Engineering capstone project as a service-learning activity: A case study in Geomatics degree

[EN] Capstone projects are the culminating experience of engineering students, where they are focused on real-world application, so they will be better prepared for their professional life. In the present communication it is raised an application approach of incorporation of a service-learning methodology into the capstone projects to improve the acquisition of skills, as well as motivation and engagement. The activity is contextualized in the so-called depopulated Spain, which includes towns and villages with a high risk of depopulation and a shortage of investment and resources. The experience was carried out in the capstone project of a Geomatics Engineering degree.S

Síndrome hemolítico urémico atípico posterior a trasplante renal: presentación de un caso y revisión de la literatura

Haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a clinical entity characterized by the appearance of non immune hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia and acute renal failure. It is a disease belonging to the group of thrombotic microangiopathy (MAT) which are part of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura also (PTT) and some other MAT associated with other medical conditions formerly known as secondary MAT.Moreover, the variety known as atypical HUS (aHUS) is an ultra-orphan disease that frequently progresses to chronic renal failure (CRF) and is associated with high morbidity and mortality if not properly treated. If a patient presents its first clinical manifestation of aHUS later receive a cadaveric renal transplant which not only makes it an even more exotic case but involves more complexity in their management is presented.El síndrome hemolítico urémico (SHU) es una entidad clínica caracterizada por la aparición de anemia hemolítica no inmune, trombocitopenia e insuficiencia renal aguda. Se trata de una enfermedad perteneciente al grupo de las microangiopatías trombóticas (MAT) de la que hacen parte también la purpura trombocitopénica trombótica (PTT) y algunas otras MAT asociadas a otras condiciones médicas antes conocidas como MAT secundarias. Por otra parte, la variedad conocida como SHU atípico (SHUa) es una patología ultra-huérfana que frecuentemente evoluciona a insuficiencia renal crónica (IRC) y se asocia con elevada morbimortalidad si no recibe el tratamiento adecuado. Se examina el caso de un paciente que presenta su primera manifestación clínica de síndrome hemolítico urémico atípico después de trasplante renal cadavérico lo cual no solo lo hace un caso aún más exótico, sino que implica mayor complejidad en su manejo. &nbsp

Industrialization of bricks with the use of a mechanical mixer for the oleros of the city of Pilar

El estudio propone una alternativa para la industrialización de ladrillos con utilización de mezcladora mecánica para los oleros de la compañía de Valle Apu´a Distrito de Pilar, Departamento de Ñeembucú, República del Paraguay, para que el producto responda a las especificaciones técnicas del mercado de la construcción. Para el efecto en una primera fase, denominada diagnóstica, se analizaron categorías de análisis referente a: caracterización de las empresas que industrializan ladrillos, proceso de industrialización, y dificultades de industrialización y comercialización. Sobre esta fase se desarrolló la segunda fase del estudio, que finalmente propone un modelo de industrialización de ladrillos con utilización de mezcladora mecánica para los oleros. La investigación sigue un paradigma cualitativo, es de carácter observacional descriptivo y de acuerdo al tiempo de análisis, es trasversal prospectivo. Se trabajó con 8 (ocho) olerías ubicadas en la compañía Valle Apu´a Distrito de Pilar en el año 2021. Por consiguiente, la población está conformada por 8 propietarios de empresas olerás. Como instrumento de recolección de datos se utilizó una entrevista semiestructurada a propietarios y una lista de verificación del sistema de calidad, de elaboración propia, en base a los indicadores ISO 9000/2008, para el proceso de producción de ladrillos. Los resultados muestran la necesidad de adoptar la industrialización con mezcladora, debido a que, en la mayoría de las olerías utilizan un sistema de fabricación de ladrillos de manera arcaica y precaria, no cumpliendo éstas con las normas INTN, ni con las normas de calidad ISO 9001/2008.The study proposes an alternative for the industrialization of bricks with the use of a mechanical mixer for the oleros of the company of Valle Apu´a District of Pilar, Department of Ñeembucú, Republic of Paraguay, so that the product meets the technical specifications of the construction market. For the effect, in a first phase, called diagnosis, analysis categories were analyzed referring to: characterization of the companies that industrialize bricks, industrialization process, and difficulties of industrialization and commercialization. On this phase, the second phase of the study was developed, which finally proposes a model of industrialization of bricks with the use of a mechanical mixer for the oleros. The research follows a qualitative paradigm, it is descriptive and observational in nature and according to the time of analysis, it is prospective cross-sectional. We worked with 8 (eight) olerías located in the company Valle Apu´a Distrito de Pilar in the year 2021. Consequently, the population is made up of 8 owners of olerás companies. As a data collection instrument, a semi-structured interview with owners and a quality system checklist, of our own elaboration, based on the ISO 9000/2008 indicators, for the brick production process was used. The results show the need to adopt industrialization with a mixer, due to the fact that, in most olerías, they use a brick manufacturing system in an archaic and precarious way, not complying with INTN norms, nor with ISO quality norms. 9001/2008

Definition and characterization of a historical building by using digital photogrammetry and operational modal analysis : San Juan de los Caballeros Church (Cádiz, Spain)

Congreso celebrado en la Escuela de Arquitectura de la Universidad de Sevilla desde el 24 hasta el 26 de junio de 2015.Nowadays, the preservation of the architectural heritage is a fundamental aspect in the cultural development of modern cities. This heritage has to be preserved and different technical analysis are usually necessary to ensure its proper preservation. The main problem is that the greatest difficulty for the analytical analysis of kind of buildings is the high level of uncertainty associated with many factors. For example, slight modifications of the geometry or the mechanical properties of the structural materials can be the cause of great differences between the results obtained from an analytical analysis and others estimated experimentally. Due to this fact, before performing these analysis, non-destructive techniques are usually an indispensable tool to provide information about the current geometry and the structural behaviour of the building. Thus, the use of photogrammetric techniques and ambient vibration tests allows the right definition of the current geometry and the dynamic characterization of the building, respectively

Diatoms, protein and carbohydrate sediment content as proxies for coastal eutrophication in Montevideo, Rio de la Plata Estuary, Uruguay

Foi realizado um estudo da salinidade e da composição das diatomáceas presentes no sedimento superficial em relação ao conteúdo de proteínas/carboidratos na Baía de Montevidéu e região costeira adjacente. Foram obtidas amostras sazonalmente durante um ano ao longo de um gradiente de impacto ambiental humano, e as condições tróficas foram determinadas através da análise da composição bioquímica da matéria orgânica do sedimento superficial. A coocorrência de espécies de diatomáceas marinhas-salobras, (Actinocyclus curvatulus, Actinocyclus gallicus, Coscinodiscus excentricus, Coscinodiscus radiatus, Hyalodiscus subtilis, Paralia sulcata) e diatomáceas indicadoras de águas doces (Aulacoseira granulata, Aulacoseira italica, Aulacoseira muzzanensis, Actinocyclus normanii, Amphora copulata, Cyclotella meneghiniana, Nitzschia linearis) sugerem condições mixohalinas estuarinas na área de estudo. As estações amostradas dentro da baía, próximas às fontes contaminadoras, apresentam condições hipertróficas apontadas pelos maiores valores de proteínas e pela alta abundância relativa de Actinocyclus normanii e Cyclotella meneghiniana, sendo que ambas espécies são consideradas cosmopolitas e indicadoras de degradação aquática. As concentrações de proteínas e carboidratos, bem como os pigmentos fotossintéticos registrados na região costeira adjacente sugerem condições meso-eutróficas e uma diluição dos níveis de contaminação do interior da baía rumo à região externa. A análise multivariada entre espécies de diatomáceas e parâmetros ambientais indica que o gradiente trófico possui hierarquicamente maior peso que a salinidade na explicação da distribuição das diatomáceas. Os resultados obtidos demonstram um aperfeiçoamento na habilidade de determinar a contaminação orgânica dentro da área de estudo, já que pela primeira vez tanto as variáveis orgânicas quanto os biopolímeros foram introduzidos como ferramenta para a determinação da relação degradação/saúde de uma das mais populosas regiões do Río de la Plata.A study on sediment surface diatom composition in relation to both protein/carbohydrate content and salinity was carried out in Montevideo Bay and the adjacent coastal zone. Samples were seasonally taken during one year along a human impact gradient, and the trophic conditions were assessed from the biochemical composition of the surface sediment organic matter. The co-occurrence of the marine-brackish (Actinocyclus curvatulus, Actinocyclus gallicus, Coscinodiscus excentricus, Coscinodiscus radiatus, Hyalodiscus subtilis, Paralia sulcata) and freshwater diatom flora (Aulacoseira granulata, Aulacoseira italica, Aulacoseira muzzanensis, Actinocyclus normanii, Amphora copulata, Cyclotella meneghiniana, Nitzschia linearis), suggests myxohaline estuarine conditions in the study area. The sampling stations located within the bay, close to several contamination sources, exhibited hypertrophic conditions as indicated by the highest levels of protein content, but also by the high relative abundances of Actinocyclus normanii and Cyclotella meneghiniana, as both diatom species are very well established cosmopolitan proxies of aquatic degradation. The levels of both protein and carbohydrate content, but also photosynthetic pigments, recorded in the adjacent coastal zone suggest meso-eutrophic conditions as contamination levels from the inner bay might become diluted off shore. Multivariate diatom species-environmental data relationships, indicate that the trophic gradient is hierarchically more important than salinity in explaining the diatom distribution. The present data imply an improvement in our ability of assessing organic contamination in the study area, since both biological and biopolymer variables were introduced for the first time as a tool for assessing the benthic health/degradation in one of the most populated regions of the Río de la Plata

Evolution of and additional functionalities to the city energy planning platform MEU

The MEU GIS-enabled web-platform has been developed in close collaboration with four Swiss cities: it enables detailed monitoring and planning for both energy demand and supply at individual building and neighborhood level (http://meu.epfl.ch). Whereas the first version of the MEU platform allowed launching calculations for only up to several hundreds of buildings at a time, the refactored version presently gives access to entire cities comprising several thousands of buildings with the same level of detail. On one hand, the code architecture has been thoroughly revised and consolidated while, on the other hand, the databases for the four partner cities are being completed, checked, corrected and eventually made completely available for several years. A large test campaign is thus underway on the refactored version of the MEU platform. In the upcoming months, the latter will present all the functionalities of the prototype version, i.e. include the construction and evaluation of complex energy scenarios. New functionalities are concomitantly being added to the MEU platform, in particular at the level of the energy networks. Indeed, in the prototype version, the latter were only displayed but no network attributes (except geo-referencing) were neither introduced nor used in calculations. The envisioned new functionalities will enable to start filling this important usability gap by adding network detailed attributes to the database structure and by allowing pre-dimensioning calculations based on selected energy scenarios and including the networks characteristics (available power, temperatures/pressures, limiting dimensions, aso.). The energy supply side aspects will thus be quantitatively be taken into account, along with the implications in terms of network extension/densification precisely determined. The natural gas network, which is – and shall continue to be - broadly present in all four partner cities, representing up to 30 % of the overall final territorial energy consumption, will be used as the first test case, in close collaboration with local multi-energy utilities

Protocol for the formulation of programmed conservation plans in Costa Rica

[EN] This paper discusses the proposed protocol for the formulation of programmed conservation plans (PCP) for heritage buildings in the Costa Rican context, which is one of the outcomes of the second objective of the research project «Management tools and programmed conservation in built heritage interventions in Costa Rica». The methodological techniques for achieving this objective were synchronic comparison, document analysis, preparation of the proposal, and validation. This document describes the PCP formulation protocol by means of process diagrams for each proposed phase.[ES] En este artículo se aborda la propuesta del protocolo de formulación de planes de conservación programada (PCP) para inmuebles patrimoniales en el contexto costarricense, el cual es parte de los resultados del segundo objetivo del proyecto de investigación: «Herramientas de gestión y conservación programada en intervenciones de bienes inmuebles patrimoniales en Costa Rica». La metodología para el desarrollo de este objetivo consistió en la comparación sincrónica, el análisis documental, la elaboración de la propuesta y la validación. La descripción del protocolo se acompaña de diagramas de proceso para cada fase propuesta.Bulgarelli-Bolaños, JP.; Malavassi-Aguilar, RE.; Hernández-Salazar, I.; Salazar Ceciliano, E.; Valverde-Solano, MDC.; Pinto Puerto, F. (2022). Propuesta de protocolo para la formulación de Planes de Conservación Programada en Costa Rica. Loggia, Arquitectura & Restauración. (35):28-39. https://doi.org/10.4995/loggia.2022.1632028393

Hippo pathway effectors YAP1/TAZ induce an EWS–FLI1‐opposing gene signature and associate with disease progression in Ewing sarcoma

YAP1 and TAZ (WWTR1) oncoproteins are the final transducers of the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway. Deregulation of the pathway leads to YAP1/TAZ activation fostering tumorigenesis in multiple malignant tumor types, including sarcoma. However, oncogenic mutations within the core components of the Hippo pathway are uncommon. Ewing sarcoma (EwS), a pediatric cancer with low mutation rate, is characterized by a canonical fusion involving the gene EWSR1 and FLI1 as the most common partner. The fusion protein is a potent driver of oncogenesis, but secondary alterations are scarce, and little is known about other biological factors that determine the risk of relapse or progression. We have observed YAP1/TAZ expression and transcriptional activity in EwS cell lines. Analyses of 55 primary human EwS samples revealed that high YAP1/TAZ expression was associated with progression of the disease and predicted poorer outcome. We did not observe recurrent SNV or copy number gains/losses in Hippo pathway‐related loci. However, differential CpG methylation of the RASSF1 locus (a regulator of the Hippo pathway) was observed in EwS cell lines compared with mesenchymal stem cells, the putative cell of origin of EwS. Hypermethylation of RASSF1 correlated with the transcriptional silencing of the tumor suppressor isoform RASFF1A, and transcriptional activation of the pro‐tumorigenic isoform RASSF1C, which promotes YAP1/TAZ activation. Knockdown of YAP1/TAZ decreased proliferation and invasion abilities of EwS cells and revealed that YAP1/TAZ transcription activity is inversely correlated with the EWS–FLI1 transcriptional signature. This transcriptional antagonism could be explained partly by EWS–FLI1‐mediated transcriptional repression of TAZ. Thus, YAP1/TAZ may override the transcriptional program induced by the fusion protein, contributing to the phenotypic plasticity determined by dynamic fluctuation of the fusion protein, a recently proposed model for disease dissemination in EwS

Lavado de activos en Colombia

El presente artículo de investigación científica tiene como objetivo explicar cómo se originó el lavado de activos en Colombia, identificando cuáles son los métodos usados por los delincuentes para lavar activo,  junto con los delitos que lo alimentan y analizar las consecuencias del lavado de activos. Problemática actual en Colombia, se puede recalcar que este tipo de actividad lo realizan los delincuentes de cuello blanco, quienes por métodos expliciticos y estratégicos, intentan  ingresar al país activos precedentes del narcotráfico o actividades ilegales,  las autoridades competentes como lo es en este caso la policía metropolitana, la fiscalía y la DIAN, cumplen un papel fundamental pues ayudan a evitar la entrada de estos activos a la sociedad, ya que el impacto económico es muy alto y dicho fenómenos es el causante de que la inflación en el país pueda incrementar sus porcentajes