SPCE, as LOD and LOQ of 3.3 and 11 µM, respectively. The biosensor has been successfully applied to the analysis of food and biological samplesThis work has been supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (PID2020–116728RB-I00) and Comunidad Autonoma de Madrid (SI3/PJI/2021–00341, P2018/NMT-4349 TRANSNANOAVANSENS Program