The closed primaries vs. the top-two primaries

The top-two primary recently approved in several states in the U.S. eliminates the closed party primaries and creates instead a single ballot in which the Örst and second place winners pass to the general election. We conduct a theoretical analysis to compare the electoral consequences of the top-two primary with those of the closed primaries. Each primary procedure induces a sequential game with three stages: candidate-entry stage, primary election, and general election. We analyze the equilibria of these games and show that the top-two primary contributes to political moderation. In particular, when the median voter is an extremist, the closed primaries always generate an extreme winner and yet the top-two primary can generate an equilibrium with a moderate winner. Further- more, when the median voter is a moderate but his/her partyís median partisan is an extremist (and some additional mild conditions hold), the closed primaries always generate an extreme winner while the top-two primary always generates a moderate winner. We also show that the top-two primary may increase the number of swing states since, in certain cases, the party-affiliation of the winner under the top-two primary may not coincide with the party affiliation of the median vote

E-booklet on Inclusive Gender+ Equality Plans

Libro electrónico desarrollado y publicado en el marco del Proyecto Europeo Building Gender+ Equality Through Gender+Budgeting For Institutional Transformation. Nota adicional*: Se recogen estrategias y pautas para incorporar la perspectiva de género e interseccional en los planes de igualdad.This e-booklet outlines the importance of using equality plans in today's society as a quest for gender equality. It will also underscore the urgent need to adopt new methodologies to analyze and adapt these plans to the demands of modern society. The Gender + perspective emerges as the most appropriate approach to address current complexities, with gender intersections playing an indispensable role in this landscape.This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2023 research and innovation programme under grant agreement Nº 101094391

Social exclusion, open environment and social inclusion in the Asociación Bizitegi: a model of educational intervention in rehabilitation programmes based on community education

Aquest article pretén donar a conèixer l’associació Bizitegi, que porta treballant des del 1980 al barri d’Otxarkoaga de Bilbao, oferint programes d’atenció i reinserció social a persones amb problemes de drogodependències, alcoholisme, malaltia mental i/o sense llar que es troben en una greu situació d’exclusió social. En els estudis socials sobre marginació hem passat de parlar de pobresa a parlar d’exclusió social, concepte més ampli i amb més dimensions. També es reflexiona sobre el treball de carrer i els processos d’incorporació social, elements clau en el treball de Bizitegi. Es defensa la idea que Bizitegi treballa des del model de la Pedagogia Social Comunitària, desplegant diverses accions i projectes que justifiquen aquesta relació cabdal.Este artículo pretende dar a conocer la asociación Bizitegi, que lleva trabajando desde 1980 en el barrio de Otxarkoaga de Bilbao, ofreciendo programas de atención y reinserción social a personas con problemas de drogodependencias, alcoholismo, enfermedad mental y/o sin hogar que se encuentran en grave situación de exclusión social. En los estudios sociales sobre marginación hemos pasado de hablar de pobreza a hablar de exclusión social, concepto más amplio y con más dimensiones. También se reflexiona sobre el trabajo de calle y los procesos de incorporación social, elementos clave en el trabajo de Bizitegi. Se defiende la idea de que Bizitegi trabaja desde el modelo de la Pedagogía Social Comunitaria, desplegando varias acciones y proyectos que justifican esta relación clave.This article seeks to draw attention to the work of the Bizitegi association, which has been active since 1980 in the Otxarkoaga neighbourhood of Bilbao, running social care and rehabilitation programmes with people with problems of substance abuse, alcoholism, mental illness and/or homelessness who find themselves in situations of serious social exclusion. There has been a shift in the social study of social deprivation from talking about poverty to talking about social exclusion, a broader concept with more dimensions. The article also reflects on outreach and street work and processes of social inclusion, key elements in the Bizitegi approach, and sustains that Bizitegi works on the basis of a community education model, deploying various actions and projects that justify this key relationship

Academic Success and Student Satisfaction with University Teaching

This study uses surveys to assess student academic success in relation to the teaching activity of the University staff. The main goal is to test how the student’s degree of satisfaction of with their teachers can be considered dependent on the success the student obtains in each subject. The results show that the students are more satisfied with their teaching when they have a higher rate of success, although in some optional courses, the degree of satisfaction diminishes with the higher rate of success. The course expectations, when defined by the difference between achievement and success, impact the student satisfaction with the teaching

Impact of libre software tools and methods in the robotics field

Software is one of the major components of robots; in fact, it is the main bottleneck for the proliferation of robotics in our everyday lives. In the last years the field of robotics has been an emerging application area of the libre (free/open source) software phenomenon. Libre software tools have been traditionally popular among the robotics research and teaching community. Even companies whose main business model is to sell robots have found convenient to share the software in order to promote a community around their products. In this paper we analyze the situation of libre software in these three subareas: industry, teaching and research. In particular, we describe commercial robots like the Cye and the Pioneer, a software platform like Orocos as a examples of industrial world applications, the libre tools around the LEGO Mindstorms in the case of teaching, and the Robocup competition and the Player/Stage platform in research area. All these cases show that libre software can act as a catalyst in the robotics industry which is still a sector in its early research and industrial stage

Una mirada internacional : marcos de relación y financiación entre gobiernos y ONG de desarrollo

Colabora en la publicación la AECIDBibliografía: p. 60-6

Water decolorization using tuned ternary Deep Eutectic solvents

A method to totally decolorize textile wastewaters using new extraction solvents is proposed, with the aim of vastly reducing water consumption. This technique allows for water reuse while solving one of the biggest problems of the textile industry: the generation of huge amounts of liquid residues. In these effluents, dyes are the most common present pollutants, and are toxic to both human and aquatic life, and to the environment. Full decolorization is an indispensable prerequisite to obtain a clean water that can be repurposed following circular economy principles. To decolorize aqueous streams, liquid–liquid extraction is a widely used technique, achieving both the recovery of the pollutants and the used solvent. In this context, Deep Eutectic Solvents are a promising candidate for novel optimized processes. In this work, we propose several of these agents, formed from tetrabutylammonium chloride, thymol, menthol and decanoic acid, optimized for interaction with a wide array of dye classes and processable physicochemical properties. Across all the studied solvents, it was possible to achieve high extraction efficiency, with full decolorization for most dyes, at very low solvent to aqueous phase ratios. Furthermore, assays using synthetic effluents, containing dyes and other chemicals used to ensure a correct dyeing process, show that our solvents are good candidates to treat streams as those found in industry.Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) | Ref. PID2019-107728RB-I00Xunta de Galicia | Ref. GPC-ED431B 2020/0Ministerio de Ciencia | Ref. PRE2020-09315

Anthropometric Values in Spanish Elite Soccer: Differences between Divisions and Playing Positions

Body composition is an important factor in a soccer player’s performance, and anthropometry is one of the most widely used methods of measurement. The physical demands of Spanish soccer have evolved over time, so the ideal body composition requirements must be adapted to the present day. The aim of this study was to describe the anthropometric and body composition profiles of professional soccer players in the second, second B, and third divisions during the 2019–2020 season in order to compare the anthropometric parameters of players among positions and competitive divisions. A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine differences in kinanthropometric and derived variables in a sample of Spanish soccer players. A total of 615 soccer players from the second (116 players), second B (310 players), and third (189 players) divisions participated in this study. After comparing the groups according to the playing position and category, it was observed that at higher levels of play, soccer players show lower values of fat mass (FM) and higher values of muscle mass (MM) and bone mass (BM); at lower levels of play, soccer players show more anthropometric differences between playing positions. Lastly, the somatotype of the elite soccer player is balanced mesomorphic, with higher levels of mesomorphy at higher levels of play. In summary, this is the first study to evaluate the body composition of the different Spanish soccer divisions

Bacteria associated with periodontal disease are also increased in health

The objective of this cross-sectional clinical study was to analyze the differences in the microbiome in gingival sulci of adult patients in the presence or absence of chronic periodontitis. Patients with or without periodontal disease were included in this cross-sectional study. Subgingival biofilm samples were collected and analyzed by 16S massive pyrosequencing. Functional analyses were also performed. A total of 15 phyla, 154 genera and 351 species were detected globally. Differences between disease and non-disease samples were observed in all taxonomical levels which suggest functional profile changes in the community. It was found that the main species associated with non-disease samples were reduced in disease but not completely suppressed. Analysis of the functional potential of the biofilms revealed a significantly higher activity related to endocytosis and phosphatidylinositol signaling in the disease group but lower cell adhesion molecules. Specific differences between health and disease suggest functional profile changes in the community, although bacteria associated with periodontal disease are also increased in health. Transcriptome studies should be conducted to confirm and deepen metabolic dysfunctions

Specific Mathematics Learning Objectives Expressed by Teachers in Training

The formulation of learning objectives is considered an important task for teaching at all educational levels. However, teachers tend to trivialize learning objectives and consider them as part of an administrative requirement. This study sought to characterize the specific learning objectives for two school mathematics tasks posed by primary teachers in training, and to study the differences in the objectives proposed for each task. By means of a semantic questionnaire, the proposals were collected, classified and analysed using categories based on a triad of components for a specific objective: capability, content, and context. The responses show both an instrumental approach—where knowledge consists in mastering techniques and algorithms useful to furthering certain behaviours and attaining specific objectives—and a structural approach—where knowledge consists in a structured system of formalized rules and concepts based on the deduction. Moreover, this expectation depends on the kind of school task.Spanish Government PGC2018095765-B-I0