Upholding the rule of law in the EU: what role for the FRA?

The EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) was established to provide evidence-based policy advice to EU institutions and Member States. By blending social science research with traditional normative work, it aims to influence human rights policy processes through new ways of framing empirical realities. The contributors to this volume critically examine the experience of the Agency in its first decade, exploring FRA’s historical, political and legal foundations and its evolving record across major strands of EU fundamental rights. Central themes arising from these chapters include consideration of how the Agency manages the tension between a mandate to advise and the more traditional approach of human rights bodies to ‘monitor’, and how its research impacts the delicate equilibrium between these two contesting roles? FRA's experience as the first ‘embedded’ human rights agency is also highlighted, suggesting a role for alternative and less oppositional orientations for human rights research. While authors observe the benefits of the technocratic approach to human rights research that is a hallmark of FRA’s evidence-based policy advice, they also note its constraints. FRA’s policy work requires a continued awareness of political realities in Brussels, Member States, and civil society. Consequently, the complex process of determining the Agency’s research agenda reflects the strategic priorities of key actors. This is an important factor in the Agency’s role in the EU human rights landscape. This pioneering position of the Agency should invite reflection on new forms of institutionalized human rights research for the future

SUE: A Special Purpose Computer for Spin Glass Models

The use of last generation Programmable Electronic Components makes possible the construction of very powerful and competitive special purpose computers. We have designed, constructed and tested a three-dimensional Spin Glass model dedicated machine, which consists of 12 identical boards. Each single board can simulate 8 different systems, updating all the systems at every clock cycle. The update speed of the whole machine is 217ps/spin with 48 MHz clock frequency. A device devoted to fast random number generation has been developed and included in every board. The on-board reprogrammability permits us to change easily the lattice size, or even the update algorithm or the action. We present here a detailed description of the machine and the first runs using the Heat Bath algorithm.Comment: Submitted to Computer Physics Communications, 19 pages, 5 figures, references adde

Differential response of communities of plants, snails, ants and spiders to long-term mowing in a small-scale experiment

We examined the response of communities of four groups of organisms (plants, snails, ants and spiders) in a small scale mosaic of 8-years mown and unmown plots in a wet meadow in Central Europe. The experimental setup consisted of 7 unmown and 8 regularly mown 4 m2 plots in checkerboard arrangement. Eight years after the start of the experiment, the plant community structure diverged in response to mowing/nonmowing, both in species composition and structure. Both bryophyte and vascular plant species numbers were significantly higher in the mown plots. In unmown plots, bryophytes nearly disappeared and plots were dominated by the tall tussock grass Molinia caerulea. Both diversity and abundance of snails were higher in unmown plots than in mown ones. Ant nests were more abundant in mown plots and species composition differed between mown and unmown plots. We captured significantly more individuals of spiders in mown plots but we did not find any difference in species composition. We conclude that the 8-years duration of different management of 4 m2 plots was sufficient to establish different communities in low movable organisms, whereas these plots are probably too small to host different assemblages of organisms with good active dispersal abilities

Preocupación de los profesores ante la reforma integral de la Educación Secundaria en México

En esta investigación de tipo exploratoria y de corte cuantitativo, se utilizó el Cuestionario de las Etapas de Preocupaciones para facilitadores del cambio, basado en el Modelo de Preocupaciones de los profesores propuesto por Fuller (1972), George (1978) y Hall, et al. (1991), con el propósito de identificar la etapa de preocupación predominante, en los profesores que laboran en las cuatro escuelas secundarias del estado de Yucatán, en donde se llevó a cabo la Primera Etapa de Implementación (PEI) de la Reforma Integral de la Educación Secundaria (RIES). Asimismo, se identificaron las preocupaciones de los profesores ante las propuestas realizadas por la Secretaría de Educación Pública para implementar la Reforma. El instrumento se administró a 100 profesores, de los cuales 50 participaban en la PEI y 50 no participaban en ella, al momento de realizar la encuesta. Los resultados demuestran que el 40% (n=20) de los profesores que participaban en la PEI se ubicaron en la etapa de información y que el 72% (n=36) de los que no participan se ubicaron en esta misma etapa, lo cual evidencia necesidades de información concerniente a la Reforma. Por otra parte, se identificó una alta preocupación hacia los cambios propuestos por la Secretaría de Educación, al igual que las necesidades de capacitación para mejorar el desempeño docente de los sujetos. De manera general, se identificó una perspectiva moderadamente positiva hacia las posibilidades de éxito de la Reforma para la calidad educativa en el estado

A Short Non-Saline Sprinkling Increases the Tuber Weights of Saline Sprinkler Irrigated Potatoes

© 2017 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Previous work has shown that a short non-saline sprinkling, following saline sprinkling, increased crop growth. We incorporated this finding into an investigation of two approaches to the conjunctive use of saline and non-saline water sources for sprinkler irrigation of potatoes viz., (i) mixing waters prior to application, and (ii) keeping waters temporally separate, that is commencing each irrigation with saline water and finishing it with non-saline sprinkling. The latter approach delayed canopy senescence and increased tuber weight by at least 150%. Under both approaches, soil salinities and leaf and tuber concentrations of Na+ and Cl− were similar. Thus, the advantages of a non-saline sprinkling cannot be explained in terms of its effect on either soil osmotic potential or bulk tissue concentrations of putatively toxic ions Na+ and Cl−. We propose that the positive effect of finishing irrigations with a non-saline sprinkling may be attributed to either dilution, and hence increase in osmotic potential, of the water film that remains on the leaf after each irrigation or its effect on the distribution of the putatively toxic ions Na+ and Cl− within tissue. View Full-Tex

The portafolio as an instrument for evaluating a teaching training programme

Este trabajo presenta los resultados de un estudio que utilizó el portafolio como instrumento para la evaluación de profesores que participaron en un programa de formación docente en el sureste de México. Los resultados del estudio indican que la metodología utilizada fue valiosa para evaluar el desempeño de los docentes e identificar áreas de mejora. La investigación es parte del proyecto Modelo para el desarrollo y evaluación de competencias académicas de la Red de Desarrollo y Evaluación de Competencias Académicas (PROMEP).Este trabalho apresenta os resultados de um estudo que usado o portfólio como uma ferramenta para a avaliação de professores que participou de um programa de formação de professores de Sudeste do México. Os resultados do estudo indicam que a metodologia foi valiosa para avaliar o desempenho dos professores e identificar áreas para melhoria. A pesquisa é parte do projeto modelo para o desenvolvimento e a avaliação das competências académicas da rede de desenvolvimento e avaliação das competências académicas (PROMEP).This paper presents the findings of a study that used a teacher portfolio as instrument for evaluating faculty members who participated in a preparation program in Southeast Mexico. Findings of the study indicate that portfolios were valuable both for evaluation and for improvement purposes. The study is part of a larger research endeavor: Model fro the development and assessment of academic competencies developed by the Red de Desarrollo y Evaluación de Competencias Académicas (PROMEP)

Les éléments constitutifs des terrains biologiques et les immunités naturelles

Pech J. L. Les éléments constitutifs des terrains biologiques et les immunités naturelles. In: Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France tome 118 n°2, 1965. pp. 63-68