En busca de una distribución más racional y equitativa de los programas que se destinan, en México, al mejoramiento de la calidad de la educación básica

Se construyó una base de datos que permitió identificar las escuelas en las que se implementaron diversos programas orientados a mejorar la calidad de la educación básica. En seguida -controlando los grados de marginalidad de las localidades en que se encontraban las escuelas- se estimó la eficacia académica de dichos programas (expresado por el aprovechamiento que obtuvieron, en promedio, los centros escolares en las que -aisladamente o en forma conjunta- aquéllos fueron implementados). Al comparar ese aprovechamiento con el que obtuvieron las “escuelas testigo” (aquéllas en las que no fue implementado programa alguno) se estimaron los puntajes marginales asociados con cada programa o combinación de los mismos. Por separado, se construyeron los costos por alumno correspondientes a cada programa -o combinación de los mismos-; los cuales fueron considerados, también, como “costos marginales” (porque eran adicionales a los costos de operación de las escuelas). Al comparar esos puntajes con los costos respectivos, se obtuvo la relación puntaje/costo. Se consideró que esa relación representaba el grado de eficiencia con la que fueron aprovechados los recursos financieros destinados al programa (o conjunto de programas) correspondientes. Se encontró que, sólo en pocas ocasiones, la eficacia de los programas coincidía con la eficiencia de los mismos. Por esta razón, se propone una regla de decisión para distribuir los programas (o sus combinaciones) entre las escuelas, aplicando un criterio de equida

Abandono Estudiantil En La Educación Superior: Caso De Estudio Sobre Las Matemáticas Básicas Como Factor Asociado

El abandono o deserción escolar es un fenómeno en aumento presente en diferentes niveles educativos, incluida la educación superior y que tiene como algunos de los factores que lo favorecen: problemas económicos; antecedentes académicos; problemas familiares, personales y de salud; el entorno comunitario y la falta de capacidad de las instituciones para retener a los estudiantes. El National Dropout Prevention Center de EE. UU. (2007) publicó un reporte técnico de los principales factores de riesgo asociados al abandono escolar; luego de una revisión de la literatura sobre el tema y de analizar 44 estudios investigativos, proponen 25 factores de riesgo agrupados en dos grandes categorías: el dominio personal y el dominio familiar, estos factores están justificados a base de estudios comprobados. Sobre estas bases, el objetivo de este trabajo es analizar el factor asociado a los logros en asignaturas del currículo, en tal sentido a la probabilidad de que los estudiantes universitarios deserten o no del primer curso de Matemática, en las distintas carreras que se dictan en las Facultades de Arquitectura y Diseño (FAD-ULA), Ciencias Económicas y Sociales (FACES-ULA) e Ingeniería (FI-ULA) de la Universidad de Los Andes, Mérida Venezuela. Los parámetros de deserción o no, se toman de la normativa de la organización, que considera que un estudiante ha desertado la asignatura cuando se matricula y luego la retira legalmente o la abandona. Se busca construir un modelo matemático que permita evaluar si la probabilidad de ocurrencia de la deserción en las Matemáticas Básicas puede ser predicha según el profesor que dictó la asignatura y la carrera que estudia. Los resultados se obtienen empleando como software el SPSS en su versión 22 y utilizando la técnica de muestreo por conveniencia. Los resultados obtenidos contribuyen a enriquecer la variedad de acciones para la reducción de abandono que pretende realizar la Universidad de Los Andes de Mérida, Venezuela en un esfuerzo por atender a esta problemática; además que puede extrapolarse a otras instituciones de educación superior

Association between serum copper levels and risk of cardiovascular disease: A nested case-control study in the PREDIMED trial

This research was funded by the official funding agency for biomedical research of the Spanish government, Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), through grants provided to research networks specifically developed for the trial (RTIC G03/140; RTIC RD 06/0045 “PREDIMED”), and JR14/00008, and through Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBERobn), and by grants from Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC06/2007), the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria–Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (Proyecto de Investigación (PI04-2239, PI05/2584, CP06/00100, PI07/0240, PI07/1138, PI07/0954, PI 07/0473, PI10/01407, PI10/02658, PI11/01647, P11/02505 and PI13/00462), the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Recursos y teconologia agroalimentarias (AGL)-2009-13906-C02 and AGL2010-22319-C03 and AGL2013-49083C3-1-R), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad-Fondos FEDER-Instituto de Salud Carlos III (UNGR15-CE-3380), the Fundación Mapfre 2010, the Consejería de Salud de la Junta de Andalucía (PI0105/2007), the Public Health Division of the Department of Health of the Autonomous Government of Catalonia, the Generalitat Valenciana (Generalitat Valenciana Ayuda Complementatia GVACOMP) 06109, GVACOMP2010-181, GVACOMP2011-151), Conselleria de Sanitat y AP; Atención Primaria (CS) 2010-AP-111, and CS2011-AP-042), Regional Government of Navarra (P27/2011), and Centre Català de la Nutrició de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans. Hojiblanca and Patrimonio Communal Olivarero donated extra-virgin olive oil; the California Walnut Commission donated walnuts; Borges donated almonds; La Morella Nuts donated hazelnuts. The authors would like to thank the Universidad de Malaga/ Consorcio de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Andalucía (CBUA) for funding the Open Access fees for the publication. The authors would like to thank the Aula de Dieta Mediterránea y Vida Saludable de la Real Academia de Medicina de Andalucía Oriental, Ceuta y Melilla for its financial support in the analytical determination of copper levels.Background and aim: Certain trace elements have been associated with increased cardiovascular risk. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between serum copper (S -Cu) levels and the risk of a first event of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a population of older adults with high cardiovascular risk. Methods and results: We conducted a case-control study nested within the PREDIMED trial. During a median follow-up of 4.8 years, a total of 207 incident cases diagnosed with CVD were matched for sex, age, and intervention group with 436 controls. Personal interviews, reviews of medical records, and validated questionnaires were used to assess known CVD risk factors. Biological serum samples were collected annually. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis was used to determine S-Cu levels. Adjusted odds ratios were calculated using multivariate conditional logistic regression models. All participants had S-Cu levels within the reference values, 750 mg/L to 1450 mg/L. Among men, but not among women, the mean S-Cu concentration was higher in cases 1014.1 mg/L than in controls 959.3 mg/L; (p = 0.004). In men, the multivariable-adjusted odds ratio for CVD was 2.36 (95% CI 1.07-5.20 for the comparison of the highest vs. the lowest quartile; p for trend = 0.02), in women, it was 0.43 (95% CI 0.11-1.70; p for trend = 0.165). Conclusion: In older Spanish men with high cardiovascular risk, a significant association was observed between high S-Cu levels, but still within the reference values, and an increased risk of a first event of CVD. Our findings suggest a sex difference in CVD risk and S-Cu levels. To confirm this relationship and to analyze the differences observed between men and women, further studies are needed.Spanish government, Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII)Centro de Investigación Biomedica en Red de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBERobn) RTIC G03/140, RTIC RD 06/0045, JR14/00008Centro Nacional de Investigaciones CardiovascularesFondo de Investigación Sanitaria-Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional CNIC06/2007Instituto de Salud Carlos III Spanish Government PI04-2239, PI05/2584, CP06/00100, PI07/0240, PI07/1138, PI07/0954, PI 07/0473, PI10/01407, PI10/02658, PI11/01647, P11/02505, PI13/00462,Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad-Fondos FEDER-Instituto de Salud Carlos III 2009-13906-C02, AGL2010-22319-C03, AGL2013-49083C3-1-RFundacion Mapfre UNGR15-CE-3380Consejería de Salud de la Junta de AndalucíaPublic Health Division of the Department of Health of the Autonomous Government of Catalonia PI0105/2007Center for Forestry Research & Experimentation (CIEF)Conselleria de Sanitat y AP 06109, GVACOMP2010-181, GVACOMP2011-151Atención Primaria (CS) 2010-AP-111, CS2011-AP-042onal Government of Navarra 2010-AP-111, CS2011-AP-042Centre Catala de la Nutricio de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans P27/2011Universidad de Málaga/ Consorcio de Bibliotecas Universitarias de Andalucía (CBUA)Real Academia de Medicina de Andalucía Orienta

Behavioural patterns in aggregated demand response developments for communities targeting renewables

Encouraging consumers to embrace renewable energies and energy-efficient technologies is at stake, and so the energy players such as utilities and policy-makers are opening up a range of new value propositions towards more sustainable communities. For instance, developments of turn-key demand response aggregation and optimisation of distributed loads are rapidly emerging across the globe in a variety of business models focused on maximising the inherent flexibility and diversity of the behind-the-meter assets. However, even though these developments" added value is understood and of wide interest, measurement of the desired levels of consumer engagement is still on demonstration stages and assessment of technology readiness. In this paper, we analyse the characteristics of the loads, the behaviour of parameters, and in a final extent, the behaviour of each kind of consumer participating in aggregated demand scheduling. We apply both non-automatic and machine learning methods to extract the relevant factors and to recognise the potential consumer behaviour on a series of scenarios that are drawn using both synthetic data and living labs datasets. Our experimentation showcases a number of three patterns in which factors like the community"s demand volume and the consumer"s flexibility dominate and impact the performance of the tested development. The experimentation also makes current limitations arise within the existing electricity consumption datasets and their potential for inference and forecasting demand flexibility analytics.Comunidad de Madri

Reinforced Feedback in Virtual Environment for Plantar Flexor Poststroke Spasticity Reduction and Gait Function Improvement

Background. Ankle spasticity is a frequent phenomenon that limits functionality in poststroke patients. Objectives. Our aim was to determine if there was decreased spasticity in the ankle plantar flex (PF) muscles in the plegic lower extremity (LE) and improvement of gait function in stroke patients after traditional rehabilitation (TR) in combination with virtual reality with reinforced feedback, which is termed "reinforced feedback virtual environment" (RFVE). Methods. The evaluation, before and after treatment, of 10 hemiparetic patients was performed using the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Functional Ambulatory Category (FAC), and Functional Independence Measure (FIM). The intervention consisted of 1 hour/day of TR plus 1 hour/day of RFVE (5 days/week for 3 weeks; 15 sessions in total). Results. The MAS and FAC reached statistical significance (P<0.05). The changes in the FIM did not reach statistical significance (P=0.066). The analysis between the ischemic and haemorrhagic patients showed significant differences in favour of the haemorrhagic group in the FIM scale. A significant correlation between the FAC and the months after the stroke was established (P=-0.711). Indeed, patients who most increased their score on the FAC at the end of treatment were those who started the treatment earliest after stroke. Conclusions. The combined treatment of TR and RFVE showed encouraging results regarding the reduction of spasticity and improvement of gait function. An early commencement of the treatment seems to be ideal, and future research should increase the sample size and assessment tools

Propuesta de mejoramiento vial de la vía a San Luis de Aloguincho, Km 1+822-3+382, ubicado en la parroquia rural Atahualpa, cantón Quito, provincia de Pichincha

El proyecto que se presenta a continuación se ha realizado con la finalidad de proponer una alternativa para el mejoramiento de la vía al barrio de San Luis de Aloguincho-Parroquia Perucho, propuesta que proporcionara varios beneficios sociales, económicos y culturales a las parroquias de Atahualpa y Puéllaro, permitiendo la conexión directa, actualmente inexistente entre estas dos parroquias, por lo que su ejecución es primordial. El presente proyecto de mejoramiento vial se ha realizado en base a los datos obtenidos en campo como lo son el levantamiento topográfico, la extracción de muestras de la subrasante y el conteo vehicular. Con los datos obtenidos se logró determinar: La faja topográfica indispensable para el diseño geométrico de la vía, el volumen de tráfico vehicular o TPDA que se proyecta en la vía para el tiempo de vida de la obra , el número de ejes equivalentes ESAL´S el cual basados en la normativa AASHTO del año 1993 nos permite determinar los espesores de capa para los distintos tipos de pavimentos; el tipo de suelo sobre el cual se fundara la obra vial y sus características físico-mecánicas, también se realizó el análisis hidrológico y el diseño hidráulico de las obras de drenaje vial para obtener las secciones más optimas, el diseño de señalización de acuerdo con lo establecido en las normas INEN, y el estudio de impacto ambiental basado en lo establecido por el Ministerio Ecuatoriano del Medio Ambiente (MAE). Los resultados obtenidos en cuanto a diseño geométrico, diseño de la estructura del pavimento y diseño hidráulico garantizan que el proyecto cumplirá con los requisitos de un servicio optimo y continuo. Por último, se determinó el presupuesto, análisis de precios unitarios y cronograma valorado del proyecto, con lo que se realizó la evaluación técnico-económica acerca de la propuesta, que abarca temas de mantenimiento, beneficios y costos.The project presented below has been carried out with the purpose of proposing an alternative for the improvement of the road to the neighborhood of San Luis de Aloguincho-Parroquia Perucho, a proposal that will provide several social, economic and cultural benefits to the parishes of Atahualpa and Puéllaro, allowing the direct connection, currently nonexistent between these two parishes, so its implementation is essential. This road improvement project has been carried out based on data obtained in the field, such as topographic surveys, extraction of samples of the subgrade and vehicle counts. With the data obtained, it was possible to determine The indispensable topographic strip for the geometric design of the road, the volume of vehicular traffic or TPDA that is projected in the road for the life time of the work, the number of equivalent axles ESAL'S which based on the AASHTO norm of the year 1993 allows us to determine the layer thicknesses for the different types of pavements; The type of soil on which the road work will be based and its physical-mechanical characteristics, the hydrological analysis and the hydraulic design of the road drainage works to obtain the most optimal sections, the design of signaling in accordance with INEN standards, and the environmental impact study based on the provisions of the Ecuadorian Ministry of the Environment (MAE). The results obtained in terms of geometric design, pavement structure design and hydraulic design guarantee that the project will meet the requirements for optimum and continuous service. Finally, the budget, unit price analysis and project schedule were determined and the technical-economic evaluation of the proposal was carried out, covering maintenance issues, benefits and costs

Towards sustainable energy-efficient communities based on a scheduling algorithm

The Internet of Things (IoT) and Demand Response (DR) combined have transformed the way Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) contribute to saving energy and reducing costs, while also giving consumers more control over their energy footprint. Unlike current price and incentive based DR strategies, we propose a DR model that promotes consumers reaching coordinated behaviour towards more sustainable (and green) communities. A cooperative DR system is designed not only to bolster energy efficiency management at both home and district levels, but also to integrate the renewable energy resource information into the community's energy management. Initially conceived in a centralised way, a data collector called the "aggregator" will handle the operation scheduling requirements given the consumers' time preferences and the available electricity supply from renewables. Evaluation on the algorithm implementation shows feasible computational cost (CC) in different scenarios of households, communities and consumer behaviour. Number of appliances and timeframe flexibility have the greatest impact on the reallocation cost. A discussion on the communication, security and hardware platforms is included prior to future pilot deployment.Comunidad de Madri

Web applications for teaching the respiratory system: content validation

The subject of respiratory mechanics has complex characteristics, functions, and interactions that can be difficult to understand in training and medical education contexts. As such, education strategies based on computational simulations comprise useful tools, but their application in the medical area requires stricter validation processes. This paper shows a statistical and a Delphi validation for two modules of a web application used for respiratory system learning: (I) “Anatomy and Physiology” and (II) “Work of Breathing Indexes”. For statistical validation, population and individual analyses were made using a database of healthy men to compare experimental and model-predicted data. For both modules, the predicted values followed the trend marked by the experimental data in the population analysis, while in the individual analysis, the predicted errors were 9.54% and 25.38% for maximal tidal volume and airflow, respectively, and 6.55%, 9.33%, and 11.77% for rapid shallow breathing index, work of breathing, and maximal inspiratory pressure, respectively. For the Delphi validation, an average higher than 4 was obtained after health professionals evaluated both modules from 1 to 5. In conclusion, both modules are good tools for respiratory system learning processes. The studied parameters behaved consistently with the expressions that describe ventilatory dynamics and were correlated with experimental data; furthermore, they had great acceptance by specialists.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version