Surface mixing ratio and total precipitable water in Barcelona

Treballs Finals de Grau de Física, Facultat de Física, Universitat de Barcelona, Curs: 2022, Tutora: Yolanda Sola SalvatierraRelationship between total precipitable water and mixing ratio in Barcelona is studied using a ten year period of data set, based on radiosondes and ground base stations. A good correlation coefficient of 0.94 for daily data pairs is obtained. A higher correlation coefficient of 0.99 is obtained when monthly data means are used, due to the fact that variability is smoothed. The function obtained is appropriate for monthly averaged total precipitable water prediction, however it would have more error as a system of daily prediction since particular conditions are not considere

Analysing E-tutoring Strategies to Foster Pre-service Language Teachers' Reflective Practice in the First Stages of Building an E-portfolio

This study aims to analyse the tutoring strategies that three e-tutors employed in online written interactions with two of their corresponding pre-service teachers in the first stages of the development of their e-portfolio within a master's degree in online language teaching. Building on the data collected from thirty-four documents, which include the written drafts of the initial document of their e-portfolios (the Starting Point), the final versions of this document and their email exchanges, and the study identifies six types of discursive-pedagogical strategies: Suggesting; Inquiring for reflection; Providing information and instructions; Correcting; Giving positive feedback; and Using affective moves. This article provides examples of each strategy, which illustrate the diverse ways in which the e-tutors tried to foster the pre-service language teachers' reflection. The results are relevant for a deeper understanding of the effective processes involved in e-tutoring and the development of reflective practice in the creation of an e-portfolio

Patterns and rates of intron divergence between humans and chimpanzees

BACKGROUND: Introns, which constitute the largest fraction of eukaryotic genes and which had been considered to be neutral sequences, are increasingly acknowledged as having important functions. Several studies have investigated levels of evolutionary constraint along introns and across classes of introns of different length and location within genes. However, thus far these studies have yielded contradictory results. RESULTS: We present the first analysis of human-chimpanzee intron divergence, in which differences in the number of substitutions per intronic site (K(i)) can be interpreted as the footprint of different intensities and directions of the pressures of natural selection. Our main findings are as follows: there was a strong positive correlation between intron length and divergence; there was a strong negative correlation between intron length and GC content; and divergence rates vary along introns and depending on their ordinal position within genes (for instance, first introns are more GC rich, longer and more divergent, and divergence is lower at the 3' and 5' ends of all types of introns). CONCLUSION: We show that the higher divergence of first introns is related to their larger size. Also, the lower divergence of short introns suggests that they may harbor a relatively greater proportion of regulatory elements than long introns. Moreover, our results are consistent with the presence of functionally relevant sequences near the 5' and 3' ends of introns. Finally, our findings suggest that other parts of introns may also be under selective constraints

The genomic distribution of intraspecific and interspecific sequence divergence of human segmental duplications relative to human/chimpanzee chromosomal rearrangements

Background: It has been suggested that chromosomal rearrangements harbor the molecular footprint of the biological phenomena which they induce, in the form, for instance, of changes in the sequence divergence rates of linked genes. So far, all the studies of these potential associations have focused on the relationship between structural changes and the rates of evolution of singlecopy DNA and have tried to exclude segmental duplications (SDs). This is paradoxical, since SDs are one of the primary forces driving the evolution of structure and function in our genomes and have been linked not only with novel genes acquiring new functions, but also with overall higher DNA sequence divergence and major chromosomal rearrangements. Results: Here we take the opposite view and focus on SDs. We analyze several of the features of SDs, including the rates of intraspecific divergence between paralogous copies of human SDs and of interspecific divergence between human SDs and chimpanzee DNA. We study how divergence measures relate to chromosomal rearrangements, while considering other factors that affect evolutionary rates in single copy DNA. Conclusion: We find that interspecific SD divergence behaves similarly to divergence of singlecopy DNA. In contrast, old and recent paralogous copies of SDs do present different patterns of intraspecific divergence. Also, we show that some relatively recent SDs accumulate in regions that carry inversions in sister lineages.This research was supported by a grant to A.N. from the Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnologia (Spain, BFU2006 15413-C02-01) and by BE2005 and BP2006 fellowships to T.M.B from the "Departament d'Educacio i Universitats de la Generalitat de Catalunya"

Jornada tècnica en línia. Dimarts 16 de febrer 2021

Per primer cop, aquest any farem la jornada tècnica de l’arròs en format en línia, fet que ens permetrà transferir els principals resultats dels experiments realitzats per l’IRTA a l’Estació Experimental de l’Ebre, a un major nombre de tècnics i pagesos vinculats al cultiu de l’arròs. Les ponències que s’abordaran pretenen ajudar en la millora de la sostenibilitat del cultiu i adaptar-nos al nou escenari de l’Europa verda. Per tot això, us convidem a connectar-vos i esperem que us sigui profitosa. En aquesta jornada es presentarà una part de les activitats de demostració “Gestió sostenible del fòsfor en el arrossars (GESFORICE) i Estratègies sostenibles de control de malalties en arròs: cap a residu zero.”, operació 01.02.01 del PDR de Catalunya 2014- 2020.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Optimització de la simulació de camps de vents

El vent és un fenomen ambiental natural que pot afavorir positivament en molts àmbits, però a la vegada pot provocar catàstrofes en les quals es veuen perjudicades tant la naturalesa com l'ésser humà. Per aquest motiu la simulació dels camps de vents està prenent més força, ja que aquesta predicció del comportament del vent en funció del terreny, la vegetació, la direcció i velocitat del mateix pot ser decisiva a l'hora de prevenir l'extensió incontrolada d'incendis forestals. WindNinja és un programa que permet realitzar aquesta simulació. Aquest projecte tracta de l'optimització de les execucions per a obtenir la simulació, així com, l'estudi dels diferents paràmetres d'entrada que poden influir en el rendiment.Wind is a natural environmental phenomenon that can have a positive effect on many areas, but at the same time, it can cause catastrophes in which both nature and humans are harmed. For this reason, the simulation of wind field is gaining momentum, as this prediction of wind behaviors based on terrain, vegetation, wind direction and speed can be crucial in preventing the uncontrolled spread of forest fires. WindNinja is a program that allows this simulation. This project deals with the optimization of the executions to obtain the simulation, as well as the study of the different input parameters that can influence the performance.El viento es un fenómeno ambiental natural que puede favorecer positivamente en muchos ámbitos, pero a su vez puede provocar catástrofes en las que se ven perjudicadas tanto la naturaleza como el ser humano. De ahí que la simulación de los campos de vientos esté tomando más fuerza, ya que esta predicción del comportamiento del viento en función del terreno, la vegetación, la dirección y velocidad de este puede ser decisiva a la hora de prevenir la extensión incontrolada de incendios forestales. WindNinja es un programa que permite realizar esta simulación. Este proyecto trata de la optimización de las ejecuciones para obtener la simulación, así como el estudio de los distintos parámetros de entrada que pueden influir en el rendimiento

On the association between chromosomal rearrangements and genic evolution in humans and chimpanzees

Analysis of the genes located in rearranged human and chimpanzee chromosomes identified lower divergence than for those in colinear chromosomes

Copy number variation analysis in the great apes reveals species-specific patterns of structural variation

Gazave, Elodie et al.Copy number variants (CNVs) are increasingly acknowledged as an important source of evolutionary novelties in the human lineage. However, our understanding of their significance is still hindered by the lack of primate CNV data. We performed intraspecific comparative genomic hybridizations to identify loci harboring copy number variants in each of the four great apes: bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. For the first time, we could analyze differences in CNV location and frequency in these four species, and compare them with human CNVs and primate segmental duplication (SD) maps. In addition, for bonobo and gorilla, patterns of CNV and nucleotide diversity were studied in the same individuals. We show that CNVs have been subject to different selective pressures in different lineages.Evidence for purifying selection is stronger in gorilla CNVs overlapping genes, while positive selection appears to have driven the fixation of structural variants in the orangutan lineage. In contrast, chimpanzees and bonobos present high levels of common structural polymorphism, which is indicative of relaxed purifying selection together with the higher mutation rates induced by the known burst of segmental duplication in the ancestor of the African apes. Indeed, the impact of the duplication burst is noticeable by the fact that bonobo and chimpanzee share more CNVs with gorilla than expected. Finally, we identified a number of interesting genomic regions that present high-frequency CNVs in all great apes, while containing only very rare or even pathogenic structural variants in humans.Financial support was provided by a Beatriu de Pinos postdoctoral Grant to E.G., the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Grant BFU2009-13409-02-02toA.N.),and the Spanish National Institute for Bioinformatics (INB, www.inab.org).Peer reviewe

La coordinació académica de la Universidad : estrategias para una educación de calidad

El colectivo de profesores implicados en materias de Organización Educativa en la licenciatura de Pedagogía de la Universidad Autónoma Barcelona desarrolla diversas acciones dirigidas a favorecer la calidad de la formación de los estudiantes, a partir de una mayor coordinación en la confección y desarrollo de los programas. Las reuniones de coordinación, el intercambio desarrollado de experiencias, el debate sobre la distribución de contenidos por materias y ciclos, la acotación metodológica mediante fichas o la elaboración de casos para su resolución han sido actuaciones destacadas en los últimos cursos académicos. El presente texto las describe, delimitando también las bases de actuación, el proceso realizado, algunos de los resultados y los productos elaboradosMost lecturers and professors involved in teaching School Management and Education Management courses have been engaged in developing some innovative actions to improve the training quality that we offer to students in the Pedagogy degree at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. These actions are aimed at increasing co-ordination among the teaching staff when designing and implementing the course curricula. Co-ordination meetings, exchanges of teaching experiences, discussions about what, how and when to teach the different contents, in which courses and at what level, methodological issues pointed out through technical description cards or the elaboration of study cases to be solved have become the basis of relevant actions during the last academic years. This paper explains each one of them, and provides useful information about the theoretical background, the process carried out, some of the results obtained, the output and the tools create

Confecció de materials i coordinació en el desenvolupament i l'aplicació dels programes de l'àmbit de l'organització de la titulació de Pedagogia

La construcció de l'espai europeu d'educació superior exigeix planificar els estudis universitaris partint de la base que el protagonista n'és l'estudiant. En aquest procés el col·lectiu de professors de l'Àrea de Didàctica i Organització Educativa que imparteix matèries en la titulació vinculades amb l'àmbit de l'organització ha desenvolupat diverses accions dirigides a afavorir la qualitat de la formació dels estudiants, a partir d'una major coordinació del professorat en la confecció i el desenvolupament dels programes. Això ha significat trencar amb l'aïllament acadèmic entre el professorat implicat i plantejar un treball continuat de col·laboració, donant peu a reflexionar sobre el procés d'ensenyament i aprenentatge dels estudiants, assumint per endavant la necessitat d'enriquir l'activitat a partir de les aportacions personals, plantejant inquietuds, aportant documents i ajudant a la recopilació sistemàtica de les bones pràctiques, amb la intenció de compartir-les i analitzar-ne les claus de l'èxit.La construcción del espacio europeo de educación superior exige planificar los estudios universitarios partiendo de la base de que su protagonista es el estudiante. En este proceso el colectivo de profesores del Área de Didáctica y Organización Educativa que imparte materias en la titulación vinculadas al ámbito de organización ha desarrollado diversas accionas dirigidas a favorecer la calidad de la formación de los estudiantes, a partir de una mayor coordinación del profesorado en la confección y el desarrollo de los programas. Ello ha significado romper con el aislamiento académico entre el profesorado implicado y plantear un trabajo continuado de colaboración, dando pie a reflexionar sobre el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje de los estudiantes, asumiendo de antemano la necesidad de enriquecer la actividad a partir de las aportaciones personales, planteando inquietudes, aportando documentos y ayudando en la recopilación sistemática de las buenas prácticas, con la intención de compartirlas y analizar las claves de su éxito.The consolidation of the European Higher Education Area requires us to plan university degrees starting from the premise that students take centre stage. In this process, the group of professors in the Area of Didactics and Educational Organisation who teach courses in the degree programme linked to the field of educational organisation have developed a variety of actions aimed at fostering the quality of students' education based on better coordination among all the faculty in drawing up and developing the curricula. This has entailed breaking with the academic isolation among the faculty involved and developing constant cooperative work, leading us to reflect on the process of teaching learnt by students, assuming beforehand the need to enrich the activity through personal contributions, expressing concerns, providing documents and helping to systematically compile good practices, all with the intention of sharing them and analysing the keys to their success